National NBC News Broadcast

Adventist Health St. Helena Featured on National NBC News Broadcast

Adventist Health St. Helena was featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. The segment highlighted patient experience in the health care industry. Adventist Health St. Helena was contacted by NBC Nightly News partly as a result of the NRC Picker "Path to Excellence" award, received last fall for top patient satisfaction scores in hospitals with 100 to 300 beds which earned the hospital the moniker, "Top in the West."

The NBC Nightly News crew followed a patient suffering from atrial fibrillation (A-Fib) who was treated with the innovative Hybrid Maze procedure. Gan Dunnington, MD, a cardiothoracic surgeon with Adventist Heart Institute specializing in treatment of atrial fibrillation, is one of only a few surgeons on the West Coast to perform the minimally invasive Hybrid Maze procedure. The combination of thoracoscopic surgery and catheter ablation can be up to 90 percent effective for some types of A-Fib. Indeed, for this particular patient, the Hybrid Maze procedure was successful in relieving his long-standing A-Fib.

The crew brought two trucks, and filmed for more than 15 hours over 2 days, which resulted in a 2-3 minute segment broadcasted to about 8.3 million viewers.

"Great patient experience has to begin with excellent medicine. We strive to deliver safe, proven and innovative care in a way that exceeds our patients' expectations," said Nia Lendaris, RN and VP of Patient Care, who was interviewed in the NBC news story.

It is a proud moment. Now millions of people have seen what we do to lift the lives of many. Our mission drives our focus to provide both optimal clinical results and extraordinary patient experiences.