The New Standard - Northwell Health

New Standard
Volume 1, 2014
An employee publication of the North Shore-LIJ Health System
Home-Growing
Future Leaders
Scientists Make
Inroads in New Fields
Focus onHealth TV:
A Fresh Perspective
Clinical Services
Reorganized
what’sINSIDE
Volume 1, 2014
18
In Case of Emergency
Neither floods nor fires nor man-made disasters keep
emergency-response nurses from their appointed rounds.
23
Tracking Huntington’s Disease
Scientists use PET scans to discover a new way to measure the
progression of Huntington’s disease.
34
Small Beginnings
Two former “preemies” reciprocate the care they received
by volunteering in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Cohen
Children’s Medical Center of New York.
43
Focus onHealth
North Shore-LIJ has unveiled a revamped TV news
magazine that covers wellness, medicine and healthcare policy.
61
Safety Is Their Central Mission
Central Sterile (sometimes called “Sterile Processing”) staff
members guard employee safety with proper cleaning, disinfection,
sterilization and inspection of medical and surgical instrumentation.
On the Cover
Sometimes healing comes on little dog feet. For 10 years, Sambro sat
looking over patients and families on gentle haunches. Now it is time
for him to move on.
Cover photo: Bill Higgins
2 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Editor in Chief
Terry Lynam
Director of Editorial Services
Maria Conforti
Contributors
James Cuniglio
Lisa Davis
Susan Kreimer
Andrea Metz
Brian Mulligan
Emily Ng
Margarita Oksenkrug
Betty Olt
Barbara Osborn
Terri Ann Parnell, RN, DNP
Michelle Pinto
Michelle Pipia-Stiles
Christian Preston
Julie Robinson-Tingue
Arleen Ryback
Ann Silverman
Carole Trottere
Tim Vassilakos
Kathleen Waton
Thea Welch
Alexandra Zendrian
Photography
North Shore-LIJ Studios,
except as noted
Graphic Design
Gina Reduzzi/Reduzzi Design
Comments/Suggestions?
Contact:
Public Relations Department
125 Community Drive
Great Neck, NY 11021
516-465-2600
aMESSAGEfrom thePRESIDENT
New Era of Healthcare is Here
Michael Dowling
While the political debate over the Affordable Care Act will continue for the
foreseeable future, the day of reckoning has arrived. With the coming of the new year,
many new components of the Affordable Care Act are taking hold. Federal and state
exchanges are selling millions of new health insurance plans to individuals, families and
small businesses — including the coverage being offered here in New York by our own
insurance company, North Shore-LIJ CareConnect.
Behind the scenes, we as a health system have been building the foundation for true
health reform for years. We have taken some bold steps that are not necessarily going
to generate headlines, but are dramatically improving the care delivered to our most
vulnerable patients. For well over a decade, we have been embracing best practices that
have improved the quality and coordination of care.
We have been investing heavily in home-based services, care managers and outreach
programs that focus on helping the chronically ill comply with their medication
regimens, embrace healthier lifestyles, and avoid hospitalizations and long-term care.
Similarly, we are reaching out to frail seniors, giving them the support they need to
maintain their independence at home. In addition, we are creating a vast network of
primary care providers, urgent care centers and CVS MinuteClinics intended to promote
wellness, prevent illness and reduce the over-utilization of services.
On the financial side of the business, we continue to move away from so-called “feefor-service” contracts in which we are paid every time a patient comes into one of our
facilities. More and more of our insurance contracts are based on our success in keeping
our patients healthy, rather than just treating them when they’re sick.
Our new insurance company, North Shore-LIJ CareConnect, is aptly named because
it helps connect our patients with the care they need — and affordable coverage.
As our journey continues, we must all assume the role of change leaders, work
together, be flexible and remain focused on the right things. We’re all in this together
and everyone plays a critical role in ensuring a successful future. Thank you for all you
do and will continue to do to help us navigate these uncharted waters.
There’s a Code for That:
The ICD10 Transition Is Coming
ICD10 (International Classification of Diseases, 10th edition) will
change how healthcare providers document, code and bill for patient care.
The new code set, which will replace ICD9, is much more precise.
This precision will give providers and patients many benefits over time,
such as more detailed patient records and stronger capabilities for
disease management and measurement. For this to happen, physicians
will need to document diagnoses and procedures with more specificity so
coders can select the right codes for charting patient records, billing and
eventually, measuring health outcomes.
Nearly every business team across the North Shore-LIJ Health
System has been participating in the shift to ICD10 (which has more than
100,000 codes). For more than a year, an internal multidisciplinary group
has been preparing North Shore-LIJ for the October 1, 2014, transition.
This includes IT system upgrades and development of an education
curriculum for physicians and most employees. Education will soon be
available in iLearn — stay tuned for details.
Learn more about ICD-10 or submit a question at HealthPort > ICD10
(under QuickLinks).
The New Standard 3
technology
innovator
GREAT NECK — North Shore-LIJ
recently placed in the top 250 of
US technological innovators in
the 2013 InformationWeek 500.
This designation highlights the
health system’s efforts to create
computer information systems
that enhance patient care.
“With the landscape of
healthcare shifting rapidly, the
ability to use technology to
enable safer and more convenient
care is vital to our mission and
our patients,” said John Bosco,
senior vice president and chief
information officer at North
Shore-LIJ. “From our electronic
health records’ rollout to the use
of real-time information delivery
through social networking, the
North Shore-LIJ Health System
is in a prime position to improve
all aspects of communications
between providers and
consumers.” See more details at
InformationWeek.com/iw500/.
Furthermore, North Shore
University Hospital, LIJ Medical
Center and Syosset Hospital are
among the best in the nation
at creating the building blocks
for robust clinical information
systems that improve patient
care, according to the 2013
Most Wired Survey. Hospitals
and Health Networks Magazine
published the survey, which the
American Hospital Association
conducted. This was the second
consecutive year North Shore
University Hospital received the
award. The survey cited only 14
New York State hospitals this year.
4 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
New Software Advances
Patient-Centered Care
By Betty Olt
GREAT NECK — The North
Shore-LIJ Health System
has selected InterSystems
software to implement
a secure technology
infrastructure that will
connect all of the health
system’s clinical and business
systems.
The InterSystems
HealthShare informatics
platform will provide
connectivity among all
providers across North ShoreLIJ, including hospitals,
physician practices, patientcentered medical homes, call
centers and community service
programs. It will provide new
capabilities like smart message
routing, proactive alerts,
advanced work flows and
real-time active analytics to
enhance the quality of care and
the patient experience.
North Shore-LIJ’s
investment in this initiative,
valued at $25 million over
the next several years, is
essential to meeting the
technology challenges posed
by the Affordable Care Act,
as the healthcare industry
makes the transition from
fee-based services to more
accountable and coordinated
care. These challenges include
consolidating disparate
clinical and administrative
systems, integrating
nontraditional venues like
call centers, and capturing
all clinical information
from high-volume data
sources such as mobile
medical devices and home
monitoring systems. In this
emerging healthcare model,
interoperability among
diverse systems is imperative.
HealthShare will give
healthcare professionals a
secure and comprehensive
view of patient information
across the entire healthcare
continuum, spanning North
Shore-LIJ’s electronic health
record system being integrated
at 15 hospitals, three
skilled-nursing facilities,
12 emergency departments,
approximately 400 outpatient
and physician practices, and
in the offices of communitybased physicians affiliated
with the health system.
A Proactive Approach
to Care
In addition to clinical
information exchange,
the HealthShare platform
will enable smart delivery
of event-triggered alerts
and critical information to
caregivers in their preferred
work flows. For example,
when a high-risk expectant
mother is admitted to an
emergency department, the
system will automatically
notify her obstetrician and
primary care doctor, while
providing the emergency
department physicians with
instant access to her complete
medical history across
multiple care providers. This
will allow caregivers to work
with complete, up-to-date
information.
HealthShare’s advanced
real-time active analytics
will also identify critical
gaps in care, such as missed
appointments or unfilled
prescriptions, and enable
tracking of patients’ activities
and timely data-informed
action at every point of care.
The project has an
aggressive timeline that
reflects the extraordinary rate
of healthcare evolution. The
first phase, to be completed
by January, includes enabling
technologies such as the
HealthShare composite health
record, clinical viewer and the
patient index, identification
automation and registries.
By next summer, advanced
capabilities such as real-time
active analytics and more
complex business processes
will be implemented, for use
in cases such as 30-day patient
readmission notifications
and bundled payment patient
notifications. J2 Interactive,
a software and IT consulting
firm, will assist in the rapid
rollout of this project.
Upon its December “golive,” North Shore-LIJ will
become J2 and Intersystem’s
largest healthshare
implementation project.
B. Higgins
A Beloved Therapy Dog Hangs Up His Collar
By Tim Vassilakos
STATEN ISLAND — The outcast of his
litter, nobody wanted Sambro when he
was born. While his brothers and sisters
were adopted in a flash, the only family
who gave the yellow Labrador a chance
returned him within hours after he had
an “accident.”
“I had barely gotten home before
they said to come take him back,” said
Dennis Nelson, who owned both Sambro’s
mother, Sandy and father, Sammy.
“Looking back, boy, am I glad they didn’t
keep him.”
Born on the heels of 9/11, Sambro
always exuded love, calm and sensitivity,
prompting Mr. Nelson to pursue special
training. “I saw an ad in the paper asking
if your pet had what it took to be a therapy
dog. I knew then and there that this is
what Sambro is here to do,” he said.
Smiles Amid Tears
The compassionate canine graduated
dog therapy school and began putting
his skills to work, bringing smiles to
end-of-life patients and their families,
demonstrating that he is a very special
dog. After losing his own biological
father to cancer, Sambro expanded his
services to nursing homes, hospitals and
at Ground Zero to support 9/11 families.
On every anniversary of the terrorist
attacks, Mr. Nelson brings Sambro to the
national memorial in Manhattan, where
he “rests his head on anyone who needs
the company.”
A Great Listener
“Sometimes people don’t want to
talk to other people,” said Paula McAvoy,
RN, administrative director of University
Hospice. “We’ve had countless times
where patients requested him to talk to.
It’s so fulfilling to be able to offer this to
people in need.”
“It’s quite amazing what he can do
for you, and all he has to do is be in the
room,” said Patricia Higgins, a finance
specialist at Staten Island University
Hospital who lost her husband, Jerome,
to cancer this past August. “He provides
you with an overwhelmingly positive
experience during a terribly negative
time.”
As for Mr. Nelson, he didn’t quite
realize what keeping Sambro would
mean for his life, as he’s been at his side
volunteering at the hospital with him all
of these years. “I would like to thank the
hospital staff for the love they gave this
dog. They fed him, they walked him,
but no one ever even bought me a cup of
coffee,” he joked, holding back tears. “I’m
just so happy he was here to help.”
With his characteristic “smile” and
tranquil demeanor, Sambro officially
passed the torch to Gigi, a black poodle
who is taking the reins as therapy dog at
University Hospice.
As for Sambro’s golden years, it’s
time to loosen up the leash and try to
sleep in. “He’s calm when he’s here, but
at home he’s a riot. Nobody believes
me,” said Mr. Nelson. “We’ll see how his
‘retirement’ goes.”
The New Standard 5
in theSPOTLIGHT
North Shore-LIJ CareConnect Insurance Company
By Lisa Davis
In the short history of North Shore-LIJ
CareConnect Insurance Company, Inc., there
have been a number of dates to remember.
On July 31, 2013, the state approved its
application for an insurance license, making
it the first provider-owned health insurance
company in New York. On October 1, 2013,
North Shore-LIJ CareConnect started selling
policies. And in early December, it officially
opened its new customer service center at
2200 Northern Boulevard in East Hills.
Staffed throughout the day with
CareConnectors and brokers, the customer
service center is a one-stop shop. For people
who like to do things on their own, iPads make
it easy to enroll in a policy, either on the
North Shore-LIJ CareConnect website or on
New York State of Health, the state-run health
insurance marketplace. For those who have
questions, brokers have plenty of time to talk
things through (play areas keep kids engaged
no matter how long the discussion takes).
For everyone, the emphasis is on service: If another company’s policy is a
better fit for a customer’s needs, that’s the policy the broker offers.
Making It Easy for Customers
Enrolling a member is only the first of the services the North
Shore-LIJ CareConnect customer care center provides. After all, health
care is complicated and questions inevitably arise: Is my doctor in my
network? Will my treatment be approved? Where should I go to get blood
drawn, a prescription filled, an X-ray done? No matter what the concern,
a CareConnector either knows the answer or personally tracks it down.
Members who are confused about a bill can hand their paperwork over to a
CareConnector, who will sort things out. If a passerby just wants to chat or
grab a cup of coffee, a CareConnector is happy to take care of that, too.
“Our passion, which will be on full display at the customer care
center, is to make it easy for the people of our community to get great
care,” said Alan J. Murray, president of North Shore-LIJ CareConnect
Insurance Company, Inc. “We believe it’s an honor to do that.
“No matter what a person’s position is at the customer care center, we
know we’re all part of what we call ‘the simplicity crew.’ We do the work so
our members don’t have to.”
6 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Kerry Birnstill, enrollment
coordinator, and Gims Paul,
sales coordinator, at North
Shore-LIJ CareConnect’s
office in East Hills.
A DAYin theLIFE
Lenox Hill Enters
Cool Partnership
NEW YORK CITY — Lenox Hill Hospital has iced a new,
multi-year marketing partnership that teams the hospital with
the New York Rangers and Madison Square Garden.
The deal designates Lenox Hill as the New York Rangers’
exclusive hospital and an official partner of the “the world’s most
famous arena.” The agreement provides Lenox Hill with brand
exposure inside the arena, on BlueshirtsUnited.com and on the
MSG Network.
Static and digital signage in Madison Square Garden
highlights Lenox Hill during Rangers games, including a logo
on one of the boards along the ice, home bench and penalty box
signage and a feature on GardenVision, the central scoreboard.
The hospital is also the presenting partner of the stadium’s
Rangers Club seat section, the North and South Concierge
entrances and two guest services locations.
Furthermore, the Rangers
promote Lenox Hill as the
team’s official hospital on the
MSG Network and during
the network’s weekly show,
“Hockey Night Live,” which
airs Saturday nights during the
NHL season. In addition, the
Lenox Hill name appears on
the new “All-Access” section of
BlueshirtsUnited.com, which
provides behind-the-scenes content on the team.
Tunnel to Towers
Lenox Hill Hospital staff members
recently participated in the
Stephen Siller Tunnel To Towers
5K Run and Walk in a big way:
With 253 registered runners
and walkers, Lenox Hill was the
largest team this year – raising
almost $5,500 toward the event
total of $1.4 million.
Bill Higgins
Photographer,
Staten Island University Hospital
Q: What is your role as medical and hospital photographer?
A: My job here focuses on documenting the progress of our patients,
especially those in our unfortunately busy Critical Burn Unit. On the flip
side, I shoot all public relations, development, human resources and
external events. Basically, if there’s a memory to capture, I’m your guy.
Q: What is your work week like?
A: Over my 28-year-career at SIUH, two weeks have never been the same.
That’s what keeps it interesting. Besides consistent times for medical
shoots, I rarely cover the same thing twice. With patients, I’m working
with doctors and medical staff to document their progress and boost their
recovery. It also helps for future cases and nothing refreshes a doctor’s
mind better than vivid pictures. Doing a 180-degree turn, you can find
me covering a heart-warming patient story for public relations or donor
event for development in the same day. Every day is a journey.
Q: How do you help patients?
A: There’s nothing more stressful than being in a hospital, so you can
only imagine how tough it can be to be in a Critical Care Unit. I’m one of
the few people meeting these patients at their most vulnerable times
and catering to their specific needs to illustrate their recovery. I try
to mix my quirky personality into each situation, to help ease their
worries while I snap shots of their medical issues. But the question
really is, “How have the patients helped me?” I can’t explain how much
it means to me to be able to see the progress of someone getting
stronger with each passing day and going from an intensive care unit
back to their everyday life. It never gets old.
Q: So, is photography your life outside of the hospital too?
A: After doing this my entire life, it would be impossible to turn it off
at 5 p.m. My father bought me a camera when I was 22, which I still
have. I think it’s safe to say it’s been the most memorable gift I’ve ever
received. There’s nothing more precious than having leisure time to
just roam and shoot. This is going to sound corny, but a lot of my ideas
come from my dreams, something I conjure up. I wake up, write them
down and try to get that shot. I recommend doing it to anyone looking
for a relaxing, therapeutic hobby. At the end of the day, our memories
are our most precious asset, so — take a picture of it.
— Tim Vassilakos
The New Standard 7
around the system
Joint Commission Taps Forest Hills,
Staten Island University Hospitals
By Tim Vassilakos
The Joint Commission has recognized Forest Hills Hospital
and Staten Island University Hospital as Top Performers on Key
Quality Measures. The commission singled out the hospitals for
exemplary use of evidence-based clinical processes that improve
care for patients with heart attacks; pneumonia; stroke; venous
thromboembolism; needing surgery; children with asthma; and
inpatient psychiatric services. There is also a new Key Quality
Measure this year for pneumonia and flu immunization.
The hospitals were among 1,099 in the US earning
the distinction for attaining and sustaining excellence in
accountability measure performance. An aggregation of
accountability measure data reported to the Joint Commission
during the 2012 calendar year form the basis for the ratings.
The list of Top Performer organizations increased by 77 percent
from last year and it represents 33 percent of all Joint
Commission-accredited hospitals reporting accountability
measure performance data for 2012.
“What matters most to patients is safe, effective care.
That’s why we’ve made a commitment to establishing evidencebased processes that have proven effective in improving patient
outcomes,” said Rita Mercieca, RN, executive director of Forest
Hills Hospital.
The Joint Commission
Top Performer on
Key Quality
Measures® 2012
• Heart Attack
• Heart Failure
• Pneumonia
• Surgical Care
“Our clinical teams have gone above and beyond. The
leading healthcare organization in America recognizes their
ability and we applaud each and every member of our teams,”
said Anthony Ferreri, regional executive director for the Western
Region of North Shore-LIJ and SIUH’s president and CEO.
The hospitals appear in the Joint Commission’s Improving
America’s Hospitals 2012 annual report and on the organization’s
Quality Check website. The commission is featuring the Top
Performer Program in its December 2013 issues of Perspectives and
The Source publications.
All Top Performer hospitals must:
machieve cumulative performance of 95
percent or above across all reported
accountability measures;
machieve performance of 95 percent or
above on each reported accountability
measure where there are at least 30
denominator cases; and
mhave at least one core measure set that has
a composite rate of 95 percent or above,
and within that measure set, all applicable
individual accountability measures have a
performance rate of 95 percent or above.
Each accountability measure represents an
evidence-based practice such as giving aspirin to
heart attack patients upon arrival at the Emergency
Department; giving patients antibiotics one hour
before surgery; and providing a home management
plan of care for asthmatic children.
8 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
New this year for the Top Performer recognition is a category for immunization for pneumonia
and influenza.
ORLANDO, FL — Press Ganey
recently recognized four North
Shore-LIJ Health System entities
for excellent patient satisfaction.
LIJ Medical Center, North Shore
University Hospial, Franklin
Hospital and Ambulatory
Services each received awards
during Press Ganey’s national
client conference in Florida.
LIJ Medical Center got
the 2013 Commitment to
Excellence Award. “Three years
ago, we committed to making
hospitality a major part of our
day-to-day interactions with
patients and family members,”
said Chantal Weinhold, LIJ’s
executive director. “With
our entire staff embracing
that philosophy, we’ve seen
significant improvements in
our patient satisfaction and
experience ratings.”
In 2011, LIJ collaborated with Hospitality Quotient of New
York to develop an employee curriculum focused on patient
care. Every staff member completed the class, which LIJ has
incorporated into the new employee orientation process. Since
the hospitality initiative began, Press Ganey surveys of LIJ patients
show that their “likelihood to recommend” has increased from
the fourth percentile in 2011 to the 64th percentile in 2013.
During the same period, LIJ’s “recommend” scores in the federal
government’s Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare
Providers and Systems improved from the 30th percentile to the
64th percentile. Furthermore, LIJ received the 2013 Practice of the
Year Award from the Association for Patient Experience, which is
sponsored by the Cleveland Clinic’s Office of Patient Experience.
North Shore University Hospital received Commitment
to Excellence in Physician Engagement Award. “Engaging our
physicians and maintaining that level of involvement is critical to
giving our patients the best care possible,” said Susan Somerville,
RN, the hospital’s executive director. “Many of our physicians go
above and beyond for their patients and we are pleased to see that.”
North Shore University Hospital has shown continuous
improvement in its quarterly Press Ganey scores over the last
two years.
Franklin Hospital received the Guardian of Excellence
Award for in patient satisfaction for inpatient behavioral
health. To earn this designation, Franklin had an average
From left: Nicole Giammarinaro, RN
manager of patient- and familycentered care at LIJ; Agnes Barden,
RN, DNP, senior administrative
director of patient- and familycentered care at LIJ; Patrick Ryan,
CEO of Press Ganey; and Chantal
Weinhold, executive director, LIJ.
Press Ganey Honors
Patient Satisfaction Efforts
score of at least 95 percent on Press Ganey reports for each
quarter of 2012.
“We always aim to provide the best quality of care and
service at Franklin Hospital and we are pleased that the inpatient
behavioral health patients have reflected that so strongly in their
Press Ganey surveys,” said Catherine Hottendorf, the hospital’s
executive director. “It’s rewarding to be recognized by our
patients and peers for the staff’s hard work and dedication.”
Press Ganey gave the Success Story Award to North ShoreLIJ Ambulatory Services for developing a service excellence
playbook called the Leadership Tool Kit, which provides best
practices for physicians in about 400 outpatient locations
in eight metropolitan New York-area counties. Since 2009,
Ambulatory Services’s Press Ganey surveys show an increase in
patients’ likelihood to recommend the practice, and growing
sensitivity to the needs and privacy of patients.
“We have grown the number of outpatient locations and
while maintaining top-notch care through commitment to
developing and utilizing best practices across all of our physician
units,” said Joseph Moscola, senior vice president and executive
director of Physician and Ambulatory Network Services. “We are
honored by this recognition and will continue to provide the best
patient care possible.”
The New Standard 9
around the system
Franklin Hospital’s Golden Anniversary
Shashi Shah, MD, left, and Franklin Hospital’s
executive director, Catherine Hottendorf, RN, center,
were interviewed by India TV recently at the Pure Gold
Dinner Dance. Held at the Woodmere Country Club, the
event attracted supporters, staff members
and volunteers to celebrate Franklin’s 50th
anniversary of serving Nassau and Queens
counties. Gary and Marlene Walter (inset)
were honored for their longtime support.
A North Shore-LIJ Health System
trustee, Mr. Walter served as chairman
of Franklin’s Community Advisory
Board for many years. Dr. Shah,
a 35-year member of the medical
staff and current president of its
Medical Executive Committee, was
also honored, along with his wife,
Pushpa Shah, MD. Proceeds from
the celebration are benefitting the
hospital’s Emergency Department, which
has more than 42,000 visits each year.
Employee Slim-Down
Boosts Morale and Wellness
By Christian Preston
STATEN ISLAND — Employees at Staten
Island University Hospital (SIUH) are
shrinking — in weight that is — with the
help of a new hospital wellness initiative.
The SIUH Slim Down features 10
weeks of fitness and nutrition coaching to
increase employee satisfaction by boosting
well-being, thus fostering a better working
environment. It’s based on New York City’s
annual boroughwide Slim Down created
by Tony Avilez, a trainer and lifestyle coach
who assisted with SIUH’s version, and
Maureen Becker, MD, a physical therapist.
10 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
In April, the first Slim Down began,
attracting more than 125 employees. To
compete, contestants were asked to submit
before and after photos and write a short
essay on the lifestyle changes they’ve made
because of the program.
Employee Health Services’s Maria
McCabe, NP, won the grand prize of
$1,000 for her effort. The other finalists
were: 2nd place winner Linda Spadafina,
assistant manager of outpatient physical
therapy at SIUH North; Eileen Lappin,
RN, a “floating” nurse; Jennifer Deddo,
RN, in oncology; and Margaret (Peggy)
Diamond, secretary II in rehab medicine
at SIUH North. The top five finalists lost
a combined weight of 120.2 pounds.
A second round of the SIUH
Slim Down starts next spring. In the
meantime, Dorothy Pincar, office
manager for rehab medicine at the North
Site, leads staff members on a walk every
Wednesday at 1 p.m. from the lobby in the
main building to the boardwalk and back.
For more information, call Ms. Pincar at
718-226-8296.
C
astiel Haywood was born at
Katz Women’s Hospital at
LIJ Medical Center this past
winter at 23 weeks old. More than
four months premature, he weighed
about one pound at birth. He needed
medical help that included work to
repair his retinas, which had not
developed normally. Castiel had stage
five severe closed funnel total retinal
detachments — a severe, blinding eye
condition. Without eye surgery, he
would not even be able to see light,
explained Philip Ferrone, MD, the
ophthalmologist who performed the
procedure three weeks before Castiel’s
previously anticipated birthdate.
