Good morning.
[Ben] Just another day of making our favorite small town better.
-[Ben] Erin, we got to go, babe. -Go fix some more sad houses.
Ben, let's go.
[Erin] Growing up, I didn't see what was so special about Laurel.
[Ben] So every day, we make sure our girls see it.
-Good morning, Katie. -Hey.
[Ben] Can you believe we fixed up over 100 houses in Laurel?
[Erin] There's so much opportunity, so many unloved houses.
I don't know what is going to go wrong in here today.
I'm sure something.
[Ben] Oh, the bat just flew through here.
-[Erin] That's not good. -[Ben] No way.
We're about to see the house for the first time.
-This is the best part. -Oh, my God!
[man] Holy cow! Are you serious right now?
-[man 2] Ben, did you make this? -[Ben] Yeah, I made this.
[Erin] The real truth of living and working in your hometown is
that you're going to see these people everywhere forever.
[woman] It's your superpower, Erin.
[Ben] Color is her superpower.
-[woman] It is. -This is perfect.
[Ben] Every day is different when you're renovating houses
in Laurel, Mississippi.
[upbeat music playing]
-Good morning. -[Ben] Good morning.
We're headed to the Maternity Ward, y'all.
-Fun! -Here we go. Are y'all ready for this?
-Yes. -Next stop...
-Let's go to number two. -...Labor and Delivery.
[Erin laughs]
To renovate it.
Chill.
[Ben] We're going to renovate a hospital.
Just a little bit of one, though.
Our favorite part of the hospital is getting done.
Are y'all ready to go to the Maternity Ward?
[Ben] Yes!
This is a dream for South Central.
-This is a dream for us. -Yeah.
-We've spent a lot of time here at this hospital. -Aw.
[Erin] A community hospital like South Central is a small town
within a small town. -[Ben] Yeah.
It's really more than a hospital when you're from
a small community like ours.
I love South Central so much.
Had all of our babies there. They were amazing.
They are improving, like, left-and-right.
So Jesse and Lauren had their baby last week.
Yeah.
[Erin] But while we were there visiting Bonnie,
Allie Eaton came in and said that they wanted to --
-She is so sweet. -I love her.
Yeah.
And she said the board had talked and they were interested
in having us renovate a few model rooms in Maternal-Child
at the hospital. -I have thoughts.
-I have so many thoughts. -That'd be awesome.
I want to talk long-term stays.
The nursing staff was just incredible.
Like, I could cry thinking about it.
I'm still friends with them, and they message me.
I'm really excited about it, 'cause the last time it was
updated was 2000. -Dang.
[Erin] This hospital is just really special.
It's special for so many reasons.
My dad was a department head here at South Central Regional
Medical Center for 44 years. -So this is your home.
I'm extremely invested in the success of this hospital.
Well, we cannot thank you enough, like...
Well, you called the right people, is all I'm saying.
We are so excited.
In the same way that we want to see Laurel thrive
and be beautiful and healthy, we want the same thing for
our community hospital.
Well, here we are.
Here's the Maternity Ward.
Renovating this hospital is literally an extension of
what we're already doing with homes all over Laurel.
-Good morning. -Good morning, good morning.
-Keith, how are you? -Doing good -- how are you?
Or do I have to call you Dr. Winstead?
No, not -- not at all.
This is nurse Anna Goodwin, so...
-Nice to meet you, guys. -OK, good to meet you.
[Erin] The Maternity Ward has three departments.
There's Labor and Delivery, and Postpartum, and Pediatrics.
There's 30 rooms total and we're just going to
renovate one room from each department so they'll have
a prototype for renovating all of them later.
[Allie] We just want to make it feel like a five-star hotel
for our patients.
We have a hundred and fifty thousand dollars raised by
our healthcare foundation, and we want to duplicate
the rooms that y'all designed throughout the whole
entire department.
-Awesome. -Where are we starting?
So we will start in Labor and Delivery.
Currently, we walk into a very modern level of care,
and we get a somewhat dated appearance.
It's the first impression a lot of people have of the hospital.
[Allie] I mean, it was last updated 24 years ago,
so the colors are mmm.
I'm not super familiar with this one.
We had two C-sections so you don't come to this room.
-[Anna] Right. -What happens in here?
So this is a laboring room.
So a mom who is here maybe for an induction or just comes in
and labor would be in here. -[Erin] OK.
So family's in and out.
There's got to be a comfortable space for -- for family.
You can tell that there's some stuff going down in this room.
-[Anna] Yes. -Listen, fluids are a thing.
-I know this. -Mm, they do be happening.
-They do be happening, so... -They do be happening.
Which is why you have welded vinyl floors,
which would have to...
We would have to come back in with new welded vinyl flooring.
-[Anna] Right. -What do you wish was better?
I wish it looked different, very dated.
So this, I'm pretty sure, is where Lucy was born.
Tell me if this is the truth.
Mallorie believes that Lucy got bathed in that pedestal sink.
