Infusion Therapy Unit

Infusion Therapy Unit at Hospital for Special Surgery

HSS has a worldwide reputation of quality and excellence in treatment options for rheumatology. Part of what makes HSS one of the best places in the world for treating rheumatologic disorders is its dedicated rheumatology Infusion Therapy Unit. Infusion therapy allows patients to receive intravenous (IV) medication (such as high doses of steroids or chemotherapeutics) as an outpatient, without requiring hospitalization. Patients come to the Infusion Therapy Unit for the day to receive treatment, and then are able to go home and back to their lives.

HSS’s Infusion Therapy Unit opened in 1994 and was the first Infusion Therapy Unit in the U.S. dedicated exclusively for the treatment of rheumatology patients. This has made the HSS treatment process and patient experience unparalleled in the field. The unit is staffed solely by registered nurses, giving patients who receive treatment in the HSS Infusion Therapy Unit a unique and comfortable experience with nurses they come to know and trust. The nurse-patient relationships that form enable patients to receive the reassurance, counseling and education necessary to help them throughout their treatment process.

Success Through Understanding and Compassion

Some of the major issues surrounding effective treatment of rheumatologic disorders are the emotional and mental burdens that accompany them. Stress and emotional burdens are known triggers of rheumatologic issues, and as such, are crucial to address in the treatment process.

The success of the Infusion Therapy Unit at HSS is its dedication to and understanding of rheumatology specific treatments, how they affect the patients physically and emotionally, and in knowing how to make patients feel comfortable, confident and reassured during their treatment process. This focused understanding of rheumatology specific issues builds a deep level of compassion and rapport, both between the nurses and patients, and between the patients themselves, enabling the overall treatment process to be very successful.

The Infusion Therapy Unit’s success can be largely attributed to its founder, Linda Leff, who sums up the unit’s work by saying, “We give personal attention to each patient. The delivery of an infusion is more than a task; we administer the medication with skill, care, compassion and a heavy dose of education.”