Time was of the essence. To get the
best possible care from eye specialists,
Castiel was transported to Syosset
Hospital from Cohen Children’s
Medical Center in New Hyde Park
for his eye surgeries, traveling by
ambulance in a neonatal intensive
care unit (NICU) incubator. His
transport team included a NICU nurse,
neonatologist, respiratory therapist
and pediatric anesthesiologist.
One challenge when performing
surgery on such a young baby is
the tiny size of the eyes and orbits,
which are half those of adults.
Syosset Hospital’s highly skilled team
employed advanced instrumentation
to help Castiel obtain vision.
“There was a tremendous amount
of teamwork,” said Louise Esposito,
RN, Syosset’s ophthalmology nurse
manager. “I felt as if I had worked with
this group forever — that’s how smooth
his operation was.”
The surgery, performed on both
eyes, took about three hours. Castiel’s family received frequent
updates from Ms. Esposito.
“Everyone made us feel so comfortable at the hospitals,” said
Teamwork
Helps Give Baby
the Gift of Sight
Tuly Marenco, Castiel’s mother. “And now, after the eye surgery,
he has been looking around.”
Dr. Ferrone said, “This surgery gave the baby the best chance
of having maximal vision.”
The New Standard 11
around the system
There’s No Place Like Home
Plainview Hospital and the North Shore-LIJ Hospice Care Network are
collaborating to reduce hospital readmissions of patients with end-stage
heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The
hospital identifies patients at risk for re-hospitalizations and refers them
to Hospice Care Network’s Miracle Foundation Palliative Care Center.
Patients and their families receive support and guidance to improve
compliance with medical directives. Fifteen patients have enrolled in the
program since it began in July 2012. In the three months prior to joining
the program, those 15 patients accounted for 31 readmissions. Since the
program’s July 2012 inception, about 37 patients have been enrolled. In the
three months prior to joining the program, those 37 patients accounted for 75
admissions. After three months in the program, the same patients accounted
for only 11 readmissions — and five were unrelated to chronic heart failure.
“This program incorporates everything that is changing in
healthcare,” said Alan Kaplan, MD, director of Plainview Hospital’s
Emergency Department (ED). “Hospitals are reaching beyond their walls
to treat and care for patients in a comprehensive manner.”
Patients in the program receive physician and/or nurse home visits
as well as oxygen and 24/7 access to a clinician. Home-based palliative
care not only helps reduce hospital readmissions and ED visits, but more
importantly, it also allows end-stage heart failure and COPD patients to
$14K Raised for Vets
From left, Southside Hospital’s Donna Moravick, RN, NP, executive director;
Patricia Farrell, RN, associate executive director, Eddie Fraser, director of
community relations; and Andrew Roberts, director of North Shore-LIJ Health
System’s Office of Military and Veterans Services, recently raised more than
$14,000 during the Wounded Warrior Project’s Soldier Ride. The event helps
support programs and services for severely injured service members as they
transition from active duty to civilian life.
12 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
receive care in the optimum setting — their own homes.
The program will expand to include other North Shore-LIJ hospitals,
said Lori Attivissimo, MD, senior medical director of the Hospice Care
Network. She hopes to make the program available in all of the health
system’s facilities and to offer it to other patients, such as those with
end-stage dementia.
“This model will become more common in the next few years,”
Dr. Attivissimo said. “It helps reduce avoidable ED visits and hospital
readmissions and provides support and high-quality medical care to
patients and families.”
Ambulance Sails
to the Carribean
By Alexandra Zendrian
SYOSSET — The North Shore-LIJ Center for Emergency
Medical Services (CEMS) has donated a basic life support
ambulance, complete with medical supplies and a wheelchair,
to the Leonardo Diaz Foundation for the Disabled in San
Cristobal, Dominican Republic.
Rita Obregon, assistant director of performance
improvement in the North Shore University Hospital Pathology
Department, requested the donation, inspired by a touching
experience during a 2010 visit to the Diaz Foundation. She
witnessed a girl in critical condition being taken to the hospital in
a broken-down car.
The North Shore-LIJ ambulance goes a long way toward
ensuring safe travel and medical treatment for children in San
Cristobal. “When Rita approached us for an ambulance and
told us about how much it could help children, we were all too
happy to make the donation,” said Paul Power, CEMS assistant
director of operations.
The ambulance sailed to the Dominican Republic by cargo
ship with the help of the Ricardo Reyes Ministries in Freeport.
“Our mission at the health system is not only to
serve the communities where we are based, but also to
aid other communities so they can provide local, quality
medical care,” Ms. Obregon said. Last year, she also
facilitated a North Shore-LIJ ambulance donation to
FUPAC, another Dominican Republic nonprofit.
Meeting of the Minds: EMS Forum
By Julie Robinson-Tingue
HUNTINGTON — More than 50,000 patients visit Huntington
described surgical techniques in which the patient remains awake
Hospital’s Emergency Department each year. Huntington relies
during brain surgery.
on area emergency medical services (EMS) personnel to transport
Robert Scanlon, MD, chair of ob/gyn, discussed the
many of these patients and – when necessary – to provide
different situations in which an emergency medical technician
emergency treatment en route.
might have to deliver a baby, using an anatomical model and a
To continue its collaboration with EMS crews out in the
doll to illustrate different birthing scenarios.
field, many of whom are volunteers, Huntington Hospital
“It’s very important to keep the lines of communication
recently hosted a forum attended by members from surrounding
open,” said Randolph Howard, Huntington’s Vice President of
fire departments — including Halesite, Commack, Centerport,
Operations, who coordinated the event. “We greatly appreciate
Northport, Dix Hills and the Huntington Community First
the feedback from the EMS community. Sometimes it’s as simple
Aid Squad. Representatives from Hunter EMS and the Suffolk
as having better access to stretcher linen or having enough
County Police Department also attended.
parking which can make their jobs easier. We share the same
Following dinner and a welcome from Kevin Lawlor,
goal: to provide the very best of care for our patients.”
Huntington president and CEO, three physicians covered topics of
particular concern to EMS crews.
Musarat Shareeff, MD,
chief of neurology, discussed
the importance of identifying
stroke victims quickly. She also
spoke about the different types
of stroke, common causes,
symptoms, and new therapies
available for stroke patients.
“Stroke is the third-leading
cause of death in the United
States. Fast treatment, in 60
minutes or less, is essential for
preventing disability in stroke
patients,” said Dr. Shareeff. “This
is not possible without the support
of EMS personnel.”
Neurosurgeon Ramin Rak,
MD, covered the urgency of
certain brain injuries. As a Level
2 Trauma Center, Huntington
Hospital has the capability to treat
patients with some of the most
severe brain injuries.
Very few have reached the summit of Mount Everest and even fewer have summitted the highest mountain on
“I can be here in eight
every continent. Sean Swarner has done both, but says his greatest victory is that he is a two-time cancer survivor.
minutes,” commented Dr. Rak,
To inspire and motivate others, he founded the Cancer Climber Association and wrote Keep Climbing, an account of
who added that he is often ready
his journey from a near-death experience to reaching the top of the world. Mr. Swarner, center, joined hundreds
to go even before the operating
of young cancer survivors and their families to celebrate the Second Annual Les Nelkin Pediatric Cancer Survivors’
room preparation is completed.
Day at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, along with Kevin McGeachy, left, executive director of Cohen Children’s
“At Huntington, a neurosurgeon
Medical Center, and Charles Schleien, MD, chair of pediatrics at Cohen Children’s.
is on-call 24/7.” Dr. Rak
Survivors Facing Forward
The New Standard 13
around the system
Local Efforts in a Global Infant Initiative
FOREST HILLS — A task force of Forest Hills Hospital
staff members have embarked on the BabyFriendly Hospital Initiative, a global effort
to promote best practices in maternity
and newborn care, with a special focus
on breastfeeding.
“The initiative starts with prenatal
education, which helps mothers prepare
for breastfeeding and for their new roles
as parents,” said Lorraine Munoz, RN,
lactation consultant at Forest Hills. “During
a brief stay at our New Life Center Maternity
Unit, mothers attend a detailed mother/baby
class, which shows them useful techniques for infant
and mother care and provides continuity-of-care resources.”
After childbirth, mother and baby stay in the same room, a practice
called “rooming-in.” Staying together supports bonding and helps infants
and parents develop a routine before going home. Rooming-in also creates
a comfortable environment for mothers to begin breastfeeding.
The Breastfeeding Advantage
The Baby-Friendly Initiative emphasizes breastfeeding
because scientific evidence shows it offers long-lasting health
benefits for the mother and child.
“Studies show that breastfed babies have fewer health
problems in infancy, throughout childhood and as adults,”
said Candida Uy-Beriro, RN, perinatal nurse educator and
coordinator of the Forest Hills Baby-Friendly Initiative. “For
the mother, breastfeeding decreases blood loss after labor,
enhances bonding with her baby and even helps protect her
from diseases such as ovarian cancer later in life.”
Mothers who choose to breastfeed receive a lactation
consultant’s guidance and support. This specially trained nurse helps
mothers overcome any challenges and helps to find the best breastfeeding
technique. As mother and baby prepare to go home, mother/baby nurses
provide individualized education and instruction at the bedside.
“The Baby-Friendly Initiative respects the rights of all mothers,”
Ms. Uy-Beriro said. “The initiative helps parents go home prepared and
confident in their ability to take care of their newborns.”
Mammography Enhances Detection,
Mimics MRI Results
NEW YORK CITY — Lenox
Hill Hospital recently
acquired GE SenoBright
contrast-enhanced spectral
mammography (CESM). The
unit produces unique images
that illuminate and highlight
contrast-enhanced areas,
helping the radiologist quickly
and easily identify normally
inconspicuous tumors. This
significantly enhances breast
cancer detection over regular
mammography and reduces the
crucial patient waiting period
from detection to diagnosis.
CESM is a special type
of mammogram that creates
two separate exposures per
view of each breast: one
14 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
shows all of the information
of a standard mammogram
and the other denotes areas
of increased blood supply. A
contrast that is injected prior
to the procedure follows
blood flow patterns in the
breast tissue to highlight
areas that may be cause
for increased suspicion, as
breast cancer-affected tissue
typically has a higher blood
supply than normal tissue.
Also among CESM’s
advantages: It is almost
as sensitive as magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) in
detecting breast cancer and
slightly superior to MRI in
specificity, since it produces
fewer false positives. The
most sensitive tool available
to detect breast cancer is
MRI, but some patients
are not candidates for an
MRI and other patients’
insurance companies deny
coverage for the procedure.
Unlike MRI, CESM is
less expensive, produces
immediate results and does
not have to be timed to the
patient’s menstrual cycle
or hormone replacement
therapy.
“CESM is much more
sensitive than standard
mammography even though
the patient experience is not
much different,” said Kristin
Byrne, MD, chief of breast
imaging. She added that
Lenox Hill Hospital is one of
only two Manhattan facilities
to offer the GE SenoBright.
See CESM in action at bit.ly/
1aZcnSO.
New Managed Long-Term Care Plan
Serves Medicaid Recipients
By Betty Olt
GREAT NECK — The New
than 30 years, so it is a logical
chronic diseases.
York State Department of
step for us to offer long-term
The North ShoreHealth has approved the
care services through managed
LIJ Health Plan
North Shore-LIJ Health
Medicaid insurance,” said
provides members with
System’s health plan
Howard Gold, the health
a multidisciplinary care
subsidiary, North Shore-LIJ
system’s executive vice
team comprising a nurse,
Health Plan, Inc., to offer
president of managed care
social worker and service
managed long-term care
and business development.
coordinator. This team works
(MLTC) services to Medicaid
The Home Care Network
closely with MLTC members
recipients on Long Island
cares for patients with chronic
and their families to develop
and in Brooklyn, Manhattan,
conditions such as heart
an individualized care
Queens and Staten Island.
failure, chronic obstructive
plan. The team coordinates
The approval adds the MLTC
pulmonary disease, diabetes
healthcare services that may
plan to the commercial
and other illnesses and
include a home health/
insurance products offered
delivers their care at home.
personal care aide, nursing
by North Shore-LIJ
It serves approximately 600
home care, home healthcare,
CareConnect Insurance
patients in Lynbrook who
adult day care, social day
Company, Inc.
participate in a “nursing
care, home-delivered meals,
North Shore-LIJ Health
rehabilitation therapies,
Plan’s managed long-term
optometry, dental and foot
These patients are eligible to
care plan is designed
care, and transportation
for individuals with
health-related
enter a nursing home but choose to receive toappointments.
chronic illnesses
care and services at home, which gives them
or disabilities
North Shorewho need health
LIJ Health Plan’s
more flexibility and the ability to stay in their managed long-term
and long-term
community as long as possible.
care services for
care plan is part of a
more than 120 days
portfolio of products that
and who can safely live at
complement the services
home. While these patients
that the health system
are eligible to enter a nursing
home without walls” program
offers as the region’s largest
home, they choose to receive
known as the Lombardi
integrated delivery system.
healthcare and coordinated
Program. The state’s Medicaid
“The North Shore-LIJ
services at home, which
redesign initiative requires
Health System’s mission is to
gives them more flexibility
that Lombardi patients enroll
help improve the health of
and the ability to stay in
in a Medicaid MLTC plan; it
the communities it serves,”
their community as long as
is expected that most of the
said Alan Murray, North
possible.
patients already being served
Shore-LIJ CareConnect’s
“North Shore-LIJ’s
by the health system’s Home
president. “Having multiple
Home Care Network has
Care Network will join North
insurance products that are
been providing quality home
Shore-LIJ’s new plan. Most of
managed by North Shorehealthcare services for more
these patients are elderly with
LIJ CareConnect and North
Shore-LIJ Health Plan —
products that primarily use
the health system’s providers
— will allow for a far greater
coordination of services and
go a long way toward achieving
this mission, while improving
outcomes and cost.”
To be eligible for services from
North Shore-LIJ Health Plan’s
managed long-term care plan,
enrollees must:
n be 18 years of age or
older;
n be a resident of Kings,
Nassau, New York, Queens,
Richmond or Suffolk
County;
n be Medicaid-eligible
or dual-eligible with
Medicare;
n be able to return to or
remain at home without
risk to health or safety as
determined by the care
manager;
n require long-term care
services for at least 120
days;
n have a physician or
choose a physician willing
to work with North ShoreLIJ Health Plan’s MLTC
plan; and
n agree to receive the
covered services through
North Shore-LIJ Health
Plan’s MLTC plan.
The New Standard 15
nursing mission
HUNTINGTON — To reduce
chaos and loss of lives in a
crisis takes countless hours
of fastidious planning and
teamwork. James Cameron,
RN, is the right man for the
job. The pediatric emergency
nurse at Huntington Hospital
volunteers his political savvy
and emergency leadership
skills to prepare for disasters
in Suffolk County and to
provide assistance elsewhere,
if needed.
Recently appointed
the Emergency Nurses
Association’s key legislative
contact for New York’s First
Congressional District, Mr.
Cameron cultivates long-term
relationships with all Suffolk
County elected officials,
from the federal to the local
level, lobbying for legislation
important to emergency
nursing and patient care.
As a member of the
newly formed Suffolk County
Medical Reserve Corps (MRC)
Advisory Board, Mr. Cameron
leads a team responsible for
the mass care and sheltering of
people affected by a disaster.
He also lends his knowledge
and expertise to other teams.
As a member of the MRC,
Mr. Cameron is trained
By Kathleen Waton
to attend a station in the
Emergency Operations Center
headquartered in Yaphank to
assist “the boots on the ground during an event.”
He earned his stripes early in emergency response. Fresh out
of nursing school and working in an emergency department in
his native Alabama, Mr. Cameron performed emergency rescues
in his community while dodging deadly twisters crisscrossing the
infamous “Tornado Alley.”
One week after 9/11, Mr. Cameron volunteered to help
establish for the US Public Health Service the first national nurse
response team (NNRT) for Region Two, which covers New York,
Pennsylvania, Guam and Puerto Rico. For his efforts, the nurse
ED Nurse Helps Lead Suffolk
Emergency Readiness
16 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
was dubbed one of the founding members of the Department of
Homeland Security.
In natural disasters like hurricanes, floods and fires, or
man-made disasters, like shootings, bombings or biological or
chemical events, Mr. Cameron’s role is the same: to ensure the
large-scale delivery of basic care and the suitability of relocation
shelter facilities. Mr. Cameron works closely with other
Above: James Cameron, RN, checks supplies, medical equipment and telemetry
monitoring laptops for proper functioning while on standby to deploy MERV.
Nursing Appointments
Rosanne Raso, RN, has been named chief nursing officer/
associate executive director of patient care services at Lenox Hill
Hospital (LHH), where she creates and communicates the vision and
direction for nursing at Lenox Hill. In addition, Ms. Raso provides
strategic leadership and supports a progressive professional practice
environment that promotes excellence in patient care and nursing
practice, with an emphasis on accelerating LHH’s commitment to
Rosanne Raso, RN
Kathleen Mann-Finnerty, RN Kerri Scanlon, RN
patient- and family-centered care, innovation, quality and staff
engagement. With more than 35 years in nursing, Ms. Raso most
Maureen White, RN, chief nurse executive.
recently served as chief nursing officer and senior vice president of patient
Previously chief nursing officer and associate
care services at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn.
executive director of patient care services at
Kathleen Mann-Finnerty, RN, has been named senior director of clinical
LIJ Medical Center, Ms. Scanlon oversaw for all
initiatives in the Office of Clinical Transformation, where she leads the
nursing services, strategic planning for nursing
implementation of the health system’s new call center. Formerly chief nursing
and clinical services, and fiscal responsibility.
officer at North Shore University Hospital (NSUH), Ms. Mann-Finnerty led the
Margaret Murphy, RN, DNP, has been
hospital’s patient care services and nursing practice. Prior to that, she served
named chief nursing officer at LIJ. Ms.
as assistant vice president of clinical operations at The Feinstein Institute for
Murphy joined the health system in 2006 as
Medical Research with ongoing responsibility for day-to-day operations
Margaret Murphy, RN, DNP
senior administrative director of patient care
Kerri Scanlon, RN, has succeeded Ms. Mann-Finnerty as chief nursing
services at LIJ, where she oversaw day-to-day
officer at NSUH. She has also been appointed to the new position of deputy
chief nurse executive for the North Shore-LIJ Health system, working with
continued on page 19
MRC Advisory Board members to coordinate plans with the
Department of Health, the Nassau-Suffolk Hospital Council and
organizations like the Red Cross and Salvation Army.
Streamlined communication between all emergency
care stakeholders and standardized protocols “are crucial for
expediting patient care,” Mr. Cameron said.
Prepping for the Next Hurricane
To apply lessons learned from Superstorm Sandy, Mr.
Cameron is working with others to issue mandatory evacuations
as early as possible, find ways to “fast track” healthcare workers to
work and transport community members to safety.
Suffolk County’s new Major Emergency Response Vehicle
(MERV) can help with some of the heavy lifting. MERV
can provide mass casualty incident response and transport,
medical evacuations, on-site triage, firefighter and emergency
medical services rehabilitation and medical support for longterm emergencies. The unit is equipped with stretchers to
accommodate 24 critical patients or 36 rehab or long-term care
residents, or a combination of patient populations.
“It’s ready to go and I’m ready to deploy on it on a moment’s
notice, if needed,” Mr. Cameron said.
He and others are exploring ways to house families of
emergency staff more effectively. “Often, staff members bring
family to bunk at the hospital because they can’t leave them at
home,” he said. Creating separate accommodations from medical
staff for families would provide a calm environment for family
and reduce ED crowding and stress in a crisis. Establishing a
“back-up ER” in another part of the hospital, which is already
equipped with supplies or could be equipped easily in a disaster,
would further reduce crowding and improve patient care.
To maintain power and ensure patient safety, Mr. Cameron
and colleagues are considering ways “to work effectively” with
the Long Island Power Authority. Superstorm Sandy also
underscored the importance of ensuring that not only are
generators available to keep critical medical equipment working
and dialysis centers open, but that their locations are safe from
destructive storm surges.
To improve the distribution of needed medications and to
facilitate counseling people during a crisis, Mr. Cameron helps
set up point-of-distribution sites outside emergency departments
to reduce the burden on hospitals. He also serves as a resource
person for MRC members manning the points of distribution.
Mr. Cameron won’t rest until he’s covered all the bases. In
the meantime, he encourages staff members to have personal
emergency plans for their families. He also invites colleagues
to participate in emergency preparedness for the community
by joining the Medical Reserve Corps in Suffolk or Nassau.
“There’s a need for everyone’s talents and everyone has
something to offer,” he said.
The New Standard 17
nursing mission
Real Solutions for
Synthetic Drug Problems
BAY SHORE — Molly. Spice. Bath
Salts. These harmless-sounding
new synthetic drugs are causing
devastating effects in young adults
experimenting to get high.
“The drugs act as super
amphetamines — much more
intense than cocaine — causing a toxic
reaction in the central nervous system,
which can last for days or weeks,” said
Michele Maratea, RN, nurse manager
of the Behavioral Health Unit at
Southside Hospital. “It’s traumatic
seeing patients screaming, paranoid,
violent, so impaired when they have
their whole lives ahead of them.”
Seeing a growing trend in
the use of these sometimes deadly
drugs — many of which are available
over the counter — Ms. Maratea is passionate about improving
diagnosis and treatment in young adults who take them.
The usual urine test for toxicology does not screen for
the new drugs and special, more sensitive lab tests require
48 to 72 hours to identify them.
In the meantime, patients with no
known behavioral health history
may mistakenly be admitted to a
behavioral health unit where standard
medications and treatment could
exacerbate their condition.
Ms. Maratea is collaborating with
colleagues to create a new policy and
procedure to identify the drugs faster
in the Emergency Department, speed
patients into intensive care to stabilize
and monitor them, and then transition
them to the Behavioral Health Unit on
the third day, if necessary, to manage
any long-term effects. Treatment
includes controlling agitation and
managing the medical conditions
and delirium (the latter being most
associated with morbidity and mortality). Patients may be sedated
for at least 24 hours “to calm their oversensitive nerves and allow
their bodies to heal,” Ms. Maratea said. Patients also must be well
hydrated and any medical issues managed effectively before they
enter a behavioral health
treatment area.
The mother of four
ranging in age from 16 to
21, Ms. Maratea considers
it imperative for not
only clinicians, but also
parents to know about
these new drugs and to
Kelly Moed, RN, staff development
educate themselves on
instructor at Staten Island University
Hospital, demonstrated the use of a
them. This problem is
Tenor, a mobile full-body lift used to
“just the beginning,” she
position bariatric patients, during a
said. “Drugs seem to be
workshop on safe patient handling
becoming more severe. We
and workplace injury prevention at
should be ahead of the curve
the Sixth Annual Safe Patient Handling
in treating this substance
Conference in Albany. The conference
abuse. Then maybe we can
highlighted new ways to transfer and
deter someone from using
reposition patients using mechanical
them in the first place.”
lifts and other devices.
Patient Safety
Demo
18 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
T
he North Shore-LIJ Health System has
almost doubled the number of woundcare nurse specialists (WOCNs) across the
health system by partnering with the Emory
University Wound, Ostomy and Continence
Nursing Education Center in Atlanta.
“As the population ages and patients
are more acutely ill, we need to stay on top of
preventing, assessing and treating pressure
ulcers and wounds,” said Elaine Smith, RN, EdD,
the health system’s vice president of nursing
education, who spearheaded the on-site WOCN
program. The program included 220 hours
of online learning and a week-long bridge
program that brought Emory faculty to North
Shore-LIJ facilities. Existing North Shore-LIJ
wound specialists helped prepare the program’s
10 RNs and NPs to sit for national certification
in a 150-hour clinical practicum.
Nominated by their nurse executive,
participants needed at least a bachelor’s degree
in nursing and five years of nursing experience
at North Shore-LIJ, and have expressed a
“strong interest in committing to the program
rigors,” Dr. Smith said.
The program is innovative for several
Growing In-House
Wound-Care Specialists
reasons. Nurse executives and human resources
staff collaborated to identify the need and
recruiting difficulties for WOCNs and to develop
an internal pool. The fully funded program
“ensures we have qualified nurses to undertake
this critically important role,” Dr. Smith said,
bringing the “gold standard in wound care
education” to North Shore-LIJ nurses.
Nursing Appointments
from page 17
operations for ambulatory chemotherapy, coronary care, respiratory
care, medical, telemetry, and inpatient oncology units, and bed
management.
Terry Pando, RN, has been appointed deputy chief nursing
officer at LIJ Medical Center. She previously oversaw operational
leadership and strategic planning for the critical care, surgical
and women’s health divisions; nursing float team, centralized
staffing and nursing finance as senior
administrative director of patient
care services at LIJ. Ms. Pando also
was on the clinical and administrative
team that worked on the design and
occupancy of LIJ’s new inpatient tower.
“Skin care is such a critical area,” said Mary
Brennan, RN, assistant director of wound and
ostomy care at North Shore University Hospital.
“Plus, the government is considering any skin
disruption during hospitalization a medical
error,” which not only may harm patients, but
reduces hospital reimbursements.
Nursing Education
Sharpen your nursing skills at education opportunities provided by the
North Shore-LIJ Institute for Nursing. The institute adds new conferences
and programs regularly.
