The Stanley Healthcare solution includes Wi-Fi RFID badges that nurses, physicians and other personnel can use to identify their locations and call for assistance.
By Claire Swedberg
Sep 27, 2016—
The Valley Hospital, in Ridgewood, N.J., has been using a real-time location system (RTLS) to monitor the locations and identities of staff members who press their emergency badge. Before the hospital deployed the system, only 50 percent of personnel reported a sense of workplace safety. Once those workers began utilizing the RTLS, provided byStanley Healthcare, that figure rose to 85 percent.
The Valley Hospital rarely experiences violence in its ER, but there have been incidents in which employees have indicated feeling uncomfortable, the hospital reports. After members of a patient’s family prevented a nurse from leaving that patient’s room, that nurse asked the hospital to institute a better means of protecting personnel. The facility, which treats 74,000 patients in its emergency department each year, already offered wired emergency alarms in each room, but it decided that a wireless system would provide greater support to employees wherever they were in that department. The solution consists of Stanley Healthcare Wi-Fi-enabled call badges and software that helps security personnel identify who has placed a distress call, as well as where that person is located and what he or she looks like.
Ridgewoood NJ, The Valley Hospital has been recognized as one of the best hospitals in the region, ranking as the fifth best hospital in New Jersey and the 14th best hospital in the New York metropolitan area for 2016-2017, according to U.S. News & World Report.
In addition, Valley achieved the highest possible rating – high performing – in all nine common procedures and conditions that are rated by U.S. News & World Report: abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, aortic valve surgery, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), colon cancer surgery, heart bypass surgery, heart failure, hip replacement, knee replacement and lung cancer surgery.
“These distinctions are a reflection of our longstanding commitment to providing excellent clinical care and service,” said Audrey Meyers, President and CEO of The Valley Hospital and Valley Health System.
U.S. News evaluates nearly 5,000 hospitals nationwide, said Ben Harder, chief of health analysis at U.S. News. “A hospital that emerged from our analysis as one of the best has much to be proud of.”
The U.S. News Best Hospital rankings, now in their 27th year, help guide patients to hospitals that deliver outstanding care across 25 specialties, procedures and conditions. The Best Hospitals methodologies factor in objective measures such as patient survival, the number of times a given procedure is performed, infection rates, adequacy of nurse staffing and more.
For 2016-17, 153 hospitals were ranked in at least one specialty, while 1,628 received a high performing rating in one or more specialties, procedures or conditions. In rankings by state and metro area, U.S. News recognized hospitals that were high-performing across multiple areas of care.
Best Hospitals was produced by U.S. News with RTI International, a leading research organization based in Research Triangle Park, N.C.
Glen Rock NJ, Glen Rock PD and EMS responded to a report of an Amazon delivery driver who was attacked and bitten by a large dog at 392 Grove Street, Glen Rock on Monday morning, 08/22. Glen Rock PD officers were observed administering first aid to the driver as he sat in his delivery van. A Glen Rock EMS ambulance transported the victim, who reportedly sustained a serious hand injury, to The Valley Hospital for treatment.
Ridgewood NJ, The Valley Hospital has earned the 2016 Women’s Choice Award as one of America’s Best Hospitals for Patient Experience for a fourth consecutive year. This evidence based designation is the only award that identifies the country’s best healthcare institutions based on Medicare data weighed according to the preference of women in a 2016 national survey of 1,000+ female respondents.
The list of award winners, including The Valley Hospital, represents hospitals that create an extraordinary patient experience for women and their families by providing exceptional care.“We are proud to once again be recognized as one of the nation’s Best Hospitals for Patient Experience,” said Audrey Meyers, President and CEO of The Valley Hospital and Valley Health System. “It’s a testament to the priority Valley nurses, physicians and staff place on delivering high-quality, compassionate care to our patients and their families.”
The America’s 100 Best Hospitals scoring process is unique in that it is the only national list that focuses on what matters most to women when choosing a hospital. For 2016, the most important considerations were patient’s willingness to recommend, doctor and nurse communications, staff help, pain management, cleanliness and explanation of medications, in that order. The qualification process begins with scores derived by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for each hospital in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) database. Our national survey of women determines which questions in the HCAHPS survey, completed by patients after discharge, are most important to them in determining their satisfaction with their hospital stay. The responses to those questions, weighted accordingly, results in a numeric score for each hospital reporting valid HCAHPS data to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
“Women are the Chief Medical Officer for the household, making upwards of 90 percent of all healthcare decisions. Considering she bears the responsibility of making these incredibly important decisions, the Women’s Choice Award offers a trusted solution by identifying the hospitals that have proven superior patient experience. Finally, a source that shares her values and priorities is available,” said Delia Passi, CEO and Founder of the Women’s Choice Award.
