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TBR News Media covers everything happening on the North Shore of Suffolk County from Cold Spring Harbor to Wading River.

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File photo

By Carol Gomes

Carol Gomes

Stony Brook University Hospital (SBUH) continues to earn national accolades for the quality of care we provide to our patients.

The latest distinction comes from U.S. News & World Report, which has recognized us as a Best Hospital for 2020-21 for Neurology and Neurosurgery, and for Orthopaedics.

SBUH ranked No. 41 nationally in Neurology and Neurosurgery, and No. 49 in Orthopaedics. In the regional rankings, SBUH ranked No. 10 in New York State out of more than 200 hospitals statewide.

This is a true testament to the quality of care we provide to our patients. These types of recognitions do not happen overnight and they do not happen by accident. They involve a lot of hard work and dedication by teams that are committed to improving quality of care.

The rankings are based on a combination of factors, including staffing levels, whether a hospital has a Trauma Center, patient survival rates, physician ratings and patient satisfaction.

In addition to Neurology and Neurosurgery, and Orthopaedics, SBUH earned “high performing” ratings for six other adult specialties including Diabetes and Endocrinology; Gastroenterology and GI surgery; Geriatrics; Nephrology; Pulmonology and Lung surgery; and Urology.

To determine the national rankings, U.S. News evaluated more than 4,500 medical centers in 16 specialties, 10 procedures and conditions. In the 16 specialty areas, only 134 hospitals in the United States performed well enough to be nationally ranked in at least one specialty.

These accolades follow on the heels of SBUH being named one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals™ for the past two years by Healthgrades — the only hospital on Long Island to receive this distinction for two consecutive years. Stony Brook was also named one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals™ for 2020 by Healthgrades for stroke care, cardiac care and coronary interventions. The hospital has earned those honors for stroke care and coronary interventions for five consecutive years. It received the cardiac care award for the sixth consecutive year.

Our expert faculty and staff deserve credit for these impressive national recognitions, which demonstrate our commitment to providing world-class, compassionate care for our patients.

Carol A. Gomes, MS, FACHE, CPHQ, IS THE Chief Executive Officer AT Stony Brook University Hospital.

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Photo by Gerard Romano

TAKING FLIGHT

Gerard Romano of Port Jefferson Station was in the right place at the right time when he snapped this photo on Oct. 5. He writes, ‘I was at the end of the bulkhead at Satterly Park in Mount Sinai. To my left a great egret was taking off. Its wings made quite a commotion. I zoomed my lens out to 300 mm and was able to capture it as it flew by.’

Send your Photo of the Week to leisure@tbrnewspapers.com

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Stony Brook University. File photo

In 2016, Stony Brook University rebranded itself to a new campaign called Far Beyond.

The idea behind the campaign was to highlight the wide range of programs and activities the school offered, since everyone normally acknowledges the university for its medicine, science and technology specialties.

But this year in 2020, the institution proved that it indeed has gone “far beyond” with protecting public health.

Dr. Deborah Birx, head of the White House’s coronavirus task force, visited SBU last week, a stop in a several-month-long tour of different colleges and universities across the United States. But her visit to the local university was different, and she made that clear.

During her press conference, she spoke highly of how Stony Brook has handled the COVID-19 crisis. She said from the start, it was going, well, “far beyond” what other schools, and even hospitals, were doing.

She said that back in March when the university shut down and patients with the virus were filling the rooms, Stony Brook did something different from other institutions — it actually collected data, while continuing to take care of the patients.

“I was listening to the research activities that they started from day one,” she said during the press conference. “And it thrilled my heart to hear from them that their number one thing was collecting data and collecting information in real time.”

It’s right to give credit where its due, and Stony Brook, both on the medical and campus side, has done good work in keeping the number of cases down. The university’s COVID dashboard reports just two students, one university employee and four Stony Brook Medicine employees have currently tested positive as of Oct. 11. Better yet, the school has been upfront in where those cases are located and how it is handling them.

This is compared to places like SUNY Oneonta, which had to close back in August after hundreds of students tested positive after a large super-spreader party. The Oneonta dashboard reports 712 confirmed cases among students since the start of the fall semester.

