This past year was an exciting year for West Boca Medical Center with the introduction of several new features and many accolades.The year got off to a healthy start through the hospital’s participation in the City of Coconut Creek’s Let’s Move! initiative. Launched by the First Lady, Michelle Obama, Let’s Move! focuses on instilling and maintaining nutritional awareness and a healthy lifestyle in children as part of a nationwide effort to combat childhood obesity. West Boca Medical Center got involved by offering the services of a nurse practitioner to give a lecture on nutrition and answer questions about healthy eating.
In the spirit of spring, West Boca Medical Center unveiled plans to grow the hospital by bringing its high level emergency care to North Broward County. Located on State Road 7 in Coconut Creek, the new Emergency Center will open in early 2015 to offer 24/7 emergency care with a minimal wait time in a comfortable atmosphere. Other notable features include access to over 200 specialty physicians, adult as well as pediatric care, imaging and laboratory services, clinical pharmacy services, respiratory care and ambulance access. North Broward County residents will be able to receive the same level of care as they would if they journeyed to the main hospital in Boca Raton, but they will be able to do so right in their own community.
The year continued with the hospital receiving the Get With The Guidelines®–Heart Failure Gold-Plus Quality Achievement Award as well as the Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award from the American Heart Association. These recognitions indicate that West Boca Medical Center is committed to implementing a higher standard of care by ensuring that heart failure and stroke patients receive treatment according to national guidelines.
In June, the hospital began renovating and refurbishing its Birth Care Pavilion to look and feel more like a spa with additional private rooms. The changes included enhanced amenities to make the patient rooms more comfortable for mothers as well as their families. The upgrades also included additions to the labor and delivery rooms such as new baby warmers and bassinettes. To make it easy for everyone to stay comfortable and connected throughout the labor and delivery process, new features also included wireless Internet and workspaces for family members.
As part of West Boca Medical Center’s new and improved maternity offerings starting during the summer, the hospital launched the Newborn Channel, a television station that delivers essential neonatal and parenting information to help prepare new families before, during and after their hospital stay. Available on televisions in the hospital, the Newborn Channel is overseen and reviewed by a Medical Advisory Board that works diligently to ensure all content is up-to-date and presented in a clear and understandable manner for patients and their families.
In recognition of West Boca Medical Center’s dedication to providing exceptional care to new mothers and their babies, the hospital received the 2014 Maternity Care Excellence Award from Healthgrades for the ninth year in a row. The distinction places West Boca within the top 10 percent of hospitals evaluated for exceptional care provided to mothers and their newborns.
In August, the hospital began offering MAKOplasty, one of the latest innovations in total hip and partial knee replacement surgeries. MAKOplasty helps treat patients with early to mid-stage osteoarthritis of the knee and patients with arthritis of the hip by providing optimal implant positioning and placement for each patient.
The art of healing came to life when The Breast Center at West Boca Diagnostic Imaging teamed up with Women in the Visual Arts (WITVA) to host an art show in early October to launch an ongoing gallery that will remain at The Breast Center. The display of WITVA art will help create a comfortable environment for patients visiting the center. All of the art is available for purchase, with a portion of the proceeds going to WITVA scholarships.
In late October, West Boca Medical Center participated in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K to raise money for breast cancer awareness and treatment. Dr. Cheryl Moss-Mellman, a breast health specialist at the Breast Center at West Boca Diagnostic Imaging, served as chair of the event. The hospital was proud to be able to support such a worthy cause.
Wrapping up the year, West Boca’s Primary Stroke Center earned accreditation by The Joint Commission, which also recently named the hospital a 2013 Top Performer on Key Quality Measures. The hospital has been recognized as a Primary Stroke Center by the State of Florida for the last five years. Additionally, West Boca was awarded an “A” Hospital Safety Score by The Leapfrog Group for the sixth consecutive year. These two accolades highlight the hospital’s attention to patient care in several key areas.