-I wouldn't confirm that. -[Anna] She did.
-I think Anna could give better... -She did.
-No, she did not. -Yes.
If babies are born in this room,
they get bathed in that sink.
[Erin] I just think you could do better.
Here's what I'm saying.
If I'm a patient here, we get rid of all this busyness,
all this texture on the walls, get rid of the border,
get rid of the curtains.
And instead we come in with -- I would love to do a crown
molding tray around the room and hide some warm ambient
lighting that would just make the room kind of glow.
It would make you feel peaceful.
And then on this wall behind the bed, built-ins,
you could have storage, some sconce lighting too.
Lighting changes everything as far as how you feel.
When these fluorescent lights are off,
it should feel comforting, cozy. -[Ben] Cozy.
[Erin] And what if we came in with a new welded vinyl floor
that's hospital-grade?
That gives the warmth of a wood floor color-wise.
[Anna] Yep.
[Erin] You could have a built-in vanity and room underneath
for a wheelchair or a chair.
A much better sink and setup for washing a baby.
-[Anna] Some counter space. -[Erin] Some counter space.
New lighting there that feels warm and glowy.
If you got the TV mounted on the wall,
that would help enormously.
And if this instead was a very low-profile console
of some sort. More comfortable seating.
[Anna] Yeah.
[Ben] And everything has to be wipeable.
-Sterile, but with warmth. -Right.
"Sterile" is a word I want to hear
in a hospital setting. -In a hospital, right.
[knocking on door]
Hey, hey, are y'all ready to go to Postpartum?
-[Erin] Yes, ma'am. -OK, let's go.
-OK. -Oh, sweet.
[Erin] I'm really familiar with this hospital.
When we were in college, I was a pharmacy tech
here in the hospital.
Hey, guys. This is Dr. Rachel Cudworth
and nurse Seania.
[Ben] When we were dating,
I got the job in the Transport Department
for the Physical Therapy Department.
-Postpartum room, here we are. -Home sweet home.
And we would meet up and have breakfast and lunch together
in the cafeteria. -And make out in the elevator.
A little bit, sometimes.
-[Erin] Thank you, ma'am. -[Allie] Yes, I will come back and get you.
[Ben] We know this room very well.
[sighs] If these walls can talk.
-[Dr. Cudworth] Yes. -[Seania] Absolutely.
It's probably strange to have emotional attachment
to a hospital room,
but I've been in here for surgery twice, babies twice.
In 2014, I laid in that bed and took a photo of
this direction, and I swear it looks identical.
-[Dr. Cudworth] Yes. -[Seania] Oh, wow.
[Erin] Nothing has changed.
I also want to say I had a wonderful experience.
Yeah, we did.
Every time I've ever been here.
I mean, you even slept a time or two.
[Ben] Right.
Overall, the space is really, it's a great size for
a postpartum room. -Oh yeah.
It allows for a lot of family members still allows the nurses
to do what they need to do functionally.
[Erin] Aesthetically, it could use a little help.
I love that we have a little dinette set here.
We have brought food, visited, and eaten at that
table when we had family here or friends. -[Dr. Cudworth] Yeah.
We have a picture of our first date as mom and dad.
[Erin] On that couch.
[Ben] We were sitting here. Yeah.
I mean, this room is only for rest and recovery.
If you can make this room feel like home, I would do that
starting on this wall, getting rid of the border,
the busy textured walls, then coming in with beautiful
real-wood built-ins that go around the bed.
I think painting these a color that's soothing, maybe like
a eucalyptus green with sconce lighting built into that,
and then wallpaper that looks like grasscloth,
something warm but neutral that feels luxury, new blinds,
like a Roman shade would be pretty to roll up there.
Instead of this big bulky armoire, have a flat-screen TV
mounted on the wall, and you could have a console
that might have a mini-fridge in it because that would be
so great for the family that's visiting.
[Dr. Cudworth] Yes.
[Erin] New, more comfortable furniture.
And then this flooring, if we came in with a new LVT
that looks like wood also, but something a little lighter.
It just would make the whole room feel brightened,
warm, fresh, and still very durable.
And then here, this dinette is really great.
But when I was here as a patient, what I wished for
was some counter space to sit a cosmetic bag.
You do not feel your most beautiful.
And if you could stand in front of a mirror and at least have
good lighting that makes you feel good.
-Kind of boosts your confidence a little bit. -It does.
It made me feel like a new person.
-Right. -Yep.
-Can we look in the bathroom? -Oh, yeah.
The tile has been updated in the shower.
-[Seania] Yes. -[Erin] It's new.
-I think we can work with it. -[Dr. Cudworth and Seania] Yeah.
-[Ben] Yeah. -[Erin] New flooring would be great.
-[Dr. Cudworth] Yes. -[Erin] And here, new tile.
[Seania] Yes, I was going to say flooring.
[Erin] New wallpaper, new lighting, new vanity.
Replace the cabinet with a new one.
[knocking on door]
-Hey, hey. -[Ben] What's up?
