On June 26^th, 2018, Flushing Hospital Medical Center (FHMC)  collaborated with the Gift of Life Marrow Registry on hosting a Bone Marrow/Stem Cell “Swabbing” event in the hospital’s main lobby. The event was held to benefit Carolyn Inzirillo and all those waiting for a life-saving match. Tracey Kavanagh, RN, Department of Surgery, at FHMC was instrumental in organizing the day.

Carolyn Inzirillo has deep roots in the FHMC community, so it was an emphatic “YES!” when the hospital was asked to host a registry table. Both of Carloyn’s parents were FHMC employees before moving to Florida over 20 years ago.  Her dad, Mike Inzirillo, was a Supervisor in Respiratory Care and her mom, Debbie (Sostack)Inzirillo, was a graduate of the Flushing Hospital School of Nursing and worked at Flushing Hospital in the ICU and Emergency Department.

Carolyn is a first-grade teacher in Florida.  She is 34 years old and has been battling leukemia for four years.  Due to a relapse in February 2018, Carolyn now requires a lifesaving stem cell transplant. Unfortunately, her only sibling is not a match and currently, there are no matches in the National Registry.

“Flushing Hospital Medical Center’s on-going commitment to boosting the numbers of donors in New York State made us a natural fit to host this important event.”, stated Robert Levine, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at FHMC.

Healthy volunteers between the ages of 18-60 from all ethnic backgrounds are encouraged to join the registry to help someone in need.  A simple swab from the inside of your cheek is all it takes to determine if you are a match for Carolyn Inzirillo or someone else.  Visit www.giftoflife.org/cure4carolyn to request a free swab kit.  You can also call the Inzirillo’s family representative, Christine Sostack at 516-314-2893 if you have any questions.

This summer, Jamaica Hospital Medical Center was the only hospital in our region to receive a highly coveted Sing for Hope piano.

Each year, as part of their mission to transform lives through the power of the arts, the non-profit organization Sing for Hope collaborates with celebrated artists to specially design pianos.  These popular works of art are then distributed to select public spaces throughout New York City for everyone to play.

Jamaica Hospital received its piano “Wings for Hope,” in June.  Painted by AnnCharlotte Tavolacci, the inspiration behind the piano design was the artist’s encounter with a hummingbird during a difficult time in her life.  Knowing that the bird was a symbol of hope, eternal love and survival she felt inspired to make positive changes.   AnnCharlotte hoped that by painting the hummingbird on her piano and sharing her art with our community, others too would feel inspired.

The piano was stationed for two weeks outside the hospital’s main entrance. Its vibrant colors and fantastic design beckoned many employees and visitors to sit and play.

Clinical Nurse Manager, Cheryl Gallotta Dimassi, coordinated the Sing for Hope initiative at Jamaica Hospital.  She explained to reporters from the Queens Chronicle and NY1 news that receiving the piano was important as it served as an extension of the hospital’s efforts to provide our community with outlets that promote healing through art. “I’ve been working to get this for a year,” she said. “Music, in the right tone, the right level, is therapeutic.”

We thank everyone who played the piano and supported our efforts to provide therapeutic music for all to enjoy.  It was certainly a great treat to experience the talents of our fellow coworkers and members of the community.

The MediSys Health Network has received the American Heart Association’s/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines^®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the network’s commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized and research-based guidelines.

Jamaica and Flushing Hospital Medical Center earned the award by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures included the evaluation of the proper use of medications and other stroke treatments aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines. Protocols were also put in place to ensure that patients received education on managing their health and care transition interventions before discharge.

The MediSys Health Network is dedicated to improving the quality of care for our stroke patients by implementing the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke initiative. The tools and resources provided, help us track and measure our success in meeting evidence-based clinical guidelines developed to improve patient outcomes. We are pleased to be recognized for our commitment to stroke care.

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke every 40 seconds and nearly 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

As part of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center’s (JHMC) effort to provide our community with healthy nutrition and wellness alternatives, we are proud to announce our first Farmers’ Market!  JHMC has partnered with the LI Greenmarket and the Cornell University Cooperative Extension to bring fresh produce and wellness programs for everyone to enjoy!

The Farmers’ Market will be open every Wednesday, 10:00AM – 4:00PM, from June 27, 2018 through November 21, 2018.  The Market will be located at 134-20 Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11418.

Remember, fresh is best!

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:

For many years, Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital have offered our patients the opportunity to better manage their healthcare and interact with their providers, through the MyChart patient portal.

