Mather

A newsletter for the staff, volunteers and benefactors of John T. Mather Memorial HospitalWINTER 2013

matters

(continued on page 10)

Since the late 1980’s, Mather Hospital has had an Interventional Radiology (IR) division. Patients were primarily referred by their community-based physicians for special procedures using minimally invasive imaging technology.

The IR division will soon be expand-ing to include an office practice called Mather Interventional Radiology Associ-ates (MIRA) to be located in the Weiss Pain Management Pavilion. The practice

will offer consul-tative services, treatment op-tions, commu-nity outreach and

education. Patients may now be referred directly by their physicians or as a self referral.

In addition to the new office practice, the IR clinical team has expanded over the past year to include Kenny Lien, MD, and Karen Purr, NP.

According to Mohammad Bilal, MD, Director of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, the expansion of the program allows IR to clinically practice alongside

Interventional Radiology Department to Add Office Practicereferring medical and surgi-cal practices and provide long-term care for patients. Mather’s IR team special-ties include: ◆ Renovascular Interven-

tion - evaluating and treating blood vessel narrowing contributing to high blood pressure, potentially related to the arteries of the kidney.

◆ Vertebral Augmentation (Balloon Kyphoplasty) – treating bone fractures of the spine by injecting biologic bone cement for stability and pain relief in patients, especially those with osteo-porosis.

◆ Women’s Health Interventions – treating fibroid tumors of the uterus using x-ray to deliver small particles that block the blood flow, causing the fibroids to shrink; treating enlarged pelvic veins using a small catheter to de-liver or deposit agents that seal the vein;

What is IR?Interventional Radiology (IR) is a subspecialty of Radiology that specializes in performing minimally invasive procedures using various imaging modalities such as x-rays, ultrasound and CT scan guidance. Such procedures are performed by Interventional Radiologists, who are board-certified physicians whose expertise lies within an in-depth knowledge of image-guided treatments along with clinical and diagnostic experience across a multitude of specialties. Traditionally, Interventional Radiologists are often referred to as the “doctor’s doctor” aiding clinicians in diagnosis and offering potential management options for the patients.

Soarian Financials to Replace Unity SystemSoarian Financials, the

state-of-the-art web-based application that will replace Mather’s Unity/SMSnet Fi-nancials system, is set to go live September 7, 2013.

Soarian will become the hospital’s master registra-tion and patient access system and will connect

build and testing of Soarian began in September 2011 through the collaborative efforts of the departments of Information Services, Finance and Revenue Cycle Management, as well as some clinical departments.

Many months of hard work remain for the Soar-

with more than 60 ancillary systems, including Sun-rise Clinicals, Radiology Information Systems (RIS), Novius Lab, Enterprise Document Management (EDM), Recondo, CSC Papers and ORSOS Surgery Management System.

The implementation,

ian Team. The Soarian Proj-ect Leaders are Executive Sponsors Joseph Wisnoski, Carolyn Williams and Tom Heiman; Information Sys-tems Director Wayne Sep-pala; and Project Managers Jennifer Chamberlin and Scott Mathesie.

2

BOARD OF DIRECTORSChairman of the BoardKenneth A. Jacoppi, Esq.

PresidentKenneth D. Roberts

Vice ChairmanBetsy Noyes Britton

Vice ChairmanKonrad J. Kuhn

Vice ChairmanHarold Tranchon Jr.

TreasurerJohn R. Sini

SecretaryWayne Rampone

Chairman, Medical Board;President, Medical Staff

Richard Savino, MD

Vice Chairman, Medical Board; Vice President, Medical Staff

Ahmad Bhatti, MD

Board MembersAlan D. Beck

James DanowskiM. Cecile Forte, Ph.DJudith A. Fortunato

Kathryn B. FreyTimothy B. Glynn, Esq.Frederick C. Johs, Esq.

Thomas KohlmannRichard Lusak

Sanjay Sangwan, MDLeo Sternlicht

Edward J. Weiss

Published quarterly by the Public Affairs Department at

John T. Mather Memorial Hospital75 North Country Rd., Port Jefferson, NY 11777

(631) 476-2723

Chairman, Public Affairs CommitteeAlan D. Beck

Vice President, Public AffairsNancy Uzo

Director, Public RelationsStuart Vincent

Public Relations AssistantNancy Fischetti

Visit www.matherhospital.org

Find us on:

Mathermatters

President’s ColumnThese are challenging times for healthcare. The fiscal cliff legislation, known as the American Taxpayer Relief Act,

that was passed in early January spared increases for individual taxpayers whose taxable income is less than $400,000 a year. A less talked about part of the Act was a one-year suspension in the legislated automatic reduc-

tions in Medicare rates for physicians. However, this one-year suspension will be paid for by cuts to hospitals to the tune of $11 billion in reduced Medicare reimbursements for the next three years.

In addition, the Act did not address federal spending cuts which are sched-uled to be negotiated over the next two months. Still on the table is a 2% reduction to hospital Medicare reimbursements left over from the Budget Act of 2011. Further cuts to hospitals are anticipated.

With the recent real estate bubble and stock market downturn, the value of the Mather pension plan had dropped significantly. This resulted in Mather needing to increase its annual contribution from $5.2 million in 2008 to $14.7 million in 2012.

With the exception of the early flu season in December, Mather’s medical/surgical inpatient volume was down in 2012 by more than 500 patient discharges as compared to 2011.

How does a hospital survive in this kind of environment?As naturalist Charles Darwin would say, we adapt. Darwin’s Theory of Evolution describes

how species adapt to their environment, making them more able to survive - and evolve - as the environment changes.

