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Press Releases

Elmhurst Hospital Center Breaks Ground for New Women’s Healthcare Services Pavilion

Dec 22, 2009

Elmhurst, New York
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Dr. Ann Sullivan, HHC Board member
Anna Krill, Dr. Jasmin Moshirpur, EHC
Executive Director Chris Constantino,
Councilmember Helen Sears

Elmhurst Hospital Center (EHC) held a groundbreaking today for a new Women’s Healthcare Services Pavilion, which will be located on the south side of 41st Avenue between 78th and 79th Streets, adjacent to the hospital’s main building. The state-of-the-art facility will house a variety of women’s health services, including gynecology, gynecological surgery, colposcopy, pregnancy and HIV testing and counseling, prenatal care, and high-risk pregnancy monitoring. The Pavilion, slated to be completed by 2012, will also be home to a number of support programs, including those offering classes in breastfeeding, childbirth, nutrition, and diabetes education.
Councilwoman Helen Sears and the New York City Council allocated $8.5 million for the facility, which will contain more that 20,000 square feet of dedicated clinical space on two separate floors. An additional $6 million in funding came from a New York State HEAL Grant and the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation’s capital budget.
“The building of the new Pavilion will allow us to dramatically expand the scope of our services for women,” said Elmhurst Hospital Center Executive Director Chris Constantino, who added that the existing on-site medical clinics for women simply did not have enough space to accommodate the growing needs of the community. “In a building that was designed to serve 150,000 patients annually, we now see over 400,000. The new facility will account for both present and future needs, allowing for 5% annual growth in service capacity over a 5-year period.”

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EHC Executive Director Chris Constantino
presents award to Councilwoman Helen
Sears at groundbreaking for Women’s
Pavilion.

Constantino also thanked Councilwoman Helen Sears for securing funding for the project and presented her with an award on behalf of the Hospital staff for her long-standing commitment to EHC.
“This is a special moment for Elmhurst Hospital Center and for me,” said Sears, who recounted her efforts to appropriate funding for the Women’s Healthcare Services Pavilion during her two terms as a Councilmember. “This women’s health center had to be done, and after eight years, it’s finally becoming a reality.”
“I especially want to thank Helen Sears for this wonderful gift,” said Dr. Ann Sullivan, Senior Vice President of the Queens Health Network. “Women spend so much of their time caring for other people, and it’s great to know that there will be a place where they themselves can be taken care of.”
In keeping with the City of New York’s efforts to improve energy efficiency in public buildings, the Pavilion is being planned to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards for environmentally sustainable construction. The building’s design is decidedly women-friendly and includes a glass façade to allow in maximum natural light and space for children to play while their mothers wait to be seen in the clinics.
For more information about the Women’s Healthcare Services Pavilion at Elmhurst Hospital Center, please contact Atiya Butler, Assistant Director of External Affairs, at (718) 334-1259 or via e-mail at atiya.butler@nychhc.org.


Contact: Ian Michaels (HHC) (212) 788-3339

About Elmhurst Hospital Center

Elmhurst Hospital Center (EHC) is the major tertiary care provider in the borough of Queens. The hospital is comprised of 545 beds and is a Level I Trauma Center, an Emergency Heart Care Station and a 911 Receiving Hospital. It is the premiere health care organization for key areas such as Surgery, Cardiology, Women’s Health, Pediatrics, Rehabilitation Medicine, Renal and Mental Health Services. Elmhurst Hospital Center serves an area of approximately one million people. This community is recognized as the most ethnically diverse in the world. Last year, EHC received 693,600 ambulatory care visits as well as receiving 130,042 Emergency Room visits making it one of the busiest ERs in New York City. Over 4,200 babies were delivered at Elmhurst last year alone-the most in this region. Ensuring accessible health care is our priority.

About HHC

The New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC) is a $6.7 billion integrated healthcare delivery system with its own 420,000 member health plan, MetroPlusHealth, and is the largest municipal healthcare organization in the country. HHC serves 1.4 million New Yorkers every year and more than 475,000 are uninsured. HHC provides medical, mental health and substance abuse services through its 11 acute care hospitals, five skilled nursing facilities, six large diagnostic and treatment centers and more than 70 community based clinics. HHC Health and Home Care also provides in-home services for New Yorkers. HHC was the 2008 recipient of the National Quality Forum and The Joint Commission’s John M. Eisenberg Award for Innovation in Patient Safety and Quality. For more information, visit www.nychhc.org/hhc or find us on facebook.com/NYCHealthSystem or twitter.com/NYCHealthSystem.