SARASOTA, Fla. (August 14, 2026) – Sarasota Memorial’s Women & Children’s Services teams are celebrating a system record after welcoming 434 babies at its Sarasota campus in July — the most babies ever born in a single month at an SMH facility.
The record-setting month included 252 baby boys and 181 baby girls, with 12 sets of twins among them.
The SMH Women & Children’s Services teams provide compassionate, specialized care that supports families across the region, from pregnancy and delivery through newborn and pediatric care and beyond. So far in 2026, Sarasota Memorial has welcomed more than 3,000 babies into the world, including 47 sets of twins between its two hospital campuses.
“We’re incredibly grateful to the families who continue to trust Sarasota Memorial to care for them and their growing families,” said Abby Olsen, Director of Women and Children’s Services at SMH. “Every birth is special, and it’s an honor for our teams to be part of these meaningful moments.”
Sarasota Memorial is the only hospital in Sarasota County providing obstetrics and maternity services, high-risk pregnancy care, a neonatal intensive care unit for premature and critically ill newborns and comprehensive pediatric services. With specialized care for both mothers and babies, Sarasota Memorial is uniquely equipped to support families through every stage of their journey.
About Sarasota Memorial Health Care System
Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional medical center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of care, with about 2,500 physicians and advanced practice providers, 11,000 employees and 2 million patient visits a year across its network of care. Sarasota County’s largest employer, the community-owned health system includes two full-service hospitals in Sarasota and Venice (and third under construction in North Port), freestanding ERs in North Port and Lakewood Ranch, a rehabilitation hospital, skilled nursing facility and comprehensive network of outpatient centers, urgent care clinics and SMH First Physicians Group primary and specialty care practices. Founded in 1925, SMH’s flagship Sarasota campus also is home to the Brian D. Jellison Cancer Institute, Cornell Behavioral Health Pavilion and Kolschowsky Research and Education Institute. Both Sarasota Memorial Hospital-Sarasota and Sarasota Memorial Hospital-Venice have earned the highest 5-Star quality ratings from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The SMH-Sarasota is the only Florida hospital – and one of just 11 in the nation – to earn a perfect 5-Star rating from CMS every year since the federal rating program began in 2016.