Author Archives: Andrew Rubin

Hurricane Relief Team Update – November 1, 2017

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The hurricane relief effort in Puerto Rico continues with both of the MediSys Health Network teams being kept very busy. Team 1 is working on the ship, the USS Comfort, where they are providing urgent care to hundreds of patients on a daily basis. Team 2 has been with working with Americares to staff pop-up clinics in small remote towns on the western portion of the island. They have also been seeing hundreds of patients on a daily basis.

Both team leaders have been reporting that they have been working twelve to fourteen hour days without any days off. The members of the teams are in good health and spirits. We are very proud of our team members who are working so hard to help with this effort in Puerto Rico. We will continue to keep everyone updated on the team’s progress.

Hurricane Maria Relief Team Update

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Since arriving in Puerto Rico last week, the MediSys Health Network twenty-person team has been divided into two smaller groups, each with different assignments.
Team 1 is a 12 person team and is being led by Nick Caputo. This team had been stationed through the weekend at Manati Field Medical Station where they have treated hundreds of patients each day.

Team 2 is an eight-person team and is being led by James Villavicencio. The team has been working with Americares and sent initially to a school on the outskirts of Aguada. On Saturday they were moved to a clinic in Arenas Utuado which is about 1.5 hours from San Juan. The team saw 62 extremely grateful patients in a four hour period.
Both teams have been reporting that their members are in good spirits and are all doing well. They feel happy to be able to contribute to the relief effort. We congratulate our employees who volunteered to take part in this deployment and we will continue to provide updates in the days to come.

 

     

MediSys Celebrates Breast Feeding Week

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BreastFeedWeek2Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital recently jointly celebrated World Breast Feeding Week with several wonderful events promoting breastfeeding in our community. This year’s theme was “Breast Feeding, a Winning Goal-for-Life.”

World Breast Feeding Week is celebrated every year during the first week of August. The goal of this campaign is to promote exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant’s life. This has been shown to yield tremendous health benefits such as providing critical nutrients, better immune responses, and protection from deadly diseases such as pneumonia.

Some of the events that were sponsored by the hospitals were baby showers where mothers were given gift bags with literature on the benefits of breastfeeding. Healthy snacks and drinks were provided and many raffle prizes were won by those in attendance.

Another event that took place during the week was a joint health awareness day held at the YMCA in downtownJamaica. Breastfeeding consultants attended this event and spoke to many of the women who came to the event. Healthy snacks were provided and participants were able to have their blood pressure and BMI checked. 

A Breast Feeding symposium was also held for our staff at which Dr. Virginia Robertson, medical specialist for provider education at the NYC Department of Health.  The topic of Dr. Robertson’s presentation was “The Role of Multidisciplinary Collaborations in Promoting Breast Feeding.”

All of these events were organized by staff from the Women’s Health and the WIC departments at bothJamaicaHospitalandFlushingHospital. The breastfeeding campaign is all throughout the year. The events that we participate in during World Breast Feeding Week show the importance of this initiative and serve to educate women of the benefits to their children and to themselves.

Children’s Art Exhibit Held at Advanced Center for Psychotherapy

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Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day was May 8th, and to celebrate, Jamaica Hospital’s Advanced Center for Psychotherapy hosted its annual children’s art exhibit. This year’s theme was, “If you could change something in your life, what would it look like?”

With original pieces created by children and adolescents, the art exhibit was created as a way to initiate conversations between adults and children about how they can make positive changes in their lives.

“This year the focus is on positive mental health as it is essential to a child’s early development,” said June Wasserman, PhD  and coordinator of Child and Adolescent Services at the Advanced Center for Psychotherapy.

The art work will be displayed in the lobby of the Advanced Center for Psychotherapy for the month of May, National Mental Health.

Jamaica Hospital Hosts Second Annual Earth Day Expo

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On April 22, in celebration of National Earth Day, “ecoMediSys,” a committee dedicated to identifying and implementing ecological programs throughout the hospital network, held its second annual earth expo. Several tables were set up in Jamaica Hospital’s hospital lobby, where departments exhibited their ecofriendly efforts. Some of these efforts included recycling, using environmentally friendly products, and conserving energy. There was also an exhibit that highlighted the benefits of using mass transit and participating in ride share programs.

