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Photo from Stony Brook Medicine

By Daniel Dunaief

[email protected]

While looking after the physical and mental well-being of patients who come in for care, Suffolk County hospitals are also focused on protecting staff, patients and visitors from the kind of violence that has spread recently throughout the country.

Over the past six months, hospital security staff and administrators have added a host of procedures to enhance safety and are considering additional steps.

“New measures have been put in place to minimize risk and better secure our buildings from a variety of threats,” Frank Kirby, Catholic Health Service line manager, wrote in an email. Catholic Health includes St. Catherine of Siena in Smithtown and St. Charles in Port Jefferson, among others.

“All Catholic Health facilities have an ‘active shooter’ contingency policy, which includes training for our employees on what to do in such an event,” Kirby wrote.

Executives at several health care facilities shared specific measures they have put in place.

The safe room

“Over the last six months or so, we have created something called the safe room,” said Dr. Michel Khlat, director at St. Catherine of Siena. Inside that room, hospital staff can hide and can find emergency items, like a door stop, medical supplies, gauze and first aid equipment.

St. Catherine recommends putting all the tables down in the safe room and hiding.

Khlat added that the hospital recommends that staff not open a door where another staff member knocks, in case a criminal is squatting nearby, waiting for access to the hospital.

Kirby added that Catholic Health facilities actively conducts drills across their hospitals, medical buildings and administrative offices to “sharpen our preparedness for any potential crisis that could impact safety and security.”

Catholic Health hospitals have onsite security guards and field supervisors who have prior military or law enforcement experience, Kirby added.

Northwell Health

As for Northwell Health, which includes Huntington Hospital, Scott Strauss, vice president of Corporate Security at Northwell, said the hospitals have an armed presence that includes many former and active law enforcement officers.

Strauss himself is a retired New York Police Department officer who, as a first responder on 9/11, rescued a Port Authority officer trapped by the fall of the World Trade Center.

Northwell is researching the possibility of installing a metal detection system.

Strauss suggested that the security program could not be successful without the support of senior leadership.

He suggested that staff and visitors can play a part in keeping everyone safe by remaining vigilant, as anyone in a hospital could serve as the eyes and ears of a security force.

The security staff has relied on their 15 to 35 years of experience to deescalate any potentially violent situations, Strauss said.

Northwell hospitals also offer guidance to staff for personal relationships that might
be dangerous.

“People don’t realize they’re in a poor relationship, they might think it’s normal,” Strauss said.

Across social media and the Internet, the communications team at Northwell monitors online chatter to search for anything that might be threatening.

“We evaluate it and notify the police as needed,” said Strauss.

Aggressive behavior

Strauss urged people who see something threatening online to share it with authorities, either at the hospitals or in the police force. “You can’t take a chance and let that go,” he said.

At this point, Northwell hasn’t noticed an increase in threats or possible security concerns. It has, however, seen an increase in aggressive behavior at practices and in
the hospitals.

In those situations, the security team investigates. They offer to get help, while making it clear that “threatening in any way, shape or form is not tolerated,” Strauss said. “There could be consequences” which could include being dismissed from the practice and filing police reports, Strauss said.

Anecdotally, Strauss believes Northwell has seen an increase in police reports.

When the draft of the Supreme Court’s decision that will likely overturn Roe vs. Wade, the landmark 1973 case that made it unconstitutional for states to restrict abortions, became public, Strauss was concerned about the potential backlash for health care providers.

So far, Strauss said gratefully, Northwell hasn’t seen any violence or threats related to the pending decision.

Stony Brook

Stony Brook University Hospital has an accredited and armed law enforcement agency on campus, in addition to a team of trained public safety personnel within the hospital, explained Lawrence Zacarese, vice president for Enterprise Risk Management and chief security officer at Stony Brook University.

Zacarese indicated that university officers are extensively trained in active shooter response protocols and are prepared to handle other emergency situations.

He added that the staff looks for ways to enhance security.