-[Erin] Hey. -Pediatrics?
-[Erin] Yeah. -[Ben] All right.
-Let's go. -[Erin] All right.
Hey, can I -- this is stupid.
Can I do one thing before we leave?
[Allie] What is it?
[laughs] Like, this is so silly.
I can't believe I'm crying about this.
Every time I've ever stayed in this room, I took a picture
from the bed of this wall, this ugly wall.
Can I get one more picture like that
before this is all gone? -Yes, go, go.
-[Allie] Yes, yes. -OK.
The last one.
I have nothing but happy memories here.
-Aw, well... -This is so silly -- OK.
[Dr. Cudworth] We'll see y'all later.
[Erin and Ben] Thank you.
I promise I don't cry over everything.
OK.
-[Ben] You want me to sit? -Yes.
-Oh, the last one ever. -[Allie] This is amazing.
[Ben chuckles]
-We can go now. -[Allie] Let's go.
[Allie] Pediatrics, here we go.
[Erin] OK, so it's very similar to Postpartum.
-[Kaylee] Yes. -[Ben] Smaller.
-Real compact, isn't it? -[Kaylee] Yes.
What is the average age of a patient that'll stay
in this room?
-Two, give or take. -Most are two.
-Yeah. -[Ben] OK.
-[Dr. Tibbs] We have lots of infants. -[Kaylee] Mm-hmm.
What is not working in here for your patients
and for the medical staff, for the parents?
I wish it was more kid-friendly, like --
It's just very boring in here.
-Outdated, obviously. -Very adult.
My house looks like this. So, I don't know about dated.
[laughing]
How long have you been a pediatrician?
A long time.
-28 years. -28 years.
OK.
Well, here's just my assessment.
As a parent, if my child were in here,
I think I would start by changing the color.
The color changes how we feel about the room, I think.
You get rid of all this dark color, the wall coverings.
And I would like to see a wallpaper that feels
quietly playful, not so adult. -[Dr. Tibbs] Not too much.
[Erin] And then, have you seen these digital screens?
Digital windows.
It's like a digital window into a sunny sky.
[Dr. Tibbs] Oh, so they feel like they're looking at the sky.
-[Erin] Yeah. -[Dr. Tibbs] Oh!
[Erin] You could dim or turn off if you want, but --
that would be amazing when we're doing, like,
drawing blood or having to assess them.
-Yeah, it's a distraction. -Get their imaginations going.
-Yeah. -Make them feel better.
Anything in here to make it feel more playful,
less intimidating.
Yeah. That would be amazing.
-[Erin] Pass the time. That would be great. -[Ben] Yeah.
-[Erin] Hello. -Hello.
-I'm back. -[Erin] All right.
-[Ben] Hello. -Welcome back.
-We've got lots of points. -We're so excited.
-Thank you all so much. -Thank you.
You've been a great tour guide today.
Can you believe we get to work at the hospital again?
-Bye, gang. -Bye.
-Thank you. -See you all later.
Thank you.
-Right back where we started. -Yeah.
Don't you think --
-[smooching] -[giggling]
We don't work here anymore. We can't do that.
I do work here. They're getting us badges.
[Erin] We've definitely never renovated a hospital before,
but it's time.
I feel like we've done bigger projects, but...
We've definitely done...
projects with a larger scale. -But this is...
Extremely unique.
Extremely unique, and maybe the most important
one we've done for the community.
You ready for surgery, Dr. Napier?
I'm not a doctor, but I do play one on TV.
-[Erin] Hello. -What in the world?
I missed the memo on this.
Nobody told Chris about the scrubs.
You've got something going on.
In all seriousness, this is very different from any other
renovation that we've done because there are major
protocols that have to be followed.
So the biggest thing is dust prevention.
So that is a negative pressure machine, so it keeps all that
dust inside of here, and so it's not going
to our patient care area. -Love that.
[Ben] Dang! Here we go.
We will not make a mess. We will be neat.
We got to get this patient to surgery, stacked.
And we will follow visiting hours.
Yeah, we are only allowed to work between 8 and 5,
which is fine with me. -Just fine.
-Is it a good pull? -[Katie] It is.
The whole baseboard's even coming off.
Well, dang.
This is so satisfying.
That's the best I've ever felt.
Wow!
I feel like we've covered our bases.
I mean, we did get a lot of input from physicians
and nurses and patients. Everybody's excited about it.
No one is more excited about it than we are.
It's true.
[faint lullaby playing]
There's another baby.
-Somebody was just born. -There's a new baby.
It's "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
That means a Daddy just pressed the button.
[upbeat music plays]
[drill whirring]
[Erin] And now we keep demoing.
[Ben] Yeah, we'll be done by the end of the day.
We can start back building really quickly.
♪ These days, you've been with me ♪
♪ Always, always ♪
♪ These days, sunshine lighted up ♪
[Erin] So today, we are installing the built-ins behind the bed,
and it'll feel like residential is the goal.
