When neighbors told Michael Ladin and his wife, Judy Howard, about the incredible care offered at Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Common, the couple decided to check it out themselves.

As residents of the adjacent Cresswind community, Ladin and Howard had taken note as the state-of-the-art, 65,000-square-foot facility was built. When it opened in September 2019, they received an invitation from the health system to tour the new medical park but couldn’t attend.  

A subsequent report from neighbors, who “raved” about the care they had received from Dr. Roxanne Latimer, who practices at Tidelands Health Family Medicine in the medical park, prompted them to make their own appointments. They haven’t looked back.

“We were incredibly impressed,” Ladin said. “Dr. Latimer is awesome. She is personable without being intrusive. She knows her stuff.”

In the year since it opened, Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Commonhas ushered in a new era of medical care within the Myrtle Beach community. It has brought together more than a half dozen practices and specialties – including primary care, cardiology, gastroenterology, orthopedics and more – to provide highly coordinated care all under one roof close to home.

The new medical park has also greatly expanded the availability of care within the rapidly growing Myrtle Beach area. In its first year, more than 50,000 care appointments have been provided at the medical park.

“It’s really rewarding to see how the community has embraced the new medical park,” said Gayle Resetar, chief operating officer at Tidelands Health. “People enjoy being able to seamlessly visit with their physician and complete physical therapy, imaging and more – all in one convenient location.”

Since opening Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Common, the health system has added several new services at the location, including endocrinology, pediatric orthopedics and general surgery appointments, and has plans to open an outpatient surgery center within the medical park in spring 2021.

“From the outset, our plan was for the services available at the medical park to grow to support the area’s health and wellness needs,” Resetar said. “If there’s a need for additional types of care, we want to provide it.”

The new medical park is an integral part of the continuum of care offered in the area by Tidelands Health, our region’s largest health care provider. The health system offers a range of complementary services within easy reach of the medical park and has plans to add inpatient hospital care nearby through the construction of Tidelands Health Carolina Bays Hospital.

Pending approval from state regulators, the 36-bed Tidelands Health Carolina Bays Hospital will be conveniently located at the interchange of Highway 31 and S.C. 707 in the rapidly growing Socastee area community. Plans call for an emergency department, medical, surgical and critical care, four operating suites, diagnostic imaging, laboratory services and more.

Area residents can quickly and easily sign a letter of support urging state regulators to approve the new hospital by clicking here.

“Convenient access to a broad range of advanced, high-quality care is critical to community health,” Resetar said. “The opening of the new hospital will make it easier than ever for folks to transition between inpatient and outpatient care.

“If someone gets hurt, for example, they can benefit from ready access to emergency and inpatient care at Tidelands Health Carolina Bays Hospital followed by orthopedic care, physical therapy and other outpatient services they may need within the community.”

Ease of access was one of the reasons Myrtle Beach resident Casey Houser, 24, chose Dr. Lisa Centilli, who practices at Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Common, as his primary care physician.

He used to live in an apartment near the three-story facility, which made it extremely easy to see Dr. Centilli, but moved further away. Still, he has continued to see her for his primary care.

“She really cares about her patients,” said Houser, whose mother is a nurse at Tidelands Waccamaw Community Hospital.  

That patient-centered approach remains a central focus for the health system even as the organization grows to support the community’s health and wellness needs.

“Ultimately, that’s why we built Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Common and why we have plans to build Tidelands Health Carolina Bays Hospital – to care for our patients and support our community,” Resetar said. “Our not-for-profit organization has been helping people live better lives through better health for more than 70 years, and we’re looking forward to continuing that tradition for many years to come.”

Initially, Ladin said, some of his neighbors in the Cresswind community were nervous about the impact Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Common might have on the area because of its close proximity to their homes.

However, he said, those concerns have been allayed and people have found the facility’s presence to be a tremendous benefit. 

As with all Tidelands Health construction projects, Tidelands Health Medical Park at The Market Common was built to fit into the surrounding neighborhood. Everything from the outdoor lighting, landscaping and overall aesthetic of the medical park was chosen with neighbors in mind.

“I would say the overall impact of the medical park is overwhelmingly positive,” Ladin said. “You guys did it right.”