The Future of Health Care is Here.
A
Vision
It started with a vision. A committee was formed in 2003 composed of University Hospital board members, management and more than 60 physicians and clinical staff. This group was given the task of developing a blueprint for the future of regional health care delivery. The members knew they had to focus on an aging population, necessitating that the renovation and expansion project focus on facilities such as a state-of-the art heart and vascular center, new and expanded operating rooms, a surgical family waiting area and a new Outpatient Center. To help fund the $93.6 million project, University Health Care Foundation undertook a massive fundraising campaign, which raised more than $8.35 million, the largest capital fundraising effort in Georgia’s history outside of Atlanta.
Outpatient Center The first project completed was the Outpatient Center, which opened its doors in July 2007. Larry Read, president and CEO of University Health Care System, noted when planning began that University Hospital had nearly 300,000 patient visits annually for outpatient testing, yet there was no designated parking area or even a centralized registration area for those patients. The development of the Outpatient Center addressed those concerns by essentially creating a “second front door” to the hospital. “We believe creating a second front door and moving parking and registration closer to the actual delivery of services will create a more accessible, coordinated and overall positive outpatient experience,” Mr. Read said. Some features of the center include: • A newly expanded flat parking lot outside the front door dedicated to the Outpatient Center, with wheelchair assistance and security attendants • A dedicated parking area for patient drop-off and pick-up
• A greeter to assist patients with directions • A call-ahead service for patients with standing laboratory orders so they can call and let the staff know what time they are coming, allowing the staff to pull their paperwork and have everything ready when they arrive • New mechanical beds in the pre-op testing area that can be lowered or raised for added comfort for elderly patients or patients with other physical limitations • Seven registration areas on the second floor to help expedite paperwork • Volunteers to help with directions or serve as escorts to the service areas In addition to being a more accessible, patientfriendly facility, University’s Outpatient Center also is a testament to the dedication and generosity of the thousands of employees at University, who donated more than $800,000 to University Health Care Foundation’s capital campaign in support of the project.
Lab Expansion The completion of University’s Outpatient Center gave the hospital an opportunity to expand its current laboratory space. The new laboratory offers our technologists greater freedom and spacious work areas to help process the more than 2 million lab tests performed for our patients every year. These all-new expansive areas were opened summer 2007.
Surgery Care Center The second phase of University’s renovation and expansion project moved back into the hospital proper with the completion of the Surgery Care Center in June 2008. The center was designed to provide surgery patients and their families a convenient, easily accessible facility that offers convenient access by a bridge to the second floor of the main parking deck. It features 18 private pre-op rooms and two holding bays for surgical patients. The new rooms provide additional privacy and confidentiality for patient care. Surgery Waiting Room Family members can remain close in the nearby Surgery Waiting Room and may visit until the patient goes to surgery. The
new waiting area overlooks the first floor atrium and features two consultation rooms where surgeons and family members may speak privately. The waiting area is staffed by University’s Volunteer Board and offers many conveniences, including access to wireless internet service and lockers for family and patient valuables. Operating Room Suites The center also is connected to the hospital’s five spacious new surgical suites, designed to better accommodate surgical robotics and other emerging technologies. The suites feature high definition viewing monitors, ceiling-mounted equipment booms, access to digital radiology and the ability to control the surgical field from a single touch panel.
Heart & Vascular Institute The crown jewel of the renovation and expansion project is University’s new Heart & Vascular Institute. This world-class hospital-within-a-hospital has been designed around the patient experience. It brings together a healing environment, family focused care and decades of clinical experience – all designed to support patients from diagnosis to rehabilitation – and it’s all under one roof. It is truly a reflection of University’s ongoing commitment to the community. From concept to execution, University’s staff, physicians, board members and volunteers have donated their time and efforts to help ensure that University Hospital remains the region’s heart and vascular leader. University has a long history of excellence, with its heart care being ranked by the National Research Corporation as mostpreferred by area consumers for 10 years in a row. The new facility takes advantage of that distinction by pulling together all aspects
of cardiovascular health – from the latest technology in all-digital catheterization, to the region’s only cardiac rehabilitation program to receive national accreditation by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation. University also is proud to have the only vascular lab in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina to receive accreditation in all five areas of testing from the Intersocietal Commission for the Accreditation of Vascular Laboratories. Cardiac patients can feel secure that their vital signs are being monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week with University Hospital’s housewide monitoring system housed on a protected frequency. The level of care cardiac patients receive at University Hospital also has been honored as a Blue Cross Blue Shield Blue Distinction Center for Cardiac CareSM. >
Blue Distinction Centers for Cardiac CareSM have demonstrated their commitment to quality care, resulting in better overall outcomes for cardiac patients. Each facility awarded this distinction much meet stringent clinical criteria, developed in collaboration with expert physician panels and national medical societies, including the American College of Cardiology and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. The Heart & Vascular Institute itself is the largest, most-comprehensive facility in the region, with more than 188,000 square feet of space.
Within its walls, University has brought together decades of clinical experience and even generations of physicians. That breadth of knowledge has been recognized by The Best Doctors in America, which collects up to 1.5 million evaluations annually to help identify physicians who are considered by fellow physicians to be the most skilled in their fi elds. Among the 120 physicians recognized that practice at University Hospital, 12 cardiologists were singled out as among the top in their field in 2008.
Welcome The staff, physicians, board members and volunteers are proud to welcome patients to University’s Heart & Vascular Institute
University’s heart and vascular physicians and surgeons have been recognized, in part, because University treats more cardiac patients than all other area hospitals combined. And they are supported by a nursing staff that has achieved Magnet Designation‚ from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, considered the highest designation for outstanding achievements in nursing. Patients in the Heart & Vascular Institute benefit from the facility’s new model of care, which includes open family visitation as well as a high nurse-to-patient ratio. The Institute’s healing environment offers natural light and soothing music to supplement the technological and physician expertise. After years of planning and construction, the staff, physicians, board members and volunteers are proud to welcome patients to University’s Heart & Vascular Institute, the region’s leader in cardiovascular care.
1350 Walton Way • Augusta, GA 30901 706.722.9011 www.universityhealth.org