Ridgewood NJ, The Valley Hospital announced today that it has received the Vizient Excellence Award for Sustainability. The award honors The Valley Hospital’s strong commitment to good governance, community engagement and environmental stewardship in 2015. Vizient, Inc., the largest member-owned health care company in the country, presented the award on Thursday, April 14 during the 2016 Vizient Connections Summit held in Las Vegas.
The hospital received this award in recognition of its apiaries (bee hives), which are helping to combat the nearly 40 percent decrease in the New Jersey bee population annually. With eight hives in total, the bees help to pollinate a 2-mile radius around the hospital and the hospital’s offsite ambulatory surgery center, increasing the yield of flowers, fruits and vegetables over a 17,400 acre area.
Beekeeping is just one example of Valley’s efforts to “go green” and support locally produced food. In 2010 Valley signed the Healthy Food in Health Care Pledge, which calls for hospitals to use more locally grown food, work with vendors to obtain products free of pesticides and hormones, purchase more organic foods, educate the community about nutritious and ‘’socially just” foods, minimize or reuse food waste, use ecologically protective food packaging and support humane agriculture systems. Initiatives to date conducted in support of the pledge include buying local produce from Catalpa Ridge Farm, which is a community supported agriculture program in Sussex County, the hospital’s commitment to buying cage-free eggs, promoting “Meatless Monday” and a year-long partnership with the community supported agriculture program offered by Hesperides Organica, a farm in Warwick, N.Y.
“We have always been big supporters of locally produced food and what could be more local that producing your own honey?” said Dawn Cascio, Director of Valley Dining. “We also like the idea of supporting the declining honey bee population while enhancing our community’s gardens, foliage, and trees.”
Since the addition of the initial two hives that marked project’s inception in 2013, the annual honey harvest has increased from 30 pounds to over 100 pounds. The honey is utilized in menus for the hospital’s patients, visitors and staff. The beeswax has been used as an ingredient in the hospital’s all-natural, house-made lip balm, body butter, hand lotion, foot balm and vapor rub. These products, along with jarred raw honey, are available for sale at the hospital’s retail locations.
“Across the country, Vizient members are leading the development of sustainability programs that make the delivery of care more environmentally conscious and resource considerate,” said Scott Downing, executive vice president, Collaboration and Performance Improvement Networks. “We are proud to recognize The Valley Hospital’s commitment in this area and their program’s achievement.
Ridgewood NJ, Officials from the Valley Hospital and Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) cut the ribbon on a five station electric vehicle (EV) charging system and announced the completion of more than $2.5 million in energy efficiency upgrades at the Ridgewood, NJ hospital.
The Valley Hospital EV charging system is part of a PSE&G pilot program designed to help spur the adoption of electric vehicles in the utility’s electric service territory and the energy efficiency measures were funded in part by the PSE&G Hospital Efficiency Program, which helps pay for the installation of energy efficiency measures at hospitals in the utility’s service territory.
“The Valley Hospital is committed to the environment and the installation of these electric charging stations are just one of the ways that Valley can bring sustainable initiatives directly to our employees and physicians, promoting the reduction in the carbon footprint of our operations on the well-being of the planet,” said Maria Mediago, Vice President of Facilities Management at Valley.
As part of the PSE&G EV charging station pilot program, The Valley Hospital committed to immediately utilizing the five charging stations for staff members who own and drive electric vehicles to the hospital. In return, PSE&G provided the EV charging equipment free-of-charge and the hospital paid for the installation of the units and will pay for ongoing maintenance and electricity costs.
“There are a lot of reasons to like EVs in New Jersey but the lack of charging stations is clearly an impediment to their continued growth,” said Courtney McCormick, vice president – renewables and energy solution, PSE&G. “By partnering with organizations like The Valley Hospital to offer workplace charging, we are hoping to increase the convenience of current EV owners, demonstrate to potential owners that EVs are a viable option and also gather information that we can use down the line as EVs become more popular.”
