Good Samaritan Hospital Unveils New Ambulatory Surgery Center

First of its kind in Rockland County

BY CHERYL SLAVIN

About 100 medical staff, hospital executives and members of the public gathered last Thursday to celebrate the completion of Good Samaritan Hospital’s new Ambulatory Surgery Center, the latest in a series of upgrades for the medical facility. The first wholly separate ambulatory center to open in Rockland County, the facility will accommodate most one-day procedures in such fields as orthopedics, ophthalmology, gynecology, and Lap-Band surgery, among others.

Up until now all ambulatory patients were serviced at the same location as overnight patients, which led to delays and lengthier administration procedures for both. By providing a separate location solely dedicated to ambulatory surgery the hospital seeks to improve the overall patient experience; there will be now be concierge service from arrival to departure and an efficient, streamlined registration and discharge process. The staff will be able to focus its attention completely on the patients at the Center.

The Center is equipped with four state-of-the-art operating rooms as well as a special peri-anesthesia suite to accommodate ophthalmology patients. The Center also boasts sixteen private bays for pre-surgical preparation and post-surgical recovery. Improved comforts include television hook-ups and chairs for family members in the bays, a refreshment area to provide for the needs of post-op patients, and a comfortably furnished brand new waiting area. Additionally, two of the bays are equipped with solid doors in order to provide extra privacy for children and bariatric patients.

In keeping with its purpose to provide a space designed to maximize comfort and quality care geared specifically toward same-day treatment, the Center is located off-site in the Suffern Medical Pavilion and includes generous free parking facilities. However, all of the main hospital staff and facilities are still available to patients who use the Center and any patient who ends up requiring an overnight stay can be easily transported to the main hospital through a connecting corridor.

Three of Good Samaritan’s chaplains, Debra Sheridan, Rabbi Yakov Feldman, and Father Lawrence Nwaneri, C.S.Sp., led prayers to dedicate the facility. Father Lawrence also walked through and blessed the entire facility with holy water. Eileen Dobbing, Chief Nursing Officer, Philip Patterson, Bon Secours CEO, Thomas Facelle, Chief of Surgery and Richard Clarkin, Chief of Anesthesia were the official ribbon cutters. Members of the public, as well as hospital staff and executives, were invited to tour the facility and get a rare up-close view of the inner workings of a surgical center.

This new facility comprises one part of Good Samaritan’s larger strategic plan. Last year the hospital opened its dedicated cardiac unit. Later this year the hospital will unveil its completely revamped emergency room as well as its mother/child unit.

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