Men named Jersey Shore 'Rockers'
JERSEY SHORE- Jersey Shore Hospital recognized two employees with December's ROCKER of the Month award.
Craig Rippey and Daniel Harrington, both of the Maintenance Department, are congratulated for their extreme foresight and skill during the recent Superstorm Sandy episode.
Rippey, who actually was on vacation at the time, returned early and spent the night at the hospital, making sure all operations ran smoothly.
Harrington supplied many hospital departments with needed equipment and helped to keep staff calm, cool and collected.
The ROCKER of the Month is similar to an employee of the month program. The acronym stands for Respecting Our Customers Kindly and Employees Regularly.
Lock Haven Hospital names
new director of pharmacy
Lock Haven Hospital recently announced that Jerald Crosby has been named director of pharmacy.
Cosby brings more than 30 years of pharmacy experience to the position. Prior to joining Lock Haven Hospital, he spent 23 years as the director of pharmacy at Jersey Shore Hospital.
Crosby began his hospital career as a staff pharmacist with Susquehanna Health in Williamsport and his career in retail pharmacy with Rite Aid and Thrift Drugs.
"Patient safety is a critical component of what we do every day, and Jerry brings a level of experience to his role that will make him a vital part of the safety process not only in the pharmacy but in his interactions with the nursing staff" said John Zidansek, CEO of Lock Haven Hospital. "Pharmacy plays a crucial role in patient care, and Jerry will be a strong steward to oversee safe and timely operation of our pharmacy department."
Crosby received a bachelor of pharmacy degree from Duquesne University School of Pharmacy, Pittsburgh.
Soldiers and Sailors
Memorial Hospital receives
accreditation from
College of American Pathologists
WELLSBORO - Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hospital's primary laboratory, blood and gas laboratory, and its Point of Care testing program again have been awarded accreditation by the Accreditation Committee of the College of American Pathologists (CAP), based on the results of a recent onsite inspection.
Laboratory director Dr. William P. Reich was advised of the national recognition and congratulated for the excellence of the services being provided. CAP celebrates 50 years as the gold standard in laboratory accreditation and is a medical society serving more than 18,000 physician members and the global laboratory community.
Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hospital's laboratory is one of more than 7,000 CAP-accredited laboratories worldwide.
During the accreditation process, inspectors examine the laboratory's records and quality control of procedures for the preceding two years, staff qualifications, equipment, facilities, safety program and record, and the overall management.
The stringent inspection program is designed to specifically ensure the highest standard of care for all laboratory patients.
American Cancer Society awards grant to PSU researcher
STATE COLLEGE - The American Cancer Society has awarded a $720,000 grant to Penn State University cancer researcher Dr. Siyang Zheng.
The grant, which went into effect Jan. 1 and continues for four years, is among 96 newly awarded American Cancer Society research and training grants totaling $48,808,000.
"Penn State is extremely proud to be awarded these funds on behalf of Dr. Zheng. We know how hard Society volunteers work to make grants possible," said Director of Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute Dr. Thomas P. Loughran "The Society has an excellent track record of supporting young researchers with new ideas. We're confident that Dr. Zheng's studies will advance our understanding of this terrible disease."
Funding for the grants is made possible in large part by donations from volunteers and sponsors at American Cancer Society events such as its Relay For Life walks, Coaches vs. Cancer games, Daffodil Days, bike-a-thons and golf classics.
"The American Cancer Society is excited to recognize Dr. Zheng as a promising young cancer researcher," said Tammy Ahles, regional vice president. "The Society is proud to invest in the best and brightest researchers to create a world with more birthdays."
Zheng, in the bioengineering department, will investigate how metastatic cancer cells release circulating tumor cells (CTCs) that travel through the blood and invade different parts of the body, a process that accounts for more than 90 percent of cancer-related deaths.
His lab has taken a novel approach to obtaining CTCs, a challenging process, using an array of flexible microsprings to improve the filtration process. This could allow testing of drugs to measure their benefit without exposing a patient to the unnecessary cost or toxic effects of chemotherapy. Since this technological platform is applicable to almost every type of cancer, it could quickly revolutionize the way that therapies are derived for cancer patients in which cancer has spread.
"It is a tremendous honor to have been chosen as one of the recipients of the American Cancer Society's Research Scholar Award, and I wish to express my sincere thanks to the Society," Zheng said.
Geisinger appoints new
director of bioethics
DANVILLE - Dr. F. Daniel Davis has been named director of bioethics for Geisinger Health System.
