ALAN D. AVILES
HHC PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE
REPORT TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
SEPTEMBER 27, 2012 

HARLEM HOSPITAL OPENS THE MURAL PAVILION AND UNVEILS ITS HISTORIC WPA MURALS

Earlier today Mayor Bloomberg and I were joined by several board members and many HHC senior leaders to mark the completion of the main construction phase for one of the largest major public hospital modernization projects in the city’s history at the opening of the new Harlem Hospital Center Mural Pavilion.  The new $325 million healthcare facility will expand access to preventive health services, emergency room care and specialty care.  It is equipped with state-of-the-art accommodations that will better address the community’s high rates of asthma, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, HIV/AIDS, and stroke.  The Pavilion also features historic murals by African-American artists that have been restored and are reflected in the block-long glass façade of the new facility. We were joined at the ribbon-cutting ceremony by Harlem Hospital Center Executive Director Denise C. Soares and HHC’s new Global Ambassador Kasseem “Swizz Beatz” Dean.

The new six-story, 195,000-square foot Pavilion connects two major hospital buildings, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Pavilion and the Ronald H. Brown Ambulatory Care Pavilion, creating one large, integrated campus for the 286-bed Harlem Hospital Center.  The Mural Pavilion houses a number of suites to serve the hospital’s 232,353 annual outpatient visits, including the Bariatric Center of Excellence, surgical clinics, women’s imaging department, and pre-admission testing suites. A new chronic hemodialysis unit will double patient capacity and one of the floors will have the new adult intensive care and burn units. The Pavilion will also house the new Adult and Pediatric Emergency Departments, which will be fully completed in 2013. 

The Mural Pavilion was designed by architectural firm Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, Inc. (HOK).  The Dormitory Authority for the State of New York (DASNY) was the program manager and managed the budget, consulting architects, engineers and the construction management team.

The Mural Pavilion also features a special public art gallery space to showcase the hospital’s historic Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project (WPA) murals.  Originally created in the 1930s, these powerful artworks were the first major commissions awarded to African-American artists by the U.S. government and were removed to undergo restoration six years ago. Harlem’s WPA murals by artists Vertis Hayes, Alfred Crimi, and Charles Alston are now fully restored and on permanent display in the hospital’s Mural Gallery. The culturally and historically significant 1937 mural – Recreation in Harlem by Georgette Seabrooke – is also on exhibit in the atrium while it undergoes restoration.

The ceremonies were a powerful and emotional affirmation of the hospital’s status as the healthcare touchstone of the community, as well as celebration of investment that will now ensure that it can deliver state-of-the-art patient-centered services in clinically advanced and comfortable settings.  My thanks to Iris Jimenez-Hernandez, Denise Soares, Sylvia White, and all those who were a part of the Harlem Hospital modernization project and made the Mural Pavilion a brilliant reflection of HHC’s mission. 

 EVENING FUNDRAISER HONORS DOCTOR WHO HELPED SAVE MLK JR., INTRODUCES HHC GLOBAL AMBASSADOR KASSEEM “SWIZZ BEATZ” DEAN

The ribbon-cutting begins a series of events to celebrate the opening of the new Harlem Hospital Center.  I invite you to join me tonight at the Mural Pavilion for a spectacular evening and fundraiser to mark the opening of this new landmark in Harlem, view the unveiling of the famed Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project (WPA) murals, honor the hospital’s heroes, and launch HHC’s philanthropic relationship with artist Kasseem “Swizz Beatz” Dean.

The evening event will begin with a celebratory gathering on the Pavilion’s stunning terrace.  During an intimate ceremony, The Fund for HHC and Harlem Hospital Center will honor Dr. John W.V. Cordice, the only living member of the surgical team that saved the life of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1958.

The fundraiser will also mark the first public appearance by Kasseem “Swizz Beatz” Dean as the Global Ambassador for HHC.  Swizz Beatz, a famed musical producer, visual artist, and philanthropist, has announced his commitment to help HHC extend its positive healthcare messages to broader audiences and to ensure they resonate for young people, strengthening HHC’s ability to provide care to underserved populations.

I hope you join me, Harlem Hospital Center, and The Fund for HHC at this historic event and fundraiser.

