People on the move in Polk’s medical community

WINTER HAVEN HOSPITAL

Winter Haven Hospital’s Bostick Structural Heart Team completed its first MitraClip procedure. The MitraClip repairs a condition called mitral regurgitation. When the mitral valve fails to close completely, it can cause blood to flow backward through the heart. Left untreated, mitral regurgitation can lead to serious complications, including heart failure. This approach helps patients avoid open-heart procedures, meaning they can recover and resume their normal lives sooner. Offering such services is a direct benefit of the expansion of Winter Haven Hospital’s cardiac program, especially the addition of the hybrid catheterization lab.

BARTOW REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER

Bartow Regional Medical Center recently honored eight exceptional nurses. Ana Ontiveros, with the Emergency Department, was named the 2020 Nurse of Excellence. Seven additional nurses were announced as Nurses of the Year. They were: Angela Roberts, Intensive Care Unit; Sandra Medina, Acute Care Unit; Grace Phillips, Post-Anesthesia Care Unit; Elisabeth Lacey, Post Surgery Unit; Erin Straub, Wound Care; Teresa True, Surgical Services; James Saine, Interventional Services. The nurses were selected by their peers and chosen from every patient care unit in the hospital. The Professional Practice Council, comprised of staff nurses, chose a Nurse of Excellence from the group of unit-based Nurses of the Year. Nominations for these awards are based on how each nurse demonstrates and consistently reflects the BayCare values of trust, respect, dignity, responsibility and excellence. 

From April:Medical People: News about people on the move in Polk’s medical community

WATSON CLINIC

Lilliam E. Ayala Garcia, M.D., a board-certified rheumatologist, has joined Watson Clinic and treats patients from Watson Clinic Main at 1600 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. Her areas of expertise include the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, connective tissue disorders, osteoporosis and soft tissue rheumatism. Garcia received her medical degree from Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara in Jalixco, Mexico. She performed an internship at New York Medical College in Valhalla, New York, an internal medicine residency at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and a fellowship in rheumatology at the University of Miami in Miami. She is a member of the American College of Rheumatology, and is certified in rheumatology by the American Board of Internal Medicine. 

Jaehoon Bang, M.D., has joined Watson Clinic as a diagnostic radiologist who provides mammography services from the Watson Clinic Women’s Center at 1400 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. Bang received his medical degree from the University of South Florida in Tampa. He performed his internship at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in Newark, New Jersey; his residency at Albert Einstein/Jacobi Medical Center in Bronx, New York;  and his fellowship in breast imaging at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa. Bang is board-certified by the American Board of Radiology and is a member of the American College of Radiology, the Radiologic Society of North America and the Society of Breast Imaging.

Gail Margerum, M.D., an urgent care specialist, has joined Watson Clinic and treats patients from Watson Clinic Urgent Care Main at 1600 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. Margerum received her medical degree from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and performed her residency in family medicine at Duke/FAHEC Family Practice in Fayetteville, North Carolina. She is board-certified in family medicine by the American Board of Family Medicine and in emergency medicine by the American Board of Physician Specialists. 

Nidal Sakka, M.D., a pulmonology specialist, has joined Watson Clinic and treats patients from Watson Clinic Main at 1600 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. His areas of expertise include the treatment of COPD, asthma, pulmonary fibrosis and sleep apnea. Sakka received his medical degree from Damascus University Faculty of Medicine in Damascus, Syria. He completed his residency in internal medicine at St. Barnabas Hospital in Bronx, New York, and his fellowship in pulmonary disease and critical care medicine at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia. He is board-certified in pulmonary disease and critical care medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine, and in sleep medicine by the American Board of Sleep Medicine. 

Heidi H. Cook, APRN, has joined Watson Clinic and serves cardiology patients from the Watson Clinic Main location at 1600 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. Cook received her Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in nursing from the University of South Florida in Tampa. She is a member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and the Polk County Advanced Practice Nurses Association. 

M. Allison Fojtik, APRN, has returned to Watson Clinic to assist cardiology patients from Watson Clinic Main at 1600 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. She has decades of experience in emergency department and critical care settings. Fojtik received her Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in nursing from Florida Southern College in Lakeland. She is a member of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, American Association of Nurse Practitioners and Florida Association of Nurse Practitioners.

William D. Keeler, APRN, has returned to Watson Clinic to serve patients of board-certified family medicine physician Jason Saylor, D.O., from the Watson Clinic Highlands location at 2300 E. County Road 540A in south Lakeland. Keeler received his Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in nursing from Florida Southern College in Lakeland. He is a member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. 

Sara Stephen, APRN, has joined Watson Clinic and works alongside board-certified urologist Mark Swierzewski, M.D., from Watson Clinic Main at 1600 Lakeland Hills Blvd. in Lakeland. Her areas of expertise include general urology care, as well as pre- and post-operative surgical care. Stephen received her Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in nursing from the University of South Florida in Tampa. She is a member of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.