An Interview with CEO Pam Tahan
AW: Tell us the ways that WRMC serves its patients. What would you say Wellington Regional is best- known for?
PT: We serve our community and our partners in this area. Best known for Women’s Services (as a leader for many years), our Emergency Department (with high visibility since it’s based on 441 & Forest Hill, Palm Beach County’s biggest intersection), and our neuroscientists. Also, we are happy to say we have physicians who have been here for 15 years or more, amazing nurses, we are the only facility to assist comprehensive stroke patients and we offer great cardio services.
AW: How many hospital beds do you have? What are some of the newest parts of the hospital? What are some recent advancements you can tell us about?
PT: 235 beds. There are a lot of new advancements in technology. Dr. Andrew Shapiro has successfully completed an extraordinary milestone of 1,000 surgical procedures utilizing the cutting-edge da Vinci® Robot, cementing his status as a leader in minimally invasive surgical techniques in this region. In addition, there have been many new advancements in technology, including advanced procedures, MRIs, biopsies, gastro procedures and Post partum procedures. Also, for our maternity families, we now have a queen size bed for mom and a man cave on other side of the room.
AW: What was the biggest challenge in getting through the COVID years?
PT: Our community has been and was very supportive throughout. The situation caused a lot of labor challenges, in terms of staffing. We worked through it, as our goal is to be as consumer friendly as possible.
AW: What steps do you take to ensure quality care? Good bedside manner among your staff?
PT: We have many ways of ensuring quality care – one thing we are focused on is service excellence. We have a helpful class that is mandatory this year. We go through a coaching process. There’s a strong focus on positive reinforcement and coaching regarding bedside manner. Our hospital is focused on nurse communications team and doctor communications. We are constantly working on communications between doctors and nurses and highly focused on bedside manner. We are always examining re-admission, mortality, safety of care, effectiveness of care and the patient experience. Our mantra: patient safety and quality are paramount to everything we do.
AW: In what ways does WRMC give back to our community?
PT: Wellington Regional is very active in this area, especially when it comes to healthcare issues and our greater business community. We actively try to take a seat at the table in many Wellington community initiatives. I serve as the chair of the Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce and Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Table. We are very involved with the American Heart Association, the March of Dimes and other good causes.
AW: How long have you been CEO? Tell us about your background.
PT: It’s been 8 ½ years at Wellington Regional Medical Center. For the past 4 ½ years, I have served as CEO. I’ve been working in Hospital Administration for over 20 years. I got my undergraduate and graduate degrees from Cornell and did a residency in Hospital Administration. It’s something I love and am passionate about. It’s personal, it’s a mission, and it’s wanting to do the right thing for others. I want to improve the health of our community and be proud of what I do.
AW: What plans do you have for future enhancements or expansion?
We are building another hospital in Palm Beach Gardens. We have an Emergency unit in West Lake and are expanding that campus. As always, we are planning on keeping up with state-of-the-art technology. We will invest inside Wellington. Wellington is our flagship – we love it here. There are many more advancements in our future.
AW: Tell us about your relationship with the Wellington (and beyond) community.
As we look to our future, we want to improve the overall healthcare and the perception of health care in our community. Our focus is on the highest quality, most ethical healthcare. We welcome the community to give us feedback. Being inclusive of the community is important to us. We have the best staff, and we love what we do. I wake up happy every day. Our patients’ appreciation means a lot to us.
AW: What’s one of the best things you’ve heard a patient say about WRMC?
“The team at Wellington Regional Saved my life when I had a stroke. They are angels. I would not be here without them.”
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Wellington Regional Medical Center has gained the following awards and accreditations in recent years.
Hospital:
- Successful Joint Commission Triennial Accreditation Survey
- U.S. News & World Report Best Performing Hospitals for COPD and Stroke 2022-2023
- U.S. News & World Report Best Hospital for Heart Failure and Diabetes in 2023- 2024
Bariatrics:
- Blue Cross Blue Sheild Distinction for bariatrics
- Optum Center of Distinction
- Aetna Center of Excellence
- Cigna Center of Excellence
- MBSAQIP Certified
Cardiovascular:
- Chest Pain Center v7 Accreditation-Primary PCI with Resuscitation (Survey was in 2022 but received accreditation in 2023)
- NCDR Platinum Performance Award-Chest Pain Registry
Lab:
ER at Westlake is CAP Accredited
Stroke:
- DNV Certification June 2023
- 2023 Get with the Guidelines Gold Plus Target: Stroke Honor Roll Elite Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll
Wound Care:
- Healogics Center of Distinction (Received annually since 2015)