Northwell Health and NYC Health + Hospitals Open $47.7M Shared Lab in Queens

LITTLE NECK, Feb. 15 -- The New York Health and Hospitals issued the following news release:

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- Centralized 36,000 SF facility will improve laboratory performance and efficiency, reduce costs

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Northwell Health and NYC Health + Hospitals today celebrated the opening of a $47.7 million shared, centralized laboratory in Little Neck, Queens. The new Clinical Laboratory of New York - the largest nonprofit, hospital-operated lab in the nation - will enhance quality and patient services, while reducing costs for both health systems and their hospitals.

"This state-of-the-art facility shows what's possible when two mission-driven organizations collaborate," said Michael J. Dowling, president and CEO at Northwell Health. "Northwell Health's laboratory expertise, along with exciting new technology deployed here, will help turn tests around faster and more efficiently. That's good for all of the communities served by Northwell and NYC Health + Hospitals."

"The pooled expertise from our two health systems, combined with staff having the latest technology at hand, will benefit all our patients," said Mitchell Katz, MD, president and CEO at NYC Health + Hospitals. "The high volume of testing combined with greater efficiency from the overhead costs of operating just one large facility will save significant money for both our health systems. Such an endeavor is possible only with a partner like Northwell that shares a vision for and commitment to the highest quality of care."

"I am so pleased that NYC Health + Hospitals and Northwell will be partnering to open this new clinical laboratory. This state-of-the-art facility will not only provide well-paying jobs, but will also improve the quality of healthcare for residents in Queens and surrounding areas," said Congressman Tom Suozzi. "I want to thank Dr. Mitchell Katz, President and CEO of Health + Hospitals; and Michael J. Dowling, President and CEO of Northwell Health, for their crucial involvement in creating a better healthcare system for my constituents and other people in the region."

"I am excited to hear that NYC Health + Hospitals continues to find innovative ways to upgrade and expand upon the excellent service they provide throughout Queens. The new Clinical Laboratory of New York will result in greater efficiency and cost savings for Health + Hospitals and its partner Northwell Health," said Assemblyman David I. Weprin. "I want to thank Dr. Mitchell Katz, President & CEO of Health + Hospitals, the nation's largest public health care system, and Michael J. Dowling, President and CEO of Northwell Health, New York State's largest health care provider, for partnering to advance medical care in New York."

"The partnership between NYC Health + Hospitals and Northwell Health will improve the efficacy and delivery of treatment for patients in Queens and beyond," said Council Member Barry S. Grodenchik. "In addition to the sharing of resources and standardized levels of service, the $47 million project represents a significant investment in our community, and I am pleased that the lab has opened here in Little Neck, Queens."

"I'm thrilled to see this historic facility being established right here in Northeast Queens," said Council Member Paul Vallone. "The patient services, medical expertise, and jobs that the new Clinical Laboratory of New York will bring are greatly welcome. I look forward to seeing this great work done by Northwell Health and NYC Health + Hospitals continue to grow."

The LEED Silver-certified centralized laboratory, located at 59-25 Little Neck Parkway, primarily performs microbiology tests, including molecular diagnostics, from local hospitals, clinics and physician offices, incorporating the latest technology and advanced robotic testing systems. The facility is administered by Northwell Health Labs, which performs more than 30 million tests each year between its Core Lab, hospitals, physicians' offices, nursing homes and clinical trials, and handles more than 200,000 surgical pathology specimens annually. In addition, some six million non-urgent tests from NYC Health + Hospitals will be processed at the Clinical Laboratory of New York at Little Neck and Northwell's Core Lab in Lake Success, enabling all public hospital laboratories to focus on urgent testing.

The 36,000-square-foot, two-story lab is part of the Clinical Laboratory of New York (CLNY) Alliance formed in 2014 by Northwell and NYC Health + Hospitals to integrate laboratory services through a shared reference lab. The facility, which began operations earlier this month with 176 employees, will eventually grow to include 210.

The lab's opening represents the culmination of a years-long effort to standardize information systems and equipment and establish joint standards committees.

Northwell made the upfront investment to build the Little Neck facility, which will provide enhanced service levels to physicians and patients in the community, while also bringing additional jobs to the city. The joint project is expected to save NYC Health + Hospitals more than $20 million annually.

"Just as important as this amazing new facility--and it really is amazing--is the underlying framework that our partnership with Northwell has created," said Kenra Ford, chief of staff to system chief medical officer and senior assistant vice president of laboratory services at NYC Health + Hospitals. "With standardized equipment and lab information systems, we are well established for a future of growth and change, ready to tackle whatever the future holds to best serve our patients."

The Little Neck facility is one of two new facilities for CLNY, as later this month Northwell Labs moves its Core Lab operations from 10 Nevada Drive in Lake Success to the health system's Center for Advanced Medicine at 450 Lakeville Road in Lake Success. The expansive $59.6 million, 101,000 square-foot facility has 84,000 square feet of clinical space, including the largest chemistry and hematology automated line of its kind in North America. The new Core Lab site includes laboratory medicine, anatomic pathology and administration.

To handle additional volume generated by the new Little Neck and Lake Success labs, Northwell has hired about 90 new employees over the past year. In total, Northwell Health Labs has a workforce of more than 1,300.

"This is an exciting time as Northwell Health Laboratories takes a step forward with new equipment and facilities to match our already excellent staff," said Dwayne Breining, MD, executive director of Northwell Labs. "Our partnership with NYC Health + Hospitals, along with the Core Lab expansion, is an investment in the health of all New Yorkers."

About Northwell Health

Northwell Health is New York State's largest health care provider and private employer, with 23 hospitals, nearly 700 outpatient facilities and more than 13,600 affiliated physicians. We care for over two million people annually in the New York metro area and beyond, thanks to philanthropic support from our communities. Our 68,000 employees - 16,000-plus nurses and 4,000 employed doctors, including members of Northwell Health Physician Partners - are working to change health care for the better. We're making breakthroughs in medicine at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. We're training the next generation of medical professionals at the visionary Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra Northwell School of Graduate Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. For information on our more than 100 medical specialties, visit Northwell.edu.

About NYC Health + Hospitals

NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public health care system in the nation serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city's five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system's trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlus health plan--all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 42,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NYCHealthSystem or Twitter at @NYCHealthSystem.