On Wednesday, March 19^th, Jamaica Hospital Medical Center proudly opened its newly renovated inpatient pediatric unit.

When creating the new space, emphasis was placed on comfort, safety, and privacy. The unit, located on the 5^th floor of the hospital, is equipped with state-of-the-art monitoring equipment and features 13 beds, including two isolation rooms complete with a HEPA filtration system.

Additionally, the pediatric unit is beautifully decorated with child-friendly murals to create a soothing environment and offers a family lounge, an open refreshment area for families, and a pediatric playroom, which will be staffed by a dedicated Child Life Specialist.

The pediatric unit is staffed by board-certified pediatricians, as well as experienced pediatric registered nurses and respiratory therapists. Jamaica Hospital also offers a wide variety of pediatric subspecialty services, including pediatric endocrinology, urology, pulmonology, cardiology, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, surgery, and neonatology, to provide comprehensive care for the children in the community.

Construction on the pediatric unit began in April of 2024 and was almost entirely completed by Jamaica Hospital’s in-house Engineering Department.  During construction, pediatric patients requiring admission were transferred to Flushing Hospital Medical Center, also part of the MediSys Health Network, where they received expert and compassionate care.

“This is an exciting day for the community and Jamaica Hospital,” stated Marge Lilienthal, Director of Nursing for Women & Children’s Services. The opening of this new unit reaffirms the hospital’s commitment to the care of children in our communities.  We now have a world-class facility for our doctors, nurses, and the rest of our health care team to deliver care.”

The CARE Award program recognizes employees who receive positive written remarks from patients or their loved ones after receiving high-quality and compassionate care.

The criteria for the award are:

C: Compassion- Through listening, identifying patient vulnerabilities, and conveying empathy.

A: Advocacy-Ensuring quality care is given and the safety of the patients and environment is maintained.

R: Respect-Greeting or speaking to others in a kind and respectful way.

E: Engagement- Making individuals feel valued, important, and recognized.

Please join us in congratulating:

1. Shakira Turner – Jamaica Hospital

2. Tsering Yangchen, RN – Jamaica Hospital

3. Suzette Brown- Jamaica Hospital

4. Valentina Baumann, RN – Jamaica Hospital

5. Afia Anderson – Jamaica Hospital

6. Gerald Swindell – Jamaica Hospital

We thank our employees for their contributions to making our hospitals high-reliability facilities that focus on patient-centered care.  

Congratulations to the MediSys Health Network’s Safety Excellence in Infection Prevention (SEIP) award winners.

The SEIP award recognizes employees who contribute to the success of infection control initiatives.

The criteria for the award are:

S: Surpasses above and beyond expected job responsibilities related to infection control.

E: Enforce actions that support infection prevention best practices.

I: I do the right thing, even when no one is looking.

P: Performs awesome acts of safety related to infection prevention.

We thank the following team members for leading by example and doing their part to reduce the risk of infection transmissions:

1. Dr. Grace Fatule- Attending Physician in ICU and Pulmonary- Jamaica Hospital

2.Gen Micah Bayona, 5N CNM – Jamaica Hospital

3. Tristan Bisram- Technician, Help Desk/Information Systems- Flushing Hospital

4. Dione Darby, EVS-Housekeeping – Flushing Hospital

The MediSys Health Network cultivates a culture of safety by prioritizing infection control and prevention. All employees have an important part to play in preventing the spread of infections, and everyone’s contribution to safety is highly valued.

Jamaica Hospital Medical Center has been named a Center of Excellence (COE) by GO2 for Lung Cancer (GO2) for its ongoing commitment to providing the Queens community with patient-centered, evidence-based lung cancer screening.

Each year, approximately 237,000 Americans are diagnosed with lung cancer, with most cases discovered at an advanced stage of the disease. As a result, lung cancer has consistently been the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S. However, screening individuals who are at high risk for lung cancer using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) can significantly reduce mortality rates. This is because LDCT allows for the early detection of cancer when it is most treatable and even curable.

As a GO2 Center of Excellence designated in lung cancer screening, Jamaica Hospital implements screening in accordance with current evidence and clinical guidelines developed by professional bodies such as the American College of Radiology (ACR) and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN). “We are proud to have Jamaica Hospital join the community of GO2 for Lung Cancer Centers of Excellence that is national in scope and local in impact,” said GO2 Chief Healthcare Delivery Officer, Joelle Fathi. “Across the U.S., the majority of people at risk for or living with lung cancer are served by a local community hospital near their home. Through the GO2 COE network of community hospitals, clinics, and academic and VA medical centers, we are fostering and supporting essential knowledge sharing and collaboration that brings national and global advancements in early detection, treatment and care close to home.”

In 2024, Jamaica Hospital launched a comprehensive lung cancer screening program focused on early detection to help reduce disparities in lung cancer outcomes within its community. The hospital serves a high-risk population that faces elevated mortality rates. Many individuals in this group are less likely to undergo lung cancer screenings due to socioeconomic barriers to healthcare.

Jamaica Hospital’s lung cancer screening program aims to address these challenges and remove barriers by engaging high-risk individuals through education, utilizing assessment tools, offering screening opportunities to eligible candidates, and improving access to high-quality healthcare. As part of its proactive approach to screening, the program reaches out to patients with a history of smoking by employing dedicated patient navigators. These navigators help identify potential candidates and schedule essential appointments with primary care doctors. Furthermore, to ensure comprehensive care, the program coordinates patient follow-ups using healthcare management tools and collaborates with specially trained medical specialists.

