Hospital Expands Wound-Care Center

North Shore-LIJ recently unveiled its latest improvements to its wound healing center, hospital officials said.

Spanning an additional 1,695 square feet, the updated facility at Plainview Hospital features a fourth hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber, five examination rooms, expanded waiting and registration areas, and other improvements. The additions, done in partnership with Long Island Hyperbaric and Wound Care Associates, provides nearly 10,000 specialty treatments per year with state-of-the-art equipment and expert care.

“Since the center first opened about four years ago, it has treated thousands of patients,” said Michael Fener, executive director of Plainview and Syosset Hospitals. “Using advanced treatment techniques we’ve been extremely successful at healing our patients and are pleased to offer the best in wound care treatment.”

Staffed by a multidisciplinary team of board-certified physicians, skilled nurses and trained hyperbaric technicians, the center provides the latest in care for conditions such as diabetic ulcers, bone infections, inadequate circulation, massive soft tissue infections and complications of radiation therapy. Treatment focuses on diagnosing and treating the whole patient, in addition to the wound, to help someone recover as safely and swiftly as possible.

Dr. Peter Salzer, MD, chief of Hyperbaric and Wound Care Medicine at Plainview, notes that the center’s healing rates -- in the range of 90 to 92 percent-- are higher than the national average at hyperbaric and wound care facilities. 

“We discharged 48 patients during the last two months from our wound service with a 100 percent healing rate,” he said. 

To put those numbers in perspective, Salzer added that he recently visited a Pennsylvania hospital with wound-healing rates in the 80 to 82 percent range as a surveyor for the Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society.

“With the continued support of the health system, staff and community, we’ve increased our capacity, reduced hospitalization rates, and increased healing success,” said Salzer. “We are pleased to be able to continue providing the best in wound care treatment to the community.”

To contact the wound healing center at Plainview Hospital, call 516-719-2298/2299. For more information, visit http://www.northshorelij.com/NSLIJ/Wound+Care+at+Plainview+Hospital