UHSNewsApril17.2013 - Broome County Triathlon Club

April 17, 2013
News
UHS News also appears online at http://intranet.uhs.org
Cancer 101 support group
begins today
Join the Cancer 101 free support group
focusing on living with cancer. The next
seminar is open to people who have been
diagnosed with cancer or who have a loved
one with cancer. Led by two knowledgeable, understanding experts from UHS,
the group will consider cancer from diagnosis to treatment to survivorship. Learn
about exercise, nutrition, hobbies and proven
ways to stay healthy. Today’s April 17
Cancer 101 seminar will be held in the
Cafeteria Conference Room, Picciano 1,
UHS Wilson, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
For more information, see this story in
UHS News Online.
Call goes out
for Relay helpers
UHS employees are needed to help out
with Relay For Life. Team UHS is gathering folks who are interested in becoming
team captains or otherwise volunteering
for this American Cancer Society event.
Team UHS’ Relay Committee will hold a
meeting at 5 p.m., on Wednesday, April 17,
in the CyberKnife Center at UHS Wilson.
If you’re interested in being part of it all,
stop by. If you cannot attend the meeting
but would still like to volunteer, e-mail
molli_reppard@uhs.org or call her at
763-6666.
Friday's drive is important
Staff and visitors are being asked to
roll up their sleeves to help alleviate the
current area blood shortage. A UHS Blood
Drive will be held on Friday, April 19, from
8 a.m. to 2 p.m., on Picciano 4, Room 5ABC
at UHS Wilson. All blood types are needed.
As UHS’ way of saying thank you, all donors
will receive a $5 coupon for a meal in the
UHS Binghamton General or UHS Wilson
cafeteria or coffee shop. Donors will also
be entered into a drawing for a chance to
win a $25 gift card. And UHS employees
who donate will receive a chance to win a
free PTO day. For an appointment to donate,
contact Lori King at 763-6103 or lori_king
@uhs.org. Walk-in donors are also welcome.
Help save a life: Donate blood!
UHS Wilson Medical Center
UHS Binghamton General Hospital
Left to Right: PJ Messina, therapist, UHS Radiation Oncology; Betty Day, patient and medal recipient; Bill Day, Betty’s husband; Diana Bean, BC Triathlon Club; Ed Desantis, BC Triathlon Club president;
Sue Schultz, BC Triathlon Club; Kelley Hamlin, BC Triathlon Club and former Radiation Oncology patient.
Runners donate their medals
to patients challenging cancer
Members of the Broome County Triathlon Club are generously donating their hardearned medals to patients of the UHS Radiation Oncology Program. Each eligible patient
who completes radiation treatment receives a medal at their "graduation." A note from the
club is enclosed with the medal: “The race where we received this medal was very hard
and challenging to finish, but it is nothing compared to what you have just completed!”
Betty Day, of Oxford, was the first patient to receive a medal donated from the club. Betty
underwent six weeks of radiation therapy treatment at UHS Radiation Oncology.“The
scariest part of the treatments was wondering how things would turn out,” Betty said. Now
that she has completed her treatment, she will have more energy and is planning a trip to
visit family members, including her son and four grandchildren, in Texas. Betty’s husband
Bill and daughter Kate have been supportive throughout her treatment, taking her to and
from appointments, which was quite a trip from their home in Oxford. Betty says she is
very blessed to have such an excellent support system at home. PJ Messina, her radiation
therapist, and members of the Broome County Triathlon Club, presented Betty with her
completion certificate and medal. The light-up medal was from a marathon completed in
Atlantic City. Betty commented on the medal: “Now I can run at night!” Over 50 medals
have been donated by the club to give to patients who complete their radiation treatment.
The medals are earned from events the runners have completed. They cheerfully give them
up so that cancer survivors can be honored for their courage in the face of a challenge.
One of the club’s members also completed treatment at UHS Radiation Oncology and is
already back to running marathons. Marie Darling, RT(R)(T), manager/ radiation therapist,
and PJ Messina, radiation therapist, are the team leads for the medals program at UHS
Hospitals. The UHS Radiation Oncology program team would like to thank Ed Desantis,
the club’s president, and the entire Broome County Triathlon Club for the donations and
for recognizing the courage and strength cancer patients face in their race to live.
UHS Chenango Memorial Hospital
UHS Delaware Valley Hospital
UHS Home Care
UHS Senior Living at Ideal
UHS Primary Care
UHS Specialty Care
UHS Foundation
UHS Medical Group
UHS recognizes the high quality of care
and service provided by its employees,
volunteers and medical staff across the
system. Featured in this issue are the following notes and letters of special thanks for:
Gift Shop marks 50 years
For half a century, patients, visitors, employees, volunteers and medical staff have been stopping in at the Gift Shop just off the lobby of UHS Binghamton General. In this little shop on
the corner, customers can buy a gift or some flowers for a loved one in the hospital, pick up
a nice get-well card or treat themselves to a candy bar to get through the afternoon. The
shop, staffed by members of the UHS Auxiliary Binghamton General Hospital, is a friendly
institution on Binghamton’s South Side, and this week it’s celebrating its 50th birthday. The
Auxiliary will mark the occasion by holding an anniversary celebration on April 18 and 19
in the Main Lobby. Stop by to see displays, enjoy refreshments and, of course, shop.