April
3
Neuroscience Conference
Swan Club, Glenwood Landing
10
Holistic Nursing Conference Swan Club, Glenwood Landing
30
The North Shore-LIJ Health System is an
approved provider of continuing nursing
education by the New Jersey State Nurses
Association, an accredited approver
by the American Nurses Credentialing
Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
For more information, call the Institute
for Nursing at 718-470-3890 or register
online at bit.ly/Zqn9sY.
Nursing Research Conference North Hills Country Club, Manhasset
Terry Pando, RN
The New Standard 19
under the microscope
LAKE SUCCESS — A
rapid method of identifying
infectious disease pathogens
was recently approved by
the US Food and Drug
Administration (FDA).
Christine Ginocchio, PhD,
senior medical director and
chief of infectious disease
diagnostics for North ShoreLIJ Laboratories, is a lead
investigator in the study.
The FDA has approved
matrix-assisted, laser
desorption-ionization time
of flight mass spectrometry
(MALDI-TOF MS), whose
quicker diagnosis allows for
faster treatment.
“In the battle with
infectious diseases, time
is a luxury we don’t have,”
said Dr. Ginocchio.
“MALDI-TOF will have
one of the greatest impacts
on clinical microbiology
in that it will revolutionize
the approach to traditional
microbial identification.
This technology, combined
with rapid antimicrobial
susceptibility testing,
now allows diagnosis and
treatment options within a
time frame that will reduce
morbidity and mortality.”
20 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Mass spectrometry is a
technique that identifies a
molecule and determines its
chemical structure by analyzing
the mass and charge of its ions.
MALDI-TOF MS determines
the elemental composition
of a sample and can identify
a microorganism’s genus and
species in just a few minutes.
Prior to the MALDI-TOF
MS technology, identification
of a microorganism to the
species level typically required
several steps and could take
24 hours or more for results.
Diagnosing an infection faster
lets clinicians treat it faster and
select the best possible antimicrobial drug.
“The rapid identification
of microorganisms or germs
will have a positive impact
on patient management,
promote the appropriate use
of antimicrobial therapy,
complement antimicrobial
stewardship programs, and
assure the prompt initiation of
infection control measures,”
said Dr. Ginocchio.
Called the VITEK
MS, the ground-breaking
diagnostic device will be
available from bioMérieux.
The Vitek MS from
bioMerieux will help reduce
morbidity and mortality by
allowing faster diagnosis
and treatment.
Couresty of bioMerieux.
A New, Quicker
Infectious Disease
Identifier
Innovation Tracks
Huntington’s Disease
By Emily Ng
MANHASSET —
Investigators at the
Feinstein Institute for
Medical Research have
discovered a new way to
measure the progression
of Huntington’s disease,
using positron emission
tomography (PET) to scan
the brains of carriers of
the gene. The findings are
published in the September
issue of The Journal of Clinical
Investigation.
Huntington’s disease
causes the progressive
breakdown of nerve cells
in the brain, which leads to
impairments in movement,
thinking and emotions. Most
people with Huntington’s
disease develop signs and
symptoms in their 40s or
50s, but the onset of disease
may happen earlier or later.
Medications help manage
symptoms but do not prevent
the physical, mental and
behavioral decline associated
with the condition.
Huntington’s disease is
an inherited disease, passed
from parent to child through
a mutation in the normal
gene. Each child of a parent
with Huntington’s disease has
a 50/50 chance of inheriting
the gene; a child who inherits
the gene will develop the
disease. Genetic testing for
Huntington’s disease can
These images show the
areas of the brain in
Huntington’s disease
patients that are more
(red) or less (blue)
active, forming an
abnormal brain network
that progresses over time.
be performed to determine
whether a person carries the
gene and is developing the
disease even before symptoms
appear. Having this ability
lets scientists study how the
disease first develops and
how it progresses in its early,
presymptomatic stages.
Even though a carrier of the
Huntington’s disease gene may
not have symptoms, changes
in the brain have already
taken place that ultimately
lead to severe disability. Brain
imaging can track how quickly
Huntington’s progresses in
carriers. Having a better
way to track the disease at its
earliest stages will make it
easier to test drugs designed
to delay or even prevent the
onset of symptoms.
Feinstein Institute
researchers used PET
scanning to map changes
in brain metabolism in 12
people with the Huntington’s
gene who had not developed
clinical signs of the illness.
The researchers scanned
the subjects repeatedly over
a seven-year period and
found a characteristic set
(network) of abnormalities
in their brains. The network
was used to measure the rate
of disease progression in
the study participants. The
investigators then confirmed
the progression rate through
independent measurements
in scans from a separate
group of Huntington’s
carriers who were studied
in the Netherlands. The
investigators believe that
progression networks similar
to the one identified in
Huntington’s disease carriers
will have an important role
in evaluating new drugs for
degenerative brain disorders.
“Huntington’s disease
is an extremely debilitating
disease. The findings make
it possible to evaluate the
effects of new drugs on
disease progression before
symptoms actually appear.
This is a major advance
in the field,” said David
Eidelberg, MD, head of the
Center for Neurosciences at
the Feinstein Institute.
$330,000
Grant Supports
Childhood Cancer
Research
MANHASSET — The Feinstein
Institute for Medical Research
will receive $330,000 in grants
to advance understanding of
Diamond Blackfan anemia (DBA),
an inherited pediatric condition
that leads to anemia, possible birth
defects and cancer. The St. Baldrick’s
Foundation awarded the grants.
Sharon Singh, MD, will receive
$230,000 to support her research
project. Her team is working to
understand the conditions that
promote the formation and survival
of cancer cells in this syndrome,
to improve early diagnosis and
treatment of childhood cancer.
“If my colleagues and I can
identify why certain children
develop cancer while others do
not, we may be able to prevent
future children from suffering from
cancer,” Dr. Singh said.
Led by hematologist/
oncologist Johnson Liu, MD, the
Feinstein Institute’s Pediatric
Myelodysplastic Syndromes and
Ribosome Dysfunction Consortium
will receive $100,000 to support
ongoing work on childhood
disorders. The researchers in the
consortium are exploring ways to
manage DBA so it doesn’t lead to
anemia and cancer.
“I don’t know of another
group in the world that has the
concerted effort and capability to
study Diamond Blackfan anemia or
pre-leukemia in children,” said Dr.
Liu. “This support will help us to
continue and expand our research
into new ways to manage or treat
this deadly disease.”
The New Standard 21
under the microscope
Feinstein Institute Presents
First Cerami Award
By Emily Ng
MANHASSET — The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research
has conferred its first Anthony Cerami Award in Translational
Medicine to Carl Nathan, MD, chairman of microbiology
and immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College, for his
discoveries in immunology. The Feinstein Institute published
Dr. Nathan’s monograph, “A Journey in Science: Promise,
Purpose, Privilege,” in the October edition of its peerreviewed, open-access journal, Molecular Medicine.
“The Anthony Cerami Award in Translational Medicine
was created to recognize investigators who provided the crucial
early insight and ideas that are the essence of discovery, creating
new fields and research trajectories followed by the persistent
clinical investigation that ultimately changes how disease is
prevented, diagnosed, and treated,” said Kevin Tracey, MD,
president of the Feinstein Institute, editor-in-chief of Molecular
Medicine, and Cerami Award
committee member. “Carl
Nathan epitomizes the
insight, genius and resolve
that are at the heart of the
discovery process.”
“Anthony Cerami’s work exemplifies the principle that
basic research can be inspired by challenges in medicine and in
turn can drive improvements in medical practice,” Dr. Nathan
said. “It is a special privilege to count him as a friend and to
receive an award that bears his name.
“There is almost no chance in formal scientific publications
to tell a personal story, certainly not one that spans more than
50 years,” he added. “I hope this Cerami Award monograph and
those that follow will give encouragement to younger scientists
that what may seem to be a wandering or invisible path may turn
out to be the fastest route to a new place, and that coming on
a new place in science, and impacting medical practice, is an
incomparable experience.”
The Feinstein Institute will present the award, which includes
a $20,000 prize, semi-annually. The Anthony Cerami Award in
Translational Medicine is made possible by the support of Anthony
Cerami, PhD, an American entrepreneur and award-winning
research scientist. He is the Hermann Boerhaave Visiting Professor
at Leiden University Medical School in the Netherlands, and the
founder, chairman and CEO of Araim Pharmaceuticals.
$1.35M Grant for Chronic Disease Research
By Emily Ng
MANHASSET — The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute has awarded
a $1.35 million grant to the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research for
patients with chronic disease. Renee Pekmezaris, PhD, will lead the research
project, which will evaluate the success of telehealth in managing the health
of elderly African Americans who have suffered heart failure. By using video
and other telecommunications technologies, healthcare providers such as the
North Shore-LIJ Health System remotely monitor patients in their homes while
checking vital signs.
An estimated six million Americans suffer from heart failure, which occurs
when the heart muscle doesn’t pump blood normally. African Americans have
more than 25 percent greater prevalence of it than whites. Increasing prevalence,
hospitalizations and deaths have made heart failure a major chronic condition in
the United States, underscoring the need to find new and improved ways of caring
for minorities with chronic conditions.
22 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
“Not every patient is the same. Some older patients are well-insured
and have caregivers to help them, while others are very isolated and struggle
with their disease every day,” said Dr. Pekmezaris. “The only way to design
technology solutions that work with older patients, especially those who may
have experienced poor access to healthcare, is to seek their input from the
start. That is exactly what we propose to do with the support of the PatientCentered Outcomes Research Institute.”
In Dr. Pekmezaris’s study, healthcare providers will conduct weekly
video patient visits via a computer monitor in the home, and patients will
monitor their own conditions daily. Input from patients and caregivers will be
gathered at multiple points during the research so necessary adjustments in
the intervention process can be made to ensure that patients are compliant
and satisfied with the system. To ensure that proposed outcomes have
relevance for a broader population, a community advisory board will advise
Strong Presence at Shock Conference
By Emily Ng
MANHASSET — Twelve investigators from the Feinstein Institute
for Medical Research and four researchers from the Hofstra
North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine participated in the 36th
Annual Conference on Shock, held recently in San Diego. Kevin
Tracey, MD, president of the Feinstein Institute, provided the
keynote address, and Ping Wang, MD, vice chair of surgery
research, served as the meeting’s program chair.
The Shock Society selects five out of approximately
60 applicants to receive a New Investigator Award,
which recognizes finalists with a plaque, a cash award
(first place $600, four other finalists $350) and a
travel grant of $1,000. Sergio Valdes-Ferrer, MD, an
investigator at the Feinstein Institute, was a finalist,
and Matthew Giangola, MD, a post-doctoral research
fellow at the School of Medicine was a finalist.
The strong presence of the Feinstein Institute and the
Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine demonstrated their
strength in research and dedication to the area of inflammation,
said Dr. Tracey.
“Resident researchers from the North Shore-LIJ Health
System’s Department of Surgery were finalists in the Shock
Society’s New Investigator Competition for the last three
consecutive years. They took first prize in 2011 and 2012, and
this year, Dr. Giangola was a finalist,” noted Jeffrey Michael
Nicastro, MD, vice chair of surgery for the North Shore-LIJ
Health System. The acknowledgment of the Department of
Surgery’s prowess in scientific contributions is greatly appreciated
and well deserved, he added.
In addition, the Shock Society provides 40 grants of up to
the research team throughout the study process. The community advisory
board will include patients, caregivers, patient advocates, multidisciplinary
clinicians, an insurance representative, a health policy expert and a health
disparities expert.
Dr. Pekmezaris and her colleagues believe there is a possibility that
the study will identify a cost-effective care approach for patients with
chronic disease. The goal is for patients to take a more active role in their
care to experience improvements in health, satisfaction and quality of life.
The study will advance insight into the effectiveness of telehealth programs
in self-management and can lay the groundwork for the management of
other chronic conditions.
The Feinstein Institute will receive $1,353,160 over three years for
this study.
$1,000 for travel and lodging expenses to investigators based
on scientific merit and financial need. Two Feinstein Institute
investigators — Cletus Cheyuo, MD, PhD, and Sergio ValdesFerrer, MD — and two Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of
Medicine investigators — Matthew Giangola, MD, and Michael
Kuncewitch, MD — received travel grants.
Besides Drs. Tracey and Wang, the Feinstein
Institute investigators and their presentations were:
Sangeeta Chavan, PhD, presented Abstract 1,
“Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation
Attenuates Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Response
in Healthy Volunteers”; Cletus Cheyuo, MD, PhD,
presented Abstract 7, “MFG-E8 Regulates Neural
Stem Cell Proliferation and Migration via Integrin
AVB3/PPARGamma/Cyclin D2/Netrin-1 Pathway”;
Sergio Valdes-Ferrer, MD, presented Abstract 9, “HMGB1
Mediates Persistent Splenomegaly, Leukocytosis, and Splenocyte
Priming in Sepsis Survivors”; Haichao Wang, PhD, presented
a mini-symposium “Sepsis: Mechanism and Therapeutics”;
Ben Lu, MD, presented Abstract 19, “Cholinergic Neuronal
Signals Attenuate Inflammasome Activation Through Inhibiting
Mitochondrial Stress”; Barbara Sherry, PhD, presented the
symposium “Parallel Symposium II: Cytokine and Chemokine
Regulation” and “Dysregulated Cell Trafficking in Sepsis:
Mechanisms and Clinical Consequences”; Wei Li, MD, PhD,
presented Abstract 35, “Carbenoxlone Blocks LPS-Induced
HMGB1 Release by Impairing PKR Activation”; Christine Metz,
PhD, presented the mini-symposium “Inflammation Signaling”;
Huan Yang, PhD, presented Abstract 37, “HMGB1 Binds
to MD-2 in the TLR4/MD2 Complex to Elicit Inflammatory
Responses”; and Edmund Miller, PhD, presented the minisymposium “Ischemia and Reperfusion Injury.”
In addition to these Feinstein investigator abstracts and
symposia, 15 other researchers presented posters, said Dr. Wang.
“These efforts placed the Feinstein Institute at the top in shock
research,” he added.
The Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine investigators
presented (in order of appearance): Weng-Lang Yang, PhD —
“Cold-Inducible RNA-Binding Protein (CIRP): A New Player
in Inflammation”; Michael Kuncewitch, MD — Abstract 6,
“Inhibition of Fatty Acid Synthase with C75 Reduces Organ Injury
After Hemorrhagic Shock”; Matthew Giangola, MD — Abstract 11,
“Growth Arrest-Specific Protein 6 (GAS6) Attenuates Neutrophil
Migration and Acute Lung Injury in Sepsis”; and Shingo Matsuo,
MD — Abstract 13, “PYR-41, a Ubiquitin-Activating Enzyme E1
Inhibitor, Attenuates Organ Injury in Sepsis.”
The New Standard 23
under the microscope
New Consortium Tackles
Alzheimer’s Devastation
MANHASSET — The number of patients age 65 and up with
Alzheimer’s disease will nearly triple by 2050, unless new
breakthroughs prevent, slow or stop the disease. Furthermore,
total payments for healthcare, long-term care and hospice for
people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias are projected to
increase to $1.2 trillion in 2050.
In search of a solution, Peter Davies, PhD, an Alzheimer’s
researcher who leads the Litwin-Zucker Center at the Feinstein
Institute for Medical Research, recently organized the Long Island
Alzheimer’s Disease Consortium at the suggestion of US Rep.
Steve Israel. The Feinstein Institute hosted a group of experts from
Brookhaven National Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory,
Stony Brook University, SUNY Downstate Medical Center and
Winthrop University Hospital along with Rep. Israel and State
Assemblyman Charles Lavine for the consortium’s initial meeting.
“There is no effective treatment for
Alzheimer’s disease. To find one that works takes
research — which takes financial support,” said
Dr. Davies. “My fellow researchers and I do not
have the necessary financial support. Representative Israel and
Assemblyman Lavine, along with the Long Island Alzheimer’s
Disease Consortium, are working to develop an environment that
fosters the discovery of treatments that make a difference.”
Federal funding for Alzheimer’s research is low: $400
million goes toward Alzheimer’s research per year, versus
$6 billion per year for cancer research. Rep. Israel and
Assemblyman Lavine are collaborating with the consortium to
create a 10-year, $1 billion bond that would allocate $7 per year
from each New York State taxpayer toward Alzheimer’s research.
See a video at bit.ly/1a5NMdK.
Advancing “the Same Language”
for Toxicity Assessments
By Emily Ng
ATLANTA — A novel study by the radiation oncologists at North Shore-LIJ
Cancer Institute evaluated the reliability of toxicity-assessment systems
for patients receiving radiation therapy. The study was presented at the
55th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Therapeutic Radiation
Oncology (ASTRO) in Atlanta, GA.
During a course of radiation therapy, patients may react to treatments.
Typically, a radiation oncologist and nurse assesses a reaction’s severity
via a formal grading scheme. The North Shore-LIJ radiation oncologists’s
research evaluated the reliability of these grading systems. The study
assessed whether independent doctors and nurses would assign the same
grade to the same adverse reaction using a common grading scheme.
Radiation oncologists and nurses reviewed images of breasts that had
undergone radiation in 30 breast cancer patients on skin-care protocols,
then assigned grades and provided feedback to explain their choices.
Analysis of the clinicians’ comments showed they relied on assessment
criteria that were not necessarily explicit in some grading definitions.
24 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Subsequent statistical analysis of the assessments revealed the
caregivers’ level of agreement. The study determined that assessments
agreed most when clinicians used the Common-Terminology-Criteria-forAdverse Events (CTCAE) scale, which the National Cancer Institute developed
to standardize the assignment of grades across various caregivers.
“Establishing the reliability of the scale used to assess adverse
reactions among different caregivers is an important step to enhance
uniformity and consistency of care,” said Ajay Kapur, PhD, lead author of
the study and director of medical physics research and education in the
North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute. “The specific grading scheme used must
demonstrate a high level of reliability among various caregivers.”
“To deliver the highest quality of care to patients, we all need to speak
the same language,” said Louis Potters, MD, the health system’s chair of
radiation medicine codirector of the North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute and the
study’s senior author. “This study enhances our ability to provide consistent
care to all patients and further validates the CTCAE grading system.”
From left: Dr. Davies, Rep. Israel and Assemblyman Lavine discuss Alzheimer’s disease research.
W
hile completing the patient
identification process, an
emergency medicine lab
technician at a North Shore-LIJ
Health System hospital recently
discovered that the patient’s name
on the identification band was
incorrect. After asking the patient
to state and spell his full name and
date of birth, the lab technician
realized that the band had another
patient’s information on it. The
technician prevented any potential
mistreatment or harm by following
the proper protocol to correctly
identify the patient.
Patient misidentification
is a global patient safety issue
that can result in medication
errors, treatment errors, wrongsite procedures and potential
patient harm. Misidentification
events also have an impact on the
healthcare providers involved, the
healthcare organization as a whole
and — most importantly — the
patient’s sense of trust in their
healthcare experience.
To enhance patient safety,
North Shore-LIJ works with
staff members and patients to
standardize a system-wide,
patient-identification approach
Consistent Procedures
Keep Patients Safe
By Andrea Metz
that supports employees in
providing the care, treatment and
services to the right patient with
the patient’s right to participate in
the process.
Patient identification is
the process of matching every
patient at every encounter to the
correct service, test, treatment
and/or procedure. The patient
identification process applies
to the inpatient and ambulatory
environments as well as all
clinical and nonclinical settings.
The standardized procedure
incorporates eight critical
elements and eight patient
rights important to the patient
identification process. It includes
asking the patient to state his or
her name and date of birth during
every interaction. This patient
identification process will lay a
foundation, and each site or service
line will revise its procedures
to align with North Shore-LIJ’s
system-wide policy. Each and
every employee must follow these
new procedures, providing an
accurate, reliable and safe means
for identifying patients.
“For North Shore-LIJ to
continue providing excellent
patient care, we must build on
our culture of safety and take the
needed steps to ensure the trust
of every single patient,” said Anna
Gaeta, assistant director of quality
management at the health system’s
Institute for Clinical Excellence
and Quality, who is leading this
effort. “That means staff members
must understand and consistently
practice safe behavior, like washing
their hands, getting the flu vaccine
and identifying patients correctly.”
Stay tuned for more
information and tools on the
patient identification process
and how North Shore-LIJ is
continuing to build on its culture
of safety. Visit HealthPort >
Patient Identification to find
more information and tools on
this process.
The New Standard 25
physician’s rounds
“High-Potential” Physicians to
Lead North Shore-LIJ Forward
By Thea Welch
WESTBURY — At its recent graduation
ceremony, a cohort of 47 North ShoreLIJ physicians in the inaugural class of the
health system’s Physician High Potential
Program were charged with taking
leadership roles as the nation enters a
period of uncertainty in healthcare.
“We can’t be successful without
unbelievably strong clinical leadership
— in other words, people like you,” said
North Shore-LIJ president and CEO
Michael Dowling. Mr. Dowling addressed
the group during its graduation event at
New York Institute of Technology’s de
Seversky Center in Westbury.
Unique Program
The Physician High Potential
Program, conducted by the Center for
Learning and Innovation, the health
system’s corporate university, grew out of
a request by Mr. Dowling that the thensmall number of physician administrators
increase their ranks. It was his view,
shared by other health system executives,
that strong physician leadership would
be critical to North Shore-LIJ’s growth.
The Center for Learning and Innovation
launched the program in 2011, and the
inaugural class has just completed the two
years of coursework. A second class began
its studies in January 2013.
“You can help us serve our
communities better, coordinate care
better and lead healthcare on the
national level,” Mr. Dowling told the
graduates. “It will require doctors to
drive the agenda as never before. I know
many of you very well, and I am confident
that you have the ability to succeed.”
Lawrence Smith, MD, North Shore-LIJ’s
executive vice president and physicianin-chief and dean of the Hofstra North
Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, and David
Battinelli, MD, the health system’s senior
vice president and chief medical officer,
also addressed the class.
First Class
The graduates, who serve in a variety of roles
and specialize in a range of clinical areas, are:
Brahim Ardolic, MD, chair of emergency medicine
Urology Leadership
David Samadi, MD, left, chair of urology
at Lenox Hill Hospital, recently received
the John Kingsley Lattimer Award from
the Kidney and Urology Foundation
of America. He received the honor for
outstanding leadership in urology,
dedication and achievements in the field
and excellence in research, teaching
and patient care. Among those who
congratulated Dr. Samadi was Robert
Waldbaum, MD, right, the North Shore-LIJ
Health System’s urology chair emeritus.
26 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
at Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH); Lori
Attivissimo, MD, senior medical director of postacute services at Hospice Care Network; Lawrence
Belletti, MD, associate head of internal medicine
at North Shore University Hospital (NSUH); Rohan
Bhansali, MD, director of clinical cardiology at
LIJ Medical Center; Kevin Bock, MD, director of
clinical information systems at North Shore-LIJ
Health System; Dwayne Breining, MD, vice chair
of laboratory services at LIJ; Alfio Carroccio,
MD, director of vascular surgery at Lenox Hill
Hill Hospital; Saima Chaudhry, MD, hospitalist
at NSUH; Jesse Chusid, MD, radiologist at NSUH;
Lawrence Crafa, MD, associate director of family
practice at Plainview; John D’Angelo, MD, senior
vice president of emergency medicine at Glen
Cove Hospital; Fred DiBlasio Jr., MD, director of
critical care at Huntington; Suzanne El-Sayegh,
MD, associate chair of medicine at SIUH; Nick
Fitterman, MD, medical director of group health
management at Huntington; Michael Gitman,
MD, associate chair of medicine at LIJ; Anthony
Intintoli, MD, medical director of hospitalist
services at Huntington; Tochi Iroku-Malize, MD,
chair of family medicine at Southside; Barbara
Keber, MD, chair of family medicine at Glen Cove;
Linda Kirschenbaum, MD, critical care physician
at Lenox Hill; Alexandra Klufas, MD, associate
director of resident training at Zucker Hillside;
Jordan Laser, MD, senior director of cytogenetics
at NSUH; Howard Linder, MD, assistant director
of psychiatric services at NSUH; Meggan Mackay,
MD, assistant chair of medicine research at LIJ;
Thomas Mannino, MD, radiologist at Glen Cove;
David Meyer, MD, pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon
at Cohen Children’s Medical Center; Jason Naidich,
MD, chair of radioloy at LIJ; Sheldon Newman,
MD, executive vice chair of anesthesiology at
LIJ; Kaman Ng, MD, cardiologist at Physician and
Ambulatory Network Services (PAANS); Vinh
Nguyen, MD, radiologist at LIJ; Nancy Palumbo,
Front, from left: Joe Cabral, senior vice president
and chief human resources officer; Patti Adelman,
director of physician learning; Kathy Gallo, RN,
PhD, chief learning officer; and Cynthia Kelly,
director of talent management, congratulated the
Physician High Potential Program graduates on
completing their coursework.
