South Florida Hospital News
Sunday May 26, 2019
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May 2019 - Volume 15 - Issue 11

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Miami Cancer Institute announces the opening of its Multidisciplinary Skin Cancer Clinic, including the regions’ first (1 of only 12 in the world), 3D whole body photo-imaging system designed to improve the accuracy of diagnosing melanoma and other skin cancers.

The new technology, also known as the Vectra, uses 92 cameras that take simultaneous photos of the body in one second, and then creates a 3D view of the surface of the skin. This allows the dermatologist to potentially evaluate every suspicious lesion on the skin, both by physical exam and with the use of other sophisticated technology available in the clinic.
 
The Multidisciplinary Skin Cancer Clinic at Miami Cancer Institute will focus on early detection and treatment of melanoma, in addition to treating patients with all types of skin cancer, including basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, Merkel Cell tumors and other rare tumors of the skin. The program’s team of experts includes dermatologists, surgical and medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and plastic and reconstructive surgeons.

VITAS Healthcare has launched its redesigned VITAS.com website with enhanced content, a cleaner design and improved functionality. The goal of the website redesign is to provide quicker and easier access to end-of-life information for the millions of healthcare professionals and families who use the site every year.

Configuration of the first phase of the new mobile-friendly site is the result of more than 18 months of extensive design and development work, including in-depth user testing, quantitative research, and qualitative review and reconfiguration of content to provide optimal user experiences.
 
This thoughtful approach resulted in improved navigation and an intuitive approach to content flow for patients, families, healthcare providers, VITAS partners and employment candidates.
 
Streamlined navigation enables website visitors to explore end-of-life information, find helpful resources, refer a patient, get in touch with a VITAS representative or apply for a career at VITAS. Content is continuously updated so that visitors have access to leading-edge VITAS resources about hospice and palliative care.
 
A seamless user interface and new key features help users access information on hospice and palliative care:
• Clean and Responsive Web Design: Cleaner look and feel across mobile and desktop platforms.
• Robust Search Function: Quick and easier access to key information for healthcare professionals, patients, families, consumers, journalists, job candidates and more.
• Hospice Eligibility Reference Guide: Clearly delineated hospice eligibility guidelines, clinical hospice guidelines by diagnosis and more.
• Enhanced Zip Code Locator: Easier access to the closest VITAS services in each area.
• Additional features include: A searchable FAQ database on various end-of-life topics, patient testimonials and insights, access to the VITAS mobile app for download and much more.

St. Mary’s Medical Center is the first hospital in Palm Beach and Broward counties to use the Surpass Streamline Flow Diverter to treat unruptured large and giant wide neck intracranial aneurysms. The device is the second flow diverting stent to gain FDA approval in the U.S. It is also approved and available in many markets around the world.

“We’re honored to be the only hospital in the region with the capacity to treat patients requiring this innovative treatment,” said hospital CEO Gabrielle Finley-Hazle. “For more than 10 years, the team at our Comprehensive Stroke Center, has made it their mission to continue bringing the most advanced services to our community.” 

The tight wire mesh of the device restricts blood from entering the sac of the intracranial aneurysm, which helps to promote clotting. The Surpass Streamline Flow Diverter is indicated for the treatment of brain aneurysms in patients 18 years of age and older. The device is intended to treat large or giant saccular intracranial aneurysms with a wide-neck (neck width 4 mm or wider or dome-to-neck ratio less than 2) or fusiform intracranial aneurysms (an elongated, spindle shaped aneurysm involving the entire vessel wall) in the internal carotid artery (which supplies blood to the brain) with a diameter between 2.5 mm and 5.3 mm.
 

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic, progressive neurological disorder affecting approximately 6 million people globally and is expected to double by 2040. PD leads to disabling motor features including tremor, reduced speed, and gait/balance impairment leading to falls, as well as non-motor symptoms such as cognitive impairment and sleep and speech disorders.

One of the most prevalent complications in PD patients is medication ON and OFF motor fluctuations, which occur in 50 percent of patients diagnosed within three to five years and 80 percent diagnosed within 10 years. The onset of these motor fluctuations is a critical point in managing the disease because it requires ongoing adjustments in treatment such as changing the frequency and dosage of medication or changing parameters for deep brain stimulation.
 
Currently, PD motor fluctuations are addressed with brief clinical examinations or appropriate history-taking and patient self-reports, which rely on extensive patient education. Even then, self-reports can be unreliable and clinical examinations may not be practical, especially in rural areas. Patients often require frequent follow-up visits with their neurologist.
 
Researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science have developed an innovative way to automatically and reliably detect and monitor medication ON and OFF states in PD patients. They have combined an algorithm and sensor-based system that detects ON and OFF state patterns in PD patients using two wearable motion sensors placed on the patient’s most affected wrist and ankle.
 
For the study, published in the journal Medical Engineering and Physics, these sensors collected movement signals while patients performed seven daily living activities such as walking or getting dressed in their medication ON and OFF phases. The algorithm was trained using approximately 15 percent of the data from four activities and tested on the remaining data. Data from the two sensors provided objective measures instead of a patient diary or self-report. 
 
Results of the study reveal that the algorithm was able to detect the response to medication during the subjects’ daily routine activities with an average of 90.5 percent accuracy, 94.2 percent sensitivity, and 85.4 percent specificity.

