The Brooks Rehabilitation Neuro Recovery Center on University Boulevard South, showing some of the equipment and services expected at the Baptist Health location. | Brooks Rehabilitation
Published on February 10, 2026 at 2:21 pm
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Baptist Health is building an 18-bed inpatient rehabilitation unit in collaboration with Brooks Rehabilitation.
The unit, inside Baptist Health’s San Marco campus, will be the first inpatient rehabilitation facility within a Baptist Health hospital. It will allow a patient to go smoothly from hospital to inpatient rehab services.
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The team at the new center will specialize in patients recovering from strokes, brain and spinal cord injuries and other neurological conditions. It will use Brooks’ expertise in inpatient physical rehabilitative care, its president and CEO, Doug Baer, said in a news release.
“Brooks Rehabilitation has served Northeast Florida for more than 50 years with a commitment to providing high-quality care for individuals recovering from serious illness and injury,” Baer said. “This collaboration with Baptist Health expands access to specialized inpatient services and strengthens our ability to support patients affected by complex neurological conditions.”
The new center will have private rooms, a large rehabilitation gym and specialized neurological equipment and technology. The center also will have an outdoor recovery area and realistic home environments for patients to practice daily activities.
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The new facility joins Brooks Rehabilitation‘s plans for what it calls “a significant strategic growth initiative” with three construction projects set to begin next year.
The projects include a significant expansion of Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital’s Bartram Campus in Mandarin; expansion of its Orange Park outpatient clinic on Park Avenue; and a plan to double the capacity of Helen’s House, its family and patient housing at 6207 Beach Blvd. These represent a capital investment of about $68 million and could create 150 jobs, Brooks officials said.
Baptist Health will retain full ownership of the new rehabilitation facility, while Brooks will oversee its daily operations. Brooks handles rehabilitation services with numerous hospitals in Northeast Florida.
The rehabilitation center, part of which will go into a renovated part of Baptist Health, should open in spring 2027.
