May 2012 Pulse

May 2012

N et w o r k S.T.A.R. Program After 1 Year: Better and Healthier Nurses are Helping Patients............1 Growing Practice Treats Spine and Pain Patients...................................2 ‘No Pass Zone’ Seeks to Improve Patient Satisfaction, Safety.............................3 St. Luke’s Miners Hospital Opens New Infusion Center to Serve Cancer and Intravenous Infusion Therapy Patients............4 Growing Pulmonary & Critical Care Practice Makes Patients “Number One”.......................5 Reading Rocks! Program Fosters Literacy in the Community...............................6 Attending Physician of the Year Lauds Increased Diagnosis of Mental Illness............7

S.T.A.R. Program after 1 Year: Better and healthier nurses are helping patients When the S.T.A.R. Program for nurses was begun in late 2010, the goals were to help nurses to improve their health and to give them training and tools to pass on to patients. This program ran from September 2010 to March 2011. The program coordinator for the S.T.A.R. Program, Amy Previato, MPH, CHES, explained that S.T.A.R. involved 24 participants. The specific details of S.T.A.R. were developed by a planning committee made up of clinical, managerial and administrative staff. Participants received individual personal health assessments and then took part in monthly education sessions and one-on-one coaching sessions with Amy. The nurses were evaluated regarding changes in biometric outcomes that included total cholesterol, blood pressure and Body Mass Index, or BMI. Their emotional well-being was assessed and those who used tobacco also participated in a cessation program. The program continued on page 15

Broad and Deep Experience Makes Vascular Center the Best.....................8 The Importance of Vascular Screenings..........9 Pioneering Dr. Rivera is Sharing His Echocardiography Expertise Nationally.........10 St. Luke’s Home Health is Among ‘Home Care Elite’...............................11 Warren Merger is Official; Improved Service, Better Network are the Goals..........12 Quick Response to Water Main Break Lessens Disruption to Patients and Services at St. Luke’s Miners Hospital.........................13 Lab Supervisor is Recognized as Volunteer for Humanitarian Service..............14

Pictured above are several of the 24 nurses who participated in the S.T.A.R. Program to improve their health and, ultimately, the health of their patients.

A Publication of St. Luke’s | www.pulsenews.org | 1-866-STLUKES

Growing Practice Treats Spine and Pain Patients In 2007, Scott J. Loev, DO, helped create St. Luke’s Spine & Pain Associates. It was located in basement space at St. Luke’s Quakertown Hospital. Today, St. Luke’s Spine & Pain Associates has three locations.

In addition to space in the Network’s new Bone & Joint Institute off Route 309 in Quakertown, Dr. Loev and his associates have locations in Bethlehem across the street from the St. Luke’s University Hospital, and at the new St. Luke’s Hospital – Anderson Campus.

A fourth location is being planned for the Allentown area. Quality care that treats patients as “a whole” is the practice’s goal.

The practice offers an integrative approach with cutting-edge techniques as well as hospital-quality care in the procedures it performs in the offices along with the comfortable atmosphere of a primary doctor visit. “We don’t just give you an injection and send you home.” The providers work very closely with other practitioners within the St. Luke’s Network. Patients are often referred to neurologists or surgeons when it is warranted. Physical therapy often is indicated as well. Living with chronic pain is emotionally difficult, so patients may be referred to psychologists or counselors.

Sometimes, being overweight contributes to pain, so nutritionists often can help, too.

Being part of St. Luke’s University Health Network offers many resources and advantages that other practices don’t have.

Dr. Loev is proud that his associates — Jeffrey S. Berger, DO; Farooq A. Qureshi, MD; and Daryl Gordon, CRNP — and staff make patients feel welcome and safe. A patient’s treatment begins with the staff at the front desk who answer the phone and greet patients.

They have experience working with people who are seeking relief from pain and they always show kindness and understanding.

The patient’s care continues with the clinical staff and nurses who take the time to understand the complex nature of each patient’s pain.

Drs. Loev, Berger, and Qureshi offer a wide variety of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, primarily for patients with musculoskeletal issues. Patients may have suffered an acute injury from a vehicle 2

Dr. Scott Loev performing a fluoroscopically guided procedure at the Bone & Joint Institute.

accident or a workman’s compensation injury, or they may be recovering from surgery. Pain can present itself in many different fashions.

Many different spinal problems can cause pain and may bring patients to the practice for treatment. For instance, the discs between vertebrae can deteriorate or be damaged. Facet arthropathy, caused by degenerative arthritis, can cause pain. The condition can stem from a back injury, or just wear and tear. Some people who experience pain in the lower back, hips and groin may have arthritis of the cartilage in the sacroiliac joints or hip joints. Another condition treated at the Spine & Pain Associates is sciatica, which is pain or numbness in the legs caused by pressure on the sciatic nerve due to disc herniation or narrowing of the spinal canal, also known as spinal stenosis.

The practice also treats patients with pain following shingles, a painful skin condition that is caused by a virus.

At St. Luke’s Spine & Pain Associates, patients may receive injections of steroids or other anti-inflammatory medicines to relieve pain.

Nerve blocks, which can be used temporarily to identify specific sources of nerve pain, involve the injection of numbing agents, often under X-ray guidance, and play an important diagnostic role.

Dr. Loev said, “The causes of pain can be complex, so we often need to perform diagnostic procedures.” In order to effectively treat pain, it is essential to understand the cause. For instance, injections and nerve blocks can confirm or deny that a nerve is the source of pain, thereby guiding further treatment.

Spinal cord stimulation is another technique used to treat chronic neck, low back and extremity pain. The procedure involves the placement of electrode leads into the epidural space which surrounds the spine. The device can be used to block the transmission of pain before it reaches the brain. Similar technology can be used to treat chronic headaches as well. The neurostimulation device also can be placed temporarily to determine whether it works for a patient.

If successful, it can be implanted.

The practice has grown over the years both in numbers and quality. In 2010, the National Purdue Partners Against Pain Award was presented to Dr. Loev and the practice to recognize their “great strides in the field of pain research, management or improving the quality of life for people living with acute or chronic pain.” continued on page 3

May 2012

‘No Pass Zone’ seeks to improve patient satisfaction, safety When a patient or family member needs something in the hospital, getting a quick response is important. A program begun at St. Luke’s University Hospital – Bethlehem last year is an “all hands on deck” approach to making sure that when a call light is on or if someone has a question or need, the closest staff member will respond.

