News Archives

November 15, 2024November 15, 2024

Samaritan Welcomes Eleven New Physicians in 2024

Watertown, N.Y. – Samaritan recognized and welcomed eleven new physicians at its annual New Physician Reception, held November 7, 2024, at Samaritan Summit Village. The reception honored physicians who have joined Samaritan’s medical staff in the last 12 months.

This annual event is an opportunity to introduce the newest members of our Medical Staff to the community. Attendance included area physicians, Samaritan board members, local business and community leaders, hospital donors and Samaritan leadership.

The physician guests of honor included:

Basel Al-Haddad, MD – Hospitalist
Natasha Antony, MD – OB/GYN*
Nauman Hamid, MD – Pulmonology/Critical Care
Kevin Kriesel, MD – Otolaryngology
Kamran Mahfooz, MD – Hospitalist
Emily Pierce, MD – OB/GYN*

Russell Reeves, MD – Interventional Radiology
Diane Shumbusho, MD – OB/GYN
Jane Simpson, DO – Palliative Care
Philip Witek, MD – Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Jasmin Zvornicanin, MD – Hospitalist

Also recognized this year were fifteen new advanced practice providers (APP). APPs are highly trained medical professionals who care for patients under the supervision of a physician.

The advanced practice providers recognized included:

Amanda Agley, PA-C – Dermatology
Erin Birchenough, FNP-C – Nephrology
Christine Buckley, FNP-C – Family Medicine
Gary Clarkson, PA-C – Wound Care
Aiesha Clayton, PA-C – Family Medicine
Tasha Curry, FNP-C – Cardiology
Amber Haynes, FNP-C – Family Medicine
Brittany Heflin, FNP-C – Emergency Medicine

Aparajita Naik, ANP-C – Internal Medicine
Inez Quinones, PA-C – Emergency Medicine
Jennifer Ring, ANP-C – Family Medicine
Cele Schulz, ANP-C – Geriatric Medicine
Fakira Soumaila-Borkovec, FNP-C – OB/GYN
Kalie Sposato, PA-C – Family Medicine
Juan Woods, PA-C – Orthopedic Surgery*

* Military

Physicians L-R: Kamran Mahfooz, MD; Natasha Antony, MD; Kevin Kriesel, MD; Emily Pierce, MD; Russell Reeves, MD; Diane Shumbusho, MD; Jane Simpson, DO; Jasmin Zvornicanin, MD. Not pictured are Basel Al-Haddad, MD; Nauman Hamid, MD; and Philip Witek, MD

Advanced Practice Providers L-R: Amanda Agley, PA-C; Erin Birchenough, FNP-C; Tasha Curry, FNP-C; Amber Haynes, FNP-C; Jennifer Ring, ANP-C; Fakira Soumaila-Borkovec, FNP-C; Not pictured are Christine Buckley, FNP-C; Gary Clarkson, PA-C; Aiesha Clayton, PA-C; Brittany Heflin, FNP-C; Aparajita Naik, ANP-C; Inez Quinones, PA-C; Cele Schulz, ANP-C; Kalie Sposato, PA-C; Juan Woods, PA-C. — Physicians L-R: Kamran Mahfooz, MD; Natasha Antony, MD; Kevin Kriesel, MD; Emily Pierce, MD; Russell Reeves, MD; Diane Shumbusho, MD; Jane Simpson, DO; Jasmin Zvornicanin, MD. Not pictured are Basel Al-Haddad, MD; Nauman Hamid, MD; and Philip Witek, MD

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November 14, 2024November 14, 2024

September 2024 DAISY®, and BEE Award Recipients

Daisy and Bee September 2024 featured image: shows Daisy winner Andrew Staab, RN, and Bee winner, Edsel Enriquez, NA.

Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center is pleased to announce its DAISY, and BEE Award recipients for September 2024. The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses® recognizes exemplary nursing staff, and the BEE Award honors other outstanding staff members for being excellent every day, both at the hospital and outpatient clinics.

Andrew Stabb, a Registered Nurse (RN) of Samaritan Medical Center’s Emergency Department, received the DAISY Award. Edsel Enriquez a Nursing Assistant (NA) of Samaritan Medical Center’s Progressive Care Unit (PCU), received the BEE Award.

