year in review
About About Insight Excela Insight is a weekly publication that can be found on the Intranet. Insight features news and updates from across the system. Within editions employees can find upcoming on-site events, volunteer opportunities, perks partners and more!
INSIGHT
Excela Insight By the numbers
Now open April 2018 • Excela Advanced Vein Center, Excela Square at Norwin, North Huntingdon May 2018 • Excela Advanced Lung Center, Excela Square at Frick, Mount Pleasant • Excela Health Outpatient Rehabilitation, Abbey View, Latrobe • Excela Health WORKS Occupational Medicine, Abbey View, Latrobe • Excela Advanced Sleep Center, Medical Commons Five, Greensburg Exce atte
July 2018 • Excelatte Kiosk, Excela Square at Norwin, North Huningdon October 2018 • Primary Care Weekends opened a third location, Medical Commons One, Greensburg
Vein
About.. . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . 2 Now open... .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. 3 Welcome to excela health.. . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . .4/5 in the community.. . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. 6/7 memorable moments... . . .. .. .. .. . . . . . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .8/9 lights camera action... .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. ..10 kudos and awards.. . .. .. . . .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. ..11 featured therapy dogs.. . .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .12
Sleep Center
Insight Staff Cody Ambrose, Patricia Buhl, Laura Denner, Bridget Fertal, Amy Filer, Robert Firment, Emily Funyak, Robin Jennings, Jean Loutsenhizer, Keri Sciullo John Munsch, Emily Scrabot, Zoe Scripter, Linda Simon, Madison Veneri, Lindsey Yowan
How to find insight The latest editions of Excela Insight are posted to Featured News on the Intranet and on the Excela Mobile App (EMA). Past editions can be found on the Marketing page of the Intranet under Employee Publications.
Welcome to Excela Health
Dr. David Wyszomierski
Dr. Sarah Barlow
Pediatrics In May 2018, Dr. Wyszomierski joined Excela Square Latrobe Family Medicine. His office is located in Suite 301, Excela Square at Latrobe.
Family Medicine In May 2018, Dr. Sarah Barlow joined Ligonier Family Medicine. A graduate of the Latrobe Family Medicine Residency, we are happy to welcome her back to Excela!
Dr. David S. Mills Pain Management In August 2018, Dr. David S. Mills joined the Excela Advanced Pain Center at Excela Square at Latrobe and Excela Square at Norwin.
Dr. Andrew Schleihauf Sports Medicine In August 2018, former graduate of the Latrobe Family Medicine Residency, returned to join the Excela Health Orthopedic and Sports Medicine practice at Excela Square at Frick and the Excela Health Sports Medicine and Concussion Management Center in Greensburg.
Welcome to Excela Health
Dr. Kathryn Bender
Dr. Thaddeus Pajak
Family Medicine In August 2018, recent graduate of the Latrobe Family Medicine Residency program, Dr. Kathryn Bender joined the Excela Health Medical Group at the Jeannette Family Medicine location.
Family Medicine In August 2018, Dr. Thaddeus Pajak, joined Excela Health Medical Group as part of Lang Family Medicine in Greensburg.
Welcome New Urology Doctors from gu inc.! Suite 308 522 West Newton Street, Medical Commons Five Greensburg, Pa.
Dr. Vincent fiorica
Suite 104 911 Ligonier Street, Latrobe, Pa. (724) 539-9736
Dr. Alex Katich
in the community Excela Shows Its Pride In June, Excela Health took part in the annual Pittsburgh Pride Festival! Alongside more than 100 other organizations and vendors, Excela celebrated Pride within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning (LGBTQ+) community. Dr. Sharon Goldstein, Director of the Excela Health Breast Center, was the driving force behind Excela’s attendance at PrideFest. “PrideFest is more than just a day, it is an opportunity to open hearts and minds. The Excela Health Breast Center was honored to participate in PrideFest to bring awareness of the healthcare services available in Westmoreland County. #ExcelaPride at its finest!” Excela’s booth focused on breast health awareness and promoted the importance of getting annual mammograms. The booth featured a “bra pong” game and often had a long line of attendees waiting to play. The overall event had nearly 100,000 attendees, even more than the previous year’s festival.
