Midstate News

MidState Asks More Questions When Seniors Come to the ER

By Kimberly Primicerio, Record-Journal staff, Meriden CT

MidState Medical Center has started a new initiative called Senior Care Emergency Services to better treat elderly patients.

The initiative allows emergency room staff to look after senior patients to make sure they return to their normal routines after treatment. Nurses and medical staff went through geriatric emergency nursing education and training for six months before the program was launched in late May. The staff has already seen the benefits.

"We noticed there the need for patients 65 and older was increasing," said Dana Garvey, a nurse and clinical research leader at Mid-State.

Seniors are the largest group of people served by the hospital, said Camila Rubino, nurse manager at MidState. About 60 percent of the patients who seek services in the emergency room are elderly.

When elderly people enter the emergency room, they aren't just treated for the condition they came in with and then sent home. Nurses spend more time with the patients and go through lengthy assessments.

The staff determines if the patient will need help at home after treatment. Perhaps an aide will be called in, or physical or occupational therapy will be necessary.

Besides going through a longer assessment process, the big change that comes along with the initiative is in pharmaceuticals, Garvey said.

"If this person is on five medicines a day, we ask why and what they're taking them for," Garvey said.

If the person isn't sure why they take the medicine, a pharmacist reviews the list of medications to see if any interact or if the patient shouldn't be on some of them.

In the past few weeks, pharmacists have already reviewed some problem medication lists. If something should be changed, the staff alerts the patient's primary care doctor, Garvey said.

"This is a more thorough process," Rubino said. "It ensures safety at home after they're treated."

Susan Cole, 66, visited MidState's emergency room Friday morning. She was having chest pain and light-headedness.

Cole said the medical staff checked her vital signs, asked her about her living arrangements and about her medication lists. The staff wanted to know the doses of each medication and if anything had changed recently. "I think it's great," Cole said about the hospital's new initiative. "It helps the doctors figure out what's wrong."

MidState launches New Senior Emergency Care Services

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

With an eye on the health needs of our aging population, MidState Medical Center has launched a new initiative to build a senior-friendly emergency department called Senior Care Emergency Services. MidState launched this initiative on May 25.

Nurses in the emergency department have completed Geriatric Emergency Nursing Education and other members of the team – including physicians, pharmacists, social workers, and case managers – have all received senior-specific training to enhance the care that seniors receive.

Additionally, MidState has designed its emergency department with well-being, safety and comfort in mind-and paid attention to details that create a calm, gentle and nurturing environment:

• All modern, individual patient rooms for added privacy and quiet
• Individual televisions and telephones for comfort and convenience
• Thicker mattresses and heated blankets for patients
• Safety features like handrails, softer lighting and non-slip floors
• An activity cart complete with books, puzzles and games for your enjoyment
• Space set aside for private family consultations
• A centrally located nursing station so staff can keep a close eye on every patient

The enhanced assessment tool now being utilized by staff is one of the most important elements of the senior-friendly emergency department. When a patient over 65 years old comes to the emergency department at MidState Medical Center, they are not just treated for the ailment that brought them to the hospital. A multi-disciplinary team also performs an assessment to gauge the patient's status and whether they may have medication issues, be a fall risk or suffer from ailments like dementia and depression. These assessments help gauge whether the person has other cognitive or functional issues that may require follow-up care before the condition worsens.

"Our goal is provide these patients with the services they will need to maintain their independence and overall health and well-being. We are committed to developing individualized care plans that best meet the patient's needs, as well as making follow-up appointments with physicians, reviewing medications, and making any necessary referrals to community resources," said Dr. Alan Weiner, a physician in MidState's emergency department.

MidState Medical Center Receives Prestigious International Recognition as Baby-Friendly® Birth Facility

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

MidState Medical Center is pleased to announce that it has been named a Baby-Friendly® birth facility for the implementation of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative ("BFHI"), a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Based on the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, this prestigious international award recognizes birthing facilities that offer breastfeeding mothers the information, confidence, and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies.

"Breastfeeding poses a number of benefits for both mother and baby. MidState is so proud to have earned this recognition and is committed to helping new moms breastfeed through education, personalized instruction and support from other mothers," said MidState's lactation care coordinator, Dawn Flohr, RN, BSN, IBCLC.

Currently, there are 159 active Baby-Friendly hospitals and birth centers in the United States and more than 20,000 designated Baby-Friendly hospitals and birth centers worldwide. The Baby-Friendly designation is given after a rigorous on-site survey is completed. The award is maintained by continuing to practice the Ten Steps as demonstrated by quality processes.

Wallingford Firefighters Raise Money for Cancer Center

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

The firefighters of the Wallingford Fire Department are again gearing up for an exciting fundraiser that will benefit MidState's cancer center. The fundraiser, a motorcycle poker run, was initiated by late Wallingford firefighter and former ED employee, Rick Garrison. This year it will be held in his honor.

