Media Contact: Anita Roark
310-855-4039
[email protected]
LOS ANGELES (Nov. 1, 1999) - Two top administrators of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center participated in U.S. Commerce Secretary William M. Daley's Business Development Missions to the Middle East last month, according to Thomas M. Priselac, the Medical Center's president and CEO.
Chief Operating Officer Thomas F. Zenty, III represented Cedars-Sinai on the sector of the mission visiting Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Senior Vice President for System Development Richard B. Jacobs represented the Medical Center on the mission in Israel, West Bank/Gaza, and Jordan. Cedars-Sinai was the only Southern California organization to be represented on the trade mission.
On Tuesday, Oct. 12, during the Israeli portion of the mission, Secretary Daley inaugurated a Cedars-Sinai office in Israel and participated in a live telemedicine conference linking Jerusalem with Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles. The mission also provided an opportunity for Cedars-Sinai to establish new international relationships, as well as strengthen existing ones in the region.
Cedars-Sinai, the largest private, university affiliated, nonprofit hospital in the Western United States, is nationally and internationally renowned for the exceptional quality of its medical care, breakthrough medical research, and advanced technology. Building on these strengths, Cedars-Sinai has recently made a major commitment to expand its role in the international arena. The global outreach strategy currently being implemented is a new approach designed to offer the services of the Medical Center in the growing international market, Priselac said.
To market the Cedars-Sinai centers of excellence around the world and to provide special services to international patients coming to the institution, the Medical Center created a Department of Telemedicine and International Health in February of this year. The Department is headed by Medical Director Spencer K. Koerner, M.D. and Administrative Director Bill Fleming and includes a business manager, clinical coordinator, and technical and support staff.
The cornerstone of the international strategy is telemedicine: utilizing state-of-the-art computer and communications technology to link patients from around the world to the Medical Center in Los Angeles. "Telemedicine makes it possible for Cedars-Sinai physicians to provide second opinions and other consultations for patients anywhere in the world, thus giving patients in the most remote areas access to the highest quality healthcare," Koerner said.
Importantly, the telemedicine consultations will also generate a significant number of referrals of international patients to the Medical Center for diagnosis and treatment options that might not be available in their countries. These referrals will represent the core of the international business, according to Fleming.
In addition to establishing the new office in Tel Aviv, Cedars-Sinai is active in other countries in the region, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The Medical Center is also currently expanding its programs in East Asia and Latin America.
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