Ryan Chelsea-Clinton Celebrates 20 Years In the Community

“I’ve seen a tremendous amount of change in the time I’ve been here,” says Jennifer Bryant, LPN, who has worked at Ryan Chelsea-Clinton since 2007. “But our patient population grows and stays with us. Most days I recognize 75 percent of the people coming down the hallway.”

That’s what everyone at Ryan Chelsea-Clinton (RCC) knows. As RCC celebrates 20 years in Hell’s Kitchen, what stays with staff and patients is how much RCC is part of the community.

“I take pride in knowing that when I walk into a room, I can make a patient calm because they know me so well,” Bryant says. “RCC is a part of the neighborhood. We’ve grown with it. Our patients are getting care from people they know.”

Daniel Pichinson, MBA, Executive Director at Ryan Chelsea-Clinton agrees. “When Ryan Chelsea-Clinton was being conceived, the neighborhoods of Hell’s Kitchen and Chelsea lacked adequate access to primary care. It was an area in transition. Yet many of our older patients have grown with us, as we were one of the few providers in the area when we opened.”

Nearly 80 percent of RCC’s patients live between 17th and 77th Streets west of 5th Avenue. Fifteen percent are 65 years or older, and 18 percent are pediatric patients. And Hell’s Kitchen continues to thrive and grow, underscoring the need for community-based healthcare in the neighborhood.

RCC has added numerous specialty care services as it has grown. Additional care services such as medication assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid addiction, urology, gastroenterology, and psychiatry are just a few newer services. RCC has partnered with Fountain House for onsite psychiatric services for patients with severe mental illness. And the addition of Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSWs) allows for enhanced behavioral health services.

Ryan Health has always been a leader in HIV/AIDS care, and RCC has been on the frontlines, since the LGBTQ+ community has a large presence in the neighborhood.

“By being a leader in HIV services we are a critical access point into primary care for the LGBTQ+ community,” Pichinson says. “LGBTQ+ people traditionally have poorer health outcomes because they often avoid engaging in health services due to discrimination and other issues. We provide culturally competent care, and we understand the community’s issues.”

In fact, RCC has taken the lead in the Ryan Health network in ensuring gender affirming care. That means that we understand and support gender identity and expression, so our patients are comfortable getting treatment for who they are.

Ryan Chelsea-Clinton will have 51,000 patient visits in 2022, a number possible in part to building renovations last year that created more examination rooms and better use of space throughout the center. But what’s next on tap?

“We’ll continue to be a leader in health equity, ensuring that undeserved communities have access to healthcare,” Pichinson says. “The quality of our work and our positive reputation in the community are what makes me proud. Even through the pandemic, on those days when our people were exhausted, they still showed up to care for our patients. We’re all committed to our mission.”