Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice Celebrates 30 Years of Service
On Friday, September 22, clinicians, researchers, community outreach professionals, patient advocates, public health officials and guests gathered to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice at a symposium, entitled “The Partnership: Then & Now.” The gathering took place at Drexel’s Health Sciences Building in University City. The program featured remarks from current and former Partnership leaders, as well as esteemed experts from local government and nonprofit organizations.
Gregg Alleyne, MD, and Amy Althoff, MD
The event opened with a welcome from Charles B. Cairns, MD, the Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg Dean of the College of Medicine and senior vice president of medical affairs at Drexel, followed by opening remarks from Marla Gold, MD, founder of the Partnership and former senior vice provost for community health and chief wellness officer, Drexel University. Gold looked back on the early days of the clinic and the state of HIV care 30 years ago, recalling that “care was fragmented” at the start of the epidemic.
Amy Althoff, MD, medical director at the Partnership and associate professor of medicine at the College of Medicine, highlighted the Partnership’s more recent history, including the impact of COVID-19 and the closure of Hahnemann University Hospital on the clinic, noting that these challenges were a cause for reflection and growth. Today, the clinic is a place where patients can access medical, behavioral health, social, nutrition and pharmacy services, all in ways that honor all patients’ lived experiences and identities.
Anna Thomas-Ferraioli, MPH
In her presentation, “Ending the HIV Epidemic,” Anna Thomas-Ferraioli, MPH, Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) advisor at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, discussed Philadelphia’s EHE goals, which include reducing the number of new HIV infections by 75% by the year 2025, using the pillars of “Diagnose, Treat, Prevent and Respond.” She also described new endeavors around transitional housing and caring for older adults with HIV.
Gregg Alleyne, MD, a clinician at the Partnership for 25 years, was honored for his dedication to caring for HIV-positive patients. Numerous current and former colleagues spoke about his years of excellence as a clinician. Alleyne addressed the gathering with gratitude. “My team has been my rock over the last few years,” he said, adding that his greatest inspiration was his patients: “My patients have been with me, taught me and raised me. And that’s really important. We must never forget that that’s the whole point of what we’re doing.”
Carolynn Rainey, MS, Partnership clinic director, and Marla Gold, MD
The symposium closed with a panel discussion. Panelists included:
- Sara K. Schultz, MD ’10, associate professor of medicine and director, Infectious Diseases Fellowship program, Temple University, Lewis Katz School of Medicine
- Sebrina Tate, MSW, executive director, Bebashi – Transition to Hope
- Vanessa Ferrel, MD, MPH, assistant professor of medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine, and physician, Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice
- Janell Johnson Washington, HIV community activist and a member of the Community Advisory Board at the Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice
- Anna Thomas-Ferraioli, MPH, Ending the HIV Epidemic advisor, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Division of HIV Health
They reflected on their journeys to becoming involved in the HIV care community, and addressed the relationship between historical activism efforts and ongoing ones, mitigating barriers to care for marginalized people, ways to improve public education around HIV care, and what gives them hope as they look to the future.
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