Guest opinion: Minutes matter with lifesaving healthcare services
We have some exciting news to share. Pending approval by Naples City Council, NCH Healthcare System is pleased to announce we are finalizing plans to add a world-class Heart, Stroke and Vascular Institute — providing comprehensive cardiac, stroke, and vascular services — to our downtown campus. This state-of-the-art Institute will be constructed on our Baker campus adjacent to the existing hospital. Additionally, we’re planning to construct a parking garage for easy access in and out of our campus.
Our vision for NCH is to provide exceptional quality care with the best patient experience and outcomes available. In that regard, the vision for the NCH Heart, Stroke and Vascular Institute, is testimony to our commitment to the community and our broader vision. Its location is important and symbolic; it sits in the heart of Naples. Importantly, 67% of NCH's heart and stroke patients requiring interventions reside within 10 miles of our downtown Baker campus.
The Institute will be built on a solid foundation. NCH was recently recognized nationally by U.S. News and World Report. Plus, we recently received two “A” scores at both campuses by Leapfrog Hospital Safety Group, the gold standard for patient safety transparency.
The NCH Heart, Stroke and Vascular Institute will benefit the community by further attracting nationally-acclaimed physicians and advance our research institute, where we currently have more than a dozen clinical trials underway.
We at NCH are committed to building the best possible healthcare and wellness programs for the Naples community, for which we have proudly served for more than 65 years. NCH is a community healthcare system. It was built by the community for the community. And everything we strive to do is with that in mind. We understand the important role we play in the stewardship of your care and well-being and we value your support.
To enable our vision to come to life, we are collaborating with elected officials and city representatives, to designate a new hospital district as part of the project.
Some facts about the new facility and our request:
The plan is to construct one new six-story building, plus a parking garage. This will provide space to house vital hospital infrastructure, including technology and the support operations for our cardiac care sub-specialties, enabling us to perform more procedures.
The proposed six-story building will be adjacent to the current facility, which, at FEMA grade has a height of 92’.6”. We are requesting 98’.6”, or an additional six feet. This allows for higher ceilings per floor to accommodate the latest technology requirements. This project will result in an additional 54 new patient rooms. For the first time, NCH will have 100 percent private rooms.
The current city charter prohibits buildings in commercial zones from exceeding three stories and 42 feet, requiring the hospital district zoning request.
The construction timeline is expected to be two years.
The new facility is projected to cost $150 million, a significant portion of which will be funded by philanthropic support from our community.
We are committed to keeping you informed and up-to-date on our progress. Our goal is simply to provide exceptional care with the best patient experience. We seek your support on this journey. We are open to feedback as we continue to work in collaboration with both you, our community, and our elected officials. Everyone deserves the best care possible, and at NCH we are all dedicated to providing it.
For more information visit www.MomentsMatterinNaples.com.
Paul Hiltz is the President and CEO of NCH Healthcare and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: NCH Healthcare System announces heart, stroke and vascular Institute plans
