OhioHealth - OhioHealth Dimensions Summer 2009

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Summer 2009

New Mothers and Babies Deserve Great Facilities

Our patients deserve the best. That's the
primary reason for the major renovation
of Grant Medical Center's Women's
Health Center.

Patients deserve a facility that matches the high-quality care we provide at Grant, explains Cheryl Gee, director of Women's Health at Grant. Expectant mothers in the Columbus area have a choice of where to deliver their babies, and Grant is improving its facility "to meet high standards of mothers," Gee adds.

To exceed those standards, Grant began construction of the Ann Burba Crane Center for Women and Babies in January 2008. The first phase of the center opened in April 2009, and features all-new birthing suites and a leading-edge special care nursery. By early 2010, construction on all obstetric, gynecological and postsurgical breast facilities will be complete.

Facts about the Ann Burba
Crane Center for Women
and Babies

8 new birthing suites
2 new operating rooms
5 beds for high-risk mothers
17 beds in special care nursery

"I am excited that the physical quality of the facility will finally reflect the quality of care provided by the physicians, nurses and other staff," says Andrew Bokor, MD. Dr. Bokor is chair of the Obstetrics/Gynecology Department at Grant. Both he and Michael Sprague, MD, medical director for Grant, prefer to deliver babies at Grant. "I tell my patients that if you need to come to the hospital or if your baby is sick, Grant is the place to be," Dr. Bokor adds.

Roomier Rooms
The first phase of the renovation, completed in April, involved increasing both the quantity and quality of the birthing suites, and replacing the two operating rooms. The eight new labor and delivery suites "are much nicer and much roomier," says Dr. Sprague, who led the redesign effort. The main nursery and special care nursery, for premature and low-birth weight babies and those with medical problems, have also been renovated, and now include private rooms and more space for visiting parents and healthcare staff.

The redesign incorporates research showing that certain characteristics of healthcare facilities can enhance healing. The postpartum area will "provide a much nicer environment for newborns, parents, siblings and extended families for stays that can last one to four days," Dr. Bokor says. "The special care nursery provides an environment that will allow newborns and their families to bond and it will give them autonomy."

Enhanced Care
The renovation also created opportunities for staff to enhance their focus on patients' needs.

With 150 to 200 babies currently born each month at Grant, volume often exceeded capacity in the primary healthy babies nursery, necessitating the use of an auxiliary nursery on another floor. "This obviously presented a challenge from a staffing perspective," Gee says. The renovation consolidates the main nursery on one floor, allowing staff to focus their efforts on providing the highest quality care for the babies there.

Clinical quality and patient satisfaction were also key considerations in the decision to continue caring for postsurgical breast and gynecological cancer patients in the same unit as the obstetric patients. "Because the medical staff and clinical care staff are trained in treating female patients and responding to their needs, it seemed a natural fit and assurance of appropriate care," says Brenda J. Sickle-Santanello, MD, a surgical oncologist and director of the Breast Residency Fellowship at Grant.

Changes were welcome, with the last major upgrade of the maternity department occurring 10 to 15 years ago. The renovation is also a rejuvenation of Grant's program for women and babies.

"This is not just a facility, but it is also a program, and a new way of thinking," says Dr. Sickle-Santanello. "It is a great time to be at Grant. We have the new Surgical and Heart Center, and now we are getting this new Women's Health Center. It's a natural extension of our dedication to women."

To find out more, visit www.ohiohealth.com/grant.

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