Memorial Health recently completed its second year as a part of HCA Healthcare. The Savannah facility integrated into the national healthcare company Feb. 1, 2018.

“Our mission is: Above all else, we are committed to the care and improvement of human life. We live this mission every day,” said Shayne George, CEO of Memorial Health. “I am very proud of the hard work our team has done to implement new processes and systems; we’ve added new equipment, programs and services, all while remaining focused on providing excellent care for our patients and their families.”

Highlights since the integration in 2018 include:

• Increased investment in the Memorial Health Dwaine & Cynthia Willett Children’s Hospital of Savannah to $66 million. The facility is scheduled to open in late 2020. This will be the only freestanding children’s hospital in southeast Georgia.

• Invested $28 million to build-out the third and fourth floors of the Heart & Vascular Institute to provide care for our patients in a 26-bed medical ICU and a 30-bed cardiac unit.

• Paid $22 million in taxes to benefit our schools, public safety departments and communities.

• Completely renovated the 26-bed adult behavioral health inpatient unit and expanded service to include an intensive outpatient program. The outpatient program provides comprehensive psychiatric care during the day and the patient returns home each afternoon.

• Recruited new physicians in several specialties including interventional pulmonology, cardiothoracic surgery, pediatric hematology/oncology, and pediatric nephrology.

• Added new technology including two robotic surgical systems in our minimally invasive surgery center, an additional linear accelerator for cancer treatment and imaging upgrades: CT and MRI.

• Launched new services including a procedure for AFib patients to reduce the risk of stroke (left atrial appendage closure), mechanical thrombectomy for stroke patients, and minimally invasive TIF procedure (transoral incisionless fundoplication) for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)

• Contributed more than $550,000 to charitable organizations in our communities.

In addition to the investments made to the Savannah facility, Memorial Health is investing more than $12.45 million to purchase land in Pooler and Richmond Hill to build freestanding ERs. The goal is to ensure that all extended communities have easy access to the highest quality healthcare when an emergency strikes.

“We know that when you or a loved one are ill or injured, speed matters,” said George. “We understand that getting the care needed quickly helps to alleviate the pain and worry of both our patients and their families.”