Newsroom

Kitty Carlisle Hart joined others who have been at the forefront of the fight against HIV/AIDS at the dedication of The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center Chelsea Center for Special Studies today. This facility is a major extension of New York-Cornell's comprehensive AIDS clinical and research facilities, namely The Center for Special Studies (AIDS Care Unit) and the Cornell Clinical Trials Unit (HIV Research Center). The new facility, a collaborative effort between GMHC and The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center, is the first ever large-scale partnership of a major New York academic medical center with a community-based AIDS service organization.

Clients of The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center Chelsea Center for Special Studies will have access to high quality, comprehensive primary care and experimental treatments that the medical center is known for as well as the added advantage of GMHC's spectrum of services—including crisis intervention, intensive case management, legal and financial advocacy, nutritional counseling, recreational classes, treatment and prevention information and counseling, and other social services.

"New York-Cornell's philosophy about HIV/AIDS treatment is to provide state-of-the-art continuous and comprehensive medical care in a non-institutional setting with a relaxed and gentle atmosphere," said Dr. Jonathan Jacobs, Medical Director of the Center for Special Studies at New York-Cornell. "We have replicated both the feeling and function of CSS at GMHC's new site."

In addition to its dedication to delivering superior health care to patients, New York-Cornell has been at the forefront of AIDS research since the epidemic began. The Center for Special Studies was certified by the New York State Department of Health in 1988 as a designated AIDS care facility. Also in 1988, the medical center was designated as an AIDS Clinical Trials Unit by the National Institutes of Health, and in 1994, joined the American Foundation for AIDS Research's Community-Based Clinical Trials Network. A full-scale, community-based and federally funded research center is underway at the center.

Dr. Michael Giordano, Director of the Cornell Clinical Trials Unit at Cornell University Medical College, said, "The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center will provide patients with access to a broad spectrum of clinical trials from a dedicated research center. The new site is fully staffed with physician, nursing and technical services."

According to GMHC Executive Director Mark Robinson, "Fifteen years into the epidemic, we are now prepared to deliver the most comprehensive continuum of care available on an outpatient basis to people with HIV and AIDS. Now, for the first time, GMHC will be offering on-site medical interventions, as well as testing and outpatient care, combined with a range of comprehensive services for both HIV-negative and HIV-positive people."

The new facility, at 119 West 24th Street on the main floor, is open Monday through Friday; evening and weekend sessions will be added according to demand. Transportation to New York-Cornell will be available to patients who require further evaluation and/or inpatient care. To schedule an appointment, please call 212-746-7200.

Gay Men's Health Crisis

For fifteen years, the world's oldest and largest AIDS service organization, has responded to the changing epidemic with strength, compassion, and foresight. The agency has expanded care services that meet needs as diverse as crisis intervention by buddies doing chores and lending support; intensive case management; a new women's education services department; support and therapy through weekly groups and one-on-one counseling; legal and financial advocacy on such matters as immigration, landlord-tenant conflicts, estate planning, discrimination, insurance, confidentiality, guardianship, custody and entitlements; nutritional counseling; substance-use counseling and education; family services including support networks, family counseling, food pantry and babysitting; recreational classes; alternative therapies; treatment and prevention information and counseling; and other social services. GMHC's need for adequate space to accommodate its growing client base and diversity of services demands the development of a larger, more integrated facility, which it will now have on West 24th Street. For more information about GMHC, visit gmhc.org.