A
Resource for Well-Being
Greenwich Hospital has expanded and
branched out for its growing clientele.
The main hospital entrance.
Frank A. Corvino, Greenwich Hospital president and CEO.
The rehabilitation services at the Watson Pavilion.
When
you walk into Greenwich Hospital, you might think you've
mistakenly wandered into the lobby of a four-star hotel. And
that's one goal of the management.
“We've created a warm, welcoming environment,
so it doesn't feel like a hospital,” says hospital
president and CEO Frank A. Corvino, who has been coming through
those front doors for 18 years. “We are always keeping
the patient in mind.”
Make that patients. In just the last seven years, inpatient
admissions at Greenwich Hospital have risen from 8,203 to
11,874 annually. In addition, the hospital staff has grown
nearly 80 percent and has welcomed 190 new physicians. Its
ambulance activity has more than doubled during the same stretch.
There are many reasons for the big boost in business. Corvino
credits a top-notch staff and state-of-the-art facilities,
affiliation with the trusted Yale New Haven Health System
and major renovations that have updated every area of the
174-bed hospital.
“In the last ten years, we rebuilt the entire campus
without ever interrupting patient services,” Corvino
says.
Then there's the trickle-down effect from the recent
closings of New York United Hospital and St. Agnes Hospital,
just over the state line in nearby Westchester County. Greenwich
Hospital, which had just expanded, was poised to fill the
healthcare void. Last year, about 35 percent of inpatients
admitted hailed from Westchester, up from about 16 percent
in 1998, and a full 75 percent of the babies born in the Olive
C. Watson Birthing Center are from outside of Greenwich.
The hospital has also grown to meet the challenges of a changing
medical landscape. In 2005, it christened the Olive and Thomas
J. Watson Jr. Pavilion, a 150,000-square-foot addition that
houses the medical ambulatory unit, rehabilitation services,
an outpatient center, pediatric services, a sleep center and
Center for Healthy Aging. The pavilion also contains the Noble
Conference Center for lectures and professional development,
a hospital priority, and the Garden Cafe, a full-service eatery
for visitors.
While the main hospital remains the center for many of its
healthcare programs, Greenwich also has branched out to help
meet the needs of its busy clientele. The Endoscopy Center
on Putnam Avenue offers convenient outpatient screenings,
and the Healthy Living Center located in facilities on Holly
Hill Lane provides cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation.
For the last four years, Greenwich also has been consistently
listed among the top hospitals nationwide in patient-satisfaction
surveys. Corvino wants to continue that streak of excellence.
He sees an emphasis on prevention and education and innovative
off-campus facilities as a crucial part of the hospital's
future as it continues to grow from a once-small community
facility to a true regional healthcare resource.
“We've had quite a metamorphosis here and we are
moving to areas where we can better serve people,” he
says. “We planned to take Greenwich Hospital to where
it is now, and we'll keep going.”
When
you walk into Greenwich Hospital, you might think you've
mistakenly wandered into the lobby of a four-star hotel. And
that's one goal of the management.