MD, director of hospitalist program at Cohen
Children’s; Sunil Patel, MD, internist at Forest
Hills Hospital; Leo Penzi, MD, vice chair of
anesthesiology at NSUH; Colin Powers, MD, chief
of surgery at Syosset Hospital; Sherri Putterman,
MD, obstetrician/gynecologist at PAANS;
Carolyn Raia, MD, associate chair of radiology
at SIUH; Christopher Raio, MD, associate chair of
emergency medicine at NSUH; John Rohe, MD,
director of medical services at Franklin Hospital;
Jason Rosenthal, MD, hospitalist at Southside;
Susan Scavo, MD, obstetrician/gynecologist at
PAANS; James Schneider, MD, pediatric intensivist
at Cohen Children’s; Richard Schwarz, MD, medical
director at LIJ; Giles Scuderi, MD, vice president
of orthopedics at North Shore-LIJ; Bradley
Sherman, MD, director of medicine at Glen Cove;
Kent Stephenson, MD, electrophysiologist at
Huntington; Robert Wetz, MD, chief of medicine
at SIUH; Tara Zahtila, MD, associate director of
residency program at Plainview; and Richard Zenn,
MD, chair of psychiatry at Glen Cove.
The New Standard 27
physician’s rounds
Medical Students’ Summer Research Projects
By Carole Trottere
Many second-year students at the
Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine
spent the summer conducting research
projects on a range of health issues. One
student worked with a top research scientist
at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research
and others traveled abroad to work on public
health projects.
Genetic Research
Justin Rosati worked alongside Peter
Gregersen, MD, the recent recipient of the
prestigious Crafoord prize for his genetic
research in the area of rheumatoid arthritis.
Dr. Gregersen is the head of the Feinstein
Institute’s Robert S. Boas Center for Genomics
and Human Genetics. Mr. Rosati’s research
focused on the genetics of absolute pitch
(also called “perfect pitch”), which is the
ability to identify a musical note by hearing
it. The ability occurs in about one in 10,000
people. Mr. Rosati worked to determine
whether absolute pitch is an inherited genetic
trait or something that can be trained.
“Dr. Gregersen is so well known in the field
of genetics and it was an honor just to be able to
talk with him about these topics,” Mr. Rosati said.
“To actually spend a few weeks in his lab was an
unbelievably exciting opportunity.”
Prenatal and Neonatal Care
Erica Robinson and Collin Fuller spent
two weeks working with Haitian sugar cane
harvesters in the Dominican Republic. They
focused on assessing how much women who
had given birth within the impoverished
community known as “Batey 16” knew about
prenatal and neonatal care. The project will
serve as a foundational study for future
research projects for Hofstra North Shore-LIJ
medical students.
The students worked under the
supervision of Richard Schanler, MD, a
professor of pediatrics at the School of
Medicine and investigator at the Feinstein
28 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Collin Fuller worked with sugar-cane harvesters in the Dominican Republic on prenatal and neonatal care.
Institute for Medical Research, and Omolara
Thomas Uwemedimo, MD, assistant professor
of pediatrics at the School of Medicine and
pediatrician at Cohen Children’s Medical
Center. The Global Health Track of the Pediatric
Residency Program at Cohen Children’s
provided the educational/immersion
experience in partnership with a hospital in
the Dominican Republic.
“The kindness shown by the families was
incredible. I came away from this experience
with a desire to return and help serve this
community in the future,” said Mr. Fuller.
Water Sanitation, Dehydration
School of Medicine student Andrew
Ng traveled to the Batey 16 to provide
dehydration and water sanitation education.
Mr. Ng worked with Nataliya Chorney, MD, an
assistant professor of pediatrics at the School
of Medicine. He provided the residents with
illustrative posters of the signs and symptoms
of dehydration, treatment for dehydration,
basic prevention of cholera and rotavirus
(which cause diarrhea and dehydration) and
simple ways to keep water clean.
“It was great to reach a large number of
people in a short amount of time,” he said. “I
hope the locals retain the information and that
in the long run it will lower the incidence of
deaths from dehydration.”
Other summer projects included Deepa
Ramadurai’s radiation oncology research
at North Shore University Hospital and LIJ
Medical Center to create a protocol for a
clinical study of patients in treatment for
brain metastases, and Stephanie Colantonio’s
research in New Delhi on levels of lead in
children’s blood. Her mentor was Jeffrey
Lipton, MD, professor of pediatrics and
molecular medicine at the School of Medicine
and chief of pediatric hematology/oncology at
Cohen Children’s Medical Center.
Erica Robinson also participated in the Dominican Republic project, which laid the foundation for future research.
150th Transplant
Procedure
Ernesto Molmenti, MD, right, director
of North Shore University Hospital’s
Kidney Transplant Program,
performed his 150th transplant
on Juan Torres, left, who received
a donated kidney. Dr. Molmenti
recently followed up with Mr. Torres,
a Queens Village resident, at the
hospital’s Transplant Center.
The New Standard 29
physician’s rounds
Multiple Casualty Drill: Valuable Training
Experience for Med Students
Medical students Ana Cicneros and
Drew Carlton carry Samuel Alperin
after a simulated bus explosion.
RANDALL’S ISLAND — In their training
as emergency medical technicians
(EMTs), 80 first-year students at the
Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of
Medicine recently completed a multiplecasualty incident at the Fire Department
of New York’s Training Academy on
Randall’s Island.
Since beginning classes, the
students have been working shifts
on North Shore-LIJ ambulances and
responding to 911 calls. At Randall’s
Island, students responded to several
30 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
different emergency exercises, which
were all followed by full debriefing.
Medical students participated in a
simulated subway catastrophe, terrorist
bus bombing, car accident and an
incident on a ship. Every student
performed exercises as an EMT and as
a victim.
Now in its third year, “the multiplecasualty incident training is always
exciting and invaluable for our first-year
medical students,” said Lawrence Smith,
MD, dean of the medical school. “Our
students are very fortunate to have the
unique opportunity to use the Training
Academy to hone their skills and face
the challenges of a variety of multiplecasualty incidents.”
“The Training Academy on Randall’s
Island lets students experience a largescale disaster in a realistic environment
and to practice their EMT skills in
patient rescue, triage and treatment,” said
Thomas Kwiatkowski, MD, assistant dean
for simulation and EMT course director.
State Health Commissioner Keynotes
Head and Neck Institute’s Annual Meeting
New York State Health Commissioner Nirav Shah, MD, left, was the keynote speaker at the recent
annual meeting of the New York Head and Neck Institute (NYHNI), headed by Peter Costantino,
MD, right, who is also executive director and senior vice president of head and neck services at the
North Shore-LIJ Health System. Speaking at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan, Dr. Shah addressed
the impact of the Affordable Care Act on subspecialty care access, and Dr. Costantino discussed
the evolution of the NYHNI over the past three years, including Lenox Hill Hospital being named
one of the best ear, nose and throat programs in the country by US News & World Report for 2013.
Hospital Medicine Summit
The 2013 Hospital Medicine Summit, hosted by the Feinstein Institute
for Medical Research, addressed healthcare changes, the state of
hospital medicine within North Shore-LIJ and heart failure guidelines
in hospital medicine. The opening presenters were, from left: David
Rosenberg, MD, associate chair of medicine at North Shore University
Hospital; Jeff Wiese, MD, professor of medicine and senior associate
dean for graduate medical education at the Tulane University Health
Sciences Center and associate chair of medicine, chief of the charity
medical service and director of Tulane’s Internal Medicine Residency
Program; and David Battinelli, MD, North Shore-LIJ’s vice president and
chief medical officer.
CME Conferences
Continuing medical education (CME) conferences are available year-round from the North Shore-LIJ Office of Continuing Medical Education.
MAR
3
8
21-22
Fourth Annual Stereotactic Radiosurgery Conference
Joint Replacement Orthopedic Conference
Chest Medicine: Minimally Invasive Thoracic Surgery and
Interventional Pulmonary Medicine
Feinstein Institute for Medical Research
Location TBA
APR 27-29
Wound Care Conference
Long Island Marriott, Uniondale
Eastside Marriott, Manhattan
Infection-control training is available online any time at NorthShoreLIJ.edu/ict.
Conference information is updated weekly. Learn more at NorthShoreLIJ.edu/cme or call the Office of Continuing Medical Education at 516-465-3CME
(516-465-3263). The North Shore-LIJ Health System is CME-accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide
continuing medical education for physicians.
The New Standard 31
physician’s rounds
Physician Appointments
Lenox Hill Hospital/
Manhattan Eye Ear and Throat
Hospital has appointed Peter
Costantino, MD, as chair of
otolaryngology, succeeding
Gady Har-El, MD. Dr.
Costantino will also assume
the chair of the Department of
Otolaryngology at the Hofstra
North Shore-LIJ School of
Medicine, where he succeeds
Alan Abramson, MD. Dr.
Costantino joined the North
Shore-LIJ Health System in
January 2011. He will continue
to serve as executive director
and senior vice president of
the otolaryngology/head and
neck surgery service line, as
well as executive director of
the New York Head and Neck
Institute (NYHNI).
Andrea Vambutas,
MD, has been named chair
of otolaryngology at North
Shore University Hospital
(NSUH) and LIJ Medical
Center, as well as vice
chair of academic affairs in
otolaryngology at the Hofstra
North Shore-LIJ School of
Medicine. She succeeds Dr.
Abramson as chair at NSUH
and LIJ. Dr. Vambutas was
instrumental in developing
the Apelian Cochlear Implant
Center, where she has been
its medical director since its
2001 opening. She also serves
as director of the Center for
Hearing and Balance and
Basic and Clinical Research
at NYHNI, professor of
otolaryngology and molecular
medicine at the School of
Medicine and investigator
32 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Peter Costantino, MD
Andrea Vambutas, MD
at the Feinstein Institute for
Medical Research.
Alessandro Bellucci,
MD, has been named
medical director at NSUH.
In this role, he oversees
medical affairs, quality
management, patient safety
and standards of care. Dr.
Bellucci, who also serves as
executive vice chair of North
Shore-LIJ’s Department of
Medicine, is an associate
professor of medicine at
the Hofstra North ShoreLIJ School of Medicine.
After completing clinical
and research fellowships in
nephrology at NSUH, Dr.
Bellucci joined the hospital’s
nephrology staff in 1982 and
has practiced there since.
He has held numerous
leadership positions,
including as Executive Vice
Chair and Interim Chair of
the Department of Medicine.
Dr. Bellucci was elected to
the Medical Staff Office at
NSUH in 1996 and served
as president of the medical
staff between 1999 and
Alessandro Bellucci, MD
2000. Dr. Bellucci succeeds
Vicki LoPachin, MD, has
become senior vice president
and chief medical officer at
Mount Sinai.
Lenox Hill recently
appointed Nicholas
Skipitaris, MD, director of
electrophysiology (EP). In
this role, Dr. Skipitaris is
expanding the department’s
scope and enhancing the
hospital’s footprint in the field
and bring it to the forefront
in complicated arrhythmia
management and invasive
EP techniques. In addition,
he will lead the development
of new EP laboratories
that are scheduled to begin
construction in 2014. Dr.
Skipitaris most recently served
at Mount Sinai Medical Center
as medical director of cardiac
EP operations. He was the
director of EP at Lenox Hill
from 2005 to 2008.
Nicholas Skipitaris, MD
Barbash Family Creates
Endowed Chair for Dr. Hartman
The Barbash Family of Brightwaters, NY, has
established the Hartman/Barbash Family Endowed
Chair in Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery.
The Barbash family’s support is in recognition
of the exceptional care provided to Lillian and
the late Murray Barbash by Dr. Hartman, chair
of cardiothoracic surgery at the North Shore-LIJ
Health System. Over the past 15 years, Dr. Hartman
performed aortic valve replacement and doublebypass surgery on Mr. Barbash, who remained an
active skier and biker until he was 88. Dr. Hartman
also performed double bypass surgery on Ms.
Barbash, 85, in May 2010. She, too, is extremely
active and involved in the local community.
Prior to his death, Mr. Barbash reaffirmed his
wish to establish the endowed chair bearing Dr.
Hartman’s name. The Barbash Family announed
their support at Southside Hospital’s 2013 Gala at
the Bourne Mansion in Oakdale, NY.
From left: F.J. McCarthy, chair of Southside Hospital’s Community Advisory Board; Donna
Moravick, RN, NP, executive director at the hospital; Mark Solazzo, North Shore-LIJ’s chief
operating officer; Dr. Hartman; and Lillian Barbash with her daughter, Susan Barbash. and
son, Shepard Barbash.
Medical School
Dedication
The Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School
of Medicine recently dedicated a
classroom in honor of the Fay J.
Lindner Foundation. Joining in the
dedication were, from left: Norman
Gross and Robin Goldberg, Lindner
Foundation board members; Lawrence
Smith, MD, dean of the School of
Medicine; Robert Goldberg, president
of the Lindner Foundation; Norman
Schefer, Linder Foundation board
member; and Stuart Rabinowitz, PhD,
president of Hofstra University.
The New Standard 33
hearts and hands
NEW HYDE PARK — Two young volunteers at the
Cohen Children’s Medical Center of New York help
kids feel less anxious during a stay at the hospital.
The teens — Elesha Joseph and Eric Rothman —
are reciprocating the care and kindness they received
at Cohen Children’s. After they entered the world
as premature infants, they each spent a significant
amount of time gaining weight and strength in the
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
“Some of our best volunteers are former patients
or their relatives,” said Maxine Legall, coordinator
of volunteer services at Cohen Children’s. “The
care that they or their loved ones received motivates
them to give back and touch the lives of our patients
in a special way. Elesha and Eric have been great
additions to our volunteer team and we look forward
to having them with us for a while.”
Paying It Forward
in the NICU
By Susan Kreimer
A Lifetime of Inspiration
Now 17 and a senior at Jericho High School,
Eric was born 12 weeks early, weighing 2 pounds,
3 ounces and with underdeveloped lungs. He
breathed with oxygen assistance the next 14 weeks
— the first 10 weeks in the NICU and another four
weeks at home. A nurse placed a sheep doll in his
incubator. The doll, which he named “Sheepy,”
sits by Eric’s bedside today and remains his goodluck charm.
“Every single one of those days in the hospital,
doctors and nurses played a vital role in ensuring my
survival and proper development,” said Eric. “I have
to credit them — and my parents, of course — for who
I am today. Now, I feel that I owe something back.”
He began volunteering in January on the Med
4 Unit for three hours on Saturday afternoons
during the school year, interacting and playing with
children who have cancer.
“Every Saturday after my shift, I can’t help but
smile as I drive home thinking about what I have
accomplished that day,” Eric said. He hopes to
pursue a career in medicine like his father, Robert
Rothman, MD, an attending ophthalmologist at
Syosset Hospital, North Shore University Hospital and LIJ
Medical Center.
“Eric carries on conversations well with the patients and
their parents,” said Colleen Hanley, a Child Life specialist in the
Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and Hematology/Oncology Unit.
“He’s great at starting group activities and confident in playing
board games with patients who are unable to come to the unit’s
playroom. And he loves to color with them at their bedsides.”
34 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Elesha Joseph, 19, a sophomore at Queensborough
Community College in Bayside, also finds volunteering at Cohen
Children’s to be very gratifying. Born three months early and
weighing 1 pound 7 ounces, she has a soft spot in her heart for
preemies and aspires to become a neonatal nurse practitioner.
Betty May, RN, the NICU’s nurse manager, left a strong
impression on the Joseph family while Elesha was hospitalized
for three months. “When my mother came to the hospital
Auxiliary of 2013
STATEN ISLAND — Service Auxiliary members of Staten Island University
Hospital have two reasons to celebrate. They marked the group’s 150th
anniversary in 2013 (which makes it the oldest continuous auxiliary in
the country) and the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS),
recently named it the Auxiliary of the Year in the large healthcare
facility category.
HANYS recognized the Service Auxiliary for advocating on behalf of
SIUH, its community and New York State’s healthcare system.
The SIUH Service Auxiliary boasts more than 130 members and is led
by President Barbara Strype, RN, who serves as the hospital’s performance
improvement/accreditation manager. Its tradition of supporting the
mission of SIUH traces back to 19th century fundraisers that kept a tiny
fledgling infirmary afloat, to embarking on major campaigns throughout
the 20th century and today to fund hospital services and state-of-the-art
medical equipment.
Through working with SIUH’s community outreach team, the Auxiliary
has helped raise awareness of the hospital’s smoking-cessation program
and identified under-insured Staten Islanders at risk for colorectal cancer
and funded their colonoscopies.
After Hurricane Sandy, the Auxiliary raised $15,000 to help
devastated SIUH employees and volunteers through the hospital’s Adopta-Family Program. This year, the Auxiliary pledged to raise $350,000 over
the next seven years for a comprehensive new breast center and children’s
cancer services.
Born a preemie, volunteer
Elesha Joseph, left, wants to
become a neonatal NP.
crying about me, she would tell my mom, ‘Stop crying; you
need to be strong for Baby Joseph,’” Elesha said. “That was my
nickname in the NICU.”
Elesha began volunteering at Cohen Children’s in the
summer of 2011, assisting with billing. During the next two
summers, she volunteered in the Child Life Department for two
half-day shifts per week.
“My volunteer work and the fact that I was a NICU baby
influenced me to pursue my career in this field,” she said. “I
will be able to change people’s lives and help them through
difficult times.”
Megan Thompson, a certified Child Life specialist in the
Surgical Unit of Children’s Pavilion 3, noted Elesha’s thoughtful
nature. At a child’s birthday party capping a long hospitalization,
“Elesha took pictures of our staff with the patient, told us to have
fun, and quietly excused herself to assist with other patients,” Ms.
Thompson said. “She also made the patient a big birthday card
with a lovely note and encouraged all the volunteers to sign it, so
she could give it to him before he was discharged.”
The New Standard 35
hearts and hands
Founding Mother
By Susan Kreimer
For the dedication ceremony of the Sylvia M. Lester Patient and Family
Relations Department, Ms. Lester crafted a poem that read, in part:
“Our mission was to make things easier
To educate, listen and explain
To communicate with patients and families
Offering hospital services to help ease their pain.”
MANHASSET — Sylvia Lester, 92, began volunteering before
North Shore University Hospital was built more than 60 years
ago. She joined the Auxiliary that was formed to raise funds
for the hospital and to supply a volunteer base. From concerts
to fairs and museum outings, Ms. Lester conceived and
carried out many successful fundraising events to benefit the
Manhasset hospital.
A few months after the facility opened in July 1953, Ms.
Lester started greeting patients and visitors at the Monti
Reception Desk. She excelled in numerous roles, including
serving as reception chairperson and then as Auxiliary president
from 1967 to 1969.
In December 1976, Ms. Lester created the Patient Relations
Department with 12 volunteers. Its purpose: to personalize the
hospital experience and to acquaint patients, their families and
visitors with available services. Today, the department includes
almost 40 volunteers.
“I love helping patients and their families and being a part
of the history of this hospital,” Ms. Lester said. “During all these
years, I have met and made so many lifelong friends. I have spent
so much of my time here; it has been my ‘other’ life.”
To recognize her steadfast support, the hospital named the
Sylvia M. Lester Patient and Family Relations Department in her
honor in the spring of 2012.
36 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
“Sylvia is not only the consummate volunteer who is
extremely loyal and passionate about her service to North Shore
University Hospital, she is also a lovely and caring person inside
and out,” said Lisa Breiman, director of volunteer services. “Over
the years, she has accumulated almost 19,000 volunteer hours.”
Attending to the needs of patients and families, she and
her husband of 70-plus years — surgeon Louis Lester, MD, who
passed away in December — donated the funds for a meditation
room in the hospital. The inspiration for the room arose when
Ms. Lester witnessed a mother crying in a stairwell. She didn’t
want to shed tears in front of her dying child.
Throughout her North Shore University Hospital service,
Ms. Lester has remained involved in fundraising, including the
Auxiliary’s annual golf outing.
“Sylvia’s commitment to volunteering is exemplary,” said Susan
Somerville, RN, the hospital’s executive director. “She has been
integral to the services we provide to our patients and families.”
Ms. Lester’s influence extends beyond the Manhasset
hospital. Since 1989, she has served on North Shore-LIJ Health
System’s board of trustees. More recently, she was awarded the
honorary title of “life trustee.”
Aside from her passion for volunteering, Ms. Lester also
enjoys cooking, singing, playing cards and writing poems. But
above all, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends.
NEW YORK CITY — This past summer, Lenox Hill Hospital
selected 24 high school students for a volunteer program that
gave the group in-depth exposure to the healthcare field. More
than 230 students applied.
“I was delightfully surprised by how much interest there was,”
said Justin Etinger, manager of volunteer services. Mr. Etinger,
who started in this role last December, interviewed upwards of
100 applicants in person before choosing the volunteers. The
selection was based on three essay questions exploring students’
interest in volunteering, their understanding of patient-centered
care and their expectations of learning
from the experience.
Before the program began, the
selected students submitted a list of the
top five areas of the hospital where they
hoped to volunteer. Mr. Etinger did his
best to accommodate preferences. For
enrichment, participants rotated through
different departments every two weeks.
From early July through the end of
August, each student volunteered at least
10 hours per week for a minimum of 80
hours during the eight-week program.
Participants were encouraged to seize
the opportunity to volunteer even more
hours to gain hands-on experience.
The program began with two days
By Susan Kreimer
of group orientation. On the second
day, the volunteers joined medical
residents and other new employees to
foster a strong sense of cohesion and
camaraderie among the volunteers.
“They became immersed in the Lenox Hill culture from
the very beginning,” Mr. Etinger said. “We embraced them as
members of our care team, and that went a long way toward
ensuring a meaningful summer.”
Rachel Mikofsky, 17, had volunteered at another Manhattan
hospital the previous two summers and wanted to broaden her
horizons. Volunteering at Lenox Hill Hospital taught her “how
much dedication and hard work it takes to make a hospital
function, beyond treating patients’ illnesses,” she said. “This
includes spiritual and emotional care of the patients and their
families and all the behind-the-scenes work of hospital staff.”
Slade Koval, 17, also found the experience to be
enlightening. He heard about the program from a friend
who also wanted to volunteer at the hospital. “I wanted to do
something worthwhile over the summer and since I am interested
in medicine, the Lenox Hill summer program was perfect,” said
Slade, a senior at downtown’s Millennium High School.
While in recovery and healing, patients shared their
enthusiasm for life. “It is very heartwarming to see how
optimistic they are despite their medical conditions,” he added.
“I also really enjoyed meeting interesting people, from doctors
to other volunteers.”
Erika San Antonio, 15, whose mother is a registered nurse
Program Gives Students
a Taste of Healthcare
An immersive experience for teens
interested in medicine.
at another hospital, learned a lot during the program. In
ambulatory surgery at Lenox Hill, “the nurses were kind enough
to teach me how to take a patient’s pulse and temperature, and
they informed me about the different anesthetics used before
procedures,” said the sophomore from Kellenberg Memorial
High School in Uniondale.
In the Cardiology Department, she observed physicians
consulting with colleagues converged around a computer screen
showing a beating heart. And she saw how delivering flowers to a
mother and her newborn baby can bring boundless joy.
Whatever task a volunteer undertakes — no matter how large
or small — “it all counts toward the patient experience,” said Erika,
who aspires to become a surgeon.
The New Standard 37
hearts and hands
Consumer Support Network:
You’ve Got a Friend
By Susan Kreimer
GLEN OAKS — Members of the Zucker-Hillside Hospital’s
Consumer Support Network can count on having a confidant.
When they feel like talking, a friend will listen.
The network is a “buddy” matching option for those
obtaining outpatient psychiatric services. They go out and have
fun — as consumers and friends — enjoying meals, movies,
bowling and other fun activities.
“The focus of this program is to enhance the quality of
life for chronically, psychiatrically ill individuals through a
social support model,” said Vivian Weiser, coordinator of the
Consumer Support Network.
Ms. Weiser makes the matches based on considerations such
as participants’ ages, common interests and where they live. The
program fosters group interaction through weekly meetings at the
hospital, which also covers some expenses for one-on-one outings.
Buddies can get discounted tickets through Hospital Audiences
Inc., organizer of the Community Performing Arts Series in New
York City for a diverse selection of events that has included Mets
and Yankees games and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular.
“I have witnessed members form lifelong friendships and
receive support from their group members and buddies,” said
Ms. Weiser. “Members regularly tell me their great satisfaction
and appreciation.”
Flushing resident Brendan, 46, has been active in the
network for more than three years. In May, he began orientation
for a paid part-time position as a peer advocate at Zucker
Hillside. He will be involved with things like visiting patients on
the units before discharge and in their homes for three months
afterwards. His Consumer Support Network participation is an
added voluntary activity.
“Mentally ill people have a tendency to become very isolated,
and Consumer Support
Network addresses issues like
that,” said Brendan, who
has battled schizophrenia.
“It’s a very safe, encouraging
atmosphere where people can
sharpen their social skills.
People can lose their social
skills after a while.”
Ms. Weiser matched two
participants with Brendan,
38 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
and the three of them spend time together, usually on Sundays,
partaking in dinner or a movie. They talk on the phone during
the week to make plans and discuss whatever else comes to mind.
“They do as much for me as I do for them,” he said. “If I
have a problem, I can call them. They’re just as supportive.”
One of his matches is Christine, 58, who lives in Fresh
Meadows, and the other is a man in his late 30s.
Christine looks forward to their outings and to the weekly,
hour-long group meetings led by Ms. Weiser. “She’s so outgoing
with us,” she said of their group leader.
Participants bring snacks and discuss what’s happening
in their social lives. They share opinions on recent concerts,
plays and sporting events, bringing back brochures for a more
enlightening experience.
