By Keith Young, CEO
Medical Center at Ocean Reef
The Medical Center’s mission is “To Provide Caring and Professional Medical Services and Health Education to the Ocean Reef Community.”
Ocean Reef would be a different place without on-site medical care. Very few communities offer the extensive medical care the Medical Center provides, a golf cart ride away.
Our vision of providing exceptional on-site health care to the community includes the commitment to provide up-to-date medical technology. Diagnostic equipment, that is continually evolving, requires expensive upgrades or replacement, software changes and ongoing maintenance.
The Medical Center is fortunate that throughout the years, several Ocean Reef members have recognized the need to assist the Center with funding for medical equipment purchases and/or upgrades.
The Medical Center’s original 13-year-old Philips CT Scanner was replaced in 2020 with a Philips IQon Elite 256-slice Scanner with Spectral technology capabilities. The Spectral CT provides a more nuanced look at body tissues, which reveals advanced diagnostic information. Ocean Reef members stepped up to donate almost 3 million dollars to assist in funding this needed replacement.
Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami Health System began seeing patients on -site last season. The equipment required to diagnose and monitor eye diseases was needed for added value to their on-site office consults. Several patients saw this need and willingly stepped up to contribute to the purchase of the “Optos California.” This equipment captures an ultra-wide-field retinal image in a single-capture with unrivaled clarity.
Reimbursements from Medicare and insurance companies amount to about two thirds of the patient care expenses. Providing 24- hour, 365- day coverage to the Ocean Reef community is part of what makes “Health Care -The Ocean Reef Way” so exceptional. Very few, if any, private communities can offer this broad range of services and diagnostic equipment – CT Scanner, MRI, ultrasound, bone density, X-Ray and more. Specialists in over 25 fields routinely come to the Medical Center to see patients, eliminating the need to leave Ocean Reef. A golf cart ride away- how could anything be more convenient?
The generous individuals that have recognized the need for additional support for specific pieces of diagnostic equipment are many times the same individuals who are also Founding Members. The Ocean Reef Medical Center Foundation Founding Members program is 718 members strong and continues to be the foundation for providing funding for the Center’s operational shortfall.
The yearly All Charities event is another philanthropic example, which greatly contributes to the operational expenses of the Medical Center and also benefits the entire community in so many ways. Monetary support is not the only value that community members offer. They also contribute countless hours of volunteer time to assist so many Ocean Reef organizations. The Medical Center is just one of the recipients of this generosity and is so thankful for the community’s ongoing support.
“The First Wealth is Health” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Visit us on the web at www.mcor.org
