Health Resources and Services Administration Honors Dr. Jennifer Frontera As Organ Donation Champion

Jennifer A. Frontera, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery and Neurology at The Mount Sinai Medical Center, and Medical Director of its Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit, has been honored by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) for demonstrating an exceptional commitment to organ donation and transplantation. (Media-Newswire.com) - New York, NY – November 10, 2010 /Press Release/ –– Jennifer A. Frontera, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery and Neurology at The Mount Sinai Medical Center, and Medical Director of its Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit, has been honored by the Health Resources and Services Administration ( HRSA ) for demonstrating an exceptional commitment to organ donation and transplantation. Dr. Frontera was one of only 11 individuals to be honored by HRSA at a Medal of Honor Ceremony during the sixth National Learning Congress in Grapevine, Texas. She was recognized by HRSA as the Organ Donation Champion for New York State. Dr. Frontera received her award for promoting organ donation awareness among physicians, patients and families by a website she developed in collaboration with the New York Organ Donor Network, the Mount Sinai Recanati/Miller Transplantation Institute, and the New York Eye Bank. The Mount Sinai Medical Center’s website section on donation offers insights on best practices for health care professionals, as well as more general information for the public. It has served as a model for other New York area hospitals developing similar websites. When notifying Dr. Frontera of the honor, Maria Sabeta, a New York Organ Donor Network manager of hospital and family services, told her that the organization wished to thank her for her extraordinary efforts to improve the donation process at Mount Sinai. "You have set an example through your initiatives," Ms. Sabeta said. "You exemplify the type of dedication we need to continue improving the overall donation process in our area." Dr. Frontera, who chairs the Donor Council at Mount Sinai, has filled the position of National Improvement Leader, which focuses on implementing strategies and partnerships to achieve higher organ donation rates and the number of organs recovered per donor. In 2009, she attended the National Learning Congress to accept Mount Sinai’s first Silver 1 HRSA Medal of Honor for exemplary organ donation rates. "We deal with so much tragedy every day and so in the cases where we can’t save patients, something beautiful like the gift of life can come out of that," Dr. Frontera said. "I am honored to be recognized by the HRSA, and look forward to further improving the donation rate at The Mount Sinai Medical Center." "Currently, Dr. Frontera is actively working on automating the organ and tissue referral process at Mount Sinai, with the aim to also capture and increase potential DCD donors," said Ms. Sabeta. "Her initiative and commitment is remarkable and exemplary." For more information about organ donation at Mount Sinai, visit www.nyorgandonor.org. About the New York Organ Donor Network Founded in 1978, the New York Organ Donor Network is the second largest of the nation’s 58 nonprofit, federally designated organ procurement organizations ( OPOs. ) The Donor Network is responsible for the recovery of organs, eyes, and tissues for transplantation as well as public and professional education efforts in the greater New York metropolitan area. It serves a highly diverse population in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Staten Island, Long Island, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Westchester, and Pike County, PA. The Donor Network partners with 10 transplant centers, more than 90 hospitals, as well as several eye and tissue banks. It is fully accredited by the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations ( AOPO ) and is a member of the United Network of Organ Sharing ( UNOS. ) For more information about the NYODN, visit www.DonateLifeNY.org. About The Mount Sinai Medical Center The Mount Sinai Medical Center encompasses both The Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Established in 1968, Mount Sinai School of Medicine is one of few medical schools embedded in a hospital in the United States. It has more than 3,400 faculty in 32 departments and 15 institutes, and ranks among the top 20 medical schools both in National Institute of Health funding and by U.S. News & World Report. The school received the 2009 Spencer Foreman Award for Outstanding Community Service from the Association of American Medical Colleges. The Mount Sinai Hospital, founded in 1852, is a 1,171-bed tertiary- and quaternary-care teaching facility and one of the nation's oldest, largest and most-respected voluntary hospitals. U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks The Mount Sinai Hospital among the nation's best hospitals based on reputation, patient safety, and other patient-care factors. Nearly 60,000 people were treated at Mount Sinai as inpatients last year, and approximately 530,000 outpatient visits took place. For more information, visit www.mountsinai.org. Follow us on Twitter @mountsinainyc.