Joint statement from our CEOs - April 30

Mayor Lenny Curry and the CEOs of local health systems and healthcare providers announced today that elective surgeries will resume starting Monday. The decision comes after Gov. DeSantis announced Wednesday his Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step plan to begin re-opening the state. Resuming elective surgeries is part of Phase 1 of the plan.

“As the number of COVID-19 patients in our area appears to be flattening and fewer people are requiring hospitalization, our community is taking gradual and cautious steps to reopen our city,” said Mayor Curry. “As treatment options evolve, enhanced testing becomes more available, and our social distancing efforts continue, we are hopeful that we can move forward safely and collaboratively in the days and weeks ahead.”

Measures local hospitals are taking to keep patients safe

Many of the precautions local healthcare providers put into place for the COVID-19 pandemic will remain for the time being.

“While we are heartened that the surge we anticipated may not come to pass, now is not the time to let down our guard,” said Mayor Curry.

A few of the protective measures include:

• Limited visitation.
• Expanded testing with faster results.
• Prescreening by phone and telehealth.
• Screening at ER and hospital entrances.
• Masking of team members, patients and allowed visitors.
• Isolation of patients with respiratory illness symptoms, separate from other patients.
• Escalated infection control practices, including appropriate use of personal protective equipment (PPE), surface hygiene and decontamination processes.
• Expanded virtual care options by primary care, urgent care and specialty physicians.

“We want to make sure people aren’t delaying necessary care for serious health conditions such as heart disease, stroke and other emergencies due to COVID-19 or because they believe our healthcare facilities are overwhelmed, which simply isn’t true,” said Mayor Curry. “Our local hospitals and ERs are safe, prepared and ready to care for them.”

Ascension St. Vincent’s
Kyle Sieg, Senior Public Relations Specialist, Ascension Florida
Marketing & Communications
904.308.7992
kyle.sieg@ascension.org

Baptist Health
Cindy Hamilton, Executive Director, Corporate Communications
904.202.4907
Cindy.Hamilton@bmcjax.com

Brooks Rehabilitation
Jill Matejcek, Manager, Public & Community Relations
904.345.7718
jill.matejcek@brooksrehab.org

Mayo Clinic
Tia R. Ford, Senior Communications Specialist
904.953.1419
Ford.Tia@mayo.edu

Memorial Hospital
Odette Struys, AVP, Public Relations & Communications
904.707.9301
Odette.Struys@hcahealthcare.com

Orange Park Medical Center
Carrie Turansky, Director, Public Relations & Communications
904.639.2697
Carrie.Turansky@hcahealthcare.com

UF Health Jacksonville
Daniel Leveton, Media Relations Manager
904.244.3268
Daniel.Leveton@jax.ufl.edu

Wolfson Children’s Hospital
Vikki Mioduszewski, APR, Manager, Marketing & Communications
904.304.0041
Vikki.Mioduszewski@bmcjax.com

ABOUT ASCENSION ST. VINCENT’S
In Florida, Ascension operates Ascension St. Vincent’s based in Jacksonville and Ascension Sacred Heart based in Pensacola. Together, Ascension Florida operates seven hospitals and more than 100 sites of care and employs more than 10,000 associates. Across the region, Ascension St. Vincent’s and Ascension Sacred Heart have served North Florida communities for more than 145 years. In fiscal year 2019, they provided nearly $180 million in community benefit and care of persons living in poverty. Ascension is a faith-based healthcare organization committed to delivering compassionate, personalized care to all, with special attention to persons living in poverty and those most vulnerable. Ascension is one of the leading non-profit and Catholic health systems in the U.S., operating 2,600 sites of care – including 150 hospitals and more than 50 senior living facilities – in 20 states and the District of Columbia. Visit www.ascension.org.

ABOUT BAPTIST HEALTH
Baptist Health is a faith-based, mission-driven system in Northeast Florida comprised of Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville; Baptist Medical Center Beaches; Baptist Medical Center Nassau; Baptist Medical Center South; Baptist Clay Medical Campus and Wolfson Children’s Hospital – the region’s only children’s hospital. All Baptist Health hospitals, along with Baptist Home Health Care, have achieved Magnet™ status for excellence in patient care. Baptist Health is part of Coastal Community Health, a highly integrated regional hospital network focused on significant initiatives designed to enhance the quality and value of care provided to our contiguous communities. Baptist Health has the area’s only dedicated heart hospital; orthopedic institute; women’s services; neurological institute, including comprehensive neurosurgical services, a comprehensive stroke center and two primary stroke centers; a Bariatric Center of Excellence; a full range of psychology and psychiatry services; urgent care services; and primary and specialty care physicians’ offices throughout Northeast Florida. The Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center is a regional destination for multidisciplinary cancer care which is clinically integrated with the MD Anderson Cancer Center, the internationally renowned cancer treatment and research institution in Houston. For more details, visit baptistjax.com.

ABOUT BROOKS REHABILITATION
For 50 years, Brooks Rehabilitation, headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., has been a comprehensive source for physical rehabilitation services. As a nonprofit organization, Brooks operates one of the nation’s largest inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in the U.S. with 160 beds, one of the region’s largest home healthcare agencies, 39 outpatient therapy clinics, a Center for Inpatient Rehabilitation in partnership with Halifax Health in Daytona Beach, the Brooks Rehabilitation Medical Group, two skilled nursing facilities, assisted living and memory care. Brooks will treat more than 50,000 patients through their system of care each year. In addition, Brooks operates the Clinical Research Center, which specializes in research for stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury and more to advance the science of rehabilitation. Brooks also provides many low or no cost community programs and services such as the Brooks Clubhouse, Brooks Aphasia Center and Brooks Adaptive Sports and Recreation to improve the quality of life for people living with physical disabilities. For more information, visit BrooksRehab.org.

ABOUT MAYO CLINIC
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing. Visit the Mayo Clinic News Network for additional Mayo Clinic news and An Inside Look at Mayo Clinic for more information about Mayo.

ABOUT MEMORIAL HOSPITAL
Fully accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO,) Memorial Hospital, is known as a leader in quality, compassionate healthcare with a reputation maintained through excellent staff, along with programs of technological advances, growth and expansion to meet the ongoing needs of the community. Memorial Hospital serves the entire First Coast area. Visit memorialhospitaljax.com.

ABOUT ORANGE PARK MEDICAL CENTER
Orange Park Medical Center, serving Clay County and its surrounding communities, is a full-service, acute care hospital with 317 inpatient beds. Orange Park Medical Center is a Joint Commission Top-Performing Hospital, ranked as one of the best hospitals in the country for heart, lung and surgical care. For more information about services, facilities and physicians, please visit OrangeParkMedical.com.

ABOUT UF HEALTH JACKSONVILLE
UF Health Jacksonville is a private, not-for-profit hospital affiliated with the University of Florida Health campuses in Jacksonville and Gainesville. In Jacksonville, UF Health includes University of Florida faculty, residents and fellows within the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville, who team up with outstanding caregivers and other employees to provide state-of-the-art services to residents throughout northeast Florida and southeast Georgia. This academic health center’s mission is to heal, to comfort, to educate and to discover in an environment where exemplary medical care is complemented by outstanding service.