 HHC HEALTH & HOME CARE EXPANDS TO PROVIDE SERVICES IN BROOKLYN

Brooklyn residents who need quality home-based services will soon be able to benefit from the care provided by HHC Health and Home Care (H&HC).  In August 2012, the State of New York Public Health and Health Planning Council selected the HHC home care agency to be certified to serve the borough of Brooklyn and expand its services currently available to residents in the Bronx, Manhattan and Queens.

The certification will be an asset to the Corporation as we expand into ACO's, health homes and other models of care which focus of transitions of care.  In order to receive certification by the state, an interested organization had to demonstrate how it could improve access to home health services, advance the state’s Medicaid Redesign Team initiatives to reduce costs while maintaining quality, adopt a comprehensive quality assurance plan, enhance care coordination, improve patient choice and improve quality outcomes.

The competition to fill the service gap for home health services was fierce.  Of the more than 80 organizations who submitted applications, 14 proposals moved forward in the selection process.  But according to the review panel chair, the Health and Home Care group application was the only one worthy of an A+ and was the only organization to receive full approval to operate in Brooklyn.

H&HC is the certified home care agency of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation that provides expert home-based nursing services, as well as physical, occupational, speech therapy, and other services that may be prescribed by the patient’s plan of care.  Its specialized services reach patients with specific health care needs in home-based long term care, maternal-child health, hi-tech/infusion, behavioral health, and HIV/AIDS. 

H&HC will soon have hospital-based Intake Nurses stationed in the three HHC acute care hospitals in Brooklyn -- Coney Island, Kings County, and Woodhull -- and will begin to work with medical staff at those facilities to coordinate patient care during the transition from hospital to home-based care setting.  The home health agency expects to be fully operational to serve Brooklyn by early spring of 2013.

I know the Board joins me in thanking Home and Health Care Executive Director Ann Frisch for her outstanding work.  This achievement is another example of her tireless commitment to expanding the services we provide to our community.

 FUND FOR HHC DONATES $38K TO PARTNERS IN HEALTH FOR MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMS FOR HAITI EARTHQUAKE SURVIVORS

The Fund for HHC recently donated $38,000 to Partners in Health (PIH), a Boston-based group that has been working in Haiti since its founding in 1984. The grant will support PIH and its sister organization Zanmi Lasante in their service throughout affected areas in Haiti to help adults, children, and families dealing with mental health issues.

The grant is part of HHC’s Haiti Relief Fund initiative, an effort managed by The Fund for HHC that appealed to HHC employees for their help in addressing the tragic aftermath of the Haiti earthquake in 2010. Last May, the generous response by HHC’s staff initially led to a donation of $130,000 to the Mayor’s Fund for New York City which was directed toward the urgent immediate response to the tragedy in Haiti. Donations have continued to come in, enabling The Fund for HHC to make this additional grant to PIH. The funds will bring PIH closer to its goal of establishing the foundation for the provision of sustainable, long-term mental health services in Haiti.

The PIH grant reflects the special relationship HHC has with New York City’s Haitian community, the second largest Haitian population in the United States, outside of Florida. As of 2008, more than 180,000 people of Haitian descent were living in NYC, with the vast majority in Central Brooklyn, where Kings County Hospital Center has long been a caring resource for the largely immigrant population.

You can read more about The Fund’s donation to PIH on The Fund for HHC’s website www.thefundforhhc.org, and the organization’s website, www.pih.org. PIH will also use social media outlets – Facebook and Twitter – to publicize the donation to their many followers.

HHC BOARD OF DIRECTORS CONSIDERS ADOPTION OF NEW ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORD

On your agenda today is a resolution to enter into a 15 year contract with Epic Systems Corporation to provide a new enterprise-wide electronic medical record system (EMR) that will meet the needs of HHC’s large integrated healthcare delivery system to improve patient care, control costs, and ensure seamless transitions for patients who need access to different services throughout our system.  

The contract for the new Integrated Clinical Information System Electronic Medical record would be executed later this year and is not to exceed $303 million over the 15 years.  It will include the initial purchase of the software and database licenses, professional services to support the implementation, testing and technical training, the annual maintenance of the software, and database support and upgrades.

The Epic System is a trusted, proven product with advance capabilities.  The system is scalable to the size and performance requirements of HHC and able to meet the unique requirements and workflows of facilities and programs throughout the HHC network of healthcare service providers.  This EMR system conforms to emerging and evolving HIT standards and utilizes modern technology to allow for interoperability within the HHC system as well as with external systems, Health Information Exchanges (HIE’s) and other providers. 

