October 23, 2017
Cardiologist Robert Ostfeld, MD, MSc, is on a mission to get more patients to adopt a plant-based diet. Looking to optimize the health of his patients, Dr. Ostfeld investigated the benefits of a plant-based, or vegan, diet.
"I learned about its health impact and decided to start the Cardiac Wellness Program, with the goal of preventing and reversing disease," he says. The diet includes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, legumes, yams, nuts and dairy alternatives.
"I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING COME CLOSE TO THE BENEFITS THAT A PLANT-BASED DIET PROVIDES." —Robert Ostfeld, Director, Cardiac Wellness Program, Montefiore, and Associate Professor, Clinical Medicine, Einstein
"I’ve never seen anything come close to the breadth and depth of benefits that a plant–based diet provides. We’ve seen patients come off numerous medications, reverse their diabetes and high blood pressure, and feel so much better simply from changing their diet," he says. Dr. Ostfeld approached Food Services and the Nutrition Department, and they created plant-based options for every meal that now are available to all inpatients. In addition to the meals, inpatients receive a handout about the plant-based diet and they can watch the documentary "Forks Over Knives" on their in-room TV for free on channel 69, which describes the benefits of a plant-based diet. The diet can be ordered for inpatients through EPIC and is called Heart Healthy Vegan under the restricted section.
Learn more about Montefiore’s Cardiac Wellness Program and plantbased diets at www.montefiore.org/ cardiacwellnessprogram.
Montefiore physicians, nurses and other associates have landed in Puerto Rico to help provide desperately needed medical care. The Montefiore team is part of a larger New York effort to provide medical assistance where it is needed most. Montefiore associates and groups who want to help today can find options here.
Montefiore has opened the region’s first clinic for patients with 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome. This innovative facility opened September 14 at Montefiore’s Hutchinson Campus, and is one of just a handful in the nation focused on treating this rare genetic disease. Children with 22q11.2 can have a range of health problems affecting the heart, immune system, swallowing, and physical and cognitive development. The 22q11 Clinic unites a multidisciplinary group of experts in cardiology, psychiatry, immunology, speech and swallowing, development, genetic counseling and other areas, available to consult with patients and their families in one location. “We’re offering a full soup-to-nuts clinical program for these families,” says Melissa Wasserstein, MD, Clinic Director.
Attendees at the opening of Montefiore’s 22q11.2 Clinic—the region’s first—at the Hutchinson Campus.
More information is available at www.cham.org/22q.
Weiler's Caregiver Support Center turns three this month.
The Caregiver Support Center at Montefiore’s Weiler Hospital is celebrating its third anniversary this month. Volunteers like Cynthia Jones have helped more than 6,000 people since its opening, offering families and friends of hospitalized patients a soothing and confidential space to recoup, reflect, talk and cope with their emotions. Cynthia has been a lifelong caregiver, helping family elders as a child and now working with seniors. Over the past two years, she has eased the burdens of other caregivers at the Center. "I help them to deal with their stress and anxiety, and the challenges of managing their loved one’s healthcare," she says.
Modeled after the Caregiver Support Center on the Moses Campus, the Center at Weiler is staffed with seven volunteers along with mental health professionals. "We offer ongoing emotional support to families, since all members are affected by the loved one’s hospitalization," says Julie List, LCSW, the Center’s Clinical Supervisor. The first Caregiver Support Center at the Moses Campus has supported over 12,000 caregivers since opening in April 2011. "At Montefiore, we understand that the family is the unit of care," says Randi Kaplan, LMSW, Director, Caregiver Support Center, Montefiore.
A third Caregiver Support Center will soon open on the Wakefield Campus, and all three sites are in need of volunteers. Ideal candidates are mature, dedicated adults who are good listeners, compassionate and willing to commit four hours per week during normal business hours. To learn more about volunteering, please contact Sherri Oustalet, Director of Volunteer & Student Services, 718-920-6654 or soustale@montefiore.org.
David Loeb, MD, PhD
Chief, Pediatric Hematology and Oncology
Elaine E. Schulte, MD, MPH
Medical Director, Adoption Program
Vice Chair, Academic Affairs and Faculty
CHAM doctors and nurses presented their innovative research at the American Academy of Pediatrics 2017 National Conference last month. Elizabeth Alderman, MD, Director, Pediatric Residency Program, and Professor, Pediatrics, Montefiore and Einstein, conducted a workshop on talking with teens about traditionally “taboo” subjects, such as the use of tobacco, marijuana, indoor tanning and sexting, and led a session on strategies to alter these adolescent behaviors. Robert Angert, MD, Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, Montefiore and Einstein, presented a quality improvement initiative to prevent MRSA infections in neonates in the NICU. Chief resident Anne Durstenfeld, MD, presented her poster on sending text reminders to new parents about reading to their babies, while resident Melissa Stone, MD, presented a poster that she co-authored on multiple fractures at birth.
