Community | Mount Sinai Today

BioBank Program Celebrates National DNA Day

May 22, 2018 | Community

Amanda B. Merkelson, MPH, spoke with potential participants at DNA Day. Photographed by Bruna Purtell.

While enjoying cake pops arranged in the shape of a double helix, visitors engaged with staff from the BioMe™ BioBank Program at the National DNA Day fair held on Wednesday, April 25, in Guggenheim Pavilion. More than 200 attended the fair, which commemorates the discovery of the molecular structure of DNA in 1953 and the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003. The annual fair also aims to educate the public about the event’s organizer, the BioMe BioBank Program of The Charles Bronfman Institute for Personalized Medicine, which collects de-identified DNA and plasma for research purposes. During the five-hour fair, 127 participants had DNA and plasma extracted onsite by BioMe, which to date has enrolled more than 42,000 people.

“This DNA Day celebrated BioMe’s achievements and advances in the personalized medicine revolution started at Mount Sinai 11 years ago,” said Amanda B. Merkelson, MPH, BioMe Biobank Managing Director. “I cannot think of a more fun way to bring everyone associated with BioMe together and an easier way to participate in making treatments and diagnoses safer and better for the patients who need them the most.”

Respiratory Institute Opens Second Location

May 22, 2018 | Community, MSBI

The Mount Sinai – National Jewish Health Respiratory Institute opened its second Manhattan location on Monday, April 16, in Union Square, where specialists now treat asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary hypertension, lung cancer, interstitial lung disease, and chronic lung disorders. After entering into a collaborative agreement in 2015, the Mount Sinai Health System and National Jewish Health, a leading respiratory hospital based in Denver, opened its first Institute on The Mount Sinai Hospital campus. At the ribbon-cutting ceremony at Mount Sinai Union Square, leaders from both health systems noted the Institute’s high patient volume and commitment to personalized care.

From left: Richard J. Martin, MD, Chair, Department of Medicine, National Jewish Health; Barbara Murphy, MD, Chair, Samuel Bronfman Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai Health System; Charles A. Powell, MD, Chief Executive Officer, Mount Sinai – National Jewish Health Respiratory Institute; David J. Steiger, MD, Chief, Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Mount Sinai Beth Israel and Mount Sinai West; Dennis S. Charney, MD, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and President for Academic Affairs, Mount Sinai Health System; and Michael Salem, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer, National Jewish Health.

The “Purse Project” Aids Homeless Women

Updated on Nov 14, 2025 | Community, Engagement, Inside

Shaquana Mackey, second from left, accepted donations from members of the HOLA Employee Resource Group at the Corporate Services Center, including the chapter’sleaders, Shawn Lee, left, and Francis Pabon, fourth from left.

Women at a shelter in Brooklyn received spirit-lifting donations thanks to a collaboration of the nonprofit Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC) and HOLA, the Heritage of Latino Alliance Employee Resource Group at the Mount Sinai Health System. In the effort, called the “Purse Project,” HOLA members collected gently used purses and tote bags and filled them with toiletries. The donations were accepted in April at the Mount Sinai Corporate Services Center by Shaquana Mackey, Clinical Supervisor of BRC’s Lexington Avenue Women’s Residence, which houses 103 women. Ms. Mackey also gave a brief talk on what it means to be homeless in New York City. “A lot of people you wouldn’t think live in a shelter, do live in a shelter, because life happens,” Ms. Mackey said. “You could lose your job today; you could lose your spouse; your house could burn down.” Donations of funds, supplies, or volunteers’ time are always welcome, she said, adding, “Whatever you can give, our ladies are grateful.”

Keeping Patients Safe with Remote Monitoring System

May 21, 2018 | Community, Featured

Nursing assistants, trained as observers, monitor patients from a secure location.

A new Remote Patient Monitoring Program system, introduced in five units at The Mount Sinai Hospital as a pilot project in 2015, has expanded throughout the hospital and to Mount Sinai Queens, a unique technological effort to help nursing staff reduce falls among high-risk patients and keep them safe.

From left, Francine Fakih, MA, BSN, RN, with Michele Isaacs and Mario Geritano by the Remote Patient Monitoring device.

