Submitted by: Laura Wang, RD, CDN, CLC Women’s Health Dietitian, Flushing Hospital

Flushing Hospital Medical Center’s Food & Nutrition Department was a recipient of the first Green Your Cuisine grant from The Fund for Public Health in New York City.

The grant was created to encourage healthy eating through nutrition education and cooking demonstrations.

The hospital earned the grant as a result of its hard work in implementing many community outreach initiatives which include a series of seminars and workshops.

These events were held at local libraries, schools and various community centers throughout Flushing and Corona. Flushing Hospital Registered Dietitians Marsha Sommervil and Laura Wang educated the community about ways to incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables into their daily diet.  Cooking demonstrations were also conducted where participants learned how to prepare healthy and delicious meals.

During each event, guests received Health Bucks which are $2 vouchers that can be used at New York City Green Markets to buy fresh fruits and vegetables. The vouchers are a provision of the Green Your Cuisine grant.

The Food and Nutrition Department’s workshops have been widely successful. Participants have shown great appreciation for what they learned and have verbalized that they now have the knowledge needed to make healthy eating a part of their daily routines.

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 award goes to the MediSys Disaster Relief team which includes staff from Jamaica and Flushing Hospital Medical Center. Each team member was recognized for their volunteer efforts in providing medical and humanitarian aid to people living in Puerto Rico affected by Hurricane Maria.

On November 18, 2017, Jamaica Hospital Medical Center celebrated the important milestone of serving the community for 126 years.  The momentous occasion was commemorated at the hospital’s annual Rainbow Ball dinner- dance and fundraiser which took place at Citi Field. Over 500 guests were in attendance.

The Rainbow Ball is an opportunity for supporters of Jamaica Hospital to celebrate its accomplishments and raise funds for future projects.  Guests of honor are recognized each year for their dedication to the hospital. This year’s honorees were  Charles E. Callahan III; President of Plaza College and Thomas K. Rudzewick; President and Chief Executive Officer of Maspeth Federal Savings.

Hospital President and CEO Bruce J. Flanz commenced the evening by welcoming everyone and noting some of the hospital’s many accomplishments achieved in 2017.

For the remainder of the evening, guests enjoyed a delicious spread of food and desserts and danced to a live band.  The fun carried on during the raffle and grand prize drawing where contestants won trips, gift cards, and electronics.

In all the 126^th Anniversary Rainbow Ball was a great success and we thank those who continue to support Jamaica Hospital in our endeavors.

On Wednesday, November 15^th, the MediSys Disaster Medical Response Team (DMRT) returned from their mission to Puerto Rico. The team flew home on a chartered aircraft and was met on the tarmac at Newark Airport by a MediSys welcoming committee who embraced them with handshakes and hugs.

The following Friday, each member of the DMRT attended a debriefing meeting where they discussed their experiences and missions they supported while on the island.

Later on that day, a welcome home reception and luncheon was held in their honor.  In attendance were Bruce Flanz, President of the MediSys Health Network; Queens Borough President Melinda Katz and Mark Marino, MediSys Health Network Director of Pre-Hospital Care, as well as other key staff members.

At the event, each member of the DMRT was recognized for their humanitarian and volunteer efforts.  They were presented with three certificates of appreciation in recognition of their acts of compassion from the MediSys Health Network, the Hospital Association of New York State (HANYS) and the Borough President Melinda Katz.

The special moment was captured by several members of the media who photographed and interviewed the team about their experience on the island and helping the people of Puerto Rico.

You can read and view a few of those interviews here:

WATCH

READ

http://www.qchron.com/editions/central/queens-medics-make-hurricane-house-call/article_70cfef52-caf1-11e7-8144-0badbaa56b5e.html

http://qns.com/story/2017/11/15/whole-island-affected-queens-health-care-workers-give-aid-puerto-rico/

Jamaica Hospital’s Department of Cardiology has been recognized as being a leader in the treatment of heart patients.

The hospital recently received the Silver Performance Achievement Award from the Action Registry, which was established by the American College of Cardiology. This award recognizes Jamaica Hospital’s success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients by meeting aggressive performance measures as outlined by the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American Heart Association (AHA) clinical guidelines and recommendations.

The  Action Registry also acknowledges Jamaica Hospital’s team-based approach to consistently treat heart attack patients while adhering to national standards of care specifically with high-risk heart attack patients.

This achievement was published in U.S. News and World Report’s 2018 Best Hospital’s edition. The article lists every hospital across the nation to receive this honor, and it is with great pride that we boast that Jamaica Hospital was one of only three hospitals in New York City, and the only hospital in Queens to receive an achievement award from the Action Registry.

In addition to this honor, Jamaica Hospital’s Cardiology Department received the 2017 Get with the Guidelines Heart Failure Bronze Award. The award was given to the hospital by the American Heart Association and it demonstrates our commitment to treating heart failure patients with 85% or higher compliance to core standard levels of care as outlined by the American Heart Association for 90 consecutive days.

Both awards are reflective of the hard work and dedication of the hospital staff in caring for some of our most critically ill patients. Congratulations to all on a job well done.

