By Betsy Scheinbart
Jamaica Hospital opened 14 new labor, delivery and recovery suites just in time for Mother’s Day Friday as the final phase of the hospital’s $14 million redevelopment project.
The opening of the suites came just one month after the hospital opened a new pediatric emergency room.
The hospital delivered 3,300 babies last year and with the new suites t will be able to deliver 5,000 a year, said President and CEO David Rosen.
The spacious suites feature a baby monitor, gliding rocking chair and several chairs for visitors while utilities such as oxygen are tucked away in cabinets just in case they are needed. The luxurious rooms also have private bathrooms, a television and VCR, and a telephone.
“David [Rosen] has really done a marvelous job refining and improving medical service in the borough of Queens,” said Queens Borough President Claire Shulman.
“I have had a couple of babies myself and I have never seen delivery rooms like this,” Shulman said. “It almost makes you want to have a baby.”
Turning to the cost of raising babies, Shulman said she is supporting the Child Health Plus program with the goal of getting every child under 18 in Queens health insurance. It is something that will ultimately save hospitals money, she said.
Rosen said the hospital’s priority is to give quality care to patients who might not otherwise have access to care. He said the hospital serves more than just southern Queens, drawing patients from Brooklyn and central as well as northern parts of Queens.
“The combination of these new services for women and children once again reinforces Jamaica Hospital Medical Center as a leader in the provision of health care to the families that we serve and provides amenities for our patients that are second to none,” Rosen said.
In addition to the new suites, the hospital introduced a new chairman of the Obstetrics and Gynecology unit, Dr. Wayne Cohen, a Kew Gardens native who most recently worked at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore.
“I am very excited about this new unit,” Cohen said. “It symbolizes the dawn of a new era for women’s health care at our institution — an era of the best that can be attained in quality, comfort and compassion for out patients.”
Several Queens legislators joined Shulman at the opening at the hospital, including state assembly members Anthony Seminario (D-Richmond Hill) and Audrey Pheffer (D-Rockaway Beach).
City Councilman Alfonso Stabile (R-Ozone Park) also attended, despite his recent eye surgery, and presented a declaration of honor to the hospital with his council colleagues Archie Spigner (D-St. Albans) and Morton Povman (D-Forest Hills).
Reach reporter Betsy Scheinbart by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300 Ext. 138.