In addition to providing a convenient charging option for EV drivers, the PSE&G pilot program also allows the utility to collect real-world data about how the chargers are used. This will allow PSE&G to better understand the impact that large-scale EV charging could have on the electric grid, identify areas of potential high-EV charger density and plan for infrastructure upgrades and modifications that may be needed.
The PSE&G EV charging pilot program currently has 50 EV charging stations in service at nine customer locations around the state, including The Valley Hospital. There are 20 additional charging stations under construction at four other customer sites. The utility is also in talks with several other customers with the goal of installing a total of 125 individual charging stations at 25 customer locations by the end of 2016.
In addition to the EV charging system, the $2.5 million in energy efficiency upgrades through the PSE&G Hospital Efficiency Program helped pay for a new air conditioning chiller plant and new variable frequency drives on garage exhaust fans at the hospital. These energy efficiency improvements are expected to save more than 1.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually, which is enough to power about 250 average-size New Jersey homes for a year.
PSE&G’s Hospital Efficiency Program helps fund the installation of energy efficiency measures at hospitals in the utility’s service territory. Through the program, PSE&G provides an investment grade energy audit at no cost to hospitals, recommends energy efficiency improvements and provides up-front funding for the total cost of the energy efficiency measures. Hospitals typically repay between 35-40 percent of the project costs on their PSE&G bill over a period of 36 months at zero percent interest.
“Hospitals are vital resources in New Jersey,” added McCormick. “Our program allows them to make energy efficiency improvements and save money on energy costs, which frees up resources that they can better use for their core healthcare mission.”
The Valley Hospital will save more than $200,000 a year in energy costs and repay about 40 percent of the project total interest-free over the next three years.
“In 2011, Valley was the first hospital in New Jersey to sign on to the Healthier Hospitals Initiative, a coalition of U.S. health systems committed to, among other things, reducing the use of natural resources and promoting sustainability principles throughout the organization. In addition, Valley is a member of Practice GreenHealth,” Mediago said. “Partnering with PSE&G on this initiative is a cooperative community benefit to reduce the effects of carbon emissions in our community, and these stations serve as a constant reminder that there is a role for everyone in sustainability.”
Sixteen months before the state’s largest insurer launched new health plans that steer patients to its preferred hospitals, called Tier 1, a report from its consultants spelled out how the Omnia health plan would work and what it would do to the state’s health care business.
Paramus NJ, Crunch Fitness of Paramus raised over a thousand dollars in support of The Valley Hospital Breast Cancer Fund during October as part of Breast Cancer Awareness month.
On Saturday, October 24, the employees and instructors at Crunch Fitness worked together to make and sell pink hair ties and healthy baked goods. They also offered special exercise classes to all members interested in “Sweating it Out” to raise money for breast cancer. Approximately 100 members participated in this event and attended master fitness classes, which included cardio and conditioning, boxing, and a loud, energetic zumba party.
The following week, Group Fitness Manager Sam Aguirre and Club Manager Terri Surdyka of Crunch Fitness presented a check for $1,010 to The Valley Hospital Foundation.
The American Cancer Society estimates that 231,840 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in US women in 2015, and approximately 7,310 of those new cases will be in New Jersey. The Valley Hospital Breast Center, which has been designated a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence by the American College of Radiology, is the hospital of choice for many newly diagnosed breast cancer patients. Valley’s multidisciplinary team of experienced physicians, radiologists, cytopathologists, nurses, researchers and coordinators collaborate on all aspects of breast care for their patient-focused comprehensive breast care program.
The Valley Hospital Foundation is grateful for Crunch Fitness’s generous donation to the Breast Cancer Fund.
N.J. towns may push hospitals to pay up; more could seek property tax deals with non-profits
NOVEMBER 11, 2015, 11:14 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2015, 11:22 PM
BY LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
Cash-strapped local governments around the state may be looking at non-profit hospitals with new eyes, now that the non-profit Morristown Medical Center has agreed to pay its hometown $15.5 million over the next decade to settle demands for property taxes.
A judge in state tax court took away the hospital’s property-tax exemption in June, declaring that it operated more like a for-profit company than a charitable institution. Rather than appeal the decision, the hospital negotiated an agreement with the town, which was approved Tuesday night.
