Charla de Lupus/Lupus Chat® Services
Do you or someone you know have lupus? The Charla Program is here to help.
The Charla program is offered in English and Spanish. The program consists of the following:
- Charla Line, a toll free national support and education helpline, which screens and matches callers with peers for ongoing telephone support and education.
- Onsite Peer Support Outreach at four hospital-based clinics and Community Collaborations
- Charla Teen, Young Adult and Parent Support Groups include educational forums and special events.
- Publication for Inquiring Teens with Lupus: Our Thoughts, Issues & Concerns
- Community, Professional Presentations and Health Fairs as well as organizational and federal collaborations
Call the Charla Line
Do you want to speak with someone else with lupus from the comfort of your own home who you can share your experiences and stories with?
The Charla Line is a free telephone support and education service for people with lupus and their loved ones offered in English and Spanish. The Charla Line has trained peer volunteers (a person affected by lupus) who can provide support and education to children, teens and adults living with lupus as well as family members, through its toll free number.
212.606.1958
866.812.4494 (toll-free)
As one Charla client said, “It’s really amazing connecting with someone else who has lupus…my peer health educator explained the illness to me in words I would understand.”
On-site Outreach at Community Clinics
One-to-one contact is available on site at various rheumatology clinics in NYC. Program associates, peer health educators, and a licensed social worker meet with patients during their scheduled appointments to provide on-going support and appropriate services and referrals.
In addition to working at HSS the program also operates on-site at:
- Mount Sinai Medical Center (since 1996)
- NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, Pediatric Rheumatology Service, Columbia Medical Center (since 1999)
Community Collaborations
The Charla program is committed to working with various community partners to enhance access to care, support, education and resources for people with lupus and their loved ones.
The Charla program is a part the New York State Department of Health’s Three Year Community Service Plan (CSP), the Prevention Agenda Toward the Healthiest State.
Charla addresses high risk behaviors related to nutrition and reproductive health among adolescents with Lupus.
Over the next three years, Charla will focus on enhancing relationships with existing partners and expanding our program reach with new partners to: increase access to appropriate reproductive health care in the community.
Our CSP goals are to:
- Increase access to high quality reproductive health care for adolescents with lupus.
- Improve culturally relevant knowledge, self-management skills, and self-efficacy related to reproductive health care and sexual health for adolescents with lupus.
Charla’s Community Service Plan Partners:
- Mt. Sinai Medical Center-Adolescent Health Center
- Sinai Peers Encouraging Empowerment through Knowledge (SPEEK)
- NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, Pediatric Rheumatology Service, Columbia Medical Center
- Children’s Aid Society
- Community Healthcare Network
- Planned Parenthood of New York City, Inc.
Learn more about Charla’s participation in Hospital for Special Surgery’s Community Service Plan
Contact Charla's CSP:
Priscilla Calvache, LCSW
Assistant Director for Lupus Programs & Community Engagement
212.774.2108
calvachep@hss.edu
Publications: For Inquiring Teens with Lupus
This 20-page booklet was written by a young woman diagnosed with lupus as a teen and takes into account some of the specific issues, both medical and psychosocial, relevant to adolescents who are living with lupus. A list of resources for teens with lupus is also included.
Publications are available in English, Chinese, and Spanish.
Our program provides materials in both English and Spanish to help people better understand and cope with lupus and to share with family, friends and loved ones. These materials can also be used by community organizations to spread awareness about lupus.
If you would like to request hard copies of our materials, please fill out the following form: Materials Request Form (pdf). Fax completed forms to 212.774.2333 or email the form to charla@hss.edu.
Community, Professional Presentations and Health Fairs
Charla is committed to spreading lupus awareness throughout our communities.
- Our program conducts over 30 community and professional presentations/health fairs annually.
- These programs help to provide lupus awareness and access to appropriate resources to better understand, manage and cope with lupus throughout NYC and nationally.
We seek to collaborate with organizations interested in providing this service, including community, schools, health clinics, and faith-based organizations.
If you would like to request a presentation or our participation in a health fair, fill out the following form:
Fax completed forms to 212.774.2333 or email the form to charla@hss.edu.
For more information about any Charla services:
Tel: 212.606.1958
866.812.4494 (toll-free)