For patients facing cancer treatment, every moment in a hospital can feel daunting. On Friday, Feb. 27, NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health opened its newly renovated Oncology and Infusion Center, transforming waiting rooms and treatment bays into a modern, patient-centered space designed to ease the experience and expand access to care.
The $2 million renovation expanded the Center from five to 13 exam rooms and increased infusion bays from seven to 11, effectively doubling patient capacity. South Brooklyn Health also added a full-time plastic surgeon to enhance oncology support and recovery, while the staff grew from 16 to 25, a 56% increase in service and support personnel.
The upgraded Center now integrates breast cancer prevention, infusion therapy, plastic surgery, rheumatology, medical oncology, and survivorship services, giving patients access to a full continuum of care under one roof.
“This project has been many years in the making,” said Svetlana Lipyanskaya, CEO of South Brooklyn Health. “It’s been built and thought of with the help of the city and the state and so many people who work here, and the vision has finally come to life that South Brooklyn Health has a state-of-the-art expanded infusion center and an expanded hematology/oncology practice.”
She emphasized that the renovation wasn’t just about expanding space, but about giving the hospital the resources and infrastructure to better serve its patients.
“This place always had heart,” Lipyanskaya added. “Now it has the support that it needs to go forward and continue to grow and continue to take care of this population, a very vulnerable population at the most vulnerable time in their lives. It’s amazing that we now have a space that matches the quality of the doctors and the nurses that work here.”
The community gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the milestone, bringing together residents, hospital staff, Community Advisory Board members, and local elected officials — many of whom share a special connection to the Center and its mission.
Rosanne De Janeiro, chair of the South Brooklyn Health Community Advisory Board, spoke about the Center’s personal impact on her family. Her husband was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer in 2018 and treated at South Brooklyn Health for five years. A year later, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and received treatment side by side with him.
“I’m so thankful today for this newly-renovated oncology infusion center,” De Janeiro said. “The waiting area, the additional screening rooms and infusion bays, and of course the additional services that are available make a very scary and trying time for those going through cancer treatment much less stressful. This hospital helped us and so many others without having to go to another borough … and how he was able to survive for five years. This renovated and expanded oncology center is so important to the patients and to all those who, unfortunately, will be diagnosed with cancer.”
Dr. Selwena R. Brewster, chief medical officer at South Brooklyn Health and a breast cancer survivor herself, praised the Center for its patient-centered approach.
“When you’re able to offer care that you know what it should look like and what it should feel like, it’s an honor,” Brewster said. “We all stand here in just complete, just fullness, fullness to offer this to our community in South Brooklyn. They deserve it.”
Council Member Mercedes Narcisse, a registered healthcare professional with experience in oncology, echoed the sentiment.
“I understand firsthand what this means to us in Brooklyn because I refuse to say that we don’t provide quality healthcare in Brooklyn,” she said. “Brooklyn, we’re coming up and we’re doing excellent.”
The Center’s opening came shortly after Lipyanskaya announced her forthcoming transition to Maimonides Health, where she will become CEO once the city’s planned acquisition is finalized. She will replace current Maimonides CEO Ken Gibbs, who has led the institution since 2016.
