Improving both access to and affordability of healthcare is the goal of the Affordable Care Act. New York State regulators approved 17 insurers seeking to provide coverage through the state’s exchange, and the Business Council of Westchester held a series of workshops on the new law last summer.
WESTMED, a physician‑owned, multispecialty group that has about 250 doctors, more than 1,000 employees and 10 locations throughout the county, broke ground in October 2013 on a new 85,000‑square‑foot medical office building in Harrison. Constructed by Simone Healthcare Development and Fareri Associates and financed by a $22.8 million construction loan from First Niagara Bank, the building will house 60 physicians, imaging and surgical suites and a sleep lab.
Since 1946, Mount Kisco Medical Group (MKMG) has been providing quality care to patients in Westchester, Putnam and Duchess counties. Today, the group boasts 300,000 patients, 30 locations and more than 300 doctors representing 40 different specialties.
As more people find access to healthcare under the Affordable Care Act, primary‑care practitioners will be in demand. Phelps Memorial Hospital Center’s relatively new accredited family medicine residency program in New York is a critical step in addressing the growing shortage of primary‑care physicians in the United States. In 2012, The New York State Department of Health awarded Phelps the Certificate of Excellence for 100 percent compliance with public health law requirements for prevention of prenatal transmission of hepatitis B. It also received the Gold Plus Award from the American Stroke Association.
New York Medical College, with 1,291 employees in Westchester County, represents some $85 million in annual compensation, making the university a significant factor in the local economy. Of course, it also provides cutting‑edge research and the next generation of doctors, physical therapists and public health professionals.
St. Joseph’s Hospital in Yonkers, a 194‑bed teaching hospital, has a family practice residency program and a Radiology Technologist School. The hospital has satellite clinics in Yonkers, White Plains and Port Chester.
When it comes to specialty care, Westchester residents have access to some of the best available. The 643‑bed Westchester Medical Center, home to the region’s Level 1 trauma center, boasts more than 100 specialty physicians. Services include heart and vascular care from diagnosis to heart transplant, gynecologic oncology, endovascular neurosurgery, advanced imaging and organ transplants. The medical center received the HealthGrades Cardiac Surgery Excellence Award three years in a row (2010‑2012), and has an economic impact of more than $1.6 billion annually. Its also home to the Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, which U.S. News & World Report ranked No. 38 for neonatology and No. 44 for pediatric gastroenterology and GI surgery.
U.S. News & World Report named Northern Westchester Hospital among its list of “Most Connected Hospitals” for its pioneering use of electronic media records, and among the “Best Regional Hospitals” in five specialties: urology, gynecology, geriatrics, orthopedics and neurology. The magazine also named the renowned NewYork‑Presbyterian/Westchester No. 4 in the country for psychiatric services.
White Plains Hospital Center announced this year that it is expanding its cancer program by renovating its Dickstein Cancer Treatment Center and constructing an adjoining six‑story building. The 292‑bed hospital is also a nine‑time winner of the Consumer’s Choice Award. It is affiliated with Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville, which recently underwent a major expansion to offer state‑of‑the‑art care to patients with cancer.
In late 2013, Montefiore Medical Center took over the Sound Shore Health System and created Montefiore New Rochelle, which includes the former Sound Shore Medical Center in New Rochelle, a 252‑bed hospital and major teaching affiliate of New York Medical College with a designated Level 2 trauma center and stroke center. The new system includes Mount Vernon Hospital, Schaffer Extended Care Center and the Hopfer School of Nursing. Montefiore, an affiliate of the university hospital for Albert Einstein College of Medicine, plans to invest in infrastructure improvements.
The 128‑bed Hudson Valley Hospital Center has received awards for its stroke care and is also well known for wound care and hyperbaric medicine. It has also reduced the stress involved in an MRI, thanks to an imaging suite that features an “Open Friendly” MRI with a larger opening.
St. John’s Riverside was the first hospital in Westchester, founded in 1869. In 2013, it received the American Heart Association’s “Get With the Guidelines – Stroke” Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award, marking the hospital’s third year receiving a quality achievement honor. It does, however, add to the demand for healthcare services by producing new little patients – the hospital has delivered more than 116,392 babies and has received the 5‑Star Award for Excellence in Maternity Care from HealthGrades for the sixth year in a row.
The White Plains‑based Burke Rehabilitation Center in White Plains – which includes inpatient, outpatient and research components – cares for patients with physical disabilities resulting from injuries or disease. In 2013 it opened satellite clinics in Yonkers and Somers.
Three nursing schools — Lienhard, Cochran and Hopfer Schools of Nursing — ensure that plenty of nurses are ready to meet the demands for health care.
MEDICAL RESOURCES
Westchester County Medical Society
914‑967‑9100 • www.wcms.org
General Hospitals
Community Hospital at Dobbs Ferry
Dobbs Ferry, www.riversidehealth.org
Greenwich Hospital
Greenwich, CT, www.greenhosp.org
Hudson Valley Hospital Center
Cortlandt Manor, www.hvhc.org
Lawrence Hospital
Bronxville, www.lawrencehealth.org
Montefiore Mount Vernon Hospital
Mount Vernon, www.montefiorehealthsystem.org
Montefiore New Rochelle Hospital
New Rochelle, www.montefiorehealthsytem.org
Northern Westchester Hospital
Mount Kisco, www.nwhc.net
Phelps Memorial Hospital
Sleepy Hollow, www.phelpshospital.org
St. John’s Riverside Hospital/Park Care Pavilion
Yonkers, www.riversidehealth.org
St. Joseph’s Medical Center
Yonkers, 914‑378‑7000
www.saintjosephs.org
Westchester Medical Center
Valhalla, www.westchestermedicalcenter.com
White Plains Hospital Center
White Plains, www.wphospital.org
Psychiatric Hospitals
Four Winds Hospital
Katonah, www.fourwindshospital.com
NewYork‑Presbyterian Hospital/Cornell Medical Center
White Plains, www.nyp.org/psychiatry
St. Vincent’s Westchester
Harrison, www.stvincentswestchester.org
Other Hospital Facilities
Blythedale Children’s Hospital
Valhalla, www.blythedale.org
Burke Rehabilitation Hospital
White Plains, www.burke.org
VA Hudson Valley Health Care
Montrose, www.hudsonvalley.va.gov