“As we continue to make strides to better the environment, to better our community, and to better our hospital, we realize that education is a crucial part of the process,” said Fred Beekman, Vice President of Ambulatory Care. “Our expo is a great way to educate our employees and the community about our ecological initiatives and we hope that they begin to make similar efforts to reduce waste, increase recycling, and conserve energy.”

The event also served to recognize Ray Fredericks, Jr., Assistant Director at Jamaica Hospital’s Print Shop. Several years ago, Ray spearheaded a paper shredding campaign to properly discard confidential documents. As a result, the hospital saved money and tons of paper was recycled. The success of the program was tremendous and the program was expanded to include all waste paper not just confidential documents.

Under Ray’s leadership, the program recycles over 150 tons of paper annually. This saves over 2,500 trees each year and greatly reduces the hospital’s carbon footprint. Given the number of years the program has been in operation, Ray and his team has essentially saved a small forest.

“Being recognized is very flattering,” said Ray. “What started as a way to be HIPPA compliant (the shredding of confidential information) has grown into an incredible eco-friendly and cost saving effort for the hospital.”

He added: “All of the staff from our Melville site, the Print Shop and the Mail Room who are involved in the coordination of scheduling, making the actual pick ups, processing the paper through the shredding process, should be acknowledged for their efforts as well. The success of this project is made possible through the teamwork of our staff and management team.”

First Babies of the New Year

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The first baby of the New Year is always a special event at both of our hospitals. Although we did not have the honor of delivering New York City’s first baby this year, our New Year babies are still very special to us and worthy of recognition.

The first MediSys babies were welcomed by their mothers, families, and our dedicated staff. Shortly after their arrival, they posed beautifully for our photographer.

Jamaica Hospital Medical Center welcomed:

Baby Girl: Jayla
Weight: 8 lbs 1 oz
Length: 20 inches
Delivery time: 10:57 AM
Mother: Timeka Dorch

 

 

Flushing Hospital Medical Center welcomed:

Baby Girl: Niha
Weight: 6 lbs 5 oz
Length: 18 inches
Delivery time: 12:55 AM
Mother: Shamima Khan

 

 

Congratulations to these babies. We wish them and their families a lifetime of happiness.

Traumatic Brain Injury Study Published

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A recently published article in the Journal of Neurosurgery was co-authored by
Dr. Jamshid Ghajar, Chief of Neurosurgery at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. This clinical article titled “Marked reduction in mortality in patients with severe traumatic injury” is based on research done by Dr. Ghajar and other researchers based on work that was performed at several hospitals including Jamaica Hospital.

According to statistics compiled by the US Centers for Disease Control and prevention, at least 1.7 million people in the United States sustain some form of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) each year. In most cases (75%), the TBI is mild but in some cases it cases it can be quite severe. TBIs occur most often in very young children (0-4 years of age), adolescents (between15 and 19 years old), and older adults (65 years of age and older). Approximately 52,000 people with TBI die and 275,000 are hospitalized. TBIs are a contributing factor in nearly one-third of all injury-related deaths in our country.

Between 2001 and 2009, the number of deaths from severe traumatic brain injury dropped significantly at 22 trauma centers in New York State. The researchers found that the rate of deaths from severe TBI in the trauma centers dropped from 22% to 13% over the 9 year period. This reduction in deaths corresponds to increased adherence by hospital staff to “Guidelines for Management of Severe Traumatic Brain Injury,” which are produced by the Brain Trauma Foundation, American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The findings are reported and discussed in this article.

Summarizing the importance of the study, Dr. Ghajar, president of the Brain Trauma Foundation said “Traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of death and disability in young people. Developing evidence-based guidelines and putting them into practice to improve outcomes are key priorities for the Brain Trauma Foundation. This remarkable reduction in deaths in New York State exemplifies our continued commitment to evidence-based guidleines.”

