Fort Walton Beach Medical Center 
Receives Final Designation from 
the State of Florida and is Offi cially 
Now a Level II Trauma Center.  

Fort Walton Beach Medical Center has 

received offi cial designation as a Level II 
Trauma Center from the State of Florida. 
This comes just two weeks after FWBMC 
received fi nal verifi cation from the American 
College of Surgeons. 

When emergency medical services 

personnel respond to critically injured 
patients, they transport them to the 
nearest trauma center capable of providing 
appropriate treatment. Prior to June 2015, 
many patients in Walton and Okaloosa 
counties were transported more than 40 miles 
to the nearest trauma center. 

Fort Walton Beach Medical Center is 

affi liated with Florida’s fi rst and largest 
statewide network of trauma centers, 
developed as an affi liation between the 
University of South Florida (USF) and HCA 
to improve access and outcomes of injured 
patients. These trauma centers provide:

24/7 in-house coverage by a trauma 

surgeon

24/7 access to specialty and non-specialty 

surgeons and physicians

24/7 on-call neurosurgeons
24/7 on-site anesthesia provider, surgical 

services team and trauma-trained nurses

Mitch Mongell, CEO of Fort Walton 

Beach Medical Center, said: “Meeting our 
community’s urgent need for specialized 
trauma care has been a tremendous privilege, 
and we are thankful for the continued 
opportunity to serve trauma patients and their 
families. I want to think all of our physicians, 
EMS, fi rst responders and the community for 
all their support to become a much needed 
Level II trauma center.”

82     |    VIPDestinMagazine.com

Mentoring Emerald Coast - 
Developing Leaders of the Future

Mentoring Emerald Coast was established 

in 2007 to develop the next generation 

of leaders to help grow and maintain a 

winning team and a vibrant community in 

which to work and play. Each year there 

are approximately 30 to 40 mentees and 

mentors paired for a nine-month program 

of development, education, growth, and 

bonding toward the goals of each mentee. 

The mentors learn and grow as well while 

spending time with their mentees. It is a win-

win for each person involved.  

How the nine-month program works: 

Leadership Mentoring involves the mentor 

and mentee meeting at least monthly for a 

nine-month period of time.  Two leadership 

development goals are established during 

the initial meeting.  Ideally, the mentor 

meets with the mentee and their manager to 

engage them in the goal setting and feedback 

processes.  In subsequent sessions, the 

mentor shares knowledge, and discusses 

skill development with their mentee.  

Additionally, effective work behaviors and 

values may be explored.  The mentee presents 

current challenges in both their work and 

broader life in order to brainstorm solutions.  

Career advancement is also discussed in the 
mentoring relationship. 

Entrepreneurial Mentoring Involves 

Pairing A Successful Entrepreneur With An 
Emerging Entrepreneur.  The mentor shares 
‘best practices’ on how best to grow one’s 
business.  In addition to a year of mentoring 
sessions, the entrepreneur will have access to 
entrepreneurial success materials and group. 

For additional information about 

Mentoring Emerald Coast, please go to 

www.waltonareachamber.com/

pages/Mentoring or email mentor@
waltnareachamber.com

A Walton County company is 
working closely with the USDA to 
help solve one of the world’s most 
serious water quality problems.

After being contacted earlier this year by 

the USDA, US Iron, LLC’s founder, Mark 
Miller, began developing a cost-effective 
solution to capture the excess phosphorous 
that is polluting our water sources posing 
serious environmental issues, health risks, and 
economic losses. 

According to the EPA, over 60% of 

America’s coastal rivers and bays have 
been negatively impacted by phosphorous 
pollution. Wastewater treatment plants, 
agricultural fi elds, and urban developments 
are major sources of the excess nutrient 
deposits plaguing our waterways. Lake 
Okeechobee, Chesapeake Bay, and Lake Erie 
are prime examples of the toxic outbreaks of 
algae created by nutrient pollution, which 
leads to a process called eutrophication. 
Eutrophication depletes the oxygen levels in 
the water killing aquatic life that is vital to the 
ecosystems. Currently, the EPA states there 
are 166 coastal dead zones in the United States 
due to oxygen poor water. 

US Iron’s plans are underway to build a 

facility for full scale PhosRedeemâ production 
with the ground breaking tentatively 
scheduled for the beginning of 2018. 

 To keep up to date on this project visit 

www.usmagnetite.com.

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