Medical Center Teams Up with National Partner to Build Elite Program for Bone, Muscle and Joint Care
-Human Motion Institute Coming Soon to Raritan Bay Medical Center-

OLD BRIDGE and PERTH AMBOY, June 7, 2010… Raritan Bay Medical Center (RBMC) has teamed up with Accelero Health Partners,sm a Pittsburgh, PA, based firm specializing in the coordination and delivery of care related to bones, muscles and joints. The relationship will enhance RBMC’s orthopedic and rehabilitation services at its Old Bridge and Perth Amboy hospitals and outpatient centers on May St. in Edison and the Medical Pavilion at Woodbridge to create a musculoskeletal program of distinction for the greater Central New Jersey community.

The partnership will focus on providing superior clinical outcomes, optimizing coordination of care and achieving exceptional patient satisfaction results. To reach this goal, the newly established Human Motion Institute at Raritan Bay Medical Center will develop a comprehensive program for the patient’s entire episode of orthopedic care, including prevention, assessment, treatment and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal injuries.

RBMC already provides an array of musculoskeletal services including joint replacement, sports medicine, trauma, spine, hand/upper extremity surgery and extensive rehabilitation services. “This new venture is aimed at taking our current, high-quality services to the next level. The Human Motion Institute’s team of surgeons and staff will develop a musculoskeletal program worthy of national acclaim. We’re very excited about this opportunity,” said Michael R. D’Agnes, president and CEO of Raritan Bay Medical Center. “The simple goal of our Human Motion Institute is to return our patients to normal function as quickly and safely as possible while delivering our customary compassionate care and welcoming attitude.”

The medical center’s management team and Accelero staff are currently bringing services in line and organizing efforts to formally establish the Human Motion Institute later this year. “We work with hospitals on a regionally exclusive basis, so it’s important we choose our partners carefully,” said Beth Berringer, president of Accelero Health Partners. “We are very excited about this venture with Raritan Bay Medical Center. They have a strong management team, dedicated clinical staff and an outstanding team of surgeons.”

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RBMC Now Offers Region’s First Complete Resuscitation Bundle
-Induced Hypothermia, with use of “See-Thru CPR” Defibrillators Protect Brain and Heart During Cardiac Arrest-

OLD BRIDGE and PERTH AMBOY, NJ, June 16, 2010… Although New Jersey will soon enter the Summer months, visitors to Raritan Bay Medical Center’s (RBMC) emergency departments in Old Bridge and Perth Amboy may feel a chill in the air as heart attack patients are cooled down as part of the medical center’s new patient care code – “code frost,” a hypothermia protocol for patients experiencing sudden cardiac arrest. Used together with the hospital’s new “see-thru CPR” defibrillators the new protocol gives RBMC an extremely effective resuscitation bundle not available at any other Central New Jersey hospital.

The code, first implemented in April, involves rapidly cooling the patient’s core body temperature during resuscitation to protect the patient’s brain and heart.  Each year, either out of the hospital or in an emergency department, approximately 310,000 people in the United States experience sudden cardiac arrest (American Heart Association, 2008) with brain injury being the most common cause of death after initial resuscitation. Cooling the body has been proven to lessen the damage done to vital organs during cardiac arrest and resuscitation.

During a code frost, medical center clinicians use the ThermoSuit in combination with cutting-edge R-Series “see-thru CPR” defibrillators during resuscitation. “Cooling the body a few degrees causes vital organs to operate more slowly and need less oxygen, reducing the chance of damage and increasing the odds that the patient will return to a normal life,” said Dr. Rayshma Ali, assistant director of emergency services at RBMC and chair of the code frost committee. “Also, our new defibrillators allow clinicians to continuously monitor heart rhythm, minimizing interruptions in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation to determine whether an organized, shockable rhythm has developed. These new pieces of state-of-the-art technology combine to give Raritan Bay Medical Center an extremely effective resuscitation bundle, enhancing our ability to save lives.”

The ThermoSuit, developed by Life Recovery Systems and purchased through a Norman and Marion Tanzman Foundation donation to the RBMC Foundation, is an inflatable cocoon-like non-invasive device that sprays the body with hundreds of icy-cold jets of water, reducing the patient’s temperature rapidly. The Thermosuit may be use in conjunction with the medical center’s Zoll Medical Corporation R-Series “see-thru CPR” defibrillators. RBMC is the first medical center is Central New Jersey to use these technologies in unison.

