A system-wide merger has taken place between Women's & Children's Hospital and Southwest Medical Center in Lafayette, LA to form the new Regional Medical Center of Acadiana System, which will consist of three campuses with Vicky Briggs as the newly appointed system CEO. All three campuses are part of HCA Inc.

The system will have more than 1,400 healthcare professionals and will include 16 medical office buildings with over 400,000 sq. ft. of space, 37 specialty physicians in eight practices, and two outpatient facilities--The Elaine M. Junca Women's Imaging Centre (Imaging Services of Louisiana, L.L.C.) and Lafayette Surgicare. Its two complementary campuses total 252 licensed beds, 51 NICU beds and 45 bassinets.

The creation of the health system was announced in March 2009. With the consolidation, each campus retains the same services that patients have come to rely upon. (Women's & Children's Hospital retains its current logo and is now referred to as "A Campus of The Regional Medical Center of Acadiana.")

The affiliated health care facilities in the health system also include New Iberia-based Dauterive Hospital with 103 licensed beds. (Dauterive Hospital is not part of the consolidation of Women's & Children's Hospital and Southwest Medical Center however).

Signage changes and consolidation of the two hospitals will be effective by the beginning of the third quarter of 2009.