RUMC Vital Signs brings you up close and personal with the people providing care, services and support at Richmond University Medical Center. Airing on Staten Island Community Television, each episode of RUMC Vital Signs covers the latest trends in medicine and provides in-depth information on the services provided at Richmond University Medical Center.

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Episode 24: Is it Heartburn or is it GERD?

Approximately 20% of adults in the United States have gastroesophageal reflux disease, more commonly known as GERD. This translates to about 60 million Americans. In this episode Chair of Surgery, Loren Harris, MD, and Vice Chair of Surgery, Alex Barken, MD, discuss causes, symptoms and remedies from medication to surgical procedures.

Episode 23: The Truth About Colorectal Cancer and Colonoscopies

In this episode, board certified gastroenterologist Vahe Shahnazarian, MD, talks about the risks, symptoms, and treatment of colorectal cancer as well as why early screening and colonoscopies are critically important in the fight against this form of cancer, which will be diagnosed in over 150,000 Americans this year alone.

Episode 22: Discussing Breast Cancer and New Technology Called Magseed

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, except for skin cancers. In this episode, RUMC’s board-certified Chief of Breast Radiology, Dara Fedele, MD, talks about trends on Staten Island, the latest medical advances in the battle against breast cancer, including an innovative technology available at RUMC called Magseed that is benefiting both patients and surgeons.

Episode 21: Understanding and Managing Heart Failure

Congestive heart failure, sometimes simply referred to as heart failure, may sound like the heart is no longer working at all. However, that’s not the case despite how that diagnosis may sound. In this episode, the Chief of RUMC’s Cardiovascular Department, Francesco Rotatori, MD, FACC, explains what heart failure really is and how people are living productive lives with this condition.

Episode 20: Unlocking the Keys to A Woman’s Healthy Heart

In this episode, RUMC’s board certified Chief of Women’s Cardiovascular Health, Fiona Shehaj, MD, discusses how heart disease and even heart attacks affect women different from men while also sharing advice on how women can maintain good heart health throughout their life.

Episode 19: Richmond Health Network & a new Women’s Center for Obstetrics & Gynecology

In this two-segment episode, the first segment focuses on the Richmond Health Network. The network was launched in 2020 to provide Staten Islanders with improved access to quality primary care and specialty medical services through private offices and centers across the borough. Executive Vice President of the Richmond Health Network, Jeffrey Lieto, talks about services available through the network and how the network was designed to meet the needs of Staten Islanders. In the second segment, Dr. Inna Tubman, board certified obstetrician and gynecologist; and Leslie Potensiano, a OBGYN Physician Assistant who works closely with Dr. Tubman discuss women’s health on Staten Island and highlight the newly opened Women’s Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology on Staten Island’s south shore.

Episode 18: Exploring Stroke Care and the Effectiveness of Mechanical Thrombectomy

A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is blocked or there is sudden bleeding in the brain. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every 40 seconds, someone in the United States has a stroke. In this episode, we discuss warning signs of stroke, available treatments and after-care with Allan Perel, MD, Director of the Department of Neurology at Richmond University Medical Center, and Brent Flusty, DO, a vascular and Interventional Neurologist also with Richmond University Medical Center and with Interventional Neuro Associates.

To view the episode on Community Media of Staten island, click here

Episode 17: RUMC’s Aphasia Support Group and Meet NonProfit Staten Island

More than 2 million people are affected by aphasia, a medical condition that affects an individual’s speech, writing and understanding of written and verbal language, yet does not affect their intellect. In this episode Kristine Delgado, Administrative Director of Rehabilitation at Richmond University Medical Center, discusses a first of its kind support group on Staten Island intended to help people affected by aphasia. Also in this episode, Tatianna Arguello, Executive Director of NonProfit Staten Island shares information about the organization’s upcoming annual nonprofit conference, sponsored by Richmond University Medical Center.

Episode 16: Changing Lives Through Our Peer Advocacy Program

According to the New York City Department of Health, nearly 1,000 people have died of opioid overdoses on Staten Island since 2016. Those caught in the cycle of substance use disorder may feel lost with nowhere to turn and the thought of seeking help kicking their habit or staying clean long term generates feelings of fear, embarrassment, or worry they will not be able to stay clean. In this episode, Peer Counselors Denise Nizzare and Stephen Nico discuss RUMC’s Peer Advocacy Program and how they and their fellow advocates are saving lives.

Episode 15: Surviving Cancer

In this episode meet cancer survivors Rosaria Karsis and Kelly Careres. Both share their stores of courage and determination. Learn how they reacted when they first learned they had cancer, how their lives have changed since then, the impact on their families and how they found support through RUMC’s Family Care and Support program.

Episode 14: Spotlight on RUMC’s Family Care and Support Program

Modern medicine has made leaps and bounds in the battle against cancer with effective treatments and therapies, but fighting cancer is not just about the clinical side. In this episode, meet Marty Phillips, director and founder of Richmond University Medical Center’s Family Care and Support program. Marty and his team help cancer patients cope with the emotional, mental and psychological impacts cancer can have not only the individual, but their loved ones as well.

Episode 13: Let’s Talk About Diabetes

Over 1.8 million adults in New York State have been diagnosed with diabetes and every year an estimated 92,000 more adults in New York State are diagnosed. In this episode, board certified endocrinologist, Philip Otterbeck, MD, discusses this condition that affects just over 11% of the state’s adult population and explains how it can be managed successfully.

