A new era of healthcare begins this month at Harris Health Quentin Mease Health Center, a newly remodeled specialty facility in Third Ward. The facility, formerly a Harris Health community hospital with outpatient clinics, will house the relocation of HIV and infectious disease services from Harris Health Thomas Street Health Center and chronic dialysis care from Harris Health Riverside Dialysis Center.

More than two years under construction, the newly renovated five-story building has more than 132,000 square feet of space. Over the years, Thomas Street and Riverside have been unable to grow within existing space to meet the need for additional volume.

“We’re excited that the newly renovated Quentin Mease will provide infectious disease, dialysis and endoscopy specialty care under one roof to our community for decades to come,” says Jennifer Small, AuD, MBA, CCC-A, executive vice president and administrator, Ambulatory Care Services, Harris Health. “Harris Health leadership saw a way to address our aging infrastructure and be responsive to our growing patient needs by repurposing the landmark building into a specialty facility to improve and enhance the life-saving services we offer the community.”

The move from Thomas Street is bittersweet. Recognized as the first free-standing HIV facility in the U.S., the new location within Quentin Mease honors the nearly 34-year legacy of its near downtown site by retaining the legacy name as Thomas Street at Quentin Mease Health Center.

“Over the years, Thomas Street became a renowned leader for outstanding patient care, treatment and research. It also emerged as a safe place, a place of no judgement, a place of support and a place of family,” says Dawn Jenkins, LCSW-S, director, Ambulatory Care HIV Services, Harris Health. “Our staff connect on a human level with each patient—so much so that their personal celebrations and tragedies become ours. I can’t tell you how happy I get knowing that our patients are living robust lives and contributing to our community thanks in part to our work. We honor this commitment and pledge to continue that legacy at Quentin Mease into the future.”

Riverside’s history of 15 years began thanks to a collaboration with the City of Houston. Harris Health created the center to care for chronic dialysis patients who would routinely seek care in Harris Health hospitals. Their demand would often overwhelm emergency staff on a daily basis. By directing these patients to a dedicated dialysis center, patients were given better treatment and care.

“Being able to provide dialysis care to patients who need treatments 3-4 times a week has kept our hospital emergency centers from being overcrowded and kept our patients healthier and not needing hospitalization,” says Lori Timmons, DNP, MBA, director, Ambulatory Nursing, Harris Health Dialysis Center at Quentin Mease. “We say goodbye and thank you to Riverside, but are excited about our future at Quentin Mease.”

At Quentin Mease, Thomas Street will have 42 exam rooms and accommodate about 17,000 annual patient visits, while the dialysis center will have 29 hemodialysis stations and five peritoneal dialysis rooms and perform about 18,000 annual treatments. Additionally, in the future Quentin Mease will house an endoscopy center for colonoscopies and other diagnostic care with the ability to perform 20,000 annual procedures for early cancer detection. Aside from the enhanced services and spacious accommodations, Quentin Mease offers emergency and utility back-up resources for water and electricity to eliminate or reduce any disruption in services because of weather-related events like hurricanes or torrential storms.

Quentin R. Mease (1908-2009) was an original member of Harris Health’s Board of Trustees, the seven-member body governing the system’s start in 1966. Today, the board has nine members. He was a recognized trailblazer, community leader and strong advocate for the underserved in greater Houston/Harris County and served 25 consecutive years on the board. A rededication and open house event at Quentin Mease Health Center will be held 2-4 p.m. Sunday, June 4. The event is open to the public. For more information, visit www.harrishealth.org