Sarasota Memorial Nursing & Rehabilitation Center earns Governor’s “Gold Seal” for Quality & Care

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

SMH Nursing & Rehabilitation Center Gold SealSARASOTA (Feb. 15, 2016) – Sarasota Memorial Nursing and Rehabilitation Center earned the Governor’s Gold Seal Award for excellence in long-term care for the period of January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2017.

The Gold Seal Program recognizes nursing homes that demonstrate excellence in long-term care over a sustained period, promote the stability of the industry and facilitate the physical, social, and emotional well-being of nursing home residents.

A representative from the Governor's Panel on Excellence in Long-Term Care and Agency for Health Care Administration plans to present the award to the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board on Feb. 16. The award was given to Sarasota Memorial Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for a period of two years, effective January 1, 2016.

AHCA Secretary Elizabeth Dudek said, “The Gold Seal award recognizes nursing homes that consistently provide the highest levels of care in Florida. The staff at these facilities have shown exceptional levels of dedication and pride in caring for our citizens, and I commend them on all of their hard work.”

Of more than 600 licensed nursing homes in Florida, 32 nursing homes currently hold the distinction of a Gold Seal Award.

Sarasota Memorial has been providing post-acute rehabilitation and skilled nursing services at Sarasota Memorial Skilled Nursing & Rehabilitation Center on Clark Road for more than 20 years. The skilled rehab facility offers a variety of short-term, post-hospital and long-term care programs to meet individual patient’s skilled nursing and rehabilitation needs. In addition to a wide range of medical specialties, it is one of the few skilled nursing facilities equipped in the nation with a special 12-bed unit and respiratory therapy dedicated to ventilator and tracheostomy residents admitted for rehabilitation. Approximately 200 staff members make up its multi-disciplinary team and care for 120 residents around the clock, 365 days a year.

“We are very proud of our team – this award is a testament to their dedication and compassion,” said Maria DeCarlo, vice president of rehabilitation services at Sarasota Memorial. “They are committed to ensuring our rehab patients and long-term residents receive the highest level of care in the most healing and comfortable environment possible,” 

On any given day, 1.4 million Americans, most of them 65 and older, live in nursing homes, rehabbing after a hospital stay or as long-term residents. Finding the right place can be a challenge, which is why the federal and state governments have issued tips and rating systems to help families choose quality providers.

In 2015, Sarasota Memorial Nursing & Rehabilitation Center also ranked among U.S. News’ Best Nursing Homes, and received the highest overall 5-Star rating from Nursing Home Compare, a program run by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the federal agency that sets and enforces standards for nursing homes.

About Sarasota Memorial
Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional referral center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of inpatient, outpatient and extended care services, with more than 800,000 patient visits a year. Sarasota Memorial’s 819-bed acute care hospital has been recognized repeatedly as one of the nation’s largest, and best, with superior patient outcomes and a complete continuum of outpatient services– from urgent care clinics and physician groups, laboratory and diagnostic imaging centers, to home health and skilled nursing & rehabilitation. Sarasota Memorial is the only hospital repeatedly ranked as best in the Suncoast region (Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and DeSoto counties) in U.S. News’ “Best Hospitals” list.