Flu Season For MediSys Employees

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Influenza vaccination season has officially begun. The Occupational Health Department is offering the flu vaccination free of charge to employees, volunteers, students, contract personnel and independent licensed practioners who are affiliated with the MediSys Health Network.

Flu vaccination protocols for health care workers have become a widely discussed topic over the past few years. Several state and federal agencies have issued guidelines and will be closely monitoring their implementation. There is now mandatory reporting for New York State Department of health and CDC/CMS. The Joint Commission expects that 90% of Hospital personnel will receive the flu vaccine every year.

Employees from all hospital departments, both at the main campus as well as the off-campus locations, are expected to participate in the organization-wide Flu vaccination campaign by October 31st. Any staff member who decides against the vaccination must sign a refusal form. If the vaccine is given by an outside agency or by a private physician, written proof must be submitted to the Office of Occupational Health.

For those people who refuse to receive the flu vaccine, we remind them that unvaccinated personnel will be required to wear a surgical mask while in areas where patients may be present from November 1st throughout the period when influenza remains prevalent in our region.

For further information regarding the flu vaccination program at Flushing Hopsital please contact the Occupational Health Department at 718-670-5360.

Are You Going the Extra Mile?

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A new initiative to recognize employees who “Go the Extra Mile” was recently introduced at Jamaica Hospital, its network of Ambulatory Care Centers, and Trump Pavilion.

The GEM program acknowledges that there are many employees who bring positive attributes to their job, are committed to going above what is required of them, and are therefore making a difference in the reputation of the facility. Hospital leadership feels that it is time to start recognizing these employees.  Managers can now nominate an employee from either within or outside  their department for that employee’s outstanding service to our patients, visitors, or their fellow colleagues. Any employee observed taking steps to address and resolve problems, performs random acts of kindness and compassion, or exhibit the highest level of team spirit can be nominated.  Specifically, the GEM initiative will:

  • Recognize employees who step up and Go the Extra Mile
  • Acknowledge when an employee takes action to instill a sense of well-being to our patients
  • Let employees know that management and their peers notice when they go out of their way for others
  • Reinforce how respect, honesty, integrity and commitment impact patient care and our work environment in a positive way

The first first five employees were selected in July. They are:

Kenneth Bacchi, Print Shop/Mailroom Associate
Annoleah Carson, Admitting Department Representative
Maria Crisano, Lead Financial Investigator
Ana Morton, Telephone Operator, Trump Pavilion
Ashley Ramirez, Environmental Services
Robert Smith, Security Officer

All employees recognized will receive a $50 gift card and a GEM pin. In addition, all nominated employees will receive a thank you card from Mr. Bruce Flanz, President and CEO of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center.

Mr. Flanz stated: “we are an institution not just a building. We want to make it personal so that people will feel like they belong to a winning team. We expect this GEM initiative to have a positive impact on our patients in the long run. We have to accentuate the positive and let everyone know that they are important.”

There are plans to expand the GEM program to Flushing Hospital in the near future.

Jamaica Hospital Opens New Pediatric Treatment Room

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Anyone who has ever been a patient in a hospital will tell you that the experience can be unsettling, especially for children. In an effort to make the experience for children a little more pleasant, Jamaica Hospital recently opened a state-of-the-art pediatric treatment room.

The new treatment room has a tropical beach motif, with palm trees, dolphins playing in the surf and parrots flying high in the sky. The bright colors and wonderful artwork will not only make a remarkable difference for children but the physicians and nurses will have an easier time locating supplies. The treatment room also features strategically designed organization, better lighting, and an upgraded exam table.

A wide variety of procedures will be performed in the treatment room, including IV starts, blood collection, cauterizations, IV flushes, injections, hearing and sight testing, OB exams, and consultations.

Jamaica Hospital’s Pediatric Department is thrilled about the new feature of it’s Pediatric Unit. Staff members are excited about the room’s ability to serve as a distraction for children while they undergo medical care. Above all, they are thankful for the generous donations provided by the Starlight Children’s Foundation and the Larry and Jane Scheinfelf Foundation, whose funding helped build the new room.