April 25, 2012 – Hallmark Health System, which includes Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford and Melrose-Wakefield Hospital, is pleased to announce that the organization has been named to the Boston Business Journal’s “Best Places to Work” list for the ninth year in a row. The award recognizes organizations’ achievements in creating a positive work environment that attracts and retains employees through a combination of employee satisfaction, working conditions and company culture.

“Our Best Places to Work event will again recognize the importance of cultivating a great workplace culture as a competitive advantage," said Chris McIntosh, publisher of the Boston Business Journal. "Companies on our list can be justifiably proud of creating a high level of workplace satisfaction during an economy where traditional rewards like big raises and bonuses aren't as easy to give. In good times and in bad, our results validate how the creation of the right corporate culture can create powerful business advantages. Employees are proud to work for companies that are about more than just business.”

Hallmark Health System is recognized as one of the best large-size businesses in Massachusetts based on the results of employee-satisfaction surveys taken throughout March and April. Employees answered questionnaires that addressed such factors as their pride in the company, company encouragement, support and recognition of achievement and relationships with co-workers and supervisors. The results were analyzed and scored by assigning points to each question. The organization, along with the other honorees, will be recognized during a breakfast on June 1 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center and profiled in a special supplement of the Boston Business Journal.

In addition to the Boston Business Journal recognition, Hallmark Health System has also been named to the Boston Globe’s Top Places to Work for the past three years.

For more information about Hallmark Health System, visit www.hallmarkhealth.org or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/hallmarkhealth.

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Hallmark Health System is the premier, charitable provider of vital health services to Boston's northern communities. The system includes Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford; Melrose Wakefield Hospital, Melrose; Hallmark Health Hematology and Oncology Center, Stoneham; The CHEM Center for MRI, Stoneham; Hallmark Health Medical Center, Reading; Hallmark Health VNA and Hospice; Lawrence Memorial/Regis College Nursing and Radiography Programs, Medford and Hallmark Health Medical Associates, Inc. Hallmark Health is affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital for cardiology and Tufts Medical Center for neonatology and the Joslin Diabetes Center for diabetes care.

April 20, 2012 – Hallmark Health System is proud to announce that both Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford and Melrose-Wakefield Hospital have been granted a three-year accreditation in the area of Adult Transthoracic Echocardiography by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC).

The IAC accreditation is a seal of approval that patients can rely on as an indication that the facility has been carefully critiqued in all aspects of its operations by a panel of national medical experts in the field of echocardiography (heart/cardiac ultrasound).

Early detection of life threatening heart disorders and other diseases is possible through the use of echocardiography.  Echocardiography is the procedure of choice for most patients with valvular heart disease and immensely useful in the care and diagnosis of coronary artery disease.

The accreditation means both hospitals have undergone a thorough review of operational and technical components by a panel of experts. The IAC only grants accreditation to facilities that are found to provide quality patient care in compliance with national standards through a detailed process including case study review.

For more information about Hallmark Health System, visit www.hallmarkhealth.org or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/hallmarkhealth.

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Hallmark Health System is the premier, charitable provider of vital health services to Boston's northern communities. The system includes Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford; Melrose Wakefield Hospital, Melrose; Hallmark Health Hematology and Oncology Center, Stoneham; The CHEM Center for MRI, Stoneham; Hallmark Health Medical Center, Reading; Hallmark Health VNA and Hospice; Lawrence Memorial/Regis College Nursing and Radiography Programs, Medford and Hallmark Health Medical Associates, Inc. Hallmark Health is affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital for cardiology and Tufts Medical Center for neonatology and the Joslin Diabetes Center for diabetes care.

April 13, 2012 – Hallmark Health System’s (HHS) Melrose-Wakefield Hospital (MWH) is one of only 10 hospitals in Massachusetts using an eICU system to add another layer of quality and safety for patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). HHS has entered into a relationship with UMass Memorial Health Care to provide eICU to our most critical patients. The system takes advantage of the advanced electronic environment at MWH by providing a constant feed of data on ICU patients through a highly sophisticated critical care software program that provides the highly-trained MWH ICU physicians and nurses with an extra level of expert care, consultation and round-the-clock monitoring of critically-ill patients.