“Our entire nursing staff is trained in helping patients and caregivers learn safety measures to prevent falls, but some hospital patients who may try to get out of bed unsupervised remain prone to falling when they are weak, confused, or medicated,” says Francine Fakih, MA, BSN, RN, Deputy Chief Nursing Officer, The Mount Sinai Hospital, who oversees the program. “This new tool complements our existing patient-safety programs.” The Remote Patient Monitoring Program is being used in 19 units at The Mount Sinai Hospital and 6 units at Mount Sinai Queens.

The visual monitoring and two-way audio system consists of a camera and speaker that are mounted on a portable cart that is placed in the hospital room. The camera beams real-time video to computer screens that are monitored by trained nursing assistants observing from a secure hospital office. “This technology enhances the ability of our nursing unit teams to use all of their personnel more effectively, while safeguarding our most vulnerable patients,” says David L. Reich, MD, President of The Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai Queens.

“When a patient is trying to get out of bed, the observer will use the speaker to redirect the individual,” explains Michele Isaacs, Program Coordinator, Surgical/Medical Specialties. Once the audio is activated, the patient and observer can continue talking. The observer can better determine the patient’s need and alert the nursing station to respond. In a real emergency, the observer can set off an alarm that summons immediate help. Staff can also redirect patients they observe trying to pull out their IVs.

The system—which meets all privacy policies and does not require the consent of the patient—does not record video and audio, and allows the observer to listen in only when the monitor is activated. It also has privacy settings, giving staff in the hospital room the ability to turn off the video and audio monitor during a physician visit and other private moments.

Says Mario Geritano, Project Manager, Program Management Office, Information Technology, Mount Sinai Health System, “We are using technology to provide additional support for our clinical team while allowing for a continuous, safe monitoring experience for our patients and families.”

Celebrating a Top 20 National Ranking

May 7, 2018 | Community

Burton P. Drayer, MD, left, and Zahi A. Fayad, PhD

The Department of Radiology and the Translational and Molecular Imaging Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai held a lunch on Thursday, April 12, for faculty, trainees, staff, and guests to celebrate a No. 20 ranking in National Institutes of Health funding for medical imaging research—a milestone achievement. It is also the first time that a faculty member—Zahi A. Fayad, PhD, the founding director of the Institute, Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Radiology, and Mount Sinai Professor in Medical Imaging and Bioengineering—is nationally ranked No. 5 in radiology and imaging science funding, all according to data from the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research.

Burton P. Drayer, MD, the Charles M. and Marilyn Newman Professor and Chair of Radiology for the Mount Sinai Health System, said: “The Radiology department and its faculty have been steadily rising in rankings—breaking the Top 20 mark is a tremendous accomplishment.” Added Dr. Fayad: “We are very proud of everyone and excited to continue doing innovative science and advancing the care of current and future patients.”

Basketball Fun Helps Raise Awareness for Kidney Disease

May 7, 2018 | Community, Urology

The winning team was from the Department of Neurosurgery. From left: Resident Jeffrey T. Gilligan, MD, PGY-3S; Chief Resident Jeremy M. Steinberger, MD, PGY-7S; and team captain Leslie Schlachter, PA, Clinical Director, Neurosurgery

Attendees had fun making free throws and learning about kidney health from members of the Mount Sinai Health System’s Department of Urology at a March Madness-themed Kidney Cancer and Health Fair on Wednesday, March 28.

The event, held in Guggenheim Pavilion, featured a bracket-style free-throw challenge where seven teams of Mount Sinai medical staff competed against each other to raise awareness for kidney cancer. Special guests included former NBA and WNBA players, Earl “the Pearl” Monroe, Kym Hampton, and Albert King. Members of the National Kidney Foundation brought along their red mascot Sidney the Kidney to help educate visitors.

“Kidney disease, as a whole, does not get a lot of attention,” said the event’s organizer Ketan K. Badani, MD, Professor of Urology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Director of the Comprehensive Kidney Cancer Program at the Mount Sinai Health System—one of the largest programs in the nation. “I was motivated to create this campaign to impact public awareness of this pervasive cancer, which affects both men and women.”