This month, we are delighted to celebrate the opening of the state-of-the art Medical and Research Translation (MART) building, home of the new Stony Brook Cancer Center. The MART will be devoted to cancer care and research. By enabling physicians and researchers to work side by side, we will be able to deliver cutting-edge cancer care more efficiently and effectively.
With eight stories and 240,000 square feet, the MART offers expanded space to serve 150 percent more patients with cancer and their families. This beautiful new facility was made possible in part through a $35 million NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant and $50 million in support through a historic $150 million gift from Jim and Marilyn Simons.
The space was designed to enhance how we provide the most advanced cancer care. Outpatient clinical care will occur on Levels 5 and 6 of the facility, with medical oncology provided for both children and adults. For pediatric patients, there is child-friendly exam space with private infusion rooms. Adult patients are cared also for in private treatment spaces and have multiple setting options for infusions, including comfortable seating areas and an inviting fireplace to promote conversation among patients.
Additional patient-centered amenities address the personal needs of patients and their families, including a resource center, wellness room for yoga, beauty salon and a boutique providing prostheses, wigs and mastectomy apparel. It will also house advanced biomedical imaging and biomedical informatics, including a PET/CT scanner.
Over the past year, our team has been hosting “Day in the Life” trainings to allow all of us to prepare to move into the new building. We have worked diligently to test our integrated equipment and systems, familiarize ourselves with the new surroundings, understand the new workflows and paths of travel that have been created by interdisciplinary teams, and discover and resolve identified issues. Many physicians, nurses, ancillary and support staff and others have been participating in these activities.
We are excited to see this project finally come to fruition, along with the new Stony Brook Children’s Hospital and 10-story Hospital Pavilion. In addition to transforming our campus, these facilities will expand healthcare services and research in the Long Island region. Most importantly, they will help facilitate partnerships among healthcare practitioners, patients and families that will lead to improved patient outcomes and enhance the quality and safety of the care we provide to our patients and families.
Many thanks to our entire team for your patience and for all of the great work in making these projects a reality. I know that it has been a long journey, but it will be rewarding to see them being utilized to ensure that our patients and their families will have the best possible care.
Carol