On Wednesday, April 26^th, fourth, fifth and sixth graders from local elementary school P.S.99 presented Jamaica Hospital Medical Center with six paintings they created as part of an art project.

The theme of their artwork included mermaids, as well as scenes and landmarks that can be found around New York City.

Each student was awarded a certificate of appreciation from the hospital during an event in their honor. In attendance were the school’s principal, parent coordinator, art teacher and student chaperones. Representing Jamaica Hospital were Bruce Flanz; President and CEO, William Lynch; EVP and COO, Dr. Geoffrey Doughlin; Chairperson Emergency Medicine and other leadership from the Emergency Department.

The children’s creations are currently on display outside the Pediatric Emergency Room and will definitely make this area a much brighter place.

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:

• Jose Garcia – Environmental Services
• Michell Hololob – Creative Arts Therapist – Psychiatry

Congratulations to you both. Keep up the excellent work in helping us to serve our community.

Recently the Medisys Health Network launched a website called “MedisysCares”.  This site highlights eight medical conditions that are commonly found in our community and include:

• Breast Cancer
• Cervical Cancer
• Colon Cancer
• Hepatitis B and C
• Human Papilloma Virus
• Lung Cancer
• Prostate Cancer
• Smoking Cessation

The objective of this website is to reduce the incidence of these diseases in our community by promoting healthy lifestyle choices and to encourage people with these health conditions to manage their healthcare through routine follow-up and compliance.

The website can be found at www.medisyscares.org

The Laundry and Linen Department at Jamaica and Flushing Hospital Medical Center recognized Linen Awareness Day.  Both hospitals hosted the event in collaboration with Unitex, the laundry services company utilized by the MediSys Health Network.

The purpose of the event was to educate hospital staff about how the Laundry and Linen Department operates. Displays were presented in the lobbies at each hospital to demonstrate the importance of linen conservation and the costs associated with it.

The Laundry and Linen Department is responsible for the distribution and cleaning of all towels, patient gowns, bed sheets, wash cloths, underpads, blankets and employee uniforms. Each month Jamaica Hospital processes approximately 154,000 pounds of laundry per month at an annual cost of over $1,090,000 and Flushing Hospital processes over 63,000 pounds of laundry per month at an annual cost of $530,000, inclusive of linens and a combined total of 2,500 uniforms.

Proper linen utilization management can reduce these costs significantly. Jamaica Hospital, Flushing Hospital and our laundry services provider are working together to develop solutions to increase efficiency.

Jamaica Hospital Medical Center is excited to introduce Frankie, our newest employee.

Frankie (a Golden Retriever) is a therapy dog. Together, with her mom/owner Julia, Frankie provides pet therapy to hospital patients.

Through the Alliance of Therapy Dogs, Jamaica Hospital’s Nursing Department was able to connect with Julia and Frankie, who generously volunteer their services to hospital patients and nursing home residents in the area.

The benefits of pet therapy are numerous. Most experts agree that pets excel as therapeutic agents and that dogs are an antidote to depression. Studies have also shown a decrease in both blood pressure and stress levels during therapy dog visits. Most importantly, therapy pets bring joy to patients and help distract them from their concerns.

Frankie’s first visit was to Jamaica Hospital’s Pediatric Unit where she was greeted warmly by both patients and staff. She plans to return monthly to spend time with patients throughout the hospital.

Jamaica Hospital looks forward to offering our patients with the many benefits associated with pet therapy.

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:

*Cheryl Gallotta-DiMassi, RN – Clinical Manager Nursing

Congratulations to you both. Keep up the excellent work in helping us to serve our community.

The week of March 12– 18 was National Patient Safety Awareness Week.  In recognition of this event, staff at Jamaica and Flushing Hospital Medical Center set up displays in the main lobbies to highlight each hospital’s safety initiatives.

The purpose of the event was to increase awareness about patient safety amongst health care professionals and the public.

Departments that participated in National Patient Safety Awareness Week included the blood bank, radiology, nursing, OR, performance improvement, pharmacy and infection control. Each department demonstrated ways they are striving to increase patient safety. Techniques which reduce patient falls, errors in prescription distribution and provide low dose CT scans were showcased to the community. Additionally, passersby learned how practicing good hand hygiene can help to control the spread of harmful germs and viruses

National Patient Safety Awareness Week was coordinated by Dr. Sabiha Raoof, Chairperson of Radiology, Chief Medical Officer and Patient Safety Officer and the Performance Improvement Department along with leaders from participating departments.

The top priority at Jamaica and Flushing Hospital is to provide high-quality care in a safe environment.

Doctors from Jamaica Hospital Medical Center’s departments of Emergency Medicine and Trauma services recently received national recognition for their research.

The American Journal of Emergency Medicine published an article co-written by members of Jamaica Hospital’s Trauma and ER doctors. The article, published this January was titled “Introduction of Pan-Scan Protocol for Blunt Trauma Activations: What are the Consequences?”

Pan-scans are a wide field-of-view CT imaging. The study objective of this research was to determine if the introduction of pan-scan as a protocol during an initial assessment of blunt force trauma patients would affect missed injuries, incidental findings, treatment times, radiation exposure and cost.

The study, which observed 220 patients during a pre pan-scan screening period and 206 during a pan-scan screening period, yielded some very interesting findings. To see the full results of the publication, visit https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27773351

Congratulations to the Jamaica Hospital Women’s Health Center and Family Medicine Clinic for receiving the Certificate of Excellence from QINCA (Quality Improvement Network for Contraceptive Access). This is a great achievement as the hospital was 1 out of 10 hospitals, city-wide, chosen to participate in the program.

QINCA, a program implemented by the New York City Department of Health, aims to decrease the number of unintended pregnancies across the city by working with hospitals to provide contraceptive, family planning and primary care services to communities.   Jamaica Hospital was recognized for applying the best practices in providing these services.

The success of the QINCA program at Jamaica Hospital is due to the collaboration of multiple departments who shared the common goal of increasing patient safety and accessibility to contraceptive methods. Staff from the hospital’s Administrative, OB-GYN, Nursing, Pharmacy, IT, Finance and Ambulatory  Care departments worked together to build a sustainable patient care model and fulfill the requirements needed to be qualified as a QINCA FPBPP(Family Planning Benefit Program Provider).

The following individuals played key roles in the project’s success:

Administrative

William Lynch, Executive Vice President and COO

OB/GYN

Tamara Magloire MD

Steven R. Inglis, MD

Yafen Liang

Susan Khalil, MD

Family Medicine

Kamica Lewis MD

Nursing

Colette Forde

Marge Lilienthal

Pharmacy

William Tomasulo

IT

Michael Callaghan

Adrian Laduca

Finance

Ana Guzman

Jennifer Stevens

Ambulatory Care

Wendy Munoz

Thalita Viruet

James Villavicencio

Congratulations to everyone for working together to achieve this great accomplishment and demonstrating that teamwork produces great rewards.

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:

*Elaina Odermatt, RN Clinical Manager