Code frost, known as therapeutic hypothermia, is applied to both out of hospital and inpatient cardiac arrest patients who meet certain criteria. Hypothermia is most beneficial when it is started within 2-6 hours after the patient arrests. A subcommittee of RBMC’s patient code committee ensured that the medical center implemented the new code based on American Hospital Association guidelines. An extensive hospital-wide training was also completed before the code was implemented, including emergency and critical care physicians and nurses.

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Raritan Bay Medical Center Upgrades Laboratory Equipment

OLD BRIDGE and PERTH AMBOY, June 28, 2010… Medicine has come a long way in recent years, though even the latest breakthroughs don’t change one underlying fact: successful treatment begins with an accurate diagnosis. Realizing that Raritan Bay Medical Center’s (RBMC) laboratory services are a vital part of the patient’s continuum of care, the medical center recently installed cutting edge analyzing equipment technology at both its Old Bridge and Perth Amboy locations providing for improved testing and turnaround time as well as accuracy among other features.

The new Roche Diagnostics Cobas 6000 analyzer system is also lauded for its increased system flexibility to handle multiple tests and its enhanced automated operations and quality control features, which reduce the time needed for a technician handling of specimens and safety concerns.

“Ultimately, the new state-of-the-art equipment allows Raritan Bay Medical Center to deliver an enhanced level of service to patients and their physicians, even under the pressure of critical deadlines,” said RBMC consultant pathologist Mario Gonzalez, MD. “In fact, the new system will benefit all aspects of patient care. We are now offering a broader test menu, quicker test turnaround time especially for cardiac assays, more efficient and streamlined handling of specimens by technicians and the rapid sharing of results digitally in a safe and private manner.”

RBMC’s laboratories have held full accreditation from the College of American Pathologists for more than 30 years, one of the longest accreditation records in New Jersey. In addition, all of the pathologists at the medical center have demonstrated their competence through board certification by the American Board of Pathology. The combination of independent national accreditation and specialty board certification is widely viewed as one of the hallmarks of quality in all branches of medicine.

RBMC’s laboratories will perform more than 800,000 test procedures in 2010, including: blood chemistry, immunology, hematology, microbiology, coagulation, pre-natal blood testing, hormonal testing, cardiac profiles and others.

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Obstetrician / Gynecologist Misra Joins Staff at RBMC

PERTH AMBOY, NJ, June 28, 2010… Board certified Obstetrician and Gynecologist Neeti Misra, MD, with TenderCare OB/Gyn practice locations in Old Bridge, Perth Amboy and Sayreville, NJ, has joined the medical staff at Raritan Bay Medical Center.

“I’m pleased to join the healthcare professionals at Raritan Bay Medical Center, a superb facility and nationally recognized Magnet hospital for nursing excellence,” said Dr. Misra. “I’m sure my patients will be very happy with the amenities found in the hospital’s Dr. Sam Gordon Berkow Maternity Pavilion and its state-of-the-art operating room suites.”

From initial exam to childbirth and through the menopause years and beyond, Dr. Misra treats all healthcare issues relating to the female reproductive system and other associated conditions. For an appointment call (732) 707-4659.

Dr. Misra completed her residency at NorthShore-Long Island Jewish Medical Center, New Hyde Park, NY, where she served as the Chief Resident during her final year of residency. After completing residency, she was in a group private practice in Freehold, NJ, for two years where she delivered over 300 babies and performed more than 300 gynecological procedures. She specializes in minimally invasive surgical techniques for fibroids, abnormal menses, tubal sterilization, and stress incontinence. Dr. Misra also treats menopause and libido issues including natural hormone therapies.

Dr. Misra’s experience extends beyond the years spent in the United States. She holds a medical doctorate from LTM medical college, Mumbai, India, where she completed her first residency in OB/Gyn. She was in private practice for three years in Mumbai, India. Following that she served as an OB/Gyn Medical Officer in Papua New Guinea where she helped set up clinics for women’s healthcare and labor and delivery. She has conducted more than 1,000 deliveries and gynecology related procedures prior to her experience in the US.

The doctor accepts most medical insurances. Tendercare OB/Gyn office locations include 267 Hobart Street, Perth Amboy, 400 Perrine Road, suite 412, Old Bridge, and 53 Main Street (lower level), Sayreville.

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