Bethesda Heart Hospital’s new advanced hybrid endovascular suite features state-of-the-art technology that will benefit patients with speedier, more precise care when facing complex cardiac and vascular conditions.

Bethesda Heart Hospital, located on the campus of Bethesda Hospital East, a part of Baptist Health South Florida, is now the first in Palm Beach County — and one of few in the nation — to feature the highly sophisticated Azurion with FlexArm imaging system by Philips. The suite also includes the first commercial release of Philips Xper3 information management system for physio-monitoring, reporting, inventory and data management.
 
Azurion with FlexArm represents a significant advancement because it allows unprecedented image quality from a wide variety of angles, using a pivoting C-arm and gantry suspended from the ceiling. The FlexArm rotates on no less than eight axes to create virtually unlimited imaging options from head to toe for both two- and three-dimensional visualizations. That flexibility frees up medical teams to choose the best working position without the need to reposition the patient or adjust the operating table, important safety and time considerations.
 
Image-guided therapy, in which treatment is performed through a small incision and guided by imaging technology, is increasingly replacing open surgery for the treatment of many diseases. Patients experience less trauma and, as a result, their hospital stay can be dramatically reduced. They often return home after one night in the hospital, and may even leave the hospital on the same day.
 
Correspondingly, the procedures are also becoming more complex, requiring more physicians from different disciplines to be at the patient’s tableside, working together in a highly coordinated way. Clinicians need to be able to quickly and easily visualize critical anatomy and identify changes to the patient during procedures.
 
The new suite can seamlessly accommodate both minimally invasive procedures and traditional open surgery, allowing clinicians to pivot in their surgical planning when necessary.
 
The new advanced endovascular suite will be used for more complex procedures such as transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVR), mitral valve clip repairs, left atrial appendage occlusion surgeries and thoracic aneurysm repairs.

 



Salah Foundation Children’s Hospital has completed a $52 million expansion of its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) that will enhance the immediate and long-term outcomes of infants born at risk. Designated as a Level III Regional Perinatal Intensive Care Center (RPICC), this is one of only 11 RPICC sites in Florida where a comprehensive team of board-certified neonatologists, nursing specialists and pediatric specialists provide comprehensive, multi-disciplinary care for critically ill newborns. 
The three-year, two-phase expansion transformed the original 63-bed, one-floor open-concept ward at Salah Foundation Children’s Hospital into a state-of-the-art 70 private bed-unit on two floors where families can stay overnight with their babies. The floors will be divided into Level III acute beds for more critical patients and a Level II progressive unit designed for babies ready to go home. The units will soon allow parents to see their babies when they aren’t able to be present at their bedside with NICVIEW web camera system technology, and parents will be able to view their newborns 24/7 with a secure password-protected video streaming technology.
 
Funded in part by the Broward Health Foundation, which raised $23 million dollars for the renovation, the focus of the NICU is on the needs of both infants and their families and offers integrated services such as child life, music therapy and pastoral and social services.
 


St. Mary’s Medical Center and The Palm Beach Children’s Hospital appoints Tarek Naser to the position of Chief Financial Officer.

Naser has worked at multiple hospitals in addition to his time in Detroit, including serving as the chief financial officer at DMC Huron Valley-Siani Hospital in Commerce, Michigan where he handled the finances for the 157-bed acute care facility. He has also worked at hospitals in both California and Texas as an Assistant CFO and controller, respectively.
 
Naser is a graduate of Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where he earned his degree in finance and economics. 
 
 


At the onset of her career, Cindy Munro knew she wanted to be a nurse scientist and was thrilled when the predecessor to the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) awarded her a fellowship to pursue her doctoral degree in 1989.

The investment paid off: While working on her Ph.D. at Virginia Commonwealth University, Munro was part of the team that showed how oral bacteria infect heart valves, a finding that led to the first of three patents Munro holds with co-investigators. She went on to lead research that showed dental plaque was a risk for pneumonia in patients on mechanical ventilation, and led to practices that changed the oral care guidelines for intensive care patients.
 
Now, more than three decades later, the dean of the University of Miami School of Nursing and Health Studies is equally elated by her four-year appointment to the NINR’s National Advisory Council for Nursing Research.
 
“I couldn’t be more thrilled to serve on the advisory council, which is a really important voice for the NINR,” said Munro, who was inducted into the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame in 2016. “Their early support was instrumental in starting my research career, and I have such admiration for the work NINR does. I look forward to making a contribution to their mission in this way.”
 


Cleveland Clinic Martin Health welcomes primary care physician Lisai Zhang, D.O.

Dr. Zhang earned her Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine. She completed her Family Medicine Residency at Palm Beach Consortium for Graduate Medical Education, where she also serves as a Resident-Student Liaison.
 
Dr. Zhang’s professional affiliations include the American Academy of Family Physicians and American Board of Family Medicine. She has also been involved with the Jessica Clinton MVP Foundation, providing pediatric cardiac screening for the organization.