Project STAY (Services To Assist Youth)

Ambulatory Care Network Community Health Education and Outreach

Mission

As a New York State AIDS Institute designated Specialized Care Center, Project STAYs mission is to provide sensitive and supportive HIV counseling and testing, and comprehensive medical, psychosocial, and case management services to high-risk medically underserved adolescents and young adults at risk for or living with HIV.

Project STAY advances service innovations through community partnerships, teaching and advocacy. Clients are treated equally with dignity, courtesy and confidentiality, regardless of ability to pay. Based in Harlem and Washington Heights, Project STAY welcomes clients from all five boroughs, as well as the greater New York metropolitan area.

In partnership with the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital (http://nyp.org/) Ambulatory Care Network (http://nyp.org/services/amb-care-network.html) and the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health (http://www.mailman.columbia.edu), Project STAY operates a clinic specifically for HIV-positive young people, as well as a Mobile Health Team that provides community outreach and education aimed at HIV and STI prevention. Project STAY is administered by the Harlem Health Promotion Center (HHPC) (www.healthyharlem.org).

For more information about Project STAY, please visit the Project STAY website at www.projectstay.net.

Service Delivery Model

Adolescents and young adults, especially those at risk for or living with HIV, need a place where they feel understood and supported. Thus, Project STAY provides a medical home, staffed by specialized health care professionals who are skilled and passionate about delivering culturally sensitive and age-appropriate services. Our interdisciplinary staff members utilize an integrated team approach to deliver individually tailored and holistic services. We thoroughly assess each client in order to develop strategies to reinforce areas of strength and reduce health-compromising behaviors.

Consistent with NY State law, clients can access our services without parental consent, although family participation in the care process is encouraged. To avoid stigmatization, Project STAY's counseling, testing, and treatment services are located within community ambulatory care clinics that deliver a wide variety of primary care and family planning services to both young men and women, regardless of HIV status.

All services are available to young people between the ages of 13 and 24 years, without regard to catchment area. Clients are seen by appointment, as well as on a walk-in and emergency basis.

Clinic Locations

The clinical component of the program is located within the structure of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospitals Ambulatory Care Network (ACN). Project STAY has clinic hours at the Audubon Family Planning Practice & Young Mens Clinic (http://nyp.org/services/acn_family_planning.html)

in Washington Heights and at the Family Medicine at the Herman Denny Farrell, Jr., Community Health Center (http://nyp.org/services/acn_morgan_practice.html) in Harlem.

The administrative home for Project STAY is located at 215 West 125th Street.

Clinic Hours

Project STAY's regular clinic hours at the Audubon Family Planning Practice & Young Mens Clinic are Mondays from 3:00pm to 6:00pm and Fridays from 9:00am to 5:00pm. At the Family Medicine at the Herman Denny Farrell, Jr., Community Health Center, clients can be seen on Thursdays from 2pm to 6:30pm. Other appointments are available by special arrangement.

After-Hour Coverage

All clients are provided with the cell phone numbers of Project STAY medical and psychosocial staff, and encouraged to call if they are experiencing a problem. Project STAY staff members are available to accept calls 24-hours a day.

Students and other Trainees

Project STAY endorses the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital commitment to providing educational opportunities for medical, public health, social work, health education, nurse midwifery and nurse practitioner students, as well as OB/GYN, pediatric, internal medicine and family practice residents. All students are supervised by a member of the Project STAY staff, and adhere to policies regarding patient confidentiality. Patients have the right to refrain from clinical interactions with students without compromising their medical or psychosocial care.

Staff

Dr. Alwyn Cohall, Project STAYs Program Director, is on the clinical faculty of the Department of Pediatrics at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, and the Departments of Sociomedical Sciences and Population and Family Health. Depending on job descriptions, Project STAY staff members have professional affiliations with Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital's Ambulatory Care Network, or both.

Project STAY staff
Alwyn Cohall, MD	Program Director/ Principal Investigator
Aanie Christopher, LMSW	Social Worker
Renee Cohall, LCSW	Coordinator of Special Initiatives
Narine Malcolm, MA	Program Administrator
John Nelson, PhD, NP	Nurse Practitioner
Natalie Neu, MD	Medical Director
Andrea Nye, MPH, MBA	Program Evaluator
Joanna Pudil, MA, LMSW	Senior Social Worker and Program Coordinator (SCC)
Peter Ruiz, MD	Psychiatrist
Nydia Rodriguez	Administrative Assistant
Katie Tang, MPH	Outreach Coordinator, Mobile Health Team (MHT)
Susan Vacca, NP	Nurse Practitioner
Vivian Zhang, MS	Data Manager