50 Knapp Facts

Awards, Certifications and Achievements

1. HealthGrades, a nationally recognized independent health ratings company, named Knapp a 5-Star Rated hospital for Maternity Care for the forth consecutive year (2008-2011). According to HealthGrades, mothers who give birth to their babies at 5-Star rated hospitals are found to have 32 percent fewer complications.
2. Knapp was the recipient of the 2011 HealthGrades® Maternity Care Excellence Award™ and Ranked among the Top 5% in the Nation for Maternity Care for 4 years in a row (2008-2011)
3. Knapp Medical Center was the only hospital in the region (McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX Census Bureau Statistical Area) to receive the HealthGrades® Maternity Care Excellence Award™ in 2010/2011
4. Knapp was the recipient of the 2011 HealthGrades® Joint Replacement Excellence Award™ and Ranked among the top 10% in the Nation for Joint Replacement.
5. In 2011, for the second time in the last three years, Knapp Medical Center was named Hospitals and Health Networks Most Wired Most Improved organization. Knapp is the only hospital in the Valley, and one of only 25 hospitals in the nation, to be honored with this designation. To be eligible for the award, the hospital excelled in the four focus areas of infrastructure, business and administrative management, clinical quality and safety, and care continuum.
6. In 2008, Knapp was the first hospital in the Valley to provide an outpatient laser procedure that alleviates enlarged prostate symptoms and reduces some of the traditional complications associated with surgery.
7. In 2008, Knapp was the first hospital in the Valley to provide a minimally invasive procedure, Endobronchial ultrasound “EBUS”, that more accurately diagnoses and stages lung cancer. The EBUS scope offers real time imaging and allows pulmonologists to confirm the exact position of the needle in the lymph node or pulmonary mass. The range of lymph nodes that are accessible with EBUS is a marked advance over previous technologies.
8. In 2009, Knapp was the first hospital in the nation to utilize software to pull flat images into 3-D rotating imagery and allow physicians in different locations to view the images simultaneously.
9. The Wound Care Center at Knapp is certified by the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society and Joint Commission as a Level One Clinical Hyperbaric Facility. Knapp is the only facility in the Rio Grande Valley to achieve this designation.
10. The Texas Department of State Health Services designated Knapp Medical Center a Mother-Friendly Hospital/Worksite in 2011. The program recognizes companies and institutions that provide accommodations for new mothers who wish to continue breastfeeding after returning to work.
11. In 2010, the Knapp Auxiliary’s Diabetes Food Chart Community Outreach Program was awarded one of the four 2010 American Hospital Association HAVE Awards (Hospital Awards for Volunteer Excellence). The Auxiliary has sold more than 75,000 charts in 35 states since 1997.
12. In 2010, Knapp Medical Center was awarded Exemplary Performance by ImmTrac, the Texas Immunization Registry, for contributing to the health of Texas children.
13. In 2005, Knapp Medical Center was awarded the Thomson Reuters Performance Improvement Leader Top 100 Hospitals recognition
14. In 2000, Knapp Medical Center received the Texas Hospital Association Excellence in Community Service Award
15. Knapp is Fully Accredited as a Provider of Continuing Medical Education by the Texas Medical Association.
    
    

    Services and Technology

16. Knapp Medical Center offers over 400 services at its adjoining Outpatient Center. Services include, digital imaging, cardiopulmonary, diabetes education, endoscopy procedures, gastroenterology, hospice care, laboratory, nutrition counseling, rehabilitation, wound care, and wellness screenings.
17. Knapp offers ALL DIGITAL imaging technology including a state-of-the-art 64 slice CT Scanner. The CT Scanner covers more anatomy with greater accuracy than before. The images produced have greater clarity, are available faster and facilitate more accurate diagnoses.
18. In 2011, Knapp Medical Center introduced a new EKG Management system. Physicians are now able to view and assess EKGs remotely, eliminating the need for on-site evaluation. Clinical staff are also able to view the EKGs from any workstation computer at Knapp.
19. On August 17, 2011 the first procedure was performed at Knapp’s Cardiac Catheterization Lab. A number of cardiac diagnostic and therapeutic procedures can be performed in the Cath Lab, negating the need for both inpatients and outpatients to travel elsewhere for similar procedures.
20. Knapp Medical Center is one of the few hospitals in the Rio Grande Valley that can perform endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) to obtain images and information about the digestive tract and the surrounding tissue and organs. Images obtained with EUS are often more accurate and detailed than images provided by traditional ultrasound.
21. With the prevalence of diabetes patients in our community, Knapp provides a specialized Diabetes Center. The Center works with the patients’ doctors to identify individual needs and develop a personalized plan of education that will help patients understand and manage their diabetes. Services are available to all age groups, to both newly diagnosed patients and those who have been living with the disease.
22. In 1996, Knapp’s Hospice Care program accepted its first patient. Knapp’s Hospice Care program provides a special kind of caring for people with terminal illnesses and their families.
23. The Knapp Intermediate Care Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is categorized as a Level II Unit, meaning it is capable of providing comprehensive care for babies delivered as early as 32 weeks and as small as 3 ½ lbs.
24. Knapp Medical Center has a 16-bed Medical Intensive Care Unit, equipped with new state-of-the-art monitors, to provide 24-hour care and continuous monitoring to patients in critical and complex health situations.
25. In 2011, Knapp implemented the Pharmacy Automation program. Knapp’s pharmacy is now home to KIRA-Rx, a robot which fills prescriptions and helps to streamline pharmacy processes. The automation enhances drug safety and accuracy for patients.
26. Knapp Medical Center completes 98% of all laboratories on-site allowing for faster turnaround.
27. Knapp utilizes an electronic health information system, Paragon, in which all patient records and charts are housed electronically. A convenient feature of this system allows physicians to securely view their patient’s records remotely.
28. The Knapp Surgery Center, a joint venture with local physicians, is located on the north end of the Knapp campus. After undergoing extensive remodeling, the former Weslaco Eye Surgery Center opened with two new operating rooms. This multi-specialty outpatient surgery facility, with a highly skilled medical staff, affords patients another option for outpatient surgery.
29. In addition to Labor and Delivery being a locked floor, accessible only by key code, Knapp recently upgraded their infant security system, Hugs and Kisses. The system includes numerous safety features that ensure infants remain safely with their parents during their stay in the hospital.
    