It’s also not to say that SBU has not made stumbles, especially in communicating with students.

Right off the bat during the start of the pandemic, students were rightfully upset at how the university handled the virus. In March, dorming students were shocked when each received an email saying they needed to move out, go home or find shelter elsewhere because the campus was officially closed.

Students said they felt rushed, and felt the university wasn’t being truthful or transparent with everything being so abrupt. Some international students couldn’t even go home since their countries were in lockdown.

But the students are back, and cases remain low. Is it because of the incentives the university has taken with social distancing guidelines, removing of sports and recreational activities, hybrid learning and sanitizing stations? Or is it just because Stony Brook is not a “party school” and the students there really don’t congregate as at some of the schools upstate, like Oneonta. It’s also important to note the number of students living on campus has fallen from 39% in 2019 to 17% this fall.

With a new president installed at SBU, Maurie McInnis, we think that communication with students has improved. Every person, every institution has been impacted by the pandemic. The students, who feel they are paying a lot for what at times must feel like a mostly online education, need that person-on-person interaction to let their voices be heard, even if it’s behind a clear plastic barrier.

Nonetheless, Stony Brook gets high praise from both us and those involved in the national response to COVID-19, as well as Birx, for going “far beyond.” We kindly ask that the university keeps it up, for the sake of both your students and the wider community.

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Suffolk County police car. File photo

Suffolk County Police 5th Squad detectives are investigating a crash that killed a St. James woman who likely suffered a medical emergency while driving Oct. 11.

Nancy Prete was driving a 2018 Nissan Frontier westbound on Montauk Highway at the intersection of North Prospect Avenue when she suffered an apparent medical emergency and veered off the road, striking a utility pole at approximately 5:10 p.m., according to police.

Prete, 76, was transported via ambulance to Long Island Community Hospital in East Patchogue where she was pronounced dead.

The vehicle was impounded for a safety check. Detectives are asking anyone with information on the crash to call the 5th Squad at 631-854-8552.

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Gurwin centenarians enjoy a celebratory birthday at a High Tea party. Photo from Gurwin

The Gurwin Jewish ~ Fay J. Lindner Residences assisted living community in Commack honored seven residents last week who reached or passed the century mark.

Sally B., 100, is one of the most recent Fay J. Lindner residents to reach the centenarian milestone. Photo from Gurwin Jewish

The milestone birthday celebration ­— a socially-distanced tea party — provided an opportunity for residents and staff alike to wish each centenarian well, and learn a bit about their lives. Adorned in top hats, tiaras and other festive attire, the residents were happy to spend the afternoon with some of their favorite staff members and fellow centenarians.

The group of seven — aged 100 to 104 — includes a Holocaust survivor, a retired New City policeman, aircraft engineer, teacher and homemaker, among others. Displaying vibrant energy throughout the festivities, the distinguished group proved that age is just a number.

Some chatted with guests, answering questions, providing advice and expressing wishes for health for everyone; others enjoyed mixing and mingling, sharing past experiences and memorable lifetime events. The honored guests were showered with affection by members of Gurwin staff who offered speeches, snapped photos, and even serenaded them with a personally penned tribute song.

Michael Letter, Administrator/Chief Operating Officer of the community, spoke with fondness for the residents and gratitude to staff during an opening speech, saying “Today’s event is a celebration of the lives, legacy and longevity of our inspirational centenarians. I feel very privileged to know them all and am grateful to our staff that provides the nurturing care that enables our extraordinary residents to stay engaged connected and thrive.”

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Eszter Boros, assistant professor in the College of Arts and Sciences Department of Chemistry at Stony Brook University, was recently named a 2020 Moore Inventor Fellow, an honor that is given to researchers who look to enable breakthroughs that accelerate progress over the next fifty years. It is hosted through the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

The fellowship supports scientist-inventors who create new tools and technologies with a high potential to accelerate progress in the Foundation’s areas of interest: scientific discovery, environmental conservation and patient care. Boros was nominated for the fellowship based on the commercial potential of her research, combining a radioactive targeted molecular probe and therapeutic that has the potential to provide pre-operative nuclear imaging and subsequent radiotherapeutic intervention for incurable prostate cancer.