Mather must make changes if it is to survive and evolve because we owe it to our commu-nity, our patients and our employees to protect our hospital from further financial decline.

To that end the management team has implemented a number of initiatives. They involve renegotiating vendor contracts; continuing to examine staffing benchmarks and census levels and appropriately adjusting staffing levels; and making changes to our pension programs.

We need to do both - cut expenses and grow revenue. We need to invest in programs and technology that allow us to better care for our community as well as enable us to remain competitive. These planned investments include building a 36 single-bedded patient care unit; developing a residency program for the needed primary care specialties in internal medicine, family medicine, and psychiatry; and developing CyberKnife and Cardiac Catheterization pro-grams.

These are challenging times. The decisions we have made and changes we have implemented have been done so that we not only survive, but evolve and thrive. I appreciate the work you do every day for the betterment of our patients and our community. Here are just some ex-amples:

PeopleMaria Basile, MD was named Assistant Vice President for Medical Affairs. In this position,

Maria will support the implementation of new initiatives, and work to create physician engage-ment, leadership development and educational techniques programs. Maria previously served as a Clinical Information System Physician Advisor and worked with physicians on our new electronic medical records system. She also led the development of www.matherdoc.org.

We welcome Michael Tofano, MD, our new Hospitalist Director. He was previously Director of Hospital Medicine for Marlboro and Clinton Hospitals, UMass Memorial Health Care and as Associate Chief of Hospital Medicine at UMass Memorial Health Care in Worcester, MA.

Congratulations to Emergency Department nurse Kerry O’Sullivan, RN, TNCC, ENPC, who was given the 2012 Julie Cangro Award by the Suffolk County Emergency Nurses Association. Kerry is active with Blanca’s House, a non-profit organization of volunteer healthcare profes-sionals who donate their time to provide free medical treatment to children internationally who would otherwise have no access to modern healthcare. (continued on page 14)

The decisions we have made and changes we have implemented have been done so that we not only survive, but

evolve and thrive.

3

HOSPITAL

The Fortunato Breast Health Center received another three-year accreditation

from the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), which called it “a very excellent breast center.”

This recognition is given only to those centers that have voluntarily committed to providing the highest level of qual-ity breast care and that undergo a rigorous review of their performance. The Fortunato Breast Health Center is one of only four on Long Island to have earned this prestigious distinction.

“Although small, this is a very excellent breast center,” the NAPBC surveyor wrote. “The heart of this program is in the radiology department,” a reference to co-Medical Directors and board certified radiologists Joseph Carrucciu, MD and Michelle Price, MD.

The surveyor also noted:• A remarkable “best practice” program. • Excellent navigation support.• The radiologists that perform needle biopsies are

board certified radiologists.• The medical oncologists and radiation oncologists on

staff are board certified, and patients have access to state-of-the-art clinical trials.

Fortunato Breast Center Earns National Accreditation, Again

• All types of breast reconstruction are offered here by plastic surgeons actively involved in the program.

• The largest lymphedema program in the Northeast, with 9 lymphedema therapists.

• The hospital also has excellent community outreach.“This survey reflects the excellent patient care we pro-

vide to our breast program patients on a daily basis,” said Mather Hospital President Kenneth Roberts. “I wish to thank everyone who was involved in the survey process.”

The surveyor from the NAPBC said that Michelle Price, MD and Joseph Carrucciu, MD, co-Medical Directors, were “the heart of the program” at the Fortunato Breast Health Center.

Stroke Program Achieves Gold Plus Award

Mather received

the Get With The

Guidelines®–Stroke

Gold Plus Quality

Achievement Award

from the American

Heart Association

in recognition of

our quality and success in implementing

a higher standard of care for stroke

patients. We did so by sustaining 85% or

higher adherence to specific evidence-

based guidelines over a 24-month

consecutive time period.

A new high-speed pneumatic tube system for delivering specimens from the Emergency Room to the Laboratory significantly cuts the time it takes for doctors to receive lab results for their patients.

The TransLogic system reduces the turnaround time for lab results by cutting the time needed to get a specimen from the ER to the Lab from about 20

minutes using human transport to just 45 seconds, according to Phil Messina, RN, Director of Nursing Emergency Services. The system is operational 24/7.

The project took less than a month to complete, Messina said, and came in ahead of schedule and $2,500 under budget.

Pneumatic Tube System Cuts Turnaround for Lab Results

Phlebotomy Supervisor Ed Germano and Lab Assistants Teofilo Vasquez and Audrey Nustro display a pneumatic tube used to send specimens to the lab.

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HOSPITAL

S E R V I C E E X C E L L E N C E A W A R D S

September 2012 October 2012

Service Excellence Awards are given monthly to employees whose professionalism and consideration have been singled out by patients and/or their families.

