By Alex Christodoulides
In a small ceremony at the private mental health facility in Holliswood, representatives of the managed behavioral health care organization, Beacon Health Strategies, and the independent, not-for-profit managed care firm Affinity Health Plan, honored Holliswood for exceeding the New York state average for seven-day follow-up with discharged patients.”We want to thank you for all the help and support for all the work you do,” said Radhika Vars, program manager at Beacon Health Strategies and liaison between Beacon and Affinity, to the gathered staffers at Holiswood Hospital. “Holliswood was the highest [in seven-day follow-up compliance] among our statewide partners, at 70 percent.” The state average is 60 percent, she said.Dr. Jeffrey Borenstein, chief executive officer and medical director at the hospital, accepted the award.”We appreciate the recognition and collaboration. It's another example of the positive responses to the work you do,” he said to his staff.After the ceremony Borenstein spoke briefly about hospital-related news.”We're building a state-of-the-art 15-bed children's unit” at the eastern end of the hospital complex which is to open in April, Borenstein said. The addition will increase the number of patient beds available, from the current 110 beds to 125, and serve a typically underserved population, he said.Borenstein also said that “Healthy Minds,” the weekly mental health program he hosts on public television channel WLIW, will soon begin its second season. For the series, Borenstein interviews experts, spokesmen from mental health agencies and well-known sufferers of various mental illnesses in hopes of eradicating the diseases' stigmas.Reach reporter Alex Christodoulides by e-mail at achristodoulides@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 155.
