Newswise — NYU Langone Medical Center’s Hospital for Joint Diseases (HJD) and Center for Musculoskeletal Care (CMC) Gala raised $1.4 million at its annual fundraiser held last evening. The event took place at the American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan and honored H. Michael Belmont, MD, associate professor of medicine, Division of Rheumatology, and medical director of HJD, and Jes Staley, chairman, Corporate and Investment Bank, J.P. Morgan. The event was chaired by Gary D. Cohn, president and COO of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., NYU Langone Medical Center trustee, and chair of the Musculoskeletal Advisory Board.

Setting a new standard in orthopaedic care, anchored by its HJD, NYU Langone opened the CMC on 38th Street in April 2012. The 110,000-square-foot CMC is the first, and largest, stand-alone facility of its kind in the U.S., boasting state-of-the-art therapeutic and medical technology and the expertise of NYU Langone top-ranked doctors, wellness programs, biomedical research of bone and joint conditions and high-end performance analysis – at a single point of care.

NYU Langone’s musculoskeletal disease specialists were ranked among the nation’s top 10 in the 2012-2013 U.S. News & World Report’s annual survey of “Best Hospitals” in America, and the only hospital in New York to receive top 10 rankings for orthopaedics (ranked #6), rheumatology (ranked #7) and rehabilitation (ranked #8).

Each year, the gala raises funds to help the medical center improve the lives of people with musculoskeletal and neurological disorders through orthopaedic, rheumatologic and rehabilitative care. Contributions to the 2012 gala enable HJD and CMC to continue their vital role as an international leader in 21st century patient care.

Those in attendance included: Ken Langone, chair of the Board of Trustees, NYU Langone Medical Center, and Elaine Langone, Robert I. Grossman, MD, Dean and CEO of NYU Langone Medical Center, and Elisabeth Cohen, MD, Lisa Pevaroff, Debora Staley, Armen Avanessians, Steve and Elly Hammerman, Dan Gasby and Barbara Smith, Patricia and William Perlmuth, and Musculoskeletal Advisory Board members David Fiszel, Merrill Kraines, and Beryl Snyder, and special guest speaker patient Debra Brand. Also in attendance were Mary Erdoes, Phil Di Iorio, John Duffy and Faraj Saghri.

In addressing the crowd of over 600 guests, Dr. Grossman stated, “We congratulate our honorees, Dr. Michael Belmont and Jes Staley; two men who make a difference in the lives of so many people. I am grateful to everyone here tonight, including my physician co-chairs—Drs. Joe Zuckerman, Steve Abramson and Andy Rosenberg, and our Advisory Board and Gala Chair Gary Cohn, for driving NYU Langone Medical Center forward with a plan for musculoskeletal research, care and education that is indeed visionary.”

In addition to Dr. Grossman, Steven B. Abramson, MD, senior vice president and vice dean for education, faculty and academic affairs and director, Division of Rheumatology, NYU School of Medicine; Andrew D. Rosenberg, MD, chief, Department of Anesthesiology, HJD, executive vice chair, NYU Department of Anesthesiology; and Joseph D. Zuckerman, MD, the Walter A.L. Thompson Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, surgeon-in-chief, HJD, served as Physician Chairs of the gala.

Since 2008, Dr. Belmont has been the associate director of clinical affairs in the Division of Rheumatology. As medical director of HJD, he is responsible for patient safety, clinical outcomes and quality of care. His research includes the identification of biomarkers in lupus patients to predict disease activity, understanding how lupus injures the body, and clinical trials to advance the development of novel therapies for patients with lupus. His research is also focused on antiphospholipid syndrome, which causes recurrent venous or arterial thrombosis and/or fetal loss and affects approximately a third of all lupus patients. Dr. Belmont serves as director of the Lupus Clinic at Bellevue Hospital Center, where since 1987, he has trained over 50 rheumatology fellows. Dr. Belmont is the author of numerous articles appearing in the Journal of Rheumatology, Arthritis & Rheumatism, Lupus, and the New England Journal of Medicine. Dr. Belmont obtained his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and graduated cum laude from Harvard College.

Jes Staley, chair of J.P. Morgan’s Corporate and Investment Bank, is responsible for strengthening the firm’s senior client relationships and overseeing and coordinating international efforts across all lines of business. From 2009 to 2012, Mr. Staley was CEO of J.P. Morgan’s Investment Bank. He joined J.P. Morgan in 1979 after graduating from Bowdoin College with a degree in economics. From 1980 to 1989, Mr. Staley worked in the bank’s Latin America division, where he served as head of corporate finance for Brazil and general manager of the firm’s Brazilian brokerage firm. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Institute of International Finance, Robin Hood Foundation, Council on Foreign Relations, United States-China Business Council, Code Advisors and the Board of Trustees of Bowdoin College. His wife, Debora, serves on the NYU Cancer Institute Advisory Board. They have two daughters and live in Manhattan.

Please visit the HJD or CMC websites for additional information on the services provided at http://hjd.med.nyu.edu/ and http://cmc.med.nyu.edu//.

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About NYU Langone Medical CenterNYU Langone Medical Center, a world-class, patient-centered, integrated, academic medical center, is one of the nation’s premier centers for excellence in clinical care, biomedical research and medical education. Located in the heart of Manhattan, NYU Langone is composed of four hospitals – Tisch Hospital, its flagship acute care facility; the Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, the world’s first university-affiliated facility devoted entirely to rehabilitation medicine; the Hospital for Joint Diseases, one of nation’s leading hospitals dedicated to orthopaedics and rheumatology; and Hassenfeld Pediatric Center, a comprehensive pediatric hospital supporting a full array of children’s health services across the Medical Center – plus the NYU School of Medicine, which since 1841 has trained thousands of physicians and scientists who have helped to shape the course of medical history. The medical center’s tri-fold mission to serve, teach and discover is achieved 365 days a year through the seamless integration of a culture devoted to excellence in patient care, education and research. For more information, go to www.NYULMC.org.

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