PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Sacred Heart Women's Hospital is extending its expertise in managing high risk pregnancies into the Florida Panhandle and South Alabama by opening a satellite office in Chipley. 

 This office will allow pregnant women in Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington and Bay counties in Florida as well as Houston, Geneva, Henry, Dale, and Coffee Counties in Alabama to receive expert care from Sacred Heart's Regional Perinatal Center without having to travel to Pensacola.

 "We wanted to expand the regional availability of our services and improve birth outcomes in Northwest Florida and South Alabama, while allowing patients to get expert prenatal care closer to home," said Dr. James Thorp, a specialist in Maternal-Fetal Medicine and medical director of the Regional Perinatal Center.

 Here's how it works: Once a month, a Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM) physician and support staff from the Regional Perinatal Center in Pensacola will travel to an office adjacent to Northwest Florida Community Hospital in Chipley. The patient must be referred to the satellite office by their primary obstetrician.  There, the sonographer will perform a high quality ultrasound scan of the mother's womb to monitor fetal development.  Then the MFM will perform a physical examination of patient and will review his recommendations with her and a plan of care will be sent to the referring physician.

"This innovative approach of "bringing the high-risk services to the patient" has allowed us to extend our services to underserved rural areas of Northwest Florida and South Alabama that do not have a physician specializing in high risk pregnancy," said Elisabeth Allerellie, nurse coordinator of the satellite office.  "It will assist the referring physicians by providing them with a documented plan of care for their patients and it will improve the number of sick/low birth weight infants born to these mothers who would not normally have been able to access this care.  It also means patients and their families can save time and money by avoiding a long trip to Pensacola."

Since there is a critical shortage of Maternal-Fetal Medicine specialists throughout the United States, the satellite office will allow the Regional Perinatal Center to provide these services to underserved areas. Ongoing clinical research is planned to monitor the cost, feasibility, and patient satisfaction as Sacred Heart expand these services

Sacred Heart is one of 11 hospitals in Florida designated by the state as a Regional Perinatal Intensive Care Center (RPICC).  Since 1974, the state's RPICC program has improved outcomes for women with high-risk pregnancies and improved care to sick or pre-term newborns by providing a full range of specialized services and ongoing care.

Studies have found that outcomes for high-risk pregnancies can be improved through continuous specialized care to pregnant women with major medical or maternal conditions that puts their pregnancy at risk or their newborn at risk for disease, death or disability. At Sacred Heart, RPICC services include specialized prenatal care in a high-risk pregnancy clinic and at Sacred Heart Women's Hospital, where obstetricians and nurses with specialized training in maternal-fetal medicine manage the pregnancies and deliveries of high-risk mothers.  The second component of the program - neonatal care for very sick or premature newborns -- is provided by Sacred Heart's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

For more information on Sacred Heart's Regional Perinatal Center, call (850) 416-2477.