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NUMC EARNS THREE YEAR REACCREDITATION TERM FOR RADIATION ONCOLOGY DIVISION

February 13, 2012

PRESS CONTACT:
Shelley Lotenberg
shelley@numc.edu
516-572-6055


NUMC EARNS THREE YEAR REACCREDITATION TERM FOR RADIATION ONCOLOGY DIVISION

–Achievement is culmination of extensive review and site visit–


EAST MEADOW, NY…Arthur A. Gianelli, President/CEO of the NuHealth System, announced that the Nassau University Medical Center’s radiation oncology division has been awarded a three-year renewal term of accreditation in radiation oncology, as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology (ACR) and the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). Radiation oncology (radiation therapy) is the careful use of high-energy radiation to treat cancer. A radiation oncologist may use radiation to cure cancer or to relieve a cancer patient’s pain.

“Congratulations to Dr. Karten, NUMC’s director of radiation oncology and his staff, upon successfully obtaining a three year term of reaccreditation, representing the highest level of quality and patient safety for the patients being treated in the radiation oncology division,” said Gianelli. “It is a well deserved recognition, confirming the excellent care provided to our cancer patients.”

Mitchell Karten, MD, congratulated his staff on receiving renewal of its division’s accreditation: “The division of radiation oncology has received a renewal of a 3 year (maximum) accreditation from the American College of Radiology (ACR) and American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). This is the culmination of an extensive internal review and site visit. I would like to commend the staff members who contributed to this process: Maryanne Mazzola, chief technologist, Margaret Edwards, associate chief technologist, Seon Kim, technologist, Margalie Laforrest,  LPN, Donna Zaleski, RN, Richard Aubrey, physicist , Sonia DeMatos, clerk,  Ray Beers, physicist consultant, and  Juan Mestres, physicist consultant.”

The radiation oncology division is one of the longest standing radiation centers on Long Island and was one of the first centers on Long Island accredited by the ACR.

The ACR-ASTRO seal of accreditation represents the highest level of quality and patient safety. It is awarded only to facilities meeting specific Practice Guidelines and Technical Standards developed by ACR and ASTRO after a peer-review evaluation by board-certified radiation oncologists and medical physicists who are experts in the field. Patient care and treatment, patient safety, personnel qualifications, adequacy of facility equipment, quality control procedures, and quality assurance programs are assessed. The findings are reported to the ACR-ASTRO Committee on Radiation Oncology Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report they can use for continuous practice improvement.

ABOUT ACR
The ACR is a national professional organization serving more than 34,000 diagnostic/interventional radiologists, radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine physicians, and medical physicists with programs focusing on the practice of medical imaging and radiation oncology and the delivery of comprehensive health care services. ASTRO is a professional organization serving more than 10,000 radiation oncologists, medical physicists and other health care professionals involved in the treatment of cancer patients.


ABOUT NUHEALTH
NuHealth is a Long Island health care organization delivering essential medical care and disease and lifestyle management to everyone at every stage of life.  Also known as Nassau Health Care Corporation, NuHealth is a public benefit corporation managing the operations of Nassau Medical Center, A. Holly Patterson Extended Care and a network of Family Health Centers that bring primary and specialty care out into the community.  By emphasizing wellness, cultural sensitivity and collaborative efforts with the North Shore-LIJ Health System, NuHealth is working to make good care more affordable and easier to access.

For more information about NuHealth or its Centers of Care, visit www.nuhealth.net.