September 2009 August Meeting at JSUMC

Our scheduled tour guide, Jersey Shore Vice President Kathryn Collins, couldn’t get to our meeting, so we had acting co-guides, none other than our Past Acting Chapter Co-Presidents, Dennis Broschart (Volunteer Coordinator at JSUMC) and Louis Massarelli (formerly cardiac rehab manager, now JSUMC Medical Liaison). To accommodate the expected crowd, our meeting room was set up auditorium style, chairs but no tables, where we successfully juggled our heart-healthy snack.

6:25 pm: Dennis Broschart (left) and Louis Massarelli, standing; chapter VP Leanard Talalai seated at right. two men standing before us

6:31 pm: Chapter President Bill Ryan (left) with Dennis Broschart; chapter member Al Zucker driving. looking at the Club Car

Dennis told us that the former main entrance, at the Brennan Pavilion, will still be there, but the roads and landscaping will be changed to emphasize the new main entrance at the Northwest Pavilion (see photo next page), and he described some of the other changes. Then he told us where the tour would start, in the Mehandru Pavilion on the first floor, where a walkway leads to the Kurr Atrium in the new building, with a Club Car operated by volunteers for anyone who would prefer to avoid the long walk. Lou went on to outline the tour: first to the magnificent Kurr Atrium, then to the new Emergency Department. The ED has five separate areas occupying an acre: adult, pediatric, mental crisis, trauma and “care center” (which used to be called prompt care, for cuts and bruises). Next, to the fourth floor to see some of the 108 private patient rooms. There are three zones: nursing care, patient rooms, and family zone (where a family member could stay overnight). Each patient room has a private bath, a flat screen TV, and Internet access. Even the rooms in the Emergency Department have Internet access; you could be sitting in a private room in the ED, emailing your family “You’ll never guess where I am!”

6:45 pm: Near the main entrance is an enlarged copy of an old postcard showing the Ocean Grove boardwalk, which Dennis Broschart (standing) helped choose. looking at the Club Car

6:57 pm: No more “waiting rooms”; it’s a “lounge.” chairs, man seated, big window, big fishtank

7:04 pm: The ED (Emergency Department) has too many rooms to be called an ER. Lou showing us a corridor in the ED

7:15 pm: Mirrors help prevent collisions where corridors meet. Lou Massarelli faces the group at a tee intersection. distorted view seen in an overhead convex mirror

distorted view seen in an overhead convex mirror

7:23 pm: Looking down at the Kurr Atrium from the fourth floor. a breath-taking interior

7:35 pm: We didn’t all go into the patient room, but Lou said we could all fit in if we wanted to. in an unoccupied patient room, around the bed