“It’s a great group. I’m very happy with it,” Christine
said. Venturing out and socializing has helped her cope with
depression.
Members of the Consumer Support Network “usually
start as peer buddies and then work themselves up to becoming
volunteers,” Ms. Weiser said, while adding that Brendan began as
a volunteer immediately.
Donna, 55, used to be a peer buddy and moved into the
volunteer’s role after overcoming her shyness. She joined the
network about five years ago upon the recommendation of her
therapist at Zucker-Hillside.
At the time, “I wasn’t really doing anything but sitting at
home,” said the Bayville resident. “I only really had one friend
and we didn’t get together much, which was making me even
more depressed.”
Since joining the group, “I’ve learned that I can go places
and do things that I used to think I could never do,” she added.
“Before Consumer Support
Network, I never would have
gone into New York City on
my own, and now I can travel
around by myself.”
Donna also can initiate
conversations with strangers
without feeling so anxious.
And her confidence has grown.
“I wish more hospitals had this
kind of program,” she said.
STATEN ISLAND — Staffing the information desk
of Staten Island University Hospital’s North Site
since April 1970, Nancy Guido holds the record as
the hospital’s longest-serving volunteer.
Ms. Guido’s first assignment was in the
hospital’s gift shop, but only for a day or two. A
pleasant demeanor and smiling face made her a
more desirable presence near the entrance.
The 95-year-old volunteered more than
8,400 hours before her December “retirement,”
said Toni Arcamone, Staten Island University
Hospital’s manager of volunteer services, adding
that “Nancy has trained a number of other
volunteers on the information desk.”
Among them is Helen Mon, 80, who started
in September 2008 and has volunteered together
with Ms. Guido from the outset. She said Ms. Guido
taught her “just about everything I know” about
working at the information desk. “I considered her
the brains, and I was the brawn,” said Ms. Mon, a
retired bookkeeper.
Ms. Guido garnered a number of accolades
for her service. In 1995, the hospital honored her
with its annual recognition for an outstanding
volunteer. She also received an award from
the United Hospital Fund in 1999 and a US
presidential award in 2007.
Friends Everywhere
But these honors weren’t what brought her
the most joy. Rather, it was the camaraderie and
genuine interest in helping others. “Everyone I
worked with, I became friends with them,” Ms.
Guido noted.
She also enjoys seeing familiar faces
when people recognize her in the grocery store or
wherever she goes out. “Oh, I know who you are. You
worked at the desk [of the hospital],” they remark.
Nancy Guido is Staten Island University Hospital’s longest-serving volunteer.
A Long-Time Supporter
By Susan Kreimer
Ms. Guido — the second-youngest of seven
children — has been part of the fabric of Staten
Island since childhood. Born in Manhattan, she
moved with her parents and siblings when she was 6
years old. Her father was a building contractor, and
her mother worked as a nurse.
“My parents looked forward for me
to do something like volunteering,” Ms.
Guido said. “In fact, they wanted me to
become a nurse.”
But she didn’t end up going to
nursing school. She met her husband,
the late Joseph Guido, “which was the
best thing,” she said. The couple owned a
dry-cleaning and tailoring business. Their
two daughters — Nancy Ann Marotta and
Frances Carol Pesce — also live on Staten
Island and visit Ms. Guido often.
The grandmother of eight and greatgrandmother of 14 is also known for her baking
finesse, with Sicilian nut rolls and rugelach recipes
topping her list of specialties. “I keep pretty busy
for the holidays,” Ms. Guido said.
Rocking Manhattan
J. Cotton/Rocking the Boat
The North Shore-LIJ Health System was a supporter of “Rocking Manhattan,” a
recent 29-mile, nine-hour row around Manhattan island that raised more than
$178,000 for programs sponsored by Rocking the Boat. The nonprofit empowers
young people challenged by severe economic, educational and social conditions to
develop the self-confidence to set ambitious goals and gain the skills necessary to
achieve them. The event included 62 rowers, including Michael Lettera, the health
system’s director of employee wellness, second from the right in the boat, shown
in the foreground of the Freedom Tower. Mr. Lettera, a 9/11 survivor, rowed the
entire circuit around Manhattan and raised more than $3,000.
The New Standard 39
mission possible
While serving his
fellowship in Indianapolis,
pediatric urologist Jordan
Gitlin, MD, learned
that a mentor was going
on a medical mission to
Guatemala. Dr. Gitlin
committed to participating in
the next mission.
The trips have since
become a tradition of almost
a decade. Every year, a week
before Thanksgiving, Dr.
Gitlin joins several other
pediatricians on a medical
mission to Guatemala through
the nonprofit Healing the
40 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Breathing Easy
in Guatemala
By Jamie Weissman
Children. The organization
works with the Foundation
for Pediatrics in Guatemala to
care for children in a country
without a pediatric urologist.
“We get kids that come
from all over the country
with conditions that would
be corrected with surgery
immediately at birth [in the
US],” Dr. Gitlin said.
While traveling with his
family in April 2012 to Lake
Atitlán, a remote Mayan
civilization, Dr. Gitlin hired
a tour guide named Juan
Diego. Mr. Diego and his wife
had had a baby who was born
prematurely and suffered with
respiratory problems. The
baby died after being taken to
two hospitals that both lacked
the proper medical devices.
“We don’t know exactly
what happened, but think the
baby just didn’t have the right
ventilator,” Dr. Gitlin said.
Ventilators deliver oxygen
into a patient’s lungs.
Above: Lake Atitlán in Guatemala, where Dr. Gitlin met Juan Diego. At right: Dr. Gitlin
and Juan Diego, the tour guide whose story inspired the ventilator donations.
In November 2012,
Dr. Gitlin joined a team
of 15 doctors at Cohen
Children’s Medical Center
who committed to raising
$2,500 for a project at the
hospital in exchange for a spot
in New York City’s annual
marathon. While pursuing
his fundraising goal, Dr.
Gitlin learned from Howard
Heiman, medical director
of the Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit (NICU) at Cohen
Children’s, that the NICU
needed a new ventilator.
Dr. Gitlin requested the
original ventilator be donated
to Mr. Diego’s village.
“Proper medical
equipment makes it so much
better for children in these
remote areas. It brings up
their standard of care,” Dr.
Heiman said.
The physicians
subsequently secured a
second ventilator for a
Guatemala City hospital.
Cohen Children’s donated
the ventilators, designed
exclusively for newborns and
young children, plus a supply
of tubing. Equipped to last
under harsh conditions, the
machines are expected to
function for about 10 years.
“One ventilator could
impact tons and tons of
people” Dr. Gitlin said.
Usually when hospitals
replace such medical devices,
the original units are
either recycled or stored in
warehouses for sale at auction.
Donating the equipment to
remote, underserved areas is
a lifeline for many. Cohen
Children’s is forming an
international medicine group
to coordinate with other
North Shore-LIJ facilities
to send medical residents
to communities around the
world to demonstrate effective
use of critical medical devices.
“We can channel this and
have a rebirth in areas that
could use the equipment,” Dr.
Heiman said.
The New Standard 41
mission possible
NEW YORK CITY — In
her last semester of nursing
school, Shaina Martinez,
PNP, gave birth prematurely
to her baby at 23 weeks. The
attentive care that nurses at a
neonatal intensive care unit
(NICU) provided for three
months to help her tiny infant
thrive inspired Ms. Martinez
to become a NICU nurse.
Today, as a neonatal/
pediatric nurse educator at
Lenox Hill Hospital, Ms.
Martinez takes mission trips
to share her expertise in
caring for infants at risk with
nurses in Africa. Through
CLASP (Connective Link
Among Special Needs
Programs) International,
the nurse practitioner
helped launch a NICU nurse
Caring for At-Risk
Infants in Africa
By Kathleen Waton
training program at the
University Teaching Hospital
in Lusaka, Zambia. The
year-and-a-half program
offers Web-based training
for the academic portion and
hands-on training through
rotating teams of NICU
nurses traveling abroad for
the practical.
In Kampala, Uganda,
Ms. Martinez is establishing
a similar NICU course
at Tunaweza Children’s
Center to support the
speech pathology program.
The course focuses on the
importance of infection
control, proper positioning
and controlling the
environment — sound, light
and temperature — to allow
infants to grow and develop
healthy. “If babies get proper
care in the NICU,” she said,
“when they ‘graduate,’ they
From left: Patricia Quinn, RN, NICU; Shaina Martinez, PNP, NICU; Lydia Vega, RN, NICU, Westchester Medical
Center; Shannon Benton, CEO of CLASP International; Kelly-Ann Redley, RN, NICU; and Blondine Jean-Baptiste, RT.
42 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
will be in a stronger position
to take advantage of speech
therapy.”
Ms. Martinez is also
working closely with Rose
Nabirye, RN, PhD, lecturer
at Makerere University’s
School of Nursing, to
establish a second NICU
nurse training program
in Kampala. “The NICU
program includes parent
education, too, so they
know how to take care of
their babies at home,” Ms.
Martinez said.
Besides clinical and
administrative hurdles, the
nurse also encounters cultural
barriers in establishing
programs. “In Africa, if
a child is not ‘normal,’ a
mother may abandon the
child — or not feed it. We seek
out these children hidden
away in the community so we
can get them help.”
Ms. Martinez hopes a
neonatologist can join her
and her nursing colleagues
when they return to Africa
in July next year. In the
meantime, she encourages
others to donate supplies
through CLASPInternational.
org, to consider helping with
the online training and, if
possible, to provide handson training in Africa next
summer.
Focus onHealth: A Fresh Perspective on Wellness
Focus onHealth, a new TV news magazine,
recently debuted on WLNY-TV 55/10. The
30-minute show airs Saturday mornings at
10:30 a.m. and includes three segments that
focus on a different theme each week.
Episodes explore subjects like healthcare
reform, cardiology, veterans programs,
diabetes, healthy eating on a budget, behavioral
health, neurology and adolescent services.
Suzanne Steinbaum, DO, a cardiologist at
Lenox Hill Hospital, hosts Focus onHealth, which
is produced by the North Shore-LIJ Public
Relations Department. “We designed the show
to be a sort of ‘60 Minutes meets healthcare’
in half the time,” said Dr. Steinbaum. “We
approach healthcare from a news feature
perspective, hoping not only to educate but
also entertain viewers.”
View Focus onHealth on:
•Cablevision channel 10 (standard
definition-SD) in New York and New
Jersey, channel 15 (SD) in Connecticut
and high-definition (HD) channel 710;
•TimeWarner channel 55 (SD), HD channel 755 in the
five boroughs, HD channel 755 in the Hudson Valley
and HD channel 753 in New Jersey;
•Verizon-FiOS channel 10 (SD) and HD channel 510;
•RCN channel 14 (SD);
•Comcast channel 10 (SD) and HD channel 810;
•DirecTV channel 55 (SD) and HD channel 55;
•Dish Network channel 55 (SD); and
•Over-the-air broadcasts on Channel 55 WLNY for
cable nonsubscribers.
The first season of 13 episodes will encore next spring. Find
a listing of upcoming shows or view individual episodes of Focus
onHealth at bit.ly/17tV1ib.
Get Social with Us
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and a host of
other social media platforms make it easy to
get news on the go via mobile devices. They are
also among the best ways to stay connected
to the North Shore-LIJ Health System’s Public
Relations (PR) Department.
Recently, the PR Department
introduced a new app to provide
convenient, accessible health
and wellness news. Called
OnHealth — available free
for the iPhone and iPad —
users can customize the
app so they get only the
information they want.
“The app pulls news articles, videos,
Health Blog posts and much more from the
Public Relations Department’s vast content
and lets users create a digital magazine where
they tailor the scope of that content,” said Terry
Lynam, vice president of
PR. “OnHealth updates
automatically —
and often — with the most recent
information from the health system.”
North Shore-LIJ Health System has an
active social media presence, so if you haven’t
signed up to follow us yet — you should. Find us
at these sites:
Blog.NorthShoreLIJ.com
Facebook.com/NorthShoreLIJ
Facebook.com/NorthShoreLIJCareers
Instagram.com/NorthShoreLIJ
Twitter.com/NorthShoreLIJ
Twitter.com/NSLIJCareers
YouTube.com/nslijhs
On Pinterest, search for
“North Shore-LIJ”.
The New Standard 43
They Give Kids Wings
Delta Air Lines JFK recently raised $270,000
for Cohen Children’s Medical Center of
New York with its Fourth Annual Delta
Golf Classic at Muttontown Country Club.
Together with its business partners, Delta
Air Lines JFK has raised close to $750,000
to support the pediatric hospital. From
left, Kevin McGeachy, executive director of
Cohen Children’s, and Randee Bloch, director
of development for the North Shore-LIJ
Health System Foundation, thanked Jeanne
Kemperle, Delta Golf Classic Committee
Chairperson and Delta Golf Committee
members for their support last fall.
Benefactor Donates $500,000
to Nephrology Institute
By Tony Davenport
GREAT NECK — John
Raggio, chair of the North
Shore-LIJ Health System’s
Nephrology Institute,
demonstrated his continued
dedication to fighting chronic
kidney disease (CKD) with a
recent $500,000 donation
to the Institute that bears
both his and his wife’s name.
The gift to the Janet and
John Raggio Nephrology
Institute will help sustain
its innovative work on CKD
prevention, which focuses
on early detection, education
and intervention.
Robert Mossey, MD,
established the institute 10
years ago to heighten CKD
awareness. The institute
44 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
does extensive outreach,
including promoting
early detection, offering
community education
workshops and collaborating
with community leaders to
spread strategies to prevent
the disease.
Alessandro Bellucci,
MD, now leads the institute,
which has embarked on
a new slate of innovative
community programs. One
new project includes working
closely with North Shore-LIJ
Laboratories. Dr. Bellucci
and Steven Fishbane, MD,
chief of North Shore-LIJ’s
Division of Hypertension
and Kidney Disease, are
looking into an at-risk
patient population whose
kidney function is between
60 and 90 percent in order
to identify opportunities for
early treatment.
The first phase of the
project will identify the
primary care physicians
treating these at-risk patients
and inform them of the
opportunities for early
intervention and/or early
referral to nephrologists. The
second phase will provide
those patients with tools
to monitor their kidney
function. The project will
follow these patients long
term to study risk factors and
kidney function in order to
develop strategies to slow the
progression of CKD or even
prevent its onset.
Two other projects being
supported by Mr. Raggio’s
philanthropy are the CKD
Healthy Transitions Program
and the Lose Weight to
Donate Program. Healthy
Transitions focuses on
patients in the later stages
of the disease to ensure
proper communication and
administration of optimal
treatment. Lose Weight to
Donate helps willing kidney
donors whose high body mass
index prevents donation to
reduce excess weight.
Mr. Raggio also provides
critical funding to train
young nephrologists,
including the institute’s
Hypertension and Kidney
Disease Fellowship Program.
Raggio fellows have
participated in important
clinical research projects,
published research papers
and engaged in community
screening and education
throughout the years.
Hang Out for a Cause
By April Sirianni
PORT WASHINGTON — A group of teenagers gathers monthly
around the table at the Marinelli home, but they aren’t there
just to hang out or share a meal: They are painting birdhouses
to help raise money for cancer research.
The group started Hanging Out for a Cause after the
Marinelli children’s grandfather received a diagnosis of chronic
lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).
“I like participating in Hanging Out for a Cause because we
all know someone who is struggling through something,” said
Christina Marinelli, 14.
The teens’ mother, Marianne Marinelli, said he has been
responding well to treatment, thanks to the care he gets from
Kanti Rai, MD, chief of the CLL Research and Treatment
Program at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research.
The group and their friends donated $1,100 to the CLL
Research and Treatment Center. They raised the money by selling
50 birdhouses at Port Washington’s recent Harborfest.
“I am grateful that I can help my grandfather and others
with this disease while having fun with my friends,” said
Nicholas Marinelli, 16.
Last summer, 11-year-old Julianna Marinelli presented Dr.
Rai with a $400 check, which were proceeds from sales of her
handcrafted jewelry. Julianna, who hopes to be a genetic research
scientist, summed up the feelings of all of her siblings: “I am so
happy to be able to do something to help my grandfather.”
The group raises money to support the CLL Research and Treatment Center.
Partners Council Raises $475K+
OLD WESTBURY — A capacity crowd
of almost 600 recently attended
the 21st Annual North Shore-LIJ
Partners Council for Women’s
Health Luncheon/Fashion Show.
The Old Westbury Gardens event
raised more than $475,000 for the
Katz Institute for Women’s Health
and the Katz Women’s Hospitals at
LIJ Medical Center and North Shore
University Hospital.
Rosanna Scotto, co-anchor
of WNYW-TV’s Good Day New York,
hosted the event and welcomed
Stacey Rosen, MD, vice president
of women’s health, as guest
speaker. Americana Manhasset
sponsored the luncheon/fashion
show, which previewed the fall
collection of Michael Kors. NuBest
Salon and Spa in Manhasset
created the makeup and hair
looks and treated all guests to
cosmetic bags courtesy of nuBest.
Attendees also received gift
certificates to the Michael Kors
shop at Americana Manhasset.
All the money raised will help
North Shore-LIJ in its continued
effort to transform women’s health
services throughout the region.
Partners Council for Women’s
Health of the North Shore-LIJ
Health System has raised more
than $6.5 million over the last
20 years to help buy important
equipment, fund critical research
projects and build programs for
the betterment of the women in
and around our community.
The New Standard 45
Creating New Healthcare Professionals
By Alexandra Zendrian
F
rom middle schoolers to medical students, the North Shore-LIJ Health
System offers educational opportunities to encourage community members
to enter the healthcare field.
For instance, Franklin Hospital’s Summer Scientific Work Program is
a pre-med summer internship that gives about 60 college undergrads the
opportunity to rotate through various Franklin care venues and receive
didactic instruction from Hofstra North Shore-LIJ Medical School faculty.
Interns work with a physician mentor throughout a four-week session.
Plainview and Syosset hospitals also participate in this program, which has
been offered since 1965 and attracted about 400 applicants from across the
country this year.
The Scientific Work Program helps students determine where they
could fit into the healthcare field, said Jack Rubenstein, MD, medical director
of Franklin’s Center for Diagnostic Consultation and director of the student
program for the past seven years.
Most participants enter some aspect of healthcare. Some of the
program’s alumni are North Shore-LIJ attending physicians, he added.
school juniors and continue through college sophomore year. The first year
covers leadership and team-building skills plus cardiopulmonary resuscitation
(CPR). In the second year, students learn how to conduct scientific research.
Third-year students participate in a “mini medical school” and rotate throughout
Franklin Hospital. Students receive a laptop and a stipend to offset lost potential
summer income. Grants for the program come from the Gateway Institute for
Pre-College Education, Uniondale High School and United Health Care. This
year’s pipeline students came from high schools in Queens, Brooklyn, Westbury,
Hempstead and Uniondale. The first set of graduates finished this year.
Cultivating STEM Careers
In addition, North Shore-LIJ coordinates the Long Island STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering and Math) Hub, with Brookhaven National Laboratory.
It is a part of national efforts to encourage young people to pursue STEM careers.
“This is a workforce and economic initiative that will help create a
pipeline of skilled and educated workers in our high-growth industries,” said
Cheryl Davidson, director of workforce readiness at North Shore-LIJ.
The Long Island STEM Hub develops partnerships between employers,
Pipeline to Success
higher education and K-12 institutions to create career academies, where
Franklin’s scientific internship offers two four-week summer sessions.
students learn academic subjects with professional, real-world examples.
Students from the School of Medicine’s Medical Scholars Pipeline Program
In a healthcare career academy, students use dosages to learn math or hear
have participated for the last two years. The pipeline exposes economically
from a poison-control speaker when studying Hamlet. Baldwin, Massapequa,
disadvantaged students to healthcare careers to increase diversity in healthcare.
East Islip, South Huntington, Richmond Hill and Plainview-Old Bethpage offer
Participants begin the four-year program, which started in 2009, as high
career academies. North Shore-LIJ will work with the Long Island STEM Hub to
launch additional career academies in 2014.
The North Shore-LIJ Medical Marvels
competition, offered through the Feinstein
Institute for Medical Research, encourages ninthand tenth-graders to enter STEM career pathways.
Kevin Tracey, MD, president and chief executive
One hundred high school students witnessed live robotic surgery recently when David Samadi, MD,
officer of the Feinstein Institute, keynoted the
standing, chair of urology and chief of robotic surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital, performed a complicated
Medical Marvels’ inaugural event earlier this year.
procedure that the facility transmitted live to on-site conference rooms. The teens traveled to New
The second Medical Marvels competition began
York from all over the US as participants in the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine, which
this fall and will culminate in early spring 2014.
introduces aspiring physicians to the field of medicine and career options.
Dr. Samadi explained the procedure as he progressed through
it. Soon after he concluded, he joined the students in the conference
room to discuss the training needed to become a surgeon, the
significance of paying attention not only to surgery’s technical factors
but also to the patient’s quality of life, and the importance of selecting
an outstanding team based on “trust, loyalty, respect and hard work.”
Rocky Cordova, 16, from New Mexico, said that although he
had previously considered cardiology, “this is pushing me more
toward surgery.”
Other students were impressed by the perseverance needed
to become an outstanding surgeon. “This was a very challenging
surgery,” said Kevin Koss, 16, of Clermont, FL. “It’s amazing to see how
you can train yourself to be so good at something. It takes a lot, but
it’s totally worth it when you get there.”
Surgery Demo Inspires Teens
46 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
EMT Program
Launches at Queens
High School
A New Angle for
Paramedic Training
By Betty Olt
LAKE SUCCESS — Students at the North Shore-LIJ Emergency
Medical Institute got a valuable education last summer, courtesy
of a revamped paramedic training program that went
beyond the classroom.
Every month or so, the paramedics-intraining would get into ambulances at 1979
Marcus Avenue and travel to patients in need.
Upon arrival, the students received details from
a bystander and then assisted the patient. The
people who “required” medical assistance were
standardized patients—that is, live actors who
simulated health emergencies.
The new wrinkle in paramedic training came
from retooling that began in 2009, when the
Emergency Medical Institute paused the program
to restructure it. A year later, a committee of doctors,
nurses and paramedic instructors collaborated to pave
the way for team- and case-based learning that would utilize
standardized patients.
CAMBRIA HEIGHTS — Some Queens ninth
graders recently set their sights on
healthcare careers as they entered the
inaugural class at the new Institute of
Health Professions at Cambria Heights. The
school’s new Career and Technical Education
High School collaborates with the Institute
for Student Achievement, the New York City
Department of Education, Hofstra University
and the North Shore-LIJ Health System and
its Center for Learning and Innovation.
With a strong focus on technical education and
science, the school encourages students to progress to
a four-year college. Besides preparing students to obtain
a bachelor’s degree, it also incorporates healthcare careerreadiness training. Students in the Career and Technical Education
High School’s first class will have the option to take coursework
leading to certification either as an emergency medical technician
(EMT) or nursing assistant. North Shore-LIJ will help train students to
become EMTs. Upon graduation, students who selected the EMT track
will be eligible to take the New York State certification exam.
“Students will learn in their community and get exposure
to real-world emergency training,” said David Battinelli,
MD, senior vice president and chief medical officer at North
Shore-LIJ. “New EMT graduates will have marketable skills
and be highly competitive in the healthcare industry.”
“This is an exciting opportunity for North Shore-LIJ to serve as
an industry partner with the institute, because we can help create
an innovative healthcare program for high school students from
the ground up, and also give back to the Queens communities we
serve,” said Kathleen Gallo, RN, PhD, senior vice president and chief
learning officer at North Shore-LIJ.
EMT students will visit the health system’s Center for
Emergency Medical Services and the Center for Learning and
Innovation and its Patient Safety Institute to practice medical
procedures on high-fidelity patient simulators, Dr. Gallo added.
“There is no substitute for hands-on training and students can hone
their clinical skills without risk to patients,” she said. North ShoreLIJ will also build a “learning lab” with EMT training equipment,
including two donated patient simulators — life-like mannequins
that allow students to practice communication and clinical skills.
By Jamie Weissman
Role-Playing
For their first simulation, students practiced delivering bad
news about a patient. The students’ enthusiasm for the exercise
inspired Anthony Conrardy, program director at the Emergency
Medical Institute, and Jane Wickey, director of standardized
patient education at the Center for Learning and Innovation,
to create more simulations. Each exercise coincided with class
material and progressed in complexity — from a respiratory
and cardiac patient, to a stroke victim, to a psychiatric patient,
and then a sexual assault victim. The standardized patients used
moulage, a special makeup that creates the appearance of injuries.
North Shore-LIJ is the only organization that trains
paramedics with standardized patients, according to Mr. Conrardy
and Ms. Wickey. Almost 50 standardized patients train for two
three-hour sessions prior to a simulation at the health system’s
Center for Learning and Innovation.
“It’s labor intensive. You need to have people who are
dedicated,” Mr. Conrardy said. “We would love if other health
systems would adopt training for paramedics with standardized
patients.”
“For EMS training, this is unheard of,” Mr. Conrardy said.
“We hope more medical facilities try it.”
Of the 18 program graduates, 12 are working at non-North
Shore-LIJ facilities. They may be spreading the word right now.