The Epic product is used by large and complex healthcare systems across the US, including Kaiser Permanente, Providence Health & Services, Children’s Medical Center in Texas, North Shore University Health System and Stanford University Medical Center, among many others.

HHC put in place a comprehensive, competitive process to evaluate interested companies who are leaders in the marketplace and select an EMR product that can meet the health IT needs of the organization going forward.  I am confident that the rigorous process used to evaluate competitors for this contract has yielded an excellent choice for HHC and I urge your support.

 HHC FILES APPLICATION WITH CMS TO OPERATE AS ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATION UNDER MEDICARE

As a subsidiary of HHC, HHC ACO Inc. has filed an application to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program as an Accountable Care Organization (ACO). Established under the Affordable Care Act, this initiative creates a new model for providing Medicare beneficiaries with higher quality care while reducing costs through more efficient, better integrated care. The HHC ACO is specifically seeking to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program, a payment model that aligns payment rewards with performance based on quality, process and cost-reduction targets. The HHC ACO arrangement is a collaborative between HHC and its physicians. To receive incentive payments, HHC ACO participants will have to measurably improve the health status of patients, adopt evidence-based clinical practices, and lower spending for the Medicare program by reducing unnecessary hospitalizations, readmissions and emergency room visits for designated patients. The HHC ACO application is expected to be reviewed by CMS in the next few months.  If approved, HHC ACO will begin operations in January 2013. 

Resolutions that address several HHC ACO operational issues are included on today's agenda.

 FEDERAL UPDATE

Congress, in recess since the beginning of August, returned for only a few days to pass the continuing resolution to extend through March 2013 the funding for the federal government, which would have expired October 1.  They will reconvene after the elections.  Although the Senate schedule has not been revealed, the House has scheduled only 16 session days for the lame duck session in November and December.  There are a number of actions which Congress will probably address before the end of the session.

The Sustainable Growth Rate, commonly referred to as the "doc fix", that governs Medicare reimbursement to physicians will expire unless extended before December 31.  If it is not extended, reimbursements to doctors will decline 27%.  A permanent solution will cost $316 billion over 10 years so there is likely to be another one-year patch.

Under the Budget Control Act of 2011, a sequester (or across the board cut) totaling $1.2 trillion over ten years will begin in January 2, 2013 unless some alternative approach is adopted during the lame duck session.  The automatic sequester will result in a 2% reduction for Medicare providers.  HHC would lose $9.5 million in 2013 and $82.9 million from 2013 to 2021 in Medicare reimbursement.   Medicare beneficiaries and the entire Medicaid program are exempt from sequester reductions.  The WTC program, which reimburses for claims submitted, is not exempt from sequester, however, and would lose $14 million -- a 7.6% cut -- in 2013.

The elections will impact what occurs in the lame duck session and next year.

President Obama's Administration supported cuts of $716 billion (over the next 10 years) to Medicare providers as part of the Affordable Care Act to offset some of the costs of expanded coverage. The Administration came to an agreement with various stakeholders, including the American Hospital Association, on these Medicare reductions and other cuts.  As an example, the hospital industry also reluctantly accepted deep Medicaid and Medicare DSH cuts predicated on major coverage expansions.  HHC has not supported the Medicaid DSH cuts, which cost HHC in the out years approximately $421 million per year, and now HHC is even more concerned about slashing DSH allocations in light of the recent Supreme Court decision bringing the full scope of the Medicaid expansion into question.

Former Governor and Republican nominee Mitt Romney has pledged to repeal the ACA.

As the House Budget Chairman, Mr. Romney’s running mate, Paul Ryan, has made two different proposals for Medicare - both of which feature a premium support or voucher proposal that would have seniors buy private insurance with some federal funding support for their premiums.   Over time, this proposal shifts the risk of increased Medicare costs to seniors, and it is projected that many beneficiaries ultimately would find that their voucher would not allow them to purchase a package of benefits comparable to that which Medicare now provides.

