Tag Archives: Flushing Hospital Medical Center

The Lown Institute Has Recognized Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital Medical Centers For Excellence in Health Equity

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The Lown Institute has recognized Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital Medical Centers for excellence in health equity, receiving an “A” grade on the 2024-25 Lown Institute Hospitals Index for Social Responsibility.

Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital Medical Centers achieved this honor through strong performance across metrics of community benefit, pay equity, and inclusivity out of more than 3,500 hospitals nationwide.

“Great care is only great if everyone can access it,” said Vikas Saini, MD, president of the Lown Institute. “We need hospitals to be strong community partners—and Jamaica and Flushing Hospitals are at the top of our list showing the way.”

The Lown Hospitals Index for Social Responsibility is the only ranking to combine health equity metrics and value of care alongside patient outcomes, for more than 2,700 acute care and 800 critical access hospitals nationwide—offering a holistic view of hospitals as total community partners. In the fifth annual rankings, the 2024-25 Lown Index evaluates hospitals on over 50 measures including novel metrics such as community benefit, racial inclusivity, and avoidance of overuse. Data sources include Medicare fee-for-service and Medicare Advantage claims, CMS patient safety data and hospital cost reports, and IRS 990 forms. The full can be found on the Lown Index website.

The Lown Institute is an independent think tank advocating bold ideas for a just and caring system for health. Learn more at www.LownHospitalsIndex.org.

MediSys Health Network Research Day

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The MediSys Health Network of Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital Medical Centers recently held its Third Annual Research Conference and Poster Competition. Sponsored by the Department of Research Education and Innovation and the Department of Clinical Research, the event allows the entire MediSys hospital community to present any scholarly activity they had done over the past academic year of 2023-2024.

Director of the Department of Research Education and Innovation, Dr. R. Jonathan Robitsek explained, “The competition is a great showcase of the intellectual curiosity of all that participate”. He also highlighted the importance of the competition noting, “It’s high-quality research some of which has been presented at national and international medical conferences”.

There were 131 posters submitted between Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital. Those posters were broken into three categories, Case Reports, Empirical Research, and Quality Improvements. Each poster was then graded on a rubric of five areas: format, visual, content 1, content 2, and impact.

The first-place winning posters in the Case Reports category were, “A Cycle of Complications: Trastuzumab-induced Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy Causing LV Thrombosis Complicated by Thromboembolic Stroke” by V. Patel, J. Patel, J.L Lee, and T. Okan (JHMC) and “Making the Distinction between Cardiac and Vasovagal Syncope in a Patient with an Intracardiac Mass” by D. Desta, P. Kiarie, and R.P Gupta (FHMC).

Second-place winning posters of the category included, “Subcapsular Liver Bleed Secondary to Mal-Placement of a Lucas Device” by I. Agha, S. Montaquila, M. Guerges, A. Mangla, and R. Lakowski (JHMC) and “When the Lungs Become the Battlefield: Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome in GVHD Post Stem Cell Transplant for AML.” by J. Bawa, A. Inghirami, S. Desai, J. Silverman (FHMC).

And finally, the third place posters were, “Impact of Social Media in Acute Onset of Psychosis in Young Child” by H. Ruparel, G. Zelin, S. Peteru (JHMC) and “Skin Deep: Exploring Erythema Nodosum Induced by Dupilumab Therapy” by J. Bawa, E. Malana, N. Tasnim, S. Farhan, A. Khan (FHMC).

In the Empirical Research category, the posters that won first place were, “Demographic Analysis of Patients Seen by a Palliative Care Service Found to be Unbefriended/Unrepresented” by P. Gordon, I.J Wang, R.J Robitsek, A. Tewari, E. Divino, K. Forbes (JHMC) and “Attitudes and Barriers to Utilization of Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment in Clinical Practice Among Residents and Medical Students: A Survey Study” by C. Bodden, M. Alla, P. Kiarie, M.A Louis (FHMC).

Second-place winning posters were, “Does Marijuana Legalization Result in Increased Psychiatric Emergency Visits for Cannabis Induced Psychosis?” by G. Zelin, N. Siddiqui, A. Miele, R. Kamal (JHMC) and “Postoperative Atrial Fibrillation in Emergent Non-Cardiac Surgery: Incidence, Risk Factors, and Outcomes” by D. Giannis, R. Zhao, L. Fernandez, N. Nikolov, C. Sneed, P. Kiarie, A. Miele, M.A Louis, N.R Mandava (FHMC).

Lastly, the third-place winning posters of the category were, “Systematic Review of Hematologic Values Among Transgender Patients: Establishing Standardized Reference Ranges to Improve Clinical Care” by L. Yap-Separovich, M. McDonald, L. Alhakim, J. Langaman, T. Millingen, A. Mir, L. Gance, C. Nienaber, A. Roth, G. Basello, E. Brondolo (JHMC) and “The Effect of Circadian Rhythm on the Glucose Challenge Test in Pregnancy” by A. Makol, M. Sun, L. Keating, I. Ngai (FHMC).