ABOVE: Mary Jane Smith is one of the members of the UHS Auxiliary Binghamton General
Hospital whom customers meet when they visit the hospital's Gift Shop, celebrating its 50th
anniversary this week.
Sonography gets the gold for three UHS locations
The American College of Radiology has awarded UHS Binghamton General, UHS
Wilson and UHS Vestal a three-year term of accreditation in ultrasound and vascular imaging
as a result of extensive reviews. Ultrasound/vascular imaging, also known as sonography,
uses high-frequency sound waves to produce images of internal body parts to help providers
diagnose illness, injury or other medical problems. Joan Hensberry, manager of Imaging,
explained the significance of this accreditation and the process that the sites undergo to
achieve it: “This accreditation, which is known as the ACR gold seal of accreditation, represents the highest level of image quality and patient safety. To achieve it, candidates must
demonstrate that they meet ACR practice guidelines and technical standards. This is accomplished through a peer-review evaluation by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field.” These experts assess image quality, personnel qualifications, facility equipment, quality control procedures and quality assurance programs. They
report their findings to the ACR Committee on Accreditation, which then provides the
practice with a comprehensive report they can use for continuous practice improvement.
Joan added, “For UHS, the personnel qualifications include that all of our sonographers
and vascular technologists are licensed professionals and credentialed in their specialties.”
The two hospitals received their accreditation notice at the end of 2012, and UHS Vestal
received theirs in March. Joan stated that the gold seal accreditation is one more way UHS
ensures quality patient care and safety. “Everyone on the UHS imaging team is dedicated
to superior, patient-centered care.”
Try this new Punisher thing
The 2013 AIDS Walk, Run and Patterson Punisher will be held on Sunday, April 21,
at the Greater Binghamton Sports Complex. Walk, run or compete in the Patterson Punisher,
where you run, crawl, sprint and splash through a challenging obstacle course. Visit http://
www.aidswalkrun.org/ for additional details and to register for this fun event. The schedule
is: 9 a.m., five-kilometer run; 11 a.m., 5K walk; and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Patterson Punisher.
Bus trips start in June
UHS bus trips will be here before you know it. Save these dates now so you can get
the excursion you want, and watch UHS News Online at http://intranet.uhs.org for detailed
announcements:
• June 1 - Yankees vs. Mets in New York City
• July 13 - A day in New York City
• Oct. 12 - Shopping at King of Prussia Mall
• Dec. 7 - A day in New York City
Kristen W., Michele G., Jessica M.,
Marsha, Maria, Kathleen, Marianne,
Kerri, Julia, Eva, Dr. Wolfe (Anesthesia),
Catherine (OR), Kimo (RT), Dr. Aronis,
Dr. Burgoon, Dr. Remakus, Dr. Savage,
a Pharmacy Tech, Randy and Sue
(Radiology) from UHS Wilson ICU
During a traumatic CPR, everyone made
themselves readily available. The team work
displayed was outstanding. The flow was
very smooth, especially with the Pharmacy
Tech present (I'm not sure of her name).
Every attempt was made to provide the
patient with the best possible care and,
although the outcome was not optimal,
every hand that was involved was amazingly helpful. This was a nearly two hour
event, from onset to completion that was
stressful (under the circumstances) but calm
and thorough. I commend everyone involved and would love to give everyone a personal THANK YOU for providing such
excellent care, making themselves available,
and taking part in every aspect, right down
to rounding on other patients on the floor
to ensure their stability. Kudos to everyone.
You were all part of a remarkable effort
and I appreciate, to no end, your involvement, professionalism, knowledge, and
efforts. Best team ever!
– From a colleague
Thank you to Leah Vandusen, line chef,
sandwich station at UHS Binghamton
General. While standing in line for a sandwich, Leah overheard me telling a coworker
I was very allergic to mushrooms. At the
time she was making a mushroom-based
wrap, which made me a bit concerned.
Without me saying anything, she followed
proper contamination procedures, changing
her gloves when making my sandwich,
using a different knife and not letting my
meal touch the same surface as the previous sandwich. I was very impressed with
her professionalism and her proactive
approach to keeping my meal safe. Thank
you so much, Leah!
– From a colleague
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If you have questions, contact Bill Michael,
UHS Communications Editor, at 762-2380.