Press Releases

Long Beach Campus Archive

For Immediate Release
August 18, 2016

Dear Neighbor,

We are excited to share great news with you about the South Nassau Emergency Department (ED) at Long Beach and South Nassau Family Medicine at Long Beach. Since the South Nassau ED at Long Beach opened in August 2015, a block west of the former Long Beach Medical Center, we’ve been treating all types of emergencies, including everything from strep throat to stroke, cardiac arrest and more. The ED is not an urgent care center; it is a true free-standing emergency department with physicians board-certified in emergency medicine. It receives ambulances 24/7 through the 9-1-1 system, offering lab services and the barrier island’s only CT scanner on site. An independent nationwide survey of ED patients ranked Long Beach ED satisfaction in the top 2 percent*.

Nearly 8,600 patients have been seen at the Long Beach ED, with 86 percent being treated and released without ever having to leave the barrier island. Only 8.5 percent were transferred and admitted to South Nassau in Oceanside.  

Also, the South Nassau Family Medicine facility at Long Beach (conveniently located just two blocks east of the Emergency Department at 761 Franklin Blvd. between Bay and State Streets) brings a variety of family medicine services and on-site lab services to the barrier island. Patients are seen by resident physicians, under the supervision of a board-certified attending physician who specializes in family medicine with an emphasis on preventive care. Most major insurances are accepted, and free assistance is available to apply for care at reduced rates, through South Nassau’s financial assistance program. Call 516-544-2351 for an appointment; walk-ins are also welcomed.

As part of South Nassau Communities Hospital’s ongoing commitment to improved medical services in Long Beach, these two services represent the foundation of our plan to bring even more health services to the Long Beach community. In the coming months, we will continue to seek your input on plans for a new Medical Arts Pavilion, to be built on the site of the former Long Beach medical campus, offering an even larger and permanent home for the emergency department, incorporating primary care medicine and radiology, as well as other specialties to help restore services to the barrier island. Newsday has stated that South Nassau’s approach “makes sense” for Long Beach and for the South Shore. (See reprint of the Newsday editorial (click here), and visit http://bit.ly/2ajGv3b for updates on these projects.)
 
We also want you to know that demolition of the former Long Beach Medical Center’s Central, East and Founders buildings is now complete. Thanks to our neighbors for their input and patience.

We hope you will continue to support South Nassau Communities Hospital and think of us as your first stop for quality medical care. We are dedicated to delivering the outstanding service you deserve and expect. We invite you to follow the progress of the South Nassau Long Beach campus on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SouthNassauEDatLongBeach or by visiting www.southnassaulongbeach.org.

Sincerely,

Richard Murphy
President & CEO

For Immediate Release
August 3, 2016

Dear Neighbor,

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has issued a finding in support of South Nassau’s alternative use proposal to use $171 million of FEMA funds to improve medical services for the South Shore of Nassau County by building a Medical Arts Pavilion in Long Beach and a Southwest Addition at its Oceanside campus.

As part of its Environmental Assessment of the projects, FEMA determined that the hospital’s proposal will have ‘no significant adverse impact’ on the quality of the human environment in relation to conditions prior to Super Storm Sandy.  This finding, which took into consideration substantive comments received during the public review period, means the agency has determined there is no need to conduct a more lengthy Environmental Impact study.

The FEMA funds were appropriated by Congress after South Nassau demonstrated a commitment and sufficient financial strength to restore medical services to the South Shore following Superstorm Sandy that forced the closing of the former Long Beach Medical Center in Long Beach.  The New York State Office of Emergency Management oversees administration of the FEMA funds.

“The report’s finding is verification that South Nassau has developed a responsible plan that will allow us to meet the future healthcare needs of the communities we serve all along the South Shore of Nassau County,” said Richard J. Murphy, President and CEO.

South Nassau’s alternative use proposal includes the construction of a $130 million four-story, 58,000 square foot addition to the Southwest corner of the hospital as well as a $40 million Medical Arts Pavilion to be built on site of the former Long Beach Medical Center.

The Southwest Addition will feature a new, medically advanced critical care patient unit with up to 24 additional beds; double the size of the Emergency Services Department and modernize and expand its operating rooms.  The four-story addition also would increase the number of treatment spaces in the Emergency Department with expanded and improved waiting areas and separate treatment areas for pediatric, geriatric and behavioral patients. The new structure would house additional critical care beds to meet growing demand for critical care services and new operating suites. The new operating rooms also would allow for renovation of existing operating rooms, some of which are 40 years old and do not meet current space needs for operating suites.  The project also includes the upgrade of the hospital’s emergency electrical system as well as the construction of a new, energy efficient central utility plant with back-up heating and air conditioning systems.

South Nassau currently operates a free-standing Emergency Department in Long Beach. The Medical Arts Pavilion would serve as the permanent home of the Long Beach Emergency Department and potentially house other services needed in the community like primary care, dialysis treatment and occupational and physical therapy. More than $30 million has already been spent in Long Beach to acquire the former Long Beach Medical Center, which was shuttered after Sandy, and to open Long Island’s first, free-standing Emergency Department on the barrier island.

South Nassau has briefed more than 60 local community, civic and elected leaders about its plans for expansion. The proposal still must undergo a series of formal review procedures at the local and state levels.
 
“When completed the residents of the South Shore of Nassau County, from Long Beach and the  surrounding barrier island communities to Valley Stream and Massapequa, will have convenient access to a standard-setting system of healthcare services that will meet their needs for top-notch physicians, leading-edge medical technologies and state-of-the-art healthcare facilities,” said Murphy.
 
For a downloadable copy of the FEMA Environmental Assessment or more information about the proposed FEMA projects in Oceanside and Long Beach, go to: www.southnassau.org/fema.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees.  Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services.  In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies.  South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program.  In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org.

For Immediate Release
February 17, 2016

Leading Health Care Consultant Urges Expansion of Emergency Care & Primary Care Services in Long Beach

A leading health care consultant who studied the medical needs of Long Beach in the wake of Superstorm Sandy has recommended that South Nassau Communities Hospital continue to expand Emergency Services, increase access to primary care physicians and focus on improving behavioral health services and care for the elderly.