Joan AdamsTashanna AdamsLaura AdcockTheresa AielloChristine AlbinskiBrian AlfredsenUsman AliJosephine AlparslanSofia ArroyoAlice AugRose AurigueCatherine BabstJohn BaitzDaphne Baldwin-KornrichVirigina BarringtonJohn BechererLisa BechererKristin BelloVanessa BishopLoriann BloomfieldKelly BlydenburghRaymond BodnarDeidre BoehmeCarla BondGinny BontiCarol BorsmanChristine BradyKimberly BradyTimothy BraggChristine BrandstadterAnna Marie BraslowCatherine BreitenbachJeanne BrennanRobert BreslinChristine BronsSharon Buda

Paula BudrisDeborah Buganza-EstepaDeborah BurkeNancy ByrnesDana CardielloCatharine CarlsonJoseph CarrucciuEdna ChapmanVanessa CharlesErica ChiarelliChristine CirolliKenneth ClaryJanet CoacciJessica CoggerJodi CohenTeresa CollinsSandie ConnollyChristine ContinoSusanne ContriJoy Cooke HarrisRoseAnn CooperAlexis CordleBarbara CostaStephanie CrispinoAlethea CunninghamMaureen DabbsDanielle DalyRuggerio D’AmalioThomas M. D’AmatoDawn D’AmicoJanet DeAngelisChristine DebernardoDanielle DeBlaseArien DepazMichele DeSimoneYesenia Diaz

Ginger DiCiccoLoretta DidwellDebra DiGirolamoJomar DimanligMarlene DmytryshynPatricia DoddDaria DoddsLeanne DohertySusan DolsonJan DoscherChristopher DowdyNicole DrepaniotisAnna May DrewesBarbara DuganJean DumasCynthia DunnCorinne EbingerTheresa EganLisa EggersKatelin ElenterioHelen EloriagoJean EnglezosMaria EnriquezElyse EratoRachael FalcoJoan FaroHolly FeldmanCandice FellaJoseph FerreriDenise FioritoJennifer FlanaganMoira FlynnLinda FolkenFlorence FoxGladys FrancisRobin Franzosa

Shelly FriedaLarissa FriedmannMary FrielLori FuscoAlyssa GanutGail GarciaKristen GarciaMildred GarciaCarolyn GermaineLori Ann GersbeckMichelle GiuffridaDebra GiuliettiDina GiuliettiErma GlanvilleMary Ann GoodmanJeanene GoodrowJoan GrantMichael GrazianoMarina GrennenMaureen GrossLaura GrosseJanice GroverPadmaja GunjupaliChristopher GuzziKathleen HaffMelissa HafnerDonna HardwickeJessica HarrisKeith HarrisGregory HarryAmy HealyJoseph HeinEdward HickeyMegan HickeyYuval HiltzikKenneth Hirsch

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HOSPITAL

S E R V I C E E X C E L L E N C E A W A R D S

November 2012 January 2013

Service Excellence Awards are given monthly to employees whose professionalism and consideration have been singled out by patients and/or their families.

Maria HofbauerSamantha HofbauerCaryn Holly ValenciaKevin HoodJillian JablonksiDeborah JardineDwayne JosephDan JuszaMary KassickJaswinder KaurStacey KeaneCaitlin KennedyColleen KiernanMarianne KiernanChristine KoesterAlice KolasaKirsten KonsevitchMelissa KornbluthElisabeta KowalskiSusann KreitzmanPatricia KrepilMelanie KuffnerJessica LafosseJoan LandersDebra LangNatalya LaskinaAnne LasotaAndrea LauckhardtChristine LauriaDebra LemboAnna LeskivAna LeviMary LindnerAnthony LlorensLisa LobassoDanielle Locurto

Jocelin LoganzoKaren LospinusoPhyllis MacchioLuisa MachadoAndrew MagnanoLydia MalvagnoKandace ManiaciDespina ManolakisJoshua MartinoKathleen MartosciaMichelle MasonNicholas MastrianoChristine MatthewsCynthia McCabeCharles MellorLisa MessineoMargaret MiccaSandra MihaliLynn MillerPatrice MirabellaJustine MongeauHeather MongognaKatherine MontefuscoMaxine MorganLisa MooreTracey MulderigKelly MullaneDiane MullerMarie MulliganAnne MunkwitzCarol MurphyGospel OfuyahJamie O’HaraJoseph OhmErik OlsenPatricia Olsen

Lori OlsewskiLinda O’RiordanTeresa OwenburgNina PellegrinoMaryann PiccininniLiz PicozziMitchell PollackGinger PostiglioneMichelle PriceLisamarie PuglisiRohya QaderiKathleen QuarantaJoseph QuerciaUsha RengarajanDebbie ReuterDonna RimmerKaryen RinconKaren RiveraAnnette RiversMary Pat RiversMichele RodriguezMirian RodriguezLinda RomanoBarbara RossJoyce SanfilippoAdina SantanaDeborah SchafmayerEmily SchotteLynne SciortinoDenise SearsPerry ShapiroLinda SilvesterRyan SipalaSharlaina SircarAgnieszka SobolewskaJacob Sokol

Suzanne SoltysikDhanwantie SookramBradley SpangherRichard SquillaceJamie StrahmannJohn StrahmannJames SunyarJason SwartzMichelle SwensenEileen SwieczkowskiElizabeth TaylorPaul TheissChristina ThompsonMichelle ThormanGina TrapaniErin VaccarielloCara VassalloJanet VazquezMary Grace VenturaJames VertucciLauren VocileElizabeth WalkerNorwood WhiteAndreu WichardMaryellen WintersLoren WolfAdam WosMary YakutskDebra YoungsLeesa YuFarid ZeidanJennifer ZemanQing Zhang

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welcome new doctorsMEDICAL STAFF

