FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 7, 2007

PATIENT LIBRARY AT NEW ESSEXCOUNTYHOSPITALCENTER

IS NAMED THE ‘ REGINA PALO LIBRARY’

CountyExecutive DiVincenzo Recognizes Mental Health Advocate

for Her Dedication to Improve Living Conditions for Patients

Cedar Grove, NJ – For almost a quarter of a century, West Orange resident Regina Palo has been waging a campaign to preserve the rights of mental health patients and improve their living conditions at the EssexCountyHospitalCenter . Her dream of seeing a new mental health facility built in EssexCounty became a reality when Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr. announced in December 2006 that construction of a new HospitalCenter was complete.

On Wednesday, February 7th, the CountyExecutive recognized Palo’s tireless efforts as a mental health advocate when he dedicated the library in the NewHospitalCenter as the “Regina Palo Library.”

“When I was first elected as CountyExecutive , I made a promise to open a state-of-the-art facility where our psychiatric patients would be able to recover in modern and comfortable surroundings. We fulfilled that promise by designing and building our New Hospital Center In just 25 months – both on time and on budget,” DiVincenzo said. “This would not have been possible without the cooperation and support we received from our staff, patients and their family members. One person who has been at the forefront of preserving the rights of patients and making sure they receive the best mental health care available is Regina Palo,” he added.

“For the past 25 years, Regina has been a strong mental health advocate and determined lobbyist for our patients’ rights,” the CountyExecutive said. “Her expertise and understanding as a family member of a patient was invaluable throughout our entire process of designing and building our new facility. Naming our Hospital library in her honor is a fitting tribute to Regina , who has given a voice to our most vulnerable residents,” he noted.

“This is such a great honor,” said Palo, who noted she was “shocked and stunned” when DiVincenzo informed her of his idea to name the library after her. “I am grateful for the recognition because it raises awareness about NAMI and will show families there are other people who are there for them. As a family support group, it is an honor to be recognized within the hospital,” she added.

Palo joined the Essex Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) – which at the time was called the Concerned Families for Improved Mental Health Services – in the early 1980s, served as President of the Essex County Chapter for four years and currently is its Vice President.

“It wasn’t until my son entered EssexCountyHospital that I really understood how bad the conditions were,” the 75-year-old former West Caldwell resident said. No air conditioning, bad food and insufficient supplies were just a sampling of the concerns that Palo brought to previous County administrations and Boards of Freeholders. In addition, she lobbied the State to fund transitional housing to help patients re-enter the mainstream community and testified at State Legislative hearings. “I wanted to help people understand what the patients were experiencing. The thought of giving up never entered my mind,” she added.

“We are honored to be here to recognize a woman we all love and admire,” Freeholder President Blonnie Watson said. “ Regina has waged a tenacious campaign for the last 25 years and has positively influenced the decisions we made that have affected our mental health patients,” she added.

Freeholder Patricia Sebold described Palo as “a hero.” “She came each week and never gave up. We need more people like Regina . People who don’t give up, who have a vision on how we can care for the people who are less fortunate than us,” she noted.

When a proposal was made to build a new psychiatric hospital, DiVincenzo, then serving as Freeholder President, named her as a member of an ad hoc Hospital Oversight Committee. After being elected CountyExecutive , DiVincenzo announced a new hospital would be built on 11-acres of County-owned property in Cedar Grove. Construction of the $58.3 million project was completed in December 2006 and patients are scheduled to move in by the end of February.

Palo described the new facility as “a miracle.” “Joe listened to our concerns. We are thrilled it will be a teaching hospital, and to see the magnificent hospital that has been built is beyond our expectations,” she said.

“There is no greater force of nature that a mother advocating for her child. Regina was that woman, and became a humanitarian when she began advocating for all patients,” Bob Davison, Executive Director of the Mental Health Association of Essex County, said. “ CountyExecutive DiVincenzo and Regina have done an extraordinary job making this hospital become a reality,” he added.

“When I first came to the Essex County Hospital Center in 2003, I knew that I could always turn to Regina for advice because she always has been very honest about the needs of our patients,” Lucia Guarini, Director of the Essex County Hospital Center and Director of the Essex County Department of Health and Rehabilitation, said.

Although her son has not been hospitalized since 1987, Palo has remained active at the HospitalCenter and with NAMI. “As long as I am able, I will stay involved. It’s too important for the benefit of the patients to not stay involved,” she noted.

Dedicated to Improving Patient Care

The opening of the new Hospital Center is the most recent initiative to improve the quality and delivery of health care for the mentally ill during DiVincenzo’s administration.

In October 2006, DiVincenzo announced the creation of the Institute for Mental Health Policy, Research and Treatment, a new academic division of the Essex County Hospital Center and the first of its kind in New Jersey .

Through the Institute, Essex County and its Hospital Center have established clinical-academic partnerships with various state medical schools and institutions. The Institute has the potential to improve the quality and effectiveness of mental health services to meet patients’ needs by bridging the gap between research and treatment, and to help policy makers reach decisions about funding based on evidence. It is divided into six centers of excellence that will specialize in the following areas: The Center for Mood Disorders, The Center for Schizophrenia and Psychotic Disorders, The Center for Metabolic Disorders, The Center for Workforce Development, The Center for Mental Health Policy, and The Center for Technology Integration.

Since 2003, an in-house Interdisciplinary Committee for Treatment Program Planning has been charged with the development, implementation and continuous monitoring of a master treatment milieu and individual treatment schedules for all patients. Additional employees were recruited, including a medical director, therapeutic and rehabilitation director, social services administrator, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and hospital attendants.

The Essex County Hospital Center also reorganized its plan of care for patients to improve patient outcomes and increase the accountability of staff. The following initiatives were implemented:

A matrix model was instituted to blend treatment and psychosocial rehabilitation in various proportions depending on the level of acuity of the illness and the capability of the individual.

A team of individual treatment providers comprised of psychiatrists, general practice doctors, psychologists, rehabilitation therapists and social workers are assigned to a patient upon admission to the hospital. This team continues to work with the patient throughout their hospital stay to promote continuity of care, appropriate patient outcomes, and discharges to less-restrictive community settings.

The Essex County Hospital Center received three-year accreditation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) in June 2004.

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