Medicaid block grant proposals are included in each of Chairman Ryan's budgets and Romney supports this radical change to the Medicaid program. The Medicaid block grant proposal would save the federal government money while shifting the risk and added costs to the states.  These proposals cut federal Medicaid spending by $810 billion over 10 years. According to a Kaiser analysis, the Ryan Medicaid Block Grant would cost New York State $141 billion from 2012 to 2021, rising to $25.5 billion in the year 2021 alone with a 30% loss that year in Medicaid revenue to hospitals in NY State.

NEW YORK STATE SUBMITS WAIVER TO CMS

Last month, New York State formally submitted a Medicaid waiver proposal to the Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to recapture for investment in continuing state Medicaid reform efforts a portion of the estimated $17 billion to be saved by the federal government over the next five years.   If the waiver proposal is approved, the State could see $10 billion in new funds over the next 5 years.  In the waiver, the State laid out 13 areas that they are seeking to reform that would achieve the triple aim of improving patient care, improving population health and reducing costs. 

The waiver categories and amounts are:

1.         Primary Care Expansion - $1.25 billion

2.         Health Home Development - $525 million

3.         New Care Models - $375 million

4.         Vital Access Provider and Safety Net Providers Programs - $1 billion

5.         Public Hospital Innovation - $1.5 billion

6.         Supportive Housing Expansion - $750 million

7.         Long Term Care - $839 million

8.         Capital Stabilization for Hospitals - $1.7 billion

9.         Hospital Transition - $920 million

10.       Workforce  - $500 million

11.       Public Health Innovation - $395 million

12.       Regional Health Planning - $125 million

13.       Waiver Evaluation and Program Implementation - $500 million

 NEW REQUEST FOR FUNDING REDUCTION ANNOUNCED BY NEW YORK CITY

As a result of the City's financial plan forecast of a $2.5 billion gap beginning in FY 14, all City agencies are required to submit spending reduction proposals. The City's November Plan includes a "Program to Eliminate the Gap" (PEG) which requires a reduction in general City support of 5.4% in Fiscal Year 2013 and 8% per year beginning in Fiscal Year 2014. Based on HHC's PEGable base of $74 million, the Corporation's reduction target is $4.0 million for Fiscal Year 2013.  In Fiscal Year 2014, HHC's PEGable base is $64 million which increases the targeted reduction to $5.1 million for that year and beyond. 

At this point in time, the Corporation's proposals have not yet been determined.  The PEG proposals are due on October 4th, 2013.

NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO HEAD McKINNEY NURSING HOME

I am both sorry and happy to announce the retirement of Peola Small, RN, who served at the Executive Director of Dr. Susan Smith McKinney Nursing and Rehabilitation Center at the end of a long a productive career of 23 years at HHC.  Her time at HHC has included stints as Nursing Director at Sea View Hospital as well as Director of Patient Care at McKinney, where she assumed the role of Executive Director in 2006.  During her tenure as ED, McKinney has been repeatedly been surveyed successfully by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and The Joint Commission.  We wish her a long and happy retirement.

While we are sorry to lose Ms. Small's expertise, we are pleased to welcome Mr. Michael Tartaglia as Executive Director.  He has an extensive and distinguished career in healthcare, with particular focus on long-term care.  He joins us from Greenwich Woods Rehabilitation and Health Care Center, a 217-bed facility, where he served as the Administrator and had oversight of all daily operations.  During his tenure there, he oversaw the implementation of innovative programs to better serve patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease, and the facility received the 2010 Bronze Quality Award from the American Health Care Association.  Before his time at Greenwich Woods, Mr. Tartaglia served as Administrator of several long-term care facilities in Queens and Long Island, where he directed new construction, initiated fiscal enhancements to increase revenue and revamped internal systems to enhance patient care. 

HHC ASKS NEW YORKERS TO “COMMIT TO BE FIT” DURING TAKE CARE NEW YORK MONTH

October is HHC’s ninth annual Take Care New York (TCNY) campaign, a public education and awareness campaign designed to persuade NYC residents to seek preventive health screenings at New York City public hospitals and clinics.  The campaign focuses on health issues that cause preventable illnesses and deaths in NYC each year, offering flu shots and screenings for HIV, blood pressure, cancer, asthma, diabetes and other conditions for children and adults that benefit from early detection and treatment.

This year, HHC is challenging New Yorkers to curb obesity, by eating healthier and creating fitness goals for themselves.  Participants will receive a triple assessment that includes measuring Body Mass Index (BMI), blood pressure and cardiovascular fitness.  At "Commit to Be Fit" stations in HHC facilities in every borough, we will provide those who complete the screenings with an exercise prescription, tips for healthier eating and a pedometer to encourage them to be more active.

