Radiation Therapist Named Manager of Radiation Oncology Services

July 7, 2010 - PRLog -- South Nassau Communities Hospital recently named Kyongah Hwang manager of its Center for Comprehensive Radiation Services and Long Island Gamma Knife® Center.  Ms. Hwang previously served as a senior radiation therapist at the prestigious Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ.

"South Nassau’s radiation oncology program continues to grow rapidly to meet the needs of the patients and the communities," said Edward Mullen, MD, director of radiation oncology and co-medical director of Long Island Gamma Knife®.  “Kyongah has the expertise and experience that will help us build on our high standards and improve on the services and care that we provide.”

Ms. Hwang’s responsibilities include initiating performance improvement strategies for patients, physician, and staff satisfaction; research and deployment of new radiation therapy technologies; updating technical policies and procedures; and spearheading the department’s accreditation process with organizations such as the American College of Radiology and The Joint Commission.

A certified radiation therapist by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists, Ms. Hwang earned a Master of Business Administration specializing in health systems management from Fairleigh Dickinson University, Teaneck, NJ, and a Bachelor of Science in Radiation Therapy Technology from Manhattan College, Riverdale, NY.

South Nassau’s Center for Comprehensive Radiation Services is accredited by the American College of Radiology (ACR).  The prestigious ACR accreditation includes on-site surveys and evaluations conducted by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in radiation oncology.  The center recently introduced the Varian Novalis Tx, the medical industry’s most advanced radiosurgery system.  The system delivers fast, precise, noninvasive radiosurgical treatments for the array of malignant cancers and benign lesions, including brain, prostate, lung, spine, and liver; previously irradiated sites and arteriovenous malformations.

In addition to South Nassau, the Novalis Tx is used by leading academic institutions and regional medical centers, including Duke University, UCLA, Brigham and Women's Hospital/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute,and the Henry Ford Health System.  The system incorporates two complementary imaging systems: an in-room X-ray imaging system providing real-time imaging and fine-tuning that ensures that the targeted lesion is aligned with the treatment beam during treatment and a cone-beam CT imaging system that generates a 3-D image of the targeted lesion and surrounding tissues, so clinicians can see the precise location and shape of the tumor, fine-tune the patient's position, and make sure that the internal anatomy has not shifted or changed prior to treatment.

As part of its advanced diagnostic and radiation oncology technologies and treatments, the center also includes the following services:

South Nassau Long Island Gamma Knife Center (Oceanside).  The Gamma Knife is a powerful radiosurgery tool that is the treatment of choice for deep-seated brain abnormalities, including tumors that would otherwise be considered inoperable.  

South Nassau’s Center for Prostate Health (Oceanside).  In addition to prostate brachytherapy, radiosurgery using the Novalis Tx, external beam radiation, hormone therapy and watchful waiting, the program now offers minimally-invasive, robotic assisted prostate cancer surgery performed by skilled surgeons who use the revolutionary Da Vinci robot surgical system.  The center also provides comprehensive education and counseling for patients and their primary physicians in prostate cancer treatment.

South Nassau is the only hospital on Long Island with a Gamma Knife and the new Varian Novalis Tx. To schedule a consultation or for more information about South Nassau’s Cancer Program, call 516-632-3350, or visit southnassau.org.

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South Nassau Communities Hospital is one of the region’s largest hospitals, with 435 beds, more than 875 physicians and 2,800 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 recognized as a Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org.