Temecula Valley Hospital is excited to announce it broke ground in April for the hospital's first floor expansion project. A 28,000 square foot addition to the first floor on the east side of the hospital will allow the hospital to expand its cardiovascular, stroke and surgical services. The project will enable the hospital to advance its capabilities of these services to better meet the needs of the community.
Here to tell us about this exciting expansion project is Darlene Wetton. She is the Chief Executive Officer for Temecula Valley Hospital.
Selected Podcast
Temecula Valley Hospital’s First Floor Expansion Project
Featured Speaker:
Darlene earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing from California State University Dominguez Hills and is a summa cum laude graduate with a Master’s in Business Administration from Webster University.
Darlene serves on the Board of Directors for Riverside County Workforce Development and is an Executive Committee member for the South Riverside County American Heart Association Heart and Stroke Walk. She also is a member of the Murrieta/Temecula Group, the Professional Women’s Roundtable, the South Riverside County Cancer Task force, and she participates on the “Kitchen Cabinet” for Senator Jeff Stone.
Darlene enjoys spending time with her two children, five beautiful grandchildren and the love of her life, Jim. She is a native Californian and a resident of the City of Temecula.
Darlene Wetton, Chief Executive Officer for Temecula Valley Hospital
Darlene Wetton has served as the CEO of Temecula Valley Hospital since September 2012. Before joining Temecula Valley Hospital, Darlene held leadership positions as a Chief Operating Officer and as a Chief Nursing Officer in hospitals within Southern California. Under her leadership, the entire employee and medical staff of Temecula Valley Hospital are committed to providing patient-centered, family sensitive care.Darlene earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing from California State University Dominguez Hills and is a summa cum laude graduate with a Master’s in Business Administration from Webster University.
Darlene serves on the Board of Directors for Riverside County Workforce Development and is an Executive Committee member for the South Riverside County American Heart Association Heart and Stroke Walk. She also is a member of the Murrieta/Temecula Group, the Professional Women’s Roundtable, the South Riverside County Cancer Task force, and she participates on the “Kitchen Cabinet” for Senator Jeff Stone.
Darlene enjoys spending time with her two children, five beautiful grandchildren and the love of her life, Jim. She is a native Californian and a resident of the City of Temecula.
Transcription:
Melanie Cole (Host): Temecula Valley Hospital is excited to announce it broke ground in April for the hospital’s first floor expansion project. The project will enable the hospital to advance the capabilities of many services to better meet the needs of the community. Here to tell us about this exciting expansion project is Darlene Wetton. She is the Chief Executive Officer for Temecula Valley Hospital. Welcome to the show Darlene. So, tell us about the hospital’s first expansion project since its opening in 2013. Tell us what’s going on.
Darlene Wetton (Guest): The expansion project is 28,000 square feet. We are adding to the east side of the hospital and this wonderful project will allow us to expand both our cardiovascular and our stroke services while advancing the capabilities of both of these important programs.
Melanie: So, tell us about those programs, itself and what will this expansion do for them? What about the Cath labs?
Darlene: We are going to be adding two additional Cath labs. This will increase our number from – we currently have one. It is a very, very busy Cath lab. We currently perform over 2000 cardiac Cath procedures each year. This will allow us to add two more which will in increase our capacity and nearly triple what we are currently providing. This is important as we advance our cardiac services in this community.
Melanie: So, what about the Joint Commission Accredited comprehensive stroke center? What are you doing in the efforts to become one of these accredited centers?
Darlene: In addition to the Cath labs; we are also adding a neuro biplane room or angiography suite. Neuro biplanes allow us to become more advanced in our care of stroke patients; becoming able to be thrombectomy capable and comprehensive in the manner that which we treat stroke patients. Achieving this is very important to the hospital to become an advanced multidisciplinary neuroscience center in this region.
Melanie: And what about the hybrid operating suite? Because those are really getting very much more popular in hospitals today and very exciting and highly technical. Tell us about that.
Darlene: The difference between a regular operating room and a hybrid operating suite is hybrid rooms have fixed imaging systems. It supports advanced surgical techniques. The surgeon is able to view a high quality interventional imaging allowing advanced vascular procedures and other image guidance procedures; also avoiding perioperative complications. These types of endovascular hybrid operating rooms allow us to have an integrated heart and vascular program.
Melanie: So, tell us about the multidisciplinary approach and you mentioned just a little bit before, but what does that mean for the community as far as the expansion and all of these exciting new things you are adding in this project?
Darlene: Our success at Temecula Valley Hospital has been the strength and collaboration within our medical staff. The exceptional providers found a foundation for this program. They work in collaboration with the hospital’s team to provide excellent outcomes and an excellent patient experience.
Melanie: So, what does it mean to have a Joint Commission Accredited comprehensive stroke center? What does that mean for the community? How will that help you to identify stroke earlier for better outcomes?
Darlene: Patients who present to a comprehensive center are able to stay in this community. Currently, there are no centers in this region and patients have to travel long distances to Orange County, San Diego County or even Los Angeles for this level of advanced care. But this will mean that a stroke patient presenting here will not have to travel a long distance. They will receive the care right here in their own community, in Temecula Valley.