“Our training and security activities are continuous, and we are committed to exploring additional opportunities to maintain a safe and secure environment,” he explained in an email.

Kirby of Catholic Health Security suggested that hospitals do “more than provide care for surgical and medical inpatients. They also need to guarantee safety for all who enter our grounds.”

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Courtney Trzckinski, above, is an EMT in Port Jefferson and St. James and is a rising senior at Stony Brook University who recently took Medical Spanish. Photo by Stephanie Merrill

By Daniel Dunaief

[email protected]

As medicine becomes increasingly personalized, Stony Brook University Hospital is planning to provide the kind of personal services and connections that they hope will benefit the Hispanic population.

With people identifying as Hispanic in Suffolk County representing 19.6% of the total population, SBUH is building a Hispanic Heart Institute, which the hospital anticipates will open in the fall.

At the same time, undergraduates at SBU have had an opportunity to take two new courses in Spanish Medicine that focus on the language and culture of health care for a population whose background, experience and expectations often differs from that of a New York system.

“A patient who is addressed in their own language, even though a speaker is not necessarily fluent or proficient, enhances the experience greatly,” said Elena Davidiak, lecturer at the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literature at Stony Brook University. Davidiak teaches two Spanish Medicine classes at Stony Brook that she created for the university.

At the same time, Dr. Jorge Balaguer, associate professor of Surgery at the Renaissance School of Medicine, plans to create a Hispanic Heart Program that fills an unmet need to help cardiac patients of Hispanic descent learn about insurance, understand their medical options, and increase their connection with their health care providers.

The incidence of some forms of cardiovascular disease, which is the leading cause of death among the overall population, is even higher among Hispanics, according to a website created by Stony Brook that describes heart disease among Hispanics and Latinos.

For many people whose first language is Spanish or who come from a family with a strong Hispanic cultural identity, the connection to the health care system may be tenuous, making it difficult to navigate through the system, find the best care or advocate for their needs.

“There is a lack of follow up,” Balaguer said. “The whole health care maintenance is compromised. When you combine a [different] education, with a vulnerable situation, the Hispanic population doesn’t have the same medical safety net.”

Balaguer would like to add a full-time employee in the cardiology department who could answer questions in Spanish, help with insurance and various forms and field questions throughout the process of receiving heart-related care.

Cultural differences

Beyond the language barrier that could impede communication with Spanish-speaking patients, Balaguer and Davidiak suggested cultural differences could also affect the outcome of a medical interaction.

As an example, Balaguer suggested a general cultural phenomenon in Argentina where people don’t speak directly about the patient.

Rather, he said, the process of communicating is similar to the Billy Crystal, Robert DeNiro movie “Analyze This,” in which DeNiro’s character talks about a “friend” when he’s describing himself.

“You talk about someone else rather than the patient with the problem,” Balagauer said.

Hispanic patients sometimes have their own views on health care and their destiny, Davidiak said. Using the Spanish word “fatalismo” for fatalism, Davidiak described how some patients may believe their destiny is “somewhat predetermined.”

Health care providers need to take into account a patient’s beliefs, which affect the partnership between patient and doctor in developing an effective treatment plan.

In most American medical interactions, the culture is “businesslike and to the point,” Davidiak said. Many Hispanic cultures, however, expect a “warmup period,” which involves a more personal interaction.

In developing an interview project called “Understanding the Hispanic Patient” funded by the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at SBU, Davidiak heard numerous anecdotes in which people of Hispanic origin felt that their doctors didn’t see or hear them.

In one such interview, a pediatrician said a son’s eye color, which was blue, would change because “all Latino people have dark eyes.”

The mother, who was sitting in the room, has blue eyes.

“She felt she was not being seen at all,” Davidiak recalled. She wondered if the doctor was “going to do the same thing when taking care” of her son.

Class lessons

Courtney Trzcinski, a junior majoring in health science, was a student in Davidiak’s Medical Spanish class.

An emergency medical technician in Port Jefferson and St. James with plans to be a physician assistant, she has had patients as an EMT with whom she struggled to communicate.

