St. Luke’s Health Ushers in New Era of Care with O’Quinn Medical Tower at McNair

HOUSTON (March 28, 2023) - With a blessing from Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro C.R.S., Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, St. Luke’s Health ushered in a new era of internationally renowned outpatient and cancer care with the new O’Quinn Medical Tower at McNair. It is the latest addition to the Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center McNair Campus and adjoins the existing McNair Hospital Tower, which opened in 2019.

“The O’Quinn Medical Tower at McNair strengthens our ability to allow our best and brightest clinicians to excel at providing world-class care to our patients and community,” said Doug Lawson, PhD, CEO of St. Luke’s Health. “We are positioning our ministry of healing to continue as the high-value provider of choice for generations to come.”

A 12-story, 420,000 square foot ambulatory care center, O’Quinn Medical Tower is home to savvy and cutting-edge amenities and resources. It features an environment of healing, incorporating natural lighting and balcony gardens, curated artwork with calming nature scenes, an ambulatory surgery center with 12 additional operating rooms and 10 new endoscopy suites, and ample on-site parking.

“We were very intentional in thinking through every detail of the patient and visitor experience when designing the building,” said Liz Youngblood, president of Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center. “The O'Quinn Medical Tower is a purposeful space that promotes healing and well-being where our expert caregivers and staff can continue delivering compassionate high-quality care for our patients.“

The O’Quinn Medical Tower enhances the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center by tripling it in size with an additional 80-bay infusion center, more than 70 exam rooms, and state-of-the-art imaging and radiation treatment equipment. Through Baylor College of Medicine, it is one of only three NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers in Texas, ranked among the nation’s best cancer programs by U.S. News & World Report, and home to groundbreaking cancer research in specialties like breast, colorectal, liver, prostate, and gynecologic cancers.

“It was vital for us to incorporate patient feedback in the design process to ensure we offer an exceptional patient-centered experience at the new Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center,” said Nike Onifade, vice president of oncology at St. Luke’s Health. “For example, feedback from our patient focus groups is reflected in how we designed the infusion suites, which offer our patients the option of privacy or community while receiving their treatments.”  

“Our goal is a single welcoming location for our dedicated clinical and support staff to provide safe, quality, compassionate care to all our patients,” said Dr. Mothaffar Rimawi, executive medical director of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center and professor of medicine – hematology and oncology at Baylor College

of Medicine. “The new tower conveniently puts all Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center services in the same building where Baylor College of Medicine and St. Luke’s can advance our history of groundbreaking cancer research and treatment.”

HKS Architects designed the project and Harvey-Cleary is the general contractor.

The O’Quinn Medical Tower represents a $426 million investment by CommonSpirit Health, St. Luke’s parent ministry. In totality, the McNair Campus comprises a 1.2 million square foot, $1.3 billion project. 

The Hospital Tower at McNair will retain orthopedic services and clinical office space for Baylor College of Medicine physicians. St. Luke’s is also investing in significant upgrades to the existing Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center campus, located in the heart of the Texas Medical Center.

About St. Luke’s Health

St. Luke’s Health is home to 16 general hospitals covering Houston, Brazos Valley, Brazosport, and Lufkin and includes Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, the research and teaching hospital for Baylor College of Medicine. St. Luke’s Health is also home to the Texas Heart ®Institute (THI), the top ranked heart center in Houston, and the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, a nationally accredited, NCI-designated cancer center. Its integrated network of care includes more than 380 employed and 1,600 clinically aligned network providers, and more than 21,000 employees, providers, interns, and volunteers delivering high value, nationally-ranked quality care within a Christian ministry of healing. St. Luke’s Health is a member of CommonSpirit Health, a national nonprofit, Catholic health system with more than 140 hospitals covering 21 states and delivering care to more than 12.3 million patient visits annually. Learn more at stlukeshealth.org.