Each week, HANYS highlights the many ways their member hospitals and health systems are transforming healthcare. Their “Member Spotlight” showcases care providers’ efforts to deliver quality healthcare to patients and communities.

Recently, Jamaica Hospital Medical Center(JHMC) was highlighted for our commitment to investing in groundbreaking initiatives to improve care quality, health outcomes, patient experience, and, in this case, ensuring a healthy start for newborns.

Breast milk is proven to significantly improve childhood nutrition and development, decrease certain childhood infections and save millions in treatment costs for acute illnesses down the line.

For those reasons and more, JHMC created its Volunteer Milk Depot in partnership with the New York Milk Bank in 2017.  This service provides a safe place where lactating women in the community can donate their excess breast milk to mothers who are unable to breastfeed.

Volunteer human milk depots increase access to donors and help lower operational costs of producing pasteurized donor milk.  This makes donor breastmilk more affordable and accessible to all mothers and babies in need.

During the first year of operation, Jamaica Hospital’s milk depot received milk deposits from 11 different donors.  That equates to approximately 6,300 ounces of breast milk.  In 2019, there were 12 donors.  All donors were approved after undergoing a rigorous screening process.

Jamaica Hospital’s milk depot is located in the breastfeeding area of the WIC Department. It is staffed by volunteers who oversee operations and ensure donations are shipped out to the “parent” milk bank to be processed and pasteurized.

If you have any questions or would like to volunteer, donate or benefit from the Jamaica Hospital Medical Center’s Volunteer Milk Depot, please contact Ivis L. Penalver, BA, IBCLC, WIC Program Assistant Director at [email protected] or 718-206-8607.

This has been an unprecedented year; however, one of the things that remains the same is the generosity of the employees at Flushing Hospital Medical Center.

The hospital’s Food and Nutrition Department teamed up with a local precinct to collect toys for children currently living in shelters throughout  Queens.  In just a few weeks, almost 150 toys were received from employees.

Additionally, in honor of Radiologic Technologist Week and Pharmacy Week, each department hosted a food drive to benefit food pantries in the community.

“Many people have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Food pantries in the Tri-state area have been experiencing long lines and a shortage of items. We felt having a food drive would be a great way to give back and also show that our Radiology and Pharmacy Departments care about the community. Partnering in the effort, we were able to double food items collected.” stated Shazaad Games, Radiology Supervisor at Flushing Hospital Medical Center.

All donations were sent to the South Asian Council for Social Services as well as a local community center in Flushing that distributes food to close to 1000 families.

Thank you to all of the employees who donated toys and food.  May you and your families have a wonderful holiday season.

Jamaica Hospital employees who go above and beyond to ensure the safety of our patients are recognized and awarded a certificate of excellence for their Good Catch.

Good Catch nominees receive recognition based on their actions in preventing accidents from occurring. These actions may include correcting a medication order, preventing a patient from falling or reporting a significant change in a patient’s status.

Please join us in congratulating the following  employees on their  Good Catch:

Irina Khayumova RN  – 2 North-Mother Baby

Shiv Kumarie Santram- 4 South Clinical Nurse Manager

Fernando Salud- Environmental Services

Nicoleth Bullen- Ambulatory Surgery

Atia Batla, RN- 4 South Telemetry

Esmeralda Vidad RN -CNM for Operations

Giovana Gavilano-  Manager, Person-Centered Services

Zoraida Ruiz- Ophthalmology Department

By identifying a problem before it became a patient safety issue, our nominees have helped Jamaica Hospital to provide patients with excellent care.

To our Good Catch recipients, thank you for being exemplary members of our team and contributing to our goal of being a High-Reliability Hospital.

Healthgrades, a leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems, recently recognized Jamaica and Flushing Hospital Medical Center as top-performing hospitals.

Both facilities were presented with Healthgrades 2021 Specialty Excellence Awards™ and received recognition as one of America’s Best 100 Hospitals™ within their nominated categories. These honors are reserved for hospitals that consistently deliver superior patient outcomes in one or more of 16 key service areas.

Each year, Healthgrades evaluates the performance of nearly 4,500 hospitals; however, only the top 5% or 10% within each specialty area are recognized as Healthgrades Specialty Excellence Award™ recipients or identified as an America’s Best 100 Hospitals™ nominee.