UMass physicians and nurses who are specially trained in intensive care medicine monitor MWH patients electronically through voice, data and video monitoring, 24-hours a day, seven days a week from a high-tech monitoring center in Worcester. This team works in concert with the MWH medical team to monitor vital signs such as blood pressure, oxygen saturation, heart rate, test results, nursing notes and other patient information over secure transmission lines.

Using two-way, high resolution video cameras at the patient’s bedside, the UMass team can speak directly with the MWH team or with the patient and family should a health concern arise. The MWH team can also contact UMass directly by pressing a button should they have an area of concern. The video monitors are not always on, but they can be activated in an instant when the UMass team is needed. Patients are treated with the same attentive, courteous HHS care on screen as they are by a live staff person.

UMass Memorial Medical Center is an 834-bed teaching hospital in Worcester and a leader in 21st century telemedicine. The Journal of American Medicine recently published a study, which showed that eICU’s improved care and outcomes for ICU patients by acting as a second set of eyes for on-site doctors and nurses.

Kellie Smith, RN, BSN, NE-BC, director of critical care and Medical 3 at MWH, explains, “In addition to the expert care we provide here, our ICU patients will have direct round-the-clock access to a teaching hospital’s expertise in intensive care. There is no substitute for hands-on direct patient care, but the eICU system can quickly alert staff to changes that indicate a patient is getting into trouble, faster than staff may be able to detect. Our outcomes were always very good, but this eICU program adds an extra level of safety and back-up.”

For more information about Hallmark Health System, visit www.hallmarkhealth.org or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/hallmarkhealth.

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Hallmark Health System is the premier, charitable provider of vital health services to Boston's northern communities. The system includes Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford; Melrose Wakefield Hospital, Melrose; Hallmark Health Hematology and Oncology Center, Stoneham; The CHEM Center for MRI, Stoneham; Hallmark Health Medical Center, Reading; Hallmark Health VNA and Hospice; Lawrence Memorial/Regis College Nursing and Radiography Programs, Medford and Hallmark Health Medical Associates, Inc. Hallmark Health is affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital for cardiology and Tufts Medical Center for neonatology.

April 12, 2012 –Hallmark Health System’s Melrose-Wakefield Hospital has been named a Baby-Friendly® birth facility by Baby-Friendly® USA. The local community hospital is one of only a handful of organizations in Massachusetts to receive this prestigious international recognition and the only in our region.
Baby-Friendly USA, Inc. is the country’s authority for the implementation of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The initiative encourages and recognizes hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and their babies. Based on the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, this prestigious international award recognizes birth facilities that offer breastfeeding mothers the information, confidence and skills needed to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies.

“Receiving this award is such an honor for Melrose-Wakefield Hospital and is a true testament to the exceptional care we provide mothers and their babies,” said Mary Foley, lactation program coordinator at Melrose-Wakefield Hospital. “The Baby Friendly initiative has helped us to create an environment that is supportive of optimal infant feeding, and we will continue to support and educate our new moms through prenatal education, in-hospital consultations and post discharge support.”

There are more than 20,000 designated Baby-Friendly hospitals and birth centers worldwide. Currently there are 138 active Baby-Friendly hospitals and birth centers in the United States. The “Baby-Friendly” designation is given after a rigorous on-site survey is completed. The award is maintained by continuing to practice the Ten Steps as demonstrated by quality processes.

“We have been working toward the Baby Friendly designation for a number of years so it is very rewarding to see it come to fruition,” said Tien-Lan Chang, MD, a pediatrician on the Hallmark Health System Medical Staff. “The nursing and medical staffs worked very hard to reach this goal and couldn’t have done it without the amazing support of the hospital’s administration. This is a great honor for Melrose-Wakefield Hospital.”
For more information about Hallmark Health, visit www.hallmarkhealth.org or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/hallmarkhealth.

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Hallmark Health System is the premier, charitable provider of vital health services to Boston's northern communities. The system includes Lawrence Memorial Hospital of Medford; Melrose Wakefield Hospital, Melrose; Hallmark Health Hematology and Oncology Center, Stoneham; The CHEM Center for MRI, Stoneham; Hallmark Health Medical Center, Reading; Hallmark Health VNA and Hospice; Lawrence Memorial/Regis College Nursing and Radiography Programs, Medford and Hallmark Health Medical Associates, Inc. Hallmark Health is affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital for cardiology and Tufts Medical Center for neonatology and the Joslin Diabetes Center for diabetes care.