This week, we honored members of our opioid treatment programs for their ability to connect with patients and provide them the unending expertise and support they need to live full lives.

Dr. Edmund A. Drew, Jr. was the Beth Israel’s Chief of Methadone Services from 1985 until his death in 2007. He was a role model and mentor to many because of his passion for improving the lives of both patients and families.

Every year, OTP employees gather together to celebrate the Drew Awards based on Dr. Drew’s legacy. OTP employees nominate their colleagues who exemplify his qualities of excellence, and a committee of peers then reviews the nominations and selects the award recipients.

This year, we recognized Clinic Physician Ricardo Dunner, MD, for being an exceptional voice, patient advocate, and educator for both staff and patients. Through his work, we have gained so much insight into seeing all of our patients as complex human beings who are so much more than the labels that society assigns them.

Above: Ricardo Dunner, MD, pictured with Senior Director Teri Friedman.

We also recognized Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Jolita Eimutaviciute, who exemplifies consistent dedication and commitment to her patients. She always brings positive energy to the work environment, is humble and gracious, intentional in the quality of service she provides, and the first to volunteer to work on projects that can improve outcomes.

Above is Jolita Eimutaviciute on the right with Yves Cyraque-Cadet, Supervisor Social Work, on the left.

Each year it gets harder and harder to pick just a few people because there are so many on our team who provide empathic and compassionate care to our patients every day. I can’t thank them enough.

Nominees for the Drew Award are pictured below and include, left to right: Danisha Marrero, Patient Service Representative; Michelle Bernard, Patient Service Representative; Dennis Mitchell, OTP Counselor; Brenda Davis, Manager Patient Advocate; Willie Lopez, OTP Counselor.

Our OTP program is one way we have been continuously improving the lives of patients with opioid use disorder. The MSBI Emergency Department also offers a wide array of services for these patients, including events to educate the public on administering Naloxone, the drug that helps reverse opioid overdose. The next event is on Wednesday, December 18, 9am-1pm in the Union Square lobby. You can read more about the Emergency Department’s services for patients with opioid use disorder and get more updates on the MSBI blog here.

Patients from the Mount Sinai Beth Israel pediatric ED and The New York Chapter of the Children’s Brain Tumor Foundation came to Mount Sinai-Union Square on December 8 for a holiday celebration sponsored by Andy and Elaine Pesky of PROTRAVEL INTERNATIONAL. The party included costumed characters, food, music, face-painting, and a visit from Santa.

Mr. Pesky, the Senior Vice President of Leisure Sales and Marketing for PROTRAVEL INTERNATIONAL, has been coordinating the event  for 35 years and collaborating with MSBI for 25 years. More than 100 PROTRAVEL employees volunteered for the party. 

Mount Sinai Beth Israel Emergency Department team members also volunteered, including Yvette Calderon, MD, MS, Erik Eiting, MD, MPH, Marcia Graham, child life specialist, and C. Anthoney Lim, MD.

Mount Sinai Beth Israel has a long legacy of providing compassionate care to patients with opioid use disorder through our network of comprehensive Opioid Treatment clinics. Because of the rise in opioid use, many MSBI teams are focused on supporting these patients throughout their medical journey so that they can live a full life.

The MSBI Emergency Department offers a wide array of services for patients with opioid use disorder, including providing medications for the treatment of opioid use disorder and withdrawal, harm reduction education, naloxone distribution, peer engagement after a non-fatal opioid overdose, and facilitated referral to outpatient care.

Our Emergency Department Health Educators also distribute and regularly educate patients, employees, and other members of our community on how to administer Naloxone. Our next naloxone training event will be held Wednesday, December 18 from 9:00am-1:00pm in the lobby of Mount Sinai-Union Square located at 10 Union Square East.

Recently, our  Vice Chair of Operations for Emergency Medicine, Erick Eiting, MD, spoke with End the Epidemic about his work studying opioid use for pain in gender affirmation surgery and transgender care. Read the story here.

This week I want to recognize our incredible engineering team. To maintain a facility like ours, they must be agile and creative. They do their very difficult job with extraordinary professionalism, excellence, teamwork, and spirit.

To ensure we have the best support services teams and practices possible, we partner with a healthcare management company, Crothall Healthcare. They provide opportunities to improve our practices and engage our staff throughout the year. In October, two members of our Engineering team attended a Crothall Conference in Orlando, Florida where the teams from across the United States celebrated each other. The MSBI Engineering team is a national leader and won several awards:

• Inclusion Excellence Award
• Facilities Management Account of the Year
• Platinum-Plus Account, having completed many requirements in Crothall’s Be-A-Star Program

Our Director of Engineering, Cristian Castillo says, “My favorite part of my job is working with the team—training, coaching, and learning from them.”

I’ve learned a lot from them in the last few years, too.

And, I was impressed to see the video they created for the Be-A-Star program all about expressing the diverse talents that make them such a powerful team. The entire video—song composition, performance, editing, producing, and everything else—was created by our Engineering team. A special thanks to Eric Felcin who took the lead for this project.

Click below to see the video. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.