The MediSys Health Network received a total of seven awards. Jamaica hospital was presented with five awards in the following categories:

• America’s 100 Best Hospitals -Stroke Care Excellence
• Cranial Neurosurgery Excellence
• Neurosciences Excellence
• America’s 100 Best Hospitals -Coronary Intervention Excellence
• Pulmonary Care Excellence

Flushing Hospital received two awards for:

• America’s 100 Best Hospitals -General Surgery Excellence
• Pulmonary Care Excellence

According to Healthgrades, patients are paying attention more than ever to the clinical performance of hospitals, and are constantly seeking information as to where they can get the best care. “The Healthgrades analysis shows that not all hospitals perform equally, so it is important that consumers do their homework when selecting a hospital,” said Healthgrades’ chief strategy officer Evan Marks. “Those hospitals that have achieved the Healthgrades distinction have demonstrated a commitment to exceptional clinical quality care over an extended period of time.”

Jamaica and Flushing Hospital have demonstrated that they are healthcare institutions patients can rely on for delivering the highest quality care. Both hospitals have received numerous awards and recognitions based on clinical excellence as well as their commitment to safety and a positive patient experience.

Congratulations to Flushing Hospital’s C.A.R.E (Compassion Advocacy Respect and Engagement) award recipient Barbara Hill-Boyd.

The C.A.R.E award program was created by the hospital’s Person-Centered Care Department to recognize employees who received positive remarks (written and verbal) from patients or their loved ones after being provided with excellent and compassionate care.

Criteria for the award require that recipients exemplify G.R.A.C.E:

G- Gracious: Having a courteous and kind demeanor.

R- Respect: Treating others the way they want to be treated.

A- Assisting: Anticipating needs and concerns (example wayfinding).

C- Communication: Talking to patients and family members according to their health literacy.

E- Empathy: Using the patient’s perspective, making the patient feel understood, ensuring that their feelings are validated.

Barbara was also nominated based on her 31 years of dedication, compassion, and advocacy for patients and their loved ones.

We thank Barbara for her contributions to making Flushing Hospital a high-reliability hospital that focuses on patient-centered care:

Congratulations to Jamaica Hospital’s C.A.R.E (Compassion Advocacy Respect and Engagement) award recipients.

The C.A.R.E award program was created by the hospital’s Person-Centered Care Department to recognize employees who received positive remarks (written and verbal) from patients or their loved ones after being provided with excellent and compassionate care.

Criteria for the award require that recipients exemplify G.R.A.C.E:

G- Gracious: Having a courteous and kind demeanor.

R- Respect: Treating others the way they want to be treated.

A- Assisting: Anticipating needs and concerns (example wayfinding).

C- Communication: Talking to patients and family members according to their health literacy.

E- Empathy: Using the patient’s perspective, making the patient feel understood, ensuring that their feelings are validated.

We congratulate the following employees, and thank them for their contributions to making Jamaica Hospital a high-reliability hospital that focuses on patient-centered care:

Dr. Firas Alawawdeh

Dr. Edward Epstein

Dr. Michael Goldman

Dr. Samir Sarkar

Dr. Aditya Mangla

Dr. William Frumkin

Ms. Mechelle Webb

Ms. Jorel Zulaikh

Ms. Caryn Sieunarine

Ms. Theresa Molinaro

Mr. Bernabe Rico

Ms. Gloria Gutierrez-Ortiz

Mr. Gavin Adams

Mr. Kener Ismael

Ms. Francess Macauley

Mr. Deochan Singh

Mr. Frank Block

On Monday, October 19th,  Schneps Media, the publisher of many local newspapers in the metropolitan area, honored healthcare heroes at an awards ceremony held at the Revel Hotel in Long Island City.

The MediSys Health Network was one of the recipients of this prestigious award which was presented in recognition of the 6,500 employees who worked bravely, tirelessly, and with great personal sacrifice to treat thousands of patients during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

It was decided by the MediSys Network Leadership that instead of this award being given to any one individual, it should be presented to all of the employees for their hard work and dedication.

This event was held virtually in compliance with current requirements to keep indoor gatherings to a minimum number of attendees. An acceptance video was shown to attendees which included an introduction from MediSys President and CEO Bruce J. Flanz who thanked Schneps Media for recognizing the hard work and dedication of our team. After Mr. Flanz’s remarks, employees from Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital had an opportunity to share their appreciation as well.

To view the acceptance video, please click here:

Jamaica Hospital Medical Center has received top honors from the American Heart Association (AHA) / American Stroke Association (ASA) “Get with the Guidelines” and “Mission: Lifeline” programs.

According to the AHA/ASA, “Get With The Guidelines®/ Mission: Lifeline® puts the unparalleled expertise of the American Heart Association® to work for hospitals nationwide. We help ensure patients receive care that’s aligned with the latest research-based guidelines supported by the latest scientific evidence.”