Excela Health Day at the Westmoreland Fair August 17 marked opening day of the Westmoreland County Fair, as well as Excela Health Day! Excela employees took this opportunity to enjoy the fair festivities. Employees also showed their #ExcelaPride in this group photo! Thank you to all who enjoyed the evening with us!
in the community Art and Artistry Color the Brush of hope On October 11, Excela’s “Brush of Hope” event drew a crowd of nearly 200 women, and one interested gentleman, who enjoyed the art of painting and much more 一 learning about early detection, prevention and treatment of breast cancer. Held at the Greensburg Country Club, the event shared the latest techniques for diagnosing and treating breast cancer with presentations from Excela’s experts 一 surgeons Sharon Goldstein, MD, and Sarah Treter, MD, along with radiologists Amy Kreutel, MD, and Corinne Lynch, MD, and Sheila Farina, MSN, the Excela Health Breast Center Nurse Navigator. Attendees also had the opportunity to win door prizes and vie for gift baskets while enjoying refreshments and, of course, dabble in painting on a prepared canvas. More important, a larger portrait of breast cancer capabilities was created, giving all confidence that care for the disease that strikes one in eight women can be addressed at Excela Health with a high level of expertise and empathy.
Excela’s Not-So-Spooky Halloween Walk Excela Health kicked off a healthy Halloween season by hosting the Not So Spooky Halloween Walk. The event was held on Saturday, October 21, at Excela Square at Latrobe and offered families a venue to enjoy healthy treats, play games and get some exercise! Employees from many of the service lines at the Square volunteered to create games and treat stations. Children enjoyed making slime, decorating cookies, identifying bones and more. “Trick-or-treating” participants had the opportunity to meet the furry team of Excela Health therapy dogs.
Memorable Moments Take a Leap Forward with Alter-G Excela Health takes patients to new heights with the Alter-G anti-gravity treadmill at Excela Square at Latrobe. The Alter-G treadmill is used for orthopedic, sports performance, neurological and chronic condition rehab. Alter-G “lifts” the patient off the ground using anti-gravitational forces, reducing the patient’s body weight by up to 80 percent. Alter-G’s pain-free way to exercise helps patients reach their rehabilitation performance goals faster than traditional therapy after an injury or surgery. “The addition of this technology allows us to get patients moving and progressing faster than before, especially for patients with limited walking or weight bearing activities due to pain or for patients with weight bearing limitations,” said Sarah Davin, manager of rehabilitation services. Currently in physical therapy? Talk to your physical therapist to see if you could benefit from the Alter-G anti-gravity treadmill.
Excela Health and Norwin School District Bring Awareness to Opioid Addiction Excela Health has partnered with Norwin School District to raise awareness about the public health epidemic of opioid addiction. Abbey Zorzi, a Norwin graduate and former student-athlete, shared her personal experience with drug addiction and recovery in the video. Aimed at student-athletes, the video features footage of student-athletes and interviews with coaches, principals and administrators. Dr. Scott Berry, a pain management physician at the Excela Advanced Pain Center, discusses ways that physicians are taking a stand against the opioid epidemic. To watch the video visit excelahealth.org, search ‘school’ to find School-Based Behavioral Health.
Lung Cancer Awareness Month November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, one in which we can learn about the prevention, early detection and treatment of lung cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, lung cancer is the leading cancer of deaths for both men and women. In Westmoreland County alone, we exceed the state and national incidence rates for lung cancer, which is part of the impetus behind Excela Health’s commitment to a coordinated lung program. The Excela Advanced Lung Center serves our populations in three locations 一 Excela Square at Frick, Mount Pleasant; Excela Square at Norwin, North Huntingdon, and at Mountain View Medical Park in Greensburg. Serving as director for the center, Michael F. Szwerc, MD, thoracic surgeon, helped to establish not only the Advanced Lung Center but also the Center for Lung and Thoracic Diseases at Excela Health. Since its establishment, the Advanced Lung Center has been designated a Screening Center of Excellence by the Lung Cancer Alliance for offering responsible screening and care. The center offers a means of ruling out or detecting lung cancer earlier, when more treatment options are available. Current or former smokers, ages 55 to 77, may qualify for a low dose CT scan. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 1-844-2TESTME or visit excelahealth.org and search ‘lung’.
Memorable Moments Spoken Menu Piloted at Latrobe Food and Nutrition Services (FANS) at the Latrobe campus recently became the pilot location for implementing a new system-wide technology regarding a spoken menu for patients. FANS is transitioning from paper menus to real-time meal choice selections via a tool that interfaces with the Cerner inpatient electronic medical report to ensure patient adherence to individual meal plans. Hostesses will continue to visit patient rooms to collect information and review their prescribed meal plan.
School of Anesthesia Re-Accreditation
Drug Take-Back Boxes added The receptacles are for everyone’s use - staff, patients, visitors, community - as a safe, secure place to deposit no longer needed medications. In this way, we are all helping to control the misuse of medications.