    

    Medical Staff, Employees and Volunteers

30. Knapp has almost 200 physicians on the Medical Staff, all independent professional practitioners, representing 40 different specialties.
31. Knapp operates a Medical Staff Development Program which has successfully recruited physicians to medical specialties underserved in the Mid-Valley area, such as Orthopedic Surgery and Obstetrics and Gynecology.
32. Knapp has developed Hospitalist programs for Adult Medicine, Pediatrics and Neonatology. Hospitalists who specialize in providing hospital care are always available to provide care to patients in the ER who do not have a doctor.
33. Critical Care Specialists or “Intensivists” provide care for patients in our Intensive Care Unit. A team of four physicians who are board certified in Internal Medicine, Pulmonology and Critical Care Medicine serve as Medical Directors for ICU and are available to provide highly specialized care for these patients.
34. All newborn care is provided by board certified Neonatologists who are available to attend deliveries as needed. Neonatology coverage, along with improvements made in the newborn nursery have resulted in fewer infants requiring transfers to other facilities.
35. The Wound Center at Knapp is the only wound care facility in the Valley to have a complete staff of registered nurses and technicians that are certified by the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society.
36. Knapp Medical Center employs a total of approximately 1,000 people, and is one of the Mid-Valley’s largest private employers.
37. More than 250 volunteers work in some 35 different hospital departments ranging from patient care areas to office work.
    
    

    Community Benefits

38. Since 2008, Knapp has hosted free community seminars each spring. Each seminar is presented by a physician on the Medical Staff at Knapp and provides valuable information on a variety of relevant health topics.
39. Knapp is a distribution site for the Safe Rider Course available to low income English or Spanish speaking families in our community. Last year Knapp distributed 70 car seats.
40. Twice a year, Knapp holds a Community Health Fairs to provide individuals with free health screenings and valuable health information. The Fit N Fun Fair is in May and the Fit N Fun Fall Festival is in October.
41. Knapp is a training center for American Heart Association’s Certification Programs: Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support, and Pediatric Advanced Life Support.
42. Last fiscal year, as part of Knapp’s commitment to the community, the hospital provided over 10 million dollars of inpatient charity care.
43. In 2009 Knapp started Bras Ending Breast Cancer, an annual event to raise breast cancer awareness and provide screening mammograms to indigent women.
44. Knapp Medical Center offers the Safe Sitter Program to teach young babysitters how to handle emergencies when caring for younger children.
    
    

    Facility

45. Knapp Medical Center opened in Weslaco on January 2, 1962 as Knapp Memorial Methodist Hospital with 100 beds. Today, Knapp is a 226-bed acute care hospital.
46. Under an amicable agreement, the long relationship between United Methodist Church and Knapp Memorial Methodist Hospital was dissolved in 1986, and the hospital was renamed to Knapp Medical Center.
47. In 2004, a 32,000 square foot Conference Center was opened adjacent to Knapp Medical Center
48. Knapp is always working to modernize its facilities and make aesthetic improvements to enhance the patient experience. Renovations were made to Labor & Delivery and Pediatrics in 2007 and Postpartum, Nursery and Medical Units in 2010.
49. In 2010, Knapp expanded the Inpatient Dialysis unit from 4 to 6 patient care areas and moved it to a remodeled location on the first floor.
50. With a focus on patient safety, quality care and comfort, Knapp has invested upwards of $27 million over the past five years acquiring state of the art equipment, creating and expanding services, remodeling and refurbishing the facility, and recruiting physicians to ensure that members of the community have access to the best healthcare close to home.