Health First Announces $2.4 Million Palm Bay Hospital Operating Room Suite Renovation
By Space Coast Daily // June 18, 2021
Nine-week project begins July 6 with completion expected in early September
Leaders credit associate and clinical staff flexibility and creativity, utilizing other Health First facilities and resources to eliminate delays or inconvenience to customers.
■ Health First is investing $2.4 million in Palm Bay Hospital OR Suite renovation.
■ Nine-week project begins July 6 with completion expected in early September
■ All elective surgeries will be moved to other Health First hospitals.
■ Palm Bay Hospital will continue to perform emergency surgeries.
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Health First officials today announced a $2.4 million construction project to renovate the Operating Room (OR) suites at Palm Bay Hospital.
The ambitious 9-week project is slated to begin Tuesday, July 6 and is scheduled for completion by the first week of September.
During the renovations, all elective surgeries will be relocated to other Health First facilities, including nearby Holmes Regional Medical Center, Cape Canaveral Hospital and Melbourne Same Day Surgery Center.
Palm Bay Hospital will continue to perform emergency surgeries during the renovations.
According to Brett Esrock, CEO, Hospital Services, these updates will modernize and create improved levels of efficiency for surgeons, clinicians and OR support teams, while leading to a safer and more comfortable environment for surgical teams – and customers.
“I am extremely grateful for the in-depth level of ideas and feedback we have received from our surgical teams about how to improve and modernize our Operating Room suites. We value the communication and dialog, the sharing of ideas – as well as a common shared vision – for what a better care environment looks like,” said Esrock.
“This project will deliver on that vision and partnership, and I thank everyone involved for the imagination, planning, and execution to make this happen.”
“We’re very fortunate that we are able to rely on the combined available resources of other nearby Health First surgical facilities, which helps to eliminate delays or inconvenience to our customers. A great deal of imagination, communication and coordination goes into a project like this – from collaborating on procedure schedule blocks at other hospitals, to the on-the-ground design and construction of the units we are updating,” said Dan Bowen, Vice President and Administrator of Palm Bay and Viera Hospitals.
“As part of our overall culture and mission, our Health First hospitals think, act, and operate as one very large hospital – made up of four locations, and this project demonstrates that perfectly. We can make improvements to one hospital, while our nearby sister facilities are able to assist. It means a lot to our customers, their family members, and our associates and clinicians to have that level of partnership,” Bowen continued.
Temporarily relocating operating room staff, including nursing and support associates, to a different hospital in order to perform their duties also requires a great deal of flexibility and coordination.
According to MaryJane Brecklin, System Vice President for HR Operations, thoughtful attention was paid to every detail to ensure a smooth transition for associates – who will need to temporarily relocate to a different work environment.
“One thing – of many things – we reaffirmed about ourselves during COVID-19 was that the ability to go where needed, when needed, in critical situations is a key component to improving patient care and outcomes. That also builds camaraderie, trust, respect for one another, and a system that moves in one direction for the betterment of the customers we serve,” said Brecklin.
Palm Bay Hospital most recently was named a 5-Star rated hospital according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Rating System report – one of only 25 hospitals (including Health First’s Cape Canaveral Hospital) in Florida, and among only 13% nationwide to earn the highest marks for quality, safety, and patient satisfaction.
Founded in 1995, Health First is Brevard County’s not-for-profit, community healthcare system. The fully integrated delivery network (IDN) includes health insurance plans, hospitals, a multi-specialty medical group, and outpatient and wellness services. As a locally owned, not-for-profit organization, Health First is committed to investing in our community.