Punit Aghera, MDSpecialty: RadiologyMedical School: University of Baltimore, MDResidency: Diagnostic Radiology, Stony Brook University HospitalFellowships: Musculoskeletal Radiology, Maimonides Medical Center, BrooklynNeuroradiology, Stony Brook University HospitalPractice: HSC L4, Room 120, Stony Brook (631-444-5400) John-Paul Blaber, MDSpecialty: Emergency MedicineMedical School: St George’s University, Grenada, West IndiesResidency: Emergency Medicine, Stony Brook University Medical CenterPractice: Mather Hospital Emergency Department Tinting Cheng, MDSpecialty: PediatricsMedical School: Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, Chicago School of Medi-cine, ILResidency: Pediatrics, Baystate Children’s Hospital, Western Campus of Tufts University School of Medicine, MAPractice: 1770 Motor Parkway, Hauppauge (631-434-1770) Brian Chu, MDSpecialty: NephrologyMedical School: St. George’s University School of Medicine, Grenada, West IndiesResidency: Internal Medicine, New York Medical College at St. Vincent’s Catholic Medical CenterFellowship: Nephrology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine at Elmhurst, NYPractice: 701 Route 25A, Suite B1, Mount Sinai (631-331-4400) Eric Feldmann, MDSpecialty: RadiologyMedical School: Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva UniversityResidency: Radiology, Stony Brook University Medical CenterPractice: HSC L4 Room 120, Stony Brook (631-444-5400)

Nageh Garas, MDSpecialty: Hospital MedicineMedical School: University of Alexandria Medical School, EgyptResidency: Otylarnongology, Elgomhorria Hospital, Alexandria, EgyptInternal Medicine, St. Vincent Medical Center, NYFellowship: Infectious Disease, St. Vincent Medical Center, NYPractice: Mather Hospital Hospitalist Program Mark Harary, MDSpecialty: Sports MedicineMedical School: Ross University School of Medicine, West IndiesResidency: Family Practice, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Shadyside Hospital, PAFellowship: Sports Medicine, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Primary Care, ILPractice: 6 Technology Drive, Suite 100, East Setauket (631-689-6698) John Herrington, III, MDSpecialty: PathologyMedical School: Southwestern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science CenterResidency: Anatomic and Clinical Pathology, Park-land Memorial Hospital, TXAnatomic Pathology, New England Deaconess Hospital, MAPractice: 200 Belle Terre Road, Port Jefferson (631-474-6183) Evan Mair, MDSpecialty: RadiologyMedical School: Boston University School of Medicine, MAResidency: Diagnostic Radiology, Boston Medical Center, MAFellowship: Body Imaging and Interventions, North Shore Uni-versity Hospital, NYPractice: HSC L4 Room 120, Stony Brook (631-444-5400)

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welcome new doctorsMEDICAL STAFF

Paul Savoca, MDSpecialty: Colon & Rectal SurgeryMedical School: SUNY Health Sciences Center, NYResidency: Surgery, Yale University School of Medi-cine, CTFellowship: Colorectal Surgery, University of Minnesota, MNPractice: 48 Route 25A, Suite 7, Smithtown (631-862-3007) Dinesh Sethi, MDSpecialty: Family MedicineMedical School: Internal Medicine, Flushing Medi-cal Center, NYResidency: Internal Medicine, Flushing Medical Center, NYFellowship: Geriatrics, Flushing Hospital Medical Center, NYPractice: 125 Oakland Avenue #203, Port Jefferson (631-928-9355) Archna Sinha, MDSpecialty: Hospital MedicineMedical School: Universitatea de Medicinas si Farmacie Victor Babes, RomaniaResidency: Internal Medicine, Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, NYPractice: Mather Hospital Hospitalist Program Eric Sommer, MDSpecialty: Bariatric SurgeryMedical School: Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara, MXResidency: Surgery, Boston University Medical Center, MAFellowship: Advanced MIS/Bariatric/Robotic, Hackensack University Medical Center, NJPractice: 3003 New Hyde Park Road, Suite 307, New Hyde Park (516-616-5500)

Michael Stern, MDSpecialty: PediatricsMedical School: University of Kentucky College of MedicineResidency: Pediatrics, SUNY Stony Brook School of MedicinePractice: 300 East Main Street, Suite 5, Smithtown (631-979-6466) Kristin Stoner, MDSpecialty: Physical Medicine and RehabilitationMedical School: University of Minnesota Medical SchoolResidency: Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Schwab Rehabilitation Hospital, University of Chicago, ILPractice: 200 Belle Terre Road, Suite E140, Port Jefferson (631-474-6011) Nicholas Yu, MDSpecialty: General SurgeryMedical School: Boston University School of Medi-cine, MAResidency: General Surgery, University of Buffalo, SUNY BuffaloPractice: 226 North Belle Mead Road, Suite C, East Setauket (631-706-0018) Gregg Evan Zimmerman, MDSpecialty: UrologyMedical School: SUNY Stony Brook School of MedicineResidency: Urology, University of FloridaContact: 75 North Country Road, Port Jefferson (631-473-1320, ext. 4015) Gerald Zupruk, MDSpecialty: Neurological SurgeryMedical School: SUNY Downstate College of MedicineResidency: Neurosurgery, SUNY Downstate Medi-cal Center/Kings County Hospital Center, NYPractice: 55 Medford Avenue, Route 112, Patchogue (631-569-8325)

8

MEDICAL STAFF

Michael Tofano, MD, Named Hospitalist Director

Michael Tofano, MD has been appointed Director of Mather’s Hospitalist program.

Tofano joined the Mather staff after serving as Di-rector of Hospital Medicine for Marlboro and Clinton Hospitals, UMass Memorial Health Care and as Associate Chief of Hospital Medicine at UMass Memorial Health Care in Worcester, MA. Prior to that, Tofano had a cardiology private practice in Princeton, NJ.

He received his medical degree from New York Medical College in Valhalla, NY. He was an internal medicine resident and later chief medi-cal resident at St. Vincent’s Hospital & Medical Center in New York and completed a fellowship in cardiology at UMDNJ, Robert Wood Johnson Hospital, New Brunswick, NJ.