The poker run is set for Sunday, June 9; beginning at 8:30 a.m. Riders who wish to participate will enjoy 90 miles of scenic Connecticut with stops at the North Branford Fire Department, Gillette Castle, Winchester's, and MidState Medical Center. The ride will conclude with a picnic back at PNA Park in Wallingford. There will be a DJ, moonwalk for the kids, 50/50 raffle and more.

Cost is $25 per rider or $35 for a rider with a passenger, $10 for picnic only. For more information, please contact Jeremy Garrison at 203.694.8732 or info@ridersforrick.com.

MidState Medical Center Holds Free Head & Neck Cancer Screening

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

Just because you can't feel it, doesn't mean it isn't there. Just ask the more than 50,000 Americans who were diagnosed with cancers of the head and neck last year. Unfortunately, many Americans do not recognize the symptoms of these life-threatening diseases, which include cancers of the oral cavity, larynx and pharynx, and by the time they are diagnosed, it's too late. MidState will host a free head and neck cancer screening on Tuesday, April 16, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The screening will be held at MidState Medical Center on 435 Lewis Avenue, in The Palladino Family Cancer Center's radiation therapy office.

The signs and symptoms of head and neck cancers often go unnoticed. However, there are a few visible signs associated with these cancers that require immediate attention, including:

• A sore in your mouth that doesn't heal or that increases in size
• Persistent pain in your mouth
• Lumps or white or red patches inside your mouth
• Difficulty chewing or swallowing
• Soreness in your throat or feeling that something is caught in your throat
• Chronic hoarseness
• A lump in your throat

Screening is quick, painless and free. It will consist of a thorough physical examination of the entire mouth, throat and neck. Take advantage of the opportunity to benefit from this preventive health measure by taking 10 minutes to do something that could save your life. Please call 203 694 8631 to reserve your spot. Space is limited.

MidState Medical Center & Holiday Cinemas Stadium Partner for Bone Marrow Drive

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

What if you could save someone's life? Did you know that approximately 70% of people who need a bone marrow transplant do not have a matching donor in their family? MidState Medical Center and Holiday Cinema Stadium in Wallingford invite you to watch a free screening of the moving and inspirational documentary More To Live For, a film that tells the story of three people, all shaken by cancer and dependent upon one vital bone marrow match that could save their lives.

These men are similar in both their fate and their extraordinary personal achievements: Michael Brecker, 15 time Grammy winner, one of the greatest tenor saxophonists of all time; James Chippendale, entertainment executive and founder of The Love Hope Strength Foundation; and Seun Adebiyi, a young law student training to become the first Nigerian Winter Olympic athlete in any sport. This award winning film has traveled the film festival circuit and we are pleased to show a free screening for one night only on Thursday, Apr. 11 at 7:00 p.m. at the Holiday Cinema Stadium located at 970 North Colony Road, Wallingford.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet the film's producer and learn more about becoming a bone marrow donor (including dispelling some myths that it is a painful process!), as well as add their name to the national bone marrow registry with a simple cheek swab. Designated volunteers will be on hand that evening to assist with getting movie-goers to the free screening. For more information or questions, please call 203.694.8631. You won't want to miss this!

MidState Medical Center sponsors 14th Annual Meriden Rotary Club 5K Road Race/Walk & Kids Fun Run

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

MidState Medical Center is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the 14th Annual Meriden Rotary 5K Road Race/Walk & Kids Fun Run. MidState is the headline sponsor for this event.

The road race is a long standing event in the Meriden community and is well aligned with MidState's mission of "improving the health and healing of the people and communities we serve."

"As a hospital, we must not only care for people when they are sick, but provide education and encourage healthy lifestyles that help prevent chronic diseases. The road race put on by the Meriden Rotary is a loved event by the community and provides a great opportunity to enjoy the spring and keep active," said Pamela Cruz, manager of community relations at MidState.

The 5K road race is set for Sunday, April 21 at 10:00 a.m. at Hubbard Park; the Kids Fun Run will start at 9:45 a.m. Registration starts at 8:00 a.m. The cost to register is $25 before Apr. 19; $30 for day-of registration; and $5 for the Kids Fun Run.

For more information and to register, please visit race.meridenrotary.org. All proceeds will benefit the Meriden Rotary's many humanitarian projects and local service in our community.

MidState Medical Center's Critical Care Unit Awarded Silver-level Beacon Award by American Association of Critical Care Nurses

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

MidState Medical Center is pleased to announce that its Critical Care Unit has been awarded the silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence by the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN). MidState's unit is only one of two in the entire state of Connecticut to have earned this recognition.