Trzcinski, who studied Spanish from 8th to 11th grade at Mattituck High School, recounted an incident in which she was responding to a woman who was having medical complications after she had her tonsils removed.

“I was trying to tell her to breathe in through her nose and out through her mouth,” Trzinski said. Her Spanish didn’t match the need.

“Now that I’ve taken Medical Spanish, I know how to say ‘inhale,’ ‘exhale,’ ‘medications’” and other relevant terms, Trzcinski said.

A direct translation, she discovered, also doesn’t work, as the people she interacts with translated what she said literally.

Trzcinski, who has been an EMT for two years, said she feels more confident in interacting on the job in Spanish.

Volunteers welcome

As for the heart program, Balaguer is thrilled to have the support of Leshya Bokka, a rising second-year medical school student who is also earning her master’s in public health.

Bokka sees the Hispanic Heart Program as a “great way to bridge my interest in working with minority populations and trying to get involved in doing some things for the community.”

Coming from a family that immigrated from India, Bokka understands the language and cultural barriers that might prevent people from getting quality health care.

“We are also trying to set up health screenings to connect patients to our program,” she said. She urged residents to reach out by email to receive directional guidance at [email protected].

The program is trying to recruit medical students and anyone “willing to come help,” she said.

Balaguer said he is working with recruiting bilingual volunteers and Hispanic Language and Literature students with advanced command of the language for internships in the program. These volunteers could serve as Hispanic patient concierges, among other roles. 

Bokka recognized that this kind of service could be valuable to other underserved populations as well.

“The health care system is incredibly complex and cryptic and confusing,” Bokka said. “Everyone could benefit from having a service like this to guide them.”

She said she hopes this becomes a framework for other departments and that other communities can also forge a language and cultural connection.

The goal is to “make patients more comfortable when they’re in a hospital,” Bokka said, which can be scary, expensive and confusing. The program wants to make sure people can “voice their concerns and walk away with care that works.”

Measuring success

The Hispanic Heart Program will measure its success in a host of ways. The hospital can compare the number of Hispanic patient visits to the hospital and in outpatient clinical settings during the first trimester after launching the program compared with earlier periods, Balaguer said.

It will also compare the number of procedures done on patients.

Through surveys, the hospital can determine patient satisfaction with the Hispanic Patient Concierge program.

The hospital can also determine the number of patients who obtain insurance.

On a financial level, the hospital can determine if the patients in the program provide profits and losses, while also factoring in donations and grants.

As for students, the program can consider the academic production of students who contribute to this effort as a part of their education.

Balaguer believes that these efforts will “help mitigate disparities” in health care.

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Photo from Huntington Hospital

By Miriam Sholder

Huntington Hospital has earned the coveted Magnet® designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), which recognizes excellence in nursing.

Huntington is the only hospital with a fifth consecutive designation on Long Island – the first in the Northwell health system, second in New York State and 32nd in the United States.

The Magnet Recognition Program® spotlights health care organizations for quality patient care, nursing excellence and innovations in professional nursing practice. Developed by ANCC, Magnet is the leading source of successful nursing practices and strategies worldwide. Only 586 hospitals worldwide have achieved Magnet® status for nursing excellence since the program’s inception in 1983.

“Our nursing staff is known for upholding the highest standards of nursing,” said Susan Knoepffler, RN, chief nursing officer at Huntington Hospital. “With this accomplishment, our community is assured high quality compassionate care by our talented and dedicated nurses.”

The 371-bed hospital employs 600 nurses, 1,900 employees and specializes in neurosurgery, orthopedics and cancer care.

“The Magnet designation five consecutive times indicates this is no fluke,” Dr. Nick Fitterman, executive director of Huntington Hospital, said. “This represents consistent, high-quality care by a dedicated, professional, extraordinary nursing staff. The Magnet designation provides the foundation of care that has propelled Huntington Hospital to CMS 5-star recognition. The only Hospital in Suffolk County to achieve this.” He added, “The nursing staff continue to excel even while around the country we see health care workers burning out, leaving the profession. The staff here remain as committed as ever.”

