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WINTER 2018
WINTER 2018
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Bariatric Surgery Center
To address the growing problem of obesity
in the SBH Health System community, the
hospital will open a multidisciplinary Limited
Bariatric Surgery Center in 2018.
Gastric bypass and gastric sleeve
surgeries will be performed at the center
on adults weighing up to 350 pounds.
“Research indicates that there is a
tremendous need in our community
for a weight loss center of excellence,
as the prevalence of obesity in the
Bronx is the highest in New York City,”
says Dr. Ridwan Shabsigh, chairman,
Department of Surgery at SBH.
In the Bronx, nearly one in three
adults (32 percent) is obese, as compared
to one in four (24.2 percent) in New York
City and New York State (23.6 percent).
The goal of the Center, according to
Dr. Shabsigh, is to create a limited
bariatric center of excellence that
will impact on obesity and related
comorbidities such as diabetes,
hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obstructive
sleep apnea and other disorders. In
addition, the Center will leverage the
wellness services the hospital will make
available in 2019 when the new Bronx
Center for Healthy Communities opens
and addresses obesity as a preventable
cause of major diseases.
A minimally-invasive bariatric surgeon,
Dr. Nissin N
ahmias, has already been
added to the staff, with plans to hire a
full-time dietitian and other personnel
in 2018. The Department of Surgery will
apply for American College of Surgeons’
certification as a bariatric center of
excellence by 2019.
The CDU, manned by an attending,
residents and LPNs from 10 a.m. to
10 p.m. seven days a week, hopes to
accommodate up to 90 patients daily.
Treated are patients with normal vital
signs who can ambulate and, typically,
have colds or allergies, minor lacerations
and twisted ankles; exceptions include
the very elderly and very young (under
the age of two). The unit, located down
the hall from the main adult ER, has the
capability to perform x-rays.
“A person with a minor laceration may
have previously ended up waiting as
many as six to seven hours here, or at
any busy ER in the Bronx,” says Dr.
Blanca Grand, director of the CDU.
“Now, we can get this patient, from
door-to-door, discharged within
an hour.”
According to Dr. Grand, the patient
response has been very positive. “They
like the fact that it’s very quiet and
personal and, of course, are thrilled to be
in and out so quickly. It’s already starting
to change the image [marked by long
waits],” she says. The doctors regularly
walk to registration and triage areas to
find which patients are most appropriate
for treatment in the CDU.
The physicians like it as well. “The
pace is very nice; it’s very hands on,”
says Dr. Angela Regina, the attending
ass
igned one afternoon to the CDU. “It’s
wonderful. It’s like a vacation.”
NEWPROGRAMS
,
SERVICES
,
AND TECHNOLOGIES
at SBH Health System
“Research indicates that there is a tremendous need in
our community for a weight loss center of excellence, as
the prevalence of obesity in the Bronx is the highest in
New York City.”
– Dr. Ridwan Shabsigh
CDU in the ED
The emergency department at SBH has opened a Critical Decision Unit (CDU) to reduce waiting
times and provide personal attention for ER patients presenting with the lowest acuity.
Lung Cancer Screening
Lung cancer screenings, like regular
colonoscopies, pap smears, mammograms
and digital rectal exams, can save lives.
In 2013, based on National Lung Screening
Trial data, the U.S. Preventive Services Task
Force made lung cancer screening with
low dose computed tomography (LDCT)
a public health recommendation.
The study, a randomized controlled trial
that gathered data at 33 U.S. medical
centers, reported an approximately 20
percent relative reduction in mortality
from lung cancer among high risk
patients who underwent screening with
LDCT. Prior to this, no routine screening
for lung cancer had been performed.
As a result of this study, the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), as well
as most private insurance carriers, now
cover high risk individuals for this type
of screening.
SBH recently became one of the first
hospitals in New York City to introduce
a highly structured, multidisciplinary
program with pulmonologists, thoracic
radiologists, oncologists and patient
navigators that features LDCT screenings
for high risk patients. This is particularly
important in the Bronx, where about one
in seven adults is a cigarette smoker, and
the incidence of and the mortality rates
from lung cancer are particularly high.
Lung cancer is by far the leading
cause of cancer death and is the third
most common cancer in the United
States. Since it doesn’t cause noticeable
problems until it is more advanced, most
people are not diagnosed until they have
late-stage lung cancer. When diagnosed
at this point, the five-year survival rate
is only about 17 percent. Patients have
a much greater chance of a successful
outcome when the disease is found early.
“Should the lung cancer screening
reveal what we call tiny nodules or
shadows, and if they are determined to
be highly suggestive of lung cancer, it may
require further investigation in terms of a
biopsy and/or additional testing,” says
Dr. Raghu Loganathan, director, Division
of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine,
who helped develop the lung cancer
screening program at SBH. “Some of the
lesions discovered may not be cancer,
but will need to be followed up on a
regular basis.”
According to commercial insurance
and CMS reimbursement guidelines,
lung cancer screening patients must be
between the ages of 55 and 80 (CMS
covers up to 77 years of age) with a
smoking history of at least 30 pack
years (1 pack per year equals smoking
one pack – 20 cigarettes – per day for
one year) who are currently smoking or
quit less than 15 years ago. Candidates
must be free of symptoms suggestive of
lung cancer (including persistent cough,
hoarse voice, pain when swallowing,
shortness of breath, blood in mucus,
weight loss, wheezing).
“The whole idea of lung cancer
screening is to detect the disease at
an earlier stage when it is potentially
curable,” says Dr. Loganathan.
“Unfortunately, in our community,
we see many more late stage lung
cancers, which furthers the importance
of early detection.”
As part of its program, SBH also offers
a smoking cessation clinic. To learn
more about SBH’s lung cancer screening
program, call 718-960-3730.
“Unfortunately, in our community, we see
many more late stage lung cancers, which
furthers the importance of early detection.”
– Dr. Raghu Loganathan