By complying with the strict requirements established by the AHA/ ASA, Jamaica Hospital has earned the:

• Get With The Guidelines®- Stroke Gold Plus with Honor Roll Elite and Target: Type 2 Diabetes Honor Roll Achievement Award- To qualify for this recognition, Jamaica Hospital met quality measures developed with more than 90 % of compliance for 12 consecutive months for the “Overall Diabetes Cardiovascular Initiative Composite Score.”
• Get With The Guidelines-Heart Failure Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award- Qualifications for this award included meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures include evaluation of the proper use of medications and aggressive risk-reduction therapies.
• Mission: Lifeline^® Bronze Receiving Quality Achievement Award- This award was earned by implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association for the treatment of patients who suffer severe heart attacks.

Research has shown that hospitals adhering to clinical measures through the Get with the Guidelines quality improvement initiative can often see fewer readmissions and lower mortality rates.

Jamaica Hospital is proud that heart health initiatives it has implemented to care for the community have earned the recognition of the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association. The hospital upholds a high standard of excellence and makes providing patient-centered healthcare a top priority.

On September 24th, the MediSys Health Network opened its Post-COVID Care Center at our Hollis Tudors location.

The Post-COVID center was established to provide care to the thousands of patients who are still experiencing lingering symptoms associated with  COVID-19.

These patients are now being referred to as “Long Haulers.”

For long haulers, symptoms of the virus can drag on for multiple months. In interviews aired on news outlets including WPIX11 and  NY1, Dr. Alan Roth, Chairman of Ambulatory Care and Family Medicine, shared common symptoms long haulers may experience.

These symptoms can include fatigue, muscle and body pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, and headaches. In addition to these physical symptoms, many long haulers are also reporting a variety of cognitive deficits, such as difficulty concentrating or focusing (commonly referred to as mental fog). Other patients may also experience mental health issues such as anxiety and depression.

At the Post- COVID  Care Center, long haulers, as well as others experiencing post-COVID symptoms can receive specialized care from a multi-disciplinary group of qualified physicians. “We were compelled to help those in our community who are still dealing with the effects of the virus” stated Dr. Roth, who added “Queens was considered the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in March and April. During that time we treated thousands of patients. While the situation in our community has greatly improved recently, we know that there is still work to be done, including continuing to treat patients living with long-term symptoms.”

The MediSys Health Network’s Post-COVID Care Center provides patients with personalized, comprehensive care, coordinated by a primary care physician, who will work with other on-site specialists, including pulmonologists  and psychiatrists, all dedicated to helping our patients better manage their condition.

The network is encouraging everyone who is experiencing the long-term effects of COVID to seek mental health support or utilize the medical services that are being offered to treat symptoms.

For more information about services provided, or to make an appointment at our Post-COVID Care center, please call  718-736-8204.

Flushing Hospital Medical Center embarked on a journey into robotic surgery after acquiring the da Vinci Si Robot in 2014. The hospital’s first robotic surgery case was performed on August 20^th  of that year.

Since then, the volume of robotic cases has grown exponentially. Surgical representatives from Intuitive, the company that manufactures da Vinci robots, have said that Flushing Hospital’s first year of growth was faster than most other hospitals.

Over the years, Flushing Hospital’s robotic program developed a stellar reputation highlighted by excellent patient safety and satisfaction. The hospital’s track record for providing quality surgical care has earned the recognition of several renowned leaders in healthcare. This includes the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program (MBSAQIP) which designated Flushing Hospital as a “Bariatric Center of Excellence” in 2018.

In March 2020, Flushing Hospital further demonstrated its commitment to being a leader in robotic surgery by purchasing the da Vinci Xi system, the 4th and most recent generation of robots. The new model has many advancements over its predecessor. The laser targeting system now allows easier docking, a boom-mounted system with a flexible and mobile platform provides better anatomic access in multi-quadrant surgeries, and the thin arms and instruments offer a greater range of motion. Additionally, the robot’s high-resolution 3D camera, 7-degree endo-wrist movement, and stable console make it easier for surgeons to perform fine dissection in deep and narrow working spaces.

With the acquisition of the da Vinci Xi, Flushing Hospital surgeons are able to operate even more precisely, faster and safer than in the past. By utilizing this advanced, minimally invasive technology, patients are offered several benefits including faster recovery times, less pain and discomfort.

The first case performed using the da Vinci Xi was successfully completed in June 2020, after a months-long suspension of elective surgeries due to the pandemic. Now that all surgeries have fully resumed, Flushing Hospital hopes to continue providing patients with excellent surgical care.