Davis came to Geisinger in September with 20-plus years of experience in theoretical and applied bioethics, most recently serving as senior adviser for bioethics and policy with the National Institutes of Health's Office of Science Policy in Bethesda, Md.
At Geisinger, Davis will lead the system's bioethics initiatives, including strengthening the capacity for clinical ethics consultation, ethics education, policy development and review and ethics quality improvement. In this role, he is building an integrated ethics approach, working with clinicians at the bedside and with investigators, especially in the field of genomics. He is chairing the bioethics committee at Geisinger Medical Center and working with the ethics committees at the other hospitals in the system.
He also will implement a Rural Health Bioethics program to advance ethics in the delivery of healthcare. The program will include bioethics-related research and program development in rural healthcare settings.
A member of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, Davis served as an associate dean at Georgetown University School of Medicine, where he chaired the institutional review board for psychosocial and behavioral research and served on the hospital ethics committee. Before taking up his post at the NIH, he served as executive director of the President's Council on Bioethics.
"Dr. Davis comes to us with an impressive record of bioethics experience in the federal government and at Georgetown's Medical Center," said Dr. Albert Bothe, executive vice president and chief medical officer, Geisinger Health System. "We are excited to see him apply that knowledge across the system."
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Susquehanna Health Family Medicine welcomes physician assistant
LOCK HAVEN - Laura Richardson, certified physician assistant, has joined Drs. Sarah McElroy, Frank Parker, Carrie Timko and Emily Shultz, certified physician assistant, at their practice at Susquehanna Health Family Medicine, 610 High St.
Richardson graduated with honors from Pennsylvania College of Technology's physician assistant program.
Richardson acts as a licensed health professional, providing advanced care with the doctors' supervision. She is educated in intensive medical programs accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant and obtained certification from the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. Like all physician assistants, Richardson can manage both acute and chronic illness, prescribe medications and maintain a collaborative relationship with physicians.
Family Medicine at Lock Haven is accepting new patients. To schedule an appointment, call 748-1201.
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Lock Haven Hospital welcomes Acute Care director
Lock Haven Hospital recently welcomed registered nurse Mary Vuccola as the hospital's new director of acute care.
Vuccola brings more than 29 years of clinical experience in hospital, long term care and primary care environments to her new role. She most recently spent eight years serving in a variety of nursing and house supervision roles at Jersey Shore Hospital.
Her experience includes various nursing and leadership roles with Clinton Medical Associates, Manor Care South and a prior stint as a medical-surgical nurse at Lock Haven Hospital.
"We continue to be focused on delivering a top quality patient care experience; nursing is a critical piece in that ongoing process and Mary will take the lead role in that process," said Kathy Hartman, chief nursing officer, Lock Haven Hospital. "Her training and experience as a leader will make her a valuable asset."
Vuccola received a nursing degree from Pennsylvania College of Technology and is pursuing her master of science degree from Walden University. She is a member of the state Department of Environmental Protection's Environmental Justice Advisory Board and serves on the Beech Creek Watershed Association.
Vuccola is an avid endurance trail hiker and has completed the Megatransect Challenge three times and the Hyner Challenge five times.
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New Beginnings owner attends conference
Rana A. Colaianni, founder and owner of New Beginnings Healthcare for Women LLC, recently attended a conference sponsored by the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine titled "Gut, Brain and Auto-immune Disorders: The Role of Food."
Some of the faculty included world leader in celiac research, Dr. Alessio Fassano; Dr. David Perlmutter, Dr. William Davis, author of "Wheat Belly"; and Dr. Gerald Mullin, director of integrative health services at Johns Hopkins.
The speakers addressed new clinical research in the understanding of the immune system and food sensitivities, celiac disease and the connections between the GI tract and the nervous system. Also discussed was ALCAT testing, a simple blood test that measures the body's cellular response to a variety of substances including foods, chemical additives and environmental chemicals and molds, thereby identifying an individual's personal triggers of inflammation.
New Beginnings Healthcare for Women offers an integrative, holistic approach to healthcare for women and men. For more information, call 329-2273, go to www.newbeginningsforwomen.com or visit the facilities at 1017 Washington Blvd., Suite B.
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Geisinger Medical Center unit wins national award for excellence
DANVILLE - The Acuity Adaptable Critical Care Unit at Geisinger Medical Center's Hospital for Advanced Medicine recently received the silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.
