FOR RELEASE: Immediate, Monday, November 6, 2006

Mayor Joins in Ceremony to Open Kings County Hospital Ambulatory Pavilion

BROOKLYN – One building. All outpatient services under one roof.

That’s one of the biggest changes today at Kings County Hospital Center. Its new Ambulatory Care Pavilion – with design and construction supervised by the Dormitory Authority – takes services spread out over its 44-acre campus and unites them into one six-story building. Adult and pediatric primary care and related specialties are now under one roof, designed to expand access to preventive health services, build capacity for advanced technology and accommodate more than 200,000 patient visits annually.

“This facility is an investment in Brooklyn’s future that will pay dividends for years to come,” said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg at an opening ceremony today. “I am proud that our City hospitals are among the best in the world. I am glad to be opening this pavilion so our health care workers can continue delivering high quality care to all New Yorkers.”

“This most recent milestone in the transformation of Kings County Hospital's campus reflects our commitment to efficient patient-centered care,” said Alan D. Aviles, President of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), which owns the hospital. “The new ambulatory care pavilion brings together nearly all outpatient medical services efficiently organized for maximum patient convenience. This new sleek and therapeutic environment also will make maximum use of advanced technology to continue to drive improvements in care.”

“We are excited to be more than midway through our very ambitious rebuilding and renewal project,” said Kings County Hospital Center Executive Director Jean Leon. “We are very proud to be able to provide high quality health care in a state-of-the-art facility that makes our patients feel cared for and valued.”

The new ambulatory care center features open, light-filled spaces, inviting reception areas and private waiting and exam rooms for the cardiac, pulmonary, orthopedics and women’s health specialty services; ear, nose and throat clinics; a geriatric center and outpatient pharmacy services. The new pavilion, remodeled and designed by the international architectural firm of Skidmore Owings Merrill, successfully ends Phase 3 of a $500 million, five-phase hospital redevelopment project scheduled to be completed by 2009.

The rebuilding and modernization of Kings County Hospital is the largest renovation in HHC’s history, and the Dormitory Authority has been HHC’s construction partner throughout the modernization plan. Kings County Hospital is a 627-bed facility that serves New Yorkers primarily from the communities of East New York, Brownsville, Flatbush, East Flatbush and Crown Heights and is one of the largest providers of medical care in Central Brooklyn. In Fiscal Year 2006, there were approximately 670,757 outpatient visits and over 100,000 emergency room visits. The hospital ranked among the top 5 best hospitals in the city for the quality of care provided to prevent surgical site infections.

DASNY’s project team was headed by Project Managers Robert Thelian and Gary Guttman, Field Representative Shawn Taylor, and Project Accountant Colleen Parkinson. Sonny Navarro is the Director of the Authority’s HHC Construction Program. Skidman, Owings & Merrill is the project architect, and a joint venture of Gilbane/TDX was the construction manager.

Kings County is a Level 1 Trauma Center, AIDS Center, Stroke Center and has also been designated as a Center of Excellence for Diabetes and Parkinson's disease. For more information about HHC, visit www.nyc.gov/hhc .

For more information about the Dormitory Authority, contact Press Officer Claudia Hutton at (518) 257 3382, or CHutton@dasny.org.