Hurricane Relief Team Update

Our relief teams in Puerto Rico continue to provide much-needed medical assistance to the island’s residents.

Team 1 remains on the USNS Comfort where they are treating hundreds of patients a day. Team 2 is working with Americares on the western side of the island in Aguada. The members of this team were featured on WNBC News as they made house calls to help those in remote areas.

To view this news clip, view below or click the link

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/on-air/as-seen-on/Local-Doctors-Provide-Healthcare-in-Puerto-Rico_New-York-454860993.html

We will continue to keep you updated on both team’s efforts.

The MediSys Health Network, comprised of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and Flushing Hospital Medical Center deployed a team of medical personnel to Puerto Rico to help provide much-needed healthcare services to the areas devastated by Hurricane Maria.

Both facilities are the first Queens-based hospitals to send their staff to the island.

The 20-member volunteer team of largely bi-lingual employees, including physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, emergency medical technicians, paramedics and administrators were deployed on the morning of Tuesday, October 24^th.

As reported, much of Puerto Rico’s infrastructure has been decimated and most of the island’s healthcare facilities have been compromised. The MediSys team will deliver urgent medical care in an extremely difficult situation by supplementing staffing for the ongoing Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) missions or providing assistance to Federal Medical Shelters (FMS).

When details of the hurricane destruction emerged, Over 100 individuals offered to provide assistance.  Additionally, the Network’s Board of Trustees, medical staff and employees set a fundraising goal of $100,000 to support relief efforts. To date, half of that goal has been achieved.

The MediSys Health network has a long history of providing disaster relief to those in need. Some past relief efforts of the MediSys Health Network include:

• Hurricane Andrew – Homestead, Florida, 1992
• Northern Country Ice Storms – Watertown, NY, 1998
• World Trade Center Attacks (9/11) – New York, NY, 2001
• Hurricane Katrina –Louisiana & Mississippi, 2005
• Hurricane Sandy – Far Rockaway, New York, 2012

According to Bruce J. Flanz, President & Chief Executive Officer of the MediSys Health Network, “It has always been our mission to provide relief to those in need. We believe our experience in responding to disasters and exporting our talents where they can be utilized is something that we are proud to do and will continue to offer whenever it is needed.”

Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital Medical Center have created an Active Shooter training program in response to recent public shooting events that have occurred around the country.  The tragedy that unfolded at Bronx Lebanon Hospital hit closest to home and prompted the hospitals’ Emergency Management and Security Departments to implement the program which had been in the works for several months.

The program teaches employees what to do in the event there is an active shooter on campus. The overall goal is to keep patients, staff and visitors safe.

The three main points that the course teaches in case of an active shooter situation are:

• Run
  • Have an escape route and plan in mind
  • Leave your belongings behind
  • Keep your hands visible when law enforcement approaches
• Hide
  • Hide in an area that is out of the shooter’s view
  • Block entry to your hiding place and lock the doors
  • Completely silence your cell phone and/or pager
• Defend
  • As a last resort and only when your life is in imminent danger
  • To attempt to incapacitate the shooter
  • Act with physical aggression and throw items at an active shooter

The classes are taught by prehospital care instructors and security personnel with law enforcement backgrounds. The first leg of the training was offered between July 25^th and August 11^th, over 1000 employees were trained at Jamaica Hospital and over 500 at Flushing Hospital.

Safety is always a top priority at the MediSys Health Network.  Implementing the Active Shooter training program and other safety initiatives helps us to create and maintain a safe environment for our patients, visitors and staff. We thank everyone for their participation and doing their part in making Jamaica and Flushing Hospital safe.

The  Medicaid Accelerated eXchange, program, also known as the “MAX Project” is a brand new initiative designed to assist Jamaica Hospital Medical Center to identify and better manage the care of those Medicaid and dual eligible patients who have been admitted to our hospital four or more times in the past twelve months.

The main goal of this program is to reduce or avoid unnecessary admissions for these patients by enhancing the level of care provided in an outpatient setting.

Most patients identified by the MAX Project are polydiagnostic-meaning they are being managed for many different health concerns and require a carefully coordinated interdisciplinary approach. These patients are also more likely to be exposed to non-medical factors such as financial or social challenges that can affect their quality of health. The project will provide these individuals with valuable resources and trained specialists who can assist them to overcome clinical and nonclinical obstacles they may encounter.

At the inception of the MAX Project, 455 patients were identified as having been admitted four or more times within a twelve month time period.   However, since the program began this number has been reduced to 192 people.

In order to ensure that these patients’ health care needs are being properly met, a daily conference call between the heads of each clinical department takes place to discuss all options of care. There are two components to each patient’s overall evaluation. One is a root cause analysis which evaluates why this patient requires extra attention, did they receive enough attention in the past, and which providers shall manage their health. The other main component is to develop a care plan that will allow this patient to be cared for comprehensively in an outpatient capacity.

Jamaica Hospital’s leadership anticipates that the MAX Project will successfully lower the number of admissions required in the past. It will also help the hospital to meet DSRIP Initiative goals and operate more cost effectively in the long term.