FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, contact:
Kal Mistry, Chief Administrative Officer/Senior Vice President
VITAS Innovative Hospice Care®, 305.350.5990
Megan Carella, APR, Public Relations Editor
VITAS Innovative Hospice Care®, 352.560.3415
Local Physician Named Medical Director
For VITAS Innovative Hospice Care®
Of Collier County
Naples, Florida, June 7, 2010—Natalia Keyser, MD, of Naples, has been named Medical Director for VITAS Innovative Hospice Care® of Collier County. In this role, Keyser is responsible for overseeing the medical care and treatment of VITAS patients in their homes and in nursing homes and assisted living communities and in the VITAS inpatient hospice unit at Physicians Regional Medical Center in Naples. She also consults with patients’ attending physicians, supervises VITAS team physicians, guides staff and volunteers, and serves as a resource to practicing physicians and other healthcare professionals on the benefits of hospice and palliative care for patients and their families.
“For more than 30 years, VITAS Innovative Hospice Care® has been a leader in the American hospice movement, helping to define the standards of care for hospice and ensuring that patients of all ages and their families have access to compassionate end-of-life care,” says Keyser. “I have been so impressed with the high level of care VITAS hospice professionals provide to their patients and to their patients’ loved ones here in Collier County.”
“We are delighted that Dr. Keyser has joined VITAS in Collier County,” says Pippa Steinhart, RN, VITAS general manager. “She has such passion for the elderly and such a wide range of experience in geriatric care. Her compassionate nature helps her in dealing with the multiple issues patients and families face near the end of life. She takes the time to sit with patients and families and explain the symptoms and treatment options to help them make informed decisions.”
In her private practice in Naples, Keyser sees a patient population that is primarily 65 years old or older. Board certified in internal medicine and in hospice and palliative medicine, she is medical director at Heritage Healthcare nursing home and associate medical director at Moorings Park retirement community. She also sees patients at Barrington Terrace and Windsor Place. Prior to joining VITAS, Keyser served as associate medical director for another local hospice.
Keyser received her medical degree from Instituto de Ciencias de la Salud, CES, in Medellin, Colombia. As a general practitioner at Hospital San Roque in Antioquia, San Roque, Colombia, she oversaw a war zone emergency room, treating patients under stressful conditions with limited medical equipment.
Keyser completed her residency in internal medicine at Temple University/St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, working with clinic and inpatient populations with high incidences of coronary artery disease, COPD, diabetes and congestive heart failure.
VITAS Innovative Hospice Care®, a pioneer and leader in the hospice movement since 1978, is one of the nation’s largest providers of end-of-life care. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, VITAS (pronounced VEE-tahs) operates 45 hospice programs in 16 states (California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin). VITAS employs 9,702 professionals who care for terminally ill patients daily, primarily in the patients’ homes, but also in the company’s 30 inpatient hospice units as well as in hospitals, nursing homes and assisted living communities/residential care facilities for the elderly. At the conclusion of the Fourth quarter of 2009, VITAS reported an average daily census of 12,322. Visit www.vitas.com.
Listed on the New York Stock Exchange and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Chemed Corporation (NYSE:CHE) operates two wholly owned subsidiaries: VITAS Healthcare and Roto-Rooter.
Photo: Natalia Keyser, MD
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