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File photo by Heidi Sutton/TBR News Media

The Port Jefferson Village Planning Boar gave the green light to the four-phased expansion of Mather Hospital on Thursday, June 9, moving the project into the final stage before authorization.

Under its four-phased proposal, the hospital intends to expand its northern parking lot, relocate and expand its emergency room, among several other improvements. The expansion of the parking lot would displace a wooded area currently used as walking trails.

Under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act, local municipal planning boards are required to conduct an environmental assessment of proposed projects. After months of deliberations between the board, the hospital and the public, the board moved to designate the project as having minor impact and satisfying the necessary conditions for SEQRA approval.

“What we did as a board was try to, as much as we could, take into consideration the comments the residents brought to the Planning Board and incorporate them into the SEQRA document,” board member Gil Anderson said. “Based on the actual verbiage in the SEQRA law, it explains to what extent something’s a major impact or a minor impact. We gave the project a negative declaration, which means there’s no significant impact on the project to the community.”

Through negotiations with the hospital, Anderson said Mather will invest in several projects to give back to the community for any potential losses incurred during the expansion. 

“They’ve made a number of efforts to improve conditions,” he said. “They’re going to be upgrading North Country Road, putting in a traffic signal and realigning the road a bit. They’ve made a commitment to improve the storm drainage from the flooding that occurred last year. They’ve also made a commitment to provide $25,000 in fees that will allow the village to plant natural vegetation in other areas.”

Ray DiBiase, chairman of the Planning Board, said, “There’s a substantial amount of tree planting — hundreds of trees that they’re planting on the site and $25,000 that they’re going to give to the village to decide where the trees should go.” He added, “That’s a pot of money the village can use to buy and install trees wherever it is that they want them.”

The Mather project has garnered significant public scrutiny throughout the approval process. DiBiase said he saw more public feedback on this than on any other project in his nearly two decades on the board.

“We had the most turnout of a public hearing — and it was virtual — and at least 50 comments to resolve,” he said. “I’ve been on the board for 16 years and it’s the most people I’ve ever seen at a public meeting.”

There will be one final meeting of the Planning Board during which the hospital will receive its site plan along with its conditions for approval. DiBiase said the site plan will likely have several comments and instructions that the hospital will be required to follow throughout the building process.

“The project is headed for approval because the environmental requirements are satisfied,” he said. “But we get to set conditions. There’s a whole series of standard conditions for any site plan, but on top of that, we need to talk about an additional payment in lieu of paying taxes — and there are other things, too.” 

Despite the project moving forward through the board, some local residents still believe there is an opportunity to scale it down. Ana Hozyainova, village resident and candidate for trustee, said she and a group of concerned residents intend to challenge the board’s environmental determination in court. 

“I am one of the people that has retained attorneys to challenge the decision, and we are preparing to file a formal suit to ensure that we can protect the forest from being cleared,” she said.

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Port Jeff village trustee candidate on finding creative responses to local issues

Lauren Sheprow is running for Port Jefferson village trustee. Photo courtesy Sheprow

Lauren Sheprow, former media relations officer at Stony Brook University and daughter of the former village mayor Hal Sheprow, is running for trustee. During an exclusive interview last week, Sheprow addressed her family’s background in village politics, her experience in media relations, Upper Port revitalization, the East Beach bluff and more.

What is your background and why would you like to be involved in village government?

I’ve been working my entire life in public relations, communications and media relations — that’s about a 40-year career. I most recently was working at Stony Brook University as the Chief Media Relations Officer and prior to that I was at Mather Hospital and the public relations director for that hospital. I enjoyed those jobs immensely.

I retired from the University officially on December 31 and didn’t initially consider or think about running for trustee. My father was the mayor of Port Jefferson during a timeframe of 1979 until 1994. He was a trustee before that and a planning board chairman prior to that in the village of Port Jefferson. He also was an EMS and ambulance person for the Port Jeff ambulance. As I was growing up in that household with my siblings — I have a sister and five brothers — we all watched that, we saw him do that and it had a big impression on me. It was ingrained in me that it was an important thing to give back to the community. 