Access to MyChart accounts has always required a patient’s physician to provide them with a special access code. Now, thanks to our partnership with Experian, our patients can create their very own MyChart account without needing an access code. For patients to create an account, they simply click the link to the MediSys MyChart website: https://mychart.medisys.org and click on the “sign up now” tab.

The new Experian verification process is much easier and will give patients quicker access to their chart, allowing them to take any number of actions, including:

• Reviewing their medications, immunizations, allergies, and medical history
• Reviewing test results online
• Reviewing health education topics and discharge instructions
• Requesting prescription refills online
• Interacting with your provider via email
• Requesting an appointment
• Linking to family’s medical records

We hope that this new method of creating an account will encourage more patients to sign-up. By offering our patients easier access to their records, we feel they will become better educated and empowered to take a more active role in their heath and the health of their family, which we feel will lead to a healthier patient population.

We encourage all of our employees to share this news with their patients. For more information about the new and improved MyChart patient portal, please contact 718-206-8809.

On May 22nd the MediSys Health Network celebrated the 20th anniversary of its annual Golf Classic fundraiser.

Each year, many look forward to the golf and wellness outing, which is a designated day of fun and relaxation – all for a good cause.  This year, an impressive number of supporters which included 132 golfers blanketed the grounds of the Old Westbury Country Club.

Although the weather didn’t fully cooperate, it did not stop the excitement that radiated from our staff and guests. Everyone started the day with an all-star breakfast which fueled them for the day ahead.

After several hours of play, and relaxation, the event shifted to a more formal note. Guests retreated to the cocktail hour and dinner reception in the banquet room. They were served from elegant food stations filled with delicious dishes. MediSys Health Network President and CEO Bruce J. Flanz took a moment to extend a warm welcome to everyone and introduce the event’s honorary chairman; Dr. Cono Grasso, Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at Jamaica Hospital.

The highly anticipated raffle drawing began soon after. Many entered and kept their fingers tightly crossed for coveted prizes that included tickets to sporting events, a $1,000 shopping spree at Simon Malls, and airline tickets.

Overall, the event was a great success. Proceeds will benefit Flushing and Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. We thank all staff who volunteered and all friends of MediSys Health Network who supported our fundraiser. We hope to see you again next year.

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:

If you are sick and need to go to the hospital, it is important to know that if admitted, your hospital is dedicated to safety, and has a proven track record of preventing further illness and injury to its patients.

Healthgrades, a trusted provider of information to millions of health care consumers across the United States, recently recognized the best-performing hospitals in the country, and both Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and Flushing Hospital Medical Center received the Patient Safety Excellence Award, an accolade that recognizes hospitals that lead in the prevention of patient safety events.

This prestigious honor highlights both hospitals performance in safeguarding patients from serious, potentially preventable complications during their hospital stay.  Jamaica and Flushing Hospitals, both part of the MediSys Health Network ranked in the top 10% in the nation for patient safety.

To determine which hospitals receive the Patient Safety Excellence Award, Healthgrades reviews the results of 14 key patient safety indicators submitted by hospitals to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Some of the safety measures surveyed include pressure ulcers, catheter-related bloodstream infections, and postoperative sepsis rates.

Jamaica and Flushing are the only two hospitals in Queens and two of only four in New York City to receive this honor. The hospitals attribute their vastly improved safety rates to robust quality improvement policies and programs that were initiated over a decade ago and that are still being followed and improved upon every day.

According to MediSys Health Network President, Bruce J. Flanz, “Patient Safety is one of the top priorities at Jamaica Hospital and Flushing Hospital. We are proud to be in a position to provide our patients with a safe and trusted environment to receive high-quality care. I would like to thank the many members of our staff who are committed to this effort.”

The American College of Health Care Administrators (ACHCA) recently awarded Tom Younghans, Vice President of the Trump Pavilion,  its 2018 Eli Pick Facility Leadership Award.  The award is given to administrators who show the highest level of dedication, professionalism, and leadership in long-term care.

This prestigious recognition is presented annually in memory of Eli Pick who for over 30 years was an Administrator who showed extraordinary care for the residents, their families and the community where his facility was located.

Award recipients are selected based on several key performance indicators which include their facilities’ ability to provide quality healthcare to patients.  Eligibility is determined by three years of skilled nursing facility survey data, including health, fire safety, and complaint surveys as well as top quartile performance on designated quality measures. Fewer than 11% percent of facilities nationwide qualified, and only 351 administrators in 45 states received the distinction.

Mr. Younghans stated “This recognition belongs to the entire Trump Pavilion team. Thank you all for your ongoing commitment to serve our residents and the community in a way that is second to none. I am so proud of each and every one of you.”