LIJ/Parker Achieves Top Ranking

They were in a celebratory mood last week on the campus of Parker Jewish Institute of Health Care and Rehabilitation and Long Island Jewish Hospital when the word came down that the geriatrics program had been singled out by U.S. News & World Report as one of the best in the country.
The news came as no surprise, however, to Dr. Gisele Wolf-Klein, director of geriatrics at the Queens facility.
"You know," she said, "we were the first geriatrics program in the country. She pointed out that the Parker-LIJH geriatrics group has "formed and trained" most of the nation’s leaders in the geriatric specialty.
The national magazine rated the facility number 22 in the country. No other area hospital was chosen.
The high rating was given for its reputation, hospital wide mortality rate, technology score, number of registered nurses to beds, discharge planning, service mix and geriatric services.
Geriatrics has blossomed into a critically important specialty in medicine as patients live longer. In fact, Wolf-Klein points out, there’s a sharp increase in the numbers of individuals living to 85 and older.
"We’re seeing the return of this group to Queens and Nassau from Florida," Wolf-Klein said. "Many of them have medical complications and are depending upon us."
Wolf-Klein called geriatrics "an exploding" specialty nationally as the baby boomer generation ages. "The staff here could have gone into private practice, but have chosen to stay here and learn geriatric skills that will serve them well later on," she said.
Parker provides 527 beds for geriatric patients, with 2,500 admissions recorded annually.
"Our patients stay in the hospital an average of less than a month," she said. "It’s a multi-faceted program reaching patients at Parker and LIJH. She said the focus of her program was the "aggressive return of function — a goal for patients 80 and over."
The chief of geriatrics cited an 80-year-old retired dentist who had lost both his legs, was fitted with prosthetic limbs, and regained a significant quality of life.
Wolf-Klein assembled a group of her fellows and residents to discuss the scope of the program. One resident, Dr. Cynthia Miracle, said she had personal feelings about the importance of geriatrics. "I have a pair of healthy grandparents, ages 88 and 89," she said. "So I understand that good geriatric care can help to make them fit."
Dr. Adam Cohen, who tends to geriatrics at Long Island Jewish Hospital, said one key to enhanced care for the elderly population involves the education of house staff and the role of nurses and social workers.
The geriatric services’ homecare division cares for 800 patients in a farflung operation throughout Queens and Nassau Counties. It operates seven days a week.
In addition, the joint hospital venture sponsors a day care center and a respite program.
The respite program is one of only two others available in Queens. It provides time off for caregivers while their ailing relatives are hospitalized.