Bruce C. Vladeck, Ph.D., the former head of the U.S. Health Care Financing Administration (now the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid) during the Clinton administration and the former President of the United Hospital Fund, found that there is a “significant shortage of physicians, ancillary services and specialty geriatric and behavioral health services” on the barrier island. His recommendations include:

• A continuing effort to upgrade the types of Emergency Services the newly opened Emergency Department in Long Beach can provide so that it is capable of handling 65-75 percent of all ambulance calls on the barrier island;
• Expanding laboratory capabilities at the Long Beach Emergency Department and adding ultrasound services there;
• Adding more observation beds to the Long Beach Emergency Department
• Improving South Nassau’s existing Family Practice site so that it would qualify as a Primary Care Medical Home with 24/7 telephone access for patients;
• Forming a workgroup with Long Beach, State and County agencies to undertake a “more systematic behavioral health services planning for the barrier island.”

The Vladeck study also examined the question of whether Long Beach needs and could financially support a general hospital if one were to be built. Using “relatively optimistic assumptions” about the number of expected inpatient admissions and not including initial “ramp up” costs, the study found a 50-bed hospital would lose an average of $10.8 million a year, totaling $54 million in losses during its first five years of operation. (The financial analysis was conducted by John Lavan of JL Consulting. Lavan is a leading health care financing expert who served as the former Chief Financial Officer of New York-Presbyterian Hospital.)

The estimates were based on a close examination of the 5,543 hospital stays of residents of the barrier island that occurred in 2013. That number of stays would generate an average census of 40 admissions per day, which would require a facility of 50 inpatient hospital beds, the study found.

In addition to the financial losses a 50-bed hospital would generate, the study also questioned whether a hospital that small would have a sufficient volume of cases in certain specialty areas to produce quality patient outcomes.

“A growing body of literature continues to reinforce the general principle that the more a particular physician or hospital sees of a specific condition, the better the outcomes. This relationship is particularly strong for certain surgeries, including cardiac, cancer, GI and prostate,” the study noted. “This relationship is also strong for both routine and high-risk maternity services…which is why hospitals performing fewer than 1500 deliveries a year are gradually closing those services.”

Regulators in New York State also are generally pushing for a reduction in the number of in-patient hospital beds, “especially downstate, including Nassau County,” the study noted.

Vladeck also attempted to address and update the findings of a 2006 Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century report (also known as the Berger Commission), which recommended at the time that the former Long Beach Medical Center be downsized to a 145 bed facility. Proponents of building a new hospital in Long Beach – post Superstorm Sandy – have repeatedly cited the Berger Commission findings as evidence that the barrier island could support a 145 bed hospital.

As part of his research, Vladeck asked Stephen Berger, the head of the 2006 Commission, if he believed his 2006 study should still be relied upon at this juncture. “It would be a mistake, at this point, to conclude that having access to health services automatically requires a hospital facility,” Berger wrote in response to Vladeck in a letter dated Oct. 30, 2015.

The study also noted that Long Beach is an “extremely well educated” and “well-insured” community that is “solidly middle-class.” As of 2013, 85 percent of the non-elderly adult population had public or private health insurance.

South Nassau commissioned the Vladeck study last August as part of its commitment to Long Beach to determine what medical services are most needed on the barrier island. As part of his study, Vladeck interviewed key leaders from the civic, business & health care communities as well as federal, state and local elected officials. He also reviewed government data on where barrier island residents are receiving hospital care and for what diseases.

South Nassau has briefed more than 60 local community, civic and elected leaders about the results of the study and about its plans for expansion and use of the FEMA funds. That process will continue in the weeks ahead as hospital officials seek additional community input on the Vladeck study and on its proposals for the FEMA funding. The proposed plans still must undergo a series of formal review procedures at the local and state levels.

Some local leaders are expressing support for South Nassau’s plans to improve access to medical care in Long Beach and in Oceanside. Mayor Michael McGinty of Island Park called South Nassau “the finest regional hospital on the Island,” noting it is “at the forefront of service and technology” and its medical staff “is without parallel both in capability and compassion for its patients.” McGinty praised the hospital’s expansion plans. “The administration continues to expand the ability of the Hospital to deliver extraordinary care to its patient population,” he said.

South Nassau took over the former Long Beach Medical Center in October of 2014 after it declared bankruptcy following damage from Superstorm Sandy. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded South Nassau $171 million in potential reimbursement funds to help restore medical services to the area. South Nassau has already spent $13 million to open an Urgent Care Center on the site of the former Long Beach Medical Center and upgrade it to a free-standing Emergency Department that started receiving ambulances via the 9-1-1 system as of Aug. 10th. The hospital has said it intends to spend about $40 million on a medical arts pavilion in Long Beach that would be the permanent home of the Long Beach Emergency Department as well as house other services identified by the needs assessment that Vladeck conducted. Under the ‘alternative use’ provision of FEMA legislation, South Nassau intends to spend the remaining FEMA funds to bolster services at its Oceanside campus to benefit Long Beach and other residents in its service area, which stretches from the Rockaways to the Massapequas.

South Nassau’s Oceanside Emergency Department is the only Level II Trauma Center on the South Shore of Nassau County.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees. The hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program.

The hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease.

For Immediate Release
January 18, 2016

Most Long Beach Residents Are Satisfied With Available Medical Care, According To A New Poll By National Firm

A survey of Long Beach residents has found 87 percent are satisfied with the medical care available to them in the area more than three years after the closing of the former Long Beach Medical Center following Superstorm Sandy.

In addition, fewer than 1 percent of all respondents cite the difficulty of getting to a medical facility as a major issue, the survey found.

Survey Results can be found HERE: South Nassau Long Beach Health Survey

More than 90 percent of residents typically go to a doctor’s office (69 percent), a health center (14 percent) or a walk-in clinic (10 percent) when they need medical care, the survey found Nearly 80 percent of respondents say they have a primary care physician while 21 percent do not. Forty-seven (47) percent of residents say their primary care physician was located on the barrier island, while 29 percent seek primary care off the island.

The telephone survey was conducted via both landlines and cell phones in early December with 300 adults on the barrier island. It was conducted at the request of South Nassau Communities Hospital as part of a study of the future medical needs of Long Beach residents. South Nassau acquired the assets of the former Long Beach Medical Center in October of 2014 after the Long Beach Medical Center declared bankruptcy.

The 5-minute telephone survey was conducted by a nationally recognized, independent polling firm, LJR Custom Strategies, which has offices in Washington, DC and New Orleans, LA. LJR has conducted more than 2,000 studies for a broad spectrum of health care, business, education, cultural, and political clients in almost every state in the country and around the world.

