Honorees Recognized for Efforts to Improve Quality, Safety, and Equity of Patient Care
TD Bank Lead Sponsor for Event
NEW YORK, NY—May 6, 2024—United Hospital Fund today honored 67 extraordinary quality improvement leaders from 64 health care organizations across the metropolitan region for their tireless efforts to improve the quality, safety, and equity of patient care at their institutions.
The sixth annual Tribute to Excellence in Health Care event was held at Cipriani 42nd
Street in New York City and was attended by more than 500 members of the New York area’s health care community. TD Bank was the lead sponsor of the event, and keynote remarks were given by Joseph Betancourt, MD, MPH, President of The Commonwealth Fund.
The honorees include physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and a broad range of other health care leaders, each selected by a senior executive at their institution. They represent 64 hospital systems, long-term care facilities, home care organizations, independent practice associations, federally qualified health centers, medical groups, and behavioral health organizations.
“Today’s celebration of health care excellence is part of UHF’s broader work to build an effective and equitable health care system,” UHF President and CEO Oxiris Barbot, MD, told the audience. “We have some of the best health care institutions in the world, many represented in this room, and we all recognize that delivering high quality care for all requires perseverance in the relentless pursuit of excellence.” The Tribute was created to recognize and nourish this essential work, she said.
Cary A. Kravet, a UHF board member and trustee of Northwell Health, was the event chair.
The honorees and their institutions are below and can also be found online here.
Following are the 2024 honorees, listed by organization:
AdvantageCare Physicians of New York
Navarra Rodriguez, MD, President & Chief Medical Officer
BronxCare Health System
Ketki Shah, MD, DFAPA, Chairperson, Department of Psychiatry
The Brooklyn Hospital Center
Lenny Gorelik, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, CPHQ, FACHE, Vice President & Chief Quality Officer, Administration
Coalition of Asian-American IPA (CAIPA)
Xiaoyan Song, MD, PhD, Provider
and
Wenjing Tao, MD, Provider
Catholic Health
John Clark, PharmD, MBA, Associate Vice President, Clinical Pharmacy and Regulatory Services
Charles B. Wang Community Health Center
Perry Pong, MD, Medical Director of Education & Learning
Community Healthcare Network
Jessica Marchini, DNP, NP-C, Director of Nurse Practitioner Fellowship
Elizabeth Seton Children’s Center
Flordeliza Rosario, RN, BSN, Quality Documentation Specialist
and
Paolina Sinacore, RN, BSN, CPN, RAC-CT, Quality Documentation Specialist
Episcopal Health Services
Donald T. Morrish, MD, MMM, Chief Executive Officer
Gurwin Healthcare System
Gurwin Jewish Nursing & Rehabilitation Center
Nicole Hopper, CTRS, Director of Therapeutic Recreation
Island Nursing & Rehab Center
Jaime Gonzalez, RN, Unit Manager, Sub-acute Care
Hackensack Meridian Health
Victor A. Carrillo, PhD, MPA, MBA, Senior Vice President, Associate Chief Quality Officer
Hospital for Special Surgery
Jillian Rose-Smith, PhD, MPH, LCSW, Vice President and Chief Health Equity Officer
Institute for Community Living
Tasrina Khan, PhD, Senior Vice President, Integrated Clinical Services
The Institute for Family Health
Eric Gayle, MD, FAAFP, Chief Medical Officer and President of Health Care Services
The Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services
Natalee Hill, MPA, CPHQ, Chief Administrative Officer
Maimonides Health
Maimonides Medical Center
Jeffrey M. Nicastro, MD, Vice Chairman of Surgery, Director Adult Critical Care
Maimonides Midwood Community Hospital
Diana Immel, MS, BSN, RN, Vice President of Perioperative Services
MediSys Health Network
Regina O. Guevarra, MD, Network Director, Performance Improvement Measures and Analytics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Rosa Nouvini, MD, Assistant Attending Physician
MJHS
Elderplan/HomeFirst
Josephine Frisari, RN, BSN, VP of Quality & Performance Improvement
Isabella Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing Care
Jessica Garcia Robinson, BS, MPA, CTRS, LNHA, Assistant Administrator
MJHS Menorah and Isabella Centers for Rehabilitation and Nursing Care
Dannick Boutin, MBA, OTR/L, Director of Rehabilitation Services
Montefiore Health System
Burke Rehabilitation Hospital
Maeve Lopreiato Terezian, PhD, RN, CPHQ, Assistant Vice President of Quality
The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore
Anne Murphy, PhD, Clinical Director, Trauma Services
Montefiore Medical Center, Einstein Campus
Jonathan Green, DNP, MBA, FACHE, Senior Director of Nursing
Montefiore Medical Center, Moses Campus
Charles C. Esenwa, MD, Medical Director, Montefiore Comprehensive Center for Stroke Care
Montefiore Medical Center, Wakefield Campus
Sheri Nemerofsky, MD, FAAP, Director of Newborn Services
Montefiore Mount Vernon Hospital