The Excela Health/Saint Vincent College School of Anesthesia is proud to announce that the school has been approved to seat its first doctoral entry class for Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists in January 2020. The master’s degree program ends with the graduation of the class in December 2020. The Council on Accreditation awarded the program a 10-year accreditation without any requirements for additional information or interim reports. This is highly unusual for accreditation agencies and speaks to the outstanding leadership and programming that has resulted from our collaboration with Saint Vincent. The team is very grateful for all the support they received from our Excela Health family with special recognition for the Department of Anesthesia and our partners at Saint Vincent College.
Elf on the Shelf Stitch the Health Elf made rounds at Excela Health throughout the holiday season, visiting locations all across the system. Watch the Excela Health Facebook page and other social media to track him next year!
lights camera action Wrestling a Heart Attack Coach Mark Marshall didn’t anticipate a sudden medical takedown during wrestling practice last fall. In the moment, Marshall realized he was having a heart attack. Thankfully, the Seton Hill University wrestling team and Dr. Mark Suzuki, Excela Health cardiothoracic surgeon, were in his corner. To learn more about Mark Marshall’s story, visit: https://goo.gl/QRW57j
A Knee is for More Than Walking For Tay Waltenbaugh, knees are made for more than walking. Tay is a grandfather, outdoorsman and CEO who was experiencing severe knee pain from arthritis. The 63-year-old Excela Health Orthopedics patient underwent bilateral joint replacement surgery at Westmoreland Hospital in order to maintain his rigorous lifestyle and to be an active presence in his young grandson’s life. After a successful surgery and recovery with the help of EPIC Rehab in Latrobe Hospital, Tay speaks highly of the quality of care he received at Westmoreland Hospital from Excela Health orthopedic surgeon Greg Bisignani. Excela Health is the #1 Hospital in the Market in Medical Excellence for Major Orthopedic Surgery according to CareChex. Go to excelahealth.org and search ‘knee’ to view the full story.
Lung Cancer patients Ellen Kush follows regular medical checkups and has never missed a yearly mammogram since she was 40. But not all of her habits were healthy ones--the Greensburg woman was a smoker for 48 years. Ellen and her husband both underwent low dose CT screening based on their smoking habits and the tests came back positive. Their tumors were caught early enough for treatment and they want people to know that this precautionary screening, known as the mammogram of lung cancer testing, can save lives. Go to www.excelahealth.org and serach ‘lung’ to watch the couple’s interview and learn more about the Excela Advanced Lung Center.
Diagnosis and Treatment of Vein Disease
3D Mammography
Breast Cancer Journey
Kudos and awards 2018 Service Awards Recap In April, Excela Health recognized more than 700 employees during the 2018 Service Awards celebrations, honoring individuals with anniversaries in 5-year increments at various receptions and a dinner for those marking a quarter century or more of service. Among the largest group of honorees were those with 10 years of service, many of whom joined the health system from Mercy Jeannette Hospital in 2008. This year also marked a golden milestone for one employee, as Ralph King celebrated 50 years of service. Ralph began his career at age 14 at Frick Hospital, and moved into various roles over his career, most recently as part of the Finance team. A half-century of service makes Ralph a rarity in today’s work world, and he has no plans for retirement, believing he still has much to contribute. To view the complete gallery of photos, see the “2018 Service Awards” album on the Excela Health Facebook page.
CareChex® Honors Excela Health In 2018, CareChex recognized Excela Health as a leader in medical excellence and patient safety on a national, regional and state level. In the August edition, we celebrated the employees of Westmoreland Hospital Intensive Care Unit, 2E, 4th Floor, 5th Floor and the Step Down Unit. All groups earned 8/8 for HCAHPS scores!
Excela Health Highlighted for Donate Life Efforts In September, Excela Health was highlighted as a top performer in multiple categories in the 2018 HAP Donate Life Pennsylvania Hospital Challenge. The challenge encourages Commonwealth hospitals to increase organ donation awareness and designations within their hospital and community. The challenge was held during the month of April to coincide with National Donate Life Month. During the challenge, Pennsylvania’s hospitals worked to increase awareness of the need for organ and tissue donors, and encourage new donor registrations. The annual event is a collaboration among The Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP), the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE), Gift of Life Donor Program, and the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH). Participants were recognized this at an awards luncheon in Pittsburgh. Excela Health was recognized as the top overall health system. Excela Health Westmoreland was the top hospital in the challenge and Excela Health Latrobe received the second place spot. Congratulations to everyone involved!
Excela Health was named as one of Forbes’ 2018 America’s Best Employers!
featured therapy dogs