The telephone survey also found that nearly two-thirds of barrier island residents have a positive view of South Nassau Communities Hospital, which has served the Long Beach community for decades and has become an even more critical provider of services to barrier island residents following Sandy. Of the survey respondents, 66 percent say they have a “very positive” (32 percent) or “somewhat positive” (34 percent) opinion of the hospital with 18 percent voicing  a “neutral” opinion. Only 8 percent have a negative opinion of South Nassau (“somewhat negative” at 5 percent and “very negative” at 3 percent).

“We are grateful that most residents of the barrier island have a positive view of South Nassau,” said Richard J. Murphy, South Nassau’s President & CEO. “We are working every day to win the continued trust and loyalty of Long Beach residents. These poll findings will help us further refine our plans to provide for the future medical needs of barrier island residents and visitors.”

South Nassau opened an Urgent Care Center on the site of the former Long Beach Medical Center in the summer of 2014 and upgraded it to a free-standing Emergency Department that started receiving ambulances via the 9-1-1 system as of Aug. 10th of 2015.

When asked if they had visited an emergency room or a walk-in clinic during the past year, 69 percent of the respondents to the telephone survey indicate they have not while 31 percent have made such a visit. Only 7 percent have been admitted to a hospital during the past year. When Long Beach Medical Center was open, some 60 percent of the respondents to the poll said they had gone there for some type of medical treatment.

When asked what type of services they would be most likely to use if they were to be built on the barrier island, the most popular type of service was a family medical practice, with 49 percent saying they would likely use it. The facility with the second highest likely rate of usage was a physical therapy facility (15 percent), followed by an ambulatory surgery center (10 percent).   

The health survey was commissioned by South Nassau as part of a larger medical needs assessment study of the barrier island that is being conducted by Bruce C. Vladeck, the former head of the U.S. Health Care Financing Administration (now the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid) during the Clinton administration who later also served as the former President of the United Hospital Fund.

South Nassau commissioned the Vladeck study last year as part of its commitment to Long Beach to determine what medical services are most needed on the barrier island. As part of his study, Vladeck has interviewed key leaders from the civic, business & health care communities as well as federal, state and local elected officials. He also reviewed government data on where barrier island residents are receiving hospital care and for what diseases. The Vladeck study is expected to be issued publicly during the first quarter of 2016.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded South Nassau $171 million in potential reimbursement funds to help restore medical services to the area. The hospital has said it intends to spend about $40 million on a medical arts pavilion in Long Beach that would be the permanent home of the Long Beach Emergency Department as well as house other services identified by the needs assessment that Vladeck is conducting. South Nassau’s Oceanside Emergency Department is the only Level II Trauma Center on the South Shore of Nassau County.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees.  The hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services.  In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies.  South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program.

The hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease.

For Immediate Release
August 21, 2015

South Nassau Commences Demolition of Three Main Structures of the Former Long Beach Medical Center

Oceanside, NY — South Nassau Communities Hospital is taking another step in its ongoing effort to restore vital healthcare services to the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities with the start of the demolition of the Central, Founders, and East buildings of the former Long Beach Medical Center.

This past fall the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) agreed that the Central, Founders and East buildings should be demolished as the cost of repairs necessary to bring them into code compliance was cost prohibitive. The structures are part of South Nassau Communities Hospital’s acquisition of the former Long Beach Medical Center’s assets, which included land, buildings and equipment. SNCH formally acquired the properties in October of last year.

A complete abatement of each structure was conducted prior to the start of the demolition. The abatement included the complete removal of asbestos, lead, paint and mercury containing materials such as exterior siding, roof shingles, tar paper, pipe wrap and interior floor tiles. The abatement was approved by the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) and air monitoring was conducted as required by the DOL. The buildings have also been cleared of all equipment and furniture and the exterior has been secured to guard against intruders. A portion of E. Bay Street has been closed off to vehicular traffic as part of the demolition.

South Nassau officials have been working closely with City of Long Beach and regulatory agencies on the demolition. Cranes equipped with grapple claws will be the primary machinery used for the demolition of the Central, Founders and East buildings. To prevent machinery and construction vehicles from kicking up dust, the properties will be watered down during the demolition work. The path that will be used for hauling debris from the properties will be Lincoln Boulevard to Harrison St., then a right onto Long Beach Rd. Residents can expect some noise during work hours (such as the crackling of wood, the breaking of concrete, and the rumble of construction vehicles) as building materials are crushed or hauled away to a recycling facility.

As mandated by the City of Long Beach noise ordinance, the demolition work will begin no earlier than 8AM each day, with work occurring from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday. Funding for the demolition project is approved and obligated through the FEMA Public Assistance (PA) process.

South Nassau opened Long Island’s first free-standing Emergency Department in Long Beach on Aug. 10th and has been receiving patients and ambulances there around the clock, seven days a week. The facility underwent an $8 million upgrade and has received praise from elected officials, community leaders, patients and first responders.

The first facility of its kind on Long Island, South Nassau Emergency Department at Long Beach has six private treatment rooms, including an observation unit with three beds where patients can be held for up to 23 hours, a special room for infectious disease cases, a medical laboratory, a triage area, a behavioral treatment area, a decontamination room, a trauma room and advanced medical imaging department that includes an X-ray machine and a 64-slice CT scanner, which is the only operational CT scanner of any type in Long Beach and on the barrier island. The 6,300-square-foot facility has the capability to surge to meet increases in volume if needed. South Nassau also has ambulances stationed at the Long Beach facility, ready to transport patients to its main campus in Oceanside as the need arises.

Located at 325 East Bay Dr., adjacent to the Komanoff Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center, the facility operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and receives ambulances via the 9-1-1 system. As per existing New York State Department of Health protocol, all acute strokes, heart attacks and trauma patients transported by the 9-1-1 Emergency Medical System will by-pass the Long Beach Emergency Department and be brought to the appropriate state-designated hospital. Patients treated and stabilized at the Emergency Department who require hospital admission or advanced levels of treatment will be transferred by on-site ambulance service to South Nassau or the appropriate hospital.

In May, South Nassau established a partnership with the City of Long Beach to augment the City’s existing ambulance fleet by providing secondary backup for 9-1-1- ambulance calls. Under the agreement, South Nassau ambulances stationed at the Long Beach facility have been responding when needed as backup for 9-1-1 calls. South Nassau ambulances are staffed by paramedics who are able to communicate with physicians trained in emergency medicine to ensure proper treatment on the scene or while a patient is en route to the appropriate medical facility.

