Every month, employees at Jamaica Hospital who go above and beyond to help coworkers, patients and visitors are nominated for the G.E.M award.

G.E.M stands for Going the Extra Mile and recipients are recognized for their hard work, team spirit, kindness, and professionalism.

This month’s G.E.M recipients are:

For many years, Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital have offered our patients the opportunity to better manage their healthcare and interact with their providers, through the MyChart patient portal.

Access to MyChart accounts has always required a patient’s physician to provide them with a special access code. Now, thanks to our partnership with Experian, our patients can create their very own MyChart account without needing an access code. For patients to create an account, they simply click the link to the MediSys MyChart website: https://mychart.medisys.org and click on the “sign up now” tab.

The new Experian verification process is much easier and will give patients quicker access to their chart, allowing them to take any number of actions, including:

• Reviewing their medications, immunizations, allergies, and medical history
• Reviewing test results online
• Reviewing health education topics and discharge instructions
• Requesting prescription refills online
• Interacting with your provider via email
• Requesting an appointment
• Linking to family’s medical records

We hope that this new method of creating an account will encourage more patients to sign-up. By offering our patients easier access to their records, we feel they will become better educated and empowered to take a more active role in their heath and the health of their family, which we feel will lead to a healthier patient population.

We encourage all of our employees to share this news with their patients. For more information about the new and improved MyChart patient portal, please contact 718-206-8809.

On May 22nd the MediSys Health Network celebrated the 20th anniversary of its annual Golf Classic fundraiser.

Each year, many look forward to the golf and wellness outing, which is a designated day of fun and relaxation – all for a good cause.  This year, an impressive number of supporters which included 132 golfers blanketed the grounds of the Old Westbury Country Club.

Although the weather didn’t fully cooperate, it did not stop the excitement that radiated from our staff and guests. Everyone started the day with an all-star breakfast which fueled them for the day ahead.

After several hours of play, and relaxation, the event shifted to a more formal note. Guests retreated to the cocktail hour and dinner reception in the banquet room. They were served from elegant food stations filled with delicious dishes. MediSys Health Network President and CEO Bruce J. Flanz took a moment to extend a warm welcome to everyone and introduce the event’s honorary chairman; Dr. Cono Grasso, Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at Jamaica Hospital.

The highly anticipated raffle drawing began soon after. Many entered and kept their fingers tightly crossed for coveted prizes that included tickets to sporting events, a $1,000 shopping spree at Simon Malls, and airline tickets.

Overall, the event was a great success. Proceeds will benefit Flushing and Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. We thank all staff who volunteered and all friends of MediSys Health Network who supported our fundraiser. We hope to see you again next year.

Every month, employees at Jamaica Hospital who go above and beyond to help coworkers, patients and visitors are nominated for the G.E.M award.

G.E.M stands for Going the Extra Mile and recipients are recognized for their hard work, team spirit, kindness, and professionalism.

This month’s G.E.M recipients are:

If you are sick and need to go to the hospital, it is important to know that if admitted, your hospital is dedicated to safety, and has a proven track record of preventing further illness and injury to its patients.

Healthgrades, a trusted provider of information to millions of health care consumers across the United States, recently recognized the best-performing hospitals in the country, and both Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and Flushing Hospital Medical Center received the Patient Safety Excellence Award, an accolade that recognizes hospitals that lead in the prevention of patient safety events.

This prestigious honor highlights both hospitals performance in safeguarding patients from serious, potentially preventable complications during their hospital stay.  Jamaica and Flushing Hospitals, both part of the MediSys Health Network ranked in the top 10% in the nation for patient safety.

To determine which hospitals receive the Patient Safety Excellence Award, Healthgrades reviews the results of 14 key patient safety indicators submitted by hospitals to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Some of the safety measures surveyed include pressure ulcers, catheter-related bloodstream infections, and postoperative sepsis rates.

Jamaica and Flushing are the only two hospitals in Queens and two of only four in New York City to receive this honor. The hospitals attribute their vastly improved safety rates to robust quality improvement policies and programs that were initiated over a decade ago and that are still being followed and improved upon every day.

According to MediSys Health Network President, Bruce J. Flanz, “Patient Safety is one of the top priorities at Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital. We are proud to be in a position to provide our patients with a safe and trusted environment to receive high-quality care. I would like to thank the many members of our staff who are committed to this effort.”