As Janice T. Concilio, vice president for Patient Services explained it, the “No Pass Zone” initiative involves all hospital department staffs, not just those routinely responsible for clinical care. For instance, she said “An electrician might be working in the hall when a call light goes on. He might not be able to answer a medical question, but he can assure the patient that help is on the way.” Other times, a patient might need something simple like help reaching the TV controller or a glass of water – things anyone can do.

Janice said the “No Pass Zone” initiative was inspired by reports in the professional literature that staff responsiveness is a key part of patient satisfaction. St. Luke’s, like all hospitals, surveys patients about their experience in the hospital. Before the “No Pass Zone” was begun at the end of October 2011, St. Luke’s was being scored at the 60th percentile on this point in the HCAHPS survey, the tool used by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to compare hospitals’ performances. Since then, the ranking has improved to the 68th percentile. “It’s a great initiative,” Janice said. “It makes patients feel safer.”

Lisa Litak, manager for Service Improvement, and Susan Moriarty, patient care manager, are co-leaders for this project. The team was developed with “champions” from all of the hospital departments. Janice said the plan may include expanding the “No Pass Zone” to the other Network campuses in the future.

Staff receive a green “Thank You for answering a call bell on our unit!” card each time they respond to a patient’s call bell.

Ruth Saez, Environmental Services Department, answers a call bell on the Cardiac Recovery Unit.

Spine & Pain cont.

Dr. Loev earned his DO degree at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and served an internship in internal medicine at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. He served an anesthesia residency at Temple University School of Medicine and a fellowship in interventional pain medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Dr. Berger earned his DO at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and served an internship at Crozer Keystone Health System in Drexel Hill, Pa. He served as chief resident and clinical instructor at Temple University’s Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and completed additional fellowship training

in Interventional Pain Medicine at Temple University Hospital. Dr. Berger also performs nerve tests known as EMGs to diagnose the cause of nerve pain. Dr. Berger has also written award-winning research papers on peripheral stimulation for pain relief.

Dr. Qureshi earned his MD at Temple University School of Medicine and served an internship in internal medicine at Graduate Hospital.

He served a residency in anesthesiology at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. He completed a post-doctoral residency fellowship at Columbia University and a fellowship in pain management at UCLA Pain Management Center in Santa Monica, Calif.

Dr. Loev performing individualized patient care.

May 2012 3

ST. LUKE’S MINERS Hospital OPENS NEW INFUSION CENTER TO SERVE CANCER AND INTRAVENOUS INFUSION THERAPY PATIENTS St. Luke’s Miners Campus recently opened its new $279,000 infusion center to treat cancer patients as well as those requiring Intravenous Infusion Therapy. The staff saw the first patients in early 2012 and will continue to offer the same compassionate quality care in the new state-of-the-art infusion center.

“We are delighted that we have a beautiful, new space to accommodate our infusion patients,” said St. Luke’s Miners Campus President Bill Moyer. “We have redesigned this space with our patients’ and families’ needs in mind and believe that the new space will aid in the healing process.”

He continued, “As a value-added service beyond the personalized support and advanced care that the clinical staff offers, we are offering permit parking immediately outside of the main entrance for infusion patients’ convenience in accessing the new area. Inside, we have created a protected environment in an exclusive waiting room for patients whose immune systems may be compromised.”

In addition to the convenient parking and exclusive waiting room, new comfortable chairs, personal televisions and natural sunlight with a vista valley view are available in each of the five new patient bays.

“We are very excited about our new state-of-the-art infusion center and being able to provide the same clinical quality care provided

throughout the St. Luke’s University Health Network,” said Kim Sargent, RN, vice president of Patient Care Services.

The new center is 1,383 square feet, designated as a Class A Medical Space, and located on the third floor on the west wing of the hospital. The same caring staff, led by Kim Sargent and Sharon Oravec, RN, nurse manager, will provide the following services: chemotherapy; injections, including B 12, once daily Lovenox and erythropoetins; IV Infusions; including iron, hydration, Remicade and Reclast; blood transfusions; IV antibiotics; therapeutic phlebotomy; and port flushes.

“Starting with the Board of Trustees and the president of the hospital, St. Luke’s has made it our mission to provide high quality facilities and skilled physicians in Coaldale so patients can receive the same excellent level of care without having to travel,” said Maureen Donovan, Trustee, St. Luke’s Miners Hospital. “Quality care has always been present. Now we have a new infusion center that matches that quality care. Patients and their families have a place that is both welcoming and stress-free and allows them to focus on healing. It is important that we provide easily accessible support and services. This is another step in that direction.“ Patients and physicians may call 570-645-8366 to schedule appointments at the new infusion center in Coaldale.

Photos from two of the rooms at the new Miners infusion center show some of the accomodations in the new space that is expected to help patients in the healing process.

“We are delighted that we have a beautiful, new space to accommodate our infusion patients.

We have redesigned this space with our patients’ and families’ needs in mind and believe that the new space will aid in the healing process.”

— St. Luke’s Miners Campus President Bill Moyer 4

May 2012

Growing Pulmonary & Critical Care practice makes patients “Number One” St. Luke’s Pulmonary & Critical Care Associates provides pulmonary and critical care services to patients in the Lehigh Valley and surrounding areas in three locations. The physicians provide pulmonary care to both inpatients and in an outpatient office practice.

Also, the team provides medical critical care services for St. Luke’s at the Bethlehem, Allentown and Anderson Campuses.

The practice is part of the St. Luke’s Physician Group and was started in 2006. Since then, it has grown to include services to inpatients and outpatients in Bethlehem, Allentown and, most recently, in Bethlehem Township. There are 11 physicians providing pulmonary and critical care services, with two physician assistants and one nurse practitioner. The offices are located at 709 Delaware Ave., Bethlehem; 1648 Hamilton St., Allentown; and 1700 Riverside Drive, Easton.

The physicians provide pulmonary expertise for patients with symptoms such as cough, shortness of breath and chest congestion.

They also see patients who have abnormal chest X-rays and CT scans. Some of the major problems that are cared for include a comprehensive approach to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchial asthma, lung cancer, interstitial lung disease, pneumonia, bronchitis, sarcoidosis, pulmonary hypertension, occupational lung disease, and pulmonary tuberculosis. The pulmonary physicians also evaluate and treat sleep disorders, including obstructive sleep apnea.

