STONY BROOK AND SOUTHAMPTON HOSPITAL FORGE ALLIANCE, EXPAND HEALTH CARE SERVICES ON SOUTH FORK OF LONG ISLAND
Alliance is Third and Final Key to Fulfilling Berger Mandate
SOUTHAMPTON AND STONY BROOK, N.Y., NOVEMBER 21, 2008 –
Stony Brook University Medical Center and Southampton
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| At the Stony Brook University Medical Center and Southampton Hospial alliance ceremony, seated Senator Kenneth P. LaValle, Stony Brook University President, Shirley Strum Kenny, Robert S. Chaloner, President and CEO of Southampton Hospital, standing from left is Dr. Martin Stone, Board of Directors, Southampton Hospital, Steven L. Strongwater, M.D., CEO, Stony Brook University Medical Center, Peter M. Larsen, Chairman, Board of Directors, Southampton Hospital and Dr. Humayun Chaudhry, D.O., Commissioner, Health Services for Suffolk County |
Hospital today announced that the State of New York has approved a comprehensive alliance between the two health care facilities that will bring new and strengthened clinical services to the South Fork of Suffolk County. Southampton Hospital is the third East End hospital to affiliate with Stony Brook University Medical Center that will facilitate new and strengthened services to the East End of Suffolk County – bringing to conclusion a measure set forth by the Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century (Berger Commission).
The agreement provides for a one-call hotline for transfer patients, and in the emerging field of Hospitalist services, Southampton and SBUMC will share ideas and management practices with the goal of improving patient care. The two hospitals will participate in joint continuing medical education (CME) activities and explore the development of an overarching academic affiliation for Southampton with Stony Brook University’s Schools of Medicine, Dental Medicine, Nursing, Social Welfare and Health Technology and Management. In addition, SBUMC will provide an integration of quality monitoring and reporting as well as electronic patient record systems that will allow for enhancement of patient services. Finally, Stony Brook will sponsor Southampton Hospital as an Associate member of the University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC), providing access to a group purchasing program.
“Quality of care is sacrificed when hospitals in the same region compete for patients, doctors, and state-of the-art equipment,” said Stony Brook University President, Shirley Strum Kenny. “In joining forces we assure quality care close to home and in the best possible setting.”
“We’ve got a partner to work with us that has the academic and capability to help us improve. Stony Brook will help us recruit physicians at a time when there is a major physician shortage; it will provide access to economy of scale we don’t currently have and it will bring education into our community,” said Robert S. Chaloner, President and CEO of Southampton Hospital. “Stony Brook’s mission is to serve and to teach and we will work with Stony Brook to bring that education to Southampton in a way we never have before.”
“It is a privilege to work with the great people at Southampton,” said Steven L. Strongwater, M.D., CEO, Stony Brook University Medical Center. “Southampton Hospital has a great tradition in this community dating back to 1908 when it first opened, and we have great respect for the mission and traditions here. We recognize the need to support that mission and find ways to get advanced services to those who need it-not to duplicate, but augment with training, education and recruitment. Southampton and Stony Brook are a perfect match for that.”
“We truly see this alliance as an important mechanism for the enrichment and advancement of knowledge, and it will fulfill our mission to prioritize the continuing medical education of healthcare providers throughout Suffolk County,” said Richard N. Fine, M.D., Dean of Stony Brook University’s School of Medicine.
“When the Berger Commission came in we were far ahead of what Berger wanted us to do,” said Senator Kenneth P. LaValle who sponsored the “Flexibility” legislation authorizing the East End alliance. “This alliance came together thanks to critical people with the right personalities and the right backgrounds to pull it together. Building people, building strengths leads to one thing – better patient care. I’m happy to be a member of a great team that helped bring this together and I’m happy to be here to celebrate.”
“This is truly an important and historic day for all the residents of Suffolk County,” said Dr. Humayun Chaudhry, D.O., Commissioner, Health Services for Suffolk County. “We greatly value the relationship with Stony Brook and Southampton Hospital. Delivery of quality care is what we all do every day, and this alliance contributes to that.”
Stony Brook University Medical Center is the only academic medical center on Long Island. It comprises Stony Brook University School of Medicine and Stony Brook University Hospital, which is the only tertiary care hospital and Level 1 trauma center in Suffolk County. With 540 beds and 5,100 employees, it is the largest hospital in Suffolk County. The Heart Center performs the only open-heart surgery in Suffolk and the Cancer Center and Cerebrovascular Center attract patients from throughout the region with cutting edge diagnostic and treatment facilities. Stony Brook is home to Long Island’s first kidney transplantation program which has performed over 1,000 transplants, and initiated the nation’s first Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center. The hospital is also the regional referral center for trauma, perinatal and neonatal intensive care, burns, bone marrow and stem cell transplantation, cystic fibrosis, pediatric/adult AIDS, and is the regional resource center for emergency management. Stony Brook’s Stroke program is certified by the Joint Commission and the NYS Department of Health; and, Stony Brook is home to the Cody Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities and Long Island’s first comprehensive ALS Center.
A member of the East End Health Alliance, Southampton Hospital is a 125-bed facility offering inpatient and outpatient services ranging from primary medical care to specialized surgical procedures. It is staffed by more than 240 physicians, dentists, and allied health professionals representing 48 medical specialties. Southampton is a New York State-designated Stroke Center and its Emergency Department is the sole provider of emergency care on the South Fork, from Westhampton to Montauk, treating more than 25,000 patients annually.
