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New Outpatient Unit for Treatment of Pediatric Cancer and Blood Disorders Made Possible by $12 Million Gift from Jerome L. Greene Foundation

NEW YORK, May 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A new outpatient infusion suite at The Children's Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) provides a unique therapeutic environment for children facing life-threatening cancer and blood disorders by combining expert clinical care with comforting child-friendly design.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080501/DC21153 )

Built to accommodate the growing patient volume at the hospital's Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, the new infusion unit was made possible by a $12 million gift from the Jerome L. Greene Foundation. It is the latest development within CHAM's Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, which is the only center in the New York City area to offer all services under one roof that are needed for the care and treatment of pediatric cancer and blood disorders.

"We are proud that our division of pediatric hematology/oncology has evolved to become a destination for young patients in need of highly specialized clinical expertise and innovative therapies," said Steven M. Safyer, MD, President and CEO, Montefiore Medical Center. "We applaud the Greene family's recognition of the division's significant growth and potential and are deeply grateful for their ongoing and generous support of our patients."

Dawn M. Greene, President and CEO of the Jerome L. Greene Foundation, announced the $12 million donation last spring in honor of her late husband, Jerome L. Greene, the noted attorney, real estate investor and philanthropist who died in 1999.

A longtime trustee of Montefiore Medical Center, Mr. Greene was founding chairman of the Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a non-profit organization established by Montefiore in 1981 to revitalize the community surrounding the medical center. In recent years, the Greene family has provided significant financial support to projects at Montefiore, including construction of the Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Medical Arts Pavilion at the medical center's Moses campus.

"Our support of the pediatric hematology/oncology team at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore is inspired by the superior clinical care they provide, with a level of compassion that any parent would want for their child," said Dawn Greene. "The atmosphere is so important when a young person is ill, and this new infusion unit will surround children with a great deal of warmth and comfort as they complete long and difficult treatments."

High-tech meets child-friendly design

"A generation ago, children with cancer had limited treatment options and often poor prognoses. Today, our ability to develop and administer groundbreaking therapies is giving many children the chance to live to adulthood and far beyond," said Richard Gorlick, MD, Vice Chairman and Chief of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, CHAM. "At The Children's Hospital at Montefiore, we have an enthusiastic team that is committed to providing the highest quality care. The Greene Foundation's gift allows us to realize our vision to create a child-friendly environment where superior clinical expertise and research will lead us to even greater advances in the treatment of pediatric cancer and blood disorders."

The new, 4,800-square-foot outpatient suite houses 11 infusion bays and 5 exam rooms, with special features including plasma TVs in each bay that provide a welcome distraction as children receive chemotherapy. Designed by visionary architect David Rockwell, whose firm was responsible for designing CHAM, the unit features unique visuals, local references and touchable art such as a Periaktoi play wall, a hands-on display where children can create wall-sized images of rhinos, a parrot and a school of dolphins by rotating triangular blocks. Prehistoric and modern-day "Birds of the Bronx" fly overhead, reflecting children's connection to the universe and their roles as "explorers" on a journey to healing.

Gift supports growing pediatric hematology/oncology patient population

The Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at CHAM addresses the complex physical, medical and emotional needs of children with cancer and blood disorders, providing specialty care including bone marrow transplantation, resources of the area's only NIH-funded Sickle Cell Center, and access to the latest national and international clinical trials through its participation in the Children's Oncology Group. In addition, researchers at CHAM are focused on developing new treatment agents and bringing them into clinical trials as quickly as possible, providing alternatives such as inhaled chemotherapy to children for whom standard interventions have failed.

Complementing these services is a multi-faceted integrative medicine program that incorporates a range of healing therapies including martial arts therapy, yoga, massage and aromatherapy, holistic cooking classes and soon, acupuncture.

The Greene Foundation's gift was given in support of the division's dramatic growth since Dr. Gorlick was appointed chief in 2004, and the new infusion suite is the centerpiece of the program's physical redesign. In 2007, nearly 2,500 infusions were administered in CHAM's pediatric day hospital, compared to 290 in 2004, with the program steadily receiving referrals from Westchester, Rockland and Orange counties. The completion of the new outpatient infusion suite is the first of two major phases of construction made possible by the Greene donation. Phase II will be a total renovation of the pediatric hematology/oncology inpatient unit, which is targeted for completion in the winter of 2009.

The funds have also supported recruitment of pediatric hematology/oncology physician specialists and other key members of the care team including an advance practice nurse, a child life specialist and a social worker.

Please visit our website, www.montekids.org, for more information about The Children's Hospital at Montefiore.

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Photo:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080501/DC21153
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: The Children?s Hospital at Montefiore

CONTACT: Anne McDarby, amcdarby@montefiore.org, or Pamela Adkins,
padkins@montefiore.org, +1-718-920-4011, both of the Children's Hospital at
Montefiore

Web Site:

www.montekids.org

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Profile: Transplant News