HHC IN THE NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

Broadcast

The affordable care act and the uninsured, HHC President Alan Aviles, WABC TV Tiempo, 8/5/12

 9/11 Memorial, Jacobi, News12 Bronx, 9/11/12

Art Exchange Program, Lincoln Hospital, Telemundo Ch 47, 7/29/12

Farmers Markets Crop Up at Local Hospitals, North Central Bronx, WABC, 7/27/12

Collaborative In Local Hospitals Helps Doctors Learn To Identify, Treat Sepsis, Dr. Scott Weingart, Elmhurst Hospital Center,  NY1, 8/1/12

Texting and Walking, Dr. Livia Santiago, Queens Hospital, Telemundo Ch 47, 7/31/12

New York Officials: Breast Milk May Be Best 'Formula', Dr. Wendy Wilcox, America Trevino, North Central Bronx/Jacobi, NPR, 8/3/12

Youth Cycling Programs Mix Health, Empowerment and Advocacy, Dr. Ed Fishkin, Woodhull, Channel 13, 8/21/12

Free Children's Vaccines Offered At Yankee Stadium Health Fair, Dr. Monique Collier Nickles, Lincoln Hospital, NY1, 8/22/12

Hank Carter: New Yorker of the Week, HHC Coler Goldwater, NY1, 8/17/12

Lincoln Hospital Back to School Immunization Campaign, Dr. Katherine Szema, Lincoln Hospital, News 12 Bronx, 8/21/12

New York City's 'Latch On NYC' initiative seeks to increase breastfeeding, HHC, AirTalk/Southern California Public Radio, 8/1/12

HHC WTC Environmental Health Center

WTC Environmental Health Center continues to enroll hundreds of people, Dr. Sonia Cabrera-Quezada, Bellevue,  NY1 Noticias, 9/11/12

Remembering 9/11: WTC Health Center Helping Survivors Heal, Dr. Nomi Levy- Carrick, HHC WTC Environmental Health Center , Fios1news.com, Video, 9/11/12

No terminan de sufrir (They are still suffering), Dr. Sonia Cabrera-Quezada, WTC Environmental Health Center, El Diario, 9/10/12

WTC Environmental Health Center. Dr. Louisa Lam, Gouverneur, Ming Pao, Daily, 9/11/12

WTC Environmental Health Center, Dr. Louisa Lam, Gouverneur, Sing Tao Daily, 9/11/12

WTC Environmental Health Center, Dr. Louisa Lam, Gouverneur, World Journal, 9/11/12

(Also covered by New Tang Dynasty Television, Sino Vison, China Press, Yahoo.com, Sina, China Daily)

Healthcare for 9-11 survivors, Dr. Alfredo Astua, Elmhurst,  El Correo, 9/14/12

Healthcare for victims of 9-11 at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, Dr. Alfredo Astua, Elmhurst, QueensLatino.com, 9/18/12

9/11 illness treatment center exhibits growth and change, 11 years after attacks, Dr. Nomi Levy-Carrick,  HHC WTC Environmental Health Center, Downtown Express, 9/5/12

Health Agenda, 9/11 Hope and Healing program, Bellevue Hospital, El Diario, 9/10/12

More News

Sea View center is a Staten Island gem, Sea View, Staten Island Advance, 9/12/12

New hospital unit heals pains, Elmhurst Hospital, Times Ledger, 7/26/12

Hospital unit opens doors, Elmhurst Hospital, Queens Chronicle, 7/26/12

Elmhurst Hospital Center expands emergency room with $1M treatment area, New York Daily News, 8/2/12

Hospitals Are Worried About Cut in Fund for the Uninsured, HHC, The New York Times, 7/27/12

Imagine a world without AIDS, Dr. Danielle Ofri, Bellevue, The New York Times, 7/30/12

Controlling the Cost of Medicaid, HHC President Alan D. Aviles, Metrofocus.com, 7/30/12

Lincoln receives prestigious Quest for Quality Award, Bronx Free Press, 7/25/12, Dr. Melissa Schori, Lincoln Hospital (Also covered in the Bronx Times,

