Mount Sinai Medical Center Prepares to Open South Florida's Most Advanced Surgical Facilities and New Emergency Center February 2nd

MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Jan. 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Mount Sinai Medical Center, the largest private, independent, not-for-profit teaching hospital in South Florida, is ushering in a new era of patient care with the opening of the seven-story Skolnick Surgical Tower and 34,000 square foot Hildebrandt Emergency Center on its main campus on Saturday, February 2^nd. 

The $275 million construction project combines highly advanced diagnostic technologies and treatments with a tranquil and healing environment, designed to enhance the patient, caregiver, and visitor experience.

From luxurious private patient rooms with panoramic bay views and hybrid surgical suites designed to easily incorporate future technologies, to a carefully curated artwork collection, the new waterfront facility offers unparalleled patient care and experience.  Mount Sinai, which serves as the only hospital on Miami Beach, has also been "resiliency-fortified" to withstand sustained hurricane-force winds and rising water from storms.  The hardened facilities serve as an example for healthcare organizations around the country.

"Mount Sinai aims to provide high-quality medical care to all patients, and the completion of this project symbolizes our unwavering commitment to serving our community for generations to come," says Steven D. Sonenreich, President and CEO at Mount Sinai Medical Center.

Mount Sinai Arts Program Graces Halls and Rooms

The project is also a catalyst for the Mount Sinai Arts Program, a partnership in which custom-curated artwork will be displayed throughout the new facilities. Incoming Vice Chairman of Mount Sinai Medical Center's Board of Trustees, Barry Skolnick, whose family the surgical tower is named for, believes art can be healing and comforting. Artwork from Miami-based artists, such as Anastasia Samoylova, María Martínez-Cañas, Mark Handforth, Rafael Domenech, and Adler Guerrier, has been carefully selected to support the wellness and healing of South Florida through their original works. Other pieces, such as Daniel Arsham's Pixel Cloud, which serves as a vast architectural experiment suspended in the three-story lobby, will also be on display. 

"This arts program pays homage to the diversity of Mount Sinai's workforce as well as the community in which we live," says Skolnick. "These pieces will transform what is typically known as a sterile environment to a space with a soothing energy."

Technology and Comfort Redefine Patient Experience

The Skolnick Surgical Tower is the most advanced surgical facility in South Florida and houses 12 integrated operating rooms with technology that promotes personalization for both patients and surgeons. These operating rooms allow for seamless communication with the control booth, pathology room, and other operating rooms, and can broadcast audio and video to other locations, even internationally. In addition to the building's two-story atrium and public courtyard, each of the 154 all-private patient rooms in the surgical center has a bay view.

"Every aspect of this project has been strategically designed for patients' physical and emotional care," says Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Mark Hildebrandt. "From the architecture to the technology, Mount Sinai is hard-wiring patient-centric care."

Emergency Center Triples Capacity for Growing Community Needs

The Hildebrandt Emergency Center contains 50 treatment rooms plus six designated behavioral health rooms for psychiatric and/or psychological evaluations. The emergency center includes two ultrasound machines for rapid imaging with minimal wait times and an in-house 128 slice CT scan. The emergency center will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The new facility was built with the growing needs of the community in mind – over one in four residents of Miami Beach do not have health insurance, and an aging population increases the need for emergency care. The spacious new facility can accommodate 75,000 patient visits per year. "Serving the community has been and continues to be the core of Mount Sinai's mission for over 70 years," says Hildebrandt. "Mount Sinai understands that as the only emergency facility in Miami Beach, it is important to serve all residents and visitors, regardless of their ability to pay."

The facility is also equipped with enhanced mobile telemetry to continuously track patient activity in real time. Nurses can see any changes in a patient's physiological status, and if a patient is on fall precaution, nurses are notified immediately via their smartphone. A central control room scans daily scheduling, operating room views, and analyzes turnover rates.

Designed to Withstand Florida's Hurricane Season Perils

Mount Sinai's newest buildings and existing facilities are designed to deliver high-quality care even in the most severe South Florida weather. The Skolnick Surgical Tower is built with mechanical, electrical, and plumbing safely stored on the third floor, protected from strong winds and flooding. In partnership with the City of Miami Beach, Mount Sinai is now housing the City of Miami Beach Emergency Command Center on the second floor of the Hildebrandt Emergency Center. Both facilities are armored with hurricane-resistant windows and roofs, reinforced walls, and generators capable of powering the entire campus for over a week.  Creating a medical center that is resilient to protect patients, employees, and visitors in any man-made or natural disaster is a priority for Mount Sinai.

"The combination of the latest equipment, technology, and facilities is a testament to Mount Sinai's commitment as an active leader in serving, supporting, and enhancing the wellbeing of the community in the present and in the future," Sonenreich said as he completed a pre-opening walk-through the new facilities. 

About Mount Sinai Medical Center

Founded in 1949, Mount Sinai Medical Center is the largest independent, private, not-for-profit teaching hospital in South Florida. Mount Sinai's mission is to provide quality health care to a diverse community enhanced through teaching, research, charity care and financial responsibility. Mount Sinai's Centers of Excellence combine technology, research and academics to provide innovative and comprehensive care in cardiology, neuroscience, oncology, urology and orthopedics. One of the original statutory teaching hospitals in the state of Florida, Mount Sinai is the hospital of choice for those who seek the level of expertise and care that only a teaching hospital can offer. Mount Sinai currently offers ten convenient locations in Miami-Dade County and two cardiology offices in Monroe County. For more information on Mount Sinai Medical Center, visit www.msmc.com or call 305-674-CARE (2273).

Contact: Peyton Sadler
866.571.3449
[email protected] 

SOURCE Mount Sinai Medical Center