SUMMIT HEALTHCARE.... "A New Name; A New Direction"

The Board of Trustees of Navapache Regional Medical Center is pleased to announce that effective June 20, 2007, our community hospital will be known as Summit Healthcare Regional Medical Center.  In announcing the name change, Neal Thompson, Board Chairman, said, "This name change reflects the many positive changes and enhancements that have occurred at NRMC in recent years, are going on today and will be a vital part of healthcare delivery for northeastern Arizona under the banner of Summit Healthcare which will remain locally owned and managed."

Over the past fifteen years, NRMC has added many new and vital services to better serve our communities.  The early nineties witnessed the development of a new Emergency Department and the Governing Board approved the name change from Navapache Hospital to Navapache Regional Medical Center.  It was felt then that the new name better reflected the growth of the hospital and its ability to provide a wide range of services to the expanding White Mountain communities.  To ensure room for future growth and development, an additional 12 acres of property was purchased.  The community welcomed the opening of the NRMC Home Health Agency.  In 1994, Norris Baldwin, then Governing Board Chairman, was named Brim Healthcare’s Trustee of the Year from among more than 400 trustees nationwide. 

In 1995, an expansion project began which included new waiting rooms, expansion of the Pharmacy, staff dining area, radiology, and the addition of a second Medical/Surgical nursing station bringing NRMC to a 54-bed facility.  Later that year, there was the addition of complimentary and alternative medicine, including therapeutic touch, biofeedback, and holistic nursing classes.  At the turn of the century and keeping up with the times, NRMC experienced significant technology changes in computerized imaging and scanning, the addition of a new Cardiac Catheterization Lab, tele-radiology, which allows images to be instantly sent to other medical facilities to assist in prompt diagnosis and treatment of illnesses, and a state of the art spiral CT Scanner which produced images of superior quality in a fraction of time compared to prior technology.

In 1995, a $13.6 million, 110,000 square foot building project included expansion and renovation of the Emergency Department, Radiology, Surgical Services, Laboratory, Oncology, Medical Records, as well as a new front entrance and admitting/waiting area for patients and visitors.  This expansion brought NRMC to a licensed 61-bed facility.  An additional operating room was added to Surgical Services, with private pre-op rooms allowing family members to visit privately with both the patient and the physician.  The Radiology Department continued to expand its technology to include additional x-ray and mammography units, as well as offering ultrasound and bone density testing.  A new MRI was in place by August 2000, allowing the hospital to provide such specialized services as MR angiography, stroke work-ups, and more specific orthopedic work.  Laboratory services grew to include a convenient draw site just off the front lobby and an enlarged laboratory affording technicians an improved work environment. The former Community Outreach Center, now known as the East Campus, was built to house the Business Office, Accounting, Home Health, Physical Therapy, and Occupational Therapy departments.  

In July 2005, a new Outpatient Imaging Center opened in Snowflake serving the Snowflake/Taylor area and providing a wide array of imaging services to include Ultrasound, CT Scanning, Mammography Screenings, Bone Scanning, EKG's and a blood drawing unit. 

In 2006, a $30 million, 104,000 square foot major expansion project began driven by the growth of the community and the hospital.  The project will provide a five-story patient bed tower with 81 private patient rooms, including a 12-bed ICU on the first floor, a 42 bed Medical/Surgical unit on the first and second floors and, an Obstetrical and Women’s Health unit on the third and fourth floors.  The fifth floor has been "shelled in" for future use.  Commenting on the expansion plan, Neal Thompson said, "The project was originally designed for three floors with the option for two more.  As the community continued to grow, the Governing Board and Administration decided to build all five stories to accommodate future needs."  The design of the tower took into consideration patient’s request for all private rooms, providing family the option of rooming together as “Care Partners”.  The Obstetrical and Women’s Health unit will house an observation nursery, an eight-bed Level II nursery, seven Labor and Delivery rooms, a two bed outpatient triage room, and twenty private rooms for couplet care and gynecological surgery patients.  The Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Nursery will have additional equipment and staff to handle newborns who have a potential for risk during delivery.  Within the main hospital, the renovation and expansion of the original kitchen and dining area will better meet the needs of employees and the public.  The new dining area will have a warm, relaxing, casual country dining atmosphere. The outdoor dining will be a calm and refreshing getaway for staff and patient’s family members.  The tower project is expected to be completed by November of this year and the kitchen and dining room in early 2008.

In 2006, NRMC was named one of the nation's top performance improvement hospitals by Solucient®, the nation's leading source of healthcare information products.  The hospital and its senior management team were recognized for being one of a hundred rural community hospitals nationally making the greatest progress in improving hospital-wide performance over five years.   NRMC was also named as a 2006 CareScience Select Practice National Quality Leader in the category of Pneumonia. “Navapache Regional Medical Center’s inclusion in the CareScience 2006 Select Practice Leader Report confirms the organization’s dedication and success in implementing high quality patient care,” said Richard Bankowitz, MD, MBA, vice president and medical director, CareScience. “We believe the CareScience Select Practice National Quality Leader award recipient represent the country’s very best healthcare facilities for patient care.  These prestigious awards reflect the high standards of care at NRMC." 

In January 2007, "The Community Clinic" located in Overgaard opened to provide family care for the Heber/Overgaard area.  The clinic is open from 8-5 Monday through Friday.  

In 2007, the medical center acquired a state-of-the-art CT imaging system from GE Healthcare.  In commenting on this revolutionary imaging technology, Jones Cavanaugh, M.D., Chief of the Medical Staff, Board member and Radiologist said, "The LightSpeed® VCT is the world’s first Volume Computed Tomography (VCT) system.  With this system, our physicians will be able to capture images of a beating heart thereby eliminating in many cases the need for interventional catheterization.  The "64 slice" CT Scanner is designed to scan an entire organ in one second and perform a whole body trauma scan in just ten seconds as compared to a full body scan which now takes over 30 minutes.  This state-of-the art equipment will assist physicians in obtaining the information they need to rapidly diagnose disease and life-threatening illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, stroke and chest pain.  Clearly, this innovative scanning technology positions Summit Healthcare at the top of hospitals around the country having cutting-edge state of the art diagnostic equipment."

Speaking about the history of NRMC and the future of Summit Healthcare, Tom Plantz, the medical center's chief executive officer commented, "These are very positive times for our community and for the residents of northeastern Arizona.  NRMC's rich history and notable accomplishments are indeed noteworthy.  As Summit Healthcare continues this legacy of care and service, it will be challenged to stretch even further in responding to regional healthcare needs through innovative planning, solid physician-hospital relationships and the provision of additional medical specialty services and programs.  We believe our new name, Summit Healthcare Regional Medical Center, reflects the growth and advancements we have made and affirms our commitment to providing the highest level of care to the residents and visitors of the White Mountains and northeastern Arizona."