The inpatient consultation service sees patients admitted to the hospital with respiratory problems. The physicians also staff the critical care units, caring for patients who are extremely ill with diagnoses such as respiratory failure, congestive heart failure, sepsis, shock, and other life-threatening medical situations that require special expertise. The goal over the next several years is to provide 24/7 in-house attending critical care coverage for patients admitted to the St. Luke’s University Hospital – Bethlehem. Also, the group provides 24-hour critical care coverage at both the Allentown Campus and the Anderson Campus with the help of nurse practitioners and physician assistants.

St. Luke’s Pulmonary & Critical Care Associates team.

The goal of the practice is to provide accessible, caring and high quality services that make it easy for patients to be treated and followed-up upon. As a policy, the staff tries to get new patients seen within the office within several days.

The team is extremely proud of its ongoing contribution to education. This involves the teaching of residents and medical students at the new Temple/St. Luke’s School of Medicine.

The physicians also are involved in research programs both independently and in association with Temple University.

The pulmonary critical care team consists of Livia Bratis, DO, chief; Christopher Alia, MD; Jennifer Axelband, DO; Nicole Gray, DO; John Kintzer, MD; Anthony Luizza, MD; Guhan Rammohan, MD; John Ryan, MD; Deborah Stahlnecker, DO; Kirth Steele, DO; and Mohamed Turki, MD.

The doctors have a strong relationship with the St. Luke’s Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program, which provides education, exercise, nutritional and evaluation for patients who suffer from lung problems. The Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program is in the Bethlehem office and is soon to open at St. Luke’s North.

The non-physician practitioners include Kelley Lakatos, PA; Kimberly Reichard, PA; and Dana Williams, CRNP.

The goal of the practice is to provide accessible, caring and high quality services that make it easy for patients to be treated and followed-up upon.

As a policy, the staff tries to get new patients seen in the office within several days. Ill patients will be seen on a same-day basis to avoid unnecessary trips to the Emergency Room.

The support staff includes Marie O’Keefe Sell, practice administrator; Stephanie Remsing, patient coordinator; Janice Finkbeiner and Lauri Pierce, billing coordinators; Kathy Mulrooney, receptionist; and Cynthia Rice and Zelena Sierra, medical assistants.

Patients may be self-referred to the practice or referred by a physician. To ask a question, call the office at 484-526-3890.

May 2012 5

Reading Rocks! program fosters literacy in the community Children in the Lehigh Valley and in the area served by the St. Luke’s Miners Campus will benefit from the volunteers and teamwork of Network employees — and community partners — as the Reading Rocks! and other literacy programs continue to grow.

receive “Reading Rocks!” books in a few different ways. One successful program in Bethlehem takes place at Donegan Elementary School. There, student athletes and members of sororities and fraternities at Lehigh University spend time reading one-on-one with children every Wednesday.

Roseann Corsi, public relations coordinator for Lehigh Athletics, said about 50 Lehigh students go to Donegan each week. All of Lehigh’s varsity sports are represented, as well as members of the “Greek” organizations. “At this point, we have students approaching us to ask how they

The book collection initiative, carried out at several locations at the end of last year, provided nearly 18,000 new and gently used books that are given to children.

Some children get books from volunteer readers who visit schools and preschools for “Dr. Seuss Day” (held this year on March 2), from children visited by the Visiting Nurse Association of St. Luke’s, from the mobile health vans that visit schools in the Allentown and Bethlehem Area School Districts, and in other settings.

The latest book collection began in August and ended in September 2011. There were about a dozen collection locations in Bethlehem, Allentown and Quakertown.

New this year was the expansion of the program to the Miners area. Hollie Gibbons, MPH, RD, LDN, manager of disease prevention programs, said books were collected at the Miners Campus, St. Luke’s Miners Memorial Home Care, Tamaqua Family Practice, St. Luke’s Internal Medicine in Tamaqua, St. Luke’s Health Centers in McAdoo, Nesquehoning and Hometown, the LehighCarbon Community College (LCCC) Morgan Center, the Tamaqua Chamber of Commerce, and the office of State Rep. Jerry Knowles in Tamaqua.

LCCC student Sal Brasile reads to Julio Herrera of the Tamaqua Salvation Army Youth Group.

Hollie said residents of the nursing home at St. Luke’s Miners Campus assisted with sorting the more than 1,000 books collected.

At LCCC in Tamaqua, students in the Personal and Community Health Class have assisted with the Reading Rocks! Program, as well.

The books are being distributed in the Miners area through the Salvation Army in Tamaqua, the South Ward Neighborhood Center in Tamaqua, the Tamaqua Area School District, the Panther Valley Public Library, and at Our Lady of the Angels School in Lansford.

In the Allentown and Bethlehem Area School Districts, children and young people

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(L-R): Cheryl Andreas, activities aide, and resident Anna Brunda work with other residents of the St. Luke’s Miners Rehabilitation and Nursing Center to help sort books collected from the book drive.

May 2012

can get involved. And, once students go to Donegan, they are hooked... they love it and they want to keep going.” The Lehigh students had been dividing their time with the children between reading and physical exercise and games. This year, however, the students wanted to devote all of the time to reading. “The pupils look up to our student-athletes... plus, they get to take books home, and perhaps those are the only books in their homes,” Roseann explained.

Also at Donegan is the St. Luke’s Family Practice at Donegan-Fowler Family Center, where volunteers read to young patients.

Julie Kindig, RN, BSN, nurse coordinator in the Community Health Department, said that the health and dental vans that visit middle schools and high schools carry collections of books for children to choose from. This is part of the department’s Adolescent Health Initiative. “They are especially popular with the middle school students,” Julie said. Students are encouraged to look through the books in the vans’ book carts or cabinets while they are waiting to see the nurse or dentist.

They are allowed to take home one book per visit. Julie added, “Sometimes, they get so involved that we have to interrupt them and tell them, ‘It’s time to see the nurse!’ “ The library book cart in the larger van was donated by Judith’s Reading Room, a non-profit founded in the Lehigh Valley in 2010 by Scott and Cathy L. Leiber.

At the three locations of St. Luke’s Kids Care, volunteers read to children waiting for appointments, and children who come in for well-visits get books to take home.

Tracy Newman, Kids Care manager, said Kids Care bought books with funds raised at pediatric nursing conferences, and she herself cruised local yard sales last year and bought about 6,000 “gently used” books for Kids Care children. Tracy said about 40,000 children are seen at the three Kids Care locations annually.

