Weill Cornell Medical College, along with hospital partner NewYork-Presbyterian, celebrated a major step in the treatment of digestive disorders with the opening of the Jill Roberts Center for Inflammatory Bowel Disease on Sept. 12.
The center will be dedicated to the research and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a condition affecting more than 1 million Americans, that most often results from two specific diseases—ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.
"IBD is a chronic, interruptive illness that affects primarily, but not exclusively, young adults and their families that love them," said Dr. Ellen Scherl, the center's director and an associate professor of medicine at Weill Cornell. "At the new Roberts Center, the focus will be on individual patient care with a private practice approach, but in an academic setting—truly the best of both worlds."
The opening of the center in NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell's Stich Building on East 70th Street is the final phase of a strategic plan to develop a three-part, world-class gastrointestinal facility comprising the Jill Roberts Center for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, the Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health and the Center for Colon and Rectal Surgery.
"The opening of this center completes the transformation of the Stich Building into a center for G.I. health," said Dr. Herbert Pardes, president and C.E.O. of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. "Five years ago, this was only a dream; we wanted to get three synergistic programs together and today we have realized that intention."
(From left) Dr. Ellen Scherl, Jill Roberts, Dr. Herbert Pardes and Dr. Antonio Gotto at the opening of the Jill Roberts Center for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Sept. 12.
The IBD Center will offer patients complete treatment for digestive disorders, including nutritional and genetic counseling, social work, and other services important to maintaining G.I. health. The center's research program will be built around its Tissue Bank, which will be used by investigators to increase our understanding of inflammation of the digestive tract at the molecular level. In collaboration with the Monahan Center, under the direction of Dr. Mark Pochapin, and the Colorectal Surgery Program, under the direction of Dr. Jeffrey Milsom, chief of colon and rectal surgery, and Dr. Fabrizio Michelassi, chairman of the Department of Surgery, the new IBD Center will also provide early cancer detection screening, as well as access to new diagnostic and surgical techniques and clinical trials focusing on novel therapies. The IBD Center will also collaborate with Dr. Dr. Robbyn Sockolow, chief of pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition and an assistant attending pediatrician at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell, to develop a program for transitioning young patients with IBD from pediatric into adult clinical care.
The IBD Center, including facilities and the physicians' practices within, is entirely funded by a $4 million philanthropic gift made by Mrs. Jill Roberts, who has made a series of gifts to the Medical College and the Hospital. Her gift also includes funding to recruit two additional IBD physicians, one of whom, Dr. Brian Bosworth, recently joined the IBD Center. In the past, she has endowed two professorships at Weill Cornell—the Jill Roberts Professorship in IBD held by Dr. Scherl and the Henry R. Erle, M.D.–Roberts Family Professorship in Medicine held by Dr. Andrew Dannenberg—and supported the work of Dr. Sudhir Diwan, assistant professor of anesthesiology, in pain management. Prior to providing funding for the IBD Center, Mrs. Roberts also was instrumental in supporting an additional patient-services position at NewYork-Presbyterian to increase the ratio of representatives to patients.
"Jill Roberts has supported quite an eclectic group of our physicians, medical interests and centers over the years," said Dr. Antonio Gotto, dean of Weill Cornell Medical College. "I cannot say enough about Jill and all she's done for this center, hospital and medical college. With her support, we've put together a team that is making a unified, comprehensive program devoted to finding a cure for this disease."
The site on which the Stich Building now stands was a previously a hospital-uniform retailer. Less than 10 years later, it is home to three world-class gastrointestinal medical centers.
"About eight years ago, I had a brief daydream while walking past East 70th Street," said Dr. Ira Jacobson, chief of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and a professor of clinical medicine at Weill Cornell. "Wouldn't it be wonderful, I thought, if this entire building could somehow become a G.I. center?" he said. "And this dream has finally become a reality. Its fulfillment is gratifying to me and many of us beyond measure. It will be a model of gastrointestinal care."
Photo by Amelia Panico.