A patient at Samaritan Medical Center, nominated Stabb for the DAISY Award saying:

“I was seen at Samaritan Medical Center Emergency Department (ED). The ED was extremely busy that day, but my nurse Andy took care of me and made sure I was comfortable. I was in a lot of pain, but Andy made sure to help me and answer any of my concerns. Andy was very mindful and kept me informed. He truly is someone who genuinely cares for his patients and is a team player.”

For receiving the DAISY Award – which is an international award backed by The DAISY Foundation – Stabb was presented with a certificate commending her as an extraordinary nurse, a DAISY Award pin, and a symbolic sculpture called “A Healer’s Touch,” which is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe. A larger version of this sculpture has also been installed in the Healing Gardens at Samaritan Medical Center in honor of all DAISY and BEE Award winners to come. It was purchased using funds donated by the Samaritan Auxiliary.

Enriquez was nominated for the BEE Award by Sarah Lockwood, a Registered Nurse (RN) on Samaritan’s Progressive Care Unit (PCU), saying:

“Edsel is a phenomenal aide. He always goes above and beyond to assist everyone on the floor, not only his assigned group. No matter the task, you can count on Edsel to help and provide assistance. His empathy and compassion for his patients is impossible to miss. He takes the time to talk to the patients, listen to their stories, and make their stay comfortable. When I am not present, I know my patients are well taken care of when he is in the room.”

Enriquez was presented with a certificate, a BEE Award pin, and a gift bag with other tokens of gratitude.

These awards will continue to be presented throughout the year, and nominations can be submitted by patients, families, or colleagues at any time. To make a nomination or to learn more about the Samaritan DAISY, and BEE Awards, visit www.samaritanhealth.com/daisy-bee.

Daisy Award winner for September 2024, Andrew Staab, RN at Samaritan's Emergency Department

BEE Award winner for September 2024, Edsel Enriquez, nursing assistant at Samaritan Medical Center.

Pictured here, from left to right, are September 2024 awardees Andrew Staab, RN, and Edsel Enriquez, NA, Samaritan Medical Center.

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About Samaritan Medical Center

Samaritan Medical Center (Watertown, New York) is a 290-bed not-for-profit community medical center, offering a full spectrum of inpatient and outpatient healthcare services. From primary and emergency care to highly specialized medical and surgical services, such as cancer treatment, neonatal intensive care, behavioral health and addiction services, and imaging services, Samaritan Medical Center and its team of healthcare professionals proudly serves the medical needs of our civilian and military community. Quality, compassion, and safety are the basic principles by which exceptional care is delivered at Samaritan.

About The DAISY Foundation

The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, by members of his family. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. (DAISY is an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.) The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families. In addition to the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, the Foundation expresses gratitude to the nursing profession internationally in over 3,900 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing with recognition of direct care Nurses, Nurse-led Teams, Nurse Leaders, Nursing Faculty, Nursing Students, through the J. Patrick Barnes Grants for Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice Projects and for nurses participating in medical missions. More information is available at http://www.DAISYfoundation.org.

November 8, 2024November 8, 2024

24th Annual CMN Radiothon Raises Funds for Local Children

Radiothon check presentation to Children's Miracle Network. The photo shows Jhonny Spezanno, from the Border radio station, Angie VanWormer, CMN of NNY director, and Lance, from 94 Rock radio station, holding the $134,800 check from the 2024 Radiothon campaing.

Watertown, NY — The 24th Annual Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) Radiothon raised $134,800 during this year’s three-day event, hosted by Community Broadcasters stations The Border 106.7 and 94 Rock.

All donations made to CMN stay local to purchase pediatric medical equipment and support child-centered projects at Samaritan Medical Center, and also to provide financial assistance to families in Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties who have a child facing a medical crisis.

During the annual event, radio DJs Johnny Spezzano and Lance Hale ask listeners to donate to help sick and injured children. “The generous response from the North Country is inspirational. Johnny Spezzano is unmatched, and I am proud of him and Lance Hale for their dedication and hard work on behalf of CMN,” Jim Leven, president of Community Broadcasters, said. “To everyone who tuned in and supported our efforts and, most importantly, supported local kids during the 24th Radiothon, thank you.”

CMN is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of children across the North Country. “It’s incredible what our community can do when we come together for children,” said Angie VanWormer, Children’s Miracle Network director, Samaritan Medical Center. “With the help of all who donate and support CMN, we are changing kids’ health and the future.”

For more information about Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, contact Samaritan Medical Center at 315-785-4053 or [email protected].

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November 7, 2024November 7, 2024

Samaritan Unveils Expanded Inpatient Mental Health Unit

Ribbon cutting portrait from Samaritan's Inpatient Mental Health Unit new rooms. The picture shows Samaritan and community leaders.

Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center officials unveiled the newly expanded Inpatient Mental Health Unit (IMHU) during a ribbon cutting event on Tuesday, October 8, 2024. The Kinney Drugs Foundation/Kinney Drugs Inpatient Mental Health Unit redesign began over a decade ago to improve the patient experience.

“When this construction project began it was more about improving the quality of the patient care space and the environment in which we treated our patients as opposed to increasing our capacity,” stated Tina O’Neil, director of mental health at Samaritan. “We looked to upgrade the unit and add more privacy for patients, plus we added group rooms and meeting rooms for family meetings. We focused on soft calming colors and artwork, and all new furniture.”

Plans to improve this hospital unit began in 2006 as the organization outlined the hospital facility master plan to address the aging facilities and to add new space where needed. There were four distinct phases planned and the official opening of the inpatient mental health unit marks the fourth and final phase as complete.

“This ribbon cutting is more than to celebrate the new space for the inpatient mental health patients. This is culmination of the work that has went into the last project of our 2006 facilities master planning project,” said Thomas H. Carman, president and CEO of Samaritan Medical Center. “Almost a decade later we can say we completed what we set out to do and with IMHU in particular we were able to pivot this project to meet the current needs of our patients and the community.”

Prior to construction, the unit had 32 beds and by the end of construction was set to have 34. In 2023, Samaritan officials requested a change to the project and was approved to move forward by the New York State Office of Mental Health (NYS OMH). This allowed the unit design to pivot and add five additional private rooms for patients for a total of 39 with two of these including negative pressure capability for mental health patients who also have a communicable disease such as COVID-19 or Influenza.

‘We watched the needs of our community change prior to and during the pandemic. We did not have private rooms on the unit, nor in the current construction plan, and with OMH’s approval, we were able to make this shift,” said O’Neil. “Patients need private space for hygiene, gender, infectious disease and other reasons, and now we can accommodate them better with private rooms.”

Although the funds to complete this portion of the phase four construction project were budgeted around $12 million dollars, construction costs soared as time went on and adding the five additional private rooms had a cost of $2.2 million dollars extra. The Samaritan Foundation looked to the community and corporate donors to help offset the costs.

“Kinney Drugs and the Kinney Drugs Foundation have supported every major capital project initiative Samaritan has embarked on, as well as major corporate partner and supporter of Children’s Miracle Network,’ stated Carman. “Their commitment to the communities they serve is unwavering and Samaritan is appreciative of their support of this unit, named in their honor.”

During the ribbon cutting event, Mr. Carman thanked the generous donors who supported the need for increased mental health services in our community. The leading donors to this project were Kinney Drugs, the Kinney Drugs Foundation, Catherine and Bill Quencer, Samaritan Medical Center Foundation donors along with Foundation event proceeds from A North Country Festival of Trees and the Thousand Islands Golf Tournament.

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**Pictured here, in attendance at the Inpatient Mental Health Unit ribbon cutting event for Samaritan Medical Center included David McClure, Katie Roberts, David Warner, and David Adsit.**

October 22, 2024October 22, 2024

August 2024 OWL Award Recipients

Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center is pleased to announce its outstanding workers in long term care (OWL) Award recipients for August 2024.

Samaritan Summit Village housekeeper Desiree Mashaw, and Samaritan Keep Home Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Roxanna Smith won the OWL Award for their respective facilities.

Mashaw was nominated for the OWL Award by a family member of a Samaritan Summit Village resident who said:

“She always takes her time with my mom. She is always helpful and makes us smile. She always goes out of her way.”

Smith was nominated for the OWL Award by a long term care nurse manager with the following statement for nomination:

“Roxanna has served this facility for close to 25 years and remains committed to her residents. She is dependable and so supportive of our residents. She even volunteers to give haircuts to the residents when our stylist is unavailable.”

Mashaw and Smith were presented with certificates and tokens of appreciation during recognition ceremonies at their respective facilities.

These awards will continue to be presented throughout the year, and nominations can be submitted by patients, families, or colleagues at any time. To make a nomination or to learn more about the Samaritan DAISY, BEE, and OWL Awards, visit www.samaritanhealth.com/daisy-bee.

