Randi Kaplan Named Schwartz Center's 2016 National Caregiver Of The Year

NEW YORK, Nov. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, a national leader in in providing compassionate care to patients and caregivers, has named Randi Kaplan, LMSW, director of the Arthur D. Emil Caregiver Support Center at Montefiore, the National Compassionate Caregiver of the Year (NCCY). The prestigious award goes to people  who display compassion, and establish mutual trust and respect with families involved in healthcare decision-making. The award was presented yesterday at the 21^st Annual Kenneth B. Schwartz Compassionate Healthcare Dinner, where Randi was honored amongst 2,000 healthcare leaders, clinicians, patients and family members.  

Randi Kaplan is the co-founder of the Arthur D. Emil Caregiver Support Center at Montefiore, the first and only center of its kind in New York City that provides a quiet, private place for people to relax during a loved one's hospitalization. The Center delivers emotional support and practical assistance to every person who walks through its doors, successfully connecting them  to the breadth of resources within Montefiore and the community.

"What I hear most about Randi from caregivers, patients and staff is that she is their angel," said Steven M. Safyer, M.D., president & CEO, Montefiore Medicine. "Not a week goes by where I don't receive an email or handwritten letter from a patient, family member or even colleague, about how Randi is their strength and partner in care. She leads with her heart, and when she says being at work is the best part of her day, she means it.   Randi embodies what makes Montefiore special: she puts people first every day."

The Caregiver Support Center at Montefiore opened its doors in April 2016. Since that time, it has become one of the most sought after destinations  in the hospital. More than 30 volunteers, many of whom are former Montefiore patients or who had family members  cared for at Montefiore, are invaluable resources for patients, caregivers and providers. The Center has been recognized nationally by the Caregiver Action Network, the nation's leading family caregiver organization, as one of the "25 Best Practices in Patient and Family Engagement." Volunteers have also been honored by the United Hospital Fund.

"It is an incredible honor to be recognized as the 2016 National Compassionate Caregiver of the Year." said Randi Kaplan. "Being a caregiver is not a job to me, it is my calling, and I feel fortunate enough to fulfill my purpose to give care."

The NCCY Award is made possible through the generous support of Optum and Modern Healthcare.

About Montefiore Health System
Montefiore Health System is one of New York's premier academic health systems and is a recognized leader in providing exceptional quality and personalized, accountable care to approximately three million people in communities across the Bronx, Westchester and the Hudson Valley. It is comprised of 10 hospitals, including the Children's Hospital at Montefiore, Burke Rehabilitation Hospital and close to 200 outpatient care sites. The advanced clinical and translational research at its' medical school, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, directly informs patient care and improves outcomes. From the Montefiore-Einstein Centers of Excellence in cancer, cardiology and vascular care, pediatrics, and transplantation, to its' preeminent school-based health program, Montefiore is a fully integrated healthcare delivery system providing coordinated, comprehensive care to patients and their families. For more information please visit www.montefiore.org. Follow us on Twitter and view us on Facebook and YouTube.

About the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare
Established in 1995, the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, a leader in the movement to make compassion a vital element in every patient-caregiver interaction, was founded on the belief that greater compassion and more meaningful collaboration are fundamental to the kind of care clinicians want to deliver and patients want to receive.

The Schwartz Center is an independent, non-profit organization, with more than 425 healthcare members in the U.S. and Canada, supporting 200,000 healthcare professionals each year. In partnership with the Point of Care Foundation, more than 150 hospitals, hospices and other healthcare organizations conduct the innovative Schwartz Rounds^TM program in the U.K., which unites caregivers from a range of disciplines to share experiences, learn from each other and focus on the human dimension of medicine. Schwartz Center members rely on programs, education and resources to support clinician well-being, enhance the quality of care, enable better outcomes and create a more positive and rewarding experience for all members of the care team, patients and their families. The Center's inaugural Annual Compassion in Action Healthcare Conference (compassioninactionconference.org) will bring together clinicians, patients and families, health system leadership and others to advance a common goal of delivering more compassionate, collaborative care. Registration for the conference is now open.

To help patients and family members acknowledge caregivers who epitomize the qualities of compassionate care the Schwartz Center established the Honor Your Caregiver program.

Through its National Compassionate Caregiver of the Year Award, the Center celebrates healthcare professionals who display extraordinary devotion and compassion in caring for patients and families.

Visit us at theschwartzcenter.org or follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

SOURCE Montefiore Medical Center