July 22, 2011 (CHARLESTON, SC) – NAFC designated the Pelvic Floor Center at Cleveland Clinic Florida (CCF) as a Center of Excellence (COE): Continence Care in Women. Cleveland Clinic Florida is the first medical center on the East Cost to receive this honor and joins only two other medical centers in the country that have achieved this status. Drs. Vivian Aguilar, G. Willy Davila, Gamal Ghoniem and Dana Sands are the principle physicians in this COE.

Consumer research has revealed that one in four women over the age of 18 experience episodes of leaking urine involuntarily.¹ NAFC’s National Centers of Excellence: Continence Care in Women program was established to offer consumers, seeking solutions to their bladder and bowel control problems and related pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD), a reliable, trustworthy means of finding an experienced and credentialed expert. The COE designation is based on evidence of extensive training, clinical experience, interdisciplinary resources and patient satisfaction statistics that meet established standards. Health care institutions seeking to apply for this designation must first meet prequalification requirements set by NAFC and its COE Review Committee. A complete list of the requirements can be found on NAFC’s website.

A multi-step process must be completed to achieve COE status. First, a qualified health care facility, together with two or more physicians, completes an application. Once minimal requirements are deemed satisfied, patient satisfaction data collection is then initiated by means of a confidential survey, results of which are analyzed and discussed with all individuals who are part of the application, for interim status. Once interim status is achieved, a qualified NAFC staff member makes a site visit to the facility and interviews the entire team of providers and the support staff. A full written report is subsequently submitted to the COE Review Committee to determine if COE designation can be granted or if additional data are needed. From beginning to end the entire process is patient-centered in criteria. Fully approved status is valid for three years before renewal.

The national ranked Pelvic Floor Center at CCF embodies the model of coordinated and specialized care by integrating the departments of Urology, Gynecology and Colorectal Surgery into the treatment of pelvic floor dysfunction problems, including fecal incontinence, rectal prolapse, sexual dysfunction and complex lower urinary tract problems. The Pelvic Floor Center is at the forefront of technological advances in the field, enabling its physicians to provide minimally invasive, yet safe and effective treatments for common pelvic floor problems that previously required more invasive procedures. “We are confident that we are providing our patients with the best and most modern treatment available,” stated Mark Sesto, MD, chair of the division of surgery at CCF. “This recognition displays our team’s drive to continually work together to provide the best treatment for our patients.” Last year, approximately 1400 women were diagnosed and treated with pelvic floor dysfunction (incontinence and prolapse) at Cleveland Clinic Florida’s Pelvic Floor Center.

¹Muller N. What Americans Understand How they Affected by Bladder Control Problems: Highlights of Recent Nationwide Consumer Research. Urologic Nursing. 2005:25(2): 109-115.