Partner Spotlight Series: Bailey House
Partner Spotlight Series: Bailey House
Denise Arzola and Lauren Pallies lead several efforts at Bailey House to support patients with chronic conditions.
Bailey House Offers Full Complement of Care, Key to DSRIP Efforts in Care Coordination
On Wednesdays, you might see the line out the door at Bailey House wrapping around 121st Street from Park Avenue in East Harlem.
It’s a food pantry community day, a day in which Bailey House distributes free food pantry goods for its clients and members of the surrounding community who may not have access to food.
“Sometimes it’s a decision between putting food on the table and buying a Metro Card to go to work,” said Denise Arzola, Senior Vice President of Behavioral Health and Operations. “For some patients, we’re talking about the decision between buying medication and putting food on the table.”
The food pantry is one of several ways that Denise and the team at Bailey House have focused on providing resources to community members who face barriers that could be detrimental to their health.
Bailey House offers free food pantry bags to patients.
Bailey House began as an agency in 1983 answering to the needs of their community when the HIV/AIDs epidemic swept the nation. In the past few decades, they have learned that HIV/AIDs patients need more than access to medical tests. They need patient navigation, housing support, medical care coordination, access to behavioral health treatment, peer-to-peer support groups, health education, and independent living skills training.
Bailey House’s CEO, Gina Quattrochi, joined the organization in 1991. Under her 25 years of innovative leadership, the agency has gradually expanded its reach to provide the full complement of support patients require to get back on track. Today, with the help of a centralized intake coordinator, these services are offered as a part of the health care journey at Bailey House for both HIV-positive patients and patients struggling with other chronic physical diseases, mental illness, and substance use.
Bailey House’s services have also empowered their patients, giving them a second chance or an opportunity for rediscovery – working towards improved quality of life.
Denise shared a story of one of her patients who came to Bailey House and sat in the corner of the client lounge for weeks and perhaps even months at a time. He did not talk to anyone, did not acknowledge anyone, and all he wanted to do was sit there. Slowly as time went by, he grew comfortable. He began to participate in support groups, join classes, and even speak with peers and staff members. And then one day, Denise recalls being at a rally and was asked to find a peer who could speak to his or her experience. To much surprise, he raised his hand and stood up at the front.
“I couldn’t believe it because the next thing you knew, he was leading the protest,” said Denise. “It was almost as though he had found his voice.”
A coffee station, a microwave, computers, and other amenities at this open space for patients to feel like home at Bailey House.
Bailey House represents a key aspect of DSRIP, which is the ability to capture and understand the full picture of the patient and to connect patients to needed services and resources addressing both physical and behavioral health. And now through DSRIP, Bailey House can connect patients to services and resources beyond their organization and across the local community.
“DSRIP has really given us an opportunity to re-prioritize and think about ways to make our work more impactful,” said Lauren Pallies, Vice President of Integrated Health and Operations. “We have been able to meet with partners we hadn’t met with before, and to talk about ways to collaborate.”
Bailey House actively participates in 2.c.i, 4.c.ii, and the Care Coordination Cross Functional Workgroup. As they continue to expand their services, they are excited to work with other partners to build a full complement of care for patients among their communities.
For more information about Bailey House, please visit: www.baileyhouse.org.
