Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/808716
St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center's Healthcare Exploration and Internship Program (HCEIP) is educating future gen - erations from Smithtown High School West, Smithtown High School East, Commack High School and Chaminade High School. The unique program, now in its eighth year, allows aspiring young healthcare professionals to gain hands-on experience as well as industr y information in various depar tments, includ - ing nursing, pharmacy, dietar y and laborator y, to name a few. Selected students had to meet several requirements to par- ticipate in the program and will receive half a healthcare credit upon completion. A select group of students interested in obstetrics and gynecol- ogy took a tour of the Maternity Depar tment and had the oppor- tunity to speak directly with professionals about what it would be like to work in a variety of positions, from labor and deliver y to postpar tum. Winthrop-University Hospital has received funding to expand ser vices for underser ved women, regardless of their insurance status, to navigate the healthcare system to complete breast cancer screening. The $75,000 grant is par t of the National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC) Patient Navigation Project — one of a number of programs that are a par t of New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo's statewide initiative to increase breast cancer screening by 10 percent over the next five years. Winthrop is one of the NAPBC sites in Nassau County that was awarded the grant, which seeks to increase the number of these women who are up to date on guideline-concordant breast cancer screenings and increase par ticipation in timely follow-up for women who have positive cancer screenings. The NAPBC Patient Navigation project began in October 2016 and is being implemented with suppor t from Health Research, Inc. and the New York State Depar tment of Health. The goals are to increase the number of women who are screened for breast cancer over the course of the three-year endeavor and improve the quality of breast cancer screening and diagnostic follow-up by enhancing existing patient navigation ser vices. Peconic Bay Medical Center (PBMC) will begin operating as a Level III Trauma Center after earning provisional status from the New York State Depar tment of Health, making it the only trauma and stroke center on the Nor th Fork. The provisional status recognizes PBMC's dedication to working toward meeting nation - ally recognized standards in providing care to the most critically injured patients and in having a continuous process in place for monitoring and improving that care. To receive a designation as a Level III Trauma Center, a facil - ity must demonstrate the ability to provide prompt assessment, resuscitation, surger y, intensive care and stabilization of injured patients and emergency operations. Peconic Bay Medical Center is scheduled to break ground this summer on a new, $60 million Critical Care Tower expansion that will include a comprehensive Hear t Care Center, two Cardiac Cath Labs, an electrophysiology lab and an expanded Emergency Depar tment. In addition, with SkyHealth Helicopter Emergency Medical Ser vice in place at Peconic Bay Medical Center, patients can access a faster transpor t option when medical needs arise. This makes Peconic Bay Medical Center unlike any other hospital on the East End. Nor thwell Health Stern Family Center for Rehabilitation has been named a Top-Per forming nursing home by the New York State Depar tment of Health for the third consecutive year. The facility received the classification again after being evalu - ated during the New York State Nursing Home Quality Initiative, which takes place annually. The Stern Family Center was graded on per formance and the quality of care provided to the residents living there. Stern is one of only five nursing homes on Long Island to have received the highest ranking by the state. Stern, which is a state-of-the-ar t facility, provides sub-acute and extended care ser vices, social interaction and daily care for people recover - ing from serious illness or injur y. It's located on the cam- pus of Nor th Shore University Hospital in Manhasset. The center, which opened in 1989, is a skilled nursing facility with 249 beds. St. Catherine's Maternity Services team educates future generations. Northwell Health Stern Family Center for Rehabilitation L O C A L N E W S 2 8