Children served by Nemours, Sacred Heart

Pensacola, Florida
Sunday, September 02, 2007 @ 04:06 PM EDT

"It has been my firm conviction throughout life that it is the duty of everyone in the world to do what is within his power to alleviate human suffering." — Alfred I. duPont

With these words recorded in his will, Alfred I. duPont provided for the establishment of The Nemours Foundation. Since 1936, Nemours has grown to be one of the nation's leading children's health systems and has one fundamental focus: excellence in children's health and health care.

Nemours Children's Clinics in Delaware, Florida, Pennsylvania and New Jersey are partnered with community children's hospitals such as Sacred Heart Children's Hospital. The pediatric specialists of Nemours Children's Clinic in Pensacola have treated nearly 60,000 children for chronic illnesses since opening its doors 10 years ago. Nemours currently employs 26 pediatric specialty physicians in Pensacola and 106 support staff members. These highly trained specialists provide care for children with complex medical and surgical problems, including children with cancer, asthma, heart disorders, diabetes, digestive disorders and life-threatening injuries.

In 2006, Nemours opened a satellite clinic on the Sacred Heart Hospital campus in Destin to reach those children in the outlying areas. "We are so fortunate to have the support of the Nemours Foundation to further our mission for children in Pensacola and Northwestern Florida," stated Dr. William Blanchard, medical director and pediatric cardiologist with Nemours Children's Clinic. "Our region covers a vast amount of territory with a more rural population base, and without the support of Nemours, we would not be able to provide specialty care to the children we treat at Nemours and Sacred Heart Children's Hospital. We look forward to continued growth and services for the children in our area." Last year, the Nemours Children's Clinic in Pensacola provided more than $5 million in uncompensated care to poor and uninsured children in Northwest Florida and South Alabama. Without those services, hundreds of children with complex medical needs would not have received the care they needed, or would have had to travel great distances to hospitals in Gainesville or Birmingham, Ala., for their care. "Our partnership with Nemours is tremendously valuable to the community. I can't say enough about the quality of Nemours physicians, their depth of knowledge and the solid relationships these doctors have built with community pediatricians. This relationship never shakes — it hums," says Patrick Madden, president and chief executive officer of Sacred Heart Health System.

Nemours offers an integrated spectrum of clinical treatment coupled with research, advocacy, educational health and prevention services. Currently, Nemours in Pensacola is involved in 70 clinical research trials and studies for disorders such as diabetes, asthma, reflux, growth hormone deficiency, cancer, constipation and cystic fibrosis. Having recently received approval from the State of Florida, Nemours will establish a new full-service children's hospital in Orlando. KidsHealth.org, the world's most visited pediatric health care Web site for parents, kids and teens, is also a project of Nemours.

Additional information about Nemours can be found at www.nemours.org.

modified: Monday, December 10, 2007 @ 04:08 PM EST
created: Monday, December 10, 2007 @ 04:06 PM EST

About Nemours

Nemours, one of the nation’s largest pediatric health systems, is dedicated to achieving higher standards in children’s health. Nemours offers an integrated spectrum of clinical treatment coupled with research, advocacy, and educational health and prevention services extending to all families in the communities it serves. Starting with Alfred I. duPont’s bequest over seventy years ago, Nemours has grown into a multi-dimensional organization offering personalized clinical and preventive care focused on children.

Nemours owns and operates the Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware and major children’s specialty clinics in Delaware (Wilmington), Florida (Jacksonville, Orlando and Pensacola), Pennsylvania (Philadelphia and Bryn Mawr) and New Jersey (Atlantic City and Voorhees). Having recently received preliminary approval from the State of Florida, Nemours will establish a new full-service children’s hospital as part of an integrated pediatric health campus in Orlando. KidsHealth.org, the world’s most visited pediatric health care Web site for parents, kids and teens, is a project of Nemours.

Nemours employs over 4,400 individuals, including 430 pediatric physicians, specialists and surgeons who cared for approximately a quarter of a million children in 2007. The organization’s goal is to align with parents, physicians, community leaders, children’s advocates and elected officials to ensure optimal wellness for every child. Additional information about Nemours can be found at www.nemours.org.