The New Standard 47
newDIGS
North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute
Adds Suffolk Radiation Practices
By Terry Lynam
SMITHTOWN — The North Shore-LIJ Health System has entered
a joint venture with North Shore Radiation Therapy, CyberKnife of
Long Island, which has offices in Smithtown and Greenlawn in Suffolk
County. The practice is now affiliated with the North Shore-LIJ Cancer
Institute and the health system’s Department of Radiation Medicine.
The affiliation is part of North Shore-LIJ’s ongoing expansion of
outpatient cancer services across the metropolitan area.
The Smithtown office has been offering CyberKnife
radiosurgery since 2010. CyberKnife procedures involve high doses
of radiation that target a patient’s tumor as an alternative to surgery.
Stereotactic radiosurgery often achieves comparable or better
outcomes when compared with other treatment options. As a result
of North Shore-LIJ’s affiliation with these facilities, their clinicians
can take part in more clinical trials that give their patients access to
new, advanced treatments.
“Adding these medical practices and the CyberKnife
technology to our fold enhances the already-high-quality
cancer care we offer to our patients and their loved ones,”
said Louis Potters, MD, North Shore-LIJ’s chair of radiation
medicine and codirector of the Cancer Institute.
“This new agreement broadens our resources and provides the
opportunity for the best local cancer care for the Suffolk community,”
said Richard Byrnes, MD, medical director of what is now known as
North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute – North Shore Radiation Therapy,
CyberKnife of Long Island. “The shared decision making with
North Shore-LIJ experts means that patients will receive world-class
cancer care close to their homes.” Working at the facilities with Dr.
Byrnes is Heather Zinkin, MD. Together, they treat more than 500
patients annually, including those with all types and stages of cancer.
The North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute diagnoses and treats more
than 16,000 cancer patients a year, which makes it one of the largest
cancer programs in the New York metropolitan area.
New Psychiatric Unit Helps College Students in Crisis
By Michelle Pinto
GLEN OAKS — A new inpatient unit at The Zucker Hillside Hospital
specializes in helping college students with behavioral health issues. The
Behavioral Health College Partnership is a unique new program that works
closely with colleges and universities to address behavioral health crises
on campuses through emergency protocols, enhanced school-hospital
communication and specialized evaluation and treatment. St. John’s
University in Queens and Adelphi University in Nassau County are among
the 23 colleges and universities that participate in the partnership.
“Since 1994, the rate of college students hospitalized for psychiatric
reasons has tripled. This program provides extraordinary emergency
processes to assess and treat acute psychiatric illness in students,” said
Laura Braider, PhD, director of the partnership.
Immediate Intervention
When a student needs immediate help because of suicidal or
homicidal thoughts, psychosis or a drug reaction, partner schools follow
established protocols.
Ambulance transport to LIJ Medical Center’s Emergency Department
is available 24/7 via the Center for Emergency Medical Services. Once
48 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
students arrive, psychiatrists assess the need for inpatient admission.
With the student’s permission, consultations with school personnel and/or
parents help with the decision.
For students who need hospitalization, a new 20-bed unit in Zucker
Hillside’s recently opened Behavioral Health Pavilion offers unique and
age-appropriate programs for students and their families. Length of stay
is usually from four to seven days. A critical focus addresses successful
re-entry to the university setting.
“Persisting symptoms, even if less apparent following treatment,
can still compromise academic and social performance,” Dr. Braider
said. “Students feel vulnerable about their futures and naturally want to
return immediately. So we work closely with unit staff to foster student
and family recognition and acceptance of what has happened in order to
strategize about safest next steps. Sometimes short-term delay equals
long-term success.”
The Behavioral Health College Partnership offers transitional posthospitalization outpatient treatment and, for selected students, ongoing
therapy in concert with their student counseling centers.
Multi-Specialty Center
Brings Medical Relief
to Queens
REGO PARK — At a time when
healthcare choices are dwindling, the
2.3 million residents of Queens are
getting much-needed support with
the new North Shore-LIJ MultiSpecialty Center at Queens Tower
in Rego Park. Formerly a standalone
urgent care center, the three-floor,
25,000 square-foot facility at 95-25
Queens Boulevard is now home to 17
clinical specialties.
“After a thorough assessment of
the local community’s requirements,
we selected a specialized group of
physicians to meet their needs,” said
Rita Mercieca, RN, executive director
of Forest Hills Hospital, located less
than two miles away from the new
facility. “We chose this central location
because of its proximity to tens of
thousands of neighboring residents
who can benefit from our services —
creating a convenient hub for medical
care in a densely populated area.”
Developed at a cost of $8.5
million, the center emphasizes not
only the treatment of disease but
also screening and prevention for
concerns such as diabetes, heart
disease and women’s health. Outfitted
with a full complement of diagnostic
and imaging equipment, the center
integrates all services with the nearby Forest Hills Hospital and
the entire North Shore-LIJ Health System.
In addition to internal medicine and preventive care,
patients will find specialty services such as cardiology;
general and bariatric surgery; endocrinology; plastic surgery;
gastroenterology; thoracic surgery; orthopedics; vascular surgery;
nephrology; podiatry/wound care; surgical oncology; urology;
ob/gyn and prenatal care ; human reproduction; maternal/fetal
medicine; gynecological sonography; and physical therapy.
As at all North Shore-LIJ practices, the physicians at Rego
Park are supported by a team of nurses, healthcare professionals
and support staff who have met the rigorous educational,
experiential and customer service standards of the health system.
Above: The new,
centrally located
Multi-Specialty
Center at
Queens Tower is
convenient for
tens of thousands
Queens residents.
Right:The center
offers physical
therapy among its
specialties.
The New Standard 49
kudos
Network Engineer Recognized
for Superstorm Efforts
ORLANDO, FL — Matthew Earley, network engineer at Staten
Island University Hospital (SIUH), has been named the 2014
Employee of the Year by the National Staffing Association.
The award recognized Mr. Earley, a network architect and
electrical engineer, for securing SIUH’s data center during
Superstorm Sandy.
The data center for SIUH’s north and south sites is on the
seventh floor of One Edgewater Plaza, which overlooks New York
Harbor. After Sandy made landfall, waves broke the moorings
on a commercial ship. The vessel thrust onto the shore, just feet
from the Edgewater Plaza building. Winds and water battered the
building. Power went out and police ordered evacuation. Despite
the danger, SIUH plant operations staff went down into the
flooded basement to switch off the power.
When the worst was over, Mr. Earley re-entered the building
with Kathy Kania, SIUH’s chief information officer, Michael
Botticelli, director of data center operations and IT staff members
to work in darkened stairwells from the flooded basement to the
inactivated but intact data center, up to the damaged roof.
Though they were anxious about another incoming tide, they
brought the SIUH data systems back up by noon the next day —
50 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
without any performance or data loss.
“We nominated Matthew Earley for his work ethic
and expertise, and also for his commitment to Lloyd and
to our client, North Shore-LIJ,” said Jeanine Bondi, vice
president and senior managing director at Lloyd IT.
“Mr. Earley’s role was critical in helping Staten Island
University Hospital maintain quality patient care amid the
chaos of the storm.” A staffing resource company, Lloyd
IT has served the health system for more than 15 years.
“Besides being a consummate expert in his field, Matthew
is extraordinary in his ability to plan and think outside the
proverbial box to address issues under tremendously stressful
circumstances,” said Ms. Kania.
Honored for his dedication to protecting Staten Island University Hospital’s
data systems during Superstorm Sandy, Matthew Earley, second from
right, has been named the Employee of the Year by the National Staffing
Association. Congratulating him were, from left: Michael Dowling, North
Shore-LIJ’s president and CEO; Jeanine Bondi, vice president and senior
managing director of Lloyd IT; and John Bosco, senior vice president and chief
information officer of the health system.
Gerard Brogan, Jr., MD, medical director at Forest Hills
Hospital and associate professor of emergency medicine at
the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, recently
received the 2013 Physician of the Year Award from the New
York American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP). The
award was presented at the New York ACEP’s annual meeting
in Bolton Landing, NY.
James Cameron, RN, a pediatric emergency nurse at
Huntington Hospital, has been appointed to an eight-year
term as the congressional medical contact for New York’s First
Congressional District by the Emergency Nurses Association.
Mr. Cameron works closely with elected officials to create and
promote legislation that advocates for improved healthcare
policies related to emergency medicine.
Doris Day, MD, dermatologist at Lenox Hill Hospital,
recently presented a live injection session at the American
Academy of Dermatology Meeting and a neuromodular injection
session at the Mount Sinai Advanced Dermatologic Surgery
Symposium, both held in New York City. Dr. Day also presented
“Talking to the Media: Are You Ready?” during New York
University’s “Advances in Dermatology” course, and gave lectures
at the Cosmetic Update conference in Vancouver, BC, entitled
“Masters in Aesthetics: Update on Injectables” (with live patient
treatment) and “Cosmetic Update: Abobotulinum Toxin, My
Experience.” In addition, she contributed the “Cosmeceuticals
for Rosacea and Facial Redness” chapter to Cosmeceuticals and
Cosmetic Practice (Wiley-Blackwell).
Yosef Dlugacz, PhD, senior vice president and chief of
clinical quality, education and research for North Shore-LIJ,
and Catherine Besthoff, RN, director of program evaluation
at the Krasnoff Quality Management Institute, were invited
to participate in the 30th International Conference of the
International Society for Quality in Healthcare in Edinburgh,
Scotland, this autumn. Dr. Dlugacz gave a lecture on “Changing
Behavior: Educating Leadership via Dashboards” and Ms. Besthoff
New: Submit
accomplishments at
HealthPort > Kudos.
on “Measuring the Impact of Public Private Partnerships.”
Tina Dobsevage, MD, attending internist at Lenox Hill,
was recently inducted as a fellow of the American College of
Physicians during the convocation ceremony at the college’s
annual meeting in San Francisco.
Michael Dowling, president and chief executive officer of
the North Shore-LIJ Health System, was ranked 25th in Modern
Healthcare magazine’s recently published annual listing of the
nation’s “Top 100 Healthcare Leaders.” Mr. Dowling was the
top-ranked hospital executive in the New York area and moved
up 13 slots from his 38th ranking last year. It is his seventh
consecutive appearance and highest ranking on the annual list.
David Edelstein, MD, chief of otolaryngology/head
and neck surgery at Manhatten Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital
(MEETH), chief of nasal and sinus surgery at MEETH and
Lenox Hill, and codirector of nasal and sinus disease and
surgery at the New York Head and Neck Institute at Lenox
Hill Hospital, was recently elected president of the New York
Otological Society.
Zianka Fallil, MD, neurologist at the Comprehensive
Epilepsy Care Center and assistant professor of neurology at the
Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, recently cowrote
“Polymicrogyria-Associated Epilepsy: A Multicenter Phenotypic
Study From the Epilepsy Phenome/Genome Project,” published
in the journal Epilepsia.
Cynthia Harden, MD, North Shore-LIJ’s chief of
epilepsy and electroencephalography and director of the
Comprehensive Epilepsy Care Center, and Gregory Kapinos,
MD, neurointensivist at North Shore University Hospital,
recently published “Evidence-based Guideline Update: Vagus
Nerve Stimulation for the Treatment of Epilepsy” in Neurology.
The article updates a 1999 American Academy of Neurology
guideline on the topic, specifically how vagus nerve stimulation
may help as adjunctive therapy in children and adults. The
journal also published Dr. Kapinos’s review of The Evidence for
Neurosurgery and his cowritten editorial review, “Clinicoradiologic
Acute Monitoring After Intracerebral Hemorrhage: Toward
Standards?” Furthermore, he recently presented three posters
at the 12th Annual Vasospasm International Conference on
Neurovascular Events after Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in
Lucerne, Switzerland.
continued on page 53
The New Standard 51
kudos
Accreditations
and Certifications
Franklin Hospital’s Total
Joint Replacement Program
has received the Joint
Commission’s Gold Seal of
Approval for total hip and
knee replacement. The Valley
Stream hospital recently
underwent a voluntary,
on-site evaluation by the
Joint Commission to assess
Franklin’s compliance with
Joint Commission standards
of care such as care efficiency
and infection prevention,
plus staff and patient
interviews. “Achieving this
certification means Franklin
Hospital’s total hip and knee
replacement patients can
expect superior care,” said
Gus Katsigiorgis, DO, head
of Franklin’s orthopedics
program. “In adhering to
the Joint Commission’s
strict clinical guidelines, our
team continuously provides
patients with high-quality,
life-changing procedures.”
The same program has also
received a five-star rating
from Healthgrades for 2011,
2012 and 2013 and the
hospital’s overall orthopedics
program was ranked the best
on Long Island in 2013.
Stacey Rosen, MD, vice
president of the Katz Institute
for Women’s Health, recently
accepted the American Heart
Association’s Spectrum
Award on behalf of the North
Shore-LIJ Health System. The
association recognized North
52 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Shore-LIJ for continued
support of the Cities Go
Red and Go Red for Women
movements.
The North Shore
University Hospital Palliative
Care Program was recently
named a Circle of Life
Award honoree at the 21st
Annual Leadership Summit
of the Health Forum and
the American Hospital
Association in San Diego. The
program was highlighted for
its commitment to caring for
people with serious illness and
their families. Furthermore,
the palliative care team
received special recognition
for its collaboration and
visionary leadership in
developing palliative care
programs across the North
Shore-LIJ Health System.
Dana Lustbader, MD, head
of palliative medicine at the
hospital, accepted the citation
of honor on behalf of North
Shore University Hospital.
Southside Hospital’s
Sleep Center has been
accredited by the American
Academy of Sleep Medicine.
To qualify for accreditation,
the sleep center had to meet
or exceed all the academy’s
standards for professional
healthcare in areas such
as personnel, facility and
equipment, policies and
procedures, data acquisition,
patient care and quality
assurance.
Fifth Annual
Brain Aneurysm Walk
More than 1,000 walkers helped raise $70,000 at Jones
Beach State Park this fall during Long Island’s Fifth Annual
Brain Aneurysm Awareness Walk, hosted by North Shore-LIJ’s
Brain Aneurysm Center and the Brain Aneurysm Foundation.
Funds raised during the walk will benefit the center and the
foundation, supporting research aimed to help patients and
reduce the incidence of ruptured aneurysms. Brain aneurysm
survivors, their families and friends participated in the
event alongside clinicians and staff members from the Brain
Aneurysm Center.
Union Dubs Forest Hills RN
a Nurse of Distinction
Forest Hills Hospital’s Lorraine
Munoz-Cuadrado, RN, has
been named Preceptor of the
Year by 1199SEIU. The award
honors peer-nominated RNs for
outstanding achievement and
commitment to patient-centered
care and results from the
collective bargaining agreement
between the 1199SEIU RN
Division and the League of
Voluntary Hospitals and Homes
of New York. The board-certified
lactation consultant and
coordinator at Forest Hills’s
New Life Center has 26 years of
clinical experience in maternal/
neonatal nursing.
from page 51
Len Horovitz, MD, pulmonary specialist at Lenox Hill
Hospital, wrote a chapter entitled “Pulmonary Medicine for
Singers” for The Singer’s Guide to Complete Health, a book recently
published by the Oxford University Press.
Glenn Jelks, MD, attending plastic surgeon at Lenox
Hill, was recently named an Honorary Member of the New
England Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons at the
society’s annual meeting in Newport, RI. As keynote speaker
there, Dr. Jelks presented “No-Touch Blepharoplasty” and
“Avoidance and Management of Lower Lid Malposition.” Also,
as invited lecturer at the 2013 Summit in Aesthetic Medicine
in Dana Point, CA, he presented “Algorithm for Management
of Lower Lid Malposition” and “Anatomical Basis for Lower
Lid Blepharoplasty.” Dr. Jelks also presented at two separate
International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery meetings
held in St. Petersburg, Russia, and Istanbul, Turkey, where
he performed two live no-touch blepharoplasty surgeries and
lipostructure and made several presentations.
Kenar Jhaveri, MD, nephrologist at the North Shore-LIJ
Nephrology Institute and associate professor at the Hofstra
North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, recently received the 2013
Miriam Friedman Ben-David Award at the 2013 Conference
of the Association for Medical Education in Europe. The
association recognized Dr. Jhaveri for developing innovative
teaching tools to enhance medical education. He is the first
recipient from the United States since the award’s inception in
2008. Dr. Jhaveri presented “Journal-Based Blogs: Is This the
Future of Medical Publications?” at the conference, which took
place in Prague.
Seymour Katz, MD, an attending gastroenterologist
at NSUH and LIJ, wrote the review article, “My Treatment
Approach to the Management of Ulcerative Colitis,” which
was recently published in Mayo Clinc Proceedings. Dr. Katz
also cowrote “Reversible Pseudoachalasia in a Patient with
Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding” for Gastroenterology &
Hepatitis and “A Randomised, Double-blind, Sham-Controlled
Study of Granulocyte/Monocyte Aphresis for Moderate to
New: Submit
accomplishments at
HealthPort > Kudos.
Severe Crohn’s Disease,” recently published in Gut.
Howard Kerpen, MD, director of the Lorber Center
for the Advancement of Medical Education at LIJ Medical
Center and the Lorber Professor of Medical Education at the
Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, will receive
the 2014 Outstanding Volunteer Clinical Teacher Award
from the American College of Physicians. He will accept the
award during the Internal Medicine Conference in April in
Orlando, FL.
Chad Kliger, MD, attending cardiologist at Lenox Hill,
was designated the “Best Case Presenter” at the 2013 Society of
Cardiac Angiography and Interventions Scientific Sessions in
Orlando, FL, for his manuscript “3D-CTA and Fusion Imaging
for the Planning and Guidance of Interventions.”
Arnold Komisar, MD, DDS, medical director of the
New York Head and Neck Institute at Lenox Hill Hospital,
was an invited faculty member at the Second World Congress
on Thyroid Cancer held recently in Toronto. Dr. Komisar
presented “Differentiated Thyroid Cancer Follow-up: What
Tests, How Often and for How Long?”
Burton Korelitz, MD, chief emeritus of gastroenterology
and director of research in inflammatory bowel diseases at
Lenox Hill, recently published “Expert Opinion: Experience
with 6-Mercaptopurine in the Treatment of Inflammatory
Bowel Disease” in the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
Daniel Kuriloff, MD, director of the Center for Thyroid
and Parathyroid Surgery at New York Head and Neck Institute
at Lenox Hill Hospital, recently contributed the chapter “The
Management of the Parathyroid Glands During Thyroid
Surgery” to the latest edition of Atlas of Operative Otorhinolaryngology
and Head and Neck Surgery.
Fiona Levy, MD, chief quality officer at Cohen Children’s
Medical Center of New York, has been asked to serve on
the Quality and Performance Committee for the Children’s
Hospital Association (CHA, formerly known as NACHRI).
This new committee reports to the organization’s Board of
Trustees and reviews and recommends national standards
for pediatric care and the quality and safety-related policies
governing CHA activities. It also provides oversight of CHA’s
performance, quality and safety strategy, priorities and agenda.
continued on next page
The New Standard 53
kudos
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HealthPort > Kudos.
from page 53
Terry Lynam, vice president of public relations for the
North Shore-LIJ Health System, was recently elected chair of the
Fair Media Council Board of Directors. The FMC is a nonprofit
organization that advocates for quality local news and educates
businesses, nonprofits and the public about becoming media
savvy. Mr. Lynam previously served as a member of the Fair
Media Council’s Executive Board.
Kevin Masick, PhD, informatics manager at the Krasnoff
Quality Management Institute, has coauthored Research
Methods: Designing and Conducting Research with a Real-World Focus (Sage
Publications).
Rebecca Mazurkiewicz, MD, internist and director of the
primary care track of Lenox Hill’s Internal Medicine Residency
Program and site director of the hospital’s acting internship,
cowrote “Expectations for Medical Student Work Hours in
Inpatient Clinical Clerkships,” which was recently published in
the journal Teaching and Learning in Medicine. Also, Dr. Mazurkiewicz
has received a Teaching and Mentoring Award from New York
Medical College students and a Service Award from the college’s
Medical Education Department.
Malachy McHugh, PhD, director of research at Lenox Hill’s
Nicholas Institute of Sports Medicine and Athletic Trauma,
recently cowrote “The Role of Cherries in Exercise and Health”
in Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. Dr. McHugh
also coauthored the brief report, “Randomized Double-blind
Crossover Study of the Efficacy of a Tart Cherry Juice Blend in
Treatment of Osteoarthritis of the Knee.”
David Samadi, MD, chair of urology at Lenox Hill
Hospital, recently coauthored “Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic
Prostatectomy in Men with Metabolic Syndrome” in Urologic
Oncology and “Validation of the Online Administration of the
Sexual Health Inventory for Men” in Journal of Urology. Dr. Samadi
also presented the lectures “Watchful Waiting vs. Robotic
Prostatectomy Debate: Which Is Optimal for Treatment of
Gleason 6 Prostate Cancer?” “Risk-Adjusted Actual Hospital
Costs of Primary Treatment of Prostate Cancer: A Contemporary
Experience of Multidisciplinary Cancer Center” and “Are All
D’Amico Intermediate Risk Prostate Cancer Patients Equal?
Heterogeneity of Intermediate Risk Patients by Gleason Score”
at the American Urological Association (AUA) annual meeting
in San Diego. Other lectures Dr. Samadi gave at the AUA
meeting included “Decisional Regret After Robotic Assisted
Laparoscopic Prostatectomy: The Role of Race” at the Pan
African urological Surgeons Association/Caribbean Urological
54 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Association podium session and “Metabolic Syndrome in
Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic Prostatectomy” at the Korean
World Urological Congress podium session. At the Canadian
Urological Association’s annual meeting, Dr. Samadi presented
several posters: “Prostate Tumor Size and Histopathologic
Outcomes: Are MRI-Undetectable Tumors Significant?”; “The
Effects of Antidepressants on the Change in Erectile Function”;
“The Quality of Nerve-Sparing During Radical Prostatectomy
Affects Sexual Function and Urinary Continence Recovery”;
“Predictors of Gleason Score Upgrading and the Influence
of Treatment for Benign Prostate Hyperplasia”; “Decisional
Regret After Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic Prostatectomy: The
Role of Race”; and “Metabolic Syndrome in Robot-Assisted
Laparoscopic Prostatectomy.”
Michael Schulder, MD, director of Cushing Neuroscience
Institute’s Brain Tumor Center, recently received the 2013
Robert Bernstein Humanitarian Award from Voices Against
Brain Cancer (VABC). Dr. Schulder accepted the award at
VABC’s Third Annual 5K Run/Walk in Memory of Robert
Bernstein, MD, at Eisenhower Park.
Michael Setzen, MD, attending otolaryngologist at North
Shore University Hospital (NSUH), was recently awarded the
2013 Practitioner Excellence Award by the American Academy
of Otolaryngology (AAO)—Head and Neck Surgery Board of
Governors. Dr. Setzen serves as the cochair of the AAO Physician
Payment Policy Workgroup.
Susan Shevlin, assistant vice president of human resources
for the North Shore-LIJ Health System, was recently appointed
a regional consultant for the Regional, Chapter and Member
Services Committee of the American Society for Healthcare
Human Resources Administration.
Susan Simpson, director of Huntington Hospital’s medical
library, recently published “Remote Access to Library Resources
Enhances Volunteers’ Contribution to a Health Sciences Library”
in the Journal of Hospital Librarianship.
continued on page 56
SAN DIEGO — The North Shore-LIJ Health
System recently received an Impact
Award from the Society for Industrial
and Organizational Psychology and
the Society for Human Resource
Management for its emphasis on
employee engagement and recognition.
The international award recognizes
human resources (HR) practices and
initiatives that have been measured
and determined successful through
evidence-based, data-driven analyses.
North Shore-LIJ won the award for
success in building a sustainable
employee culture of safety by
embracing a zero-tolerance approach to
medical errors and empowering staff to
speak up on patient safety issues.
“We selected two large-scale,
system-wide implementations —
TeamSTEPPS and Collaborative Care
Councils — to build a culture of safety
that would positively affect quality
of care, the patient experience and
our financial outcomes,” said Michael
Dowling, North Shore-LIJ Health
System’s president and CEO. “We
found that by investing in formalized
team training and bringing front-line
personnel into the decision-making
process, we have improved our
performance and outcomes.”
Taking top honors alongside the
health system were PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay
Division, Procter & Gamble, and the US
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
and Explosives. “These organizations
have effectively employed HR practices
using evidence-based measurement
and management,” said Hank Jackson,
president and CEO of the Society for
Human Resource Management. “We
congratulate the four winners of the
2013 HRM Impact Award and urge the
HR departments of other organizations
to emulate their outstanding use of
workforce analytics to drive success.”
International Honor
for Human Resources
A representative from the Society for Human
Resource Management, left, presented the
Impact Award jointly with the Society for
Industrial and Organizational Psychology.
Accepting were, from left: Lily Thomas,
RN, PhD, North Shore-LIJ’s vice president
of nursing research; Catherine Galla, RN,
assistant vice president of nursing initiatives;
Maureen White, RN, North Shore-LIJ’s senior
vice president and chief nursing officer; and
Joe Cabral, senior vice president of human
resources for the health system.
