As we move into 2019, we continue to focus on coming together to improve the patient experience. In the spirit of this important work, we recently gathered our security officers and volunteer greeters with our new concierge team members for teambuilding and training. They are our hub for welcoming patients, guests, and employees to our hospital.

They worked through recent changes we’ve made to help patients find their way through the hospital, like our new map and new preferred routes for patients. They came together in many interactive activities including a scavenger hunt, routing scenarios, and interactive role-playing. I believe one key to our success lies in this kind of interactive teamwork.

Click below to scroll through photos of the event.

What I am most grateful for is their willingness to remain open to exploring how their roles contribute to an excellent experience. Visitor badging is brand new, and our teams have been courageous and patient in understanding how their piece of the puzzle fits together with the larger welcoming environment at MSBI.

Later this year, we will have a similar opportunity for all of our employees to connect in small groups and discuss how we can support our patients and each other. This is important work, and I can’t wait to continue on this journey with you.

To take care of others, we must first take care of ourselves. We want to do everything we can to help you stay healthy this year and always. Did you know MSBI has a gym on campus? The employee-only space on 3 Linsky has cardio machines, mats, freestanding resistance machines, free weights, kettlebells, and other workout equipment. We recently fixed some of the equipment and bought new elliptical machines. There are also cubbies for your belongings and a shower/changing area. We heard from some of you about how you’ve taken advantage of the gym.

To hear from Chief Medical Officer Barbara Barnett about her time in the gym, click the button below. 

You can visit the Mount Sinai Wellness page for more information about our other wellness activities.

This week I’d like to feature our patient care float pool staff for the support they offer to the various units in our hospital.  They are consistent and flexible while working with so many different teams and patients depending on the daily needs of our various units and programs. And one additional thing that makes this work is the extra effort that the regular team members on each unit give to orienting and making our float staff feel at home.

Their sense of community and belonging is strong. Lies Moulla, a float staff patient care associate who has been part of our community for over 17 years, says that no matter what unit he is on, he is always able to connect the team members there and thinks of them as family.

Our patient care float pool team members represent the best of Beth Israel – always open to change and always ready, willing, and able to provide their expertise where they are most needed.

Top left, then clockwise: Mignon Sampson, PCA; Michael Sta Maria, RN; Lybra A Winds, PCA; Dolores Daly, PCA.

Top from left to right: Louis White, PCA; Jennifer Parker, PCA; Jovonn Douglas, PCA; Bottom from left to right: Jenny Lam, RN; Jackeline Vives, USA; Marie Blaise, RN.

Top left, then clockwise: Yolanda Rodriguez, USA; Victoria Tuoyo, PCA; Shatika Smith, RN; Rashid R Edwards, PCA.

Early on in the HIV/AIDS era, Beth Israel was one of the first hospitals to provide specialized care for patients with HIV. In the early eighties, Beth Israel established the Peter Krueger Clinic in honor of a patient who passed away in 1988, and this practice is still operating today in our Fierman building. Since its inception, the Peter Krueger Clinic has been a critical component of MSBI’s commitment to patient-centered care, while also serving as a world-class training site for HIV specialists and Infectious Diseases Fellows and a clinical trial site that has contributed to the development of lifesaving therapies for HIV. At the peak of the tuberculosis outbreaks in NYC in the early nineties, the Peter Krueger Clinic developed a successful comprehensive directly-observed therapy program that has been credited to saving many New Yorkers with the combination of HIV and TB.

Our Peter Krueger team members have incredibly strong bonds with their patients. One reason for that that is many patients have been coming to this clinic for decades, and many of our nurses and providers have been here that long as well. One of the nurses, Sally Parisi-Esposito, even went to nursing school in Fierman and has been here since that time. Our Medical Director, Nadim Salomon, MD, trained in infectious diseases at Beth Israel in the early years of the HIV epidemic. There’s a strong sense of family between patients and the staff – including nurses, physicians, patient care associates, social workers, patient navigators, and care coordinators.

The Peter Krueger Clinic provides a very comprehensive set of services including primary care, behavioral health, social work, acupuncture, dental care, gynecology, dermatology, nutrition, and patient education.

It is no surprise that this team has extraordinary patient retention rates, clinical outcomes, and incredibly high patient satisfaction.

Thanks to our Peter Krueger Clinic colleagues for all you do.

Employees throughout the Downtown campus are working together to bring cheer and joy to patients this holiday season by decorating their work areas. Below are the winners of our “Deck the Halls” contest held across all locations.

The many employees at our Water Street location impressed us with their widespread representation of the five boroughs including MTA and the Staten Island Ferry, and Santa’s

Water Street’s Representation of Brooklyn Art.

Winning train from Water Street

Workshop.

Downtown Winner:

Water Street Financial Services

Petrie/MSBI Winner: 

10 Dazian-CCU

Chelsea:

Administration

Union Square Winners:

• First Place: Radiology and Pre-Srugical Testing
• Honorable Mentions: Pediatrics/OBGYN and Urgent Care Center

Doctors Locations

• First Place: 34 th Street
• Honorable Mention: 14 th Street