The agreement was preceded by South Nassau’s announcement in March to build a two-story, 30,000 square-feet Medical Arts Pavilion on the site of the former LBMC. In addition to serving as the future home of the emergency department, the facility could house suites for family medicine, behavioral health, ambulatory surgery, sports medicine and physical rehabilitation, dialysis and other medical services needed by residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities. South Nassau has commissioned a study – based on discharge and other data – to determine which services are most needed on the barrier island in the wake of SuperStorm Sandy. The study is ongoing and includes outreach to the barrier island communities and civic leaders. The projected cost of the Medical Arts Pavilion is $30 million and will represent another major investment by South Nassau in Long Beach.

For more information, call Damian Becker, South Nassau Communities Hospital’s External Affairs Office, at (516) 377-5370, or go to www.southnassaulongbeach.org. South Nassau is a recipient of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®–Target: Stroke Honor Roll-Elite Quality Achievement Award as well as the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Foundation Get With The Guidelines®–Heart Failure Silver-Plus Quality Achievement Award.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees. Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program. In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease.

For Immediate Release
April 14, 2015

South Nassau & City of Long Beach Partner to Improve EMS Ambulance System for Residents of the Barrier Island

Oceanside, NY — South Nassau Communities Hospital will partner with the City of Long Beach to augment the City’s existing ambulance fleet by providing secondary backup for 9-1-1- ambulance calls.

Under an agreement between the hospital and Long Beach, South Nassau ambulances stationed at the current Urgent Care Center in Long Beach will respond when needed as backup for 9-1-1 calls. South Nassau ambulances will be staffed by a paramedic who will be able to communicate with a physician trained in emergency medicine to ensure proper treatment on the scene or while a patient is en route.

“South Nassau has made a major commitment to improve medical services on the barrier island in the wake of Superstorm Sandy so this agreement with the City of Long Beach to provide secondary backup for 9-1-1- ambulance calls is a logical next step as part of our overall plan,” said Richard J. Murphy, President & CEO of South Nassau Communities Hospital. “This move should help improve response time for residents while better coordinating emergency care. We commend the City of Long Beach for taking steps to improve its pre-hospital EMS system and are proud to partner with the City on this important initiative.”

City officials praised South Nassau for agreeing to step forward to help the City improve its EMS response. “As recommended by public safety experts, the City and South Nassau are now working together to augment the City’s existing ambulance fleet with South Nassau’s ambulances, and institutional capabilities, creating synergies that will result in enhanced services for residents on our barrier island,” said Long Beach City Manager Jack Schnirman. “With more ambulances, at a lower cost, we are clearly ensuring a greater level of safety than ever before.”

“These ambulances provide the latest in pre-hospital care, using state-of-the-art technology-based solutions to coordinate patient care, during peak time hours, by paramedics staffed in advanced life support equipped ambulances,” said Fire Commissioner Scott Kemins. “It is also important to note that these ambulances will be secondary responses to our internal unit of paramedics.”

South Nassau’s involvement in the Long Beach EMS partnership will be overseen by Dr. Joshua Kugler, Chair of Emergency Medicine and Emergency Services Director who also serves as Chair of the Nassau County Regional Emergency Medical Advisory Committee. “This partnership is designed to improve the quality of emergency medical services for the residents of the barrier island,” said Dr. Kugler. “The way to improve patient outcomes is to provide proper treatment in the field where every moment matters before a patient even reaches an Emergency Room. We will be working closely with the City’s corps of paid and volunteer first responders to coordinate the best approach when we are called as backup to the City’s existing EMS response system.”

South Nassau announced last month that it intends to invest $5 million to upgrade its current Urgent Care Center – located on the grounds of the former Long Beach Medical Center – to an off-campus Emergency Department by July 1 (pending NYS Department of Health approval) that will operate 24/7 and will be able to receive ambulances via the 9-1-1 system. This move is expected to significantly reduce turnaround time for volunteer and paid ambulance crews across the barrier island. South Nassau’s Emergency Department in Long Beach will be staffed by nurses and physicians trained in emergency medicine. In addition, South Nassau has announced plans for a two-story, 30,000 sq. ft. Medical Arts Pavilion that would be the permanent home of its off-campus Emergency Department.

The EMS partnership with Long Beach combined with the off-campus emergency services department in Long Beach are two essential steps of South Nassau’s plan to improve medical services for barrier island residents.

SNUCC’s recently move into a temporary mobile urgent medical care unit located at the same street address, 325 East Bay Dr. in Long Beach, where it has been operating since first opening July 1, 2014. South Nassau took this action to expedite the $5 million expansion and to ensure that there is no disruption of residents’ access of hospital-quality urgent medical care.

Contingent on the timely review and approval of the Certificate of Need for the emergency services department recently filed with the New York State Department of Health, South Nassau expects the off-campus, emergency services department to be fully operational by July 1, 2015. In order to meet state requirements for certification as an off-campus Emergency Department, SNUCC requires significant upgrades including (but not limited to) an 600-square foot expansion to include three observation beds, an emergency generator, wider corridors and a new ventilation system. The $5 million investment in the expansion is in addition to the $5 million South Nassau invested to open SNUCC last July.

The emergency department will be staffed by physicians board-certified in emergency medicine. As per existing Department of Health protocol, all acute strokes, heart attacks and trauma patients transported by EMS will be brought to the appropriate state-designated hospital. Any patient who requires hospital admission or advanced levels of treatment will be transferred from the off-campus Emergency Department in Long Beach to the South Nassau campus in Oceanside, or the appropriate hospital. South Nassau, which services some 900,000 residents of the South Shore from Queens to Suffolk County, is a Level II trauma center and advanced cardiac center.

Since opening its doors to serve the Long Beach community, more than 2,400 patients have been treated at SNUCC. The center provides hospital grade treatment and triage by board-certified emergency service trained physicians for a wide array of urgent medical conditions as well as ambulatory care with subspecialty backup supported through an integrated information technology system connecting the center to South Nassau’s main campus in Oceanside. Care is provided on a walk-in basis, with no appointments required, 9AM-9PM Monday-Friday, and 10AM-8PM Saturday, Sunday and holidays. Patients who are assessed as in need of further emergency care or hospitalization are transported to South Nassau or the appropriate hospital via on-site ambulance services.