Beginning on October 31, employers may not ask job applicants about their salary history, or rely on salary history to determine an applicant's compensation, unless the applicant voluntarily offers the information. This new law follows similar efforts in other jurisdictions to combat gender-based pay disparities.
Under NYC Human Rights Law, it will be an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employer to ask an applicant or the applicant's current or former employer about an applicant's salary history. Employers will also be prohibited from considering an applicant's salary history in determining the salary, benefits or other forms of compensation for that applicant.
Applicants who believe a potential employer violated the law can file a complaint with the city's Human Rights Commission, which can impose penalties of up to $250,000. All hiring managers should continue to contact their HR Recruiters to help facilitate salary negotiation and extend all offers of employment.
Come out to support our CHAMPIONS for CHAM team as they participate in the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon on November 5. The world’s largest marathon brings together runners from around the world to race through all five boroughs of our city. Our team is raising funds for CHAM’s Quality in Life Team (QUILT), which addresses physical, psychosocial and spiritual needs of children with severe illnesses, offering services for patients and their families. Root for the team:
Sunday, November 5 | 11:30 AM–3:30 PM
138th Street and Alexander Avenue
Bronx, New York
Directions: 6 train to 3rd Avenue and 138th Street or the 4, 5 to 138th Street and Grand Concourse; from stop, walk east on 138th Street to Alexander Avenue.
Can't make it to the event? Show your support with a tax-deductible donation to the team. All proceeds support CHAM's commitment to clinical care, research and education. Visit our Crowdrise page to donate today: www.crowdrise.com/the-childrens-hospital-at-montefiorenyc-2017.
Are you a woman between 18–49 years old who is interested in participating in a research study to help prevent HIV infection?
The study involves a single dose of a gel being tested to prevent HIV infection and other sexually transmitted infections. Participation involves 4 visits to the outpatient clinical research center. Testing involves blood draws, EKGs, STI testing and a pelvic exam. Reimbursement is offered. Women must be HIV negative, taking hormonal birth control or have an IUD.
If interested, please call or text Jenny at 347-835-7842.
Many patients believe they need to go to a rehab facility after their hip or knee replacement surgery, but evidence shows otherwise. "It's long been recognized that people who go home instead of to rehab get better faster and achieve more by going home," says Neil Cobelli, MD, Chair, Orthopaedic Surgery, Montefiore. To help dispel the myth, the Department has launched the campaign, There's No Place Like Home. A key component is "Speak in One Voice," which aims for all associates to deliver a consistent message about the benefits of going home versus to a nursing home for cases not involving complex indications. Complementing this approach, a family member or friend will serve as a Care Coach, who will accompany the patient through the entire process to ensure a smooth transition when the patient goes home. Pamphlets will be available for associates, patients, and family members, as well as online tools to walk patients through their day-to-day care and expectations at home.
If you treat shoulders, you won’t want to miss Innovations in the Management of the Difficult Rotator Cuff: Repair to Replacement, a half-day conference on October 28. Leading experts, including orthopedic surgeon Joseph Iannotti, MD, PhD, of the Cleveland Clinic, will explore recent surgical and technological advances that are transforming rotator cuff treatments. The symposium is open to orthopaedic surgeons, fellows and residents with an interest in shoulder and elbow or sports medicine, as well as allied health professionals who treat the rotator cuff using repair, reverse replacement or non-operative therapies. Chaired by Frances Cuomo, MD, Chief, Shoulder and Elbow Service, Montefiore, the symposium includes lectures and surgical demonstrations.
Saturday, October 28
7:00 AM–1:00 PM
Conference Center, 1200 Waters Place
Your thyroid hormones impact many aspects of your physical and cognitive health. This month’s workshop, led by Montefiore’s endocrinologist Vafa Tabatabaie, MD, is an engaging look at thyroid hormones and what you need to know about their role in your well-being.
Friday, November 3 | 12:00–1:00 PM
Moses Campus, TLC Room 2
Register to attend in person at toyourhealth.montefiore.org OR
Streaming live on Zoom: Call in to 408-638-0968; Meeting ID: 686 164 739 OR
Register for Zoom at https://goo.gl/JEExcK
Attend the CME event "Don't Get Cancer Stage Fright!," which will cover major changes in the 8th Edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Staging System.
Thursday, November 9 | 12:00 – 5:00 PM
Michael F. Price Center for Genetic and Translational Medicine
1301 Morris Park Avenue, 151 Lower Atrium
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
For questions or registration, contact the Center for Continuing Medical Education at 718-920-6674 or email Nada Piacentino at npiacent@montefiore.org.
