South Nassau Opens Two New Modernized Surgical Suites

$7 million investment accommodates larger surgical teams, improves patient safety

Two new, larger operating rooms designed to accommodate leading-edge medical technology recently opened at South Nassau Communities Hospital, representing another phase in the hospital’s ongoing expansion project.

The $7 million project converted storage space into two new, state-of-the-art operating rooms that can accommodate larger surgical teams, frees up floor space and lines of sight that will enhance communication among surgeons, nurses and support staff.

Each new operating room features new equipment for oxygen, anesthesia and other services that are now suspended from the ceiling and walls. State-of-the-art white and green lighting provides enhanced visibility during invasive procedures, and a special unit monitors temperature, pressure and humidity for the operating room suite. Other features include video imaging and ample space for equipment and maneuvering of the surgical team.



(L to R) Jonathan E. Singer, MD, chairman of the Department of Anesthesiology; Rajiv Datta, MD, chairman of the Department of Surgery and medical director of Gertrude & Louis Feil Cancer Center

“The new facilities provide an environment where we can expand the surgical capabilities of the hospital and improve patient safety,” said Rajiv Datta, MD, chairman of the Department of Surgery and medical director of Gertrude & Louis Feil Cancer Center. “With vital equipment suspended from the ceilings and walls instead of on the floor, we have additional space to accommodate larger surgical teams, optimizing the physicians’ performance and ease of patient care.”

“This is another step in our overall effort to provide the best possible care to residents of the South Shore,” said South Nassau’s President & CEO, Richard J. Murphy. “Modern operating suites are generally much larger than those that were built 40 years ago in order to accommodate diagnostic and robotic equipment that now is routinely used during surgery. We are recognizing that fact with this investment.”

The new operating rooms are another part of South Nassau’s overall expansion plans. In late September, South Nassau completed the first phase of a multi-year construction effort to expand its emergency department with the opening of a $4.5 million, 10-bed emergency department annex. Nearly $300 million in expansion plans are in the design stage for the Oceanside and Long Beach medical campuses.

Some 12,000 surgeries are performed each year at South Nassau that range from cataract removal and a hernia repair to hip replacement and neurosurgery. These new operating suites will enhance the capability of South Nassau’s surgeons to perform an array of procedures, including laparoscopic surgeries and those that require two surgical teams, such as cancer procedures that are followed by reconstruction surgery.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) for outstanding nursing care, South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,500 employees.  Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services.

In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and offers Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau operates the only Trauma Center on the South Shore of Nassau County verified by the American College of Surgeons as well as Long Island’s only free-standing, 9-1-1 receiving Emergency Department in Long Beach. South Nassau also is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons, and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program.
 
In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval for disease-specific care for hip and knee replacement, heart failure, bariatric surgery, wound care and end-stage renal disease. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org.