The Urgent Care Center combines with the Family Medicine Center at Long Beach to provide residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities a continuum of hospital-grade urgent care and family medicine. Since its separate opening in May of 2014, the Family Medicine Center at Long Beach has totaled 2,400 patient visits from residents of Long Beach.

South Nassau is the only hospital on Long Island to win four major awards for quality in recent months, including for nursing excellence, patient safety and top rankings from U.S. News & World Report & from the Joint Commission.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees.  Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, maternity, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies.  South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program. In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease.

For Immediate Release
March 18, 2015

South Nassau Unveils Plan to Build a Medical Arts Pavilion on the Barrier Island

‘Hospital Without Beds’ to House Permanent Off-campus Emergency Department and Other Needed Medical Services

Oceanside, NY — South Nassau Communities Hospital today announced plans to build a two-story, 30,000 square-foot Medical Arts Pavilion on the site of the former Long Beach Medical Center that would include an off-campus, hospital-based Emergency Department and restore other needed medical services to residents of the barrier island.

In addition to an around-the-clock Emergency Department, the new structure potentially could house suites for family medicine, behavioral health, dialysis, ambulatory surgery and other medical services. South Nassau has commissioned a study – based on discharge and other data – to determine which services are most needed on the barrier island in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, which forced the closing of the former Long Beach Medical Center more than two years ago.

The new Medical Arts Pavilion represents a major investment by South Nassau in Long Beach. It also would help restore jobs to the barrier island. South Nassau opened a temporary Urgent Care Center on the site in July of 2014 and last month the hospital announced a plan to spend an additional $5 million this year to upgrade the Urgent Care Center to an off-campus, hospital-based Emergency Department by July 1. The new Medical Arts Pavilion, which could be expanded to add a third floor if needed, would become the permanent home of the Emergency Department once the new Pavilion is constructed.

“Our mission is to restore needed medical services that were lost as a result of Sandy,” said Richard J. Murphy, South Nassau’s President & CEO. “This new pavilion demonstrates our commitment to Long Beach, Point Lookout, Lido Beach, Atlantic Beach and residents across the barrier island. It is essentially a ‘hospital without beds’ and will go a long way to addressing the community’s medical needs.”

SNCH Medical Arts Pavilion construction is contingent upon regulatory approvals, including from the New York State Department of Health. Once approved, construction would take an estimated 18-24 months.

To be constructed on the south side of East Bay Drive on land formerly occupied by abandoned houses that were severely damaged when SuperStorm Sandy slammed the Tri-State region on October 29, 2012, the SNCH Medical Arts Pavilion will be the permanent location of a full-service, 16-bay, 911-receiving off-campus, hospital based emergency department. It will also provide a continuum of healthcare programs, including diagnostic imaging suite with CT-scan, MRI, and X-ray capabilities.

The pavilion will also feature central family and patient waiting areas situated around landscaped courtyards, an energy-friendly ‘green’ roof and dedicated lounge spaces in patient care areas that incorporate natural light and exterior views of Reynolds Bay. Some 250 parking spaces will also be available for patients, staff and visitors to the facility. It is being designed by the Blitch/Knevel, an award-winning, New Orleans-based firm that specializes in healthcare facilities.

South Nassau officials have briefed local leaders on the plan and intend to hold additional information sessions throughout the service area during the coming months to solicit community input.

Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford, who represents Long Beach, praised South Nassau for moving to restore services to the community. “I am optimistic with this announcement as we will finally get our emergency room as well as other medical services,” Ford said. “This will provide a beginning for a renewed and revitalized medical campus that will better serve our community. The employment opportunities will realize a much needed boost to our economy.”

The Emergency Department at the new Pavilion will be staffed by nurses and physicians trained in emergency medicine and will be able to handle all emergency cases. However, as per existing Department of Health protocol, all acute strokes, heart attacks and trauma patients will be seen at the appropriate state-designated hospital. Even before the Long Beach Medical Center closed, such cases routinely bypassed the former hospital as per protocol. Any patient who requires hospital admission or advanced levels of treatment will be transferred from the off-campus Emergency Department in Long Beach to the South Nassau campus in Oceanside. South Nassau, which services some 900,000 residents of the South Shore from Queens to Suffolk County, is a Level II trauma center.

Since opening its doors to serve the Long Beach community six months ago, South Nassau’s Urgent Care Center at Long Beach (SNUCC) has treated more than 1,550 patients for a wide array of urgent medical conditions.

In mid-November, an expansion to the Urgent Care Center was completed, and it now houses a new 64-slice CT scanner. This is the only operational CT scanner on the barrier island. No other urgent care facility in Nassau County offers this superior level of on-site hospital-grade diagnostic imaging technology.
South Nassau is the only hospital on Long Island to win four major awards for quality in recent months, including for nursing excellence, patient safety and top rankings from U.S. News & World Report from the Joint Commission.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees.  Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, maternity, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program. In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease.

For Immediate Release
March 6, 2015

South Nassau to Host Information Day in Long Beach About Expanding Services on the Barrier Island

Oceanside, NY — South Nassau Communities Hospital encourages the residents of Long Beach and surrounding South Shore communities to attend an Information Day to be held Wednesday, March 18, from noon - 6PM at the Long Beach Hotel to learn about plans to provide additional healthcare services on the barrier island.

The six-hour information fair is being held in an effort to foster increased dialogue between residents of the barrier island and members of the hospital administration and staff in an informal, one-on-one setting.The March 18th Information Day is the first of a series of information sessions the hospital is planning to hold throughout its service area during the year.

“The exchange of information and the questions and comments received during the session will be welcomed and valued by our project team and will be used as a guide for us as we embark on the next phase of South Nassau’s mission to provide a high-quality healthcare delivery system that meets the needs of the communities now and in the many years to follow,” said Richard J. Murphy, president and CEO of South Nassau Communities Hospital.

The information session will include details about the planned upgrade of the South Nassau Urgent Care Center to an off-campus, hospital-based emergency services department. In addition, South Nassau experts will be available throughout the session to answer residents’ questions about the severe structural and mechanical damage to the former Long Beach Medical Center, building demolition process, and preliminary plans for former Long Beach Medical Center site and the delivery of medical and healthcare services.

Residents are encouraged to come at any time between noon and 6 pm to view the exhibit and speak personally to South Nassau representatives.

Report Advises Against Reopening of Former Long Beach Emergency Department in Previous Location Code issues cited; Other Locations Being Considered

Reopening an Emergency Department in a shuttered Long Beach Medical Center building is not advisable due to outstanding code and structural deficiencies, according to an independent analysis by a leading architectural firm.

