NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull Plans Emergency Room Expansion Funded by New York City Council Brooklyn Delegation

BROOKLYN, New York, March 12 -- The New York Health and Hospitals issued the following news release:

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- Council Members Reynoso, Treyger, and Rivera Present Ceremonial $5 Million Check Representing the Fiscal Year 2019 Capital Allocation

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NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull CEO Gregory Calliste, New York City Council Brooklyn Delegation Co-chairs Antonio Reynoso, Mark Treyger and New York City Council Hospitals Committee Chair Carlina Rivera today announced plans for an expansion and renovation of the hospital's emergency department to improve access to services, alleviate overcrowding, reduce wait times and improve the patient experience. The expansion project will be fully funded by a $5 million capital allocation from the New York City Council's Brooklyn Delegation and is expected to be completed the first quarter of 2020. The Emergency Department (ED) expansion will add 5,000 square feet of space that will include 16 additional exam rooms, a new and improved state of the art nurse's station, a new isolation room and a "transition hub", where patients who are being discharged from the ED are linked to a primary care or specialty service follow up visit, can receive consultation regarding their medications, and access care management services. The hospitals' plan to improve the patient experience and help link patients to primary care reflects the public health system's broader multi-year redesign to build a competitive, sustainable organization that will continue to offer high-quality and accessible health care to the people of New York City.

"While as a health system we aim to reduce the need for emergency room care by keeping people healthy and managing their chronic conditions through regular visits to a primary care clinician, people will always need emergency care," said Mitchell Katz, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer of NYC Health + Hospitals. "This expansion will help us better serve those who entrust us with their care at some of life's most difficult moments, and give us the opportunity to connect them to the primary care services they need to stay healthy and out of the ED. I want to thank Council Members Antonio Reynoso, Mark Treyger, and Carlina Rivera and the entire Brooklyn delegation for their support of NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull."

"On behalf of our dedicated staff and the community we serve, I want to express our sincere appreciation to the New York City Council and specifically Council Members Reynoso, Treyger, and Rivera for this generous appropriation to help us better serve the people of Brooklyn," said Gregory Calliste, NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull CEO. "This will represent more than a physical expansion of our ED, it will us provide more efficient care to patients and will decrease waiting times and crowding."

"The health and wellbeing of New Yorkers is and always has been a Council priority," said City Council Speaker Corey Johnson. "We have fought hard to maintain the public hospital system, and we aren't about to allow any lessening of services for those who depend on it. The Council is proud to have allocated $5 million in capital funding to this expansion which will further serve the needs of patients who visit Woodhull Hospital with an increase in services and a new and improved emergency room. I want to thank my Council colleagues who continue to fight to ensure that all New Yorkers get the best from our public hospital system."

"As co-chair of the Brooklyn Delegation, I am thrilled to have been a part of the Delegation's historic $5 million budgetary allocation to Woodhull Hospital for expansion of their emergency department," said Council Member Antonio Reynoso. "Woodhull Hospital is a lifeline for many residents throughout my district. By funding necessary upgrades and improvements to hospital facilities and equipment, this allocation will enable the hospital to provide even greater care to a broader range of patients. I would like to thank my fellow Brooklyn Delegation co-chair Mark Treyger for making this possible; City Council Hospitals Committee Chair Carlina Rivera for her tireless advocacy on behalf of Health + Hospitals facilities; and Woodhull Hospital for the vital role that they play in the health of the community."

"New Yorkers depend on our public hospital system, and I am proud that we are making progress in strengthening this critical social safety net," said Council Member Mark Treyger (47th District). "I am excited that in my capacity as Brooklyn Delegation co-chair, I have helped in securing this significant $5 million investment for an expansion and upgrade of the Emergency Department at Woodhull Hospital, increasing access to a better level of care for local residents. I am grateful to my Brooklyn delegation co-chair Antonio Reynoso for his partnership, to City Council Hospitals Chair Carlina Rivera, and Council Speaker Corey Johnson for his leadership. Thank you also to NYC Health + Hospitals and Woodhull Hospital for continuing to serve the needs of this community."

"As Chair of the City Council's Committee on Hospitals, my number one priority is ensuring that Health + Hospitals runs as a world-class operation with adequate funding to serve New Yorkers of all backgrounds. That is why I am so proud to join the members of the Council's Brooklyn delegation in celebrating the Council's groundbreaking $5 million budgetary allocation to Woodhull Hospital for the expansion and renovation of its emergency department," said Councilwoman Carlina Rivera, Chair of the Council's Committee on Hospitals. "These kinds of targeted investments, combined with a plan to link emergency patients to long-term primary care, will elevate our public hospital system as a leader of healthcare in New York City."

The NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull Emergency Department has 18,700 square feet and was originally built to provide treatment up to 65,000 patients a year. Last year, the hospital in Fiscal Year 2017 provided treatment for 107,424 patients which is approximately 40 percent above the original capacity.

The $5 million allocation from the NYC Council Brooklyn Delegation will also cover the purchase of new medical equipment, including stretchers, portable EKG machines, telemetry monitors, vital sign paraphernalia and ventilators.

About NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull

NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull is a 388-bed, acute care hospital in Brooklyn that serves the needs of the residents of Williamsburg, Bushwick, Greenpoint, Fort Greene, and Bedford-Stuyvesant. In addition to the quality acute care and emergency services, the hospital offers a wide range of outpatient primary care, dental and specialty care services for children and adults that are responsive to the health needs of the local community. The Pride Health Center at NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull is North Brooklyn's first comprehensive health center dedicated to serving the LGBTQ community. The hospital's recent Baby-Friendly designation and Infant Safe Sleep Champion represents a commitment to infant health. In 2017, the hospital delivered a record 26 sets of twins and triplets. For more information visit, nychealthandhospitals.org/Woodhull. To make an appointment, call 1-844-NYC-4NYC.

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 Metro Plus health plan--all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 42,000 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 at https://www.facebook.com/NYCHealthSystem or Twitter at @NYCHealthSystem.