Tofano lives in Old Field with his wife and two sons.

2013 Medical Board Named President Medical Staff & Chairman Medical Board ....................... Richard Savino, MDVice President ..............................................................................................................Ahmad Bhatti, MDSecretary/Treasurer .............................................................................................David Shenouda, DOMember-at-Large ..................................................................................................Sanjay Sangwan, MD Member-at-Large ................................................................................................................Kris Sauer, MDImmediate Past President ....................................................................................Kara Kvilekval, MD

Medical Board Members Director, Dept. of Anesthesiology ............................................................Derick T. George, MDDirector, Dept. of Dentistry .......................................................................... Mario Capuano, DDSDirector, Dept. of Emergency Medicine .................................................Mitchell Pollack, MDDirector, Dept. of Family Medicine ...............................................................Daniele Kenny, MDDirector, Dept. of Imaging Services ............................................................ William Moore, MDDirector, Dept. of Internal Medicine.................................................................Arthur Klein, MDDirector, Dept. of Obstetrics & Gynecology ...................................... B. Hannah Ortiz, MDDirector, Dept. of Orthopaedics ...............................................................Michael Fracchia, MDDirector, Dept. of Pathology ...............................................................................John Chumas, MDDirector, Dept. of Pediatrics .......................................................................James Cavanaugh, MDDirector, Dept. of Psychiatry .........................................................................................Paul Fritz, MDDirector, Dept. of Surgery .............................................................................. Randall Schrager, MD

In AppreciationKara Kvilekval, MD, is presented with a plaque by Mather President Kenneth Roberts in appreciation of her service as President of the Medical Staff and Chairwoman of the Medical Board for 2011-2012.

Maria Basile, MD Named Asst. VP for Medical Affairs

Maria Basile, MD, who has worked with our com-munity and staff physicians on the implementation of the Sunrise electronic medical records system and led the effort to create matherdoc.org, our physician website, was named As-sistant Vice President for Medical Affairs.

In her new role, Basile will work in col-laboration with Joan Faro, MD, Chief Medi-cal Officer and Vice President for Medical Affairs, to support new clinical quality and patient safety initiatives for Mather Hospital.

Basile joined Mather in January 2011 and has served as Clinical Information Sys-tem Implementation Physician Advisor in the Office of the Chief Medical Information Officer (CMIO). She will continue to part-ner with the CMIO to support management of the hospital’s clinical information systems and assure alignment with clinical quality and patient safety initiatives.

In her new role, Basile will support the implementation of initiatives and work to create innovative physician engagement and leadership development techniques and education and training programs for physician staff. She will support the Office of Professional and Regulatory Services to improve and implement best practices.

Basile is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University School of Medicine and is sole practitioner of North Country Colorectal Surgery, P.C., with attending privileges at Mather, St. Charles and Stony Brook University Hospitals. She has been an attending physician at Mather since 2000.

9

NURSING

Kerry O’Sullivan, RN Cited for Leadership and Integrity

Kerry O’Sullivan, RN, TNCC, ENPC received the Julie Can-gro Award for 2012 by the Suffolk County Emergency Nurses Association. The award is given annually to an Emergency Department Registered Nurse from a Suffolk County hospital who exhibits the criteria of leadership, integrity, nurturer, dedication, creativity and magnanimity.

A Mather ED nurse for eight years, O’Sullivan also received Mather’s 2012 RN Community Service Award. “I’m honored to be given this award,” said O’Sullivan, a nurse preceptor who is mentoring the first Emergency Department nursing graduate who was accepted into Mather’s Internship Program.

She also is active with Blanca’s House, a non-profit orga-nization of volunteer healthcare professionals who donate their time to provide free, invaluable medical treatment to children and their families who would otherwise have no ac-cess to modern healthcare. O’Sullivan has participated in sev-

Transition to Practice Transition to Practice is an initiative of National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) that provides a way to formalize the journey of newly licensed nurses from education to practice. The program combines trained preceptors, online training modules, social interaction and institutional support to facilitate that journey. Brandy Feliu, RN, Clinical Instructor (standing, right), is joined by Mather’s 2012 Transition to Practice nursing class (from left, standing) John Strahman, Carla Bond, Nicole Amendola, (seated) Kristin Bello, Kathleen Hardwicke and Elizabeth Picozzi (not pictured: Heather Cordle).

Open Visiting HoursAt Mather, we recognize

how important the support provided by family and friends can be to a patient’s well being and healing. Therefore, Mather Hospital does not limit visitation to patients on Medical/Surgical units, Telemetry, ICU, CCU, Step Down or Transitional Care Unit. All visitors to patients on these units enjoy full visitation privileges consistent with the patient’s preference. Our psychiatric units continue to have specific visiting hours for the benefit of our patients.

Please note patients or their designees have the right to decide who can visit and at what time. Visitors will not be denied on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender or disability.

For more information, the Visitor Policy is posted on the Mather Intranet.

eral missions to Central America and this sum-mer hosted an underprivileged child from Ecua-dor who needed surgery for a cleft palate. The child and her mother stayed at O’Sullivan’s home for six months, during which time O’Sullivan cared for the child.

O’Sullivan is the second Mather Emergency Department nurse to receive the award in the three years it has been given. Liz Devine, RN, Mather’s Emergency Department Nurs-ing Manager, was the first recipient of the award. The Suffolk County Emergency Nurses Association represents 12 hospi-tals in Suffolk County, with more than 300 members.

10

HEALTH

Did you know that you can now request an appointment for Imaging Services online?