“Clearly, this is an open invitation for a number of towns,” Frank Ciesla, head of the health-law practice at Giordano, Halleran & Ciesla, said Wednesday. “I think you’re going to see a lot more in the way of litigation.”
Non-profit hospitals are among the largest landowners in some municipalities. Local governments could begin by assessing taxes on their property, leading to a series of appeals as hospitals seek to clarify their status, he said.
The Valley Hospital’s tax liability would be $4.5 million in Ridgewood if its main campus was not exempt, and $360,000 in Paramus, according to local records. (It already pays taxes on some other properties.) Hackensack University Medical Center reached a settlement this year of various tax issues that is to result in a $5.1 million payment to the city treasury over three years. Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, Englewood Hospital and Medical Center and St. Joseph’s Healthcare System’s hospitals in Paterson and Wayne all are exempt from local property taxes.
Ridgewood Mayor Paul Aronsohn said that it hasn’t been possible to raise the issue of taxes — or a payment in lieu of taxes — with Valley during the last few years because of the hospital’s pending application for approval of its building plans.
N.J. hospitals, health system settle improper billing claims, feds say
By Tim Darragh | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
October 30, 2015 at 4:30 PM, updated October 30, 2015 at 7:01 PM
Five New Jersey hospitals and a health system are among hundreds across the United States that settled charges they improperly billed Medicare for implanting cardiac defibrillators, the Justice Department said Friday.
Cooper Health System in Camden, Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns Mills, Hackensack University Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick and The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood joined more than 450 other hospitals in 70 health networks to settle the charges. Catholic Health East, which operates in several states and includes St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton, St. Michael’s Medical Center in Newark and Lourdes Health System in Camden, also settled for some of the hospitals outside New Jersey in its chain.
In total, the health systems repaid the federal government more than $250 million to settle the charges, which cover operations going back years.
“While recognizing and respecting physician judgment, the department will hold accountable hospitals and health systems for procedures performed by physicians at their facilities that fail to comply with Medicare billing rules,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, said in a news release. “We are confident that the settlements announced today will lead to increased compliance and result in significant savings to the Medicare program while protecting patient health.”
SEPTEMBER 12, 2015 LAST UPDATED: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
A woman who sued The Valley Hospital, her doctors and the maker of a medical device that she claimed caused the spread of her cancer has died, just days after providing videotaped testimony to be used when her lawsuit comes to trial.
Viviana Ruscitto, a radiology administrator and the mother of a 2-year-old boy, was 43.
Ruscitto was diagnosed with metastatic leiomyosarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer, a few weeks after undergoing surgery for uterine fibroids at the Ridgewood hospital last October.
During the minimally invasive procedure, a device known as a laparoscopic power morcellator was used to shred and grind the tissue to be removed so that the fragments could be sucked out through a small incision.
The morcellator’s spinning blade disperses particles from the shredded tissue throughout the abdomen and enables some cells to be absorbed and transported by the lymph system.
The federal Food and Drug Administration recently said that 1 in every 350 women who undergoes a hysterectomy for fibroids has a cancer that may not have been detected but would be spread through morcellation.
SEPTEMBER 4, 2015, 7:44 PM LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2015, 11:02 PM
BY LINDY WASHBURN
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
In a lawsuit that illustrates how inescapable surprise medical bills can be, a judge in Bergen County has sided with an anesthesiology practice that did not accept a patient’s insurance for emergency services at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood and sued the patient for payment.
The judge found that the bill was reasonable and that the doctor had no obligation to figure out — “at midnight” — whether the patient’s insurance would cover the anesthesia she needed to deliver her baby.
Brenda Cristiano, who lives in Franklin Lakes, chose the hospital and her obstetrician because they participated in her insurance plan, Cigna. But when she needed an emergency cesarean section to deliver GianLuca in October 2014, none of the anesthesiologists at the hospital accepted Cigna.
Ridgewood NJ, The Valley Hospital was recently awarded gold-level recognition from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the hospital’s efforts in promoting organ donation. The hospital was recognized as part of the national Workplace Partnership for Life Hospital Campaign, sponsored by HHS’s Health Resources and Services Administration.
The Valley Hospital’s awareness and registry campaigns educated staff, patients, visitors, and community members on the critical need for organ, eye, and tissue donors and thereby increased the number of potential donors on the state’s donor registry.