Claus P. von Schorn, MD, Chairman, Department of Psychiatry
Montefiore New Rochelle Hospital
Andrews Brookman, RN, MPH, Infection Control Practitioner
Montefiore Nyack Hospital
Maria M. Emerson, MD, MS, FACOG, Director of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Montefiore St. Luke’s Cornwall
Eduardo Pinto, MD, Medical Director of Hospital Medicine, and Physician Advisor
White Plains Hospital
Susan Liller, RN, Senior Director, Quality & Clinical Operations
Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Beth Israel, Mount Sinai Brooklyn, and New York Eye and Ear Infirmary
Waleed Javiad, MD, Chief Hospital Epidemiologist and Director, Infection Prevention and Control
The Mount Sinai Hospital
Toni Stern, MD, MS, CPE, CHCQM, MBA, System Vice Chair for Quality, Clinical Transformation and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Chief Patient Experience Officer, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science
Mount Sinai Morningside
Omar Amir, MD, MS, Assistant Professor, Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine and Medical Director, Age-Friendly Acute Care Unit
Mount Sinai Queens
Tara L. Roche, RN, SCRN, MS, Stroke Program Manager
Mount Sinai South Nassau
Alan Wong, DO, MBA, Chief Medical Officer
Mount Sinai West
Katherine Mark, MD, Consult Service Director; and Associate Professor, Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine
The New Jewish Home
Manhattan Campus
Stephanie Le, MD, Assistant Medical Director
Bronx Adult Day Health Care Program
Susan Holodak Robertshaw, Adult Day Health Care Program Administrator
Northwell Health
Emergency Medicine Addiction Services
Sandeep Kapoor, MD, MS-HPPL, Vice President and Director, Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment
Team Member Services
Michelle A. Chester, DNP, FNP-BC, BSN, MSN, RNFA, CNOR, Senior Director of Operations
Executive Shared Services
Sandra Lindsay, DHSc, MBA, MSN, RN, CCRN-K, NE-BC, Vice President, Public Health Advocacy
Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine
Maria Torroella Carney, MD, MACP, Chief; and Medical Director, Continuing Care
Long Island Jewish Forest Hills
Tiffany Powell, MSN, RN, NE-BC, Chief Nursing Officer
Long Island Jewish Medical Center
Pradel Felix, MSN, RN, AGPCNP-BC, MEDSURG-BC, Director of Patient Care
Office of the Chief Nurse Executive
Launette Woolforde, EdD, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, NPD-BC, FAAN, Deputy Chief Nursing Officer
Medical Affairs
Annabella V. Salvador, MD, FACEP, Senior Vice President, Medical Affairs and Deputy Chief Medical Officer
Public Health and Epidemiology
Bruce Farber, MD, Chief; and Jane and Dayton Brown Professor of Medicine (Infectious Diseases)
NuHealth/Nassau University Medical Center
Kathleen Mienkiewicz, MPH, MAPP, CPHQ, Senior Vice President for Quality and Risk Management
NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem
Risa E. Bochner, MD, MPH, Patient Safety Officer
One Brooklyn Health
Brookdale Hospital Medical Center
Ilyas Pinkhasov, MT (ASCP), Senior Administrative Director of Laboratory and Pathology
Interfaith Medical Center
Steven J. DeLuca, Senior Vice President/Chief Risk Officer and Chief Risk Officer, One Brooklyn Health
Rutland Nursing Home
Avneet Kaur-Anand, BSN, BS, RN, CPN, Director of Nursing Services
Parker Jewish Institute for Health Care and Rehabilitation
Colleen Ariola, RN, DNP, MSN-HCSM, CADDCT, CDP, DNS-CT, QPC, Senior Vice President, Patient Care Services
Richmond University Medical Center
Jay Mbeng Nfonoyim, MD, MPA, FCCP, FACP, CPE, Vice Chairman, Department of Medicine; Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency; and Chief, Critical Care Division
RiverSpring Living
Farrah Reyes, RN, WCC, IPCO, Nursing Compliance Manager
SBH Health System
Alfredo L. Alvarado, Jr., FACHA, MA, ACNS-BC, NE-BC, LNHA, BSN, RN, Vice President, Department of Nursing
SOMOS Community Care
Nicholas Youngstrom, CEO, SOMOS Innovation
Stamford Health
Laura Jordan, JD, Director, Government Affairs and Community Relations
St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children
Christine Duffy, Project Manager, Strategic Initiatives
Summit Health
Christine Masterson, MD, MHL, FACOG, Chief Medical Officer of New York South Region
Urban Health Plan
Haydee Maldonado, BS, Director of Quality Improvement, Data Analysis and Reporting
and
Vanessa Rodriguez, BS, Director of Performance Improvement, HIV and PREP Services
About United Hospital Fund
United Hospital Fund works to build an effective and equitable health care system for every New Yorker. An independent, nonprofit organization, we are a force for improvement, analyzing public policy to inform decision-makers, finding common ground among diverse stakeholders, and developing and supporting innovative programs that improve health and health care. We work to dismantle barriers in health policy and health care delivery that prevent equitable opportunities for health. For more on our initiatives and programs please visit our website at www.uhfnyc.org and follow us on LinkedIn and X.