Attending Physician of the Year Lauds Increased Diagnosis of Mental Illness The World Health Organization now ranks mental illness second only to vascular disease as a cause of death. And according to the Department of Family Medicine’s Attending Physician of the Year for 2011, that’s a good thing.

Welda Donato-Duque, MD, who specializes in child and adolescent psychiatry, was chosen by the Department of Family Medicine for this prestigious award for her work teaching residents and medical students.

“I was very humbled by this recognition,” said Dr. Donato-Duque. “I love teaching and the students feel my enthusiasm.” She added that since both of her parents were professors, a love for educating came naturally to her. She said she enjoys having a resident, or occasionally two, shadow her for a month at a time. She also teaches medical students through St. Luke’s partnership with the Temple University School of Medicine and the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Dr. Welda Donato-Duque holds her plaque honoring her as Attending Physician of the Year.

In addition to teaching, Dr. Donato-Duque is busy seeing patients as both inpatients and outpatients. Having a heavy caseload is common for child psychiatrists because there are only 7,000 to 8,000 of them in the United States which has a population of about 22 million children. “It’s something of a rare specialty,” she explained. Child psychiatrists also tend to have patients for a long time. It’s not unusual to start seeing a child in grade school and follow them through to adulthood.

David Doyle, DO, chief of Behavioral Medicine for the Network, said he is proud that Dr. Donato-Duque was honored as Attending Physician of the Year and that it brings recognition to the department. Dr. Donato-Duque agreed, saying that increased awareness of mental illness as a common diagnosis is a good thing. She believes that family physicians, pediatricians and internists are more aware of and more likely to refer a patient for psychiatric care than they once were.

“People in general are more aware too,” she said. “I think that celebrities who are willing to go public with a mental illness diagnosis help a great deal. People look at them and think, ‘Look at that, they are a lot like me.’ ” Dr. Donato-Duque has been at St. Luke’s for 16 years. She earned her medical degree at the Far Eastern University in Manila and served her internship, residency and a fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry at the State University of New York – Brooklyn.

“I was very humbled by this recognition. I love teaching and the students feel my enthusiasm.”

— Welda Donato-Duque, MD May 2012

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Broad and deep experience makes Vascular Center the best Patients who need care for their vascular system — the body’s blood vessels — can rely on the Network’s Vascular Center for the right diagnosis, skillful treatment and compassionate follow-up care.

The Vascular Center coordinates three aspects of vascular care: non-invasive diagnostic, endovascular surgery and traditional open vascular surgery. The Center is operated by members of Progressive Physician Associates, all of whom are board-certified, fellowshiptrained physicians.

The Vascular Center endovascular specialists employ the very latest technology in caring

for their patients. In addition, the Vascular Center physicians are proud of the ongoing training they have been able to pursue to better serve patients. For instance, earlier this year Dr. Jay Fisher and Dr. James Balshi each served three-month fellowships in advanced endovascular interventions at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. There, they saw 200 to 300 patients and observed and learned advanced vascular care techniques that are being performed nowhere else in the world.

That experience benefits patients in the St. Luke’s University Health Network

because Drs. Fisher and Balshi have been able to share their experiences with colleagues here. Dr. Fisher said, “It’s hard to over-state how advanced the Cleveland Clinic is. Added Dr. Balshi, “Their perspective on diseases we already are treating helps us to do new things. Now we can look at our patients with a broader perspective.”

Appreciating the benefits of diverse and broad training is a hallmark of the Progressive Physician Associates and The Vascular Center in other ways. Vascular surgeons work together with interventional radiologists and cardiologists to provide advanced vascular care across the Lehigh Valley.

Dr. Fisher said that staying abreast of trends in vascular surgery is another strength of The Vascular Center. One major change that he and his colleagues have embraced is a shift in the ratio of how many cases are treated with endovascular procedures vs. open surgery. Not long ago, it was typical to perform open surgery on 80 percent of patients. However, as of 2011, Progressive Physician Associates endovascular specialists utilize minimally invasive techniques on more than 75 percent of their patients, and open surgery on only about 25 percent.

Drs. Balshi (left) and Fisher pause for a photograph in the cath lab.

(L-R): Interventional Radiologists Dr. Ellen Redstone and Dr. Michael Ringold review a case with Vascular Surgeon Dr. Amy Lipscomb in the Interventional Radiology suite.

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This shift benefits patients because their hospital stays will be shorter, perhaps overnight. Costs and the chance of infection go down dramatically. And, these minimally invasive techniques spare patients long recovery periods from major surgical incisions, so they return to work and daily activities more quickly. There also is a benefit to a patient’s longer-range care, particularly if further procedures are needed.

Vascular patients who come to St. Luke’s also benefit from its role as an innovator.

A good example is that St. Luke’s is one of only three GE Super Healthcare Global Show Sites in the United States for the GE Innova 4100, a large-format digital flat screen X-ray system. Hal Folander, MD, chief of Interventional Radiology at the St. Luke’s University Health Network, led the clinical trials for FDA approval of the Innova 4100, and today, physicians from around the world come to St. Luke’s to see how the equipment is utilized. Other potential high-technology innovations that might augment vascular May 2012

care at St. Luke’s is a hybrid operating room that combines an operating room with a radiology suite, still in development.

In addition to Drs. Fisher and Balshi, The Vascular Center’s surgeons include Marc Granson, MD; Bengt Ivarsson, MD; Amy Lipscomb, MD; Timothy Oskin, MD; and Joel Rosenfeld, MD. There are six interventional radiologists: Dr. Hal Folander; Prashant Patel, MD; Ellen Redstone, MD; Robert Reinhart, MD; Michael Ringoldd, MD; and Jamie Thomas, DO. In addition, there are about 40 diagnostic radiologists serving the St. Luke’s University Health Network as well.

There are 10 vascular labs throughout the Network and more may be added at the Anderson Campus and at the Wind Gap facility. The Vascular Center surgeons operate in all of the Network hospitals in the Lehigh Valley. Patients can be seen in the six Vascular Center offices in Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Quakertown, Pocono, and Coaldale.

Dr. Reinhart begins a case with the Innova 4100 in interventional radiology.

The Importance of Vascular Screenings

by Jay Fisher, MD, Vascular Surgeon Most people seem to know a lot about the risks of heart disease, and the importance of prevention, detection and treatment.