Specifically, Boros is developing radioactive theranostics that can be injected into the human body and used both as a diagnostic, to detect and localize disease, and also as a therapeutic, to treat the disease. Her invention, which enables the highly selective capture of radioactive metal ions, such as those of the element scandium, paves the way for the application of scandium radioisotopes in the non-invasive, early diagnosis and targeted radiotherapy of cancers.

“I am so excited and pleased Eszter is selected as a Moore Inventors Fellow, Stony Brook’s first,” said Nicole S. Sampson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and SUNY distinguished professor of Chemistry. “She is truly a Renaissance woman, combining fundamental inorganic chemistry and metal radiochemistry with modern imaging methods to provide personalized medical  treatments of cancer and microbial infections.”

This year, the Moore Foundation received nearly 200 nominations, from which five fellows were selected. Each fellow receives a total of $825,000 over three years to drive their invention forward, which includes $50,000 per year from their home institution as a commitment to these outstanding individuals.

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METRO photo

We weren’t surprised when business owners in the wedding industry held a press conference Oct. 2 to appeal to Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D). For months, while restaurants have been able to operate at 50% capacity, reception locations can only allow 50 guests at an event.

The 50-guest cap and arbitrary state guidelines have been concerns of several business owners in the wedding and party industry. These locals have shared their experiences with TBR News Media for articles in the last few months, and vendors weren’t quite sure what they could do or not do, as they have had little direct communication with the state.

While we understand the need for Cuomo’s administration to keep gatherings down to a minimum, there needs to be more continuity and empathy in the guidelines. With the support of legislators, a class-action lawsuit is being filed by caterers. Business owners at the press conference said they feel they can provide a safer party than those being thrown in homes and backyards since they have more space to social distance and need to follow higher cleanliness standards. Owners said they realize following the guidelines is imperative for not only safety but to keep their licenses — something a homeowner doesn’t need to entertain.

The business owners may have a chance. This summer a federal judge issued a temporary injunction to allow an upstate golf club to operate at 50% capacity for two weddings after the couples and co-owner of the club sued New York State. That owner said his restaurant had the capacity to seat 438 people, but while operating as a restaurant one night he could have more than 200 people, on a wedding night he could only have 50.

This example may leave one wondering how a person visiting a restaurant could potentially be around more than 50 strangers, but cannot sit with more than 50 family members, friends and acquaintances at a party, especially since many wedding venues are committed to following current public health guidelines, including discouraging dancing.

Like so many businesses, COVID-19 has had a tremendous negative financial effect on the wedding industry and many are hoping to get back on track or else they may have to close their doors forever. During the shutdowns, venues had no money coming in while still needing to pay rent and utility bills. This has had a trickle-down effect where photographers, videographers, DJs and bands are called for less work, and while bakeries may have made some wedding and other celebratory cakes, the orders are smaller in size than usual.

If venues get their way, it’s imperative that owners and employees follow public-health guidelines such as 50% occupancy, social distancing, banning dancing and enforcing mask wearing when people are not seated. Seeing how restaurants in our coverage areas have been able to come up with creative ways to serve their patrons safely, including turning parking lots into outdoor dining areas, using tents — even small ones for individual parties — we believe wedding venue owners will do the same.

Of course, keeping our local businesses open works both ways. It will take more than residents signing a petition to help these businesses stay afloat, it will also require people to follow public health guidelines. So, we implore individuals to be responsible as well. It’s up to all of us to stay 6 feet away from each other, wear a mask, wash our hands regularly and stay home when we are feeling ill.

There’s a certain positive energy in the air when people come together to celebrate, and even if they can’t hug, kiss or show off their moves on the dance floor, we’re sure the majority will appreciate being there for their loved ones just as much as having dinner at their favorite restaurant.