Receiving the Impact Award from
the Society for Industrial and
Organizational Psychology society
were Ms. Galla, left, and Myrta
Rabinowitz, manager of nursing
initiatives for the health system.
The New Standard 55
kudos
New:
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HealthPort > Kudos.
from page 54
Arunabh Talwar, MD, director of the Pulmonary
Hypertension Program in the North Shore University Hospital
Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, and
associate professor of medicine at the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ
School of Medicine, recently authored and published the second
edition of Lung Disease 101: A Patient Primer, which provides a basic
road map on how lung disease is diagnosed and managed.
Kara Theal, RN, director of nursing informatics
at Huntington Hospital, recently cowrote the abstract
“Continuous Lumbar Plexus Catheter Removal in Postoperative
Total Hip Replacement Patients Receiving Warfarin
Thromboprophylaxis: A Retrospective Analysis,” which
appeared in the Open Journal of Anesthesiology.
Lily Thomas, RN, PhD, vice president of nursing research
for the health system, was inducted as a fellow into the American
Academy of Nursing at the organization’s annual conference this fall.
Vincent Vinciguerra, MD, the Tita and Joseph Monti
Professor of hematology/oncology at the Hofstra North ShoreLIJ School of Medicine, recently received a Gold DOC Award
from the Arnold P. Gold Foundation in recognition for his
compassionate patient care and his involvement in starting the
North Shore-LIJ Health System’s annual Cancer Survivors’
Day celebration. The foundation’s Gold DOC Award Program
gives patients and their families an avenue to honor clinicians
who demonstrate exemplary sensitivity, compassion and clinical
excellence.
Stacy Wahl, RN, PhD, critical care educator at NSUH,
recently presented “Novice Nurses: You Hired Them, But Can
You Retain Them?” at the 40th Annual National Conference
on Professional Nursing Education and Development. Dr. Wahl
recently presented the workshop “Concept Mapping: A Tool
to Facilitate Critical Thinking and Clinical Decision Making”
with Anita Thompson, RN, nursing educator at NSUH, at
the 2013 Association for Nursing Professional Development
(ANDP) National Convention in Dallas. Furthermore, Dr.
Wahl contributed a new chapter entitled “Critical Thinking and
Clinical Decision Making” to ANPD’s recently published Core
Curriculum for Nursing Professional Development, 4th Edition.
Surgeons of
All Stripes
The joint meeting of the Nassau
Surgical Society and the Brooklyn/
Long Island Chapter of the American
College of Surgeons recently attracted
450 surgeons from all specialties.
Otolaryngologist Michael Setzen,
MD, right, the program organizer and
scientific chairman, welcomed keynote
speaker Christian Shalgian, MD, center,
director of advocacy for the American
College of Surgeons, and John McNelis,
MD, left, vice president of the Brooklyn/
Long Island chapter of the College of
Surgeons to the event.
56 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
lifeSAVER
Employee
Blood Drives
what’s in
your blood?
1/6 North Shore-LIJ Materials
Management, Lake Sucess
1/7 Staten Island University
Hospital (SIUH) North Site
1/7 Franklin Hospital
1/8 PAANS
1/15 SIUH South Site
1/16 Southside Hospital
1/17 The Feinstein Institute for
Medical Research
1/17 SIUH Pouch Site
1/23 North Shore-LIJ Finance,
Westbury
Whole blood’s components serve
many functions:
l Red blood cells carry oxygen
to the tissues in the body
and are commonly used in
the treatment of anemia.
l Platelets help the blood
to clot and are helpful in
treating leukemia and other
forms of cancer.
l White blood cells help to
fight infection and aid in the
immune process.
l Plasma is the watery, liquid
part of the blood where red
blood cells, white blood cells,
and platelets are suspended.
Plasma carries the many
parts of the blood through
the bloodstream. Among
plasma’s functions are:
w Helping to maintain
blood pressure
w Providing proteins for
blood clotting
w Balancing the levels of
sodium and potassium
l Cryoprecipitate AHF, a part of
the plasma, contains clotting
factors that help to control
bleeding.
Albumin, immune globulins, and
clotting-factor concentrates may
also be separated and processed
for transfusions.
JAN
2/1 Lenox Hill Hospital
2/3 Plainview Hospital
2/3 Center for Emergency
Management Services
2/5 Center for Advanced
Medicine, New Hyde Park
2/10 LIJ
2/10 NSUH
2/11 SIUH North Site
2/12 North Shore-LIJ
Laboratories, Lake Success
2/19 SIUH South Site
2/21 Forest Hills Hospital
2/28 North Shore-LIJ Corporate
Office, Great Neck
FEB
David Shepetofsky, senior specialized physical therapist, during a recent
employee blood drive at Staten Island University Hospital.
5th Annual
Every Woman Matters Walk:
A Walk for Women and Their Families
Good news: The Every Woman Matters Walk will return to
the boardwalk at Jones Beach State Park next spring. Damage
from Superstorm Sandy necessitated cancellation of the 2013
event, but it will return in May 2014.
Since the Every Woman Matters Walk began in 2010,
participants have raised nearly $1.5 million to support the Katz
Women’s Hospitals, the Katz Institute for Women’s Health and
women’s health services throughout the North Shore-LIJ Health
System. North Shore-LIJ’s Commerce and Industry Council will
again host the special occasion.
Mark your calendar to celebrate women’s health and
wellness with family, friends and the whole community next
spring. For information on how to participate, contact Wendy
Kaye at 516-465-2502 or [email protected].
The New Standard 57
Executive Appointments
Anthony Ferreri has been
named regional executive director
of the North Shore-LIJ Health
System’s Western Region, which
includes Lenox Hill Hospital,
Manhattan Eye Ear and Throat
Hospital, Staten Island University
Hospital (SIUH), the Center
for Comprehensive Care in
Greenwich Village and other
potential markets west of the
Van Wyck Expressway. Currently
Anthony Ferreri
SIUH’s president and CEO, Mr.
Ferreri joined the hospital as a trustee in 1995. In 2001, he was
appointed as the hospital’s executive vice president. He previously
served as president and chief executive officer of Metro Health
Care Services, a for-profit staffing
and home care service operating in
New Jersey and New York.
While Mr. Ferreri retains his
current titles, Donna Proske,
RN, has been appointed executive
director of SIUH, with day-today administrative oversight of
the hospitals. Ms. Proske has
a 30-year history with SIUH.
In 2007, she was appointed
executive vice president, chief
Donna Proske, RN
operating officer and chief
nursing executive. Previously, Ms. Proske was the manager for
the Intensive Care Unit and was the Critical Care Department’s
clinical nurse specialist.
Chronic Pain Diminished,
Woman Gets Her Life Back
SYOSSET — Tina DiGiovanni could
not stand up straight, clean her
house, attend her six-year-old
son’s activities or get a good
night’s sleep because of chronic,
debilitating back pain. The
43-year-old Lake Grove resident
needed help to complete routine
daily activities. The pain caused her
to stay home from work for months.
Since becoming the first
person in New York State to
receive the magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) spinal cord
stimulator, her life has taken a
remarkable turn. John Stamatos,
MD, director of interventional pain
management at Syosset Hospital,
implanted the device, which
replaces the pain Ms. DiGiovanni
previously felt with a tingling
58 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
feeling and allows her to get MRI
scans without needing surgery to
remove the stimulator first.
Ms. DiGiovanni recently
returned to Syosset Hospital to
thank Dr. Stamatos and to talk
about returning to work for the
first time in nine months.
“Getting the spinal cord
stimulator has been life-altering,”
Ms. DiGiovanni said. “I am forever
indebted to Dr. Stamatos; he gave
me my life back.”
“It’s important for people
like Tina, who have had previous
back surgeries, or those with
chronic illnesses, to have an
MRI-compatible device,” Dr.
Stamatos said. “They will need
MRI scans in the future and can
now get the pain relief they
need without worrying about the
possibility of not being able to
undergo these crucial tests.”
About 116 million American
adults have chronic pain — more
than the number of people
affected by diabetes, heart disease
and cancer combined, according
to Medtronic, manufacturer of the
MRI-compatible unit.
Above, from left: Dr. Stamato and
Ms. DiGiovanni.
Clinical Services Reorganized
Growth within the North Shore-LIJ Health System’s
physician, ambulatory and service line network has necessitated
a restructuring to better reflect the current needs of the
organization and to clarify the roles and responsibilities of the
service lines, the medical group and ambulatory services.
Medical Group
As executive director and senior vice president of the
North Shore-LIJ Medical Group, Ira Nash, MD, reports to
Michael Dowling, president and chief executive officer, and
Lawrence Smith, MD, executive vice president and physicianin-chief. Dr. Nash carries out the Medical Group’s mission
to provide exceptional, comprehensive and high-quality
clinical care to patients, families and communities through
an integrated approach and with a commitment to exceed
customer expectations. Dr. Nash coordinates activities across
the Medical Group, ensuring delivery of high-quality and
compassionate medical care, including creating a culture to
ensure the integration of all physicians who join the Medical
Group, enhancing the Medical Group brand and increasing
internal cross-referrals. Dr. Nash also serves as the North ShoreLIJ Medical Group’s representative to national, state and local
organizations and government agencies.
Service Lines
Recognizing the increasing importance of the role that service
line leaders play in North Shore-LIJ’s success, the following
service line leaders have been named executive directors. The new
designation is in addition to the responsibilities these individuals
hold as chairs of their departments and at the Hofstra North
Shore-LIJ School of Medicine. These titles do not reflect the
departments within specific hospitals for which the individual
holds a title of “chair.”
Cardiovascular — Stanley Katz, MD, School of Medicine chair,
senior vice president and executive director of cardiology services
Cardiovascular — Alan Hartman, MD, School of Medicine chair,
senior vice president and executive director of cardiothoracic services
Emergency Medicine — John D’Angelo, MD, senior vice president
and executive director of emergency services
Head and Neck Institute — Peter Costantino, MD, School of
Medicine chair, senior vice president and executive director of the
New York Head and Neck Institute
Neurosurgery — Raj Narayan, MD, School of Medicine chair,
senior vice president and executive director of the Harvey
Cushing Institute
Cancer Institute — Louis Potters, MD, School of Medicine chair of
radiation medicine, co-executive director of the Cancer Institute
Cancer Institute — Daniel Budman, MD, associate chief of
medicine/oncology, co-executive director of the Cancer Institute
Pathology/Laboratory Medicine — James Crawford, MD, School of
Medicine chair, senior vice president and executive director of
laboratory services
Imaging — Jason Naidich, MD, School of Medicine chair, senior
vice president and executive director of imaging
Orthopedic Surgery — Nicholas Sgaglione, MD, School of
Medicine chair, senior vice president and executive director of the
Orthopedic Institute
Surgery — Gene Coppa, MD, School of Medicine chair, senior vice
president and executive director of surgical services
Medicine — Thomas McGinn, MD, School of Medicine chair,
senior vice president and executive director of medicine
Obstetrics/Gynecology — Adiel Fleischer, MD, School of Medicine
chair, senior vice president and executive director of obstetrics
and gynecology services
Pediatrics — Charles Schleien, MD, School of Medicine chair,
senior vice president and executive director of pediatric services
Psychiatry — John Kane, MD, School of Medicine chair, senior vice
president and executive director of behavioral health
These service line leaders report to Dr. Smith and Mark
Solazzo, the health system’s executive vice president and chief
operating officer. Each service line functions as a discrete
business unit within the health system, with accountability and
responsibility for its growth and development, inclusive of
market share growth ensuring optimal quality, patient experience
and financial performance. The service line leader is also
responsible for the profit and loss of the service line.
New Name for PAANS
In recognition of its redefined role, Physician and Ambulatory
Network Services (PAANS) has been renamed Ambulatory
Services. As senior vice president of ambulatory services, Dennis
Dowling reports to Mr. Solazzo. Ambulatory Services focuses
on increasing overall market share through the expansion of the
ambulatory network. Ambulatory network growth is achieved by
working cooperatively with service line, Medical Group, hospital,
regional and system leadership on strategic program development,
physician alignment, strategic alliances and ambulatory site
development. Ambulatory Services also works with each service
line leader to manage the health system’s network of ambulatory
locations, focused on our customers to ensure efficiency, ease of
access, service and profitability, with the goal of becoming a highperforming network. Assisting Mr. Dowling are Deborah Schiff
and Joseph Moscola, who have both been promoted to executive
director/senior vice president. Ms. Schiff is responsible for
ambulatory strategy and business development and Mr. Moscola is
responsible for ambulatory management services.
The New Standard 59
center for learning and innovation
Administrative Fellows Make
North Shore-LIJ “a Better Place”
By Thea Welch
LAKE SUCCESS —
Alumni, founders, mentors
and preceptors of the
Administrative Fellowship
Program of North ShoreLIJ’s Center for Learning and
Innovation (CLI) gathered
recently at the Village Club
of Lake Success to celebrate
the 10th anniversary of the
program. Graduates of the
program include 59 future
healthcare leaders; 33 of them
have leadership positions
within the North Shore-LIJ
Health System.
Josh Strugatz (class of
’04-’05), associate executive
director of administration at
Glen Cove Hospital, served
as master of ceremonies. He
introduced the first speaker
of the evening, Michael
Dowling, president and CEO
of the health system, as one
of the visionaries who was
instrumental in creating the
12-month program, which
gives fellows from the nation’s
top schools an opportunity to
gain practical knowledge of
various aspects of healthcare
through interaction with
all levels of administration.
Mr. Dowling congratulated
the fellows and said that he
welcomes their youth and
their fresh ideas; the health
system has been strengthened
by their involvement.
“Thanks to you, we are
60 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
a better place,” he said. “We
are embarking on a new field
of endeavor, as a provider of
health insurance in addition
to healthcare, and I am sure
that we will continue to evolve
and change, with you to
advocate for the agenda.”
The 33 fellows still in the
health system have received
81 promotions, according to
Kathleen Gallo, RN, PhD,
senior vice president and
chief learning officer for the
health system. They work at
facilities all over the system,
and titles range from director
of the orthopedic service line
(Jessica Billick-Mabie) to vice
president of the Office of
Community and Public Health
(Amit Powar, MD) to director
of neurosurgery at Lenox Hill
Hospital (Gary Perodin). Dr.
Gallo extended thanks to all
the preceptors and mentors
for the program — especially
to its director, Margaret
McDonough, who “has created
a program that is the gold
standard for fellowships across
the country.”
Concluding the evening’s
presentations, Mr. Strugatz
acknowledged the efforts of
Mary Mansfield, RN, who
was with the program at its
inception and now serves
as nurse manager for the
family practice at Glen Cove
Hospital, and Jeff Kraut,
senior vice president of
strategic planning and business
informatics for the health
system — affectionately known
as “the godfather” — who has
been the program’s face of
continued on page 74
Former administrative fellows Joseph Baglio, left, and Joshua Strugatz, right, who now hold leadership positions at
Manhattan Eye Ear and Throat Hospital and Glen Cove Hospital, respectively, recognized the health system’s Chief
Learning Officer Kathleen Gallo, RN, PhD, center left, and North Shore-LIJ President and CEO Michael Dowling,
center right, for their vision in creating the Administrative Fellowship Program in 2003.
alliedNATION
Safety Is Their
Central Mission
MEETH’s Central Sterile Department operates from 6 a.m. to midnight. Some North Shore-LIJ facilities have 24/7 CS operations.
A
ll patients who undergo medical procedures expect
that their medical environment and tools of care will
be safe and clean. That’s where staff members in the
Manhattan Eye Ear and Throat Hospital (MEETH) Central
Sterile Department (also called CS or “Sterile Processing” at
some hospitals) come in. Like their CS colleagues throughout the
North Shore-LIJ Health System, they ensure that medical and
surgical instrumentation and equipment are properly cleaned,
disinfected, sterilized and inspected for each use — making CS
technicians integral in infection control and prevention.
As sterile processing grows and new medical instruments are
developed, it is more important than ever to equip staff members
with the knowledge they need to maintain high quality standards,
ensure physician satisfaction and enhance patient outcomes.
Education plays a key role in CS technicians’ adherence
to best practices set by such professional organizations as the
Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation
and the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses. CS
technicians undergo 400 hours of training and certification
by the International Association of Healthcare Central Service
Material Management. New York State will require this
certification starting in 2015.
MEETH encourages staff certification, said Anita Cassell,
director of Central Sterile Processing at the hospital: “About 70
percent are now certified [up from 10 percent in 2012]. We are
aiming for 100 percent certification by the close of the year.”
MEETH CS staff members prepare for the International
Association of Healthcare Central Service Material Management
exam in a few ways. Weekly meetings include a 15-minute “CS
Jeopardy” session, where colleagues face off on pertinent topics
like infection control, anatomy, microbiology and cleaning
chemicals. Four times a month, experts perform in-service
demonstrations of proper methods of instrument handling,
cleaning and sterilization for staff members. CS staffers also
use study materials and practice quizzes from International
Association of Healthcare Central Service Material Management.
The Governor of New York recognizes the importance of CS
in patient care: This summer, he signed into law a requirement
for all CS technicians to be certified by 2015 and participate
in continuing education. This development will help drive
better patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs related to
infections, said Ms. Cassell.
Send story ideas for “Allied Nation” to Alex Hellinger,
associate executive director of the Comprehensive Care
Center at Greenwich Village, at [email protected].
[This layout corrects errors in the printed article.]
The New Standard661
61
New Regulation Requires Masks
to Prevent the Spread of Flu
Healthcare workers who do not
receive the flu vaccine must wear a
surgical mask while in areas where
patients may be present, according to a
regulation recently adopted by the New
York State Department of Health (DOH).
The new regulation applies to all
employees, medical staff, students,
volunteers and vendors/contractors in
healthcare, and residential facilities and
agencies whose work or activities could
expose patients or residents to influenza.
“This new regulation comes as no
surprise, considering the harmful effects
of the flu,” said Donna Armellino, North
Shore-LIJ’s vice president of infection
prevention. “Every year, the influenza
virus causes more than 200,000
hospitalizations in the US and thousands
of deaths. These statistics are troubling,
especially considering the preventability
of influenza and the well-documented
safety and effectiveness of the flu shot.”
According to the US Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, adults
may be able to infect others beginning up
to 24 hours before flu symptoms develop
and up to seven days after becoming sick.
“You may be able to pass on the flu to
someone else before you even know you
62 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
are sick,” said Ms. Armellino. “Because
of this, mask usage is particularly effective
among unvaccinated staff.”
For the current flu season, North
Shore-LIJ is again taking an active role
to “Set the Example” by requiring 100
percent participation in flu prevention.
Every staff member must either receive
a vaccine or decline it and sign a form
indicating the reason why.
As of December 13, 97 percent
of the health system’s workforce was
participating, with 87 percent of all
employees vaccinated. “Communicating
preventive measures to avoid the flu is key
to our efforts, and at North Shore-LIJ
we continue to work toward reaching our
goal of 100 percent participation in the
flu vaccination program,” said Eugene
Tangney, regional executive director,
who has partnered with Employee Health
Services to help spearhead the campaign.
Dedicating Resources
“As a leading health system committed
to quality and safety, it’s our responsibility
to prevent the spread of illness. That’s
why we’ve dedicated so many resources
toward educating employees about the
dangers of flu and making sure they know
when and where they can get the vaccine,”
said William Lowe, MD, medical director
of Employee Health Services.
Vaccinated employees across the health
system received an orange identifier to clip
to their ID badge to show that they received
the flu shot. For the duration of flu season,
employees who do not have this identifier
displayed on their ID badge must wear
a mask whenever they are in areas where
patients may be present, as mandated by
the New York State DOH.
While vaccination is the most
effective way to protect yourself, patients
and coworkers from the flu, other
steps can also help to stop the spread of
infection. “It’s important to wash your
hands often with soap and water,” said
Lorraine Chambers Lewis, assistant vice
president of Employee Health Services.
“When you have to cough or sneeze,
cover your mouth and nose with a tissue
or your upper shirt sleeve — not your
hands. You can also cough or sneeze into
your elbow. And if you’re not feeling
well, make the responsible decision to
stay home from work.”
Visit HealthPort for more about flu
prevention and tips on staying healthy.
New York City AIDS Memorial
Construction to Start in 2014
Lenox Hill Hospital, which
in mid-2014 will open a new
24-hour emergency care
center and neighborhood
medical facility in what is
now known as the O’Toole
Building, which sits
immediately adjacent to the
new park and memorial.
Other private-sector
supporters, who raised a total
of $1.5 million, include the
Arcus Foundation, Broadway
Cares/Equity Fights AIDS,
The M•A•C AIDS Fund, The
to serve the needs and health
of this community,” said John
Gupta, executive director
of Manhattan Eye Ear and
Throat Hospital and Lenox
Hill Hospital’s Center for
Comprehensive Care. “Having
been recognized as a ‘Leader in
LGBT Healthcare Equality’ by
the Human Rights Campaign
Foundation, we look forward
to working with the New
York City AIDS Memorial
organization to continue
to develop educational
500 design submissions; a
jury selected the winning
design by the Brooklyn-based
architectural firm studio a+i.
The memorial will
feature an 18-foot steel
canopy as the dramatic
gateway to the new park, plus
a central granite fountain,
benches and a paving surface
carved with educational and
commemorative text. The text
will be curated by a team of
historians, artists, community
members and activists.
Elton John AIDS Foundation,
the Calamus Foundation and
the Keith Haring Foundation.
“As we bring vital
healthcare services to this
storied neighborhood, we
honor the unique importance
of this site to the history of the
AIDS crisis and to the many
caregivers who came before us
programming to renew the
fight against HIV/AIDS.”
Christopher Tepper and
Paul Kelterborn, two young
urban planners who have
never known a world without
AIDS, launched a grassroots
campaign to create the
memorial in 2011. A late 2011
competition attracted nearly
Above: The New York City AIDS
Memorial will be in St. Vincent’s
Hospital Park, across the street
from the future home of Lenox Hill
Hospital’s new 24-hour emergency
care center and neighborhood
medical facility, rear. Lenox Hill is a
major supporter of the memorial.
NYCAidsMemorial.org
NEW YORK CITY — The
New York City AIDS Memorial
will begin construction in
2014, having reached its initial
$4 million fundraising goal.
To be built in the planned St.
Vincent’s Hospital Park at the
intersection of West 12th Street
and Greenwich Avenue in the
West Village, the memorial will
honor the 100,000-plus New
Yorkers who have died from
AIDS, celebrate the caregivers
and activists who fought
against it, and educate about
the history of the AIDS
crisis and the ongoing
efforts to defeat the
disease. Construction
is scheduled for
completion by late 2015.
The memorial
received two allocations
in the 2014 New York
City capital budget.
Former New York
City Council Speaker
Christine Quinn,
who was responsible
for brokering the deal
for the memorial’s
location within her
council district and
shepherding the project
through the city’s
approval process, secured $1.5
million towards the project.
Former Manhattan Borough
President Scott Stringer, the
first elected official to publicly
support the project, secured
an additional $1 million in
city capital funds.
The memorial received
a $100,000 donation from
The New Standard 63
GREENsolutions
Katz Women’s Hospital at North Shore
Earns 2nd LEED Platinum
By Betty Olt
MANHASSET — The Katz Women’s Hospital Post Partum Unit
— the fourth floor at North Shore University Hospital (NSUH) —
has earned the LEED Platinum certification, the highest rating by
the US Green Building Council. The council honored the unit’s
sustainable design, green building materials and energy-efficient
systems. Last year, NSUH’s Katz Women’s Hospital — on the
hospital’s third floor — was the first hospital project in New York
State to receive the Platinum LEED designation.
The Katz Women’s Hospital, which occupies three floors,
recently earned Platinum LEED certification for its fourth-floor
renovation project. The 73-bed unit features private, single
rooms for mothers that take advantage of natural light, a wellbaby newborn nursery and work areas.
Incentives for Energy Efficiency
“The Katz Women’s Hospital was designed to achieve LEED
certification for energy use, lighting, water and material use as
well as incorporating a variety of other sustainable strategies,”
said Neil Rosen, director of sustainable development at North
Shore-LIJ. “Hospitals are power-intensive and use heating and
cooling year-round to maintain a complex array of patient care
services, so there is an incentive to be energy efficient. Wise
energy use translates to significant cost-savings and a lower
impact to the environment in terms of emissions and waste.”
Other sustainable features of The Katz Women’s Hospital
at North Shore include:
n testing indoor air quality to validate compliance with
the most stringent standards;
n 100 percent of all appliances and computer
equipment installed are Energy Star-rated;
n a comprehensive green cleaning program to maintain
the facility;
n solar shading devices that allow daylight in, allowing
the space to be heated by the sun in the winter and
keeping rooms cooler during the summer by blocking
the sun’s rays;
n using paints and coating with either low or zero
volatile organic compounds;
n a special heating, ventilating and air conditioning
system that allows all maintenance to be done outside
patient rooms; and
n recycling more than 75 percent of waste generated
during construction.
Under the LEED rating system worldwide, less than six
percent of projects are platinum certified, and only 46 projects
of any type of building in New York State have achieved this
rating. North Shore-LIJ has the following LEED-certified
projects: two platinum, two gold and seven silver.
A Community
Collaboration
The Racine Salon in Islip has provided
complimentary services to cancer patients one
Monday per month for more than 10 years.
