Volume 10
Issue 17 August 21, 2015
PRESBYbulletin Penn Presbyterian Medical Center
HUP/Penn Presbyterian Again Named Among Top 10
A Community that Cares Since its inception in 2012, the Penn Medicine CAREs program has awarded nearly $200,000 in grants to support the volunteer efforts of UPHS physicians, employees and students from the Perelman School of Medicine who go out of their way to help others less fortunate. All told, 160 projects have received this funding. At the annual luncheon celebrating their outreach efforts, CEO Ralph Muller told grant recipients, “Your contributions make such a difference.” Some of the recent ways that CAREs grants have helped our local communities include: • Hosting cooking demonstrations and nutrition talks for seniors • Providing food for those fighting hunger. • Screening African Americans for glaucoma. • Offering medications to low-income patients to prevent admission while directing the way to preventative health care • Addressing literacy needs of disadvantaged children in West Philadelphia neighborhoods (continued on back)
Penn Medicine hospitals have been ranked among the top 10 hospitals in the nation, #1 in Pennsylvania, and once again #1 in the Philadelphia metro area by U.S. News & World Report. With the combined results for HUP and Penn Presbyterian, we were ranked as the 9th best hospital in the United States, one of only 15 institutions named to the publication’s Honor Roll – out of nearly 5,000 hospitals analyzed nationwide – and the only one in the Philadelphia metro area. According to the magazine’s editors, this distinction “signals both rare breadth and rare depth of medical excellence.” In addition, HUP-PPMC was also recognized for its excellence (continued on back)
HUP/Penn Presbyterian Again Named Among Top 10 (continued from front)
A Community that Cares (continued from front)
Penn Medicine awards grants on a quarterly basis for expenses (not including salary support) directly related to community outreach activities. The grant funding can be used for projects big and small and for new or existing community outreach efforts. If you volunteer your time and expertise to a community organization, you may be eligible to receive a Penn Medicine CAREs grant.
Papal Visit
PREPARATIONS As Philadelphia prepares for the Pope’s visit in September, Papal planning teams at each entity have been meeting to assess site-specific issues that may arise, including necessary staffing levels and adequate supply delivery. Each entity will provide more detailed guidance to staff as required. As a reminder, all elective procedures and outpatient appointments in any downtown facility on Friday, September 25, and Monday, September 28, have been rescheduled. General information as well as useful external web links and the ability to submit questions can be found on the UPHS Intranet. Visit the Presby Bulletin online for a direct link.
in 13 specialties, including Cancer, Cardiology and Heart Surgery, Diabetes and Endocrinology, Gastroenterology & GI Surgery, Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT), Geriatrics, Gynecology, Nephrology, Neurology and Neurosurgery, Orthopaedics, Psychiatry, Pulmonology, and Urology. Both Pennsylvania Hospital and Chester County Hospital were in the top 10 for the region, tying for #8 in the rankings. Also, Lancaster General Hospital was ranked as the 5th best hospital in the state. These achievements truly reflect the extraordinary dedication and expertise of the physicians, nurses, technologists and staff at Penn Medicine hospitals.
PPMC RECOGNIZED BY THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION/AMERICAN STROKE ASSOCIATION FOR EXCELLENCE IN STROKE CARE Penn Presbyterian Medical Center was recently recognized by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for excellence in stroke care. PPMC received Get With The Guidelines® Gold Quality Achievement Award. The recognition underscores Penn Medicine’s success in ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence. Gold Quality Achievement Awards signify that the hospital achieved 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines-Stroke achievement indicators for two or more consecutive 12-month periods. These quality measures focus on appropriate use of guideline-based care for stroke patients, including aggressive use of medications such as clot-busting and anti-clotting drugs, blood thinners and cholesterol-reducing drugs, preventive action for deep vein thrombosis and smoking cessation counseling. They are aligned with the most up-to-date, evidence-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. “We are thrilled to be recognized with a Gold Quality Achievement Award for our excellence in stroke care,” echoed Claude B. Nguyen, MD, director of Stroke Services at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. “This is a great honor for our program and our entire team to be recognized for their tireless work on behalf of our patients.” According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is one of the leading causes of death and serious, long-term disability in the United States. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every four minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year. The number of acute ischemic stroke patients eligible for treatment is expected to grow over the next decade due to increasing stroke incidence and a large aging population.
Contact Us: Katie Delach | katie.delach@uphs.upenn.edu | http://news.pennmedicine.org/inside/presbybulletin/