The new Request an Appointment Consumer Portal allows you to request an appointment for:

• CT Scan• Mammogram/Breast Ultrasound• Bone Density/DEXA Scan• Nuclear Medicine• Stress Testing• Echocardiography• EEG• MRI/MRANo appointment necessary for EKG and x-ray.To make a request, go to Mather’s homepage

(www.matherhospital.org) and select Request an Appointment from the Quick Links on the bottom right side of the page. You will be prompted to create an account. Once the account is created, you can request an appointment and also reschedule or cancel your appointment and view your scheduled appointment.

Request an Imaging Services Appointment Online

Free Ankle, Foot & Shoulder SeminarWednesday, March 13, 20137-9:30 pm at Mather Hospital, Conference Rooms 3, 4 & 5

Orthopedic physicians will discuss: •Arthroscopic surgery•Reconstructive techniques•Sports injuries, fractures and tendon injuries•Diseases, conditions and disorders of the foot,

ankle and shoulder•Treatment and rehabilitation options

For more information or to register, call

631-686-7879www.matherhospital.org

running playing walking hiking

dancing surfing traveling sailing

volleying strolling cycling swimming batting

riding living golfingsightseeing enjoying

shopping divingfishing rowing...

Interventional Radiology (continued from page 1)

using a catheter and x-ray guidance to reopen closed fallopian tubes for aiding in fertility options.

◆ Interventional Oncology - treating certain liver, lung, bone or kidney tumors non-surgically, implanting and maintaining long term venous access devices for chemotherapy, dissolving blood clots or implanting devices to capture blood

clots associated with cancer.“Interventional Oncology is

an area where we can signifi-cantly contribute,” Bilal said. “We can offer cancer patients procedures including imaging diagnosis, biopsy diagnosis, managing cancer-related symp-toms and provide preventative options as well.”

“We can offer an excep-tional clinical service at Mather. Many patients don’t wish to travel into the city and be away

from their families and familiar places that give them comfort. For us to be able to offer these procedures at the same level of care as any tertiary hospital is tremendous.”

“We’re constantly getting into other aspects of medicine where, when all other op-tions are unavailable or other services are unsuccessful, we are consulted. We’re the ones who will often be presented with the toughest scenarios.

Our patients tend to be people who may not be the best of candidates for surgery or may be high risk. That puts us in a valuable place in global clinical management, to be able to help these patients in so many different ways and do it with precision, without adding significant risk and minimz-ing discomfort following a procedure.”

To contact the clinical staff at MIRA, call 631-476-2767.

11

VOYAGE

Mark Your Calendars!Spring Employee Communication ForumsMarch 7: 2:30 pm, 9 pm

March 13: 8:15 am

March 14: 8:15 am, 2:30 pm

March 18: 9 am

All forums will be held in Conference Rooms 3, 4 & 5.

Voyage Onward!Mather Hospital is moving forward with the Voyage to Excellence without the assistance

of the Baptist Leadership Group consultants. As we are challenged by the many changes in healthcare, it is more important to remain focused on the foundations of the Voyage: setting and obtaining goals; the Pillars; the Standards of Performance; Leadership Core Competencies; and Mather’s Mission and Vision.

The Organization Goals for 2013 can be found on Mather’s Intranet on the Voyage to Excellence page under Strategic Planning.

Diversity is the Newest Standard of Performance

Diversity is the newest Standard of Performance, adding to the previous standards of Accountability, Appearance, Attitude, Call Lights, Commitment to Our Organization, Commitment to Our Co-Workers, Com-mitment to Our Patients, Communication, Leader-ship, Noise and Safety.

The Standard states: Mather Hospital employees and volunteers are commit-ted to providing an envi-ronment which encourages the talents of individuals and recognizes the unique-ness of each individual with respect to race, gender, age, cultural background, socio-economic status, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disabili-ty, religion and/or any other types of diversity.

HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers & Systems) has added five new questions to the patient experience surveys it sends to hospital patients. The expanded surveys went into effect the first of this year.

Three of these questions will be scored questions and publicly reported. The questions deal with the transition from the hospital to home:

• During this hospital stay, staff took my preferences and those of my family or caregiver into ac-count in deciding what my healthcare needs would be when I left.

• When I left the hospital, I had a good understanding of the things I was responsible for in man-aging my health.

• When I left the hospital, I clearly understood the purpose of taking each of my medications.The other two questions deal with the patient and will not be publicly reported:

• During this hospital stay, were you admitted to this hospital through the Emergency Room?• In general, how would you rate your overall mental or emotional health?

HCAHPS is a national, standardized, publicly reported survey of patients’ perspectives of hospital care. HCAHPS scores are considered under Value-Based Purchasing, a federal government pay-for-performance program that impacts hospitals’ Medicare reimbursement.

HCAHPS Survey Adds New Questions

Mather Board Member M. Cecile Forte, PhD, (left) who judged the “Love is in the Air” communications board contest, presented the winning trophy to Employee Health Board Keeper Maria Morales at the recent Board Keepers Celebration.

LOV

E IS

IN T

HE

AIR

!

www.facebook.com/matherhospital

Employee Health Communications Board

12

COMMUNITY

Salon Supports Fortunato Breast Health CenterJudith Fortunato (left), Mather Board member and benefactor of the Fortunato Breast Health Center, accepts a donation from Leigh Diamond, proprietor of Diamond Cuts Hair Salon in Port Jefferson Station. Diamond donated 5 percent of her salon’s profits from the month of October to the Center.