October 18, 2024October 18, 2024

Samaritan Auxiliary to Hold Author Meet and Greet Event

WATERTOWN, NY – Join us for an inspiring afternoon with guest author Catherine Schmuck at the Samaritan Auxiliary Gift Shop, located in the main lobby of Samaritan Medical Center at 830 Washington Street. On Friday, November 1, 2024, from 1-4 p.m., you’ll have the chance to purchase Catherine’s cookbooks and children’s book and engage with an author who is celebrated for her exquisite recipes and extraordinary adventures aboard ships. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect and have your book signed!

“The Samaritan Auxiliary Board is delighted that she is taking the time to join us for this book signing before her call for duty and adventure on the next ship,” stated Auxiliary President Shawna Cutuli. “It is a great opportunity to begin your holiday shopping for someone on your list who enjoys cooking or is intrigued by what and how a chef prepares meals for a large crew each day while on the water. The stories and photos are fascinating, and there are many wonderful, delicious recipes.”

Catherine Schmuck, a chef on freighters, began her career in 1981 and worked her way up to Chief Cook in 1989. In 1994, she left the sailing world and opened her own restaurant in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, Canada. In 2019, after closing her restaurant, she returned to her love of sailing! As Catherine began sharing her daily meals and adventures to a growing audience, she began using her free time aboard the ships to work on the cookbook she dreamed of compiling. She began intertwining the recipes and pictures of food with stories and photographs of life on a ship, which led to her labor of love, “Ship to Shore Chef.” As you sail along with her, you may feel like you may have hopped on and joined the ship’s crew, much like Mitchell Mouse did in her children’s book. Both of her cookbooks, “Recipes and Stories as I Sail Through My Day” and “More Recipes and Stories as We Navigate Healthier Eating” will be available for sale in the gift shop, as well as “The Stowaway Adventures,” a beautifully illustrated children’s book featuring the adventures of Mitchell Mouse.

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About Samaritan Auxiliary:

Samaritan Auxiliary is a 501(c)3 organization governed by a Board of Directors consisting of volunteers that continue the mission established in 1896. The Auxiliary is in its 128^th year of service of raising money to purchase capital equipment currently through its only community fundraiser, One Night, One Diamond. In addition, the Auxiliary fulfills smaller requests through its continuous ventures, such as, the Auxiliary Gift Shops, Sips Coffee Shop, the Uniform and Purse sales during the year, membership dues and donations. These additional needs are met through an application process brought before the Auxiliary Board each year. Some of the requests fulfilled were stuffed animals to children receiving care in the Samaritan Outpatient Pediatric Surgical department, Nee Doh Balls that benefitted patients in the Inpatient Mental Health Unit and Acute Rehabilitation Unit providing stress relief and help with motor skills, two handheld ultrasound dopplers for Interventional Radiology, the partial funding of an ABI tool for the Samaritan Wound Center, and we also provide Watertown Daily Times newspaper subscriptions for patient use, to name a few of the ways that the Auxiliary is dedicated to enhancing patient care and experience. Since 1954 Samaritan Auxiliary has proudly provided scholarships to employees continuing their education in healthcare with two $1500 scholarships awarded this year. Over the course of the 128 years of the Auxiliary volunteers’ hard work and dedication, many millions of dollars have been given to Samaritan to enhance patient care and experience. This work continues today with volunteers that provide many hours of dedicated service to help achieve these goals.

October 17, 2024October 23, 2024

Intermittent Phone and Fax Service Issues

As of October 23, 2024, Samaritan is still experiencing several phone and fax issues with our clinics and other locations. We are working diligently with our vendor, however there is no timeframe at this time for the issues to be resolved.

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October 17, 2024 Update:
Samaritan locations are currently experiencing intermittent phone and fax service issues. We are trying to work with our phone vendor to fix the issue, but there is not an immediate solution at this time.

If you are trying to reach our various locations and the call is dropped, you cannot get through, or the quality of the call is poor, please understand this is out of our control. We encourage patients to call back or use their Patient Portal account (if set-up). Please know that if anyone is having a life-threatening emergency to call 911 directly or head to their nearest emergency department.

Thank you for your patience as we work through this issue.

October 3, 2024October 3, 2024

August 2024 DAISY®, and BEE Award Recipients

Illustrative image: Daisy and Bee Awards winners for August 2024

Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center is pleased to announce its DAISY, and BEE Award recipients for August 2024. The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses® recognizes exemplary nursing staff, and the BEE Award honors other outstanding staff members for being excellent every day, both at the hospital and outpatient clinics.