[Ben] Yeah.
But like a closet and storage for guests' bags and clothes.
Starting to feel like something.
This is really, really exciting.
-Yeah. -OK.
And this goes all the way to the corner, right?
[Katie] Yep.
That's going to be so much better, having counter space.
Soon, we get to start wallpaper and flooring
and lighting and tile, in the bathroom.
Oh, wait.
I didn't tell you this in the hall.
-Janie's pregnant. -Oh, my God!
I know, I know!
And then she's going to be in this room.
[gasps]
[Erin] Katie's sister, Janie, she's pregnant.
And she's going to have a baby here.
[Ben] What?
And she's going to get to use the room.
I mean, right now.
The room feels kind of like a disaster right now.
It looks horrible.
Absolutely horrible from the old one.
-Hey. -Hey, Dr. Ladd.
What's up? How you been?
Do y'all remember? This is Dr. Seth Ladd.
[indistinct] I was like, what are you --
From such TV shows as HGTV's "Home Town."
We're telling them.
It's like a little nod back to the blues we had in
here before -- it looks great. -[Erin] Yeah.
-It was good seeing y'all. -Yeah, you too.
-Take care. -[mumbling]
Mallorie texted me and said, "Meet me in the waiting room."
I just wish we could do something to make this space
even more welcoming and exciting.
Do you have any money left?
♪ We go high, we go low ♪
♪ We do all the things we want to ♪
All right, you got a blank canvas here, finally.
-Pretty blank. -Yeah.
It's going to be our tile room.
So today, I'm working with Matt, because he specializes
in institutional flooring, like in hospitals.
We got this nice, lovely 12 by 24 tile.
[Erin] Easy to clean.
Everybody stay calm.
David is fine.
This is not David's specialty, though.
Very easy to clean.
I want the thinnest grout lines possible.
We can achieve that.
OK, so it's a little different than a house where sometimes,
you know, form is considered over function.
Here, function is definitely number one.
This is a large-format porcelain.
Mm-hmm.
Why porcelain is important is it's almost zero
water absorption. -Love that.
And your grout will be sealed, so this will be almost as
good as having a continuous floor.
[upbeat music playing]
[Ben] So we're welding floors in L&D.
It can be completely scrubbed clean of any bacterial matter.
[Ben] Hm.
When you say "bacterial matter," do you mean "bodily fluids"?
That's what I'm talking about.
I'm trying to find new ways, new words and new ways.
I think "bodily fluids" says it all.
It does. It says a little too much.
-It's all inside of us. -Sometimes it's outside.
[Ben] Listen, I just kind of wanted to watch...
and next thing you know, I'm welding floors.
[whirring softly]
[phone rings]
-Did you get those photos? -Oh, my gosh!
[Mallorie] I know!
Mallorie texted me and said, "Meet me in the waiting room."
I've been looking at all these photos all weekend,
because Lucy turned 12.
And it is the pictures from the day Lucy was born exactly
12 years and two days ago.
[Mallorie] I was just looking back and like just boohooing
the whole time.
And the photos that you took
of this waiting room are my favorite.
Jim came in the door and said, "She's here."
And it's like where y'all spent the majority of the time.
I sat right there.
[Mallorie] Y'all stayed in here for hours.
-All day waiting for her. -I know.
And it still looks exactly the same.
[Erin] Frozen in time.
I just wish we could do something to make this space
even more welcoming and exciting and joyful.
Mallorie's always, always, always thinking about that.
She wouldn't miss hospitality for nothing in high school.
We have like $20,000-ish that has not been...
-Earmarked. -OK, OK.
With $20,000, you could do new flooring.
An LVT that looks like wood.
New chairs, comfortable ones, in like a more fun color way.
[Mallorie] Something easy to clean, wipeable.
[Erin] You could paint.
[Mallorie] And then having something for kiddos, like a little station,
little toys. -[Erin] Yeah, I love that.
And do you remember at Allie's, the hospital where Allie
had her baby? -[Mallorie] Yeah.
[Erin] There was a coffee station.
That was really, really wonderful.
There was a coffee bar.
And I think it would be wonderful if you had a sink
also at this coffee bar because when Jim comes in the door
to say, "She's here."
The first thing you want to do is go see that
baby and hold that baby.
You can wash your hands in here.
I love this idea. Love it.
-12 years. -Time is flying.
Crazy.
♪ Na-na-na-na-na-na-na ♪
Love that white oak.
♪ Na-na-na-na-na-na-na ♪
Today's the day Greg and I are building out the closet
in the L&D room.
We're using white oak for the paneling.
-Ooh, splinter. -All right.
You got a splinter. You getting soft on me, Greg?
Oh, now we're looking at it. That's the pretty side.
-That is pretty. -All right.
That's the one that's going to go there
after we've cut it out. -[Ben] What's up, Katie?
-[Katie] Ooh! -[Ben] Check this out.
-Why are you in scrubs again? -I work here now.
I mean, we're all working here.
