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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