It takes a strong dedication to excellence and deep commitment to growth to achieve the results that the cardiology program at Jupiter Medical Center has enjoyed in recent years. Impressive momentum continued in 2017, with many exciting advances and milestones achieved, and more to come. Jupiter Medical Center is fully committed to establishing the complete continuum of medical services required to respond to cardiovascular disease. A strategic partnership with top-ranking Mount Sinai Heart New York has been critical in Jupiter Medical Center’s progress.
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“We want to be the place where people go for the very best in cardiac care,” says Gonzalo J. Loveday, MD, FACC, chief medical director of the Mount Sinai Heart Program at Jupiter Medical Center.Open-Heart on the Horizon
Last year, Jupiter Medical Center earned accreditation as a Level 2 Adult Cardiovascular Center from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration. The Level 2 designation signifies that Jupiter Medical Center met the state’s volume requirements for cardiac catheterizations and is in compliance with all American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association guidelines for patient care. This is an important milestone in the hospital’s plan to develop an open-heart surgery program later this year.
The medical center reached another milestone in December when the Jupiter Medical Center Foundation announced a $5 million gift from retired Sprint Nextel executive Tim Donahue and his wife, Jayne Donahue, to support the open-heart program. Once it is established, the new program will be named the Timothy and Jayne Donahue Cardiac Surgery Program at Jupiter Medical Center in the couple’s honor.
Offering open-heart surgery, which has been a community need for many years, will enable Jupiter Medical Center to provide a full range of cardiovascular services in one convenient location. Significantly, with open-heart surgery comes an array of expanded capabilities, such as the nonsurgical treatment of valve disease, advanced electrophysiology, and cardiac ablation.
“We are hard at work putting into place the elements necessary to launch the open-heart surgery program,” Dr. Loveday said. “As part of this effort, we will begin building two operating rooms to accommodate the new program, and we are raising funds for a third cardiac catheterization lab and an electrophysiology lab.”
Jupiter Medical Center is working to identify a leading surgeon to head the program. Behind-the-scenes work includes developing cardiovascular ICU accommodations, training and hiring nurses and other team members who will help provide the expanded services, and more.
As Jupiter Medical Center works toward its expanding cardiovascular services, it continues to maintain a steady growth in volume, which increased by 15.6 percent in 2017. The medical center also achieved a high level of patient satisfaction, scoring 90 percent in terms of patients likely to recommend its cardiology program.
Personal Attention
Patients who turn to Jupiter Medical Center for cardiovascular care receive benefit from the combination of excellent care and a compassionate focus on the individual. Physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, and other team members place a premium on listening carefully to patients and addressing concerns thoughtfully and thoroughly. Members of the cardiac catheterization team take pride in their concierge approach to care, ensuring that each patient is treated as if he or she is the only patient.
Similarly, patients who participate in the hospital’s Cardiac Rehabilitation program also receive personalized care, including an exercise program that is carefully developed and monitored, coupled with ongoing support throughout the process.
As part of its commitment to the community, Jupiter Medical Center is involved in events and educational outreach throughout the year. This effort includes hosting the Jupiter Heart Club, a popular and rapidly growing community cardiac support group that meets monthly eight months of the year. The group is open to the community, and features talks and question-and-answer sessions with experts on heart health.