The Beacon Award for Excellence - a significant milestone on the path to exceptional patient care and a healthy work environment - recognizes unit caregivers who successfully improve patient outcomes and align practices with the AACN's six standards. Units that achieve this three-year, three-level award meet national criteria consistent with Magnet Recognition, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the National Quality Healthcare Award.

To earn this prestigious distinction, MidState's Critical Care Unit met the following evidenced-based criteria in:

• Leadership Structures and Systems
• Appropriate Staffing and Staff Engagement
• Effective Communication, Knowledge Management, Learning and Development, Best Practices
• Evidenced-Based Practice and Process
• Patient Outcomes

"The Beacon Award for Excellence recognizes caregivers in stellar units whose consistent and systematic approach to evidence-based care optimizes patient outcomes. Units that receive this national recognition serve as a role model to others on their journey to excellent patient and family care," said AACN President Kathryn E. Roberts, RN, MSN, CNS, CCRN, CCNS.

MidState will be recognized with an announcement in AACN Bold Voices, the monthly award-winning member magazine distributed to more than 90,000 acute and critical care nurses nationwide.

MidState Medical Center First in State to use EndoWrist One™ Vessel Sealer for the da Vinci System

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

MidState Medical Center surgeons have a new tool to assist them when performing robotic surgery on their patients: the EndoWrist OneTM Vessel Sealer developed by Intuitive Surgical.

The vessel sealer, a single-use 8 millimeter instrument, provides an optimal approach for sealing and cutting tissue bundles and vessels up to 7 millimeters in diameter. The wrist of the instrument can articulate, allowing surgeons to approach anatomy at the best angles with da Vinci's hallmark precision, dexterity and control. It can be used in a variety of robotic surgical cases.

"It's a game changing device. It allows me to seal larger vessels safely and dissect them all with one device. We've had a similar device for laparoscopic procedures that doesn't articulate. Now during robotic procedures, we have much more flexibility and freedom with increased safety," said general surgeon Peter Leff, MD, who used the instrumentation in one of his recent surgical cases.

Doctors at MidState have performed hundreds of surgeries using the robot since the hospital began offering robotic surgery in early 2010. At MidState, robotic surgery is used in gynecologic, urologic, colorectal, general surgery and thoracic procedures.

Robotic surgery is often a favored minimally invasive approach, when appropriate, because it requires fewer incisions, and therefore, less blood loss, less pain, a shorter hospital stay and quicker return to normal activities. For more information on robotic surgery at MidState, please visit midstatemedical.org.

The Palladino Family Cancer Center Re-Accredited by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

The Palladino Family Cancer Center at MidState Medical Center is pleased to announce it has been re-accredited by the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers, a program administered by the American College of Surgeons. MidState first earned accreditation in 2009, and since that time, has continued to meet the rigorous standards put in place to ensure that patients receive access to a wide range of breast care services of the highest quality. Accredited centers offer:

• Comprehensive care, including a full range of state-of-the-art diagnostic and treatment services
• A multidisciplinary team approach to coordinate the best treatment options for each patient
• Information about ongoing clinical trials and innovative treatments

"We are committed to offering our patients every resource available in their battle against breast cancer or any other breast disease they encounter. What is most important for our patients to know is that they can receive the high quality care in a supportive, caring environment without having to travel far from home," said Abbi Bruce, RN, Director, The Palladino Family Cancer Center.

Accreditation is only given to institutions that voluntarily undergo an intensive evaluation process and review of their performance for best-practice standards. During the lengthy application process, MidState Medical Center demonstrated its proficiency in leadership, clinical management, research, community outreach, professional education, and quality improvement.

The National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers is a group of professional organizations dedicated to ensuring quality care and monitoring the outcomes of patients with breast diseases.

Horwitz and MidState

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

Many were sad to read in our Sunday news story (R-J, 1-6) that a former pillar of this community - a man described as a visionary - had died (at age 71) last Wednesday in Sunset Beach, North Carolina, after a brief illness.

We speak here, of course, of Theodore H. Horwitz, who led the merger of two city hospitals and championed the building of Mid-State Medical Center on Lewis Avenue. His name is inexorably linked to Mid-State's success and the future of medical care in the greater Meriden-Wallingford area.

Our news account noted that "Ted" Horwitz began his hospital career in Meriden in 1983 as president and CEO of the struggling Meriden- Wallingford Hospital. He retired as president and CEO of MidState in 1999. He led the merger of World War II Veterans' Memorial Hospital, on the east side, and Meriden-Wallingford Hospital, approved by voters in 1990.

He argued that both hospitals couldn't survive with changing health care economics and that the city would be better served by one combined hospital.

Horwitz was correct.

But, what is visionary? Among descriptive phrases, it's a person of unusually keen foresight, perhaps given to or characterized by fanciful, not presently workable, or unpractical ideas, views, or schemes (as in a visionary enthusiast ).

