from staff
St. Vincent’s HealthCare executives recently announced the hiring of three new managers for St. Luke’s Hospital. On April 12, St. Luke’s — Florida’s oldest private hospital — will become part of the St. Vincent’s HealthCare system. As part of the conversion, LaRhonda Brown will become manager of the Care Management Department, Jennifer Gunn will become manager of the Laboratory and Tracy Williams will become manager of Rehabilitation Services.
Brown has been a social worker in St. Vincent’s Care Management Department since 2005. Gunn joined St. Vincent’s in 2000 as a night shift supervisor. Williams has been working as a physical therapist at St. Vincent’s since 2006.
St. Vincent’s HealthCare Foundation also announced a lead gift from Marcia and Ricardo Morales Jr. that will help fund the $1.5 million renovation of St. Vincent’s Infant Nursery, which will be renamed in honor of the couple’s support for the project.
The Infant Nursery will include a 25-bed well-baby infant nursery, an 11-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and a four-bed isolation nursery for infants with infectious diseases. The new unit will be completed with state-of-the-art technology to match St. Vincent’s qualified medical staff of neonatologists, pediatricians, nurses and medical technicians.
“There have been many changes over the past few years in the way neonates are cared for,” said Dr. Ronald Carzoli, St. Vincent’s Chief of Pediatrics and Medical Director for the Infant Nursery. “This renovation will create a comfortable environment for families so they can follow their baby’s care more closely and be a part of that care process. In addition, we’ll purchase new equipment for state-of-the-art care of these babies.”
The new nursery will feature a central nursing station where all newborns can be monitored in clear view of the expert nursing staff and physicians responsible for their care. The neonatal intensive care unit will undergo modernizing and outfitting with the latest technology such as General Electric’s Giraffe Omni Beds and the Vapotherm Hydration Systems. This unit is designed for premature infants and those with special needs or at risk for serious complications.
A well baby nursery will be newly decorated and expanded with 25 infant beds. A separate, specialized isolation nursery for infants with infections will feature the latest in infusion technology. These “Smart Pumps” will reduce medication errors, improve workflow, and provide a new source of data for continuous quality improvement.
A respiratory therapy unit will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology that analyzes an infant’s blood gas, testing that is particularly critical in identifying newborns with breathing difficulty.