42 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • JULY 1, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
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St. Mary’s Children’s Hospital in Bayside earns recognition
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
St. Mary’s Children’s Hospital in Bayside
has been recognized as a 2021 recipient
Queens students named winners in
annual Mother’s Day essay contest
BY JENNA BAGCAL
jbagcal@schnepsmedia.com
@jenna_bagcal
Assemblyman Ed Braunstein, representing
Queens’ District 26, announced
the winners of an annual Mother’s Day
essay contest honoring the special women
in their lives.
Four students from District 26 schools
were named the contest winners from
among a pool of 200 applicants.
Th e winners include second-grade student
Zoe Olivia Chi of P.S. 31 in Bayside;
third-grade student Sohana Singh from
P.S 115 in Glen Oaks; Luana Restrepo, a
fourth-grader from P.S. 221 in Little Neck;
and Evan Lianos, who is in the fi ft h grade
at William Spyropoulos Greek-American
Day School in Flushing.
In addition to a New York State Assembly
Certifi cate of Merit, which is awarded to all
participants, winners also received a gift
card for their accomplishment.
“Th ank you to the over 200 students
from schools throughout northeast
Queens who participated in my offi ce’s
Mother’s Day Essay and Poetry Contest,”
Braunstein said. “Zoe, Sohana, Luana and
Evan each submitted creative, thoughtful
and well-written entries and their families
and schools should be very proud.”
Th ousands of northeast Queens students
in grades 2 through 5 have participated
in the contest since its inception
in 2011.
All written submissions adhere to a
Mother’s Day theme, including favorite
shared experiences and essays or poems
showcasing why their mom is special.
Photo courtesy of St. Mary’s Children’s Hospital
Photo courtesy of Assemblyman Braunstein’s offi ce
Clockwise, from top left: Winners Zoe Olivia Chi, Sohana Singh, Evan Lianos and Luana Restrepo.
of the Bronze-Commitment to
Quality Award by the American Health
Care Association and National Center for
Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) for its
commitment to improving the lives of residents
through quality care.
Th e distinction is the fi rst of three progressive
award levels through the AHCA/
NCAL National Quality Award Program.
Th e program, presented by the leading
association in long-term and post-acute
care, honors association members across
the country that have demonstrated their
commitment to improving quality of care
for seniors and people with disabilities.
Dr. Edwin Simpser, president and
CEO of St. Mary’s Healthcare System for
Children, said they’re honored to receive
the AHCA/NCAL’s Bronze National
Quality Award.
“Our kids face tremendous obstacles,
but their unparalleled determination
inspires all of us each day,” Simper said.
“Th is award recognizes the hard work of
our incredible team and I want to thank
them for their tireless dedication to the
children and families at St. Mary’s.”
Created by AHCA/NCAL in 1996, the
National Quality Award Program is a rigorous
three-level process that is reviewed
and judged by trained experts against a
set of nationally recognized standards for
organizational excellence. Th e standards
of the Baldrige Performance Excellence
Program help organizations achieve superior
performance in order to improve
quality of life and care of long-term residents
and staff .
Providers begin the quality improvement
process at the bronze level, where
they develop an organizational profi le
with essential performance elements such
as vision, mission statement, and key
strengths and challenges. Bronze applicants
must also demonstrate their ability
to implement a sustainable performance
improvement system. Trained examiners
review each application to determine
if the center has met the demands of the
criteria.
As a recipient of the Bronze-
Commitment to Quality Award, St.
Mary’s Children’s Hospital may now
move forward in developing approaches
and achieving advanced levels of performance
that meet the Silver-Achievement
in Quality Award criteria.
Tammy Kelly, chair of AHCA/NCAL
National Quality Award Board of
Overseers, applauded the resiliency of St.
Mary’s Hospital for taking the important
step toward sustainable quality improvement
while heroically protecting and caring
for residents during one of the most
challenging years in recent history.
“I encourage St. Mary’s Hospital for
Children to continue on its path to
becoming among the best in the country,”
Kelly said.
Th e awards will be presented during
AHCA/NCAL’s 72nd Convention and
Expo in National Harbor, Maryland right
outside Washington, D.C., which will be
held from Oct. 10 to 13.
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