To this, add a healthy measure of tenacity, patience and unswerving dedication, especially when spearheading community projects which upset applecarts of conventional thinking and loyalties in favor of achieving what's right and best, longer term.

Concluding this triptych of personality impressions is willingness to compromise sometimes-grand plans for that which is pragmatic, prudent. A stellar example was his grand plan for a 400-bed hospital at the Saab site which, after much "sturm und drang," wasn't meant to be.

The compromise? A viable, highly respected facility on Lewis Avenue - one which, despite initial misgivings and varying degrees of rancor, has drawn support from all quarters, despite any growing pains along the way.

(A related aside: On December 30, 1999, we published a litany of items-in review headlined "Historical facts from the Millennium 1989." Included among entries: "1991: Meriden - The 177-bed Meriden- Wallingford Hospital and the 92-bed World War II Veterans Memorial Hospital merge into Veterans Memorial Medical Center; 1993: The State Hospital Commission ruled out Saab site for new VMMC hospital.") Returning to our opening theme, being a "pillar" of any municipality implies by its very nature one's ability to shoulder weight while receiving support from city foundations. Despite any remaining controversy over the fate of Meriden's former hospitals, coupled to highest- and-best use of all resources it took to create them, MidState stands squarely on Horwitz's solidly engineered underpinning.

A grateful community extends condolences to Ted's friends and family.
His legacy is enshrined at Mid-State.

Lynn Faria, Director Community Relations & Marketing

Meet Travis Bawa, MidState's First Baby of The Year

By Pamela Cruz, Manager of Marketing and Community Relations

Contact : Ph - 203.694.8732 : Email - pjcruz@midstatemedical.org

By Dan Brechlin

Few things about the relationship between Anuj "Andy" Bawa and Jyotsna Rani Vundavalli have been traditional or customary, despite their coming from traditional Indian families. Travis Bawa, their newborn son, however, came just as expected on Vundavalli's New Year's Day due date.

Travis was the first baby to be born in Meriden yesterday, ringing in the New Year at 6:23 a.m. at MidState Medical Center. He is the firstborn child of Andy Bawa and his wife, Vundavalli.

"It's amazing; I just can't believe it," Vundavalli said, holding her son as he yawned. "It can be pretty hard for a new mom, but the doctors and nurses have been great and so helpful."

There was a point when the Southington couple thought Travis might be born just before New Year's, as they made their way into the hospital late Monday afternoon. But it wasn't time yet, so the hospital staff sent Vundavalli and her husband back home to rest for a few hours. They made their way back to MidState around 10 p.m.

"That's when they said, 'OK, you're staying,' " Bawa, a manager at Polumbo Jewelers in Southington, said.

Just over eight hours later, Travis was born, weighing in at 7 pounds, 9 ounces and measuring 20 inches long. The couple had agreed to keep the sex of the baby a surprise, though Bawa admitted he had a suspicion that it might be a girl.

"I was expecting more of a Chloe," Bawa said. "I bought a pink stroller I guess I now have to return."

Bawa and Vundavalli married in February 2011 after having met in 2004. Though from the same country, the couple met over the Internet while Bawa was in the United States and Vundavalli was in India. They maintained the online romance for four years before meeting in person in 2008 in Dubai.

"It was a little nerve-racking," Bawa said, admitting he was more nervous about meeting his future wife's parents.

Their relationship was not seen as a traditional one, as Bawa is from New Delhi, in the northern part of India, while Vundavalli is from the south. It took some coercing, but both sets of parents finally agreed to allow the couple to get married. For good measure, there were three engagement ceremonies so that various family members could see the ritual.

Vundavalli came to the United States shortly after their first meeting and the couple got engaged. They had a marriage ceremony in 2011 with some of their family, but Bawa said that if they can ever get a larger group together, they plan on a much larger "There is nothing traditional about ourselves," Vundavalli, who worked for the Hospital of Central Connecticut, said.

Knowing numerous people in Southington, Vundavalli said she has been waiting to spread the news of her child's birth, joking that people have been asking her for weeks. Bawa added that the community has been extremely generous to the family already and he hopes to turn Travis into a jeweler like himself.

"It's such a life-changing thing," Bawa said, smiling at his son. "It's nine months, then all of a sudden he's out."

Another baby was born three hours after Travis at MidState, according to a nurse at the hospital. The two, however, were not nearly the first in the state to be born, according to reports. Just one hour and six minutes after the stroke of midnight, a baby girl was born at the William W. Backus Hospital in Norwich, according to the Norwich Bulletin.

Kimberly Primicerio / Record-Journal
Anuj "Andy" Bawa and Jyotsna Rani Vundavalli with their son, Travis, born at MidState Medical Center on New Year's Day. "It's amazing," said new mom Vundavalli. "I just can't believe it."

Lynn Faria, Director Community Relations & Marketing