May 4, 2021 –  With a mission of promoting innovation, education and research within the Southwest Florida community, Lee Health’s Shipley Cardiothoracic Center is announcing a donation of $150,000 to Florida Gulf Coast University to support bioengineering students. 
 
The $150,000 will be dispersed through the Lee Health Foundation over a period of three years, at $50,000 a year through student scholarships. 
 
The funds will be used to support FGCU bioengineering students in their junior and senior years. In addition to student scholarships, the donation will also be used to support the students’ professional development through conferences, travel, internships and other opportunities. The goal is to engage the students in the research, clinical delivery and community engagement that the Shipley Cardiothoracic Center participates in throughout the year.
 
“Through this fund, we are training the leaders of tomorrow. FGCU is such an important community partner, and we are proud to be able to provide this donation, which will create the Shipley Center Scholars Program Fund,” said Dr. Paul DiGiorgi, cardiothoracic surgeon at Shipley Cardiothoracic Center. “We hope to gain insight from the students as they conduct research, gather data, observe cases, etc., while also hoping to inspire the students to continue in biomedical engineering careers and learn from the surgeons here.” 
 
The Shipley Cardiothoracic Center is Lee Health’s cardiothoracic surgery program. It’s the largest program in the region performing over 1,600 surgical cases annually. The Shipley Cardiothoracic Center is located within HealthPark Medical Center, which is recognized as an IBM Watson Top 50 Cardiovascular Hospital. HealthPark is the only hospital in Florida to receive this recognition for four consecutive years. 
 
In addition to providing high-quality care, Shipley Cardiothoracic Center is dedicated to serving the community through partnerships with numerous local groups and organizations to bring awareness and education to the Southwest Florida region. The Shipley Cardiothoracic Center has had a long-standing partnership with FGCU that includes various educational projects and collaborative efforts with the university’s software engineering and bioengineering students, including an internship program called the Shipley Center Scholars.
 
"The Shipley Center Scholars program is an amazing opportunity for our students to gain relevant clinical exposure to the needs and problems associated with healthcare today. Working directly with the physicians, nurses and staff of Lee Health, these students will be able to translate their experiences in the hospital to project and research opportunities within our bioengineering program,” said Dr. Chris Geiger, associate professor and chair of the Department of Bioengineering at FGCU. “In addition to funding for tuition, the program will provide students with experiential learning opportunities through a summer internship, as well as additional support to disseminate their findings at regional and national conferences. We are extremely grateful to the Shipley Center and look forward to continuing to enhance the relationship we’ve built with them over the last several years." 
 
To learn more about the Shipley Cardiothoracic Center and how you can support this program and others, visit www.leehealthfoundation.org.
 
About Lee Health
Since the opening of the first hospital in 1916, Lee Health has been a health care leader in Southwest Florida, constantly evolving to meet the needs of the community. A non-profit, integrated health care services organization, Lee Health is committed to the well-being of every individual served, focused on healthy living and maintaining good health. Staffed by caring people, inspiring health, services are conveniently located throughout the community in four acute care hospitals, two specialty hospitals, outpatient centers, walk-in medical centers, primary care and specialty physician practices and other services across the continuum of care. Learn more at www.LeeHealth.org.
 
 
 
 


May 3, 2021 – Westside Regional Medical Center received an “A” grade in the spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, a national distinction recognizing Westside Regional Medical Center’s achievements protecting patients from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization committed to health care quality and safety. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D,” or “F” grade to all general hospitals across the country and is updated every six months. It is the only hospital ratings program based exclusively on hospitals’ prevention of medical errors and other harms to patients in their care. 

 
“We are proud to offer our patients with care that is laser focused on patients and their safety here at Westside Regional,” said Barbara J. Simmons, RN, Chief Executive Officer at Westside Regional Medical Center. “We are committed to providing high-quality, compassionate care, while offering the most state-of-the-art equipment to our community.”
Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,700 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.
 
Westside Regional Medical Center was awarded an “A” grade today when Leapfrog updated grades for spring 2021. To see Westside Regional Medical Center’s full grade details and access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Twitter and Facebook. 
 
 
 
About The Leapfrog Group
Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. 
 
