Hospital celebrates 30th anniversary of its HIV/AIDS program

[aesop_image imgwidth=”300px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Screen-Shot-2016-12-08-at-3.59.22-PM.png” credit=”Photos courtesy Dignity Health-St. Mary Medical Center” align=”left” lightbox=”on” caption=”At the end of a Dec. 1 ceremony in honor of World AIDS Day, St. Mary hospital staff released 30 doves to commemorate the 30th anniversary of its Comprehensive AIDS Resource and Education (CARE) program.” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off”] Marking the 35th anniversary of the first published reports of what would come to be knows as HIV/AIDS, as well as the 30th anniversary of the founding of a local program to help those infected, St. Mary Medical Center recognized World AIDS Day on Dec. 1 by hosting a ceremony to remember those who have lost their battle with the disease.
The celebration included renewed commitments from the County of Los Angeles, the City of Long Beach and the medical community at St. Mary Medical Center to prevent HIV infection and AIDS, according to a press release from the hospital. Using advanced bio-therapies, like PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) and a focus on the most vulnerable populations, the speakers pledged to put themselves “out of business” in caring for these patients, the release states.
Speakers included: Ace Robinson, executive director of CARE; Sister Celeste Trahan, vice president of Mission for St. Mary Medical Center; Paul Czajka, chief operating officer for St. Mary Medical Center; Mario Perez, Los Angeles County director of HIV; Kelly Colopy, City of Long Beach Director of Public Health; and Marcia Alcouloumre, M.D. of Infectious Disease at St. Mary Medical Center.
[aesop_image imgwidth=”300px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Screen-Shot-2016-12-08-at-3.59.17-PM.png” align=”right” lightbox=”on” caption=”A memory table commemorates the 27 patients of St. Mary Hospital’s CARE clinic lost to AIDS in 2016, in honor of World AIDS Day on Dec. 1. ” captionposition=”right” revealfx=”off”] Social worker Jennifer Andrews, LCSW, who, during the early 1980s, saw numerous AIDS patients in the emergency room at St. Mary Medical Center, founded the program.
“During those years, the AIDS incidence rate was unconscionably high, and individuals infected and affected by HIV disease had very limited resources and education about HIV care and services,” states the CARE website. “With a generous grant from the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word and Ms. Andrews’s strategic foresight, the Comprehensive AIDS Resource and Education program was formed in order to comprehensively address the medical, social and mental-health needs of those infected and affected by HIV disease. The Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word continue to be strong supporters of the mission and services of the CARE program.”
At the end of the Dec. 1 ceremony, hospital staff released 30 doves to commemorate the program’s 30 years of service.
Source: Dignity Health—St. Mary Medical Center