Women's Health Institute of Nevada
The WHI will be the first of its kind. The institute will focus on the leading health issues that impact women and their lives. While there are a handful of women's health programs in the U.S. there is no center where a multi-disciplinary team works together. The WHI will do just that.
Executive Brief
Business Concept
The Women's Health Institute (WHI) is a world-class organization dedicated to enhancing the physical and emotional quality of women's lives through innovative clinical care, leading research, technologically advanced physician training, and public education. WHI will:
- Provide premier patient care for women that incorporates the latest technology and recognizes that women lead busy and complex lives, and need a flexible, stress-free and family-friendly source for addressing all their health related needs
- Develop and increase the use of advanced surgical procedures for women, through collaboration with medical device manufacturers in research and testing of new products and training of physicians in surgical techniques and medical equipment, in each case embracing visionary technology and the most modern procedures
- Educate physicians, patients, industry and the world about women's health issues and innovative solutions for women's health problems and wellness concerns.
To achieve this mission, WHI will recruit nationally-recognized physicians to collaborate on research and clinical studies aimed at creating a better understanding of women's health issues and providing better treatment options, both clinical and surgical, to women. It will also employ innovative educational methods, including interactive Internet-based information, guidance and coaching that includes a consumer-friendly website and interactive e-mail, to provide knowledge about disease states, wellness and self-care, treatment options, comfort and encouragement. Most importantly, WHI will be holistic – addressing physical, emotional and social concerns related to women's health.
WHI will be part of a medical campus located on the Union Park Projection that promises synergistic medical, health and educational services to lead Las Vegas's evolution from a travel and entertainment Mecca into a cosmopolitan environment for the region and the world.
WHI will capitalize on Las Vegas's reputation as an international destination and the most rapidly growing city in the United States. Physicians from all over the world will come to WHI to learn the latest techniques in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and engage in the development and testing of new techniques and medical devices. Patients will initially come from the local community. However, as WHI's reputation is established, patients will come from around the region and country to receive the most advanced clinical care and outpatient surgery; explore therapeutic massages and complementary care (including Asian medicine and homeopathic remedies); shop for fitness products and medically-sound skin care products; and know that their family members are embraced in an environment that encourages education and interaction to address ongoing health challenges. It will be practical, but welcoming, comforting and convenient. Patients' needs, including making appointments and scheduling treatments, will be managed by a concierge service. Their children can accompany them, and enjoy a positive environment in the comfort of an on-site day care center. The environment will eliminate annoyances and foster barrier-free training, treatment and education, while destroying myths and mysteries.
The Need
Consumer, physician and healthcare trends indicate a clear need for an increased focus on, and investment in, women's healthcare.
First and foremost, women's health is unique because of reproductive health and the effects of menopause. These unique issues are further compounded by rapid population growth and aging population of women. Approximately 80 million women in the US will be over the age of 45 by 2020. Baby-boomer women are proactively seeking out treatments to maintain their active lifestyle. The Internet is allowing patients to research and demand specific treatments. On the other end of the spectrum, there is a prevalent lack of awareness in women of their unique diseases and treatments. A simple example is how the majority of women perceive breast cancer (mortality rate less than 400 per 100,000) as the greatest health risks when; in fact, the greatest health risk for women is cardiovascular disease (mortality rate greater than 1000 per 100,000).
Secondly, physicians find it increasingly difficult to manage the complexities of their practices in the face of rapidly changing office technology, more-sophisticated insurer requirements, and increasing malpractice insurance premiums (OB/GYN premiums rose 35% on average over last 3 years). In addition, a growing number of OB/GYNs are women who see on average 38% fewer patients than their male counterparts in an effort to better balance their personal and professional lives. As a result, it is often difficult for physicians who treat women patients to find time for training in advanced equipment or new surgical techniques and treatment options.
Lastly, insurers and provider organizations demand high-quality providers who demonstrate improved health care outcomes at competitive prices (currently US medical costs are growing at an 8%-9% annual rate or approximately three times the GDP). Ambulatory surgery centers providing outpatient MIS procedures are successfully competing with hospitals providing inpatient, highly invasive surgical procedures. At the same time, 60% of 809,000 hysterectomies performed in the US in 2006 could have been performed using MIS procedures, but only 23% were performed using MIS.