About Westside Regional Medical Center
Westside Regional Medical Center, an award-winning 250-bed hospital, is recognized for providing a wide array of services to the residents of Broward County, South Florida and visitors from around the world. We offer 24-hour comprehensive medical, surgical and diagnostic services, including oncology, cardiology and emergency care. Westside Regional also offers the community with the latest in minimally invasive spine and colorectal surgery and is one of only nine Joint Commission certified centers in the United States for minimally invasive colorectal surgery. Not only is Westside Regional certified as a Comprehensive Stroke Center by the Agency for Health Care Administration (ACHA), but it also received its Thrombectomy Capable Center certification from the Joint Commission. Westside Regional Medical Center is also a teaching and research facility, offering Graduate Medical Education (GME) programs in podiatry, surgery and internal medicine. For over 45 years, Westside Regional Medical Center has been committed to expanding and improving every facet of the organization, devoting significant time and resources to enhancing the facility, staff and medical care. Westside Regional Medical Center has an outstanding staff, which includes physicians, specialists and employees, all of whom place importance in making their patients feel welcome and comfortable.
 
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
 


May 3, 2021 – North Shore Medical Center is proud to honor our nurses during National Nurses Week, May 6-12, an annual celebration that recognizes the critical role nurses perform in our hospitals and for our community.  The theme this year, Exceptional People, Essential Care, commemorates just how indispensable our nurses have been during the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
“We are grateful to all of our nurses and humbled by the hard work they do every day,” said Matthew K. Garner, CEO of North Shore Medical Center.  “Nursing is one of the most rewarding careers, but also one of the most challenging.  This year it is about paying tribute to nurses and the daily impact they have on our patients’ lives.”  
 
Our nurses have many roles – staff nurse, nursing leader, educator, infection preventionist, nurse practitioner and more, and they serve these roles with a passion for the profession and a strong commitment to patient safety.
 
National Nurses Week is celebrated annually to coincide with the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.  Like Florence Nightingale, our nurses have served with passion and dedication, fighting for their patients against a pandemic that has waxed and waned now for some 15 months.  Today, as Florence Nightingale did in her time, our nurses represent a profession of advocacy and strength and are respected for their professionalism and devotion to their patients, their families and for each other. 
 
“North Shore Medical Center recognizes, acknowledges and trusts the strong commitment, compassion, expertise and care our nurses display in their practice and profession,” said Mr.  Garner.  “Now more than ever, they truly make a difference in the lives of our community.”
 
 
 
About North Shore Medical Center 
North Shore Medical Center is a 337-bed general acute care community hospital located at 1100 NW 95th Street in Miami, Florida. The hospital is part of Tenet Healthcare’s Miami-Dade Group and has been serving the medical and healthcare needs of the North Miami community for more than 65 years. North Shore Medical Center offers a broad range of services, including: 24/7 emergency care, maternity services with a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, a cardiac catheterization lab, and psychiatric care. The hospital also offers specialized centers including: A Community Cancer Center, Comprehensive Breast Institute, Sleep Disorders Center, Pain Care Center and the first Certified Thrombectomy-Capable Stroke Center in Miami Dade. 
 
 
North Shore Medical Center has consistently won achievement awards with the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines program. The hospital has earned the 2020 Stroke and Target Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus and Advanced Therapy Quality Achievement Award and the 2019 Heart Failure Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. First in Florida Joint Commission Accredited Chest Pain Center. North Shore Medical Center is among 832 Hospitals Nationwide Awarded an “A” from the Leapfrog Hospital Survey for its commitment to keeping patients safe and making the highest safety standards in the U.S for Fall, 2017 and Spring 2018.  
 
North Shore Medical Center is fully accredited by The Joint Commission, the nation’s oldest and largest health care accreditation agency. To learn more about North Shore Medical Center, please visit www.northshoremedical.com.


Hospital Receives Back-to-Back Top Mark from The Leapfrog Group
 
May 1 2021 – Broward Health Imperial Point received an “A” grade in the spring 2021 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, a national distinction recognizing the hospital’s efforts in protecting patients from preventable errors, accidents, injuries and infections.
 
This is the second consecutive “A” grade that the Fort Lauderdale hospital received. In December, Broward Health Imperial Point was awarded an “A” for the fall 2020 review, placing it among 34% of hospitals across the United States with high rankings in patient safety and quality.
"The healthcare heroes at Broward Health Imperial Point amaze me every day, and this is another example of how our team collaborates with our incredible caregivers to provide the best possible care for our patients," said Randy Gross, CEO of Broward Health Imperial Point. "Achieving the ‘A’ rating back-to-back further demonstrates our commitment to caring for the community."
 
