Newswise — New York, NY (April 15, 2020) – The Mount Sinai Health System has partnered with Sana Labs to launch Project Florence, a personalized learning platform to enhance the skills of nurses treating COVID-19 patients in New York City. The group, facilitated by the New York Academy of Sciences, is also making the platform available for free to hospitals around the world to improve medical response and care during the pandemic.
The virtual training platform, available through Sana Labs, provides a curriculum developed by Mount Sinai that includes the latest on industry resources and policies from organizations including the American Association of Critical Care Nurses. After users complete an AI-powered adaptive assessment that measures their knowledge, the platform recommends personalized content in real time to address individual skills gaps. It can be accessed from any internet-connected device including phones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers. The project was officially launched at the Mount Sinai Health System on Monday, April 13.
“The profound shortage of intensive care nurses and respiratory therapists will be one of the most significant hurdles facing U.S. hospitals treating critically ill COVID-19 patients,” said Jane Maksoud, RN, MPA, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, Mount Sinai Health System. “Project Florence will be a great benefit to staff preparing to care for critically ill patients. We are grateful for the partnership we have developed with Sana Labs and the work we have done together to assist our nurses on the front line.”
A projected 4.8 million Americans will be hospitalized for COVID-19, according to the American Hospital Association. Of those hospitalized, an estimated 40 percent or nearly 2 million patients will require admittance to the ICU. While there are currently about 550,000 critical care nurses in the United States, tens of thousands of nurses will be in demand in the coming months.
“I’m very excited to bring this innovative approach to Mount Sinai hospitals to help advance the skill set of our nurses,” said Diane Adams, MS, Chief Learning Officer of Mount Sinai Health System. “Not only are we advancing the essential skills of our staff, but we are also meeting the needs of our community during a particularly critical time across New York City, the United States, and the rest of the world.”
As hospitals shift priorities from other departments to ICUs, the two-day curriculum is tailored to each individual and suitable for nurses, as well as other medical professionals who are called to assist and may require an update on their understanding of ICU equipment and procedures.
“Project Florence is designed to deliver personalized learning at scale and we look forward to making it available to every hospital in need of upskilling nurses for intensive care of critical COVID-19 patients,” said Joel Hellermark, Founder and CEO of Sana Labs. “We’re honored to be working with the leading health care systems to personalize learning for health care workers who are sacrificing so much to save others.”
Ellis Rubinstein, President Emeritus of the New York Academy of Sciences and former editor of Science Magazine, noted that Project Florence is one of the first online tools to meet the requirements in responding to a global event at this magnitude.
“This is a once-in-a-century event,” said Mr. Rubinstein. “As health care systems the world over face the scarcity of trained talent, the global network of the New York Academy of Sciences is prepared to link Project Florence to those in need.”
Hospitals can now sign up for access to the free platform and curriculum at www.sanalabs.com/projectflorence.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City's largest academic medical system, encompassing eight hospitals, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. Mount Sinai is a national and international source of unrivaled education, translational research, and discovery, and collaborative clinical leadership ensuring that we deliver the highest quality care—from prevention to treatment of the most serious and complex human diseases. The Health System includes more than 7,200 physicians and features a robust and continually expanding network of multispecialty services, including more than 400 ambulatory practice locations throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, and Long Island. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked No. 14 on U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" of the Top 20 Best Hospitals in the country and the Icahn School of Medicine as one of the Top 20 Best Medical Schools in the country. Mount Sinai Health System hospitals are consistently ranked regionally by specialty and our physicians in the top 1% of all physicians nationally by U.S. News & World Report.
About Sana Labs
Sana Labs is the global leader in AI for learning. The company provides a personalized, adaptive learning platform used by Fortune 500 companies for upskilling and reskilling. The team is made up of world-leading engineers and researchers with backgrounds ranging from Google AI and BCG Gamma to Harvard and Spotify. The company is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden and is backed by a renowned set of investors and advisors.
About the New York Academy of Sciences
For 203 years, the Academy has brought together extraordinary people to advance science and address the greatest challenges in society. The first conference on antibiotics, the first on AIDS, the first international meeting on SARS, and pioneering initiatives in Alzheimer’s research are among the Academy’s achievements. One out of every six Nobel laureates in science since 1900 has been a member of the Academy, as are leaders in industry, academia, and government, plus thousands of the world’s most promising young scientists.
For more information, visit www.mountsinai.org, www.sanalabs.com/projectflorence and www.nyas.org.
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