Arkansas Children's Northwest Previews Expansion with Top-Tier Surgical Care, Easier Access and Advanced Offerings

SPRINGDALE, AR. (Sept. 24, 2025) – When Arkansas Children’s Northwest (ACNW) finalizes its expansion in late 2026, families in the American heartland will be able to stay closer to home to address more complex pediatric conditions than ever before.

The expansion will create more resources, advanced tools and spaces tailored to children’s specific needs. ACNW’s growth will bridge a gap for families from surrounding states who need higher levels of specialized care and will further reduce the need for Arkansas families to seek care outside the region.

Arkansas Children’s shared details of the $82.7 million expansion and updated renderings on Wednesday, as construction on 50,000 square feet of new finished space and 23,000 square feet of renovated space continues.

Contractor Nabholz Construction is focused on blending the new construction and existing hospital along all floors.

Arkansas Children’s plans to open the building’s doors to overnight patients in the fall of 2026. It will add new operating rooms, a new procedure room and a new endoscopy procedure suite.

“Every child deserves a healthier tomorrow, and that starts with access to exceptional care, close to home for children in this region,” said Arkansas Children’s President & CEO Marcy Doderer. “This expansion is about more than new buildings. It’s about answering the call when a child needs surgery, chemotherapy, or a second chance at life. We are creating more capacity to care for this region's children.”

Surgery at ACNW with the Pediatric Leader: More ORs, Beds and Clinic Space

As the leader for pediatric surgery in the region, ACNW already provides families access to some of the nation’s top experts in general surgeries and surgical specialties including orthopedics, cardiology and gastrointestinal care. 

The addition, with construction rapidly progressing since early 2024, will transform the campus to meet urgent community needs.

Key enhancements include:

• Redesigning and expanding lab, pharmacy and sterile processing for improved efficiency and future growth.
• Expanding several outpatient specialties, including Neurology, Cardiology and Pulmonary, within the Children’s Center for Health and Wellness through 16,500 new square feet of space.
• Adding an endoscopy suite for GI services, growing infusion spaces and increasing the number of operating rooms.
• Relocating the lab draw area to the main entry for easier access and a better patient experience.
• Adding 22,500 square feet of new shell space for future growth.

“We are building the future together in this next chapter in our story,” Doderer said. “The result will define excellence and deliver a healthier tomorrow for the children of Northwest Arkansas and the surrounding states.”

Since its 2018 opening, ACNW has flourished as a regional pediatric hub, serving over 570,000 patient visits and significantly easing travel burdens for families. The majority of children in Northwest Arkansas receive their specialized care at the Springdale campus, supported by quaternary care resources at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock.

Families statewide often must travel 200-plus miles to reach another health system that provides a similar level of pediatric services.

Arkansas Children’s expansion will ensure even more children can experience specialized care close to home, designed specifically with their unique needs in mind, while retaining ACNW's vital community character. To learn more and see renderings, visit archildrens.org/expansion.

ABOUT ARKANSAS CHILDREN’S

Arkansas Children's is the only health care system in the state solely dedicated to caring for Arkansas' 850,000 children. The private, non-profit organization includes two pediatric hospitals with 361 licensed beds, a pediatric research institute and USDA nutrition center, a philanthropic foundation, a nursery alliance, statewide clinics, and many education and outreach programs — all focused on fulfilling a promise to define and deliver unprecedented child health. Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) is a Magnet-recognized facility in Little Rock operating the state’s only Level I pediatric trauma center; the state's only burn center; the state's only Level IV neonatal intensive care unit; the state's only pediatric intensive care unit; the state’s only pediatric surgery program with Level 1 verification from the American College of Surgeons (ACS); and the state's only nationally recognized pediatric transport program. Arkansas Children’s is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report in seven pediatric subspecialties (2024-2025): Cancer, Cardiology & Heart Surgery, Neonatal Care, Nephrology, Neurology & Neurosurgery, Orthopedics and Pulmonology & Lung Surgery. Arkansas Children’s Northwest (ACNW), the first and only pediatric hospital in the northwest Arkansas region, is a Level IV pediatric trauma center. ACNW operates an inpatient unit that will expand in 2026; a surgical unit with five operating rooms; outpatient clinics offering over 20 subspecialties; diagnostic services; imaging capabilities; occupational therapy services; and northwest Arkansas' only pediatric emergency department. Generous philanthropic and volunteer engagement has sustained Arkansas Children's since it began as an orphanage in 1912, and today ensures the system can deliver on its promise of unprecedented child health. To learn more, visit archildrens.org.


# # #