The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 national performance measures from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Leapfrog Hospital Survey and information from other supplemental data sources to assign grades. The safety grades are assigned to more than 2,600 general acute-care hospitals across America twice a year.
 
“An ‘A’ safety grade is an elite designation that your community should be proud of,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “The past year has been extraordinarily difficult for hospitals, but Broward Health Imperial Point shows us it is possible to keep a laser focus on patients and their safety, no matter what it takes.”
The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and published in the Journal of Public Safety. To see Broward Health Imperial Point’s full grade details, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.
 
 
 
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.
 


May 3, 2021 – Healthcare Network, the only Federally Qualified Health Center in Collier County, has earned the 2021 Platinum Seal of Transparency, the highest level of recognition offered by GuideStar, a service of Candid. GuideStar is the world’s largest source of nonprofit information and serves as an online charity profile platform. Philanthropists, donors and foundations who support charitable organizations rely upon the GuideStar rating as a verified indicator of the strength, proficiency and effectiveness of nonprofits.
 
Reaching Platinum status demonstrates Healthcare Network’s commitment to transparency and openness to providing donors and supporters meaningful data to evaluate its work in fulfilling its mission of providing quality healthcare accessible to all. To achieve the Platinum level, Healthcare Network provided extensive information including organizational and contact information, in-depth financial data, qualitative insights about goals, strategies and capabilities as well as quantitative metrics about results and progress towards its mission. 
 
By sharing metrics that highlight Healthcare Network’s work, the health center is helping donors move beyond simplistic ways of nonprofit evaluation to provide a complete understanding of its impact on communities and underserved populations throughout Collier County.
 
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Healthcare Network’s impact has included administering nearly 15,000 free COVID-19 tests, creating a program to provide 500 free mental health counseling sessions to essential workers and their families and deploying a multi-lingual COVID-19 Response Team to dispel misinformation and address barriers to care. As of April 21, 2021, Healthcare Network has administered over 8,000 COVID-19 vaccines. 
 
“In accordance with our long-held belief in being transparent about our work, we are thrilled to be recognized with the Platinum Seal of Transparency,” said Dr. Emily Ptaszek, president and CEO of Healthcare Network. “As a medical and dental home, we are a safety net for people who are underinsured or uninsured and we are excited to be able to share how we’ve addressed health disparities in Collier County for over 44 years.”
 
Visit Healthcare Network’s profile at www.GuideStar.org or visit www.HealthcareSWFL.org to learn more.
 
About Healthcare Network
Healthcare Network is committed to ensuring quality healthcare is accessible to everyone in our community, regardless of income or insurance status. Founded in 1977 to serve migrant farmworkers and their families in Immokalee, Healthcare Network now provides care to approximately 50,000 patients annually in practices throughout Collier County including the Ronald McDonald Care Mobile® and the Health and Smiles Mobile units. Healthcare Network provides primary healthcare services including family care, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, senior care, and pharmacy as well as dental care and integrated behavioral health for both adults and children. The organization’s newest location, the Nichols Community Health Center, is a 51,000-square-foot primary care medical center in Golden Gate. For more information, visit www.HealthcareSWFL.org, or to schedule an appointment, please call  239-658-3000.
 
About GuideStar Nonprofit Profiles
The GuideStar database contains a profile for every tax-exempt nonprofit registered with the IRS. GuideStar encourages every nonprofit to claim and update its profile at no cost to the organization. Updating allows nonprofits to share a wealth of up-to-date information with the more than 8 million people who visit GuideStar to learn more about nonprofit organizations each year. Updating also allows nonprofits to share information with the more than 200 philanthropic websites and applications that are powered by GuideStar data. To reach a given participation level, organizations need to complete all required fields for that participation level. The GuideStar participation levels, acknowledged as symbols of transparency in the nonprofit sector, are displayed on all updated participants’ profiles in the GuideStar database.
 
About Candid 
Every year, millions of nonprofits spend trillions of dollars around the world. Candid finds out where that money comes from, where it goes, and why it matters. Through research, collaboration, and training, Candid connects people who want to change the world to the resources they need to do it. Candid’s data tools on nonprofits, foundations, and grants are the most comprehensive in the world. Find out more at candid.org and on Twitter @CandidDotOrg.