Moloney Family Funeral Homes Raises Awareness of Breast Cancer

Moloney Family Funeral Homes recently presented a check for more than $5,300 to the Fortunato Breast Health Center, the result of an effort to raise awareness of breast cancer.

Peter Mo-loney, Dan Moloney and the staff offered pink bracelets to the public in return for a donation. The Moloney brothers matched the funds raised by the bracelet sales.

“We realized from the start that it was extremely important to us all that the funds raised would stay local and benefit those in our community,” said Peter Moloney.

Moloney Family Funeral Homes has locations in Port Jefferson Station, Lake Ronkonkoma, Hauppauge, Holbrook, Bohemia and Central Islip.

Joseph Carrucciu, MD (center), Co-Medical Director of the Fortunato Breast Health Center, accepts a check for more than $5,300 from Peter (left) and Dan (right) Moloney and their staff. FBHC Supervisor Marie Bonneville is at the far right.

CASH PRIZES

AW

A R D E D!

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$10,000GRAND PRIZE!

23 Prizes Awarded!Only 1,500 Raffle Tickets Sold!

Multiple Chances to Win!

Drawing June 21, 2013. Winners need not be present.

Raffle ticket price: $100 each, 5 for $300, or 10 for $500

Prizes:Grand Prize $10,000

First Place Prize of $3,000Second Place Prize of $2,000

20 Third Place Prizes of $500 each

For further information or to purchase raffle tickets online: www.matherhospital.org/rich or call Public Affairs: (631) 476-2723

A minimum of 250 raffle chances must be sold by 5/30/2013 or raffle will be cancelled. All prizes are subject to applicable taxes.

License #47-202-180-07439

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VOLUNTEER

1,000 Hours

Diane Autoline Gail LindenRich Buchanan Dom MignoneCatherine Grossman Peggy MullerBobbie Lefkowitz Rosemary Schulenburg

2,000 Hours

Jane Pellechia Lorraine Pakula

3,000 Hours

Betty Ann CaufieldBarbara Junior

4,000 Hours

Lois NeviusToni Ricotone

5,000 Hours

Lucille JankowskiHelen Rodowicz Dorothy MauerHelen Samuels

6,000 Hours

Louise Grinere

9,000 Hours

Lorraine AltmanAl Breitenbach

12,000 Hours

Ida Forstel

16,000 Hours

Laura Jean Glover

34,000 Hours

Dorothy Milau

The following individuals were feted for achieving hour milestones in 2012:

CASH PRIZES

AW

A R D E D!

23

$10,000GRAND PRIZE!

Another Successful Year of VolunteerismAt the annual luncheon were (from left, standing) Mather Board of Directors Chairman Kenneth Jacoppi, Dorothy Milau, President Kenneth Roberts, (seated) Marge Fifield, Ida Forstel and Helen Rodowicz.

Celebrating VolunteerismAt the annual Volunteer Appreciation Lun-cheon, Mather Hospital President Kenneth Roberts and Chairman Kenneth Jacoppi were among those who paid tribute to the many volunteers and Auxilians who do-nate so much time to the benefit of Mather Hospital.

The recent Thrift Shop Fashion Show was a great success, with the volunteer mod-els showing off choice ensembles from the shop. From daytime casual to the elegant evening attire worn by the models here, those in attendance were treated to a great show, made even more delightful by a spe-cial appearance by an Elvis impersonator.

Volunteers Model Thrift Shop Fashions

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President’s Column (continued from page 2)

ServiceCongratulations to our volunteers on their service awards.

Among those volunteers with the highest cumulative hours were Dorothy “Dot” Milau with 34,000 hours; Laura Jean Glover, 16,000 hours; Lorraine Altman, 9,000 hours; and Al Breitenbach, 9,000 hours.

Quality and SafetyIn an analysis of hospital performance that measures

quality, patient satisfaction and mortality by the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS), Mather was ranked first out of 153 hospitals statewide. This is the third consecutive rating period we were ranked first in New York State and in the top 50 hospitals nationwide. Please note that this is a projection of ranking based on past performance developed by HANYS. Thank you to the entire Mather Family for your commitment to make us the best community hospital in New York State.

Mather received the Get With The Guidelines®–Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award from the American Heart Association. This award recognizes our commitment to quality and success in implementing a higher standard of care for stroke patients using nationally accepted clinical guidelines. Congratulations Dinesh Shukla, MD, Director of the Stroke Program; Joanne Lauten, RN, Stroke Coordinator; and the entire stroke team.

The Fortunato Breast Health Center received another three-year accreditation from the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC). This recognition is given only to those centers that have voluntarily committed to providing the highest level of quality breast care and that undergo a rigorous review of their performance. Congratulations to Drs. Carrucciu and Price and the entire Breast Center team who made this achievement possible.

Innovation and GrowthOur da Vinci Robotic Surgical program has expanded

to include urological surgery including prostectomies and nephrectomies. Our urology medical staff is collaborating with us to pioneer this new program.

Leadership from our Interventional Radiology (IR) Department will be opening Mather Interventional Radiology Associates (MIRA), an office practice with IR services in Women’s Health and Interventional Oncology, specialty staff, and outreach programs. Under the guidance of Director Mohammad Bilal, MD, the IR team has expanded to include Radiologist Kenny Lien, MD, and Karen Purr, NP.

As we face challenging times in healthcare, the Mather Family needs to continue to work together in providing a wide spectrum of high quality healthcare services to community residents, showing compassion and respect, and treating each patient in the manner we would wish for our loved ones.