You're not going to believe this.
I am about to give my sister Janie an ultrasound.
Whoa! Mm-hmm.
I've never done it before.
We're about to find out what she's going to have.
[gurgling]
You see right there? You see right there?
-That's a foot. -That's a foot.
Can't tell if it's a boy or girl yet.
Come back next week.
-[Katie] Here? -[Dr. Winstead] Uh-huh.
Fun fact, I was actually going to be a nurse.
Got accepted into nursing school, started nursing school.
So we're looking at, like, a cross section here.
Yep, start to move into the chest.
Right after I started nursing school, I started my first
renovation of a historic house.
Chance and I just got married.
We were renovating it, and I loved it.
OK. There we go.
You know, they were like, "You got to be committed
to this and this and this."
And I was like, "Man, I think I just want to renovate houses."
And I just left after that day. I never came back.
[all] It's a girl!
It is.
Congratulations, guys.
OK, now we got to get this Labor and Delivery room ready.
That's right.
♪ Saturday is getting close ♪
♪ They catch us... [indistinct] ♪
-Hello. -Hey.
You ready to talk about the waiting room?
[Ben] You ready to talk about what?
The waiting room.
What are we doing?
The people in that waiting room are going to
desperately need...
caffeine. -A coffee bar?
Yes. With water in it.
-[Ben] Slash vanity. -A small sink basin.
When people hit that "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star"
and it's time, you can go wash your hands so you can go
see the baby. -So here's what I'm thinking.
It's essentially a cross between a bathroom vanity
and, like, a buffet cabinet.
[Ben] And then I think do a drawer on this side, and that's where
all the coffee stirs, sugar packets, all that goes.
So we'll just leave it natural, do a two-part epoxy.
You want to help me?
You want to learn how to build a trap panel?
-Love that. -[Ben] Yeah?
Yeah, I've been dying to know.
[saw whirring]
That's how Josh and I do it also.
I'm just getting in my lip gloss.
We're going to build the whole thing out of white oak,
very durable wood,
because it's mine and Erin's favorite.
♪ Gotta get out of town ♪
♪ 'Cause I gotta get out of town ♪
♪ If I stay they gonna track me down ♪
♪ So I gotta get out of town ♪
[Ben] It's a simple piece of furniture
that is going to do a lot.
It's going to serve a lot.
-So... -And look how much I helped.
-Look how good I did. -So that'll be the front?
Yes, and Tennis is starting in 15 minutes.
-I got to go get Helen. -OK.
All right. Love you.
[Erin] I love you.
[upbeat music plays]
[Erin] So this looks like grasscloth -- it isn't.
But it has that great warmth, and it has texture,
and it's bleachable.
I just want every mother who stays in that room
to feel pampered.
-Oh, my goodness. -Oh wow, ah!
[Kaylee] I love this!
[Erin] Aw, it's been fun in here.
-I'm just tearing up. -I love this.
All right.
-Hey, guys. -Look at this.
-Yes. -It's wallpaper day!
I have been so pumped about this.
We're trying to make it feel like a five-star
hotel experience. -Uh-huh.
For those of you who are thinking about doing wallpaper,
there are levels...
to wallpaper.
There's type one, which pretty much amounts to residential.
It's a lighter-weight paper.
Everything in the hospital has to be type -- at least type two.
Type two is just a heavier weight.
It's the durability, the thickness of it.
It's that a medical car can't hit it and tear it.
That's really what they're after.
-I think it looks great. -[John] It really does.
-Thanks, guys. -Thank you, John.
-Thank you. I love it! -Bye.
Bye.
We want these rooms to be on par with the cafeteria.
I want to get this banana pudding.
You want that, too? You want this salad?
-Hey, y'all. -[Erin] Hey.
-What are y'all doing here? -What's up, doc?
-Having lunch. -Everything OK?
-Yeah. -We're good, yeah.
Everything's great. Nobody is sick.
We're working on Maternity Ward.
-[Dr. Redding] that's awesome. -Yeah.
-It's looking really good. -I bet it is.
[Ben] No one expects the hospital food to be good,
but this hospital food... -Straight fire.
Straight fire. So good.
[Ben] How's the meatballs?
-Very good. -They look pretty good.
We've brought you here today to discuss
your dream fetal monitor.
[Erin] In the Labor and Delivery room, one of the most important
pieces of equipment is this fetal monitor,
which is a computer inside a tall wood cabinet from the '90s.
[Ben] Yeah, it's been pretty beat up over the years,
so I want to build a new one.
And to find out exactly how it needs to function and all that,
we're going to ask the expert.
Was the overall shape of the original cabinet OK?
[Dr. Cudworth] Yeah, I think that the shape is a good shape.
You know, as long as we have, I know the nurses would
appreciate those monitors to kind of come up
off that top shelf.
All right, so 42 inches tall, like to keep the top shelf
totally open, have screens mounted to the back so that
the top stays clear.
It's a desktop and then have your keyboard.
