Women's Hospital Perinatal Expertise Recognized

OMAHA –  In 2016, Methodist Women’s Hospital became just the 11^th site in the country to earn the prestigious perinatal certification from the Joint Commission.

The regional leader in births was just awarded its re-certification from the Joint Commission and cited for its exemplary work in several categories.

Methodist Women’s Hospital is now just one of 37 hospitals in the United States with this Joint Commission certification and the only hospital in Nebraska.

Those best practice areas noted during the Joint Commission visit focused on consent to treat newborn authorization forms signed at admission, a reduction in the prescribing of narcotics, several tools/resources regarding depression screenings and use of a new resource titled “pathway to home” for NICU families.

The recertification signals Methodist Women’s Hospital’s commitment to integrated, coordinated and patient-centered care for mothers and newborns for the duration of their pregnancy and birth experiences.

“To be recognized and re-certified by The Joint Commission is the result of a great deal of hard work by all members of our care team at Methodist Women’s Hospital,” said Sue Korth, vice president and chief operating officer of Methodist Women’s Hospital. “It recognizes our ongoing focus to providing a high-level of care to every OB patient that comes to our hospital. The Joint Commission re-certification is a validation of our efforts.”

For the third straight year Methodist Women’s Hospital surpassed 5,000 births in 2017. 

Home to the Metro’s largest OB/GYN practice, the region’s leading team of maternal-fetal medicine physicians and neonatologists, Methodist Women’s Hospital is often seen as the expert in the care of mothers and their newborns.

In addition to nurses and hospital staff being valued resources to other area hospitals, the maternal-fetal medicine physicians at the Methodist Women’s Hospital Perinatal Center have expanded the scope of their consultative services. Along with serving patients in western Nebraska they are also seeing patients two days a week at Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital in Council Bluffs and the Methodist Physicians Clinic Indian Hills location at 90^th & Dodge.

“Our maternal-fetal medicine team is truly seen as a resource to OB/GYN physicians in Omaha and Iowa and out-state Nebraska,” said Sharon McArdle, Methodist Women’s Hospital director of nursing and perinatal certification program director. “Our experts work closely with a patient’s OB/GYN to co-manage cases allowing women to remain close to home. In the event a higher-level of monitoring is needed our high risk obstetric unit allows for round the clock observation of those pregnancies.”

The quality of care provided in the Methodist Women’s Hospital Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is another key component to the certification process. Skilled physicians and specialized staff are available around-the-clock to evaluate and provide care to those babies born early or who might need additional treatment/observation following delivery.  

Methodist Women’s Hospital elected to undergo a rigorous on-site review to assess its compliance with certification standards. Joint Commission experts completed an independent evaluation of Methodist’s perinatal services as well as the following key requirements: integrated/coordinated patient-centered care from prenatal to postpartum, early identification of high-risk pregnancies and births, management of mothers’ and newborns’ risks at a level corresponding to the program’s capabilities and available patient education and information about perinatal care services.

Established in 2015, the Perinatal Care Certification is awarded for a two-year period.