Mather’s Mall Showcase a SuccessMather Hospital took over center court at Smith Haven

Mall the weekend of Feb. 2-3, showcasing the Robotic Surgery Program as well as our other signature services. Shoppers enjoyed driving the robot, had their blood pres-sure tested, learned about their BMI, asked questions about defibrillators, talked with therapists about occupational and physical therapy and discussed the options for joint replace-ment.

15

Employee Educa-tional and Professional Achievement:Nursing Education: Su-zanne Soltysik received ANCC Professional Staff Develop-ment Certification. Revenue Cycle Management: Brendan Bonacum graduated from Do-minican College with a degree in teaching. Occupational Therapy: Nicole Zarcone (nee Poat) received a master’s de-gree in Occupational Therapy from SUNY at Stony Brook and passed her state licensure exam. Surgical Services: Congratulations to Karen Tuz-zolo and Lisa Ambrose who received their BSN, and Ron Cianciulli who passed the RN board.

Retirements:Nursing Education: Good luck to Bernie Brochard who retired in December. Promotions:Information Services: Scott Mathesie has been promoted to Integration Applications Manager. Diane Seno has been promoted to Data Applica-tions Supervisor.

Milestone Life Events:Food & Nutritional Ser-vices: Linda & Harold Howlett welcomed their second grand-child, Liam Grey Howlett, on 11/27/12, son of Brian & Kate Howlett. Big sister Shea is very excited to have a baby brother. Kathy Marshall welcomed her second grandchild, Jayson Roberto, on 12/7/12, son of Jason & Ericka. Big sister Layla is very excited to have a baby brother. Susan Paige, Coffee Shop, welcomed her second grandchild, Natalee Ann, on 12/27/12, daughter of Deanna & Jason Reese. Sara Koenig and husband Justin Rebecchi wel-comed their first child, Joshua John, on 12/31/12. Public Affairs: Hannah & Herbie Feldman celebrated the birth of their second great-grand-child, Bradley, on 8/18/12. Revenue Cycle Manage-ment: Don Denton married Tricia Schreiber on 9/29 at the West Sayville Country Club followed by a honeymoon in Bermuda. Brendan Bonacum became engaged to Danielle Johnston and a 2015 wedding is planned. Andrew Ribeiro became engaged to Karinna

Escabi (Bariatric Dept). Ellie & Stephen Gleisberg celebrated the birth of Ava Grace, on 11/17. Occupational Ther-apy: Nicole Poat wed Chris-topher Zarcone in November and celebrated with a honey-moon in the Mexican Riviera. Transitional Care: Michelle Mason and Justin Tempelman married in September. Food & Nutritional Services: Private First Class Kristen M. Saporito, USMC, daughter of Kathie & Nick Saporito, graduated from Platoon 4037, November Company, 4th Recruit Training Battalion, in December. She is now in MOS School. Surgi-cal Services: Laura D’Amato

FAMILY

Present

&

Save the Date!Saturday, May 4th, 8 a.m.

Sign up today at www.matherhospital.org/walk

Benefiting

and Anthony Abrescia wed in July 2012. Ed Schmidt became engaged to Lisa Marie Karan. Yvette Martinez’s son, Ryan, graduated from Comsewogue H.S. and will further his educa-tion at Stony Brook University. Lisa Branca’s son, Robert, grad-uated from Comsewogue H.S. and will further his education at Suffolk Community College. Barbara Stanevich’s son, Steven, has been promoted to drill in-structor for the United States Marine Corps.

Miscellaneous:Laboratory: Pat Callaghan had a great time vacationing in Aruba.

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75 N. Country RoadPort Jefferson, NY 11777

NON-PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPERMIT # 14

HUNTINGTON, NY

at Watermill Caterers, Smithtown, NY

Thursday, March 14, 2013, 6:00 to 9:30pmFeaturing an array of New York’s funniest comedians and Long Island’s finest chefs, bakers, microbrewers,

wineries, and coffee purveyors, all designed to tickle your funny bone while tantalizing your taste buds.

Sponsors:

Other sponsorships available, for more information call Cindy Court at 631-476-2723

Participating Restaurants Include: Associate’s Gourmet Market • Chateau Briand • Curry Club • Florie’s Finales • Grandpa Pete’s Gourmet Sauce • H2O • Hotel, Tourism & Event Management Club • Jefferson’s Ferry Culinary Team • SCCC Culinary Arts & Baking Club • Starfish Junction • Stone Soupe • Sysco Long Island

• Swan Bakery • The Secret Garden Tea Cafe • Uncle Bacala’s • Watermill CaterersFor an updated list of participants, visit www.matherhospital.org/comedy

Special Employee Ticket Price $60 each$75 for non-employees

Proceeds benefit Mather Hospital’s Behavioral Health ServicesYour purchase will help raise much needed funds for the Behavioral Health Services,

designed to improve the emotional and physical well-being of our adolescent and adult psychiatric patients.

Comedy & Cuisine Ticket Order Form

Name _________________________________________

Telephone_______________________________________

E-mail Address_____________________________________

Street Address_____________________________________

City/State/Zip____________________________________

Please charge my credit card: o Visa o Master Card o Amex o Discover Card

# ____________________________________________

Exp. Date___/____

Name on Card ____________________________________

# of Tickets @ $75 ea. ___________

Total amount enclosed: $__________

Make checks payable to: JTM Foundation or register online at www.matherhospital.org/comedyPlease mail to Mather Hospital Public Affairs Department75 North Country RoadPort Jefferson, NY 11777 OR Fax to 631-476-2792For more info contact Cindy Court, Public Affairs Dept. 631-476-2723 or email: ccourt@matherhospital.org