Morton Plant Mease and St. Joseph�s Children�s Hospital Partner to Enhance Care in North Pinellas
Partnership to add community outreach and advocacy
SAFETY HARBOR and TAMPA, Fla. (Jan. 26, 2009) ' As part of its commitment to quality health care and as a move to strengthen advanced children�s care in north Pinellas County, Morton Plant Mease Health Care is announcing a new partnership with St. Joseph�s Children�s Hospital of Tampa.
We are very excited about partnering with St. Joseph�s Children�s Hospital to enhance the services we currently provide for the children of Pinellas County. This partnership brings in the resources of a premier children�s hospital to our family-centered care,� said Lou Galdieri, interim chief operating office, Mease Countryside Hospital.
Through the partnership, families in north Pinellas and southwest Pasco will have more access to innovative, high-tech care in a family-centered setting,� said Michael Aubin, chief operating officer, St. Joseph�s Children�s Hospital of Tampa. As both Morton Plant Mease and St. Joseph�s are part of the BayCare Health System, this is a perfect opportunity to combine our resources for the benefit of the community.�
Called St. Joseph�s Children�s at Morton Plant Mease, the partnership will include emergency services and neonatal intensive care units at Mease Countryside and Morton Plant hospitals and the enhanced 15-bed, private inpatient children�s unit at Mease Countryside Hospital. Plans call for Morton Plant Mease to expand their offerings of classes and community events advocating health, prevention and wellness for children.
The partnership means that physicians at Mease Countryside and Morton Plant hospitals will follow the same protocols as St. Joseph�s Children�s physicians,� noted Galdieri. Many Morton Plant Mease nurses are certified with the National Pediatric Organization and all nurses will be receiving more specialized training through St. Joseph�s Children�s. Additionally, our nurses are Magnet-recognized by the American Nurses Credentialing Center as meeting the highest standards in the country for nursing care,� said Galdieri.
Children�s services throughout Morton Plant Mease also include newborn and pediatric care, outpatient pediatric rehabilitation offering physical, occupational and speech therapies, an asthma management program, support groups for breast feeding and a wide array of classes for expectant parents including online childbirth education.
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St. Joseph's Children's Hospital of Tampa is an innovative family-centered hospital noted for its high-tech medical care in a child-friendly environment. This premier 174-bed hospital, dedicated exclusively to children, opened its current facility on the St. Joseph's Hospital campus in 1998, and is committed to providing everything needed for the health and well-being of children. Parents have the confidence of knowing that the specialized pediatric services offered are further strengthened by St. Joseph's full-service medical center, including the 24-hour Steinbrenner Emergency/Trauma Center for Children.
Nationally recognized for health care excellence, Morton Plant Mease Health Care is dedicated to providing community owned health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. Morton Plant Mease Health Care is comprised of the following hospitals ' Morton Plant, Clearwater; Mease Dunedin, Dunedin; Mease Countryside, Safety Harbor and Morton Plant North Bay, New Port Richey.
Contact: Beth Hardy, Morton Plant Mease
Phone: (727) 298-6199
Pager: (727) 402-8113
E-mail: elizabeth.hardy@baycare.org
Or
Lisa Patterson, St. Joseph�s Children�s Hospital
Phone: (813) 554-8134
Pager: (813) 202-4176
E-mail: lisa.patterson@baycare.org
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