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Student scholarship winners, from left, Gabrielle Caine, Melissa Mandel, Esther Duclair, Allison Brook, Michael Golub, José Suarez and Jessica Ringston. Not pictured, Samuel Abramson, Shaun Gibbons and Rachel Schlesinger

A MUSICAL FUTURE

The Long Island Music Hall of Fame has announced the recipients of its 2020 student scholarships. This year LIMHOF acknowledged five students with the Distinction in Music award and an additional five students with the Merit in Music award for their accomplishments. All ten students are from Long Island and plan to pursue music studies in college. 

This year’s applications came from all four counties and the winners represent Bayside, Brooklyn, Elwood, Franklin Square, Half Hallow Hills, Hampton Bays, Huntington, North Babylon, Roslyn Heights, Sayville, and Smithtown.

Students in Brooklyn, Nassau, Queens and Suffolk counties are eligible to apply for the scholarships. This program is in addition to other Education acknowledgements that the Long Island Music Hall of Fame sponsors, including the Music Educator of Note and the High School Recognition Awards.

LIMHOF is able to provide these scholarships thanks to support received from the Long Island music community and from Jill’s Dreams, a foundation established in the name of, and in memory of former LIMHOF Board member Jill Nees-Russell. For 2020, an additional memorial scholarship in honor of Len Rothenberg, a longtime friend of LIMHOF has been awarded. 

LIMHOF commemorated each recipient’s dedication to music and support their college plans with an outdoor reception held in August where students were able to receive their awards, visit the Mobile Museum and celebrate their achievements.

“Long Island Music Hall of Fame is honored to have the opportunity to support and acknowledge accomplished high school seniors who are pursuing a future in music. There were many amazing candidates and our committee was honored to be able to recognize some additional students.  The talent that exists on Long Island is something we at LIMHOF want to celebrate.  In addition to following their own dreams, we believe these students will encourage and inspire others,” said LIMHOF Education Chairman, Tom Needham.

2020 Distinction in Music Scholarship winners included Melissa Mendel and Michael Golub:

Melissa Mandel

A graduate of Elwood-John Glenn High School in Elwood, Melissa attends the Berklee School of Music and plans to major in Music Performance and Music Management.

“Melissa is a talented and intelligent young woman, who is highly involved in our school’s music community. I have had the pleasure of having Melissa as a student for four years, and the unique experience of getting to know her in her most natural element; music. She has worked collaboratively with other musicians in the department while displaying leadership and a high level of personal responsibility for each project,” said Rachel Nagle, Melissa’s Choir Director.

“As a performer, Melissa is always looking to better not only herself, but the choir. She is a perfectionist and a team player. She looks for constructive criticism, applies, and adapts. She can do this as a musician, and as a student in general. Melissa is responsible, communicative and reliable,” she added.

Michael Golub

Michael Golub graduated Smithtown High School West and majors in music performance in college.    

“Michael is an exceptional music student who is challenging himself and succeeding at every opportunity. He is highly committed as a musician and works diligently to achieve the upmost results. In my 25 year career, Michael is among the best music students I’ve heard.  His excellence is marked by his high-quality coursework dedication community into compassion for his peers. Michael will certainly succeed at the next level and dominate in his musical career path” shared Smithtown High School West Chorus Teacher, Timothy Cassera.

Other winners were Allison Brook (Brooklyn Technical High School), Gabrielle Caine (Hampton Bays High School) and Esther Duclair (North Babylon High School).

2020 Merit in Music Scholarship winners included Samuel Abramson and José Suarez:

Samuel Abramson

Samuel Abramson graduates from Half Hollow Hills High School this month and will attend Ithaca College in the fall. He plans to major in Music Education.

Choral Director Dr. Danielle McRoy shared “Sam’s commitment to music and theater are a testament to the kind of dedication he possesses in everything in which he chooses to take part. He has become a true leader within the department, holding leadership roles in multiple organizations. What has impressed me most is his quiet dedication to grow and learn. His musical and vocal growth has been incredible.”

José Suarez

José Suarez graduated from Huntington High School this month and will attend Syracuse University in the fall.  He plans to major in Music Education.

