Contact:
Victoria Palacio
(631) 495-7693
vpalacio1@northwell.edu
RIVERHEAD, NY – Peconic Bay Medical Center (PBMC) announced today that it has officially been recognized by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement as an Age-Friendly System. An Age-Friendly System strives toward reliably implementing best age-friendly practices across emergency departments, intensive care units, medical-surgical units, general wards, and primary and specialty care settings for older adults. This recognition makes Peconic Bay Medical Center the only certified Age-Friendly System on the North Fork.
Established by The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the Catholic Health Association of the United States, the Age-Friendly System program includes Health Systems Action Communities which are collaborative entities comprised of health care teams from all over the country who are committed to sharing data and learning together. . PBMC joins over 100 health systems working to make care for older adults even more tailored to patients’ goals and preferences.
“Peconic Bay Medical Center has always been on the forefront of patient care, and we look forward to implementing our best age-friendly health care practices and learning what’s working for others around the country,” said Dr. Amy E. Loeb, executive director of Peconic Bay Medical Center. “The Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative is an important part of our overarching vision to provide every older adult with the best care possible.”
The initiative is based on a series of practices focused on addressing four essential elements of care for older patients:
- What Matters: Know and align care with each older adult's specific health outcome goals and care preferences including, but not limited to, end-of-life care, and across settings of care.
- Medication: If medication is necessary, use Age-Friendly medication that does not interfere with What Matters to the older adult, Mobility, or Mentation across settings of care.
- Mentation: Prevent, identify, treat, and manage dementia, depression, and delirium across settings of care.
- Mobility: Ensure that older adults move safely every day in order to maintain function and do What Matters.
“It’s important for us to focus on areas where we can continue to improve the care of all patients and this will have a tremendous impact,” said Christine Kippley, vice president of Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer at Peconic Bay Medical Center. “We are all aging, so understanding the differences in how our care plans need to be altered as patients age is a priority for us. Medications may have different effects and interactions as we age. The consequences of an illness for our older adults may be more profound. This strategy will fundamentally change how we view caring for older adults and prove to continue our journey to become more patient-centered for all patients under our care.”
Earning a four-star rating by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in the CMS 2021 hospital compare ratings, Peconic Bay Medical Center will continue to constantly refine their processes while providing more older adults with the care that they want, need and deserve.
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About Peconic Bay Medical Center
Located in Riverhead, NY, Peconic Bay Medical Center is a 200-bed nonprofit hospital committed to providing exceptional care and improving the health of the communities it serves. Peconic Bay Medical Center offers wide-ranging, full-scope services and programs, including advanced surgical, cardiac, orthopedic and women’s health care, comprehensive inpatient medical care, palliative care and an extensive range of outpatient services, along with state-of-the-art technology. Peconic Bay Medical Center joined Northwell Health in 2016. For more information, visit PBMCHealth.org and follow us @PeconicBayMedicalCenter on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.