(February 26, 2007 -- Rockville Centre, NY) - Mercy Medical Center continues to build its administrative and clinical leadership team with the appointment of Prissana Alston, MA, RN, CNAA as Director of Nursing.

Ms. Alston comes to Mercy from SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn where she was Deputy Director, supervising the cardiovascular service, medicine and surgery, maternal-child health and the dialysis division. Previously, she was Vice President of Nursing at The Silvercrest Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation in Briarwood, New York. Earlier she served as Director of Patient Care Services at New York Hospital Queens.

A resident of Dix Hills, Ms. Alston received her bachelor’s degree in nursing at Long Island University in Brooklyn and her RN from Flushing Hospital School of Nursing, before earning a master’s degree in Nursing Administration and Education at Teachers College of Columbia University, and Certification, Nursing Administration Advanced (CNAA) from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Ms. Alston serves on the board of the New York State Education Department Office of the Professions, and as chair of the advisory board of the New York State Senate 14th District Health Advisory Committee.

About Mercy Medical Center
Mercy Medical Center in Rockville Centre is a 387-bed, not-for-profit hospital serving the healthcare needs of Nassau County and its surrounding area. Best known for services in maternal health, oncology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, orthopedics, and behavioral health, Mercy is a state-designated Level II Trauma and Stroke Center, site of a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, a Bariatric Center of Excellence designated by the American Society of Bariatric Surgery, and the regional home of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Mercy also is the recipient of the 2007 Orthopedic Care Excellence Award from HealthGrades, marking the third year in a row that the nation’s leading healthcare ratings company has given Mercy’s program its top orthopedics honor.

Founded nearly a century ago by the Sisters of the Congregation of the Infant Jesus, Mercy today has a medical staff of nearly 800 physicians, some 1,500 employees and one of Long Island’s newest acute-care hospital facilities, the $41 million, 160-bed North Pavilion housing state-of-the-art technology and the latest features in hospital design to promote patient safety and comfort.

Mercy Medical Center is a member of Catholic Health Services of Long Island.
For information and physician referrals call (516) 62-MERCY or visit Mercy on line at http://mercymedicalcenter.chsli.org

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For immediate release, contact: Mel Granick
Phone: 516-705-2618
E-Mail: mel.granick@chsli.org