[Erin] Like a slide out.
-[Dr. Cudworth] Like a pull out. -[Ben] Yeah.
And then this can be all drawers coming down.
And maybe adding some hooks on the side of the monitor.
Hooks would be amazing.
[Dr. Cudworth] Keep those cords from getting tangled.
We're going to have some big, chunky, ugly wheels on it.
I've researched, and for medical carts,
they have to be able to roll
over thresholds or cords. -Yeah, certain -- mm-hmm.
I don't know that it'll be beautiful, but it'll be nice.
-It'll be what you need. -This will be perfect -- yes.
Hopefully.
-I guess I'm needed. -That's you.
-Yeah, it's good to see you guys. -All right.
-Have a good day. -[Erin] Good to see you.
-Bye. -[Ben] See ya.
♪ Summer dreams, here we go again ♪
♪ I'm going to make you mine someday ♪
Today, to my knowledge, three babies have been born.
One of them is Emerson, a little boy.
We met his dad, Franklin.
[Franklin speaking]
I'm proud, very proud, man. A day I'll never forget.
Babies are a blessing, and I'm so glad.
Several of the staff are expectant mothers.
Yes.
Everywhere I look, somebody's pregnant.
And they're all expecting babies within
a couple weeks of each other.
All within a couple weeks of us finishing this project.
Yes. No pressure.
[upbeat music plays]
OK, this is the new look for South Central Maternal-Child.
It's amazing. Such an improvement.
-Love it. -I feel really good about all this.
So I'm showing Mal all the choices we've made
for Labor and Delivery, Pediatrics, and Postpartum
before we choose what we want to do with this waiting room.
If you start in Labor and Delivery, cleanliness is
the greatest emphasis in this room.
A lot of stuff is going down in this room.
Yeah, a lot. And then Postpartum.
-Our special room. -I love this.
It should feel like the true hotel experience.
-Yes. -A lot of warmth.
[Mallorie] It's very luxurious feeling.
And then Pediatrics. Fun, friendly, colorful.
-[Mallorie] Youthful. -[Erin] Yeah.
So now let's figure out the waiting room.
Thank you...
I'm so excited about the waiting room.
...for thinking about the waiting room
It's so important.
People are going to spend a lot of time in here.
We got to figure out upholstery for our chairs.
I just don't love gray. That's too textured.
-I don't know. -I really like this one.
-[Erin] I think it's fun. -[Mallorie] Yeah.
And then every room has some green element.
-It may just be the artwork. -Yeah.
Ben's going to build a coffee bar.
He's planning on oak.
We need to select a stone for the top.
[Mallorie] To go on top.
I love the warmth of these two.
These feel very cool.
[Erin] These two do feel like they're right.
This one has a little more breathing room.
-I think I like that one. -[Mallorie] I love that.
-[Erin] Yeah? -I really do.
[saw whirring]
[Ben] For the fetal monitor station, we're going to use mahogany.
Nothing but the best for South Central.
Because as you can see, if you look at all
of the furniture in the hospital rooms,
it's always just beat to death.
So I want to make sure that we build something that,
in 20 years, they're not going to be wanting to replace it.
[upbeat music plays]
♪ And I'll take you on ♪
♪ So move along ♪
-Oh, it's up. -Look at that.
And if you're a kid...
in your hospital bed.
Skye Witherspoon is here from Iowa.
His company really specializes in creating digital windows,
especially for hospitals.
Hospital settings are their biggest customer.
I think this will help so much!
And it brings color and life to the room in a way that's
not overstimulating.
We've even done a couple of different research studies
where we found that in a situation almost exactly like
this, there is about a 50% reduction in stress
and about a 30% reduction in anxiety.
So this really helps to calm people down and put them into
a better frame of mind.
-I believe it. -It's not just about taking like a pretty picture
and putting it onto the ceiling.
So one of the really -- one of the really cool things about
this is this actually changes. -[Erin] Uh-huh.
So from your sunrise to sunset, this will match up
with what is happening outdoors.
[Erin] Well, I think it's wonderful.
-Yeah. -Thanks for bringing the sky.
-Totally. -Yeah.
-This is good. -Totally, totally.
I love it so much.
Waiting room furniture is here. It is ready to be...
opened up, uncovered. The coffee bar is in place.
I mean, we're there.
[patient] We're looking for the waiting room.
Our waiting room is under construction now,
but we do have a waiting room way down the hall.
That's not actually true anymore.
-[Erin] Yes, actually... -OK.
-Oh. -[Allie] What?
-It's ready? -The waiting room is ready.
-No way! -It's officially really ready!
-[Ben] Oh, my gosh. -[Allie] Oh, my goodness, y'all.
-Here we go. -[indistinct chatter]
-[Ben] Isn't it good? -Yeah.
-This is so good. -[instinct chatter]
-Look at this. -Oh, dang.
-I love the chairs. -Look at the coffee bar.
Oh, my word!
-Look how beautiful! -Got a sink.
