The new Pride Health Center offers culturally competent health services including primary care, behavioral health, dental services, hormone therapy, HIV testing and prophylaxis provided by specially trained medical staff
On Wednesday, NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull celebrated the opening of the Pride Health Center, Brooklyn's first comprehensive health center dedicated to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning/queer (LGBTQ) patients. First Lady Chirlane McCray, who spearheads the NYC Unity Project for LGBTQ youth, was the delighted guest of honor for the center's ribbon-cutting ceremony.
[perfectpullquote align="left" cite="" link="" color="" class="" size=""]"We do not ban words like evidence or science. Matter of fact: We rely on evidence and science to provide the best possible care for everyone."[/perfectpullquote]
"I am incredibly proud to be here to celebrate the official opening of Woodhull's Pride Health Center. At a time when health care services are under attack, the center will be a safe haven for countless LGBTQ New Yorkers," said First Lady Chirlane McCray, who spearheads the NYC Unity Project.
"In New York City, we do not turn people away. Not because of their gender identity, their sexual orientation, their immigration or insurance status. We do not use people's health insurance as a bargaining chip for backroom deals. We fight to expand access to healthcare, not to restrict it."
Brooklyn is home to one of the largest LGBTQ communities in the country. Historically, members of these communities have been underserved in health care, lacking access to the affirming and high-quality services.
Woodhull's Pride Health Center will provide patient-centered and culturally competent health services in an environment that aims to remove those barriers to care for New York City's LGBTQ community. The services provided by specially trained medical staff will include primary care, OB/GYN, behavioral health, dental services, ophthalmology, hormone therapy, testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, as well as HIV pre-and post-exposure prophylaxis.
"We are delighted to offer high-quality, comprehensive care to about 78,000 LGBTQ residents who call Brooklyn home and who may not have found an affirming medical home to meet their needs," said Edward Fishkin, MD, chief medical officer of NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull. "Our staff are excellent and committed health care professionals who are well-trained and extremely competent to address all the needs of LGBTQ patients with respect, empathy, understanding, compassion and professionalism."
The official launch of the Pride Health Center builds on a collaboration between NYC Health + Hospitals and the NYC Unity Project, an initiative launched by McCrae that prioritizes trainings and a certification program for NYC Health + Hospitals physicians to provide optimal health care to LGBTQ communities.
As of December 2017, the project has enrolled more than 500 direct service providers in an effort to increase the capacity to provide comprehensive care for transgender and non-binary pediatric and adolescent patients - and to offer quality health care based on science and evidence, as the first lady emphasized.
"We do not ban words like evidence or science. Matter of fact: We rely on evidence and science to provide the best possible care for everyone. We do not ignore the unique and specific needs of our transgender and gender nonconforming siblings," said McCrae. "We invest time, money and research to care for them and to celebrate them for who they are. That's why we're making good on our unprecedented commitment through the NYC Unity Project to make sure that LGBTQ youth are safe, supported and healthy."
The Pride Health Center at NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull is located at 760 Broadway. The center will be open Mondays from 4:00-8:00 pm. Additionally, medical providers will be available at the hospital five days a week.
Patients can make an appointment or walk-in for care. For more information or to make an appointment, call 718-963-8068.