In the final category of Quality Improvements, the first-place winning posters were, “Advance Care Conversations in Primary Care Settings: Prevalence and Sociodemographic Factors” by I.J Wang, D. Patel, A. Spinelli, M. McDonald, A. Miele, R.J Robitsek, F. Falcone, K. Forbes, E. Brondolo, A. Roth, S. Mathew-Geevarughese (JHMC) and “Evaluating the Long Term Impact of Standardizing Written Sign Outs” by T. Lildar, W. Thu, S. Falak, M. Syed, S. Desai, A. Miele, K.L Cervellione, T. Toronjadze (FHMC).

Congratulations to those who placed, the honorable mentions, and everyone who participated in this year’s Research Day Conference and Poster Competition.

Flushing Hospital Hosts Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for New Dental Center

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Flushing Hospital Medical Center hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of its new, state-of-the-art dental center.

In addition to various members of the hospital’s faculty, administration, and staff, Congresswoman Grace Meng, a long-time supporter of Flushing Hospital and advocate for improved health care resources in the community, attended the ceremony.

Flushing Hospital’s Dental Department currently treats an average of 11,000 patients each year. With the improved capabilities of the new dental center, this number is expected to increase to over 14,000 patients, an increase of more than 20%.

The 3,550-square-foot facility features eight examination rooms, one imaging room, one laboratory, and one sterilization room. The center is expected to significantly improve dental patient capacity and treatment efficiency at the hospital and expand community access to a variety of specialized dental treatments.

The dental center also features a wide range of new equipment, including a cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) machine with 3D imaging, fiber-optic handpieces in all operatories, and all-new dental delivery units with monitors for patients to see their radiographs and better understand their treatment plan. Other amenities include curing lights, specialized sterilization cassettes, a larger registration area, and a larger, more convenient waiting area.

“Our new facility allows us to provide our full range of dental treatment options to a higher volume of patients,” said Dr. Bijan Anvar, Chairman of Flushing Hospital’s Department of Dental Medicine. “With this expanded capacity, we can make a greater impact on dental health in our community, particularly for patients experiencing common conditions such as tooth decay and gum disease.”

Across the United States, approximately 90% of all adults have had at least one cavity and nearly half of all adults show signs of gum disease. Over half of all children have also had cavities in their baby or adult teeth. These problems are more common among underserved communities. With the expanded care resources offered by Flushing Hospital’s new dental center, patients have closer local access to specialized treatment for these conditions and others.

“We’re excited to provide the Flushing community with a new, state-of-the-art destination for accessible, high-quality dental care,” said Bruce J. Flanz, President and CEO of Flushing Hospital. “The facility and the cutting-edge equipment it features provide our dental team with the tools they need to offer an even higher level of dental care to our patients.”

Flushing Hospital’s Dental Department provides treatments in several specialty areas, including pedodontics, oral surgery, prosthodontics, implantology, orthodontics, endodontics, and periodontics. These treatments are provided by a team of 41 attending physicians, eight residents, and 10 support staff members.

Appointments at Flushing Hospital’s Dental Department are available from 9 AM to 5 PM on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and from 9 AM to 8:30 PM on Wednesday.

Flushing Hospital Receives Grant To Continue Efforts To Prevent Congenital CMV

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Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common virus that can affect people of all ages. In fact, over half of all adults have been infected with CMV by the age of 40, but in most healthy adults, the immune system will prevent the virus from causing illness while some may experience mild symptoms such as fever or sore throat.

Although CMV is not considered a serious problem for most, when CMV is passed from a pregnant woman to her unborn child, this is referred to as congenital CMV. One out of every 200 children are born with congenital CMV each year, making it one of the most common viral infections in the United States. While 10-15% of infants with congenital CMV have clinical symptoms at birth, some babies with congenital CMV without clinical symptoms at birth develop health problems later in life. Children born with congenital CMV may develop permanent medical conditions and disabilities, such as hearing loss detectable after birth or even later in life, developmental and motor delay, vision loss, and seizures.

Understanding the importance of preventing congenital CMV, Flushing Hospital Medical Center recently initiated a newborn screening protocol for all babies born at the hospital who are suspected of having a hearing impairment. This screening program is interdisciplinary as it involves the coordinated efforts of the Pediatric, Neonatology and Audiology Departments. If a suspected newborn is diagnosed with congenital CMV, the hospital can provide referral to Early Intervention, Pediatric Infectious Diseases, and Pediatric ENT (Ears, Nose and Throat specialists) to help improve complications associated with hearing loss and other potential neurological and developmental outcomes.

In addition to the screening program, Flushing Hospital has also concentrated its efforts on providing education and support to the community about CMV.  The hospital now also offers multi-lingual materials explaining how to prevent infection during pregnancy as well as early warning signs for CMV in newborns. This information is available in the prenatal and pediatric outpatient waiting areas of Flushing Hospital.

For their efforts, Flushing Hospital was recently awarded an $8,000 grant by the National CMV Foundation. Flushing Hospital is one of only three hospitals nationally to receive this grant.   With the additional funds, the hospital plans to increase awareness through a series of community-based and digital initiatives.

Thank you to Dr. Shirley Pinero-Bernardo, Vice-Chair of Pediatrics, Dr. Lourdes Cohen, Director of Neonatology, and Maria Smilios, Director of Nursing-Maternal and Child Services and their staff for organizing this effort and improving the outcomes of patients and families with congenital CMV.