Gene-Ann Polk Harlem Hospital Center files

1930-2005 [bulk 1970s-1980s]

The Gene-Ann Polk Harlem Hospital Center files date from 1930 to 2005 (bulk dates 1970s-1980s) and contain memoranda, notes, reports, appointment books, ledgers, and publications that document the departments and various projects Polk administrated, as well as some early HHC history. This collection is not considered HHC's official records, nor is it a comprehensive representation of Polk's entire career.

The bulk of the collection relates to the Ambulatory Care Services (ACS) and Pediatrics, and recounts the day-to-day operations of Polk's work as director of these departments. The ACS outgoing memos and internal correspondence discuss a range of issues from the navigation of a budget crisis, the requests for certain equipment and supplies, to the ongoing changes in personnel and services. There are grant applications, annual reports, meeting minutes, and the documentation of certain services such as the drug abuse programs. Some of these files are from Polk's predecessor Henry L. Hines (early 1970s).

The Pediatrics material showcases Polk's early research and case studies. The collection features a copy of her paper, "The Course of the Heroin Withdrawal Syndrome in Newborn Infants Treated with Phenobarbital or Chlorpromazine;" her notes and drafts of the Cervical Pott's Disease case study presentation at The Bronx Pediatric Society (1955); and notes for the case study of "Narcotic Addiction in the Newborn." Polk's "Renal Tuberculosis in Childhood: A Case Report," co-written with George Weiss, was later published in the Harlem Hospital Bulletin (1958; case studies b.46 f.1-4). These files also hold agendas and typed presentation notes for conferences hosted by the Pediatrics department and Pediatric Ambulatory Care.

The development and management of several community programs are documented in the collection, including the Harlem Primary Care Network (HPCN), and the New York State Primary Ambulatory Care Program (better known as Ghetto Medicine). The scope of Polk's role as director of ACS included overseeing these additional programs. HPCN materials consist of project descriptions, proposals, network agreements, job advertisements, status reports, management summaries that track visit numbers, and governing board meeting minutes. Ghetto Medicine, a state-wide program that financed health care in medically underserved areas, is represented though correspondence, notes, budget reports, and contract information for personnel compensated through the allocated funds from this program.

Polk's participation in several committees at the HHC is reflected through the Utilization Review Committee (URC) and the Cultural Affairs Committee (CAC) files. There are surveys, audits, reports, and meeting minutes from the URC; and CAC meeting agendas, memos, and outlines for the archival calendar. Other CAC materials in the collection consist of a few photographs of patients receiving care; and HHC personnel index cards (1930s-1940s) that contain medical school information, title, services, and salary rates.

Polk's yearly calendars account for her daily appointments and meetings across all the roles she fulfilled. Additional conference materials contextualize her work. For example, the 1982 National Health Care Service Corporation presentation notes (b.37 f.3) discuss some of the challenges the hospital faced in serving the Harlem community, and the development of the HPCN.

The NYC Health and Hospitals Corporation files and memoranda from various departments pertain to hospital-wide subjects and issues. There are also a few HHC publications, including the 1969 master plan, and a few copies of The Harlem Hospital Bulletin.