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"Most people who live or work in Miami-Dade
County are aware that South Miami Hospital is one of the largest
hospitals in South Florida, but few understand the role it plays in
both the quality of life and the economy of the community," said
D. Wayne Brackin, the hospital's Chief Executive Officer.
The South Miami Hospital complex sits on 25 acres and is recognized as
one of the nation's best.
South Miami Hospital opened in 1960 as a 100-bed
hospital to serve a small suburban community. Today, it is the
thirteenth largest not-for-profit community hospital in Miami-Dade,
Broward and Palm Beach, with more than 1,700 physicians and about
2,200 employees and volunteers. It has an annual payroll of
approximately $70 million and occupies a 25-acre campus that includes
six well-equipped buildings.
South Miami Hospital CEO D. Wayne Brackin
"Numbers tell only a part of the story,"
said Brackin. "Our mission is, of course, to provide the best
possible health care for the people of this area consistent with
fiscal responsibility. To do so, we continuously upgrade our
facilities incorporating the latest technologies and employ the best
people we can find. We are also a part of Baptist Health Systems of
South Florida, which gives our patients access to one of the largest
and most respected health care organizations in the region."
Concern for the people who live in the area goes well
beyond the hospital and medical services. The hospital makes an annual
donation of more than $100,000 to the City of South Miami for projects
that enhance the health and welfare of the surrounding community. It
holds an annual holiday toy drive for the children at the After School
House and actively participates in that facility's educational and
recreational programs for underprivileged children. It also holds an
annual food drive for the residents of the city's Senior Center and
conducts a number of no-cost and low-cost programs for senior
citizens.
The hospital sponsors numerous health-related fairs,
seminars and classes attended by thousands of South Miami-Dade
residents It offers a variety of free health screenings and has
organized dozens of free support groups that bring together people
with concerns from breastfeeding and new parenting skills to diabetes,
prostate cancer and stroke.
South Miami Hospital employees are involved in every
phase of community life, from working with Chamber South and the
Community Development Council, to being active in the merchants
association, scouting, the YMCA and various civic and religious
organizations.
Employees who are residents of South Miami give back
to the community through the Community Advisory Council. The council,
established several years ago, supports community events and
encourages employee involvement in community programs and activities.
Council Chair Barbara Lewis says the group donated
$500 to the South Miami Gardens Residents Association for a tutoring
and mentoring program. It also provided support to the Ludlum
Elementary School PTA for the fifth graders' end-of-year party and
aided South Miami's Pop Warner football program and the City's Police
Athletic League.
South Miami Hospital is well known for its
comprehensive maternity services and its "Birth-Day Place"
birthing suites.
Approximately 4,000 babies are born in the hospital
each year. It provides various forms of infertility treatment,
specialized prenatal care for women experiencing problem pregnancies
and has a newborn intensive care nursery. The hospital also performs a
wide range of services for women beyond their childbearing years.
The hospital's highly regarded Child Development
Center serves children with special needs, from diagnostic and early
intervention services to programs that help them achieve their highest
capabilities. Its Addiction Treatment Program for adolescents and
adults has received national and international recognition. As a part
of Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute, South Miami Hospital offers
a number of advanced services for the diagnosis and treatment of heart
and circulatory disease.
For the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, the
Baptist-South Miami Regional Cancer Program offers the full range of
oncology services, from surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and
clinical research protocols to support groups for patients and their
families. It has received acclaim for its treatment of prostate cancer
with prostate seed implants.
In addition to a full-service Emergency Center, South
Miami Hospital operates a "Fast Track ER" to provide urgent
care for people with minor emergencies such as sprains, stitches,
bumps and bruises. These patients are usually in and out in less than
an hour.
The hospital's Diabetes Care Center offers a broad
range of treatment programs to help people manage their diabetes. The
hospital offers individual counseling, eating disorder counseling, a
foot care clinic and expertise in insulin pump therapy.
The extensive scope of services, plus the hospital's
growing reputation for quality care, has made South Miami Hospital
well known throughout the Caribbean, Central and South America and
many other parts of the world. To assist patients from outside of the
United States, South Miami Hospital maintains an International
Services Department to coordinate medical care, transportation, hotel
accommodations and financial services for both patients and their
families. Its services are available to U.S. citizens traveling
outside the country who prefer to return here for treatment.
In recent years, the hospital has developed strategic
partnerships with several well-regarded health care facilities
overseas, including the MoBay Hope Medical Diagnostic Centre in
Montego Bay, Jamaica and private hospitals in Cancun and Cozumel,
Mexico. It provides training and education programs for physicians and
health care professionals from Nevis & St. Kitts -- Basseterre,
St. Kitts is the sister city for the City of South Miami -- and has
contracts to furnish health care services in the Turks and Caicos
islands.
During the aftermath of Hurricane Georges in 1998,
South Miami Hospital sent twenty nurses, plus physicians and
respiratory therapists, to the islands to provide humanitarian
assistance and medical care.
Two major construction projects, both scheduled for
completion this Fall, are underway; a $4 million 700-space parking
garage and a new 2,500 square foot Center for Pastoral Care, which
includes the Dr. F. Foster Dye Memorial Chapel. The hospital has
expanded the capacity of its nearby Addiction Treatment Program by 25
percent and opened 30 additional beds within the hospital itself.
"We are always investigating new ways to serve
the public," said Brackin. "At the present time we are
considering offering alternative health care programs under the
supervision of qualified medical doctors. They include acupuncture,
meditation, exercise therapies, nutritional supplements such as
botanical medicines and herbs, and massage therapy.
"My chief concern is with managed care and
government programs such as the Balanced Budget Act, which continues
to shrink reimbursement levels and encourages physicians and hospitals
to provide the most expedient, rather than the best possible health
care procedures," he said. "Only the public can demand an
end to this potentially disastrous situation. We are among the most
financially stable hospitals in the state and will be able to weather
the storm. However these factors may force some hospitals to
close."
Both South Miami Hospital and Baptist Hospital
received the 1999 Benchmarks for Success award presented by HCIA and
the Health Network to the nation's 100 top hospitals. The award
recognizes the hospitals nationwide for clinical excellence and
efficient delivery of care.
For more information about South Miami Hospital, U.S.
1 and SW 62nd Avenue, please visit the Internet website at www.baptisthealth.net.
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