Jupiter Medical Center Breaks Ground for Raso Education Center

Aug. 23, 2011 - PRLog -- Jupiter Medical Center has launched construction of the Raso Education Center, the initial phase of the medical center’s $50 million, three-phase expansion.  The two-story facility is designed as an educational resource for the medical center’s staff and physicians, other area clinicians and researchers, and the community.

Participating in the groundbreaking ceremony was Mrs. Shirley C. Raso, who, with her late husband Dominick F. Raso, provided a lead donation for the new education center.  Also honored was Mrs. Margaret Clarke, who was a lead donor for the center with her late husband John H. Clarke.  

The new education center’s scope reflects Jupiter Medical Center’s commitment to deliver world-class, patient-centered clinical care with an ongoing focus on academic and research excellence, according to Jupiter Medical Center President and CEO John Couris.  

The medical center regularly hosts physician lectures featuring specialists from top academic medical centers including Scripps Research Institute, Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital, and the University of Miami. The new building’s ground-floor Clarke Auditorium will be an ideal venue for such presentations, Couris noted.

With advanced technology for medical training, presentations and videoconferencing, the Raso Education Center will build Jupiter Medical Center’s role as a teaching resource for clinicians and researchers from throughout the region.  It will also host the community for an ongoing calendar of healthcare lectures and events. The second floor will include four classrooms, one specifically designated for computer training, and one designed as an informal meeting area with plush seating and wireless internet access.
   
“Providing services on par with many top academic medical centers demands continuous education and sharing of research findings, treatments and techniques from around the nation,” Couris said. “Through the generosity of the Rasos and the Clarkes, we will be well equipped to train our own team and collaborate with other healthcare and research organizations and their physicians to advance medical education.”
   
Additional donors who have made the Raso Education Center possible are Florence A. and the late Lawrence J. De George, Kathryn W. Davis and Margaret Krupa.  
“Breaking ground for this educational heart of our campus is an important milestone in the transformational change that’s ensuring Jupiter Medical Center will be ready to meet our community’s future needs,” Couris said.  “We are deeply grateful to our donors for their commitment to this initiative, and for their roles in our community medical center’s growth throughout many years.”

Scheduled for completion in spring 2012, the education center is being built by Black Diamond General Contractors of Jupiter.

The $50 million Jupiter Medical Center Campaign is well underway, Couris said.  The second phase will add a new 75,000-square-foot building with 45 patient rooms and full floors devoted to expanded services for children and women, as well as orthopedic and spine services.  The campaign’s third phase will renovate approximately 50,000 square feet in the existing main facility, including a new concierge suite with 12 rooms. Overall, capacity will be expanded by 26 percent.

“The generosity of all of our donors to the education center will continue to advance healthcare in our community,” said Richard Cosnotti, President, Jupiter Medical Center Foundation.

Ranking among the top five percent of all hospitals in America for Overall Clinical Excellence, Jupiter Medical Center also consistently scores as the most likely to be recommended hospital in its market in patient satisfaction scores.  It is also ranked among U.S. News Best Hospitals 2011 as #1 in Palm Beach County and 9th in the Miami region.  

For information about the Jupiter Medical Center Campaign, and how to support the effort, visit http://www.jmcfoundation.org or www.jupitermed.com or call 561-263-5728.

About Jupiter Medical Center
A not-for-profit 283-bed community Medical Center consisting of 163 private acute care hospital beds and 120 long-term care beds, Jupiter Medical Center provides a broad range of services with specialty concentrations in cancer care, orthopedics/spine, emergency services, cardiac services, children’s and women’s services, minimally-invasive surgical procedures, including a Robotic Surgery Program, advanced diagnostics, and rehabilitation. Founded in 1979, Jupiter Medical Center is affiliated with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. The Medical Center has approximately 1,500 team members, 540 physicians and 700 volunteers. For more information about the services available at Jupiter Medical Center, please call (561) 747-2234 or visit www.jupitermed.com.