Citing significant damage to electrical, mechanical, environmental and life safety systems in the former Long Beach Medical Center’s West and Main buildings, the architects, Blitch Knevel, conclude that it would be “cost and time prohibitive” to attempt repairs required by federal and state regulators.

South Nassau Communities Hospital, which now controls the former Long Beach Medical Center site, had explored obtaining waivers on some of the code issues. However, the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) declined to grant waivers for more than 80 code compliance failures, including ones involving wind and earthquake protection as well as upgrades needed to meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandates. The analysis, conducted and prepared by Blitch Knevel Architects based in New Orleans, LA, found that the buildings are not code compliant in 88 categories covering structural, mechanical, electrical and plumbing areas, including:

• New duct distribution systems
• New exhaust systems
• New hot water system
• New water distribution system
• New boilers and steam distribution system
• Full building fires sprinkler upgrades
• Relocation of fire pump New emergency and normal power systems with service separation requirements
• New lighting and power New IT, nurse call, patient monitor and phone systems
• Seismic and lateral upgrades (for wind and earthquake protection) to comply with code revisions, including additional structure and strengthening of existing structural elements
• ADA upgrades and additional toilets/parking/ramping requirements.
  

Additional code compliance failures in the buildings include the lack of a centralized waste collection and storage area as well as a refrigerated storage facility for laboratory services. Prior to its filing for bankruptcy in February 2014 and South Nassau’s acquisition of its assets in October 2014, the former LBMC was permitted to remain open under numerous code deficiencies (including those mentioned above) with permission from the state and CMS.

After SNCH closed on the assets acquisition of the shuttered medical center, the process of reinvestigating the reopening of its ED commenced. However, due to the time lapse between the 2013 proposal by the management of the former LBMC to reopen the ED and the transfer of control of its assets to SNCH, CMS informed the DOH and SNCH that it would not renew the compliance waivers and that the West and Main buildings needed to be renovated and rebuilt to all current federal and state codes and standards for healthcare.

“South Nassau is focused on improving emergency care services for the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities,” said Richard J. Murphy, South Nassau’s president and CEO. “We are committed to establishing an off-campus, hospital based emergency services department in Long Beach by July 1 to benefit the needs of the residents and visitors to Long Beach and the other barrier island communities.” South Nassau plans to invest $4.5 million to upgrade the Long Beach Urgent Care Center to an off-campus, hospital-based emergency department that will be able to receive 911 ambulance calls. Operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, the facility will provide treatment for all medical emergencies.. As per existing Department of Health protocol, however, all acute strokes, heart attacks and trauma patients will be seen at the appropriate state-designated hospital. Any patient who requires hospital admission or advanced levels of treatment will be transferred from the off-campus Emergency Department in Long Beach to the South Nassau campus in Oceanside. South Nassau, which services some 900,000 residents of the South Shore from Queens to Suffolk County, is a Level II trauma center.

Since opening its doors to serve the Long Beach community six months ago, South Nassau’s Urgent Care Center at Long Beach (SNUCC) has treated more than 1,550 patients for a wide array of urgent medical conditions. Of the 1,555 residents treated at SNUCC, 1,475 were discharged to home after receiving the healthcare services that they needed. Another 65 were discharged via ambulances services provided by SNUCC, with 62 transported to South Nassau Communities Hospital’s emergency services department in Oceanside, where 40 were treated and released, 20 were admitted to the hospital, and two were admitted for observation before being discharged home.

In mid-November, an expansion to SNUCC was completed, and it now houses a new 64-slice CT scanner. This is the only operational CT scanner on the barrier island, and no other urgent care facility in Nassau County offers this superior level of on-site hospital-grade diagnostic imaging technology.

Located at 325 East Bay Drive (just west of the Komanoff Center for Geriatric and Rehabilitative Medicine), the 4,700-square-foot SNUCC houses 10 private examination rooms, two procedure rooms and radiology imaging and laboratory suites. Care is provided on a walk-in basis, with no appointments required, 9AM-9PM Monday-Friday, and 10AM-8PM Saturday, Sunday and holidays. Patients who are assessed as in need of further emergency care or hospitalization are transported to South Nassau or the hospital of their choice via on-site ambulance services.

Since its separate opening in May of 2014, the Family Medicine Center at Long Beach has totaled 1,667 patient visits from residents of Long Beach. SNUCC and the Family Medicine Center at Long Beach combined to provide residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities a continuum of hospital-grade urgent medical care and family medicine. South Nassau’s Family Medicine Center at Long Beach (located at 761 Franklin Blvd.) is an extension of South Nassau’s Family Medicine Center located on Merrick Rd. in Oceanside. Long Beach residents in need of quality, compassionate family medicine and a family practice physician can call the office at (516) 544-2351 to schedule an appointment.

For Immediate Release
February 26, 2015

South Nassau Plans to Upgrade Urgent Care Center to Off-Campus Emergency Department in Long Beach by July

 South Nassau Communities Hospital’s president and CEO, Richard J. Murphy, announced today that South Nassau will submit a Certificate of Need (CON) to the New York State Department of Health in March to seek approval to upgrade the South Nassau Urgent Care Center in Long Beach to an off-campus, hospital-based Emergency Services Department that will be able to receive ambulances via the 911 network.

Assuming timely review and approval of South Nassau’s CON application, the hospital’s goal is to have the free-standing emergency services department fully operational by July 1st, 2015. South Nassau estimates it will cost $4.5 million to upgrade the existing Long Beach Urgent Care Center to an off-campus Emergency Department. The new $4.5 million is in addition to the $5 million South Nassau has already invested to establish the Urgent Care Center, which was opened last July.

In order to meet state requirements for certification as  an off-campus Emergency Department, the Long Beach Urgent Care Center will need significant upgrades including (but not limited to) an emergency generator, wider corridors and a new ventilation system.

“From the beginning of this process nearly two years ago, South Nassau has been clear in its
intention to help restore needed medical services to the barrier island,” said Mr. Murphy.  “This is an important next step in building a patient-centered, high-quality healthcare delivery system that provides vital healthcare services to the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities.”

Elected officials representing Long Beach applauded South Nassau’s effort to establish an off-campus Emergency Department at the Urgent Care Center on the barrier island.

