– Focuses on Improving Care for Older Adult Patients –
January 1, 2013 Saint Peter's Healthcare System Community Calendar Featured Article.
Saint Peter’s University Hospital has achieved “Senior Friendly” status for its NICHE (Nurses Improving Care
for Healthsystem Elders) program. NICHE
hospitals such as Saint Peter’s commit
to excellence in the care of patients 65-years- and-older.
The “Senior Friendly” status recognizes that Saint Peter’s has put in place a variety of programs, such as
Care Companions and Silver Spoons, to assist senior patients. The first program calls for volunteers to keep
elder patients company; the second program provides assistance
during meals. Additionally, the hospital has invested time and resources to:
- implement the NICHE Geriatric Resource Nurse (GRN) model,
- develop aging-sensitive policies, and
- obtain input of patients, families, and community-based providers in planning and implementation of NICHE initiatives.
The vision of NICHE is for all patients 65-andolder
to be given sensitive and exemplary care.
The Geriatric Resource Nurse model, an
educational and clinical intervention initiative,
calls for NICHE hospitals to train staff nurses
as clinical resource persons on geriatric
issues for other nurses on their unit. Based
at New York University Hospital, NICHE is an
international program designed to help
hospitals improve the care of older adults.
“The NICHE designation and the ‘Senior
Friendly’ status are proof of our commitment
to quality, patient-centered care for older
adults,” says Linda Carroll, MSN, RN-BC,
director of Professional Practice and
Clinical Education and Nursing Research
Education at Saint Peter’s University
Hospital. “Our participation in the NICHE
program allows us to continually maintain the
high standard of care that has always been
available at Saint Peter’s. This leads to greater
satisfaction rates for our patients, their families
and our staff.”
In the United States, 8,000 people turn 65
every day. By the end of 2011, the senior
population of America reached almost 49
million. By 2025, it is expected to grow to
nearly 72 million, according to the Department
of Health and Human Services and the State
Department.
Seniors can be at risk for certain conditions,
including anxiety, dementia, depression, falls,
incontinence, osteoporosis, and pain. In
addition to NICHE initiatives, Saint Peter’s
integrated outpatient geriatric medicine
program specializes in the diagnosis and
treatment of disease and the maintenance
of good health and quality of life.
As people age, their medical issues tend to
become more complex, explains Saint Peter’s
geriatrician Shira Goldberg, M.D. “When
developing a care plan for geriatric patients,
physicians must use an
interdisciplinary approach that
incorporates not only medical,
but also the patient’s social
and psychological needs.
A patient’s values and
preferences need to be
investigated and integrated
into their individualized
treatment plan.”
An interdisciplinary team of board-certified
physicians and healthcare professionals,
all of whom are trained in geriatric medicine,
works with patients and their families to
develop a comprehensive plan of care for
improved overall quality of life.
Areas of specialty at Saint Peter’s include:
diabetes; diagnosis and treatment of
depression and anxiety; diagnosis and
treatment of memory loss; hormone
replacement therapy; minimally invasive
surgery; nutrition; orthopedic services,
including hip resurfacing and knee
replacement; pain management; promoting
and maintaining health, strength and
functional abilities; and wound care and
hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) for
nonhealing chronic wounds.
Saint Peter’s is also designated as a
primary stroke center. The hospital is staffed
by a specialized stroke team that includes
emergency physicians, neurologists and
nurses with special training in acute stroke
management who are available 24-hours-aday,
seven-days-a-week.
Programs and Services
Outpatient services at
Saint Peter’s include
Geriatric Evaluation and
Management Services
(GEMS), a comprehensive
assessment program
that helps healthcare
professionals diagnose
and develop a plan of
care for patients who
suffer from Alzheimer’s
disease and other forms
of dementia. The Wound
Care Center® and
Hyperbaric Services at
Saint Peter’s University
Hospital counts among
the specialty services
provided for seniors. With
locations in Saint Peter’s
Center for Ambulatory
Resources in New
Brunswick and in a
new facility in Monroe
Township, the center is
a leader in the surgical
and nonsurgical treatment
of chronic non-healing
wounds. Patients are treated by a multidisciplinary
team of board-certified physicians
that includes general surgeons, vascular
surgeons, plastic surgeons, internists,
geriatricians, infectious disease specialists,
physiatrists and clinical wound specialists.
The hospital’s three Comprehensive Care
Group medical practices – in New Brunswick,
Piscataway, and at the new Monroe Township
facility – focus on providing primary and
specialty care for seniors, as well as resources
for their caregivers. With a focus on quality of
life, the goal is to provide patients with
services and programs that help to maintain
their health, and independence, and enhance
their daily living.
Other outpatient resources include: