Clinical Services Spotlight

New Blechman Center Consolidates Cardiovascular Care
...And Baby Makes Four
Nursing Shines in Key Areas

New Blechman Center Consolidates Cardiovascular Care
NYU Medical Center is making life easier for its cardiovascular patients through the new Jean and David Blechman Cardiac & Vascular Center, which opened its doors last June. The center serves as a gateway to the diagnostic, treatment, and support services of the NYU Cardiac & Vascular Institute.

Patient/Family Associate Sarah Baker counsels cardiac patient Gemma Salica in the lounge of the new Blechman Center.

Located on the 13th floor of the Schwartz Healthcare Center, the Blechman Center greets patients with a serene ambiance. The décor of light wood tones, brushed steel accents, and smoked glass is enhanced by natural light.

Cardiac and vascular patients receive most of their care through the Blechman Center, where they are evaluated by physicians in modern, comfortable exam rooms. Noninvasive diagnostic and treatment services are offered on site, while patients who require invasive or more extensive procedures receive those services elsewhere within the Medical Center. The unit also accommodates patients recovering from catheterization, electrophysiology, interventional radiology, and vascular surgery procedures, whether for a few hours or a few days. In addition, the center houses educational materials and offers computer access to Web sites relating to cardiovascular diseases and disorders.

Patient/Family Associates, a unique feature of the Blechman Center, help each patient navigate the various cardiovascular services. Associates Sarah Baker and Sherrilyn Eudoxie greet patients and their families, outline the course of care, escort patients to other facilities within the Medical Center, help resolve billing issues, and follow up with each patient after treatment.

“Families and friends say they like having somebody keeping in touch with them during a patient’s procedure,” says Baker. “Even if I don’t have all the answers, they feel a huge relief just knowing they are being taken care of.” Doctors with attending privileges at NYU Medical Center who have their own private-practice offices can make use of the Blechman Center’s consultation office and examination rooms. A physician workroom equipped with computers enables them to review echocardiogram tapes, as well as keep up with e-mail.

Among the services offered is a comprehensive risk assessment and treatment program for patients with high cholesterol. “There are millions of patients who require management for their lipid disorders and it is estimated that only about one-third of these people are being treated optimally,” says Edward A. Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., who directs the Lipid Treatment and Research Center and is the Leon H. Charney Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and Professor of Cell Biology.

The Lipid Center offers state-of-the-art testing for those with multiple lipid blood abnormalities. The center is also a site for clinical trials, enabling patients potentially to benefit from the latest advances in lipid-lowering therapies.

in the mother-baby nursing unit, Stacy Johnson (left) and her newborn, Campbell, team up with Cheryl Leahy, R.N. (in left photo), and Nursing Attendant Doreen Brown (in right photo).

…And Baby Makes Four
On June 30, 2003, the 13th floor of Tisch Hospital welcomed its newest arrival—the Mother-Baby Unit, which now integrates the Postpartum Unit and Newborn Nursery into a single care center. Mother-baby nursing is based on the philosophy that mother and newborn are an interdependent couplet and should remain together as much as possible. Accordingly, one nurse is assigned to care for both mother and baby.

Though similar programs exist at other hospitals, NYU’s Mother-Baby Unit is unusual in that it teams up each nurse with a nursing attendant and/or a licensed practical nurse (LPN). This allows the flexibility to care for six mother-baby couplets. Under the previous system, each postpartum nurse cared for up to eight mothers and a nursery nurse was in charge of the babies. To prepare for the new system, all nursery personnel and postpartum nurses, who had previously worked separately, were cross-trained to learn each other’s roles and skills, and then combined into a single nursing staff. A typical team consists of a nurse and a nursing attendant and/or an LPN.

Working together closely throughout a 12-hour shift, they provide a continuum of personalized care for both mother and newborn. As the team leader, the nurse is responsible for performing assessments, administering medications, teaching, and implementing necessary interventions, sometimes with the assistance of an LPN. Meanwhile, the nursing attendant is responsible for such tasks as taking vital signs, assisting with feeding, and maintaining hygiene. A key benefit of Mother-Baby Nursing, which grew out of a Medical Center Service Standards project, is that it fosters successful breast feeding.

“About 90 percent of our mothers want to breast feed,” explains Karen E. Goodman, M.A., R.N., Nurse Manager of the Mother-Baby Unit. “When a single R.N. knows how the mother is nursing and how the baby is responding, it’s easier to correct any problems before the mother goes home.” Studies show that Mother-Baby Nursing has other benefits as well.

For mother and child, it reduces the risk of cross-infection (by decreasing the number of caregivers, and moving the newborn from a crowded nursery to its mother’s room), increases maternal self-confidence, and promotes continuity of care and consistency of information. For the staff, it diversifies skills, streamlines efficiency, and enhances job satisfaction. The new unit was funded by a $50,000 state grant, awarded in partnership with the Service Employees International Union (1199).

Nursing Shines in Key Areas
Recent developments are expected to help the medical center in its application process—later this spring—for a prestigious Magnet Recognition Award for excellence in nursing care.

• The turnover rate for nurses at NYU Hospitals Center has dropped from 21 percent in 1998 to 13 percent in 2003, placing NYU below the current national average of 14 percent.

• Eighty-seven percent of our nurses hold at least a baccalaureate degree in nursing (among the highest proportions in the country), compared to the national average of 51 percent for university teaching hospitals. Research shows that hospitals with higher proportions of nurses with b.a.’s or higher have lower mortality and failure-to-rescue rates for their surgical patients.

• In 2002-2003 the percentage of nyu nurses who became certified in their specialties increased significantly.