-Oh, I love it. -This is amazing.
And there's a sink so people can wash their hands
before they go meet a baby. -[overlapping chatter]
[Erin] So adults can hang down here, have coffee.
It can be a little more chill.
-But then there's a kid's area... -[Allie] A kid's area?
...where it can be a little rowdier. -Oh, wow.
-Ooh, I love it. -[Allie] This is amazing.
-[Ben] Yeah. -[laughing]
Look, all of it is super cleanable,
bleachable, wipeable. -What are y'all building?
-A house. -A house?
-Yep. -So y'all have fun.
[Ben] I'm going to check out this coffee maker.
All right, buddy, keep playing.
Yeah, you want to see -- y'all want a cup of coffee?
-Anybody? -Yeah, that sounds great.
Sure.
[Erin] Renovating some rooms in the hospital was hugely
important to me because I just care very, very much about
this hospital and the success of it, and that people have
the experience that I had.
I wanted Labor and Delivery to feel fresh,
bright, clean, professional, comforting.
And then for Pediatrics, I just thought,
"what would delight my girls?"
All right, that looks so good.
All right, kids can't pull it off the wall.
[Erin] What would make them feel like this is not a scary place?
This is a good place where I'm going to get better.
I wanted Postpartum to feel like springtime celebration.
I wanted it to make the mother feel beautiful.
This room is so important to me that it feels like this
wonderful transition to your next chapter as a mother.
Those early weeks, you don't get a lot of sleep.
You're learning your baby, and your baby's learning you,
and I think if you can make the very beginning of
that journey a little less stressful
and a little more beautiful...
then it can only be good for the mom and the baby.
[Ben] All right. You lead the way, Seania.
[Seania] All righty.
-Oh, wow. -Wow.
-[Dr. Winstead] Wow. -[Seania] This looks nice.
[Dr. Cudworth] Looks great.
[Dr. Winstead] Looks like my house.
-Yeah, exactly. -[Ben] Yeah.
-[Seania] This is very homey. -[Dr. Cudworth] Yes.
-[Erin] Yeah. -[Seania] Oh, wow.
-[Dr. Winstead] I love it. -[Dr. Cudworth] Yeah.
You guys really did a great job.
-Thanks. -[Erin] We wanted it to feel restful.
And this is the room that's the most hotel experience
of all the rooms we've done. -[Dr. Cudworth and Seania] Yes.
I feel like it's very welcoming in here. -Good.
[Dr. Winstead] A little softer lighting.
I do like the lighting not as harsh for us.
-Perfect, yep. -This lighting around the perimeter that should
just feel like a glow.
We have sconces that feel like home.
-Very restful. -[Ben] Restful.
I got all Mississippi artists
for the rooms. This is artwork by Emma Carr,
and I love it because it feels so celebratory.
It feels like springtime and new birth.
[Seania] Yes.
But some of the coolest things, maybe the best thing is,
one, we have a recliner now.
-[Seania] Yes. -[Ben] But this...
-Oh. -Wow.
-They both fold out. -So it's a full-size bed.
With no footboard for the tall dad.
[Dr. Cudworth] That's right.
This is so much better than what I slept on.
Excuse me, what I laid on.
[Erin] And the lighted mirror, giving Mama plenty of
space to fix up. -[Dr. Cudworth] Yeah.
That was a big request from all of my friends.
Please, just a little counter space at the sink
so you can fix up. -[Seania] Yes.
Because it feels so good when you have your first shower
and then you can go and brush your hair, put on a little
makeup and feel like yourself again.
So we have a lighted mirror.
And then the bathroom wallpaper and lighting went a long way
on the bathroom. -This looks great.
[Dr. Cudworth] Very good.
-[Dr. Winstead] Much less hospital, looks very homey.
And the cabinets.
The cabinets are perfect.
-Labor and Delivery next. -[Dr. Cudworth] Let's do it.
We gotta go pick up Anna along the way.
[gasps]
-Wow! Oh my gosh. -Wow.
-[Erin] Better?
-Much better. -[Anna] So much better.
-Much better. -We have space.
-Yes. -[Dr. Winstead] Tons of space.
[Dr. Cudworth] Tons of space. This looks great.
-[Anna] This doesn't look like the same room. -[Dr. Cudworth] Yeah.
[Erin] The armoire is gone, but we do have a little storage here
for bags and things. -Awesome.
If family's waiting. We've got oak on the back wall.
-That's all storage for you. -[Anna] I love the lighting.
[Dr. Cudworth] Huge difference. It looks great.
[Dr. Winstead] It really looks good.
-[Dr. Cudworth] I'm so impressed. -[Anna] Yeah.
What do y'all think about these floors?
-[Erin] Ben learned a new skill. -Uh-oh.
I learned how to weld vinyl. I did these two seams here.
He said, they were the least important,
so I could try those.
[Erin] But you made a great fetal monitoring cart.
That came out good.
-[Erin] Solid mahogany. -[Ben] Clear surface on top.
