Hospital anniversary marked by new goals

Employees of Spring Valley Hospital quietly celebrated the facility's first anniversary in October.

But the goals set for the next year won't be as quiet. Changes are on the horizon, but they will only benefit the residents who use the 5400 S. Rainbow Blvd. hospital, said Karla Perez, chief operating officer.

Ground soon will be broken on the campus' new medical office building, to be located perpendicular to the current building. It will add 60,000 square feet of obstetrics and gynecology, primary care and surgical sub-specialists' offices in the ongoing goal to make Spring Valley Hospital the single stop for patients, Perez said.

"Our goal is to develop a one-stop shop for physician access," Perez added. Referrals of the future will be steps, instead of miles, away. "You have all those physicians right here on campus, and you don't have to go out into the community to get the services you need."

The growth of Las Vegas' southwest area prompted Perez to issue the opening of one of two empty floors, designed to allow the hospital to supply more beds for patients as demand for them grew. The first floor opened in December, three months after the opening and six months ahead of schedule. The second floor is set to open this winter. Half of the third floor is in the wings waiting for the call for space and 45 additional beds.

"The way we're growing, it could happen before we expect it to," Perez said.

The majority of the hospital's patients come from within a 5-mile radius of the hospital, and the number of residents who move into the area grows daily.

"I think we were needed more than we originally expected," Perez said. "What we didn't expect was the significant growth of the southwest area. I think it's grown far beyond anyone's expectations."

The hospital officially opened on Oct. 2, 2003, at 3 p.m. and saw its first patient at 3:01 p.m. Since then, doctors have seen about 30,000 patients "in one way or another," Perez said.

"I think they were circling in the parking lot," she joked.

The first mother to give birth to a baby at Spring Valley Hospital arrived on opening day and gave birth the next day. Little did Perez know, there were going to be 999 more births within 13 months. Perez expects to see the birth of the 1,000th baby by Nov. 1.

For a 1-year-old hospital, that's a significant number, she said.

"Usually, you won't see volume pick up in your maternity center until the eighth or ninth month, because people have already decided where they're going to deliver," Perez said. "I had people call before we opened. They were waiting."

The level II nursery, the first in the area, spiked the number of babies delivered at the hospital when it earned the designation in April. The level II nursery is for babies born with breathing or cardiac difficulties. It's a step up from a healthy baby nursery and a step less severe than intensive care, or level III.

"I think moms like the security of knowing we have a little bit higher level of care," Perez said.

The mural inside the healthy baby nursery was finished by local artist Julie Juptner in time for the anniversary. Also, hospital staff remade the lounge in the mammography department to put women awaiting a mammogram at ease.

Lavender walls, framed tropical settings, soothing music and a palm tree add to the ambiance.

"A lot of my patients are apprehensive. If you think about where you relax, they think an island. Now, they all want massage tables and oil," said Becky Christensen, chief mammographer. "They're pacing the room and now they've sat down."

The anniversary fell during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and to continue the celebration throughout October, the hospital is offering $50 mammograms to patients without insurance. Typically, the cost of the test is more than $200.


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