Milwaukee clinic for 300 HIV/AIDS patients closes
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
By AVRUM D. LANK
Posted: Feb. 6, 2005
The Positive Health Clinic at Aurora Sinai hospital will close in March following the resignation of its medical director.
About 300 patients being treated at the HIV/AIDS outpatient clinic have been sent letters explaining the situation, said Paul Nannis, vice president for government and community relations at parent Aurora Health Care.
The clinic "provides comprehensive care while addressing the social, spiritual and emotional well-being of people with HIV/AIDS," according to the Aurora Web site.
Patients will be referred to three community providers: the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, the 16th Street Community Health Center and Milwaukee Health Services Inc., all of which have federally funded AIDS clinics, Nannis said.
He emphasized that Sinai would continue to provide in-patient care for people with HIV/AIDS.
Aurora was "in the middle of an assessment process" about the future of the clinic when its director, Dr. Iram Nadeem, submitted her resignation, Nannis said.
At that time, Aurora decided to close Positive Health Clinic and form partnerships with the community clinics, he said.
Nadeem resigned because "she wanted to spend more time with her family," Nannis said. Nadeem could not be reached for comment.
The closing is part of a series of changes at Sinai, which is the last hospital in Milwaukee's downtown area and which Aurora says is losing money.
Sinai already has closed its primary, pediatric and mental health clinics.
"We never really lost lots of money at the Positive Health Clinic," Nannis said. "The driving force for this was really, what is the best place to deliver care."
The community clinics are a more appropriate place than a hospital, he said.
"Any time any of our health care institutions make a decision to change the level or the direction in terms of their services, there is a reason to be concerned," said Milwaukee Health Commissioner Bevan K. Baker.
However, he said, Sinai appears to be making appropriate arrangements for the patient population.
Doug Nelson, president and CEO of the AIDS Resource Center, and C.C. Henderson, president and CEO of Milwaukee Health Services, said they will work with Sinai to make the transition as smooth as possible.
Milwaukee Health Services uses Aurora Sinai as its primary backup hospital, Henderson said.
The AIDS center usually refers patients to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital in Wauwatosa, Nelson said, but will make other arrangements if a patient desires.
A representative of the 16th Street Community Health Center could not be reached.