The public is mostly unaware of vascular disease or atherosclerosis outside of the heart or what is known generally as peripheral vascular disease. An estimated 20-30 million Americans are at risk for various vascular diseases. National screenings in the past have revealed that, on average, 15 percent of people screened had vascular conditions, including blocked arteries to the brain, which could cause a stroke; to the legs, which could cause problems walking short distances or limb loss; as well as bulging of the main artery in the body known as an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).

Most people didn’t know they had these conditions and had never been tested.

My colleagues at St. Luke’s Heart & Vascular Center want you to know that it’s important to receive vascular screenings — testing for

diseases that affect the blood vessels. These diseases often have no early symptoms. This is especially important if you are a smoker, have diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure or have a family history of aneurysms or stroke. So, even if you are not experiencing cramping in the legs while walking, irregular pain or numbness in the arms or legs, you could be at risk for vascular disease.

At St. Luke’s Heart & Vascular Center, we perform three non-invasive screenings in one 20-minute visit. Registered technologists working in our nationally accredited vascular labs can identify vascular disease before problems occur. Of course, we share the results with your family doctor and we take measures to guide your further treatment.

The first screening is for abdominal aortic aneurysms, what we call AAA. A non-invasive ultrasound examines the aorta for weak or enlarged areas. If the artery continues to enlarge, it can rupture — which can be a fatal event.

Next is screening for peripheral artery disease, or PAD, a problem with blood flow to the legs. This test involves comparing the blood pressure in both arms and legs.

Finally, we screen for carotid artery disease and stroke. This also is a non-invasive ultrasound that checks the flow of blood in the main arteries to the brain.

We offer these screenings at 13 different vascular labs within St. Luke’s University Health Network. You need simply call St. Luke’s Central Scheduling at 484-526-1000 to schedule an appointment. It could save your life!

May 2012 9

Pioneering Dr. Rivera is sharing his echocardiography expertise nationally About two years ago, Jose L. Rivera, MD, started applying the concept of Focused Transthoracic Echocardiography to surgical patients at St. Luke’s who were hemodynamically unstable. He soon developed a course to teach the procedure to anesthesiologists and anesthetists at St. Luke’s; this course was one of the first in the country. The following year, the course was again offered at St. Luke’s, and it was opened to physicians outside the Network.

There were attendees from as far away as Brazil. Dr. Rivera also will be giving his course in Atlanta, Cleveland and Seattle.

The course is called Focused Transthoracic Echocardiography. The technique is valuable because it allows anesthesiologists, intensivists, surgeons, and Emergency Department staff to view the structure and function of the heart from outside the body. Dr. Rivera said, “I compare it using to an ‘ultrasound flashlight’ that allows you to see the heart and related structures. This works because the heart is mostly water and ultrasound waves in a fluid behave like light waves in a vacuum. It literally is an ‘ultrasound flashlight.’ ”

Alison Gerges, CRNA, (middle) demonstrates to Jose Rivera, MD, how to evaluate cardiac function prior to surgery using Focused Transthoracic Echocardiography.

Dr. Rivera added, “Focused Transthoracic Echocardiography allows the practitioner to more accurately diagnose the causes of hemodynamic instability, select the proper treatment and evaluate the response to treatment. Any practitioner caring for unstable patients should possess this invaluable skill set.”

Dr. Rivera, with the help of Dr. Stephen A. Olenchock Jr., DO, section chief of Cardiovascular Surgery for the Network, has started applying more advanced echocardiographic techniques in the cardiac surgery operating rooms. Dr. Rivera said that one example is “live 3D Echocardiography,” a technique that allows cardiac anesthesiologists and surgeons to “virtually see” cardiac structures in their native state before and after surgical repair. “Live 3D Echocardiography” produces “Real Time 3D” videos and images the surgeon can use to plan his operation.

It has several advantages over invasive monitors because it provides more accurate and useful information in a timely manner.

It also saves the patient, the hospital and the insurance companies large amounts of money when it is used instead of invasive monitors.

Dr. Olenchock agrees that the advantages of Dr. Rivera’s technique are impressive. “It’s great for assessing a patient before we begin surgery.

If a mitral valve (in the heart) is leaking, the echocardiogram gives us a real-time 3-D picture. Then, when we open and go inside,

we see exactly what we saw on the image.”

He added, “It’s a good diagnostic tool and it improves patient safety. And, it has applications far beyond cardio surgery.”

Dr. Rivera also serves as Clinical Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at the Temple University School of Medicine. He is board certified in anesthesiology and echocardiography. He earned his medical degree at Harvard Medical School. He served as a medical intern at Pennsylvania Hospital and as an anesthesiology resident and a cardiothoracic anesthesiology fellow at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

He has been with the St. Luke’s Hospital Anesthesiology Department since 1988. He is currently working on developing a Critical Care Ultrasound course using an ultrasound machine made by Philips Healthcare that looks like an iPod on wheels.

“Focused Transthoracic Echocardiography allows the practitioner to more accurately diagnose the causes of hemodynamic instability, select the proper treatment and evaluate the response to treatment.

Any practitioner caring for unstable patients should possess this invaluable skill set.”

— Jose L. Rivera, MD 10

May 2012

St. Luke’s Home Health is among ‘Home Care Elite’ Home Health, one of the services offered by the Visiting Nurse Association of St. Luke’s, has earned the status of “Home Care Elite” by being ranked in the top 25 percent of all such agencies nationwide.

Data on the performance of home health care agencies are gathered nationwide by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and allow agencies to compare themselves to statewide and national averages and with competing agencies in their service areas.

Judy Wlostowski, RN, MSN , director of Home Health for the VNA, explained that home health agencies are rated on various patient outcomes.

Examples are whether patients need to be readmitted to a hospital, how well they move around their homes, bathe themselves, whether their breathing improves, and whether they can successfully take their medications. Some of the outcomes in which Home Health is in the top 25 percent are how often patients get better at walking, prevention of pressure ulcers, and providing multi-factor risk assessments to patients who are older than 65.

physical therapy, speech therapy, home heath aides, and medical social work.

Home Health is a busy agency, with a daily average census of about 550 patients. Its staff consists of about 75 nurses, 39 physical therapists, four occupational therapists, two speech therapists, four social workers, and 20 home health aides. The staff works in teams of about 10 who meet biweekly to coordinate their work.

One approach that Home Health uses is motivational interviewing. Its goal is to help patients to modify behavior, such as eating a healthful diet or taking medications properly.