Mondays at Racine highlights stories of women
who benefit from the salon’s kindness. Since
many of the Monday night clients receive care
from the North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute and
Southside Hospital, representatives from both
entities attended HBO’s recent screening at the
Islip Movie Theater. George Raptis, MD, right,
vice president of the North Shore-LIJ Cancer
Institute, addressed the audience following the
screening of the Oscar-nominated documentary
as Racine Salon owners Rachel DeMolfetto and
Cynthia Sansone, left and center, looked on.
64 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
MANHASSET — The North Shore-LIJ Health System
recently enhanced its sustainability efforts with 14 electric
car-charging stations plus bike racks installed on various
campuses. The move comes three years after North Shore-LIJ
agreed to participate in US Environmental Protection Agency
environmental stewardship programs.
“We’re looking at making our health system greener, but
we’re also looking at how we can be a better corporate citizen,”
said Lisa Burch, the health system’s director of sustainability
and social responsibility.
With a grant from the New York State Energy and Research
Development Authority (NYSERDA) awarded to Leviton, an
electrical manufacturing company, to cover the costs of 65 carcharging stations, the health system has done just that. Some
employees have requested the charging stations, and Ms. Burch
and Neil Rosen, North Shore-LIJ’s director of sustainable
development, say they hope the new installations will inspire
others to purchase electric cars.
“By providing this service, it increases the potential for
more employees to decide to make their next car an electric
model. Hopefully, we can get the message out there that this is a
good thing and the initiative will expand,” Mr. Rosen said.
The installations can improve community health by
decreasing emissions and improving air quality, according to
Ms. Burch and Mr. Rosen.
Clearing the Air
“There’s certainly a benefit for us in healthcare, in
that the emissions don’t happen on site. While the global
emission may not change, it doesn’t happen here where our
patients are, where our employees are, where our community
is,” Mr. Rosen said.
The North Shore-LIJ Center for Advanced Medicine in
Lake Success, Forest Hills, Franklin, Glen Cove, Huntington,
North Shore University, Plainview, Southside and Syosset
hospitals, Staten Island University north and south sites
and the LIJ Medical Center campus (which includes Cohen
Children’s Medical Center and The Zucker Hillside Hospital)
all received charging stations. In return, NYSERDA has the
rights to the data in each of the stations.
“NYSERDA wants to understand the usage of the
car-charging stations, and the health system informs their
research by giving them the data about what got charged and
how,” Mr. Rosen said.
Each station, which can cost up to $14,000, notifies users
when their cars are finished charging or when the charging
station is available.
Staying Clean
and Going Green
By Jamie Weissman
North Shore-LIJ is also accommodating those who prefer
other methods of transportation. New bicycle racks reduce the
amount of vehicle miles traveled and help reduce the health
system’s carbon footprint.
Sites equipped with bike racks, which cost about $500
each, include Glen Cove, North Shore, LIJ and Forest Hills,
plus the Center for Advanced Medicine, 865 Northern
Boulevard in Great Neck, 1554 Northern Boulevard in
Manhasset and 3001 Expressway Drive in Islandia.
“Transportation is one of the easier things for people to
grasp when it comes to environmental stewardship. Obviously,
they know that their cars pollute the air and most people want
to try to do the right thing. We’re giving them an opportunity to
make that easier,” Ms. Burch said.
“The North Shore-LIJ Health System has a voice and we’re
large enough to get out there and say, ‘Hey, this is possible,’”
Mr. Rosen said. “It would be great if we could change the
world, but we’ve got to start locally first.”
The New Standard 65
New Chief Development Officer
Brian Lally has been
named senior vice president
and chief development officer
in the North Shore-LIJ
Health System Foundation.
Mr. Lally succeeds Ralph
Nappi, who will be stepping
down as president of the
Foundation to assume
the position of executive
vice chair of the Board of
Trustees, with health system
responsibilities.
Mr. Lally has 30 years
of experience leading
development operations for
healthcare organizations.
He most recently served as
chief development officer/
associate vice president at
the University of Michigan
Health System in Ann
Arbor. Previously, he was
with Dartmouth-Hitchcock
Medical Center/Dartmouth
Medical School in Lebanon/
Hanover, NH for 13 years,
serving first as vice president
for development and alumni
relations before being
promoted to the position of
chief advancement officer.
He began his career at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center, where he
held numerous positions of
Brian Lally
increased responsibility over
16 years, including director
of development/individual
gifts. Mr. Lally earned a
bachelor’s degree from
Ralph Nappi
Queens College of the City
University of New York and
an MBA in finance from St.
John’s University in Jamaica,
Queens.
Legal Affairs Appointments
Laura Peabody has
joined the North Shore-LIJ
Health System as senior vice
president and chief legal
officer. She succeeds Keith
Thompson, JD, who retired
this fall after a distinguished
career at North Shore-LIJ that
Laura Peabody
66 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
began in 1999.
Ms. Peabody comes from
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
in Massachusetts, where
as chief legal officer she
managed legal, internal audit,
compliance, real estate, policy
and government affairs and
Andrew Shulz
the organization’s Medicare
product line; she also chaired
the Harvard Pilgrim Health
Care Foundation. Previously,
she was vice president and
deputy general counsel at
Blue Cross and Blue Shield
of Massachusetts, Inc.,
where she oversaw all legal
matters relating to corporate
operations. Ms. Peabody
earned her law degree from
Boston University School of
Law and bachelor’s degree
from the State Univeristy of
New York at Binghamton (now
Binghamton University).
Andrew Schulz has been
promoted to the position
of vice president of legal
affairs and general counsel,
overseeing day-to-day
operational issues within the
department and reporting to
Ms. Peabody. Mr. Schulz has
been with the North ShoreLIJ Health System for more
than 14 years and has served
as deputy general counsel
since March 2007. Before
joining North Shore-LIJ, he
was a partner for nine years
with the boutique health law
firm, Kalkines, Arky, Zall
& Bernstein (now known as
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips,
LLP). He also served in the
New York State Attorney
General’s Office.
healthcareLITERACY
Key Steps for
Educating Patients
Across the North Shore-LIJ Health System, staff members are working to make it easier
for patients to access, navigate, understand and use information and services to take care of
their health and make informed decisions.
Follow these steps for successful education of healthcare consumers:
r Ask the patient’s preferred language to discuss healthcare.
u We access interpretation services when needed at no cost to the patient.
r Use a universal approach: Do not assume the literacy level of any patient.
r Do a learning assessment which includes:
u Educational level
u Readiness to learn
u Learning preferences
u Cultural, developmental and religious considerations
This assessment helps to individualize the teaching for each patient.
r Use plain language. Avoid jargon, acronyms and technical/medical terms.
r Incorporate teach-back. Teach-back prompts patients to state in their own words
what they learned. It is the only way to know if the patient truly understands.
u Teach-back is not a question-and-answer format. Rather, it encourages two-way
conversation. For example, “Mr. Smith, can you tell me what you are going to
tell your wife about your activity instructions when you get home? I want to be
sure I was clear in my explanation to you.”
u Document the success of teach-back.
u Ask, “What questions do you have?” (not “Do you have any questions?”) to
provide a comfortable, shame-free environment.
Learn more by calling the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Health Literacy at 516-3966373 or visit HealthPort > Departments > Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Health Literacy >
Online Education Resources.
What
the New
Tax Laws
Mean
to You
Several tax laws have changed due
to the American Taxpayer Relief Act,
which took effect in 2013.
Because the two-year
payroll tax holiday for 2011 and
2012 has ended, every employee
will pay 2 percent more in taxes,
up to the maximum subject to
Social Security tax ($113,700
this year). This equates to
$2,274 of additional tax for
those earning $113,700 and up.
Tax brackets have changed
a bit, with the highest tax of
39.6 percent affecting those
with an adjusted gross income
exceeding $400,000 if single or
$450,000 if married.
The 3.8 percent Medicare
surtax (enacted by prior law and
taking effect this year) affects
those with an adjusted gross
income exceeding $200,000 if
single or $250,000 if married.
Only estates that exceed
$5.25 million will pay estate
taxes.
Integration for EmblemHealth Members
GREAT NECK — Performance-based incentives for quality of care and efficiency will benefit EmblemHealth
members in a new agreement between North Shore-LIJ Health System and EmblemHealth. The three-year
agreement covers more than 170,000 members enrolled in all EmblemHealth insurance products, including
commercial, Medicare and Medicaid.
The North Shore-LIJ/EmblemHealth agreement involves three large New York-area medical groups —
Manhattan’s Physician Group, Queens-Long Island Medical Group and Staten Island Physician Practice — that are
now part of AdvantageCare Physicians. AdvantageCare is one of the largest physician practices in the New York City
region, with more than 400 primary care physicians and specialists in 39 locations.
The agreement paves the way for North Shore-LIJ, EmblemHealth and AdvantageCare Physicians to
collaborative on improving the coordination of care in emergency, inpatient and ambulatory settings and
physician offices; enhance customer satisfaction; and lower medical costs. Additionally, physicians from North
Shore-LIJ and AdvantageCare Physicians support a delivery model that includes measurable performance criteria.
Those who are 70 and
older and charitably inclined
can avoid paying income
tax by donating their IRA’s
required minimum distribution
to a charitable organization
such as the North Shore-LIJ
Health System.
For a summary of the tax law, go to
NorthShoreLIJ.giftplans.org and click
on “How the Fiscal Cliff Legislation
Affects Your Charitable Gift.” If you
have questions or wish to discuss the
tax law, contact Alexandra Brovey,
senior director of gift planning, at
516-465-2610 or [email protected].
The New Standard 67
MANHASSET — About three months
after being admitted to North Shore
University Hospital (NSUH) for
treatment of brain seizures, a 30-yearold Armenian man prepared to return
home — disease-free and cured of the
debilitating headaches that were slowly
destroying his quality of life.
“For the first time in my life, I
am not having seizures,” said Gagik
Hovhannisyan, with his mother by his
side. “I can go home, drive a car, and
do all the things that I could never do
before. This is a miracle to me.”
Mr. Hovhannisyan was seven in
1990 when he was brought to Cohen
Children’s Medical Center of New York
(then Schneider Children’s Hospital)
under the auspices of the Russian Gift
of Life and the International Rotary.
His mother, Jasmin Khazarian, was told
her son had been born with a congenital
heart defect known as Tetralogy of Fallot.
The rare condition occurs in about five
out of every 10,000 babies.
Vincent Parnell, MD, surgeon-inchief at Cohen Children’s, performed
surgery to correct that condition.
Mr. Hovhannisyan later developed a
seizure disorder because of an infection
that developed in his brain. When he
was 16, Russian Gift of Life stepped in
again and returned him to the children’s
hospital. His heart was stable, but antiseizure medications were not working.
Doctors determined he would eventually
need brain surgery to remove the lesions
causing the seizures.
Perseverence
Through it all, Mr. Hovhannisyan
refused to give in to his disorder. He
taught himself how to play the piano,
learned English, mastered computers
and graduated from Yeravan State
University. As his mother said, “My son
never believed he was sick.”
Earlier this year, the young man
returned to the US for admission
to NSUH, where Ashesh Mehta,
68 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
Multiple Surgeries
Cure Armenian Man
By Michelle Pinto
MD, North Shore-LIJ’s director of
epilepsy surgery, performed a 10-hour
diagnostic surgery to pinpoint where
Mr. Hovhannisyan’s seizures originated
and what areas they affected.
“During the first surgery, we
opened Gagik’s skull and implanted
210 electrodes to determine the exact
location of the seizures,” Dr. Mehta said.
“After monitoring his brain activity for
several days, we performed a second
surgery that lasted seven hours to remove
the seizure-inducing areas of his brain.
Through all of this, great care was
necessary to avoid harm to the areas in
Gagik’s brain that control movement,
vision, memory, language and feeling.”
Following his summer discharge
from the hospital, Mr. Hovhannisyan is
seizure-free with no impairment to his
speech, language or memory.
“I gave birth to my son, but the
doctors at the North Shore-LIJ Health
System gave him a life,” said Ms.
Khazarian, who surprised Dr. Parnell
during a recent news conference at NSUH
with a drawing he had made 23 years ago
to explain her son’s heart condition.
Above, Mr. Hovhannisyan with his mother.
Surgeons Remove Six-Pound Tumor
from Ethiopian Teen
By Michelle Pinto
NEW HYDE PARK — Sporting a
big smile and a bright pink shirt
emblazoned with “Girls Can Change
the World,” 13-year-old Aster Degaro
and her father, Derebe, joined the
three surgeons who saved her life at a
recent news conference held at Cohen
Children’s Medical Center.
A congenital condition had
caused a lymphatic tumor to grow
inside Aster’s neck. Known as a
teratoma, the tumor that pressed on
her larynx had grown so large that it
became life-threatening.
Thomas Romo, MD, director
of facial plastic and reconstructive
surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital
and founder of the Baby Face
Foundation; Milton Waner, MD,
director of the Vascular Birthmarks
Institute of the New York Head and
Neck Institute; and Lee Smith, MD,
chief of pediatric otolaryngology at
Cohen Children’s Medical Center,
collaborated to remove the growth
during a seven-hour surgery on
September 11.
First, the surgeons carefully
dissected the tumor. The main
concern was to separate the mass
from the major nerves and blood vessels,
including the carotid artery and jugular
vein. Then they separated the tumor
from Aster’s trachea and esophagus.
Finally, they removed the excess skin with
minimal scarring.
Aster’s journey began three years ago
when an American doctor on a mission
in southern Ethiopia discovered her.
Bringing her to the US for treatment was
almost impossible before she came to the
Aster, center, and her father, second from right, thanked the doctors who changed her world. They were, from
left: Lee Smith, MD, chief of pediatric otolaryngology at Cohen Children’s; Milton Waner, MD, director of the
Vascular Birthmarks Institute of the New York Head and Neck Institute; and Thomas Romo, MD, director of
facial plastic and reconstructive surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital and founder of the Baby Face Foundation.
attention of the Baby Face Foundation.
One of five children born into a
destitute family, Aster was ostracized by
the people in her village. She couldn’t
attend school and was tasked with caring
for her siblings.
Now, all that has changed.
“My daughter is a very shy girl who
was never able to play with friends,” Mr.
Degaro said through an interpreter.
Noting that September 11 is also New
Year’s Day in Ethiopia, he added, “This is
not just a new year, it is the start of a new
life. My daughter can go to school and
have friends. It is a new beginning.”
Aster flashed her smile and said,
“Now I know that I’m beautiful and I
can do anything. I say ‘thank you’ to
everyone.”
The New Standard 69
MANHASSET — An Amityville
woman who needed medical
intervention 20 weeks into her
pregnancy recently thanked some of
the physicians who helped to save the
lives of both her and her baby during
an emotional press event at North
Shore University Hospital.
Loydi Lopez, 31, had congestive
heart failure when she was about 20
weeks pregnant with her son, Derek.
She was suffering from mitral valve
stenosis, or a narrowing of one of
her heart valves. When women are
pregnant, there is an increase in blood
flowing through the body. Ms. Lopez’s
heart was quickly becoming unable to
manage this increased blood supply;
she was exhausted and had great
difficulty breathing.
That’s when physicians from
North Shore University Hospital
(NSUH) and Lenox Hill Hospital in
Manhattan stepped in to repair Ms.
Lopez’s heart and allowed her to safely
carry her pregnancy to full term.
“We knew when Loydi came to us
that we needed to do something — and
quickly — or she and her baby’s health
would be in danger,” said Burton
Rochelson, MD, chief of maternal/fetal
medicine at NSUH.
Carlos Ruiz, MD, director of
the Structural and Congenital Heart
Disease Program at Lenox Hill, and
Donna Marchant, MD, director of
the Cardiac Fellowship Program at
NSUH, treated Ms. Lopez’s heart
condition by inserting a balloon into
her mitral valve to expand it. Dr.
Rochelson and his team monitored
By Alexandra Zendrian
the baby’s health before and after the
noninvasive procedure.
“We are so grateful to see Loydi
and her baby so healthy,” Dr. Marchant said. “She is already
making so much progress and she will be able to better take
care of her children and resume with her daily activities.”
Ms. Lopez said through an interpreter that she was
grateful that she and Derek could get through the situation
in a healthy manner with the help of North Shore-LIJ
Doctors Save Endangered
Mother and Unborn Son
70 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
physicians. “I was confident in God and the doctors here,”
Ms. Lopez said. “My youngest child wanted a younger
brother to play with and I’m looking forward to seeing
all of my children together — happy and healthy.”
3 Sisters Give Birth in Rapid Succession
By Michelle Pinto
BAY SHORE — Angela Grancio of
Mastic and her sisters, Josephine
Scalone and Catherine Ahrens,
both of Holbrook, have always
been close. They were best friends
as young girls; now, as wives and
mothers, they never go a day
without speaking.
Their bond grew even
stronger this year when they
discovered that they were all
pregnant at about the same time.
Ms. Grancio delivered Francesco
on September 9; Ms. Scalone gave
birth to Valentina on September
27; Ms. Ahrens welcomed Madeline
into the world on October 11.
“We’re thrilled that our
babies will have the chance to
grow up and become close friends
as we were with our cousins,”
said Ms. Ahrens. “Of course, our
children will have other friends,
but this is a special bond. We’re so
happy to know that our children
will never be alone.”
Sitting side-by-side at
a recent Southside Hospital
news conference, the sisters —
From left: Angela with Francesco; Josephine with Valentina; and Catherine with Madeline.
accompanied by their husbands
and the babies’ grandmother,
Kathy — introduced the newborns
to each other for the first time.
Also on hand was obstetrician
Salil Bakshi, MD, who said he
had never before seen sisters
deliver their babies in such close
succession. “This is one of the
great things about being a doctor
in the community,” Dr. Bakshi said.
“It’s wonderful to be able to see
our patients and their children as
they grow and thrive.”
MBA Students Visit Japan
North Shore-LIJ Health System staff members who are
enrolled in Hofstra University’s MBA program recently
traveled to meet with hospital executives in Tokyo and
Osaka, Japan, as well as executives at Morgan Stanley,
Toshiba and other firms. Pictured in front of Okubo Hospital
in Tokyo were, from left: Jonathan Washko, assistant vice
president at the health system’s Center for EMS; Sheri
Shebairo, administrative director of surgery at Forest Hills
Hospital; Eric Bates, RN, assistant director of cardiology
at LIJ Medical Center; Hideki Tanaka, MD, Okubo Hospital’s
chief of orthopedic surgery; Devlon Williams, PA, director
of quality assurance imaging services with North ShoreLIJ’s Physician and Ambulatory Network Services; Carleigh
Gustafson, the health system’s vice president of emergency
medicine; Anthony Pellicone, associate executive director
at Southside Hospital; and Zacharie Saintyl, RN, assistant
nurse manager at Lenox Hill Hospital.
The New Standard 71
FORyourBENEFIT
Evaluating Your Own Performance
By James Cuniglio
Annual performance appraisals ensure employees receive
meaningful and actionable feedback about their performance,
including the strengths they should tap into going forward,
areas for improvement and their level of success in achieving
their goals.
The North Shore-LIJ Health System will kick off its
annual employee performance appraisal process on January
1, 2014, with an important enhancement. This year, in
response to feedback received via the Employee Input
Survey, health system employees can evaluate their own
2013 performance during the new “self assessment” step.
“Sometimes, there’s very little difference between an
employee’s assessment of their own performance and that of his
or her manager,” said Elaine Page, North Shore-LIJ’s chief talent
officer. “Other times, the two viewpoints may not initially align,
helping to uncover differences in perception and facilitate a more
collaborative dialog during the performance discussion.”
This new step in the review process empowers employees
to take an active and important role in the evaluation of their
performance and to work closely with their manager to prepare
a targeted individual development plan. Employees will receive
an email notification when the self-assessment period begins, at
which time they can log in to Taleo – North Shore-LIJ’s online
performance management tool – to enter feedback on their own
performance, guided by the same competencies their managers
will use during the appraisal process.
“We are, at our core, a learning organization, so
incorporating self-assessments into our appraisal cycle was a
natural fit for us, and will help guide our employees as they
continue along their development journeys,” said Page. “I
strongly encourage all of our team members to take the time
to thoughtfully complete their self assessment, as it is the
foundation for their continued personal and professional career
growth here at North Shore-LIJ.”
To learn more about the annual performance management
process, visit the HR section on HealthPort, featuring process
checklists, frequently asked questions, and training resources for
both employees and managers.
Physician Gala
More than 900 attendees packed Old Westbury Gardens recently for North Shore-LIJ’s 2013 Physician Gala. Members of the Hofstra
North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine class of 2017, shown here, who began training this past August, were among the guests.
72 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
And the Winner Is...
On a sunny Saturday afternoon in August, 48 teams competed in
the 23rd Annual Softball Tournament while employees and their families
strolled amongst their coworkers and friends at Mitchel Field in Uniondale.
With lots of fun stuff provided for the little ones, everyone
enjoyed a full day of activities, including tug-of-war, water-park
slides, bouncy house fun, Pitch ‘n Putt Golf and more. The Wellness
Team offered healthy additions, with sessions of ZUMBA and
Yoga, fruit smoothies, and a go at the “The Wellness Wheel.”
With plenty of barbeque-style food to feed the crowds,
North Shore-LIJ dedicated a day of appreciation to its
employees and families, making everyone a winner!
Top, in orange shirts: The winning co-ed softballers.
Bottom, in yellow shirts: The champion men’s softball team.
The New Standard 73
COMPLIANCEcorner
center for learning
and innovation
Administrative Fellows
Make North Shore-LIJ
“a Better Place”
from page 60
senior leadership for 10 years.
The fellows who have remained
within the health system are:
Class of 2003-2004 — Joseph Baglio,
assistant vice president of physician
administration at Manhattan Eye Ear and
Throat Hospital; Shilpa Malhotra, MD,
ob/gyn attending at Huntington Hospital;
Amit Powar, MD, vice president of the
North Shore-LIJ Office of Community
and Public Health; Jessica Rosen-Olphie,
assistant vice president of North ShoreLIJ’s Material Management Department;
and John Sendach, associate executive
director of hospital operations at North
Shore University Hospital.
Class of 2004-2005 — Claudine
Cangiano, senior director of system
services, Human Resources; Berthe
Erisnor, assistant vice president of
ambulatory services at PAANS; Melissa
(Perez) Jonker, director of operations for
the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of
Medicine; and Joshua Strugatz, associate
executive director of administration at
Glen Cove Hospital.
Class of 2005-2006 — Mario
Nozzolillo, administrative director at
Syosset Hospital and Plainview Hospital.
Class of 2006-2007 — Gerren
Faustini, senior administrative director
of otolaryngology for Head and Neck
Surgery Services; and Jason Meier,
senior administrative director for
the North Shore-LIJ Department of
Radiation Medicine.
Class of 2007-2008 — Carole
Ingrassia Bates, director of the Office
74 Volume 1 ❘ 2014
ORIGINS
In 1987, the NBA named Michael
Jordan the defensive player and
MVP of the year; Kurt Cobain
and Krist Novoselic founded
Nirvana; and in a speech at
Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate,
Ronald Reagan called on Mikhail
Gorbachev, the Soviet Union’s
head of state, to “tear down
this wall.” Locally, Franklin
Hospital celebrated the grand
opening of the Orzac Center for
Rehabilitation. Well wishers
included, from left, William
Kowalewski, assistant executive
director at the hospital; Albert
Dicker, executive director; Judge
Howard Levitt, member of the
Franklin Board of Trustees and
Executive Board, and Davida
Levitt, his wife.
of Curriculum Support at the Hofstra
North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine;
Jessica Billick-Mabie, administrative
director of the Orthopedic Service Line;
Erin Diminick McGaughnea, senior
administrative director of Cardiovascular
Services; and Bini Varughese, director of
operations for the health system.
Class of 2008-2009 — Gary Perodin,
director of neurosurgery at Lenox Hill
Hospital.
Class of 2009-2010 — Jorge Cruz,
senior administrative manager of the
Cancer Institute – Monter Cancer Center;
Joseph Nicolini, director of financial
aid at the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ
School of Medicine; Inderjeet Sandhu,
administrative director at Monter Cancer
Center; Hadar Zisin-Laor, director
of risk services for Corporate Risk
Management.
Class of 2010-2011 — Adam Boll,
senior director of Perioperative Services;
Kristin Hartley, administrative director
of Cardiovascular Services; Nirmal
Pandya, director of business operations
management/LIJ Medical Center’s
Perioperative Services; and Lauren
Roth, project manager of Health System
Operations.
Class of 2011-2012 — Ariel Hayes,
project manager at The Zucker Hillside
Hospital; Lindsay Raskind, special
assistant to the North Shore-LIJ CEO.
Class of 2012-2013 — Marcus Friedrich,
MD, director of community practices
for the Department of Medicine; Jessica
Goldbeck, project manager for LIJ
Operations; Alexandria Margolis, project
manager for advanced illness management/
House Calls Program; Katheryne
Small, project manager of clinical
transformation; and Ariel Somekh,
project manager at Lenox Hill Hospital.
Current fellows (the class of 20132014) — Gregory Bennett, Shivani
Rajput, Jason Philip, Jamie Herskovits,
and Megan Stiles.
The New Standard 75
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