The next-generation mixed reality simulator offers resident doctors unparalleled simulated training for complex surgeries

Fort Lauderdale, Fl. – Broward Health Medical Center, home to the Broward Health Graduate Medical Education Simulation Lab in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has become the first United States medical institution to receive the VirtaMed LaparoS™ surgical training simulator. This mixed reality laparoscopic simulator provides resident doctors with a simulated environment to prepare for clinical practice safely and efficiently.

Broward Health will use the LaparoS for general surgery training with an emphasis on patient safety. First installed in June 2021, the LaparoS has left an impression on residents and professors alike.

“We chose the LaparoS because it offers our residents a more realistic simulation of what they will encounter in the operating room,” said Dr. Ivan Puente, General Surgery Program Director at Broward Health Medical Center. “We feel very strongly that this will not only enhance their skill development and also contribute to patient safety.”

The LaparoS training simulator is from VirtaMed, the world leader in medical simulation training. In contrast to other forms of medical training with simulators, LaparoS training modules capture the whole procedural preparation, including positioning of the patient and placement of tools.

The simulator offers real-time learning in the form of haptic feedback, complication training and guided procedures.

“Simulation is a great way to enhance medical skills,” says Kimberly Mazili, Business Development Manager for VirtaMed. “Broward Hospital Medical Center has already had years of success with our orthopaedics simulator. It was a logical step for Broward to be the first to get our new LaparoS so they could extend the capacity of their simulation center and their residency programs.”

Providing comprehensive training with medical simulation technology

Broward Health has a long history of using simulation to train its next generation of surgeons. Medical students at Broward Health Medical Center have access to a medical skills simulation lab with a variety of simulators, including the VirtaMed ArthroS™ simulator for arthroscopic skills training. The addition of the LaparoS expands the resources available for skills development in a risk-free training environment.

In the spirit of advancing medical education, Broward Health Medical Center hosted a VirtaMedEd training day for residents in general surgery, orthopedics and gynecology. Using simulators supplied by Broward Health’s Simulation Center and VirtaMed, the training day provided residents with an opportunity to practice instrument usage and specific procedures in a risk-free training environment.

For more information on simulation training for laparoscopic procedures, visit https://www.virtamed.com/laparos.

About Broward Health

Broward Health, providing service for more than 80 years, is a nationally recognized system in South Florida that offers world-class healthcare to all. The Broward Health system includes the statutory teaching hospital Broward Health Medical Center, Broward Health North, Broward Health Imperial Point, Broward Health Coral Springs, Salah Foundation Children’s Hospital, Broward Health Weston, Broward Health Community Health Services, Broward Health Physician Group, Broward Health Urgent Care, Broward Health International, and Broward Health Foundation. For more information, visit BrowardHealth.org.

About VirtaMed

VirtaMed believes medical education is powerfully delivered through data-driven simulation solutions. Since 2007, we have developed the leading solutions for training outside the operating room because we believe healthcare professionals should never have to perform a procedure for the first time on a patient. VirtaMed’s simulators provide the most realistic and cost-effective training available for laparoscopic surgeons.



Department
Primary Care Focus Symposium Online
Launch Date – July 28, 2021
End Date – July 28, 2022
Website : http://primarycarefocus.baptisthealth.net
Contact : Julie Zimmett, juliez@baptisthealth.net



