Metropolitan Hospital Center

NYC Health + Hospitals/Metropolitan
NYC Health + Hospitals
MHC Entrance
Geography
Location	1901 First Avenue New York, NY, United States
Coordinates
Organization
Hospital type	Community
Affiliated university	New York Medical College
Services
Emergency department	Level II trauma center
History
Founded	1875
Links
Website	http://nyc.gov/mhc
Lists	Hospitals in the United States

Metropolitan Hospital Center (MHC, also referred to as Metropolitan Hospital) is a hospital in East Harlem, New York City. It has been affiliated with New York Medical College since it was founded in 1875, representing the oldest partnership between a hospital and a private medical school in the United States.

MHC is part of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), the largest municipal hospital and healthcare system in the country.

Overview

Metropolitan is located in an area where East Harlem merges with the Upper East Side and Yorkville. The physical plant extends from First to Second Avenues and from East 97th to East 99th Streets. The hospital caters to a wide spectra of patient population and disease pathology.

The new Second Avenue Subway line, which is currently under construction, will have a station, 96th Street, one block from the hospital's entrance, serving the New York City Subway's Q trains. In the meantime, the New York City Bus routes M15, M15 SBS, M96, M98, M101, M102, M103 and the subway's 4 6 <6> trains serve the hospital at 96th Street.

History

Metropolitan Hospital Center was founded in September 1875 as the Homeopathic Hospital. It was established by the New York City Department of Public Charities and Correction on Wards Island. It was later known as the Ward's Island Hospital.

In 1894, the hospital moved to Blackwell's Island (currently known as Roosevelt Island). It occupied the former New York City Asylum for the Insane and was renamed Metropolitan Hospital.

The hospital moved into two newly constructed buildings at its present location in East Harlem in 1955. In 1966, the hospital added its Mental Health Building, an adjoining 14-story pavilion housing the hospital’s psychiatric services.

In 1969 Frederick Wiseman filmed a documentary using the hospital's emergency room titled Hospital, which won two Emmys for Outstanding Achievement in News Documentary Programming - Individuals and Outstanding Achievement in News Documentary Programming, and in 1994 the National Film Registry selected the film for preservation.

In the 1980s, the hospital was threatened with closure due to funding cuts. NYC Mayor Ed Koch reached a $45 million, three-year agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a new project to demonstrate innovative ways of delivering health care to East Harlem's poor.

Designations

Metropolitan Hospital Center is the first hospital in East Harlem designated as a stroke center by the New York State Department of Health. Stroke centers have the equipment, expertise and staffing available to diagnose stroke patients quickly enough to administer potentially lifesaving drugs. It also offers education and outreach for the public and emergency workers, as well as a stroke rehabilitation program.

The hospital is a Level II Trauma Center. It has also been designated as a Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) Center of Excellence by the New York State Department of Health. A Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) is also on location, composed of specially trained Sexual Assault Forensic Examiners, medical personnel, patient advocates, social workers, law enforcement officers (Special Victims Unit) and representatives of the New York County District Attorney’s Office Sex Crimes Unit.

External links

• Official website
• Internal Medicine Residency Program at Metropolitan Hospital Center