Established in 2003, the Beacon Award for Excellence recognizes caregivers who successfully improve patient outcomes and align practices with AACN's six standards for a healthy work environment. Units that achieve this three-year, three-level award meet national criteria consistent with Magnet Recognition, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the National Quality Healthcare Award.
"At Geisinger, we strive every day to provide the highest level of care to our patients, and receiving the Beacon Award for Excellence is affirmation that the hard work and dedication of our nurses is paying off and helping our area's most critical patients," said Tracy Edelstein, operations manager, Acuity Adaptable Critical Care Unit, GMC. "While we are proud to receive this award, we will continue to improve the care we deliver and strive to enhance the patient experience at Geisinger."
The six criteria met by the staff at GMC's Hospital for Advanced Medicine include leadership structures and systems; appropriate staffing and staff engagement; effective communication, knowledge management, best practices and learning and development; evidenced-based practice and processes; and patient outcomes.
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Study finds prenatal microarray analysis beneficial in diagnosis of developmental disorders
DANVILLE - A study published last month in The New England Journal of Medicine has found that chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA) is more accurate in the diagnosis of developmental delays and birth defects during the prenatal period than more routine genetic testing, indicating that CMA would be beneficial as a standard part of prenatal testing.
The study compared CMA, a genetic test that samples the entire human genome at a very high resolution, to karyotyping, which can only detect much larger genetic imbalances. The findings suggest that CMA is more accurate than karyotyping in identifying chromosomal abnormalities that can lead to developmental delays and birth defects.
"Whole genome analysis with new DNA-based methods has emerged as an essential diagnostic tool for the evaluation of developmental delays and birth defects in children," said Dr. David H. Ledbetter, executive vice president and chief scientific officer at Geisinger Health System, and co-author of the study. "The results of this study are encouraging and indicate that it could be a valuable prenatal diagnostic tool."
The study, which followed 4,406 women, found that in the majority of those women, CMA identified all of the chromosomal abnormalities that also were identified by karyotyping. But in women with a normal karyotype, CMA identified additional chromosomal abnormalities that were not initially found through karyotyping. Specifically, CMA identified chromosomal abnormalities in 1.7 percent of women considered at relatively low risk for genetic abnormalities (such as advanced maternal age and positive test results for chromosomal abnormality) and in 6 percent of cases with a fetal structural abnormality found through ultrasound examination.
"CMA clearly detects more abnormalities than other genetic tests that have been the standard of care for many years," Ledbetter said. "Based on our findings, we believe that CMA should become a standard part of prenatal testing and our hope is that this evidence will encourage insurance companies to cover this testing for patients."
Establishing clear genetic diagnoses helps families to obtain early intervention and a service for children with developmental disorders, Ledbetter said, and helps parents to determine whether they want to have additional children.
Additionally, by pinpointing progressively smaller chromosomal abnormalities, CMA can help researchers zero in on specific genes involved in brain development and function within a stretch of DNA in order to classify patients according to the type of chromosomal abnormality found, all in the quest to deliver patients more personalized treatment.
"CMA testing can assist immeasurably in the evaluation or confirmation of developmental disorders," Ledbetter said, "leading to earlier diagnosis and intervention and a significantly improved outcomes for the patients and their families."
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Former local named CEO of NJ hospice
Keith L. Boroch, a long-time resident of Williamsport and son of Mr. and Mrs. Anthony W. Boroch, joined Barnabas Health on Oct. 29, assuming the position of president and CEO of Hospice and Home Care Services.
He will be responsible for leading the newly aligned Barnabas Health Hospice and Palliative Care Centers and Barnabas Health Home Care agencies, which includes eight locations throughout New Jersey.
"Mr. Boroch is uniquely qualified to lead our hospice and home care agencies," said Barry H. Ostrowsky, president and CEO of Barnabas Health. "He is a proven leader with experience as an administrator for hospice and home care in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and has a broad knowledge of the health care industry and hospice and home care in particular."
Barnabas Health Hospice and Home Care agencies have provided care to patients and families throughout New Jersey for more than 30 years. Each year, Barnabas Health Hospice and Palliative Care Centers deliver care to more than 2,000 patients, while Barnabas Health Home Care records more than 150,000 home care visits to patients in the comfort and privacy of their homes.
Prior to joining Barnabas Health, Boroch was Ppresident of the Visiting Nurse Association of St. Luke's Inc., a subsidiary of St. Luke's University Health Network in Bethlehem, Pa. A certified public accountant, Boroch received a bachelor of science degree from Bloomsburg University and a master's in corporate finance from Drexel University.
