AVENTURA HOSPITAL AND MEDICAL CENTER REVIEW

Updated April 2021

Aventura Hospital and Medical Center started operations as Golden Isles Hospital in Hallandale Beach, Florida. It relocated to its present location in Aventura, Florida in 1974 and was renamed Aventura Hospital and Medical Center in 1993. It is part of the Nashville-based Hospital Corporation of America (HCA).

The 467-bed acute care facility provides inpatient and outpatient diagnosis, medical, surgical, and cancer services. $130 million was infused in expanding and renovating the hospital. The North Patient Tower features 243 private rooms with private baths, the latest patient care equipment, a 28-bed emergency department, 2 ICU units, and a surgical services suite with 10 new oversized operating rooms.

Aventura Hospital and Medical Center has embarked on a mission to improve patient safety, reduce medical errors and prioritize staff training. $60 million was invested by HCA Healthcare and HCA East Florida in completion of it’s East Tower which was inaugurated in January this year. The East Tower is a 90,000 square feet facility which is home to the Hospital’s Orthopedic and Spine Institute. This 60-bed facility will provide for the surgical needs of orthopedic, spine, neuro, and general surgery patients in the communities of South Florida.

US NEWS

Overview of Aventura Hospital and Medical Center

Aventura Hospital and Medical Center is rated high-performing in 2 adult procedures and conditions.

Rankings and Ratings of Aventura Hospital and Medical Center

• Cancer
  • National rank: Not ranked
  • Overall score: 22/100
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to cancer
    • Lung Cancer Surgery: Not rated
    • Colon Cancer Surgery: 3/5 (Average score)
• Cardiology and Heart Surgery
  • National rank: Not ranked
  • Overall score: Not available
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to cardiology and heart surgery<
    • Heart failure: 5/5 (High-performing)
    • Abdominal, aortic, aneurysm repair: 2/5 (Below average)
    • Heart bypass surgery: 2/5 (Below average)
• Orthopedics
  • National rank: Not ranked
  • Overall score: 17.8/100
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to orthopedics
    • Hip replacement: 2/5 (Below average)
    • Knee replacement: 2/5 (Below average)
• Pulmonology
  • National rank: Not ranked
  • Overall score: Not available
  • Conditions/procedures applicable to pulmonology
    • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: 5/5 (High performing)

Patient Experience at Aventura Hospital and Medical Center

Scores are based on surveys taken from Aventura’s inpatients inquiring about the different aspects of their stay after they were discharged.

• Satisfaction with the Hospital overall: 2/5
• Willingness to recommend: 2/5
• Satisfaction with doctors’ communications: 1/5
• Satisfaction with nurses’ communications: 1/5
• Satisfaction with efforts to prevent medication harm: 1/5
• Satisfaction with quality of discharge information: 1/5
• Satisfaction with involvement in recovery: 1/5
• Satisfaction with staff responsiveness: 2/5
• Satisfaction with hospital room cleanliness: 1/5
• Satisfaction with noise volume: 2/5

The hospital fared very badly at inpatient surveys. It garnered a score of 1 out of 5.

Leapfrog General Safety Rating

The latest Leapfrog Hospital Safety grade of Aventura Hospital and Medical Center is a C for fall of 2020.

The Leapfrog group rates Aventura Hospital and Medical Center in the following categories:

Infections

• MRSA Infection

  Staph bacteria are common in hospitals, but MRSA is a type of staph that cannot be killed by many antibiotics. It is found in bed linen or medical equipment and can be spread if healthcare providers do not properly wash hands between patients.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 1.029
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.791
  • Worst hospital score: 2.863

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center performed below average in this category.

• C. Diff Infection

  C. Diff is a bacterium that causes diarrhea, loss of appetite, fever, and abdominal pain. C. Diff occurs in patients taking antibiotics or who have recently taken them. Like MRSA, C. Diff is spread through contaminated equipment or healthcare providers not washing hands properly between patients.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 0.921
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.583
  • Worst hospital score: 1.737

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center performed below average in this category.

