Clinic for 9/11 responders opens
West Brighton facility run by Richmond University Medical Center and Mount Sinai Medical Center
Judy L. Randall
The Advanced Staff, STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.
December 16, 2008
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A clinic for World Trade Center first-responders was formally opened in West Brighton yesterday, a joint venture between Richmond University Medical Center and Mount Sinai Medical Center, Manhattan, where some 1,400 Staten Islanders already have sought treatment for illnesses related to exposure to toxins and depression.
Proponents of the facility here — including two Manhattan members of Congress instrumental in its funding — highlighted the importance of Island residents being able to seek a compatible array of comprehensive services in their home borough.
Medical care, along with a mental health component, and social work services, including benefits information, will be offered five days a week in the 4,200-square-foot facility at 690 Castleton Ave., across the street from RUMC.
Mount Sinai’s Dr. Jacqueline Moline, who oversees WTC clinic services, said there are likely an additional 700 Staten Island World Trade Center first-responders who could benefit from treatment.
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All they need to do is call 1-888-702-0630.
She said the services are free and confidential.
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Dr. Moline said patients have sought treatment for respiratory ailments, including sinus trouble, asthma and heartburn, that have caused a reduction in their physical abilities. They have also received help with depression, including post traumatic stress disorder.
Dr. Moline said some $300 million in funding for services in four clinics throughout the city is from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
But she called maintaining funding levels “a constant challenge,” and Democratic Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Jerrold Nadler charged yesterday that the Bush administration continues to thwart the flow of dollars.
The cost to open and maintain the clinic here, which has a one-year lease, could not be immediately learned from hospital officials.
Among those on hand to lend support were Councilman Michael McMahon (D-North Shore), the congressman-elect, and Assemblyman Michael Cusick (D-Mid-Island).
Said McMahon: “This brings a neighborhood perspective to the national fight for further funding.”
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