The Florida Chapter of Aging Life Care Association has named Dawn Moore, RN, an Aging Life Care™ Manager with Lee Health, to its state board of directors for 2019-2020.

 
Moore has worked as an Aging Life Care™ Manager through the Lee Health Senior Care CHOICES Program for the past 25 years. Through this role, she provides guidance and advocacy for families and professionals who are caring for older relatives. With a specialized focus on issues related to aging, she assists with the challenges of aging, such as finding an appropriate placement, in-home care, referrals to medical providers or elder law attorneys, as well as the advocacy and support that provides families peace of mind.
 

Lauren Zuchman has been appointed as executive director of the recently launched BeWellPBC, a new initiative focused on advancing behavioral health for children and families.

Zuchman will be housed at Palm Health Foundation in West Palm Beach, the fiscal agent for BeWellPBC, and will work with all system partners and community members that have joined together to form the collective initiative.
 
Zuchman has extensive experience in leading community collaboratives to improve health. She was the first executive director of Healthier Delray Beach, a Palm Health Foundation Healthier Together initiative focused on supporting the behavioral health and well-being of Delray Beach residents. Prior to Healthier Delray Beach, she served at Henderson Behavioral Health in supervisory and management roles and provided care as a licensed social worker. She served as Chair of the Broward County Children’s Systems Meeting for eight years and participated on various workgroups focused on human trafficking, domestic violence, diversion, infant mental health, child welfare, and behavioral health system gaps in Broward and Palm Beach Counties.
 

Delray Medical Center appoints Mary Elizabeth “Libby” Flippo as its new Chief Nursing Officer (CNO). Flippo will also serve as the CNO for Tenet Healthcare’s Palm Beach Group hospitals.

Prior to joining Delray Medical Center, Flippo served as Senior Vice President, Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing officer for Cleveland Clinic Martin Health since 2013 - where she began as Assistant Vice President, Site Administrator and Chief Nursing Officer. She was promoted to Vice President, and System Chief Nursing Officer. Flippo also served as Senior Vice President. Prior to her time at Martin Health, Flippo served as Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer for Johnson City Medical Center in Tennessee.
 
Flippo earned her Bachelor’s in Nursing from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and holds a Master of Science degree in Nursing Leadership for Healthcare Systems from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. 

William Kernan, PharmD, MBA, Director of Pharmacy at Cleveland Clinic Weston, has been named a 2019 Fellow by the American Society of Health System Pharmacists (ASHP).

Kernan oversees the pharmacy services for Cleveland Clinic Florida which includes inpatient services, an outpatient pharmacy, two oncology infusion pharmacies, an ambulatory surgery center, and multiple surgical and medicine clinics. He has received numerous accolades such as the Florida Society of Health System Pharmacy (FSHP) Meritorious Service Award, FSHP Recruiter of the Year Award and Florida A&M University’s Preceptor of the Year Award. In 2007, he established the Pharmacy Practice Residency (PGY1) program, an ASHP accredited, one-year, post-graduate program to advance the practice of pharmacy at Cleveland Clinic Florida and the South Florida community.
 

VITAS® Healthcare has appointed Jeffrey M. Kreger as executive vice president (EVP) and chief financial officer (CFO). Kreger succeeds President and CFO David Wester who announced his retirement in early 2019 after a 22-year career at VITAS.

Kreger brings to VITAS 30 years of financial, operational and administrative experience. In addition to leading all financial operations as CFO, Kreger serves as a strategic partner to executive and operational leadership teams, and oversees finance, accounting, facilities, revenue cycle management and risk management departments.
 
Kreger comes to VITAS from positions as senior vice president, CFO and treasurer at two healthcare firms, including Dallas-based Aegis Therapies and Denver-based BioScrip. Previously, he worked in finance leadership roles at LHC Group in Louisiana, Sun Healthcare Group in California, American Habilitation in Texas and Sava Senior Care in Georgia. He began his career as a certified public accountant (CPA) and financial auditor at Ernst & Young.
 

Florida Atlantic University has named Safiya George, Ph.D., as the new dean of the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing. She is only the third dean to be appointed in the college’s 40-year history. George previously served as a member of the faculty at Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing until she was recruited in 2015 to the Capstone College of Nursing at the University of Alabama, where she has served as assistant dean for research, director of the Office of Scholarly Affairs, and a member of the advisory board of the Alabama Life Research Institute. She also has served as faculty in the Honors College and faculty-in-residence for residential honors students at the University of Alabama.

George will assume her role as dean effective July 8, where she will spearhead FAU’s College of Nursing, which is nationally and internationally known for its excellence and philosophy of caring science.
 
George earned her Ph.D. and MSN degrees from Emory University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Duke University in religion and health. Since 2015, under her leadership, Capstone College of Nursing has experienced tremendous growth in scholarly activities, including significant increases in extramural funding. She is described as a great mentor, role model and colleague by executive leadership, faculty, staff and students at the Capstone College of Nursing.
 
In 2017, George was elected to serve on the international board of directors for Sigma Theta Tau, the International Honor Society for Nursing, where she also has held numerous leadership roles, including chair of the International Service Taskforce, elected member of the Leadership Succession Committee and vice president of the Epsilon Omega Chapter.
 
George is a board certified adult nurse practitioner (ANP). In 2018, she was inducted as a fellow of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. 
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