NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens NICU Awarded Gold Beacon Award for Excellence
Recognition highlights exceptional teamwork, education, and commitment to high-quality care
Jun 26, 2026
The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens has been honored with the prestigious Gold Beacon Award for Excellence from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN). This award recognizes the unit’s commitment to fostering a healthy work environment, delivering outstanding patient care, and implementing effective systems for optimal outcomes.
The NICU achieved an impressive score of 85, significantly above the median score of 64 for all applicants in 2025, underscoring the unit’s focus on excellence in care. The award reflects the NICU’s adherence to AACN’s six standards for a healthy work environment, which emphasize communication, collaboration, and evidence-based practices.
“Receiving the AACN’s Gold Beacon Award is a testament to the exceptional teamwork and dedication of our NICU nurses, physicians, and staff,” said Neil J. Moore, MBA, MPA, FACHE, CEO of NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens. “This achievement highlights our commitment to providing high-quality care and support to the families we serve.”
The NICU’s success is attributed to its strong focus on continuous education and collaborative initiatives, including nurse-led quality improvement processes. The team has demonstrated a commitment to ensuring that policies, procedures, and protocols are current and based on nationally recognized evidence and standards.
Dr. Natalia Cineas, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Executive, remarked, “I would like to congratulate Queens Hospital’s NICU team on their remarkable AACN Gold Level Beacon Award. This award celebrates the leadership, staff, and high-quality patient outcomes that continue to drive their operations.”
Dr. Abbi-Gail Baboolal, DNP, MSN, APRN, FNP, JJNIF, Chief Nursing Officer at NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens, emphasized, “Our NICU team’s unwavering commitment to excellence is reflected in this award. We are dedicated to providing comprehensive, high-quality care for every patient including our most vulnerable patients.”
Additionally, as the first Baby-Friendly hospital in the borough of Queens, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens promotes breastfeeding and family-centered practices, further enhancing the quality of care provided in the NICU.
In 2025, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens saw approximately 1,045 births with 295 NICU admissions, about 28% of total deliveries.
The NICU earned its Gold status by excelling in key areas such as:
- Leadership structures and systems
- Appropriate staffing and staff engagement
- Evidence-based practice and processes
- Outcome measurement, including clinical and patient satisfaction
For more information about NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and its NICU services, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/queens.
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Media Contact: Cleon Edwards, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens, (646) 772-5725
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American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
AACN is the world’s largest specialty nursing organization, advancing the science and practice of acute and critical care nursing to improve health outcomes for patients and families. For more information, visit www.aacn.org.
About NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens
A member of NYC Health + Hospitals, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens is a major health care provider in the borough of Queens. Its foremost mission is to provide quality, comprehensive care to all members of the public regardless of their ability to pay. Queens Hospital recently marked its 90th anniversary of serving the communities of central and southeastern Queens, having first opened its doors as Queens General Hospital in 1935. Encompassing 360,000 square feet, it comprises 253 licensed beds, spacious ambulatory care suites featuring both primary and specialty services, and cutting-edge equipment. It also houses four Centers of Excellence: Cancer Care, Diabetes Management, Women’s Health, and Behavioral Health. The hospital has recently added a fully expanded Emergency Room, a Breast Imaging Center of Excellence accredited by the American College of Radiology, and a Total Hip and Knee Replacement Center, with plans underway to build the health system’s first Dialysis Center to train patients to perform their own at-home dialysis. To learn more about NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/queens.
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 MetroPlusHealth—all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 46,000 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, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.