“Our goal is to improve lung cancer mortality rates through early detection, and we are making significant progress with our screening program. Since its launch, we have screened nearly 400 patients and hope to reach more community members to inform them about the valuable resources and benefits our program offers. Lung cancer screening can identify cancer at an early stage when treatment is most effective. Patients diagnosed with lung cancer early have a five-year survival rate of 80%. Lives can be saved through screening, which is why we strongly encourage those at risk—people aged 50 to 80 with a smoking history of at least 20 pack-years—to get screened,” explained Dr. Luigi Tullo, Jamaica Hospital’s Vice Chair of the Department of Ambulatory Care and Medical Director of the Division of Population Health.

Jamaica Hospital is honored to receive the Center of Excellence designation by GO2 for Lung Cancer. This achievement demonstrates the hospital’s commitment to delivering the gold standard of care in lung cancer screening and providing high-quality, equitable care.

A surgical team at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, led by Dr. Mina Guerges, is the first in South Queens to successfully implant the FDA-approved Esprit™ BTK Everolimus Eluting Resorbable Scaffold System (Esprit BTK System).

The Esprit™ BTK System, a first-of-its-kind dissolvable stent and breakthrough innovation, was created to treat patients with chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) below the knee (BTK).

Chronic limb-threatening ischemia below the knee is a severe form of peripheral artery disease (PAD). It occurs when the arteries supplying blood to the lower leg and feet become blocked or narrowed. Over time, these blockages or the restriction of blood can lead to damage or the death of skin, nerves, or muscles in the affected limb, increasing the risk of complications such as amputation.

Chronic limb-threatening ischemia currently affects more than 20 million people living in the United States.  Those at risk for developing CLTI include people who:

• Use tobacco products
• Have high cholesterol
• Have hypertension or high blood pressure
• Have diabetes
• Have a family history of PAD or CLTI

Jamaica Hospital serves a patient population with a prevalence of CLTI. The hospital’s vascular division has achieved a high level of success in caring for these patients by using a combination of traditional approaches along with new techniques and technologies to improve outcomes.

As the first hospital in South Queens to utilize the Esprit™ BTK System, Jamaica Hospital offers patients in the area an effective treatment option to prevent limb amputation. The device works by keeping arteries open and delivering a drug (Everolimus) to support vessel healing before completely dissolving.

Studies have shown that implanting the device offers greater benefits than previously used methods, such as balloon angioplasty, to prevent possible amputation. The surgery to implant the Esprit™ BTK System is minimally invasive, meaning small incisions are used. Additional benefits include shorter recovery times, the potential for better long-term outcomes, and a reduced risk of amputation.

Vascular surgeons at Jamaica Hospital are optimistic that leveraging this new technology will help manage chronic limb-threatening ischemia below the knee and greatly improve limb salvage rates among patients.  The hospital aims to ensure patients in the community have access to effective, innovative, and high-quality healthcare.

Good Catch awardees receive recognition and a certificate of excellence based on their actions in preventing accidents from occurring. These actions may include keeping our facilities safe, correcting a medication order, preventing a patient from falling or reporting a significant change in a patient’s status.

Please join us in congratulating the following employees on their Good Catch:

1. Cornel Bedward, AHN Psych 3 – Jamaica Hospital
2. Bickram Totaram, PCA Psych 3- Jamaica  Hospital

By identifying a problem before it became a patient safety issue, our awardees have helped our hospitals provide patients with excellent care. We thank them for being exemplary team members and contributing to our goal of being a high-reliability network.

The CARE Award program recognizes employees who receive positive written remarks from patients or their loved ones after receiving high-quality and compassionate care.

The criteria for the award are:

C: Compassion- Through listening, identifying patient vulnerabilities, and conveying empathy.

A: Advocacy-Ensuring quality care is given and the safety of the patients and environment is maintained.

R: Respect-Greeting or speaking to others in a kind and respectful way.

E: Engagement- Making individuals feel valued, important, and recognized.

Please join us in congratulating:

1. Dr. Andrew Rubin – Jamaica Hospital

2. Dr. Narendralall Persaud – Jamaica Hospital

3. Maryse St. Surin- Jamaica Hospital

4. Adam Mostafa – Jamaica Hospital

5. Karen Welch – Jamaica Hospital

6. Larisa Kolyuyeva, RN – Jamaica Hospital

We thank our employees for their contributions to making our hospitals high-reliability facilities that focus on patient-centered care.

Congratulations to the MediSys Health Network’s Safety Excellence in Infection Prevention (SEIP) award winners.

The SEIP award recognizes employees who contribute to the success of infection control initiatives.

The criteria for the award are:

S: Surpasses above and beyond expected job responsibilities related to infection control.

E: Enforce actions that support infection prevention best practices.

I: I do the right thing, even when no one is looking.

P: Performs awesome acts of safety related to infection prevention.

We thank the following team members for leading by example and doing their part to reduce the risk of infection transmissions:

1. Jason De Jesus, 4 South PIR- Jamaica Hospital

2. Radiology Patient Transport Team- Flushing Hospital

The MediSys Health Network cultivates a culture of safety by prioritizing infection control and prevention. All employees have an important part to play in preventing the spread of infections, and everyone’s contribution to safety is highly valued.

Good Catch awardees receive recognition and a certificate of excellence based on their actions in preventing accidents from occurring. These actions may include keeping our facilities safe, correcting a medication order, preventing a patient from falling or reporting a significant change in a patient’s status.

Please join us in congratulating Flushing Hospital’s Stroke Program team members on their Good Catch.

By identifying a problem before it became a patient safety issue, our awardees have helped to provide patients with excellent care. We thank them for being exemplary team members and contributing to our goal of being a high-reliability network.