Problems with Surgery

• Dangerous objects left in patients’ bodies

  This problem does not occur often, but if it does, it can be extremely dangerous. Most of the times, the object left in patients’ body is surgical sponge.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 0.000
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.017
  • Worst hospital score: 0.254

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center reported no instances of dangerous objects being left behind in patients’ bodies.

• Surgical wounds split open

  A surgical wound splitting open is very painful and puts patient at risk of infection.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 0.88
  • Best hospital score: 0.67
  • Average hospital score: 0.91
  • Worst hospital score: 1.20

  Aventura performed better than average as less cases of surgical wounds splitting open were reported.

Practice to Prevent Errors

• Doctors’ order medication through a computer

  Hospitals use Computerized Physicians Order Entry (CPOE) systems to order medications for patients in the hospital instead of writing prescriptions by hand. CPOE systems help to reduce medication errors in hospitals.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 100
  • Best hospital score: 100
  • Average hospital score: 83.56
  • Worst hospital score: 5

  Aventura performed best in the category with no errors reported.

• Safe medication administration

  Using barcodes on medications, nurses scan the medications and then the patient’s wrist bracelet to make sure the patient is receiving the right medications. Bar Code Medication Administration (BCMA) reduce the risk of hospitals accidentally giving the wrong medication to a patient.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 100
  • Best hospital score: 100
  • Average hospital score: 83.44
  • Worst hospital score: 5

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center performed best in this category.

Safety Problems

• Dangerous bedsores

  Bedsores are wounds on the skin that form when a patient lays or sits in one position for too long without being moved. They can cause severe pain and serious infections.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 1.06
  • Best hospital score: 0.03
  • Average hospital score: 0.58
  • Worst hospital score: 2.78

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center performed below average in this category.

• Patient falls and injuries

  Falls can occur when patients who really can’t walk, try getting out of bed. Falls can result in longer spells in the hospital and can also result in permanent disability.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 0.709
  • Best hospital score: 0.000
  • Average hospital score: 0.432
  • Worst hospital score: 1.716

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center performed below average in this category.

Doctors, Nurses, and Hospital Staff

• Effective leadership to prevent errors

  Errors become much common if hospital leaders do not make patient safety a priority. Leaders must make sure money is properly allotted towards enhancing safety measures.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 120
  • Best hospital score: 120
  • Average hospital score: 117.31
  • Worst hospital score: 9.23

  Aventura Hospital and Medical Center performed best in this category.

• Enough qualified nurses

  Patients receive most of their care from nurses and not doctors. If there is a shortage of qualified nurses, patients might face more complications, and longer stays in the hospital.

  • Aventura Hospital and Medical Center score: 100
  • Best hospital score: 100
  • Average hospital score: 98.37
  • Worst hospital score: 17.65

  Aventura performed best in this category and has received appreciation for its nursing program called StaRN (Speciality Training Apprenticeship for Registered Nurses).

Healthgrades

Healthgrades has recognized Aventura Hospital and Medical Center for two years in a row as amongst America’s 100 best hospitals for orthopedic surgery and amongst America’s 100 best hospitals for spine surgery.

Safety Ratings

Two ratings were worse than expected:

• Deep blood clots in the lungs or legs following surgery
• Blood stream infections following surgery

Two ratings were better than expected:

• Pressure sores or bed sores acquired in the hospital
• Accidental cuts, punctures, perforations or hemorrhage during medical care

Patient Experience

• 66% patients gave a rating of 9 or 10. (3% lower than national average)
• 63% said they would definitely recommend (7% lower than national average)

If you believe that inadequate care or negligence on the part of the medical staff at Aventura Hospital and Medical Center has negatively affected you or your loved one, it is important to speak to an experienced medical malpractice attorney. For more information on your legal options, contact our office today.