Patient Centered Care at New York City Health and Hospitals, Lauren Johnston, HHC Chief Nurse Executive, Hartford Institute, July 2012

NYC to Limit Baby Formula in Hospitals, HHC, MedPageToday, 7/31/12

New Kings County Head, Ernest Baptiste, Crain's Health Pulse, 8/2/12

HHC Sees 20% Increase in Number of Uninsured Patients, NY Carib News, 8/1/12

Honored for Decades of Providing Mobility, Hank Carter, HHC, Coler-Goldwater, The Wall Street Journal, 8/7/12

QuadraMed Enables New York City Health & Hospitals Corporation to Attest to Meaningful Use Stage One, Virtual-Strategy Magazine, 8/6/12

It takes a health village, Harlem Hospital, New York Daily News, 8/7/12

N.Y. seeks to tap Medicaid-reform savings, HHC President Alan Aviles, Modern Healthcare, 8/7/12

North General Hospital to be renamed after 'Hank' Carter, HHC, Coler-Goldwater, The New York Amsterdam News, August 9-15, 2012

Henry 'Hank' Carter's Wheelchair Charities coming to East Harlem, HHC, Coler-Goldwater, The New York Amsterdam News, August 9-15, 2012

Henry 'Hank J.' Carter receives the recognition he deserves, HHC, Coler-Goldwater, The New York Amsterdam News, August 16-22, 2012

Gotham Health Approved, HHC, Crain's Health Pulse, 8/13/12

Give and Take: Government, states show flexibility on expansion, HHC Sr. VP LaRay Brown, Queens Hospital Center, Modern Healthcare, 8/11/12

How Five Leading Safety-Net Hospitals Are Preparing For The Challenges And Opportunities Of Health Care Reform, Bellevue Hospital, Health Affairs, August 2012

Local Health Agenda, Lincoln Hospital, Cumberland D&TC, El Diario, 8/20/12

Vacunas son obligatorias antes del regreso a clases en NY, (Vaccines required before going back to school), Dr. Randolph Núñez, Lincoln Hospital, El Diario, 8/20/12

The best stuff on earth - all fresh veggies, Coney Island Hospital, Courier Life’s Brooklyn Daily, 8/16/12

Staten Island centenarian celebrates milestone, Sea View Hospital, Staten Island Advance, 8/21/12

Exchange Network Expands, Elmhurst, Queens, Woodhull, MetroPlus, Crain's Health Pulse, 8/21/12

Snakebite in garden a real rattler, Dr. Michael Touger, Jacobi, Lohud.com, 8/21/12

HHC Will Name Healthcare Facility in Harlem after Henry “Hank” J. Carter, Coler-Goldwater, NY Carib News, 8/15/12

Hepatitis  C: The Silent Epidemic, Dr. Melissa Schori, Chief Medical Officer, The Bronx Free Press, 8/22/12

Yankees and Lincoln Hospital Immunization, Bronx Times, August 23-29, 2012

Back to School Healthfest, North Central Bronx, New York Daily News, 8/28/12

Isabella and Jayden top baby names in NYC — again!, Coney Island Hospital, New York Daily News, 8/29/12 (Also covered in NY Times, NY Post, CBS/1010 WINS Radio, AmNewYork, Metro.us, WSJ.com, Wfuv.com, NY1, WABC.com, NBC.com, Crain's NY Business, DNAinfo.com, Huffington Post, New York Magazine, The Epoch Times)

Crowley Supports Modernized Medical Record System, Elmhurst, Queens Gazette, 8/29/12

Budget Season Basics for Patient Safety Initiatives, Caroline Jacobs, Mei Kong, HHC, National Patient Safety Magazine, August 28, 2012

Jacobi Medical Center in need of volunteers for new dog therapy program, Bronx Times, 9/2/12

CUNY becomes tobacco free, Harlem, Queens, Elmhurst, The NY Amsterdam News, 9/13/12

Medicare's $963 Million Experiment, Dr. Ross Wilson, HHC, Bloomberg Businessweek, 9/6/12

At Harlem Hospital, Murals Get a New Life, Harlem, The New York Times, 9/16/12

African American Day Parade Thrills Harlem Onlookers, Sylvia White, Harlem, NY1, 9/16/12

Near the Zoo’s Snakes, a Hospital’s Collection of Medicine, Dr. Michael Touger, Jacobi, The New York Times, 9/14/12