South Nassau Carnation Ball Raises $607,763 in Support of Emergency Department Expansion

LYNBROOK, N.Y. - Jan. 11, 2016 - PRLog -- Supporters of South Nassau Communities Hospital raised a net total of $607,763 at the Hospital’s 2015 Annual Carnation Ball held Saturday, November 7 at the Crest Hollow Country Club in Westbury.

South Nassau administrators, board members and medical staff members, as well as many of the region’s healthcare executives, state and local public officials and business and community leaders were among the 628 guests who attended the event.

“We are very grateful to all of the hospital’s supporters for making this our most successful event to date,” said   Richard J. Murphy, president and CEO of South Nassau. “Our Emergency Department in Oceanside is in need of expansion and renovation and these funds will help us accomplish the needed work so we can better serve the communities along the South Shore.”

The money raised by the 2015 Carnation Ball will support South Nassau’s “Emergency Department Expansion Campaign.”  The campaign is a five-year, $10 million fundraising initiative to help support a $60 million renovation and expansion of the Oceanside Emergency Department, serving all residents of the South Shore from Queens to Suffolk. The expansion project will increase the Emergency Department’s square footage from 16,000 to 30,000 square feet, increasing its overall size by 87% and giving it the necessary room to accommodate in excess of 80,000 patient visits each year as well as establishing dedicated areas for behavioral health and pediatric emergencies. The Emergency Department currently sees some 65,000 patients a year but was designed to handle 35,000 annually.

The renovated Emergency Department will also have separate areas for behavioral health, pediatric and geriatric patients.

The gala at the Crest Hollow Country Club featured a new electronic Text2Pledge event that allowed supporters to use their cell phones to donate money in real time to the Emergency Department cause. Sen. Alfonse D’Amato, a hospital supporter who attended, used the Text2Pledge feature to donate $10,000 from his family’s foundation.

Bruce C. Ratner, Executive Chairman of Forest City Ratner Companies, was the honoree of the Ball, while Joshua Kugler, MD, FACEP, FAAEM, South Nassau’s chair of the department of emergency medicine, was presented the Mary Pearson Award and Yondeibi Espinal, a lead environmental services aide, was the recipient of the inaugural Cupola Award.

“It is an honor to be recognized by a medical center that is as impactful as South Nassau Communities Hospital,” said Mr. Ratner. “With the number of patients seen on a daily basis, there is no question that this hospital serves a major need in Nassau County and it is imperative that we help it fulfill its vital mission.”

Mr. Ratner vowed to stay involved in the Emergency Department expansion project.

The hospital’s Mary Pearson Award is presented to an individual for extraordinary effort and contributions that significantly advance South Nassau’s commitment to compassionate care and standard setting healthcare services.  Dr. Kugler’s 15-year tenure as chair of the department of emergency medicine at South Nassau is marked by leadership, innovation and advancements in emergency medical care.

“I am humbled by this award,” said Dr. Kugler.  “It is a privilege to work at South Nassau and have the opportunity to work with and lead a tremendously talented group of professionals.”

Dr. Kugler has been deeply involved in the successful launch of South Nassau’s Emergency Department in Long Beach while overseeing the hospital’s busy Emergency Department in Oceanside.  South Nassau restored emergency medical healthcare services to the residents of Long Beach on Aug. 10^th and surrounding communities with the opening of the South Nassau Emergency Department at Long Beach, located on the site of the shuttered Long Beach Medical Center.  The facility is Long Island’s first off-campus, hospital-based emergency department.  In addition to his administrative duties, Dr. Kugler puts in regular shifts in the Emergency Departments, including overnight and weekend duties.

The emergency department at South Nassau’s main campus in Oceanside, meanwhile, has cemented its status as one of Long Island’s most efficient and advanced under Dr. Kugler’s guidance.  The department is designated a regional Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health, and has also been awarded the Get With The Guidelines® Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award the past three years.  In addition to his role as chair of emergency medicine, Dr. Kugler also serves as the co-chair of the ED Steering committee and serves actively across several other integral operational committees, including EMR steering, utilization and Emergency Management.  He is the Medical Director for the Oceanside Fire Department and supports the Nassau County Police Department.

South Nassau established the Cupola Award to be presented annually to a deserving  member of the hospital community who goes above and beyond their duties and lives by the hospital mission to promote excellence in healthcare.  “The Building Services leadership team is proud of Yondeibi for being chosen to receive the award, as he is an asset not just to the department but to this institution,” said Michael Rodriguez, Administrative Director of Building Services.

South Nassau’s 2014 Employee of the Year, Mr. Espinal started working at the hospital in March of 2006.  Since then he has forged an infectious can-do attitude and is known for his trademark, 5-word response to any task or challenge: “No problem, we get it done.”

“There are so many people I work with who are just as deserving of this award,” said Mr. Espinal.  “My successes are their successes and the quality of my work is due to the quality of their work.  We do it all for the patients and their families.”