Deborah Heart and Lung Center

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Deborah Heart and Lung Center was established in 1922 as a tuberculosis sanitarium and pulmonary center located at 200 Trenton Rd. in Browns Mills, New Jersey.

Legend has it that Deborah's rural Burlington County, New Jersey location was the key to recovery because of its therapeutic Jersey pine barren air. In reality, thousands of TB patients were medically treated and successfully cured by Deborah physicians. With the development of antibiotic medications, which eradicated TB, Deborah began expanding its focus to other chest diseases. In 1958, Dr. Charles Bailey, a pioneer in heart surgery, performed the first open heart surgery at Deborah. The specialty of cardiac diseases was immediately embraced and Deborah evolved into the only cardiac and pulmonary specialty hospital in New Jersey.

Today, Deborah offers the latest surgical techniques and non-surgical alternatives for diagnosing and treating all forms of cardiac, vascular and pulmonary diseases in adults, and congenital and acquired heart defects in neonates and children.

Generous donations are a significant factor in helping Deborah Heart and Lung Center, which provides the highest quality of medical and surgical care to patients suffering from heart and lung disease and children with congenital heart disease without distinction as to race, gender, sexual preference, creed, color, religion, age, national origin, handicap, or ability to pay. Deborah has also made donations, like supplying lounge areas in the Ocean County Mall in Toms River, New Jersey, where shoppers can learn more about Deborah with brochures and advertisements.

The Deborah campus consists of Deborah Heart and Lung Center, a 161-bed hospital with a full-service ambulatory care center and Deborah Hospital Foundation, the fundraising arm for the Center with approximately 68,000 volunteers supporting the Deborah mission.

In 2001, Deborah was awarded accreditation by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), effective for three years, which is the longest period of accreditation awarded. Since JCAHOs inception, Deborah has always received the maximum time allowed before an institution must be re-accredited.

[edit] Cardiac Services

Consultation Services in Ambulatory Care

Deborah's clinical cardiology services provide consultations for all patients with acute and chronic heart diseases. The scope of care includes congenital and acquired heart diseases including coronary artery disease, rheumatic heart disease, other forms of valvular and myocardial disease, cardiomyopathy and hypertensive heart disease. Included are disorders of the coronary and non-coronary circulation systems, myocardial function, cardiac conduction system and cardiac valves.

Approximately 30 to 40 percent of cardiology patients seen at Deborah have valvular heart disease. Deborah physicians also focus on issues relating to women and heart disease and risk factor evaluation and modification. After assessment, the Deborah cardiologist always consults with the referring physician to determine the most appropriate therapy for the patient.

Deborah's physicians are specialists in both managing cardiac diseases and determining the appropriate time for surgical intervention.

Adult Congenital Heart Disease

Deborah's unique adult congenital heart disease program combines the expertise of physicians trained in adult and pediatric cardiovascular medicine and surgery, with tailored management of the disease. Using a multidisciplinary approach, Deborah's physicians evaluate both the physical limitations of the disease and psychosocial issues, such as occupational and lifestyle modifications, as well as reproductive and genetic issues. Through the ambulatory care clinic, each individual undergoes a detailed diagnostic work-up. Cardiac catheterizations and EP evaluations are also available. Follow-up visits vary from monthly to yearly as required by the consulting physician.

[edit] Employee Award

Deborah Heart and Lung Center has commissioned The Jackson Organization to conduct its inpatient and outpatient satisfaction tracking survey. The Jackson Organization is a national survey research company solely dedicated to healthcare; they have over 200 clients nationwide.

The patient satisfaction surveys are conducted by telephone to insure a higher response rate and better reliability. Patients respond according to a 5-point scale allowing for a more optimal distribution of responses. The Jackson Organization surveys patients the month following their visit to Deborah Heart and Lung Center. Results are reported quarterly and portions are posted here on the Deborah web site. Deborah results are compared to Jackson’s national database and percentile rankings are given. For example, if Deborah Heart and Lung Center were to score at the 85% percentile, this would mean that Deborah scores above 85 out of every 100 hospitals in the U.S. for overall satisfaction.

Deborah Heart and Lung Center uses the patient satisfaction results for continually improving the delivery of care and the quality of the service provided to all patients. The history of high patient satisfaction scores and the high percentile ranking in the Jackson national database, reflect Deborah’s commitment to highly satisfied patients.

[edit] External links