It had been in the back of my mind for a while that I did want to do something, whether it be as trustee or to do something in a different realm. I did not have time to do that while I was working at Stony Brook because that was a 24/7 job and I would never have had the time it takes to run for trustee, let alone serve. 

When I learned about and was reminded that these two seats are up for reelection, I started really thinking about it and thought that I could contribute based on my historic perspective because I grew up here and went to the schools here from pre-K to graduation. My children attended Port Jeff schools. I have twin girls who graduated in 2010 and a son who graduated in 2015. 

I’ve done a lot of volunteer work here and I’ve learned a lot about working within organizations to help things grow and improve and just foster community excellence. I was a youth baseball coach for the village of Port Jefferson, volunteered on the Port Jefferson recreation committee and I was appointed to the Country Club Advisory and Management Council. Now I am the president of the Tuesday Tournament Group, which is actually a league that’s run as a board-run program. That’s a lot of work, too.

All that said, the point is I’ve been giving a lot of my time and I’ve been noticing and recognizing where there are opportunities for the village to see strategic growth and opportunities for impact and change.

What are your key takeaways from your father’s time in public office?

Lauren Sheprow (right) at the Mayor Harold J. Sheprow Parkland dedication ceremony at the Port Jefferson Country Club. Photo courtesy Sheprow

My father’s legacy of community involvement has always had a tremendous influence on my choices in life. He juggled so much — with help from my mother, of course. He was first and foremost an aeronautical engineer at [Northrop] Grumman, which is what brought us to Long Island in the first place. He also served, largely as a volunteer, as mayor, trustee, planning board chair and on the ambulance company as a volunteer EMS.

He had such a tremendous impact on this community with the annexation of the Hill Crest, Pine Hill, Ellen Drive, Laurita Gate and Jefferson’s Landing developments, and the acquisition of the country club being his two most significant contributions. 

I hope to be able to emulate his community service and give back by being elected as a trustee of Port Jefferson village. 

How is your background in media relations applicable to the work of a trustee?

I really feel like as a trustee, one of the most important things you can do is communicate to your constituency and communicate in a way that is transparent, concise, responsive and addresses the questions you are getting with answers and then potentially solutions.

At Stony Brook and at Mather Hospital, we had numerous inquiries and activities that had to be addressed at the same time. It was like drinking from the fire hose at Stony Brook, so you had to prioritize, you had to find the information that was going to be responsive to the questions you were getting from all angles — including from faculty, from administration, from students and from the media. We were responsive and accountable to everyone, and we had to do it in a way that was with the consensus of leadership. 

We needed to get answers quickly, accurately and comprehensively. That really trained me for a lot of adversity. It trained me to work in a calm and thorough manner, not to be driven by agendas or a sense of urgency, but to be driven by getting the information you need that is right, accurate and has the consensus of the people who are working on the things you’re trying to learn about. 

I think that bringing that skill set to a position on the Board of Trustees in Port Jefferson will help me really dig into some of the issues that are being expressed by villagers right now and look for solutions that are supported by facts, law and the code. The code really defines how you can move through a process, so I think relying on the code and the law is a really important part of what it means to be a public official. 

In the same way that at Stony Brook that I would ask as many questions as I could and get as many responses from as many different sources as I possibly could to make sure the response is accurate, concise and responsive, I would do the same in this position as trustee and follow up and communicate in the same way I have done my entire career. 

Sheprow during her daughters’ graduation ceremony. Photo courtesy Sheprow

What are the most critical issues facing the village?

I think the most interesting things that are happening right now are the revitalization of uptown Port Jefferson, one. Two, what’s happening at the country club right now. I see opportunities in both areas. And the Mather Hospital project is another very interesting issue that’s going on right now. Those are three of the most important things going on in the village right now.