Judy said, “It’s one thing to know what to do, but it’s another to be motivated to do it.”

Home health care is important to the Network and to patients and their families. One advantage is that it reduces costs over being hospitalized longer. Another is that being in a hospital and in contact with many clinical caregivers can be confusing to patients. When caregivers visit at home, there are fewer of them to deal with and it becomes easier to learn care and behavior techniques. “We also find it’s easier for patients to develop relationships with caregivers at home,” Judy said. The staff also works with a patient’s entire family to improve recovery at home.

Judy added, “We are trying to position ourselves as THE experts in chronic care management.”

Judy said one area of which Home Health is particularly proud is how often patients are readmitted to the hospital. The national average is 27 percent and the Pennsylvania average is 25 percent, but Home Health’s average is 20 percent, putting it in the top 20 percent nationwide. “Those rates represent a huge distinction,” Judy said.

Home Health works with patients with acute illness and exacerbations of chronic illnesses or conditions who have been discharged from the hospital. Its patients can be of any age, but 80 percent of them are age 60 and older.

Judy said that home health offers care in six disciplines — nursing, occupational therapy,

One of the Home Health teams prepares for its regular meeting. Front row (L-R): Nancy Gorkos, PT, Physical Therapist; Adele Bon-shannon, MSW, Social Services Clinical Supervisor; Diane Ankrom, RN, Patient Care Manager; Jane Schaffer, RN; and Barbara Baker, RN, BSN. Back row (L-R): Tonie Buttrey, Social Worker; KerryAnn Csencsits, OTR/L, CLT, Occupational Therapy; and Michelle Van Zandt, RN.

St. Luke’s team exhibits at 25th Anniversary Conference of American Psychiatric Nurses Association

Pictured (L-R): Cynthia Reade, BS RN-BC, NE-BC and Maryfrances Watchous, RNC.

A team from St. Luke’s Behavioral Health presented a poster at the 25th Anniversary Conference of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA), held in Anaheim, Calif., this past fall. The title was “Patient Specific Nursing Interventions for Management of a Highly Acute Case Mix Inpatient Population with Violence Potential in the General Hospital Psychiatric Acute Care Setting.” The primary presenter was Cynthia Reade, BS, RN-BC, NE-BC, program manager in Behavioral Health.

Staff nurse Rosemary Nourse, RN, CCRC, was the abstract’s principal author and Maryfrances Watchous, RNC, clinical coordinator, facilitated staff in the clinical setting.

May 2012 11

Warren Merger is Official; Improved Service, Better Network are the Goals Warren Hospital in Phillipsburg, N.J., officially became part of St. Luke’s University Health Network on Feb. 1 with a ceremony that brought to an end three years of planning and a promise of continued service to the Warren County area.

The hospital now is known as St. Luke’s Warren Campus. At the ceremony, Richard A. Anderson, president and CEO of St. Luke’s University Health Network, said, “With our long-standing and highly successful record of working collaboratively with community hospitals that join our Network, I am confident that St. Luke’s Warren Hospital will continue that winning tradition. Judging by the increased number of patients who have come to the hospital in the past few months, we already are experiencing the support of the community.”

“We are going to learn from the talented people at Warren who already are contributing to the Network...

It just makes sense that we will be able to bring areas for improvement up to speed more quickly together than a single hospital could do on its own.”

Employees and volunteers at St. Luke’s Warren Campus welcome visitors to their newly named hospital.

— Bob Martin, senior vice president for Network Development Tom Litz, who recently announced his retirement as president and CEO of Warren Hospital, said, “This partnership is the culmination of many years of partnering — St. Luke’s University Health Network has been providing tertiary level care to Warren County residents for years.

Warren Hospital began exploring educational and clinical relationships with St. Luke’s nearly three years ago, and the relationship has continued to grow and evolve. And now, today, we make this partnership official.”

Bob Martin, senior vice president for Network Development at St. Luke’s, said the next steps for Warren and the new, larger St. Luke’s Network will be based on the master facility plan in conjunction with a new strategic plan for the Warren location. “We are going to learn from the talented people at Warren who already are contributing to the Network,” Bob noted. “We will focus first on the high-priority clinical areas in which Warren wants the support of St. Luke’s. It just makes sense that we will be able to bring areas for improvement up to speed more quickly together than a single hospital could do on its own.” Regarding the physical plant and capital improvements, Bob said all changes will be based upon Warren’s master facility plan. He mentioned there may be expansion in the future, but one area where improvements already are being planned is the Intensive Care Unit. . ob said, “We offer Warren the economies of scale, of course.

B But we also offer them the economies of intellect and experience.”

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(L-R): Thomas H. Litz, former president of St. Luke’s Warren Campus, Robert Rumfield, St. Luke’s Warren Campus Board Chairman, and Richard A. Anderson, president of St. Luke’s University Health Network, pose for a picture after they unveiled the new St. Luke’s Warren Campus sign.

. e merger with Warren expands the Network’s geographical service Th area to an area 70 miles from east to west and 60 miles from north to south. The Network serves more than one million people living in eight counties in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Each year, about 1,200 physicians, 8,200 employees and 1,000 volunteers provide overnight care to 48,000 patients and hundreds of thousands of outpatients.

St. Luke’s University Health Network now is the only hospital system based in Pennsylvania that owns a hospital in an adjoining state.

May 2012

Quick Response to Water Main Break Lessens Disruption to Patients and Services at St. Luke’s Miners Hospital At 5:30 am, Bill Moyer, president of St. Luke’s Miners Campus received the call — the 8-inch water main that serves the hospital in Coaldale had broken and the ground floor of the hospital was flooded. In some areas the water was about six feet deep; the water was at least six inches deep everywhere else on that floor.

“This flood was a crisis. In St. Luke’s history, this ranks as one of the most devastating. I am so proud of my staff for the rapid response and unwavering commitment to care for patients,” Bill recalled. “Starting in those first minutes, the staff at Miners and our Network family put into motion the emergency response plan that everyone had practiced and was prepared for.”

The problem was discovered at about 5 am on that morning, a Wednesday, when a nursing supervisor learned that water pressure on the hospital’s upper floors was weak. The Emergency Department, labs, radiology, physical therapy, and registration areas on the ground floor were flooded, as was the pit that operated the elevators. The water was entering the hospital from the “condensate room,” an adjacent structure where steam from the boilers is converted to heat the hospital. So, there was no heat, either.