-Typewriter on its own drawer. -[Erin] Keyboard.
Sorry, keyboard.
We're trying to leave the 1990s with this renovation.
Not go back to it.
[Erin] And then we have, I wanted to focus on a better
baby washing station.
Because I had no idea you were washing babies
in that pedestal sink, but now...
-[Dr. Winstead] Check that out. -[Erin] Isn't that better?
-[Anna] So fancy. -[Erin] I hope it's helpful.
-[Anna] Yes. -And then a little space to...
-The baby salon. -Looks great.
[Erin] And then the bathroom.
The wallpaper is a more modern look that I think works great
with that existing tile that we had to keep.
-We have new tile floors. -[Dr. Winstead] Nailed it.
-[Dr. Cudworth] Yes. -Nailed it.
Anyway, I hope that what these mothers feel is peace as
they're bringing a baby into the world.
They deserve it.
And for y'all, I hope it makes it easier to move around.
You got a lot more free space.
-Yes. -[Dr. Winstead] There is a lot more.
The room feels a lot bigger just from the reduction
in furniture. -[Erin] OK.
On to Pediatrics. We need to go find Dr. Tibbs.
[Erin] All three of the rooms are special and meaningful to me
in a different way.
-No favorite? -No favorite.
No favorite.
-Oh, my goodness! -Oh wow! Ah!
I love this!
-The colors are beautiful. -[Dr. Tibbs] Oh wow!
Oh, my good --
-I love this screen. -[Erin] It's a virtual skylight.
-[Ben] Virtual skylight. -[Erin] But it changes with daylight.
So there's a button. You hit circadian cycle.
-And so this would be at night. -[Erin] Dims to darkness.
-I love that. -And then as the sun's coming up, it starts to...
-Isn't it fun in here? -I'm just tearing up.
I love this. I love the painting.
We have Adam Trest in Pediatrics.
-It felt right. -Yes, I love it.
-[Dr. Tibbs] Yes, yes. -[Kaylee] Aw!
-[Dr. Tibbs] Beautiful. -This is so gorgeous.
This is amazing. Can I see the bathroom?
-Yes! -You sure can, yeah.
-Oh, my goodness. -[Kaylee] I love it.
-It's so pretty. -[Dr. Tibbs] So pretty.
-Aw, so lovely. -Yeah, we wanted it to feel residential.
And it does. It feels like home.
And like, look at these floors.
The floor and the patterns are so much better.
With the little inlay.
When I started practicing medicine about 30 years ago,
the room didn't matter.
You were in a room, there was a bed, you know.
The ambience was not important, but studies have since shown
how important ambience is.
And, like, there's nothing scary about being here.
-Nope. -Only healing and happiness.
-And happiness and joy. -Yeah, I love the couch.
I love the pattern to the couch.
[Erin] And we hope it's more comfortable for mom and dad.
You have outdone yourselves. This is lovely.
-[Erin] I'm so happy. -[Kaylee] We are so thankful.
Our babies and mamas and daddies are going to be
so thankful.
I want to see what everybody else thinks.
I know. They need to see it.
I'm so excited.
The other rooms are amazing. But Pediatrics, yeah, we win.
We do.
Oh, y'all, that is so beautiful. You have to see it.
[overlapping cheering]
-It's so good. -So amazing.
And I bet you're glad that we're going to be out
of your hair soon. -No!
-Yeah, no. -[laughing]
Well, we have 27 rooms left.
Wash, rinse, and repeat. Just do that.
Thank y'all so much.
Thank you for letting us do this,
like, because this is kind of like home to me.
My dad worked here for 44 years.
Oh, my goodness.
And, um, other people might not realize how the hospital
becomes a home.
It's like a town with you, within your town.
Yeah.
And I have the greatest memories here.
And I just...
didn't intend to cry about it. -It's OK.
-I'm proud of you. -Thanks, yeah.
The way you take care of people as if they're your family,
like, you are angels.
Well, you have left your -- y'all's mark
on our Maternity Ward.
And we will be back up here more.
Yes. Somebody will have a baby soon.
-It won't be me. -Those are famous last words.
-No, those are last words. -Is there wood I can knock on?
-Bye, y'all. -Bye.
Bye.
[gasps]
-Oh, my goodness. -Is this the same room?
-No. -Stop.
My heart is just so happy, and I'm just tears.
Is that a baby?
Janie.
Oh, my goodness.
She's perfect.
[indistinct]
This is amazing.
I go round and round.
[Erin] This property is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Are we still in Jones County?
[Ben] Or an Italian restaurant.
Holy cannoli.
[Erin] What, Ben?
And I get to let go the reins.
[Erin] Brittany is, she's a firecracker.
in human form, she could explode on you.
Are you pranking me?
I am serious as a heart attack.
But she could also shoot into the sky and amaze you.
Oh, the built-ins. I love the wallpaper.
-You'll see. -Oh, no.
-These walls are white. -You'll see.
-It's delicious.