Courtney Male, Registered Nurse (RN), of Samaritan Medical Center’s 4Pavilion, received the DAISY Award. Rebecca “Becky” Newark, nursing assistant (NA), of Samaritan Medical Center’s Progressive Care Unit (PCU), received the BEE Award.

Joyce James, RN, Samaritan Medical Center, 4Pavilion, nominated Male for the DAISY Award saying:

Courtney Male, RN, holding her DAISY Award certificate.

“Courtney is passionate about ensuring each individual patient receives care with the utmost dignity and respect, no matter their background. She is frequently found spending time with patients and family members, well beyond what is expected, to provide the emotional support they need. When a patient is scared, Courtney is right by their side.”

For receiving the DAISY Award – which is an international award backed by The DAISY Foundation – Male was presented with a certificate commending her as an extraordinary nurse, a DAISY Award pin, and a symbolic sculpture called “A Healer’s Touch,” which is hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Zimbabwe. A larger version of this sculpture has also been installed in the Healing Gardens at Samaritan Medical Center in honor of all DAISY and BEE Award winners to come. It was purchased using funds donated by the Samaritan Auxiliary.

Newark was nominated for the BEE Award by April Del Prete, RN, of Samaritan’s PCU, saying:

Rebecca Newark, NA, holding her BEE Award certificate

“Becky truly stands out as exceptional. Becky’s dedication to her work is evident in the way she clearly communicates with me, touching base at the beginning of each shift to discuss the patient’s plan of care and promptly reporting important details such as pertinent vital signs and patient findings. Her honest, unmatched integrity, and strong work ethic make her an invaluable part of our team, and she has always been the cornerstone of support during the shifts we have worked together.”

Newark was presented with a certificate, a BEE Award pin, and a gift bag with other tokens of gratitude.

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About Samaritan Medical Center

About The DAISY Foundation

September 24, 2024September 24, 2024

July 2024 OWL Award Recipients

July OWL Award Honorees: picture shows Gage Bell-Shaw, CNA at Samaritan Summit Village; and Marco Schmidt, CNA at Samaritan Keep Home. Both are holding their OWL Award certificate.

Watertown, NY – Samaritan Medical Center is pleased to announce its OWL Award recipients for July 2024. The OWL Award recognizes outstanding workers in long term care.

Samaritan Summit Village Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Gage Bell-Shaw, and Samaritan Keep Home CNA Marco Schmidt won the OWL Award for their respective facilities.

Bell-Shaw was nominated for the OWL Award by Samaritan Summit Village Rehabilitation Manager Megan Weller who said:

“Gage has gone above and beyond in many situations. He provides excellent care and truly cares about the residents with the intention of making them happy.”

Schmidt was nominated for the OWL Award by two long term care leaders with the following statement for nomination:

“The OWL award symbolizes intuition, protection, and wisdom. Marco offers intuition and wisdom to co-workers after being with this organization since 1996. He is always willing to teach, precept, and work as a team to ensure that all residents receive the care and services they need. When considering the staffing challenges, we sometimes face, Marco has a “the buck stops here” attitude and provides outstanding teamwork. Marco has been known to help other units when his work is done thus supporting his co-workers and our residents.”

Bell-Shaw and Schmidt were presented with certificates and tokens of appreciation during recognition ceremonies at their respective facilities.

Gage Bell-Shaw, Certified Nursing Assistant, holds his OWL Award certificate.

Marco Schmidt, Certified Nursing Assistant, holds his OWL Award certificate.

Pictured here, from left to right, are July 2024 OWL awardees Gage Bell-Shaw, CNA, and Marco Schmidt, CNA.

These awards will continue to be presented throughout the year, and nominations can be submitted by patients, families, or colleagues at any time. To make a nomination or to learn more about the Samaritan DAISY, BEE, and OWL Awards, visit www.samaritanhealth.com/daisy-bee.

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About Samaritan’s Long Term Care Services

Caregivers at Samaritan Summit Village and Samaritan Keep Home provide round-the-clock skilled nursing care and significant assistance with daily life activities. Nursing homes have nursing staff on duty 24 hours a day to help individuals meet their daily physical, social and psychological needs. A licensed physician supervises each resident’s care and therapy, including speech, occupational, and physical therapy are available to provide rehabilitation services. Samaritan Summit Village also offers Assisted Living with six neighborhoods and apartments that are comfortable, functional, and safe. This facility is for those who need a little extra help while continuing an independent lifestyle.

September 10, 2024September 10, 2024

Category: News