St. Luke's Sugar Land Hospital Celebrates Grand Opening Events

(Sugar Land, TX) October 6, 2008 — St. Luke’s Sugar Land Hospital, St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System’s newest facility, celebrated several grand opening events last week week, commemorating the opening of the hospital which is slated for October 10. Events for the week included a grand opening party, ribbon cutting ceremony, chapel dedication and employee appreciation luncheon.

The Right Reverend Don A. Wimberly, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas and chairman of the St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System Board of Directors, presided over both the chapel dedication and ribbon cutting. Denton A. Cooley, MD, surgeon-in-chief, president emeritus and founder of Texas Heart Institute, and world renowned heart surgeon was also in attendance for the ribbon cutting.

Denton Cooley, MD, & The Right Reverend Don A. Wimberly

Fort Bend area city and county officials joined in the festivities, with Sugar Land Mayor Pro Tem Michael Schiff, Fort Bend County Commissioner James Patterson, and Sugar Land City Councilmen Russell Jones and Dennis Parmer all attending the ribbon cutting. Rick Guerrero, Field Service Representative for Congressman Nick Lampson, was also there to present a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition to the hospital.

Sugar Land City Councilman Russell Jones; Sugar Land City Councilman Dennis Parmer; Beryl Ramsey, CEO, St, Luke's Sugar Land Hospital and VP, St. Luke's Episcopal Health System; Sugar Land Mayor Pro-Tem Michael Schiff; and Fort Bend County Commissioner James Patterson.

“With the combination of the evidenced-based design of the hospital, which means better safety for patients, the physical beauty of the building, the quality of physicians and staff, and our faith based care, I am just thrilled to be able to open our doors to the Fort Bend community,” said Beryl O. Ramsey, CEO, St. Luke’s Sugar Land Hospital, and vice president, St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System. “We are bringing this unique combination of technology and special brand of caring for the whole person to one of Houston’s fastest growing communities.”

The 100-bed hospital will offer a wide spectrum of inpatient and outpatient services, including cardiovascular services and women’s services. Two floors of the hospital are beautifully decorated private patient rooms, and the third floor is dedicated to women’s services and the “Sweet Beginnings” newborn nursery in addition to the level 2 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Texas Children’s Hospital^®provides the neonatology coverage* with availability 24 hours a day.

Nilesh Bavishi, MD, and John Vanderzyl, MD, St. Luke's Sugar Land Hospital Physician Board Members; Beryl Ramsey, CEO, St. Luke's Sugar Land Hospital and VP, St. Luke's Episcopal Health System; Bishop Wimberly; Dr. James Martin, Jr., St. Luke's Sugar Land Hospital Physician Board Member; David J. Fine, president and CEO, St. Luke's Episcopal Health System; Irene Helsinger, senior vice president, St. Luke's Episcopal Health System; Michael Schiff, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Sugar Land; and Dr. David Korfin, St. Luke's Sugar Land Hospital Physician Board Member.

The hospital also includes a 16-bed Intensive Care Unit, eight surgical suites, special procedure rooms for endoscopy and pain procedures, cardiac catheterization labs, comprehensive diagnostic and imaging services with a 64-slice CT scanner and 1.5T MRI, both with cardiac capability, and an Emergency Department with 12 treatment rooms and five pediatric observation rooms.

*Physicians are employed by Baylor College of Medicine