In terms of the uptown Port Jefferson revitalization, the progress that’s going on there is tremendous. There’s a lot of interest from new developers. Attending the meetings of the Board of Trustees and following the progress, what I have learned is that there are new developers coming forward to propose new projects and to me that’s very exciting. Shovels in the ground means progress and creates excitement. It fosters the axiom that, “If you build it, they will come.” I believe that’s happening right now. 

The other issue or opportunity I see is bringing the country club back to all village residents. What I would love to work on is bringing the country club back to the community so that the community can enjoy it, not just as a golf course but as a place to foster a social and cultural environment. That’s what the purpose of the country club acquisition was originally, it’s in the original documentation. Let’s go back to the future and find a way to welcome all residents back to enjoy that facility in the way it was meant to be enjoyed.

And I’ll touch on the bluff for a second: the bluff and the country club are not one and the same. The bluff is village property. The village has got to safeguard its property, it’s got to safeguard those beaches and that groin. There is a roadway down to East Beach and there is a groin between that roadway and the country club parking lot. As the erosion continues, that groin will fail and you will lose access and you will lose the beach. That is one of the things that will happen if that bluff were not restored. 

It’s the village’s responsibility to take care of that property and this is the best way to do that right now. To me, it’s a no-brainer. And it’s not to preserve the building. It’s to preserve village property, the safety and security of village property. That’s what the role of the Board of Trustees is: to preserve and keep safe for the residents of the village, the property and the community.  

As trustee, my commitment is to get to the bottom of the issues at hand and proactively engage concerned villagers in the process.

— Lauren Sheprow

How can residents play a more active role in village decision-making?

Sheprow with twin newborn grandsons, Clayton and Wyatt, 2018. Photo courtesy Sheprow

The village offers ample opportunities to become involved in the decision making process, as is demonstrated by the numerous committees, councils and volunteer organizations that exist, including the page on the village website called “Get Involved.” 

There is an opportunity for a more robust and active recruitment for volunteers within these organizations — an experience I encountered while on the CCMAC and the Recreation Committee, which is currently dormant. 

Succession-planning on boards and committees is important, and village trustees as well as those board chairs should be thinking about that from the moment they begin their tenure, so when someone decides to resign or a term limit is reached, there is a resource already in place to step in with no down time. The Trustee Liaison to each respective committee or board should be responsible for that. 

It’s also clear that communication is an important factor and some in the village feel they aren’t getting the information they need to have an impact on decision-making. As someone who has worked in the strategic communications field for nearly four decades, I can say without hesitation that the communications resources and efforts from the village are robust and in accordance with village code. From the e-newsletter, to the YouTube Channel and streaming and posting to the archive live meetings, to the social media efforts, an incredibly responsive website, and other forms of email outreach, plenty of communications redundancy exists. 

What is also important is that residents know that if they want to express a concern or get involved, they will be acknowledged and responded to in a timely manner and can feel confident that their representative on the Board of Trustees will help resolve the issue at hand. As trustee, my commitment is to get to the bottom of the issues at hand and proactively engage concerned villagers in the process.

Sheprow was involved in the organization of the 40th reunion of the Port Jeff Class of ‘78, 2018. Photo courtesy Sheprow

Is there anything else you would like to say to our readers?

I love this community, but that’s not what makes me stand out because I know everyone that’s running for these two seats loves this community as well and wants to see it thrive. 

Vision, coming up with creative solutions that don’t add an extra burden on the taxpayers, and knowing how to get things done is what set me apart at Stony Brook and at Mather Hospital and will serve me well as a trustee. I’m a questioner, a problem-solver and a communicator, but I also understand how difficult it can be to navigate the bureaucratic labyrinth from working at Stony Brook for so long, and at Mather. Both entities provided me with great insights into how to get things done within the public sector. 

I will hit the ground running. I have been attending board meetings, following the planning board and zoning board of appeals issues, and I have engaged in conversations with a number of people to understand what is most important to them and thinking about how it may be addressed or how to raise it as an issue. This is my commitment.

 

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