Open for Business: Gala Celebrates Nation’s Newest Teaching Hospital

On a chilly evening in January, hundreds of El Pasoans — and residents from across Texas — braved the cold to catch a glimpse of the nation’s newest teaching hospital. The Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus shined brightly as guests toured the hallways of the brand new facility, which promises to serve the communities of El Paso and southern New Mexico, and provide cutting-edge treatment options.

Unlike most medical centers, the 106-bed, full service community hospital serves as both a treatment center for patients and a training site for budding health care professionals. Only 7 percent of hospitals in the U.S. receive this special teaching hospital designation. It means that physicians serving in the hospital are constantly learning about the most specialized and up-to-date services for illnesses and injuries. This academic environment is made possible through a special collaboration between TTUHSC El Paso and Tenet, the parent company of The Hospitals of Providence.

“Teaching hospitals are typically associated with the highest quality of care,” explained Richard Lange, MD, MBA, president of TTUHSC El Paso. “We can bring state-of-the-art teaching, which is state-of-the-art knowledge, and often times that means state-of-the-art research as well.”

Nicholas Tejeda, FACHE, the hospital’s chief executive officer, added, “Certainly, this beautiful new hospital will have the latest technology and equipment, but what makes this hospital truly unique is the classroom. Because we’re teaching the next generation of providers, our hospital will incorporate the latest evidence-based medicine—taught by world-class faculty and dedicated community physicians working elbow-to-elbow with students and residents.” 

Medical students are already reaping the benefits of the new training hospital; rotations for TTUHSC El Paso students began in mid-May.

What’s even more exciting for West Texas is the draw the hospital is expected to have on future physicians. It’s no secret that the Paso del Norte region is woefully underserved when it comes to medical care and specialists. But with the opening of the teaching hospital, up to 100 new residency slots will be created in El Paso.

Residency is the final stage of training after medical school where a physician develops the knowledge and experience to practice in a specific specialty, like surgery or pediatrics. Residency placement often has lasting impacts on where the nation’s medical talent is concentrated. Data show that doctors often stay and practice medicine in the community where they completed their residency. By expanding the number of residency slots available in El Paso, the number of doctors who learn and stay in the community to practice will increase.

“By offering a state-of-the-art facility right here in El Paso, the Paso del Norte region will not only retain, but also attract skilled health care professionals from across the U.S.,” Lange said. “Once we train them here, they are far more likely to stay here and practice as well.”

Adding to this improved outlook for the Paso del Norte region, the gala also celebrated a historic collaboration between two organizations with a common goal of community service.

“We have two organizations coming together to do something that this community desperately needs—and that’s to improve access to well-trained physicians and nurses that serve our community,” said Tejeda.

The evening culminated in a ribbon-cutting at the entrance of the hospital. Key players gathered together, each taking a hold of the long, gleaming white ribbon. Giant ceremonial red scissors took center stage as the ribbon was cut, gracefully gliding to the ground as onlookers cheered.

The next generation of health care has begun, and El Paso is leading the way.

 

 

New Opportunities for Nurses

Medical students aren’t the only beneficiaries of the new teaching hospital at Transmountain. Students in the Gayle Greve Hunt School of Nursing (GGHSON) began conducting clinical rotations in the hospital in July.

Fledgling nurses are assigned a patient and for two consecutive days assume total patient care under the supervision of a care team. That means they review the patient’s disease process, charts, medications and potential side effects, and directly communicate with the patient to address their needs and concerns.

In addition, because of the close collaboration between TTUHSC El Paso and The Hospitals of Providence, nursing students may even catch a class or two taught by a leader from the Transmountain Campus. Nicholas Tejeda, FACHE, the hospital’s chief executive officer, has taken an earnest interest in TTUHSC El Paso nursing students and has offered to teach several classes that focus on addressing the unique patient characteristics and needs to improve the quality of care.

Tejeda said, “Every day, lives are profoundly changed due to the incredibly compassionate care delivered by nurses. With this in mind, it is an honor for The Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus—and its leaders—to play a part in the training of the next generation of nurses. We face a significant shortage of nurses in our community, but together, we can create a unique learning environment that strengthens the nursing profession within our community and across our region.”

 

What We Offer

The Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus is just that—a campus of medical buildings equipped with El Paso’s first state-of-the-art teaching hospital. The new hospital is complemented by Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso (TTP El Paso)’s latest clinic location, TTP El Paso at Transmountain—a 110,000-square-foot clinical space for physicians to treat patients.

Thus far, TTP El Paso at Transmountain provides health care services in pediatrics, psychiatry, internal medicine, family medicine, surgery and obstetrics and gynecology. In the future, TTP El Paso at Transmountain is expected to expand and offer more health care specialties.

 

Meet the Doctors 

Peter Catinella, MD, MPH – Family Medicine

Peter Catinella has spent more than 30 years in academic medicine, and has held faculty positions at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, University of Florida, University of Utah Health and Indiana University. He specializes in comprehensive family medicine and is particularly interested in public health, quality improvement, health promotion and disease prevention. He earned his medical degree from the University of Arizona College of Medicine, and a Master of Public Health from the University of South Florida.

 

Mahesh Gajendran, MD, MPH – Internal Medicine

Mahesh Gajendran was the first doctor to join Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso at Transmountain. He completed his medical training at Stanley Medical College in Tamil Nadu, India, where he worked as a primary care physician for two years. Gajendran came to the U.S. in 2007 to pursue postgraduate training in internal medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). After completing his residency, he joined UPMC as an academic hospitalist and became actively involved in resident teaching, quality improvement projects and clinical research.

 

Moataz M. Hassan Ragheb, MD, PhD – Psychiatry

Moataz M. Ragheb, a native of Egypt, received a Doctorate of Psychiatry and medical degree from the Ain Shams University Faculty of Medicine in Cairo, Egypt. Before joining TTUHSC El Paso, Ragheb spent seven years in Providence, Rhode Island as a practicing psychiatrist and an assistant clinical professor at the Brown University Alpert Medical School Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior. Ragheb’s areas of interest include post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), mood disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). He is board-certified in psychiatry.

 

Naima Khamsi, MD – OB-GYN

Before joining TTP El Paso at Transmountain, Naima Khamsi was the chief administrative resident for TTUHSC El Paso’s Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB-GYN) residency program. An El Paso native, she received her undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) and earned her medical degree from the Boston University School of Medicine. She completed her residency at TTUHSC El Paso. Since 2010, Khamsi has been heavily involved in research on pregnancy and health disparities in the Latina population. She is the first OB-GYN physician to join TTP El Paso at Transmountain.

Gustavo Martell, MD – Chief Medical Officer

A native of El Paso, Gustavo Martell earned his medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and went on to complete his residency at the Texas Tech Regional Academic Health Sciences Center in El Paso (now TTUHSC El Paso). Martell brings an extensive background, including 22 years of clinical and progressive health care management experience in the field of obstetrics and gynecology. As chief medical officer, Martell is the primary liaison for hospital management and oversees clinical operations to ensure that patients at the hospital receive the highest quality of care.