Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
DATE: November 17, 2009
CONTACT: Dr. Roxanne Debski- Seigel
Karen Ann Quinlan Memorial Foundation
PHONE: 973-383-0115 FAX 973-383-6889
EMAIL: rdebski-seigel@karenannquinlanhospice.org
WEBSITE: www.karenannquinlanhospice.org
Beth Sylvester, (L) receiving her award for Nurse of the Year from Anne Boyle, (R), Chairperson of the Board, New Jersey Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, and Director, Hunterdon Hospice (Flemington, NJ). The dinner and conference were held Thursday, November 12, 2009 in Eatontown, NJ.
Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice Nurse receives 2009 NJHPCO award.
Newton, NJ, November 17, 2009—Beth Sylvester, a registered nurse with Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice won the Hospice Nurse of the Year at the recent New Jersey Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s 30th Annual Conference and Awards Celebration. The festivities were held at the Sheraton Hotel in Eatontown, NJ Thursday, November 12, 2009.
Founded in 1979, New Jersey Hospice and Palliative Care Organization is a nonprofit public service organization that promotes use of hospice and palliative care at the end of life. Their Membership is comprised of approximately 90% of the licensed and Medicare-certified New Jersey Hospices, which makes hospice services available in every community.
Today, they serve over 15,000 patients and families each year and annually sponsor more than a dozen educational offerings for hospice workers. Their programs include retreats and networking sessions for the various hospice disciplines, a statewide volunteer conference, two orientation seminars for new hospice employees, and an annual conference. NJHPCO publishes a weekly online six-page newsletter to hospice directors and NJHPCO program committees include Education, Ethics, Nursing Education, Hospice Sabbath, Reimbursement/Government Relations, Palliative Care and Pediatric End-of-Life Care.
NJHPCO also represents the hospice community to many public policy groups, including the Medical Society of New Jersey, New Jersey State Nurses Association, New Jersey Pain Initiative, the State of New Jersey Advisory Council on Pain Management Policy, the Downstate Hospice Alliance of New York, the Hospice/Veterans Administration Partnership of Greater Philadelphia, and others.
To earn the award, Beth had distinguished herself as a dedicated and innovative member of the Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice clinical team for ten years and has been credited with solidifying partnerships with area nursing homes and hospitals, making end-of-life care accessible and responsive to all in need of it in our surrounding area. According to her peers, her skills contributed to interdisciplinary team meetings, regulatory compliance and efficiency within Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice, all while keeping in the spirit of teamwork.
“Beth Sylvester exudes the heart of hospice care.”— Marlina R. Schetting, MSW, LCSW Director of Social Services, Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice.
Karen Ann Quinlan Hospice is fully accredited by the New Jersey Department of Health as a certified Medicare and Medicaid Hospice, accredited by the Community Health Accreditation Program (CHAP), and a member of the NJ Hospice Organization and the National Hospice Organization. They provide hospice services to residents in Northern NJ, and Pike County, PA with three offices located in Newton, Phillipsburg, NJ and Milford, PA. You may reach them for any information on hospice care by calling 800-882-1117 or visiting their website at www.karenannquinlanhospice.org.