The oldest living person in New York joined in celebrating the opening of Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center’s new Family Care Center in East New York.
Susannah Mushatt Jones, AKA Ms. Susie, who is 116 years old and who has been seeking treatment at the Brookdale center, was present at the recent inauguration of the 5,500-square-foot facility at 1110 Pennsylvania Avenue, between Flatlands and Cozine Avenue.
While Ms. Susie had to be wheeled away after a few minutes in the windy climate, Brookdale staff and local elected officials cut the purple ribbon as supporters, patients and family members cheered on.
The spanking new facility is an upgrade from the tiny space the center previously occupied a few doors down. It also offers primary care for adults and children, as well as specialty services.
The U.S. Census 2000 and NYC Department of City Planning report indicates that access to health care has been a long standing issue in the area. “Residents living in East New York and New Lots are 31 percent more likely to be without a regular doctor than adults living in [the rest of] Brooklyn and NYC,” the study reports.
Brookdale’s new state-of-the-art facility provides 12 examination rooms, a fully functional lab and offers a range of services, including, “OB-GYN, internal medicine, podiatry, cardiology and gastroentology,” said Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center President and CEO Mark E. Toney.
At the ribbon cutting ceremony, Toney noted that the opening of the center wouldn’t have been possible without help from elected officials.
“Local elected officials who are here today and the whole Brookdale delegation have worked with the governor’s office to secure additional funds to come to East Brooklyn to improve healthcare,” said Toney.
All speakers applauded the efforts of Gov. Andrew Cuomo to budget $700 million in healthcare for East New York earlier this year.
Toney also highlighted the number of visits the facility gets annually, which he expects will grow from 12,000.
“In 2014 [we] opened the urgent care center on Rockaway across from the hospital. We had budgeted close to 15-16,000 visits a year. We are now on track for 18,000 visits and expect it to go to 22,000 visits a year,” said Toney.
The Brookdale Family Care Center is an important addition to the East Brooklyn community, which is 50% black and 39% Hispanic, according to the U.S. Census 2000 and NYC Department of City Planning.
“We’re rising to a new level here in East New York, and we’re going to say to the city and state, that East New York is not going to be a neglected community,” said Assemblymember Charles Barron.
For patients like Joy Rogers, who seeks treatment at Brookdale, it’s the friendly staff and the respect she gets when she enters through the doors that has kept her coming back.
The Center will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day and is scheduled for walk-in appointments.