Miami, FL – Simply Healthcare and the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (FCAAP), two powerhouses when it comes to child health and well-being in Florida, announced today a partnership to support mental health in children as families prepare to start a new school year.
“Good health is more than just a healthy body, it’s also a healthy mind,” said Holly Prince, President of Simply Healthcare Medicaid Plan. “We recognize that Florida’s kids have faced unprecedented challenges and changes over the last year, and we want to help them achieve and maintain good health. We’re proud to partner with the FCAAP, a household name when it comes to trusted resources and information about children in Florida. Through this partnership, we’re going to produce resources and information that help families, providers, schools and other organizations effectively care for Florida’s children, so they can learn and grow to be Florida’s future leaders.”
“Children who struggle with mental health concerns can struggle in school, in sports and in friendships. Worse, their challenges could lead to long-term disabilities or death,” said Dr. Lisa Gwynn, President, Florida Chapter of American Academy of Pediatrics. “It’s critically important for all of us to support children through challenging times. That’s why we’re proud to partner with Simply Healthcare toward our common mission of achieving and maintaining good health among Florida’s children.”
The need for resources and support for children struggling with mental health has never been greater. According to Jed Foundation Report: Fluent Family Wellbeing Study, 60% of parents report that children have experienced distress during the last year. Since COVID began, Florida experienced a 30% increase in Baker Acts – the action of committing an individual to a mental health treatment center – among ages 12 to 17.
In addition, the findings of the inaugural State of the Nation’s Mental Health, a report issued in May by Simply Healthcare’s parent company, showed that while more people, including children, reported increased pandemic-related stress and anxiety last year,
there was not a corresponding increase in diagnoses and treatment. This indicates that children may not be getting the help they need.
Mental health problems can affect many areas of children’s lives, including their happiness, physical health and academic performance. Simply Healthcare, in partnership with the FCAAP, is responding to the need by developing and providing resources that can help children, families, schools and providers discuss and treat mental health issues.
As a first step, the two organizations are working together to pool and curate resources to support children, families, providers, schools and other organizations to support children’s mental health. The resources will be available via an online toolkit.
“For someone in search of answers and support, there are many resources out there. In developing this toolkit, it was our goal to create a library of resources and contacts that anyone in need could trust,” said Prince. “The backing of the FCAAP tells parents, providers and others that these resources have been carefully evaluated and are safe and effective.”
Resources through the toolkit will: • Support children through challenges, COVID-related or other; • Break down barriers to understanding mental health in children; • Counter the stigma tied to talking about and treating children’s mental health challenges; and • Improve access to resources and care.
The toolkit will be available soon, but it’s not the only resource in development. Florida families can expect to see more information and resources from Simply and FCAAP as a result of this partnership.
About Simply Healthcare Simply Healthcare is a Managed Care Plan that offers plans in Florida for residents eligible for Medicaid, Medicare and Florida Healthy Kids benefits. To learn more, visit www.simplyhealthcareplans.com.
About FCAAP Through its more than 2,500 members, the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics promotes the health & welfare of Florida’s children and supports pediatricians & pediatric specialists as the best qualified providers of their healthcare. Learn more by visiting www.fcaap.org.



Loxahatchee, FL, August 3, 2021 – Palms West Hospital has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval® for Advanced Primary Stroke Certification and the American Stroke Association’s Heart-Check mark for Primary Stroke Center Certification.

Palms West Hospital underwent a rigorous, unannounced onsite review mid-June. During the visit, a team of Joint Commission reviewers evaluated compliance with related certification standards including program management, supporting self-management, and delivering and facilitating clinical care. Joint Commission standards are developed in consultation with health care experts and providers, measurement experts and patients. The reviewers also conducted onsite observations and interviews.

“Advanced Primary Stroke Certification recognizes health care organizations committed to fostering continuous quality improvement in patient safety and quality of care,” says Mark Pelletier, RN, MS, chief operating officer, Accreditation and Certification Operations, and chief nursing executive, The Joint Commission. “We commend Palms West Hospital for using certification to reduce variation in its clinical processes and to strengthen its program structure and management framework for stroke patients.”

“We congratulate Palms West Hospital for this outstanding achievement,” says Nancy Brown, chief executive officer, the American Stroke Association. “This certification reflects its commitment to providing the highest quality of care for stroke patients.”
“It is a great honor to be awarded Advanced Primary Stroke certification. We are extremely proud of the expertise of our interdisciplinary stroke team who collaborate to quickly evaluate stroke symptoms and administer time sensitive treatments to help prevent disabilities and death”, said Dr. Richard Giroux, Chief of Emergency Medicine. “The award affirms the exceptional stroke care we provide our communities.”

For more information, please visit The Joint Commission website.

About Palms West Hospital
Palms West Hospital is a 204-bed acute care full service facility combining high quality, patient-driven care and state-ofthe-art technology to serve residents of Palm Beach County and beyond. The hospital employs nearly 900 employees, has a medical staff of more than 700 physicians and a Graduate Medical Education Program. We offer a full spectrum of inpatient and outpatient services including: 24/7 Emergency care, stroke center designation, comprehensive surgical services, cardiac catheterization, an orthopedics and spine institute, and maternity services with a Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (level II NICU).

Palms West Hospital is a recipient of numerous awards, recognitions and accreditations from a number of organizations, among them, The Joint Commission. Our more recent recognitions include Recipient of the 2021 Healthgrades’ Patient Safety Excellence Award, Healthgrades’ 2021 Coronary Intervention Excellence Award, Five-Star Recipient for Total Knee Replacement in 2021 from Healthgrades as well as Five-Star Recipient for Treatment of Stroke in 2021 from Healthgrades. Other notable awards include Press Ganey’s 2019 Guardian of Excellence Award, Children’s Oncology Group (COG) accreditation in 2019 and Blue Shield’s Blue Distinction Center for Spine Surgery.

