Plantation shutters, detailed armoires, faux hardwood flooring and plasma screen TVs. Does this sound like a typical hospital room? It does if you're delivering a baby at San Joaquin Community Hospital. The brand-new family birth center with state-of-the-art labor and delivery suites covered with cool accoutrements is a part of an $80 million, two-phase construction project at SJCH.

"Our goal is to make a comfortable environment for our patients," said Debbie Hankins, RN, vice president for nursing and patient care at the Central California facility.

Housed within a new patient care tower, the family birth center boasts modern rooms able to transition into labor suites in less than 30 seconds. The new ward contains two surgery suites for cesarean sections and is complete with an infant security system to rival the TSA.

"It's a beautiful environment and that's nice," stated Hankins. "But more than that, our nurses are excellent and provide exceptional care."

Indeed, SJCH recently won accolades by HealthGrades, the leading independent health care ratings company, with a five-star rating in maternity care. The hospital also was recognized by the Premier health care alliance with a 2007 Premier Award for Quality for excellence in the area of maternal and neonatal patient care.

"Our family birth center continues to be the benchmark of top-quality maternity care in Bakersfield," said Bob Beehler, president and CEO at SJCH, adding that the five-star, "best" rating means the birth center ranked in the top 15 percent of hospitals in 17 states.

"When we heard the news, we were all very happy," said Grace Kwasman, RN, director of the Family Birth Center at SJCH. "I'm so proud of my nurses and staff!"

In addition to the family birth center, the hospital's new five-story, 130,000 square-foot tower includes a 14,000 square-foot emergency department, eight state-of-the-art surgical suites, new telemetry and medical/surgical floors and an expanded ICU.

GAMC Expands Emergency Care

The emergency department is literally the front door of a hospital. Open 24 hours a day, the ED is sometimes the first and most vital stop a person will make on the way to critical services.

But with emergency department admissions up 71 percent in the last eight years, Glendale Adventist Medical Center faced a crisis. Its 19-bed facility just wasn't designed to handle such influx. So, GAMC did the unthinkable. While other California emergency departments closed their doors, GAMC not only committed to keeping its ED open, it planned to expand.

"We're here for our community, even in a tough economic climate where many EDs have closed or are too full to care for more patients," said Warren Tetz, senior vice president for operations/COO at GAMC.

As part of a three-phase, $180 million building project, GAMC revitalized its ED to accommodate more patients, increase access and streamline care. But the hospital didn't stop there. A large part of the project was demolishing an old building and raising a new patient care tower.

By building the new West Tower, "We significantly expanded hospital services in our community," said Tetz.

One new feature is interventional radiology, which enables physicians to immediately treat complex conditions such as aneurism or stroke. Referring to these treatments, where even seconds matter, Tetz said, "We're unique in that we have the equipment and the medical staff able to deal with stroke in a comprehensive way. GAMC is one of the top stroke centers in the country."

In an age where sprawling hospital campuses confuse even the most savvy navigator, a main thrust of the construction project focused on increasing access, accommodating growth and consolidating services.

"We wanted to make it easier for our patients to reach the services they need," said Tetz.

Take, for example, the newly remodeled intensive care unit. Besides more than doubling its occupancy and making rooms completely private, there is a unique focus on family. The new ICU rooms are designed with a couch/bed so that a family member can stay with their loved one at all times. And while standard ICU rooms don't include restrooms or showers, the GAMC ICU boasts a family lounge including shower facilities for family members.

"In the new tower, all of our patient rooms have direct Internet access, thanks to computer terminals donated by IBM," added Tetz. "Even though they may be in the hospital, this access helps patients and their families to continue conducting their daily business."