Melanie: So, is the construction ongoing and is the center open during construction?
Darlene: Absolutely. Temecula Valley Hospital continues to treat patients every day. We are minimizing the disruption during our construction. Patients are navigated through the hospital by our wonderful volunteer team and the construction is on schedule and will be completed next summer and we anticipate opening next fall with all our new services.
Melanie: So, in summary Darlene; what would you like to tell people about this new project at Temecula Valley Hospital?
Darlene: We are very excited about the opportunities for expansion that we will provide here. We are committed to offering enhanced services to meet our community needs and by providing this new technology and expanding our programs and services; our patients can experience better outcomes, high quality and again, right here in Temecula Valley.
Melanie: Thank you so much for being with us today. What an exciting project. You are listening to TVH Health Chat with Temecula Valley Hospital. For more information, please visit www.temeculavalleyhospital.com. That’s www.temeculavalleyhosptial.com. Physicians are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of Temecula Valley Hospital. The hospital shall not be liable for actions or treatments provided by physicians. This is Melanie Cole. Thanks so much for listening.
Melanie Cole (Host): Temecula Valley Hospital is excited to announce it broke ground in April for the hospital’s first floor expansion project. The project will enable the hospital to advance the capabilities of many services to better meet the needs of the community. Here to tell us about this exciting expansion project is Darlene Wetton. She is the Chief Executive Officer for Temecula Valley Hospital. Welcome to the show Darlene. So, tell us about the hospital’s first expansion project since its opening in 2013. Tell us what’s going on.
Darlene Wetton (Guest): The expansion project is 28,000 square feet. We are adding to the east side of the hospital and this wonderful project will allow us to expand both our cardiovascular and our stroke services while advancing the capabilities of both of these important programs.
Melanie: So, tell us about those programs, itself and what will this expansion do for them? What about the Cath labs?
Darlene: We are going to be adding two additional Cath labs. This will increase our number from – we currently have one. It is a very, very busy Cath lab. We currently perform over 2000 cardiac Cath procedures each year. This will allow us to add two more which will in increase our capacity and nearly triple what we are currently providing. This is important as we advance our cardiac services in this community.
Melanie: So, what about the Joint Commission Accredited comprehensive stroke center? What are you doing in the efforts to become one of these accredited centers?
Darlene: In addition to the Cath labs; we are also adding a neuro biplane room or angiography suite. Neuro biplanes allow us to become more advanced in our care of stroke patients; becoming able to be thrombectomy capable and comprehensive in the manner that which we treat stroke patients. Achieving this is very important to the hospital to become an advanced multidisciplinary neuroscience center in this region.
Melanie: And what about the hybrid operating suite? Because those are really getting very much more popular in hospitals today and very exciting and highly technical. Tell us about that.
Darlene: The difference between a regular operating room and a hybrid operating suite is hybrid rooms have fixed imaging systems. It supports advanced surgical techniques. The surgeon is able to view a high quality interventional imaging allowing advanced vascular procedures and other image guidance procedures; also avoiding perioperative complications. These types of endovascular hybrid operating rooms allow us to have an integrated heart and vascular program.
Melanie: So, tell us about the multidisciplinary approach and you mentioned just a little bit before, but what does that mean for the community as far as the expansion and all of these exciting new things you are adding in this project?
Darlene: Our success at Temecula Valley Hospital has been the strength and collaboration within our medical staff. The exceptional providers found a foundation for this program. They work in collaboration with the hospital’s team to provide excellent outcomes and an excellent patient experience.
Melanie: So, what does it mean to have a Joint Commission Accredited comprehensive stroke center? What does that mean for the community? How will that help you to identify stroke earlier for better outcomes?
Darlene: Patients who present to a comprehensive center are able to stay in this community. Currently, there are no centers in this region and patients have to travel long distances to Orange County, San Diego County or even Los Angeles for this level of advanced care. But this will mean that a stroke patient presenting here will not have to travel a long distance. They will receive the care right here in their own community, in Temecula Valley.
Melanie: So, is the construction ongoing and is the center open during construction?
Darlene: Absolutely. Temecula Valley Hospital continues to treat patients every day. We are minimizing the disruption during our construction. Patients are navigated through the hospital by our wonderful volunteer team and the construction is on schedule and will be completed next summer and we anticipate opening next fall with all our new services.
Melanie: So, in summary Darlene; what would you like to tell people about this new project at Temecula Valley Hospital?
Darlene: We are very excited about the opportunities for expansion that we will provide here. We are committed to offering enhanced services to meet our community needs and by providing this new technology and expanding our programs and services; our patients can experience better outcomes, high quality and again, right here in Temecula Valley.
Melanie: Thank you so much for being with us today. What an exciting project. You are listening to TVH Health Chat with Temecula Valley Hospital. For more information, please visit www.temeculavalleyhospital.com. That’s www.temeculavalleyhosptial.com. Physicians are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of Temecula Valley Hospital. The hospital shall not be liable for actions or treatments provided by physicians. This is Melanie Cole. Thanks so much for listening.