Images of the brain from the high-powered 3 Tesla MRI.

New leadership + New programs + New technology + New facility =

A bigger and brighter future for patient care.

North Fulton Regional Hospital has long been the community emergency center…now it is much more as 2007 has proven to be a year of great change for the facility. Refusing to rest on the idea of ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it,’ the hospital has instead adopted the mentality of ‘if it ain’t the best, make it better.’

New People
The year began with two new additions to the administrative team and two others later in the year. CEO Joe Austin and CNO Linda Scholfield joined the North Fulton Regional Hospital team at the end of the 2006 calendar year, Compliance Officer Deborah Johnson joined in May, and Ron Henry, our most recent addition, joined in November.

“The thing that I really like about North Fulton Regional Hospital is the combination that we have here of the warmth and the friendliness of the community hospital with the complexity, sophistication and the expertise of a higher level hospital,” Scholfield explains. “I think that we have very successfully melded together these abilities so that the net result is the patient can feel comfortable coming here, regardless of pretty much any need they may have.”

After quickly becoming acclimated to the facility, the newcomers joined forces with the other members of administration to develop a long-term strategic plan for the hospital.

New Services
Part of this strategy was to increase both the number and quality of programs and services offered through the hospital. Since the start of 2007, North Fulton Regional Hospital has increased its Sleep Disorders Center to an eight bed, hotel-like outpatient center on campus; the Joint Replacement Program expanded its comprehensive orthopedic service consisting of pre-operative classes, physical and occupational therapy, orthopedic nursing, individual therapy and group therapy; and the Respiratory Therapy Department now offers Outpatient Pulmonary Function Testing, a service useful in diagnosing various restrictive and obstructive pulmonary diseases.

The Center for Rehabilitation Services has also undergone some service expansion. Hand Therapy, a service offered through the Occupational Therapy Department, has seen significant growth with the addition of a certified hand therapist, and patients with balance and vertigo problems achieve results through the addition of the Vestibular Rehabilitation Program.

Chief Operating Officer Ilona Wozniak recognizes the importance of creating programs and services for potential North Fulton Regional Hospital patients. “When we develop any new program or service, we focus on the needs of patients in our community and how we can meet those needs with our high quality standards.”

	In January 2007, the construction of the new patient tower was well under way, but there was still much work to be done!

New Technology
The addition of state-of-the-art technology also contributes to the high quality standards North
Fulton Regional Hospital has set for itself. The new angiography suite, the AXIOM Artis dTA, expanded North Fulton Regional Hospital’s angiography offering to include additional diagnostic and treatment procedures.

“With this new system, we are able to navigate through the blood vessels, figure out where the bleeding is occurring and stop it,” says Dr. Charles Sykes, a Radiologist at North Fulton Regional Hospital. “The curved, C-shape of the system allows us to take images from many different angles with only one injection for the patient, whereas before we could only take one static image per injection.”

Another technological addition in the field of medical imaging includes the high-powered 3 Tesla MRI. The higher-field strength of the 3T improves spatial resolution, resulting in exceptionally clear, detailed images that delineate very fine anatomic detail. Dr. Michael Jurgens, another North Fulton Regional Radiologist, praises the new magnet.

“This provides earlier and more accurate diagnoses for a variety of diseases, including the diagnosis and staging of cancers such as breast cancer, the detection of neurological disorders, such as multiple sclerosis, and diagnosing orthopedic joint injuries” One of his colleagues, Dr. Boyd Byrd, agrees.

“Our goal is simply to provide the best service and care possible for our patients,” explains Dr. Byrd. “In the highly educated and informed patient population that we service, this should not only prove to advance care, but it should also be in high demand by our concerned patients.”

This state-of-the-art MRI provides applications for imaging of the breast, brain, spine, orthopedic imaging and abdominal imaging, among other areas. The clarity provided in imaging of blood vessels also provides a high level of detail, which may avoid more invasive procedures for the patient, decreasing risk to such patients.

New Facility
Completing North Fulton Regional Hospital’s 2007 transformation are the many physical
expansion and renovation projects. From the most basic changes to the hallways and floors to the bigger building projects, construction crews have been busy this year. The addition of brand new classroom space with the latest technology, conveniently located just inside the main entrance, has benefited both hospital personnel and community members alike, as many people in the area attend the various community education classes offered through the hospital. The Maternity Unit also has a fresh look as the existing postpartum rooms, labor and delivery rooms and nursery have been refurbished to reflect a more contemporary look, and a completely renovated cafeteria allows for a relaxing dining experience, complete with hardwood floors and a new name. The new Azalea Café provides increased seating space for diners and a warm ambiance.

The biggest facility project undertaken in 2007 was the addition of the new, 58,000 square foot patient tower. This addition combined with related renovation to the existing facility adds 35 beds to the hospital, increasing capacity from 167 to 202 beds. The first floor houses new OR suites and an expanded post anesthesia care unit while the second floor, a 28-bed critical care unit, combines the Intensive Care, Cardiac Critical Care and Neuro Intensive Care units.

“The combination of these three critical care units should provide greater efficiency within the hospital, allowing us to deliver higher quality care to patients,” said Katja Bryant, Director of Neurosciences.

All of the changes that have taken place over the past year can be traced back to one goal: patient satisfaction. As the mission statement states, North Fulton Regional Hospital “will provide quality, cost effective healthcare to our patients in a kind, caring, and respectful environment.” When this mission is achieved, satisfaction should follow…and this is just what has happened.

For two consecutive months (July and August), North Fulton Regional Hospital received five stars for patient satisfaction. At press time, these are the latest scores received. These ratings are generated monthly through phone calls to randomly selected North Fulton Regional Hospital patients by an external field research corporation. Interviews are conducted in various languages with the focus on the following programs: Inpatient; Outpatient Surgery; Emergency Department; Inpatient Rehabilitation; Outpatient Rehabilitation; and Outpatient Services. With this winning record, physicians and employees at the ever-evolving hospital continuously strive to be the hospital of choice.

The Future
With 2008 on the immediate horizon, there are no signs of slowing for North Fulton Regional Hospital. The construction of the new patient tower foreshadows additional expansion in the future as the third floor remains open for further development.

“There is a great need in this community for medical care that is not only high in quality but also convenient,” says CEO Joe Austin. “That is what we can provide here, and we hope to expand even more in the coming years.”

For more information on the many activities and services of North Fulton Regional Hospital, visit http://www.northfultonregional.com or, or call 770-751-2550.