Flushing Hospital Medical Center’s Food and Nutrition Department recently announced that it has changed it’s menu in an effort to promote healthy eating habits.

“We are very proud of the new menu! Besides having a new look and all new recipes,the new patient menu is much healthier. We focused on promoting and increasing the consumption of whole grains, low fat dairy, fruits and vegetables and decreasing sodium intake. No item on the current menu is fried or contains trans fat!”  stated, Kelly McGuire, Manager, Clinical Nutrition at Flushing Hospital Medical Center, who added, “When making the change, we were also conciencious of quality – so we made every effort to make sure the new, healthy options also taste good”

In addition to the upgrade, the new menus are currently being translated into Spanish, Chinese and Korean to reflect the ethnically diverse population that Flushing Hospital serves.

The new patient menu is just the latest example of how Flushing Hospital is meeting the needs of its community. Each change that is made in every Department of FHMC is geared toward making the patient experience a positive one guiding the to welness.

Influenza vaccination season has officially begun. The Occupational Health Department is offering the flu vaccination free of charge to employees, volunteers, students, contract personnel and independent licensed practioners who are affiliated with the MediSys Health Network.

Flu vaccination protocols for health care workers have become a widely discussed topic over the past few years. Several state and federal agencies have issued guidelines and will be closely monitoring their implementation. There is now mandatory reporting for New York State Department of health and CDC/CMS. The Joint Commission expects that 90% of Hospital personnel will receive the flu vaccine every year.

Employees from all hospital departments, both at the main campus as well as the off-campus locations, are expected to participate in the organization-wide Flu vaccination campaign by October 31st. Any staff member who decides against the vaccination must sign a refusal form. If the vaccine is given by an outside agency or by a private physician, written proof must be submitted to the Office of Occupational Health.

For those people who refuse to receive the flu vaccine, we remind them that unvaccinated personnel will be required to wear a surgical mask while in areas where patients may be present from November 1st throughout the period when influenza remains prevalent in our region.

For further information regarding the flu vaccination program at Flushing Hopsital please contact the Occupational Health Department at 718-670-5360.

Dr Riccardo Ricciardi, Director of Urology at both Flushing Hospital and Jamaica Hospital was recently interviewed at his Flushing Hospital office about kidney stones and the higher prevalence of developing them during the hot summer months.

The interview, which was conducted by Erin Billips, Health Care Reporter for NY 1 News, aired on the news channel’s rotation, beginning on Monday, August 12th.  During the interview, the reporter spoke with Dr Ricciardi as well as one of his current patients about the importance of drinking plenty of water when it is extremely hot. He explained that the body loses excess fluids through sweating, which can cause dehydration and increase the likelihood of developing what can be very painful kidney stones.

In addition to helpful tips to avoid kidney stones, Dr. Ricciardi also shared information on the various treatment options offered at Flushing Hospital Medical Center for people suffering with them, including Shockwave Lithotripsy.

To see the segment in its entirety, click here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiQpWlbWaZA&feature=youtu.be

The news segment was one example of the many important services available at Flushing Hospital Medical Center and Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. If you have an idea to publicize a new or existing service, please contact the Public Affairs Department at 718-206-6020.