“Organ donation is such an important issue,” said Bettyann Kempin, Assistant Vice President for Medical and Surgical Services at Valley. “We’re proud to partner with the NJ Sharing Network to be a part of this national campaign to increase awareness about the importance of organ donation.”
Of the 1,856 hospitals and transplants centers enrolled in the campaign, 736 were awarded gold, silver or bronze recognition for effort to promote organ donation during Phase IV of the campaign, between August 1, 2014 and April 30, 2015.
Ridgewood NJ, For the 15th consecutive year The Valley Hospital has been recognized as one of the nation’s Most Wired Hospitals, according to the 17th annual HealthCare’s Most Wired™ Survey, released by the American Hospital Association’s Health Forum and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME).
The Most Wired distinction recognizes hospitals for successful health IT planning and implementation. The survey examined how organizations are leveraging IT to improve performance for value-based healthcare in the areas of infrastructure, business and administrative management, quality and safety, and clinical integration.
“The Valley Hospital is proud to have once again made the Most Wired list,” said Eric Carey, Vice President of Information Systems and Chief Information Officer for The Valley Hospital. “Valley is committed to providing excellent clinical care and service, and we continue to invest in technology that helps us improve the quality and delivery of patient care,” he said.
HealthCare’s Most Wired™ Survey, conducted between Jan. 15 and March 15, 2015, is published annually by Health & Hospitals Network. Respondents completed 741 surveys, representing more than 39 percent of all U.S. hospitals. Last October, the AHA/Health Forum and CHIME announced the formation of a Most Wired partnership to enhance collaboration between the two organizations in the development and sustainability of the survey, and to collectively help meet the growing demand for useful data on health IT integration.
Detailed results of the survey and study can be found in the July issue of Health & Hospitals Network. For a full list of winners visit www.hhnmag.com.
Recipient of Women’s Choice Award® for Providing Exceptional Patient Care and Treatment in Cancer Care
Ridgewood NJ, For the second consecutive time The Valley Hospital has been named a Women’s Choice Award® recipient as one of America’s Best Hospitals for Cancer Care, acknowledging Valley’s dedication to providing exceptional patient care and cancer treatment care for women and their families.
According to the American Cancer Society, more than 1 million people in the U.S. are diagnosed with cancer each year. This award signifies Valley’s commitment and passion towards an extraordinary healthcare experience for women and all patients. By carrying the Women’s Choice Award seal, Valley has joined an elite network of hospitals committed to a global mission to empower women to make smart healthcare choices.
“We are proud to be recognized as one of the nation’s best hospitals for cancer care for the second consecutive year,” said Audrey Meyers, President and CEO of The Valley Hospital and Valley Health System. “It’s a testament to the priority Valley nurses, physicians and staff place on delivering high-quality, compassionate care to our patients and their families.”
A recent study from the Center for Talent Innovation showed that women make the majority of health care decisions for themselves (94 percent) and also make choices for others (59 percent). It also indicated that they often lack confidence in the decisions they are making due to hectic schedules, lack of reliable information and a general sense of distrust in the industry. More than half of women (53 percent) think they can get the best health information from the Internet, but 31 percent of these women do not trust the information they receive online.
“Now more than ever, the Women’s Choice Award seal serves as a validation to women that they are selecting the best hospitals for their own care and that of their family,” said Sharyn S. Lee, RN, MS, FACEHP, President of the Women’s Choice Healthcare Division.
The Valley Hospital is among the elite group of 331 hospitals who have earned the 2015 Women’s Choice Award by meeting the highest cancer care accreditation standards of the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, as well as for their excellence in clinical performance with regard to patient safety measures, and for their high recommendation rate, a measure that is very important to women in choosing a hospital.
Studies have shown that each patient who is dissatisfied will inform up to 10 other people of this dissatisfaction (Health Administration Press). This evidence further exemplifies the important focus on keeping as many people satisfied with their care as possible.
“Women have many choices when it comes to cancer care, but now they can make informed choices based on rigorous evidence based criteria. As a cancer survivor who faced a challenging journey to recovery, I wish I had the Women’s Choice Award as a resource to spare me unnecessary fret and error,” said Delia Passi, Founder and CEO of the Women’s Choice Award. “When faced with cancer you owe it to yourself and your family to get the best treatment,” added Passi.
