New name reflects collective strengths, patient-centric focus of one of the state’s largest, most comprehensive long-term care organizations  

New York, New York (Jan. 9, 2012) – The Beth Abraham Family of Health Services – a leader in providing and managing long-term care services for disabled and chronically ill populations – announced today it will rename itself CenterLight Health System. “The name CenterLight captures our organization’s long-standing commitment to healthcare that is uniquely focused on the patient, innovative in its approach and delivered with compassion and a commitment to quality,” said President/CEO Michael S. Fassler. “Offering a broad continuum of services under a single brand will make it easier for patients and their families to understand and access the programs that meet their individual needs.” The CenterLight Health System spans 40 healthcare facilities in Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Staten Island, Westchester and Long Island, includes 3,700 employees and serves 9,000 patients per day. The managed care division has more than 6,400 members, and facilities and services range from medical care to nursing homes and a music therapy institute. The organization serves a wide diversity of ethnic populations with more than 75 languages spoken. Beginning next month, all facilities within the new CenterLight Health System will be rebranded. They will keep their individual names, but to reflect the system’s unification each program will add “an affiliate of CenterLight Health System” to their names. (See chart below for a guide to the new names.) This common identifier will allow all of the affiliates to be recognized as a larger system with a wide range of services. The system’s managed care organization, Comprehensive Care Management (CCM), is changing its name completely – to CenterLight Healthcare.

“We have always had a commitment to excellent patient care and that will never change,” Fassler said. “But we wanted a name that was easier to remember and made it clear that all our services are part of one system. The CenterLight name reflects the idea that we are a guiding light and provide comfort and security, and most importantly, that patients will continue to be at the center of everything we do.”

CenterLight’s Approach to Care CenterLight Health System has a proven approach for providing long-term care. This approach leverages an interdisciplinary care team that delivers better health outcomes and is more cost-effective for patients, providers and the entire healthcare system.  The organization’s broad range of services supports that core approach, giving patients and their families the right options for care at the time and place they need them most. CenterLight has been particularly innovative with its managed care plans. With New York State mandating managed care for all long-term care patients beginning in April, CenterLight Healthcare already offers a number of managed care options for Medicare and Medicaid patients. “Our goal is to help our patients stay as healthy as possible and continue living safely in their communities,” said Joseph M. Healy, Jr., chief operating officer of CenterLight Healthcare, formerly known as CCM.  “We work with them to maintain their quality of life and act quickly to keep any health problems from escalating. This year, we have been able to reduce hospital admissions for our patients by eight percent.”

An example of this is CenterLight Healthcare’s Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), which is the largest and one of the oldest such programs in the nation. An interdisciplinary team coordinates care for patients who are eligible for Medicare, Medicaid or both with a goal of helping them stay in their homes and communities as long as possible. The PACE program offers complete medical care, home care, day care, rehabilitation, medical transportation and a drug benefit.  At the day centers, members participate in social and recreational activities that help them avoid isolation and depression and stay involved in their communities.

The Future “As the healthcare industry continues to evolve, one of the strengths of our system is our broad continuum of programs and services for the long-term care population,” said Paul Rosenfeld, chief operating officer for CenterLight’s Long Term Care division. “Ranging from our health centers to our nursing homes, each part of this organization will play an important role in our growth and in our continued ability to provide care that accurately reflects patients’ needs in the right environment at the right time in their lives.” The CenterLight system is poised for significant growth in coming years, fueled both by the state’s managed care mandate and the system’s alignment with the goal of national healthcare reform to provide better coordinated care. That goal will be guided by the organization’s core values, said Fassler. “Diversity, creativity, caring and integrity – these are the four core strengths that will always be the foundation of all we do,” Fassler said. “As we look to a season of change, we also look forward to an exciting time for our organization as we provide care for more and more individuals who need it.” About Beth Abraham Family of Health Services: The Beth Abraham Family of Health Services is a not-for-profit organization and regional leader in providing and coordinating residential, home and community-based long-term care for chronically ill and disabled adults throughout the New York metropolitan area.  Continuing care services include residential health care, sub-acute medical care, rehabilitation, home care, HIV/AIDS home care, managed long-term care, adult day health care and independent housing facilities for the elderly and disabled.  For more information visit www.bethabe.org.