“Today's announcement signifies an important next step in providing an ambulance-receiving emergency department to residents of Long Beach and the barrier island," said Senate Majority Leader Dean G. Skelos. "I want to thank South Nassau for their commitment to my constituents and I look forward to continuing to work with all parties as this project moves forward and as a more comprehensive, long term plan for Long Beach is developed.”

The off-campus Emergency Department in Long Beach will be staffed by certified emergency nurses and physicians board-certified in emergency medicine. As per existing Department of Health protocol, all acute strokes, heart attacks and trauma patients will be seen at the appropriate state-designated hospital. Any patient who requires hospital admission or advanced levels of treatment will be transferred from the off-campus Emergency Department in Long Beach to the South Nassau campus in Oceanside, or a hospital of their choosing. South Nassau, which services some 900,000 residents of the South Shore from Queens to Suffolk County, is a Level II trauma center and advanced cardiac center

More than 1,555 patients have been treated at South Nassau’s Urgent Care Center, which opened in July of 2014.  The center provides hospital grade treatment and triage by board-certified emergency service trained physicians for a wide array of urgent medical conditions as well as ambulatory care with subspecialty backup supported through an integrated information technology system connecting the center to South Nassau’s main campus in Oceanside.  The facility, located at 325 East Bay Drive (just west of the Komanoff Center for Geriatric and Rehabilitative Medicine), houses 10 private examination rooms, two procedure rooms, radiology and CT imaging and laboratory suites.

“The upgrade of the Urgent Care Center will allow us to continue our mission of providing for the health care needs of residents and visitors on the barrier island,” said Dr. Joshua Kugler, South Nassau’s Director of Emergency Services and the Chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine. “We are already an integral part of the health care community in Long Beach and this initiative will move us forward.”

The urgent care center combines with the Family Medicine Center at Long Beach (which was established in May of 2014 by South Nassau), to provide residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities a continuum of hospital-grade urgent care and family medicine.  Family Medicine Center at Long Beach (located at 761 Franklin Blvd.) is an extension of South Nassau’s Family Medicine Center located on Merrick Rd. in Oceanside.
           
“South Nassau appreciates the support it has received on the effort to upgrade the Urgent Care Center to an off-campus Emergency Department from local elected officials and community leaders. We look forward to continuing a dialogue with the community about the future of the former Long Beach Medical Center campus,” said Murphy.

"Restoring services at Long Beach Hospital has been one of my top priorities,” said Assemblyman Todd Kaminsky. “Barrier Island residents have fought hard for improved hospital coverage since Hurricane Sandy--so it is heartening that our efforts so far have led to this commitment by South Nassau. However, more must still be done to restore proper medical services to the island. Today I look forward to a safer summer in our community; tomorrow we will continue to work with South Nassau to ensure that it provides adequate healthcare coverage to local residents.”
             
“It has been a pleasure working with the administration of South Nassau Communities Hospital and I look forward to the ongoing rebuilding of medical services at the former Long Beach Medical Center,” said Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford. “This emergency room is a first positive step and will provide much needed care for the residents on the barrier island.”
             
"We are pleased that South Nassau has responded to the call of the City Council and the community, and committed to opening a 911-receiving emergency room this summer," said City Council Vice President Fran Adelson.

A public Information Day is being planned for March in Long Beach as an opportunity for residents of the barrier island to speak directly to South Nassau officials about plans for the former Long Beach Medical Center campus.

For Immediate Release
February 10, 2015

On Tuesday, February 10, South Nassau will begin the installation of Perma-Hedge fencing for the Long Beach campus. Installation will take place in accordance with the city’s noise ordinance. Work is expected to take place Feb 10-21, 2015, weather permitting. A sample installation of the fence, which will be 6 feet high, is shown. In addition to increasing the security of the hospital and other buildings, the fencing will enhance the aesthetics of the property. The aerial photo depicts the finished fenceline, which comprises new, and a small portion of existing, fence, all of which will be fitted with Perma-Hedge for property aesthetics.

For more information, call Damian Becker, South Nassau Communities Hospital’s External Affairs Office, at (516) 377-5370.

For Immediate Release
Update January 19, 2015

South Nassau Seeks Contractor to Demolish Three Main Structures of Former Long Beach Medical Center, Pending Federal Approval
As part of the ongoing effort by South Nassau Communities Hospital (SNCH)  to restore medical services to the Long Beach community, a request for proposals and an application for the demolition of the Central, Founders, and East building of the former Long Beach Medical Center was recently filed by SNCH.

The demolition, slated for the spring, includes four hospital-owned properties located near the former medical center’s campus at 405, 416, 420, 426, and 430 East Bay Blvd.

The structures have been abandoned and in decay since being severely damaged during Superstorm Sandy.  This past fall it was determined, with approval from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), that the Central, Founders and East buildings should be demolished as the cost of repairs necessary to bring them into code compliance was cost prohibitive. The structures are part of South Nassau Communities Hospital’s acquisition of the former Long Beach Medical Center’s assets, which included land, buildings and equipment. SNCH formally acquired the properties in October of last year.

Demolition of the structures is tentatively scheduled to begin in the spring, pending Congressional approval of FEMA funding.  The demolition will be preceded by an abatement of each structure to completely remove all asbestos containing materials such as exterior siding, roof shingles, tar paper, pipe wrap and interior floor tiles.  The abatement will be approved by the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) and, as required by the DOL, air monitoring will be performed by a third party company.

The former Long Beach Medical Center buildings have been cleared of all equipment and furniture and the exterior has been secured to guard against unauthorized access.  Later this month, temporary power and light are scheduled to be turned off.  SNCH is working with the City of Long Beach to provide additional exterior lighting for safety.  In addition, a portion of E. Bay Street will be closed to vehicular traffic as part of the demolition plan.

SNCH officials have been working closely with City of Long Beach officials and regulatory agencies on the demolition plan. The Request for Proposals (RFP) for a demolition contractor is being advertised locally. Funding for the estimated $6 million demolition project has been approved by FEMA but the funds must be allocated by Congress. Once a contractor has been selected and final approval from Congress has been obtained, cranes equipped with grapple claws will be primary machinery used for the demolition of the Central, Founders and East buildings.  To prevent machinery and construction vehicles from kicking up dust, the properties will be watered down during the demolition work.  If a property is not completely cleared of debris and rough graded at the end of a shift, it will be closed off with temporary fencing.  The path that will be used for hauling debris from the properties will be Lincoln Boulevard to Harrison St., then a right onto Long Beach Rd.  Residents can expect some noise during work hours (such as the crackling of wood, the breaking of concrete, and the rumble of construction vehicles) as building materials are crushed or hauled away to a recycling facility.

