Gulfport's Select Specialty Hospital earns award

Select Specialty Hospital -- Gulfport, a long-term acute care hospital, received the Pulmonary Center of Excellence designation from parent company Select Medical.

This award is exclusive to facilities in the Select Medical family of hospitals and certifies that a hospital provides the latest protocols and best practices in the nation for mechanical ventilation and care.

Beginning in 2015, many within Select Medical's network of 112 specialty sites began the process of applying for this designation.

"Our goal is simple -- maximize a patient's level of function while decreasing or eliminating the need for mechanical ventilation," said Gloria Skinner, chief nursing officer for Select Medical. "Our hospitals already do this well, but the new designation means a hospital has gone above and beyond to truly maximize the highest discharge-to-home rate possible. This should return even more patients to a high-quality, productive life.

Led by pulmonary director Fred Pakron, SSH -- Gulfport's pulmonary team is comprised of pulmonologists, respiratory therapists, nurses, speech therapists, physical therapists, dieticians and other specialists trained in caring for the acute pulmonary patient.

SSH - Gulfport is a 61-bed, all private room hospital serving South Mississippi and surrounding areas. John O'Keefe is CEO.

This story was originally published February 25, 2016 at 5:14 PM with the headline "Gulfport's Select Specialty Hospital earns award ."