The Spencer Cox Center for Health, part of the Mount Sinai Health System’s Institute for Advanced Medicine (IAM)—the largest provider of HIV primary care in New York State—recently added yoga classes to its roster of complementary programs, and the patient response has been overwhelmingly positive.
“After a yoga class I feel taller and more aligned, and I leave feeling elated and calm,” says Peter Weber, a patient at the Spencer Cox Center. IAM, formed in March 2014, is comprised of the Jack Martin Fund Clinic, the Comprehensive Health Program, the Peter Krueger Clinic, and three clinics at the Spencer Cox Center for Health—the Morningside Clinic, the Samuels Clinic, and the West 17th Street Clinic.
Vani Gandhi, MD, HIV and Infectious Disease Specialist, and Director of Integrative Medicine at the Spencer Cox Center for Health, says the clinics have been providing patients with mind-body programs, such as massage and acupuncture, since 1996. The two weekly yoga classes are the newest additions to Spencer Cox’s Integrative Medicine Program.
“We serve a population who would otherwise not be able to access yoga classes in the community,” says Dr. Gandhi. “In recommending the use of these complementary health care approaches, my patients are learning how to improve their well-being while receiving their standard medical treatment, and it leads to a better quality of life.”
In addition to yoga, Mr. Weber utilizes other complementary programs. “I have found that the massage and acupuncture programs have helped improve my sleep,” he says. “More importantly, I leave my sessions feeling exhilarated, and they have eased the distracting and disabling pain that comes with my neuropathy, as well as lessening my vertigo and stress.”
IAM’s vision for the future, says Dr. Gandhi, is to provide these programs at all of its clinics.