Sarasota Memorial Hospital
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Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is an 806-bed regional medical center located in Sarasota County on Florida's Gulf Coast. With about 3,000 staff members, 750 physicians and more than 1,000 volunteers, it is the second-largest acute care public hospital in Florida and Sarasota County's second-largest employer. A community hospital, Sarasota Memorial is a full-service facility, with specialized expertise in heart, vascular, cancer, neuroscience services, outpatient services, home health and long-term care among its many programs. Sarasota Memorial is the only provider of obstetrical services and Level III neonatal intensive care in Sarasota County. The hospital, founded in 1925, was one of the first non-academic hospitals in the nation to develop a clinical research service that conducts studies in Lung Disease, Cardiology, Vascular Surgery, Geriatric Medicine and many other specialty areas. For more information, contact the hospital at (941)917-7777 or log onto [1].
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[edit] History & Overview
The hospital – first named Sarasota Hospital – was the community’s first modern hospital. It opened its doors on Nov. 2, 1925, replacing a temporary "tent hospital" and six-bed facility that had been used to treat patients.
Local residents, mostly women, launched a year-long campaign to raise the $40,000 needed to build the 32-bed facility.
Today, that modest 32-bed facility run by the county's welfare association has grown into the Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, a regional referral center with an 806-bed hospital, long- and short-term skilled nursing center, home health services, walk-in urgent care centers, laboratory and imaging centers and specialty campuses stretching beyond the county lines.
[edit] National Quality Rankings
In recent years, the hospital has repeatedly ranked among America's 50 "Best Hospitals" for quality care. In its yearly study of hospitals nationwide, U.S.News & World Report determines the best 50 hospitals in different specialties. Out of 5,462 hospitals evaluated in 2007, only 173 – just 3 percent – ranked in one or more of 16 specialties evaluated. Sarasota Memorial placed among the best in two: cancer care and geriatrics. It's the fourth consecutive year the hospital has been ranked in the magazine.
For five years in a row, the hospital has been named one of the Solucient 100 top cardiovascular hospitals in the United States. It also was recognized as a 2006 CareScience Select Practice National Quality Leader. This exclusive status is given only to the top 1 percent of hospitals nationwide that demonstrate a combination of superior clinical outcomes and exceptional efficiency in patient care.
[edit] Florida Select "Comprehensive Stroke Center"
Florida’s Agency of Healthcare Administration has listed Sarasota Memorial as the only “Comprehensive Stroke Center” in the southwest Florida region (as of October 2007), singling out the hospital as a preferred provider for people facing the greatest challenges in stroke care. The designation follows the system’s certification with distinction as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. The honor, which was bestowed in October 2005, demonstrates that the System’s stroke care program follows national standards and guidelines that can significantly improve outcomes for stroke patients. Florida uses Joint Commission certification as a means to designate preferred providers of primary stroke care, allowing paramedics and emergency medical technicians to bypass nondesignated hospitals and take stroke victims straight to a specially designated stroke center.
[edit] Magnet Nursing Designation
Since 2003, Sarasota Memorial also has been awarded Magnet Nursing Services Recognition, the nation’s highest honor for excellence in nursing. Given by the American Nurses’ Credentialing Center, the premier authority on nursing, Magnet recognition means that Sarasota Memorial provides a supportive environment that attracts and retains the best and brightest caregivers. Sarasota Memorial is the only hospital in the region to earn this designation. To be recognized as a Magnet hospital, applicants must pass a rigorous review, and meet criteria indicating superiority in all aspects of nursing services. Independently sponsored research projects suggest that Magnet facilities have positive outcomes for patients, nurses and workplaces.
[edit] Advanced Technology
In 2007, Sarasota Memorial surgeons became leaders in the field of robotic surgery, using the daVinci-S robotic surgery system in an ever widening choice of minimally invasive surgeries, including cardiac, prostate and gynecological oncology procedures.
[edit] A National Benchmark
In 2006, the hospital gained national attention for an emergency care initiative that resulted in a 30-minute wait time guarantee for all patients, eliminating ambulance diversions while significantly increasing patient volume and satisfaction. The initiative has eliminated the problem of overcrowding and long waits in the hospital's ER – a problem plaguing hospitals across the country.
[edit] Safety Net Hospital
Despite its tremendous growth and all its honors, Sarasota County’s only publicly owned hospital remains the only not-for-profit hospital in the surrounding 4-county region and provider of safety net of care for the community.
[edit] Sarasota Memorial Facts and Figures
-- Number of beds: 806
-- Average length of stay: 4.96 days
-- Adult admissions: 27,337
-- Emergency Care Center registrations: Nearly 81,000 (Our ECC is one of the busiest in Florida.)
-- Total births: 3,574
-- Number of physicians on staff: 737
-- Outpatient registrations: 343,828
-- The hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations
-- Sarasota Memorial provides about $100 million in mission services annually.
-- The health system is governed by the nine elected members of the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board.
[edit] Facilities
Sarasota Memorial's main campus is located at 1700 S. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota, Fla. The campus includes the comprehensive acute-care Sarasota Memorial Hospital, Emergency Care Center, Heart & Vascular Institute, Bayside Center for Behavioral Health, Cape Outpatient Surgery Center and an array of outpatient services.
Outpatient centers include:
-- The Institute For Advanced Medicine, which features the Neuroscience Center of Excellence and Healthplex, the area's first fully intregated medical fitness center, as well as Rehabilitation, Radiology Services and Lab Services. The Institute is located at 5880 Rand Blvd, off Clark Road, one mile west of Interstate 75.
-- The Sarasota Memorial Health Care Center at Blackburn Point, at 929 S. Tamiami Trail, Osprey, FL, includes the Comprehensive Pain Center, Lab, Radiology/Imaging/Xray, First Physicians Group of Sarasota practice, Diabetes Treatment Services, Comprehensive Bariatric Program, "Eating Healthy for Life" Weight Loss Program and Dermatology.
-- Sarasota Memorial Health Care Center at University Parkway, at 5350 University Parkway, Sarasota, FL, includes Lab, Radiology/Imaging/Xray, First Physicians Group of Sarasota practice, Rehabilitation and Pain Care Center.
-- Sarasota Memorial's Walk-In Medical Centers, which combine the nationally ranked urgent care services provided by Sarasota Memorial's board-certified emergency and family practice physicians with a full range of health services to meet family members' medical needs. The centers are open 8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday. No appointments needed. Two convenient Sarasota locations: 2401 University Parkway and 6130 South Tamiami Trail.