The Coaldale Water Authority, police and fire responders arrived almost immediately, and by 7 am, the leak had been shut off. But, as Bill explained, decisions had to be made about caring for the patients.

That work was carried out by “Incident Command,” the protocol the Network has in place at all campuses for emergencies of this scale. Incident Command is comprised of a team of hospital and Network personnel trained in emergency response, management and communication. Staff are trained to coordinate services with outside responders with the aim of ensuring patient safety throughout the emergency. As Bill noted, “A game plan to care for three main patient groups had to be developed — inpatient, emergency and skilled nursing.”

“Seventeen acute care patients were transferred to St. Luke’s University Hospital – Bethlehem. Working with ambulance crews, incoming Emergency Department patients were diverted to other facilities,” Bill explained The third group of patients posed the most challenges. About 48 patients reside in Miner’s skilled nursing unit. “Without water, heat and elevators, we had to determine whether or not to evacuate them, “ Bill stated. “There was equipment and a plan to evacuate them via the stairs, which would have been a traumatic experience considering that most of the patients are in their late 80s and 90s with limited mobility.” Bill commended the Otis Elevator Company. He said, “Quick work and coordination with hospital staff avoided the evacuation of patients. Once the elevator pit was pumped out and the motors were taken apart and repaired, elevator service was restored by about noon” Bill explains,” By tapping a nearby fire hydrant, water was restored to the hospital even earlier.” Later that afternoon, the condensate pump was repaired, which restored heat to the hospital. While much more recovery work still had to be done, the nursing home residents were spared having to relocate.

SERVPRO, the emergency recovery and cleaning company, arrived and began the difficult work of cleaning and drying the affected areas. The lab area had suffered the most damage, so a temporary area was found where lab services could be restored quickly. The ability to do testing was critical to being able to again accept patients. By Saturday, the lab services were restored, as well as Radiology, and Miners was able to open the Emergency Department and resume admitting patients.

Bill credits a lot of teamwork by Miners, Network staff, and local vendors for the quick response. Original estimates were that the hospital would be closed for 10 to 14 days. “Thanks to our people in engineering, housekeeping, IT, Lab, Biomed, Nursing, and just about everyone we employ, we were essentially back to admitting patients in less than four days,” he said. “I am especially grateful to all my colleagues from throughout the St. Luke’s University Health Network who immediately responded to our crisis.”

Photos above show the lab at St. Luke’s Miners Hospital after the flood.

May 2012

Bill estimated that Miners suffered about $2.5 million in physical damage. Renovation and rebuilding of the damaged areas are continuing, and Bill estimates that the work will be completed by July or August.

“We are calling this emergency ‘H2011,’ ” Bill said. “While we will look back on this as a major emergency, we will also look back at this event in celebration of the phenomenal spirit of cooperation and actionable teamwork practiced by physicians, staff, and community members.”

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Lab Supervisor is Recognized as Volunteer for Humanitarian Service Yashwant “Yash” Chudasama, MS, FIBMS, SMI (AAM), supervisor for microbiology and serology in the laboratories for St. Luke’s University Hospital Bethlehem, has been honored by an international health standards institute for his volunteer work in Tanzania and Namibia. The Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute presented Yash with its Excellence in Global Leadership Award for 2011. The award, which was presented to Yash in Atlanta, is given to a volunteer who “is extraordinarily committed to... reach out to the global health care community in the development of projects.”

In a letter to Richard Anderson, Network president and CEO, Glen Fine, executive vice president of the CLSI, praised Yash’s work in sub-Saharan Africa, noting that he used his vacation time to travel there. He helped local agencies to set up standards and operating practices to test for sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, tuberculosis and malaria. He has traveled to Tanzania and Namibia four times as a volunteer since 2007 to assist health agencies in preventing and combating these diseases. Glen also noted that in countries ravaged by disease, accurate health tests can mean the difference between life and death.

Yash worked with a team of 30 people from Namibia’s Ministry of Health to establish a nationwide system of best practices to test for infectious diseases. Glen said that in addition to his technical expertise, Yash “was able to quickly gain the trust of a

After a lot of hard work in Tanzania, Yash (right) and colleagues on the CLSI trip had a chance to take a safari trip.

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Yash Chudasama shows his “Excellence in Global Leadership” award outside his office at the new lab facilities at Commerce Way.

diverse group of individuals.” He also reported that the Prime Minister of Namibia’s wife, Katrina Tangeni Namalenga, contacted him and asked that he relay to Yash her country’s gratitude for his work there. The First Lady is a pharmacist by training and is a key leader in Namibia’s Ministry of Health.

In Tanzania, he led a Standard Operating Procedures workshop and a quality assessor training workshop.

Yash first got involved in CLSI’s Global Health Partnership projects in 2006. CLSI “is funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies. His first volunteer service was in Tanzania in 2001.

Yash said that he was motivated to “give back” to Tanzania, the country where he was born. “My horizons have been broadened by this experience... I have also built a great network of experts in the field who I can call should I ever need their expertise. These experts have also become good friends,” he wrote in a CLSI publication. “All laboratory

personnel should volunteer for such a great organization.”

Yash has been with St. Luke’s since 2006.

He was born in Daressalaam, Tanzania, and moved to London, where he earned his master’s degree in medical microbiology at the University of Surrey. He worked at the Royal Free Hospital in Hempstead, where he worked in the clinical and research laboratories. He also worked in the high security laboratory where he dealt with highly infectious pathogens.

He then moved to the United States. Before joining the St. Luke’s staff, he worked at St. Joseph Medical Center in Reading. Since 2004, he has taught at Montgomery County Community College. In his free time, Yash enjoys spending time with his family. Shilla, his wife of 30 years, his three children Mita, Tina and Dilesh, and his granddaughter Ria all share in Yash’s successes and are incredibly proud of him.

May 2012

or patients for that matter, a single script, as if one size fits all.”

S.T.A.R. Program cont. encouraged physical activity, which many of the nurses got at St. Luke’s Fitness Center at St. Luke’s North, where trainers tracked their strength gains in exercises such as bicep curls and leg extensions. Assessments of fitness, emotional well-being and other measurements were taken at baseline, six months, and 12 months; they will be taken again this fall, at the 24-month mark.

