FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WEST PALM BEACH, FL—Mehmet C. Oz, M.D., world renowned heart surgeon, professor, author, and Health Expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show, will serve as the spokesperson for the new Palm Healthcare Pavilion and Mollie Wilmot Children’s Center in West Palm Beach.  With funds raised by Palm Healthcare Foundation, the Pavilion will be a state-of-the-art $12.5 million center designed to improve the health and quality of life for children with special healthcare needs and provide innovative training and support services for their families.

As an immensely popular and well-recognized healthcare leader, Dr. Oz will help the Foundation raise awareness of the Pavilion’s programs through in-person appearances at major community events, advertising and public service announcements.  Dr. Oz will also serve on Palm Healthcare Pavilion’s Advisory Board to help guide the planning of programs and services offered at the new facility scheduled to open in spring 2008. 

Dr. Oz has dedicated his life to helping people live healthier lives.  Most recently he founded HealthCorps, a health educational and mentoring program to educate and empower teens toward greater health awareness and advocacy for themselves and their communities.

“The planning, thought and commitment that Palm Healthcare has invested in the Pavilion will have a life-changing effect on these children and their families,” said Dr. Oz.  “Children living with chronic and special health conditions often have a multitude of complex health issues that require care by several different specialists.  I’m very proud to be a part of this team that will bring together the region’s leading doctors and health experts in one place to offer more collaborative care.”

The Pavilion is a joint effort with the State of Florida Department of Health, School District of Palm Beach County, and several South Florida academic institutions, including the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and Charles E. Schmidt College of Biomedical Sciences at Florida Atlantic University, Gregory School of Pharmacy at Palm Beach Atlantic University and Palm Beach Community College. 

The Pavilion will provide a much-needed new clinical home and greatly expanded resources for Children’s Medical Services (CMS), a State-funded program for the uninsured and underserved.  Children with cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, juvenile diabetes, cerebral palsy, kidney disorders, asthma, and other special conditions will be treated at the Pavilion.  Through a partnership with the State of Florida, children and families of middle and upper income levels will also have access to multi-specialty clinics for these services.  Support services at the Pavilion, including a state-of-the-art patient safety center, will provide families and caregivers hands-on training, and high-tech telemedicine and conference facilities for healthcare workers will allow for the exchange of information locally, and around the world.  Recognizing the growing epidemic of Type II diabetes, the Palm Healthcare Pavilion will also be home to the Diabetes Center for Prevention, Education, Management and Research.

With its new Diabetes Center, Palm Healthcare Foundation sees opportunities for synergies with Dr. Oz’s rapidly growing HealthCorps initiative (www.healthcorps.net) as it expands in South Florida.  HealthCorps enlists recent college graduates interested in health-related fields to teach high school students about the importance of eating well and getting enough exercise as a preventive tool to reduce rates of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic ailments.

“To have Dr. Oz as a spokesperson for the Palm Healthcare Pavilion is a great honor,” said Suzette W. Wexner, president of Palm Healthcare Foundation.  “Dr. Oz’s voice and leadership will bring tremendous attention and support for the programs we are developing to help some of the most fragile children of our community.  We—and the children and families we serve—are fortunate to have him as part of our team and we look forward to a longstanding and mutually beneficial relationship.”

On March 28, 2008, at 4:00pm Palm Healthcare Foundation will hold a Preview Party for the Pavilion with Dr. Oz as the keynote speaker.  He will be available that afternoon from 3:00pm to 4:00pm for in-person media interviews.  To schedule an interview with Dr. Oz, or for more information, please call Melanie Otero at 561-626-0026, ext. 11.

About Palm Healthcare Foundation, Inc.
Palm Healthcare Foundation, Inc. was chartered in 2001 as an independent community healthcare foundation. Believing that “Together We Can Do More,” the foundation’s mission is to transform healthcare challenges by bringing together the talents and resources of the community to create innovative solutions that deliver high-impact results. The Foundation’s funding priorities—access to healthcare, healthcare quality and safety, healthcare technology, healthcare policy and healthcare workforce—are designed to empower non-profit healthcare organizations and healthcare professionals to create programs and services that improve the quality of life for Palm Beach County’s underserved citizens.  Since 2001, the Foundation has distributed more than $20 million to over 80 non-profit organizations in Palm Beach County operating over 130 programs that met its funding goals.  To learn more about Palm Healthcare Foundation, please visit www.palmhealthcare.org

About Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.

Dr. Oz is Vice-Chair and Professor of Surgery at Columbia University.  He directs the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York Presbyterian Hospital. His research interests include heart replacement surgery, minimally invasive cardiac surgery, complementary medicine and health care policy.  He has authored over 400 original publications, book chapters, and medical books and has received several patents. He performs 250 heart operations annually.

Dr. Oz was born June 11, 1960 in Cleveland, Ohio and received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University (1982) and obtained a joint MD and MBA (1986) from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Wharton Business School.  He was awarded the Captain’s Athletic Award for leadership in college and was Class President followed by President of the Student Body during medical school.  He lives in Cliffside Park, NJ with his wife Lisa of 20 years and their 4 children, Daphne, Arabella, Zoe, and Oliver.

Dr. Oz is the Health Expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show.  He is chief medical consultant to Discovery Communications and has hosted several shows including “Second Opinion with Dr Oz”. His “Transplant!” series on Discovery Health Channel won both a FREDDIE and a Silver TELLY award in September 2006.  In addition to numerous appearances on network morning and evening news programs, he has guest hosted the Charlie Rose show.  He also served as medical director of Denzel Washington’s “John Q” and participated in several other feature films.

Dr Oz authored four NY Times Best Sellers “You: The Owner’s Manual”, “You: The Smart Patient”, “YOU: On a Diet”, “YOU: Staying Young” as well as the award winning “Healing from the Heart”.  He has a regular column in Esquire and Reader’s Digest magazines.

In addition to belonging to every major professional society for heart surgeons, Dr Oz was elected as Global Leader of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum, won the prestigious American Association for Thoracic Surgery Gross Research Scholarship, and has received an honorary doctorate from Istanbul University, He was voted "The Best and Brightest" by Esquire Magazine and was elected one of the Doctors of the Year by Hippocrates magazine and Healers of the Millennium by Healthy Living magazine. He is annually elected as one of the best physicians in the USA by the Castle Connolly Guide as well as other major ranking groups. In 2006 he was honored as one of “The Harvard 100 Most influential Alumni” in the 02138 Magazine.