The Harrison Planning Board has approved the application by 1 West Red Oak LLC to construct a 21,875 square foot cancer infusion center at 1 West Red Oak Plaza in Harrison, New York. The infusion center will be operated by Mt. Sinai Hospital.
Attorney Albert J. Pirro, Jr. of Abrams Fensterman, LLP in White Plains made the presentation before the Planning Board, noting that, “The 1 West Red Oak Medical Office Building will offer ambulatory medical services and comprehensive infusion services for patients with both cancer and benign conditions. Individualized care plans are designed with different treatment protocols and reflects the unique nature of this facility in serving the region.”
An ambulatory infusion therapy enables patients to decrease or totally avoid hospital or nursing home stays and resume normal routines and work behaviors while still treating the illness. Providing medications intravenously, these protocols are typically applied to serious or chronic conditions where medications cannot be given orally.
“Infusion therapy may be needed for a variety of cancers and benign conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, asthma, immune deficiency, gout, migraines, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis, lupus, etc. The infusions are used to provide chemotherapy for cancer, and other agents for other conditions which are treated, including antibiotics, anti-coagulation therapy, anti-emetics, hydration, and nutrients such as IV/IM.”
— Advisory from Pirro to the Board
The infusion center team includes physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, medical assistants, and on-site pharmacists, who are fluent in multiple languages. In addition to the infusion treatment center, additional on-site services include radiology, lab services/inhalation respiratory, cardiology, EKG, and a pharmacy for patients of the facility.
In view of the fact that an average infusion takes 2 to 2 ½ hours, the infusion center features private, comfortable infusion chairs, Wi-Fi and flat-screen televisions.
The environment at an ambulatory infusion center differs greatly from hospital infusion services. At an ambulatory facility, only staff and scheduled patients are permitted. As the economics of healthcare continue to direct medical strategies, outpatient infusion centers are now more common and have a limited number of patients per day.
Al Pirro, Jr. calls the approval a “strategic step forward in providing infusion therapy options in Harrison.”