As mandated by the City of Long Beach noise ordinance, the demolition work will begin no earlier than 8AM each day, with work occurring from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday.

The demolition is a continuation of South Nassau’s ongoing work to effect positive change on the Long Beach campus as it prepares to build a patient-centered, high-quality healthcare delivery system that restores vital healthcare services to the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities.

The SNCH plan includes a significant investment for an off-campus, hospital-based 911-receiving emergency medical center.  Operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, the facility will provide treatment for urgent as well as emergent medical conditions.  South Nassau is working closely with the New York State Department of Health to accomplish this goal and remains in close consultation with officials from the City of Long Beach as well as other elected and community leaders.

Currently, Long Beach residents can access care at South Nassau Communities Hospital Urgent Care Center (SNUCC), which was opened in July of last year at a site adjacent to the shuttered Long Beach Medical Center. Patients who are assessed as in need of further emergency care or hospitalization are transported to the nearest appropriate hospital by South Nassau’s on-site ambulance services.  Equipped with the only operational CT scanner on the barrier island, SNUCC is equipped with the same medical imaging and diagnostic equipment that is used by a hospital-based emergency services department.  Its staff is comprised of board-certified emergency medicine physicians and emergency medicine trained nurses.

For more information, call Damian Becker, South Nassau Communities Hospital’s External Affairs Office, at (516) 377-5370, or go to www.southnassauLongeach.org.

Designated a Magnet® hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau® Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees.  Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services.  In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx™ and Gamma Knife® radiosurgery technologies.  South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program.  In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commission’s gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and joint replacement, wound care and end-stage renal disease. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org.

For Immediate Release
Update: January 14, 2015

Demolition Work on Residential Proceeding Ahead of Schedule

As of January 14, 2015, properties at 415 and 425 E. State Street, Long Beach, have been demolished and backfilled. Work is proceeding on property at 479 E. State Street, ahead of schedule, and is expected to be completed by January 17. Selected photos are shown below, and more photos can be seen in our on our facebook site's Long Beach Medical Campus Progress album at www.facebook.com/SouthNassau.

For Immediate Release
Update: January 12, 2015

Demolition Work on Residential Properties Commences Monday, January 12

On January 12, 2015, South Nassau Communities Hospital will begin the demolition of four hospital-owned properties located near the former medical center campus at 758 and 760 Lincoln Boulevard, a duplex, and 415, 425 and 479 State Street. All demolition work, which will be performed by T&D Associates, is expected to be completed during the week of January 26.

As mandated by the City of Long Beach noise ordinance, the demolition work will begin no earlier than 8AM each day, with work occurring from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. The planned schedule for the demolition work is as follows:

415 & 425 E. State: Start date of January 12 - January 15;
479 E. State: Start date of January 15 - January 20;
758 & 760 Lincoln (duplex): Start date of January 20 - January 26.

The demolition work follows the complete abatement of each structure, which involved the removal of asbestos-containing materials such as exterior siding, roof shingles, tar paper, pipe wrap and interior floor tiles. The abatement was approved by the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) and, as required by the DOL, air monitoring was performed by a third-party company.

For more information, call Damian Becker in South Nassau Communities Hospital’s External Affairs Office, at (516) 377-5370.

For Immediate Release
Update: January 9, 2015

Demolition of Residential Properties Expected to Begin Monday, January 12

The demolition of the residential properties referenced in our December 22, 2014 release below is expected to begin on Monday, January 12, 2015.

As mandated by the City of Long Beach noise ordinance, the demolition work will begin no earlier than 8AM each day, with work occurring from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

The demolition is a continuation of South Nassau’s ongoing work to effect positive change on the Long Beach campus as it prepares to build a patient-centered, high-quality healthcare delivery system that restores vital healthcare services to the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities.

For more information, call Gail Carlin, Director of Community Relations, at (516) 377-5370.

For Immediate Release
Update: January 8, 2015

Demolition of Residential Properties Delayed

The demolition of the residential properties referenced in our December 22, 2014 release below has been delayed because the hospital has not received official letters of notification from PSEG that the properties have been disconnected from the electric power grid.  South Nassau will post an updated schedule for the demolition work as soon as it receives the letters from PSEG.

For Immediate Release
December 22, 2014

Demolition Work Scheduled for Hospital-Owned Properties

Oceanside, NY – On December 22, 2014, South Nassau Communities Hospital will begin the demolition of four hospital-owned properties located near the former medical center campus at 758 and 760 Lincoln Boulevard and 415, 425 and 479 State Street.  All demolition work, which will be performed by T&D Associates, is expected to be completed during the week of January 5.

The properties have been abandoned and in decay since being damaged beyond repair during Superstorm Sandy.  The properties are part of South Nassau Communities Hospital’s acquisition of the former Long Beach Medical Center’s assets, which included land, buildings and equipment.

As mandated by the City of Long Beach noise ordinance, the demolition work will begin no earlier than 8AM each day, with work occurring from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.  The schedule for the demolition work is as follows:

415 and 425 E. State St. - December 22 – December 24;
479 E. State St. - December 29 – January 2, 2015;
758/760 duplex E. State St. - to be completed the week of January 5, 2015.

To prevent machinery and construction vehicles from kicking up dust, the properties will be watered down during the demolition work.  If a property is not completely cleared of debris and rough graded at the end of a shift, it will be closed off with temporary orange snow fencing.  The path that will be used for hauling debris from the properties will be Lincoln Boulevard to Harrison St., then a right onto Long Beach Rd.  Residents can expect some noise during work hours (such as the crackling of wood, the breaking of concrete, and the rumble of construction vehicles) as building materials are crushed or hauled away to a recycling facility

The demolition work follows the complete abatement of each structure, which involved the removal of asbestos containing materials such as exterior siding, roof shingles, tar paper, pipe wrap and interior floor tiles.  The abatement was approved by the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) and, as required by the DOL, air monitoring was performed by a third party company.

The demolition is a continuation of South Nassau’s ongoing work to effect positive change on the Long Beach campus as it prepares to build a patient-centered, high-quality healthcare delivery system that restores vital healthcare services to the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities.

For more information, call Damian Becker, South Nassau Communities Hospital’s External Affairs Office, at (516) 377-5370, or go to www.southnassaulongbeach.org.