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Julie Mirkin, vice president of care coordination at NewYork Presbyterian.

Public healthcare is 鈥渟tuck on an escalator,鈥� according to Julie Mirkin, vice president of care coordination at , the keynote speaker at the Leadership Conference in April 2016.听

The theme of the conference鈥攃o-presented at The Garden City Hotel by the and Sigma Theta Tau International鈥檚 Alpha Omega Chapter鈥攚as 鈥淐reating Our Future: New Directions in Healthcare.鈥�

Although her own hospital system is ranked No. 1 in New York City by U.S. News &听World Report, Mirkin said, 鈥淭hat鈥檚 not good enough.鈥� The hospital network still needs to improve the level of care being offered, and that means increasing efficiency and communication.

鈥淲e have four different branches, and do you think any of them talk to each other?鈥� she asked a full room at The Garden City Hotel. 鈥淣o.鈥�

The solution Mirkin was there to offer fell under the banner of 鈥減atient-centered care,鈥� which she identified as 鈥渁 theme that goes throughout the whole institution. In essence, we鈥檙e all one coordinator.鈥�

While coordinators ensure that nothing falls through the cracks in some areas of healthcare provision, like billing, such continuity is not ensured where it鈥檚 needed most. Hospitals need someone checking that a patient understands symptoms to watch for, related risks and what to expect from prescribed medication. Someone has to make sure follow-up appointments are scheduled before a patient is discharged.

One consequence of not doing so, according to Mirkin, is patient dissatisfaction鈥攚hich these days can quickly translate to negative rankings on the (CMS) website. She explained that the result is like someone reading restaurant reviews online and saying, 鈥淚鈥檓 not going to go to a two-star restaurant.鈥�

Most New York State hospitals rate听two to four stars on the CMS site, Mirkin said. With patients becoming wiser consumers, the level of care is beginning to rise.

鈥淗ospitals are beginning to understand that the only way to fix this is to hire skilled care coordinators and skilled nurses,鈥� Mirkin said to enthusiastic applause.

Also helping to improve conditions is the New York State Caregiver Advise, Record and Enable (CARE)听Act, which went into effect just a week before the conference. The law makes New York the second state (after California) to regulate, for example, what information is provided to a patient during discharge. But Mirkin was not applauding the fact that patient education and empowerment are now required under legislation.

鈥淗ow sad is that?鈥� she said. 鈥淪hame on us.鈥