STHS expands surgery capabilities

SOUTH TEXAS HEALTH SYSTEM EDINBURG EXPANDS SURGERY CAPABILITIES WITH EXPANSION OF THE FACILITY’S SURGICAL DEPARTMENT

STHS Edinburg has added two new operating rooms to meet the growing need for surgical services, including more complex procedure capabilities, in the Rio Grande Valley

The only Rio Grande Valley facility named a Best Regional Hospital by U.S. News & World Report, which the facility has earned for three consecutive years, South Texas Health System Edinburg has constantly evolved to meet the growing need for comprehensive healthcare services in the ever-expanding four-county region.

In recent years, STHS Edinburg has opened a new, $105 million patient tower that features expanded emergency, intensive care, inpatient rehabilitation and advanced imaging capabilities, as well as an enhanced laboratory services department three times the size of the previous space and a brand new $6 million cardiac catheterization laboratory.

But hospital isn’t resting on its laurels.

Accredited as a Center of Excellence for minimally invasive, robotic and hernia surgery by the Surgical Review Corporation, STHS Edinburg recently completed a $12 million expansion of the surgical services department, adding two spacious new operating rooms to meet the growing demand for surgical care in the community, perform more complex procedures and provide better patient care.

“In its commitment to ensuring positive patient outcomes, STHS Edinburg has worked tirelessly to ensure that surgeons can perform procedures in a timely manner in the hospital’s five operating rooms on our adult and pediatric population,” says Caren Ohliger, MSN, RN, CNOR, EMLS, Director of Surgical Services, South Texas Health System Edinburg. “The addition of these two new operating rooms will dramatically expand our ability to perform the most complex procedures while providing quality, compassionate care to our patients without a long wait.”

Used to perform general, robotic and laparoscopic procedures, the larger operating rooms have helped create a more efficient use of space, shortened surgery times, reduced the number of surgical flow disruptions that can slow down procedures and allowed for better communication and collaboration with the surgical team.

“Studies have found that better-designed operating rooms shorten surgical procedure times and produce better patient outcomes,” says Ohliger. “So, these two new spaces aren’t only expanding our surgical capabilities, they’re helping provide a better patient experience, including less waiting and faster recovery.”

In addition to the two spacious operating rooms, the expanded surgical suite includes an enhanced sterile processing department that features updated equipment like new sterilizers and new workstations. Additionally, the number of washers and autoclaves has been doubled, which enables the facility’s sterile processing technicians to clean and manage a larger number of instruments in a timely and efficient manner than in the previous space.

“This 6,100-square-foot expansion project demonstrates South Texas Health System Edinburg’s commitment to provide expanded access to world-class surgical care for the people of the Rio Grande Valley,” says Lance Ames, Chief Executive Officer, South Texas Health System Edinburg & STHS Children’s. “The addition of these two new

operating rooms has dramatically expanded our ability to perform the most complex procedures while allowing us to continue to provide quality, compassionate surgical care to our patients without a long wait.”

The first facility in the Rio Grande Valley to introduce minimally invasive robotic surgery using the advanced da Vinci® Xi Surgical System, STHS Edinburg offers simple and complex procedures to treat a wide range of conditions, including simple and complex hernias, gastrointestinal problems, diseases of the gallbladder, pancreas and liver, endocrine problems and swallowing disorders, among others. To learn more about the surgical services at STHS Edinburg, visit https://www.southtexashealthsystemedinburg.com/services/surgery.

About South Texas Health System
South Texas Health System is a multi-facility healthcare system serving patients throughout the Rio Grande Valley. The system includes four acute care facility campuses with specialties in pediatrics, heart and vascular services, maternity and women’s health and trauma services. Inpatient and outpatient treatment for behavioral health needs and addictive disorders is also provided through the system’s South Texas Health System Behavioral facility. South Texas Health System is affiliated with the South Texas Clinical Partners ACO, Prominence Health Plan, and Cornerstone Regional Hospital. The system operates an advanced Level I Trauma Center at South Texas Health System McAllen, the first and only freestanding children’s facility and pediatric ER at South Texas Health System Children’s, the region’s only freestanding heart hospital and specialized cardiac ER at South Texas Health System Heart, and six freestanding emergency rooms located in and around Weslaco, Mission, Edinburg, McAllen and Alamo. For more information about the system and its comprehensive services, please visit www.southtexashealthsystem.com.

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