-HCA EAST FLORIDA- Aventura Hospital and Medical Center + Highlands Regional Medical Center + JFK Medical Center + JFK Medical Center North Campus + Kendall Regional Medical Center + Lawnwood Regional Medical Center + Mercy Hospital + Northwest Medical Center + Palms West Hospital + Plantation General Hospital + Raulerson Hospital + St. Lucie Medical Center + University Hospital & Medical Center + Westside Regional Medical Center



Miami, Fl (August, 2021)–In a newly published study physician-scientists at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have shown that the flu vaccine may provide vital protection against COVID-19.
The study, titled “Examining the potential benefits of the influenza vaccine against SARS-CoV-2: A retrospective cohort analysis of 74,754 patients,” was published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal PLoS One on Tuesday, August 3, 2021. This was the largest study of its kind and analyzed deidentified patient records from around the world strongly suggesting that the annual flu shot reduces the risks of stroke, sepsis, and DVT in patients with COVID-19. Patients with COVID-19 who had been vaccinated against the flu were also significantly less likely to visit the emergency department and be admitted to the intensive care unit.

“Only a small fraction of the world has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to date, and with all the devastation that has occurred due to the pandemic, the global community still needs to find solutions to reduce morbidity and mortality,” said senior study author Devinder Singh, M.D., chief of plastic surgery, and professor of clinical surgery at the Miller School. 

“Having access to the real-time data of millions of patients is an incredibly powerful research tool,” added Dr. Singh, who conducted the study with lead authors, UM medical student Susan Taghioff and UM plastic surgery resident Benjamin Slavin, M.D. “Together with asking important questions, my team has been able to observe an association between the flu vaccine and reduced morbidity in COVID-19 patients.”

The researchers previously presented their preliminary data findings at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), receiving international attention. Now that the full study has been published, the authors are extremely excited to share their detailed findings for the first time with both the general public and scientific community.

The study was conducted using patient records from countries including the U.S., U.K., Germany, Italy, Israel and Singapore. The team screened de-identified electronic health records on the TriNetX research database for more than 70 million patients to identify two groups of 37,377 patients. The two patient groups were then matched for factors that could influence their risk of susceptibility to severe COVID-19, including but not limited to age, gender, ethnicity, smoking, and health problems such as diabetes, obesity, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

 Members of the first study group had received the flu vaccine two weeks and six months prior to being diagnosed with COVID-19. Those in the second group also had a positive COVID-19 diagnosis but were not vaccinated against the flu. The incidence of 15 adverse outcomes (sepsis; strokes; deep vein thrombosis or DVT; pulmonary embolism; acute respiratory failure; acute respiratory distress syndrome; arthralgia or joint pain; renal failure; anorexia; heart attack; pneumonia; emergency department visits; hospital admission; ICU admission; and death) within 30, 60, 90 and 120 days of testing positive for COVID-19 were then compared between the two groups.

The analysis revealed that those who had not had the flu shot were significantly more likely (up to 20 percent more likely) to have been admitted to the ICU. They were also significantly more likely to visit the emergency department (up to 58 percent more likely), to develop sepsis (up to 45 percent more likely), to have a stroke (up to 58 percent more likely) and a DVT (up to 40 percent more likely). The risk of death was not reduced.

The investigators were also able to calculate how many COVID-19-positive patients would need to receive an influenza vaccine in order to avoid one adverse outcome. Notably, they found that only 176 patients needed to have received a flu vaccine in order to prevent one ED visit within 120 days of testing positively for COVID-19. Additionally, only 286 patients needed to have received their flu vaccine to prevent one case of sepsis, which is known to be the most expensive condition to treat in the US healthcare system. Lastly, for every 440 patients who were up-to-date on their flu shot, one ICU admission was prevented.

Although it isn’t exactly known yet how the flu vaccine provides protection against COVID-19, most theories speculate that the flu shot may boost the innate immune system – general defenses we are born with that are not specialized to protect against any one specific illness.

The results, said study authors, strongly suggest that the flu vaccine may protect against several severe effects of COVID-19. However, they strongly recommend that people receive COVID-19 vaccines as well their annual influenza vaccine. They add that more research, in the form of prospective randomized control trials, is needed to prove and better understand the possible link but, in the future, the flu shot could be used to help provide increased protection in countries where the COVID-19 vaccine is in short supply or even aid in the ongoing struggle against breakthrough cases in those individuals already vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Continued promotion of the influenza vaccine also has the potential help the global population avoid a possible ‘twindemic’ – a simultaneous outbreak of both influenza and coronavirus” said Taghioff.

“Regardless of the degree of protection afforded by the influenza vaccine against adverse outcomes associated with COVID-19, simply being able to conserve global healthcare resources by keeping the number of influenza cases under control is reason enough to champion continued efforts to promote influenza vaccination worldwide.”