. articipant Eileen Rugh agreed. “My favorite P part was learning about health coaching because that opened my eyes to a new way of looking at how to better change practice as a nurse. I learned we need to explore the problem and lose the word ‘non-compliant.’“ Jill Lechner said, “Throughout my nursing career, I have always loved the patient teaching aspect. I would tell my patients all the things they should be doing. Now, I do a lot more listening.”

The letters in S.T.A.R. stand for Shed old habits; Take control; Achieve positive results; and Reach your health potential.

In the views of some of the nurses who completed the program, those were far more than just slogans.

Jill Lechner, employee health coordinator: “The health coaching piece was extremely valuable to me as a family nurse practitioner.

It has changed the way that I interact with my patients.”

Jennifer Lehr, inpatient oncology floor: “Learning how to look at things differently and helping others to look at things aids with stress management. I was able to change my behaviors from sitting on the couch and mentally checking out while dealing with stress to going to the gym and working it out that way.”

Cyndi Roy, evening and weekend program: “Through obtaining my health coaching credential, I have taken a different approach to patient education. I talk to them about their health priorities and try not to just preach information to them.”

Eileen Rugh, Emergency Department at the Anderson Campus: “Extra, purposeful physical activity is necessary for a healthy body. Once you get into that groove and stop making excuses, you find a way to fit it into your life.”

“As the study involved 24 individuals, we were unsure if the findings would be relevant or applicable to other nurses,” explained Jill Stoltzfus, PhD, director of the Research Institute. “Given the limited population size, there were still some very interesting findings.”

For instance, there were statistically significant changes from baseline in total

Shed old habits May 2012

One of the 24 nurses who participated in the S.T.A.R. Program.

cholesterol, diastolic blood pressure and BMI among those who met the exercise and education requirements. At the end of the six-month program, more participants were considered at low-risk for these measurements and fewer were considered high-risk. The five nurses who self-identified as smokers maintained tobacco cessation, and 79 percent of the group who completed the emotional well-being survey at baseline and after six months showed a significant increase in self-reported well-being.

At the Fitness Center, 70.8 percent met the exercise requirement and had statistically significant gains in muscle strength. That is important, Amy said. “We must remember that women lose muscle mass as they age.

It is impressive that these participants were able to gain strength with the S.T.A.R. program.”

Dr. Bonnie Coyle, director of Community Health, agreed that the results of this study are cause for celebration. “Research shows that exercise, even without weight loss, positively impacts health,” she explained.

Some of the nurses singled out the one-on-one sessions they had with Amy as their favorite part of the program. Amy said the sessions were valuable to her, too. “I saw how different our nurses are, even nurses who work on the same unit. That’s why developing a healthy lifestyle is so tricky. You can’t just give nurses,

Take control

Learning healthy habits also was very beneficial. Jill said family responsibilities required her to be a bit creative in planning her days. “I found that the best time to fit in workouts was when I woke up before everyone else, went to the gym and came home just as they were getting up.”

Cyndi Roy stated that the exercise greatly improved her endurance. She recalled, “Before the S.T.A.R. program, by the time I would leave work I would barely have the energy to make it to my car.” Amy said that the impressive thing about Cyndi is that she works 12-hour overnight or weekend shifts but fit the gym in by stopping there after her shift, before she went home.

Even one year after the pilot, many of the S.T.A.R. nurses have carried on with the healthy habits they learned during the program. They have continued going to the gym, have bought home workout equipment, and are even participating in 5K runs and the like. But, one insight they gained may turn out to be even more valuable in the long run.

“Nurses have a lot of responsibilities caring for patients. The related stress can affect their work and home lives. But, in the S.T.A.R program, they learned that they can’t do it for their patients. Instead, they can help patients find and pursue their own health goals,” Amy explained.

“Although there are no definitive plans to repeat this study, the results of the S.T.A.R. Program will be used in planning for health and wellness services across the network,” said Carol Kuplen, chief operating officer and chief nursing officer.

Achieve positive results

Reach your health potential 15

N etw o r k SMILE

Our Vision: St. Luke’s University Health Network will forever change the perception that health care is difficult to access by making it EASY for patients, physicians and staff to use our services.

St. Luke’s University Health Network will perform in the top decile for each diagnosis in national pay-for-performance programs.

Our Values: • Pride We take pride in our accomplishments and our organization.

• Caring We show consideration for others and their feelings, and treat others as we want to be treated.

• Respect We recognize the value, diversity and importance of each other, those we serve and the organization.

• Accountability We are responsible to make decisions and solve problems in a timely and effective manner.

Bill Moyer, president, St. Luke’s Miners Campus (middle row, fourth from right) spent time reading to Ms. Barron’s 3rd Grade Class at the Tamaqua Elementary School during the St. Luke’s Miners Campus Reading Rocks! program. Thirty-eight St. Luke’s employees read at the Tamaqua Elementary School, the Rush Elementary School and The West Penn Elementary School as part of the Dr. Seuss Reading Day. Books from the Reading Rocks! Book Drive were donated to each student. The book donations and the reading day were coordinated by St. Luke’s Community Health to promote literacy and health in the communities St. Luke’s serves.

ST. Luke’s Hospital & Health Network is now St. Luke’s University Health network!

Many gathered to attend the official announcement of the hospital’s new name.

• Flexibility We adapt to changing needs and the expectations of those we serve.

School of Nursing students and instructors attend the announcement of the hospital’s name change.

• Teamwork We work together to improve quality.

Network Pulse is a periodic publication for the employees of St. Luke’s Hospital & Health Network.

Ken Szydlow Vice President, Marketing and Public Relations Executive Editor: Stephen Andrews Network Director, Marketing and Public Relations

(L-R): Ken Szydlow, vice president, Marketing and Public Relations; Bob Martin, senior vice president, Network Development; Carol Kuplen, RN, MSN, COO, St. Luke’s University Hospital Bethlehem, and Chief Nursing Officer; and Rick Anderson, president and CEO, show their “University” spirit.

Contributing Writers: Glenn Kranzley

A group of The Medical School of Temple/St. Luke’s Hospital & Health Network medical students were on campus for the name change announcement.

Design Supervision: Lori Diehl Network Director of Graphic Design Photography: Joseph Klepeiss Director, Media Production Services Betsy Toole • Anne Kemp

St. Luke’s strives to be the region’s health care employer of choice.

(L-R): Lori Diehl, Network Director of Graphic Design, and Steve Andrews, Network Director of Marketing and Public Relations, take time to pose for a picture with their University spirit gear.

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Some orthopaedic residents attend the name change news conference.

May 2012