Who We Are and What We Do
The “environment” is everything around us.
Environments determine the health of people and populations.
We can create healthy communities by creating healthy environments.
The mission of NYSCEHC (or “NYSCHECK”) is to prevent, diagnose, and treat environmentally related conditions for families across New York State. As the first state-based model for pediatric environmental health services in the country, New York now has dedicated pediatric champions across the state working together to protect and promote children’s health and the environment.
The New York State Children’s Environmental Health Centers (“NYSCHECK”) were launched in 2017 by the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH). The origins of the Network go back to 2006 when NYSDOH provided seed funding for the Network to the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS) which now serves as the NYSCHECK Coordinating Center.
As a nationally and internationally recognized leader in children’s environmental health, ISMMS has served as the NYSCHECK Coordinating Center since the Network’s inception. The Coordinating Center works closely with the regional Centers to recognize and treat environmental exposures that adversely affect the health of New York’s children and their families.
ISMMS has also hosted the federally supported Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU) for Federal Region 2 serving New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands since 1999, a resource for clinicians and families with questions about hazardous environmental concerns. The foundation of the PEHSU at Mount Sinai was critical for the successful launch of NYSCHECK.
The 7 NYSCHECK Centers, sited at children’s hospitals in Albany, Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, Westchester, New York City and Long Island truly function as a Network, working closely together to meet the environmental health (EH) needs of families and communities in all 62 counties in New York State. In this way, NYSCHECK serves as a national model for how statewide reach can be achieved. Together with partners, the Network has built a collaborative infrastructure across the state for EH education, screening, consultation, and referrals to needed interventions.
NYSCHECK now serves as a go-to-resource for evidence-based guidance for pediatric clinicians and other front-line health/public health professionals who often lack training in pediatric environmental medicine. NYSCHECK uses its expertise in risk assessment and communication to respond to complex environmental problems for patients and communities.
Since 2017, NYSCHECK has served over 151,000 families, educated over 32,000 health care professionals and trained over 1700 future leaders, which includes trainees from high school to graduate school, residency, fellowship, and beyond.
Direct Coordinator List for Cities/Sites:
Western New York (Buffalo)
Rachel Roberson, MPH, CHES – Center Coordinator
rjrobers@buffalo.edu
(716) 768-7626
Finger Lakes (Rochester)
Jennifer D. Becker, MPH – Sr. Health Project Outreach Coordinator
jenniferd_becker@urmc.rochester.edu
(844) 352-2430 (844-FLCEHC-0)
Central – SUNY Upstate (Syracuse)
Olivia Malvasi, MPH – Grant Coordinator
malvasio@upstate.edu
(315) 464-4137
Capital Region – Albany Medical Center
Kelly Galloway MPH – Coordinator
Gallowk@amc.edu
(518) 262-5588
Hudson Valley – Maria Fareri Children’s (Westchester)
Dr. Amy Ansehl, DNP, RN, MSN, FNP-BC – Director of Community Outreach
amy_ansehl@nymc.edu
(914) 493-7585
NYC – Mount Sinai
Michael Ejiogu, MPH – NYSCHECK Program Coordinator
michael.ejiogu@mssm.edu
(866) 265-6201 – or use this form
Long Island- Cohen’s Children’s Medical Center, Stony Brook University
Abigail Seide, MPH, CHES. – Research Coordinator
aseide2@northwell.edu
(866) 265-6201
CLINICAL CONSULTATIONS
Our experts provide evidence-based, clinical pediatric environmental health services for families and health care professionals including telephone consultations, telemedicine visits, and clinical visits.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCREENING
We are working to routinely integrate environmental screening into routine well child care. We help families to identify common environmental concerns and refer them to community resources such as home based services to reduce asthma triggers.
EDUCATION & TRAINING
NYSCEHC trains health care professionals and trainees to incorporate environmental health into routine health care. Together with partners, we educate families and communities about environmental health.
COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Together with diverse community partners, we work to promote programs and policies that protect and improve children’s health.
NYSCHECK is also affiliated with the wider PEHSU National Network and some personnel overlap. The Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSUs) are a national network of experts in the prevention, diagnosis, management, and treatment of health issues that arise from environmental exposures from preconception through adolescence. The network is broken down into regions.