Episode 12: Enlarged Prostate? We Have the Solutions

An enlarged prostate, or benign prostatic hyperplasia, is a common condition that affects about 50 percent of men between the ages of 51 and 60 and up to 90 percent of men older than 80. In this episode we are joined by board certified urologist Richard Maggio, MD, and board certified urologist and surgeon, Michael Wilson, DO, to discuss two revolutionary non-invasive procedures available at RUMC that treat this condition: UroLift and Aquablasion.

Episode 11: Preventing Falls in Older Adults and Stopping the Bleed

Richmond University Medical Center’s Trauma Department offers several programs to help reduce falls in older adults and address severe cut or puncture wounds. In this episode, Trauma Injury Prevention Coordinator Dave Briscoe discusses both programs that can help save lives.

Episode 10: All About RUMC’s Silberstein Clinic & How to Administer Narcan

Richmond University Medical Center’s Silberstein Clinic serves individuals 18 and older who are seeking treatment for substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders. Licensed by the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS), and staffed with licensed clinicians, credentialed alcohol and substance abuse counselors, medical and psychiatric personnel, and peer advocates, the clinic provides accessible resources in an effort to reduce the negative impact of drug addiction in the community. In this episode, find out more about the clinic’s comprehensive services and watch an actual Narcan training which can help someone who is experiencing an opioid overdose. Guest: Ileana Acosta, Program Manager for the Adult and Adolescent Substance Abuse Programs

Episode 9: Battling Staten Island’s opioid crisis & RUMC’s Project LAUNCH program

In the two part episode, our first segment focuses on the programs available through RUMC’s Silberstein Clinic to support people battling opioid addiction. The second segment shines the spotlight on RUMC’s Project LAUNCH program which assesses children’s physical and behavioral health conditions before they begin school so they can start their school lives ready to succeed alongside their peers. Guests: Ileana Acosta, Program Manager for the Adult and Adolescent Substance Abuse Programs; and Project LAUNCH Clinical Director Miriam Prat-Jerez.

Episode 8: Take A Tour of Our Mother/Baby Unit

Nearly 3,000 newborns begin life’s journey in our Richmond County Savings Foundation Mother/Baby Unit each year. In this episode, you play the role of an expecting family as we visit each section in the unit including triage, a birthing room, recovery, maternity and even our Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Along the way you will meet some of the medical professionals here at RUMC.

Episode 7: Caring for Survivors of Sexual Assault

As Staten Island’s only Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner (SAFE) Center of Excellence, Richmond University Medical Center cares for adults, adolescents and children from across the borough who are victims of sexual assault. In this episode, learn about how RUMC’s team of specially trained forensic nurses care for patients who come for treatment in the hospital’s Emergency Department. Later in the episode, meet some of RUMC’s community partners who provide additional support and services, including the Richmond County District Attorney’s Office who helps these individuals seek justice against their attacker.

Episode 6: Understanding Bariatric Surgery with Alex Barkan, MD

Metabolic or bariatric surgery is the most effective and long-lasting treatment for severe obesity resulting in significant weight loss and the improvement, prevention or resolution of many related conditions. In this episode, board certified surgeon, Alex Barkan, MD, talks about who qualifies for bariatric surgery, the lead up to weight loss surgery, what procedures are available, and the lifestyle changes post-surgery.

Episode 5: Exploring Neurosurgery with Douglas Cohen, MD

Neurosurgery is the medical specialty that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of patients experiencing issues with their brain, spinal cord, spinal column and peripheral nerves throughout the body. In this episode, Douglas Cohen, MD, board certified neurosurgeon and Harvard Medical School graduate, discusses conditions he and his colleagues in Richmond University Medical Center’s Brain and Spine Center treat from emergencies to common disorders.

Episode 4: Advances in the Field of Surgery & A Look at RUMC’s New State of the Art Surgical Department

In this episode, Department of Surgery Chair Loren Harris, MD, discusses the latest advances in the field of surgery and how robotic surgery at Richmond University Medical Center is producing better overall outcomes for patients. In the second part of the episode, President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel J. Messina, PhD, FACHE, discusses RUMC’s new state of the art Surgical Department, opening later this year.

Episode 3: Understanding Angioplasty and Cardiac Health

In this episode we will talk about angioplasty, a minimally invasive procedure that restores blood flow through narrow or blocked arteries. Over 850,000 angioplasty procedures are performed annually in the United States, including at Richmond University Medical Center. This episode’s guest is Francesco Rotatori, MD, FACC, a board certified cardiologist and Chief of RUMC’s Cardiovascular Department. In addition to discussing angioplasty, we scrub in and join Dr. Rotatori as he walks us through actual angioplasty procedures he has performed and gives us a glimpse of what he sees while performing this potentially life-saving procedure.

Episode 2: A Salute to Nurses!

The backbone of any hospital can be summed up in one word: nurses. Each year May is celebrated as National Nurses Month. A time to recognize and thank the millions of nurses across our nation for their dedication, including the more than 600 who care for patients at Richmond University Medical Center. In this episode, a trio of nurses from different departments share their experiences as nurses and what led them to a career in the nursing profession.

Guests: Angela Settepani from the Labor and Delivery Department; Debbie Springstead from the Department of Surgery; and Shannon Thomson from the Emergency Medicine Department. Host: Alex Lutz

Episode 1: Unveiling RUMC’s New Emergency Department

In this episode, learn more about Staten Island’s newest Emergency Department. Richmond University Medical Center’s new state of the art 35,000 Sq. Ft. Emergency Department features expanded trauma and triage areas as well as specialty care units for pediatrics, stroke and cardiac emergencies and much more.

Guests: RUMC President and CEO, Daniel J. Messina, PhD, FACHE; Chair of Emergency Medicine, Johnathon LeBaron, DO; and RUMC Board of trustees member Kathy Connors. Host: Alex Lutz.