The American College of Health Care Administrators (ACHCA) recently awarded Tom Younghans, Vice President of the Trump Pavilion,  its 2018 Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award.  The award is given to administrators who show the highest level of dedication, professionalism, and leadership in long-term care.

This prestigious recognition is presented annually in memory of Eli Pick who for over 30 years was an Administrator who showed extraordinary care for the residents, their families and the community where his facility was located.

Award recipients are selected based on several key performance indicators which include their facilities’ ability to provide quality healthcare to patients.  Eligibility is determined by three years of skilled nursing facility survey data, including health, fire safety, and complaint surveys as well as top quartile performance on designated quality measures. Fewer than 11% percent of facilities nationwide qualified, and only 351 administrators in 45 states received the distinction.

Mr. Younghans stated “This recognition belongs to the entire Trump Pavilion team. Thank you all for your ongoing commitment to serve our residents and the community in a way that is second to none. I am so proud of each and every one of you.”

Through Amazon Smile, shoppers can have a portion of their purchases go toward a charity of their choice, at no cost to them.

You can support Jamaica or Flushing Hospital Medical Center while shopping by going to Smile.Amazon.Com and searching for “Jamaica Hospital” or “Flushing Hospital” under the list of charitable organizations.

On April 26, 2018, Flushing Hospital Medical Center (FHMC) was the sole hospital provider at the Immaculate Conception Center’s Health and Wellness Seminar in partnership with the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens.

After months of planning, a full day of screenings and workshops were offered to educate the over 150 Priests who were in attendance.

The workshops focused on behavioral health, urology, hypertension, stroke prevention and diabetes management.  Blood pressure,  oral cancer, vision,  as well as hearing, were some of the health screenings provided at the event.

Ira Frankel Ph.D., Administrator of Psychiatry for Flushing Hospital’s Department of Mental Health participated in the mid-day panel discussion entitled: The Behavioral Health Conundrum: Finding the Cure for Everything Mental, Physical, and Spiritual that Afflicts Us.

During a speech, Father Bryan Carney, from Pastoral Care at FHMC, applauded the hospital for its ongoing commitment to providing quality services to his community. Robert V. Levine, Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer responded, “Both the Bishop and Deacon of the Diocese came up to speak with me to thank FHMC for all our outstanding efforts in coordinating another successful Health and Wellness Seminar for all of their Clergy members. I commend all those involved in making this day such a great success.”

National Donate Life Month is observed each year in April as part of an effort to raise awareness of the need for organ donations and to encourage everyone to register as organ, eye and tissue donors. The observance is also a celebration of those who have saved lives by becoming donors.

On April 20^th, Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and LiveOnNY, hosted a special flag raising ceremony to pay tribute to organ donor families and recipients. The event’s special guest of honor was Giraldo Vega, father of Anthony Ruben Vega.

Anthony became an angel in 2009 at the age of 11, after complications caused by hydrocephalus ended his life. His father shared how remarkable his son was, “Since he was a baby he loved to sing and dance.  He loved to perform and you could always expect a show.”

When Anthony passed away, Mr. Vega learned about other families’ need for organ donations and decided he needed to make a difference.   “If Anthony could save one life — one family from losing their son, daughter or family member — what better way to give a performance of a lifetime? Our decision to donate his organs not only saved one person’s life but three,” he informed reporters attending the event.

While the loss of his son has been difficult, Mr. Vega takes pride in knowing that Anthony’s legacy continues in the lives of others he helped to save.

Anthony’s story deeply resonated with Jamaica Hospital Executive Vice President and  COO, William Lynch, who has been a staunch supporter and advocate for organ donation. Mr. Lynch thanked the Vega family for giving the gift of life.  He went on to speak about lives that were saved earlier that week, thanks to an organ donor at Jamaica Hospital who donated a liver and two kidneys.  It is for this reason-the ability to save lives- that Jamaica Hospital encourages everyone in its community to register as organ donors.  One donor can save up to eight lives.

Recently, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that due to the coordinated efforts of organizations such as LiveOnNY and Jamaica Hospital over 5 million New Yorkers have enrolled in the New York State Donate Life Registry as donors.

Our hospital will continue to work tirelessly to raise awareness for organ donation and help further increase the number of registrants to the New York State Donate Life Registry. To learn more about becoming a donor, visit www. donatelife.ny.gov