River Hospital, Alexandria Bay, New York

River Hospital, located in Alexandria Bay, New York, is being recognized for the development of the River Community Wellness Program (RCWP).

Positive Outcomes

• Care is offered for three groups of individuals: the “Combat Trauma Group”, the “Non-Combat Trauma Group” and veterans
• RCWP works closely with Fort Drum and the Veteran’s Administration to ensure all of the soldier and veteran health care needs are met, including issues related to traumatic brain injury, substance abuse and issues maintaining healthy relationships

Top Accomplishments

Through the RCWP, soldiers and veterans are supported with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as one focus of the program. The PTSD Check List (PCL-5) is a screening tool used to identify problematic PTSD symptoms. The person being screened rates how often they have had trouble with the identified symptoms in the last week. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) is a nine-question screening tool for symptoms of depression. PCL-5 and PHQ-9 scores are tracked for participants upon admission, weekly throughout the program and at discharge. The scores are tracked as a means of gauging improvement and assessing setbacks that occur during treatment. Scores typically trend downward throughout treatment with overall improvement in scores from admission versus discharge.

“…River Hospital is able to promote wellness, assure access to all patients needing care and operate under the highest standards for quality with the most efficient use of possible resources.” – Ben Moore III, CEO