“José is not only a very talented musician, but his work ethic is second to none. Most days you will find him in the band room after school, practicing for one ensemble or another. He’s always prepared, self-motivated and always goes above and beyond. He is a mature performer with great technical proficiency expression and tone quality,” said his Band Director, Jason Giachetti. “In my AP music theory class, José was a leader and he developed a deep interest in music theory. José is incredibly passionate about and dedicated to music and will be quite successful,” he said.

Other winners were Shaun Gibbons  (Sayville High School), Jessica Ringston (Carey High School Franklin Square), and Rachel Schlesinger from North Shore Hebrew Academy in Lake Success.

For more information about LIMHOF, visit www.limusichalloffame.org.

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A small bridge in Arthur H. Kunz County Park, above, allows residents to take advantage of its many trails. Photo by Rita J. Egan

By R. Lawrence Swanson

We don’t appreciate what we have until somebody else wants it or takes it. Such is the case with Long Island’s open space.

By some accounts, several hundred thousand people have left New York City to seek less populated areas since the outbreak of the COVID virus this past spring. People are relocating along the east coast, Maine to Florida. Most, however, seem to be populating the suburban and more rural parts of Long Island, Connecticut and New Jersey, at least temporarily, but perhaps permanently.

Evidence of this migration can be seen in a number of forms. Housing prices are up considerably as is school enrollment. Long Island government officials hope that businesses will be able to extend the summer season as city residents opt to prolong their summer relocations well into the fall and perhaps permanently. East End towns have seen their garbage generation increase, in one case perhaps 50 percent, all due to the influx of city people.

Suddenly, the importance of social distancing makes Long Island attractive. Our remaining but diminishing open space is valued as people realize large population density still has significant downsides — particularly during a pandemic. Steven Johnson, in his 2006 book, “The Ghost Map,” about the 1854 cholera epidemic in London, points out that intense population density, contributing to drinking water pollution, led to the scourge. With COVID, we are experiencing yet another example of what happens when many people live too close together. Even though there are many advantages to city dwelling such as energy, transportation and health treatment efficiencies, public health can be jeopardized when people are packed together — exponential growth of an infectious disease, for one.

Perhaps now we can understand the benefits of open space and that there are real disadvantages to complete grow out — there are “limits to growth.” Long Island’s premier planner, Dr. Lee Koppelman, postulated in 1964 that Long Island must preserve a minimum of 10 acres per 1,000 people and that 50 percent of inhabited lands needs to be open space if people are to experience a high quality of life. The pandemic has shown that this is indeed correct and now open space is desired by many who don’t have access to it.

According to The Trust for Public Land, Nassau and Suffolk Counties had 15,300 and 120,000 acres (5 percent and 8 percent of total land area) respectively of parks and open space in 2010. However, not all the open space is permanently protected. Suffolk County benefits from its remaining but disappearing agricultural lands.

Long Island, and particularly the residents of Suffolk County, have vigorously supported a number of programs developed over the years to assure that we do have that space for our wellbeing. These programs and laws include farmland preservation, Save Open Space, Community Greenways and the Drinking Water Protection Program (¼ percent sales tax; twice approved by the electorate). Several of these are national models for preserving openness. The Suffolk County Legislature deserves a “Well Done” for recently preventing a temporary borrowing from the ¼ percent sales tax fund. How prescient of the East End towns to pass the Peconic Bay Region Community Preservation Fund, a tax on property sales, creating a revenue stream to preserve historic properties and open space. Public/private partnerships are useful mechanisms to assure protection of green space. And, we are fortunate to have non-governmental organizations like the Peconic Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy and the North Shore Land Alliance preserving lands as well.

But, while a great deal has been done over the last few decades to acquire and protect Long Island from complete build out, we are now falling short of what needs to be done. The COVID pandemic clearly amplifies the desirability of and requirement for open space. More than ever, Nassau and Suffolk Counties and their respective towns, even in tough financial situations, need to aggressively pursue protecting space — more parkland, greenspace and agricultural land, for the health and wellbeing of their citizens. Let’s encourage our elected officials to support the various groundbreaking, space-preservation programs and strategies that are available. We need to implement them aggressively for the long-term sustainability of Long Island.

R. Lawrence Swanson is the associate dean of Stony Brook University School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences and director of its Waste Reduction and Management Institute.

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