Benefit Concert to Be Held in Support of Music and Art Therapy Programs for Cancer Patients at Mount Sinai Health System

NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Mount Sinai Health System is hosting a benefit concert in partnership with the UN Chamber Music Society at the United Nations Staff Recreation Council in support of the Helen Sawaya Fund, a philanthropic program at Mount Sinai, whose mission is to provide complementary services including music, art, massage, and pet therapies to increase the comfort and emotional and mental health of patients battling cancer. The event brings together world-class musicians to share the joy of music and to raise awareness and funding for these inspiring programs.

The Helen Sawaya Fund was established by Gabriel Sara, MD, Medical Director of Infusion at Mount Sinai West and Associate Professor of Medicine at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Fuad Sawaya in 2005 in memory of Mr. Sawaya's wife, Helen. After witnessing his wife's difficult cancer battle, as well as countless other cancer patients' struggles during treatment, Mr. Sawaya provided the initial gift to create the fund.

"The needs of a cancer patient go far beyond medical care. They extend to human needs for attention, comfort, convenience, and rest," said Dr. Sara. "The power of music and art can make a big difference in a patient's daily life. We are extremely grateful and honored by the support of these talented musicians."

The UN Chamber Music Society of the United Nations Staff Recreation Council is a group of talented musicians throughout the international community who embrace chamber music. Using music as a universal language of peace, the group has the ability to touch audiences while embodying the values of the United Nations. A message from the UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights will be delivered; in addition, a message from Music Director Jaap van Zweden of the New York Philharmonic will be delivered by a representative. The performance will be led by Brenda Vongova, Artistic Director and pianist of the UN Chamber Music Society, and will feature musicians from the New York Philharmonic. For tickets and more information, call Carnegie Charge at (212) 247-7800.

Who: The UN Chamber Music Society of the United Nations Staff Recreation Council and musicians from the New York Philharmonic

When: Tuesday, January 15, at 7:30 pm

Where: Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall (Entrance located near 154 West 57th Street)

About the Mount Sinai Health System

The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City's largest integrated delivery system encompassing (with the addition of South Nassau Communities Hospital) eight hospital campuses, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. Mount Sinai's vision is to produce the safest care, the highest quality, the highest satisfaction, the best access and the best value of any health system in the nation. The Health System includes approximately 7,480 primary and specialty care physicians; 11 joint-venture ambulatory surgery centers; more than 410 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and 31 affiliated community health centers. The Icahn School of Medicine is one of three medical schools that have earned distinction by multiple indicators: ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News & World Report's "Best Medical Schools", aligned with a U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" Hospital, No. 12 in the nation for National Institutes of Health funding, and among the top 10 most innovative research institutions as ranked by the journal Nature in its Nature Innovation Index. This reflects a special level of excellence in education, clinical practice, and research. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked No. 18 on U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" of top U.S. hospitals; it is one of the nation's top 20 hospitals in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Geriatrics, Nephrology, and Neurology/Neurosurgery, and in the top 50 in six other specialties in the 2018-2019 "Best Hospitals" issue. Mount Sinai's Kravis Children's Hospital also is ranked nationally in five out of ten pediatric specialties by U.S. News & World Report. The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked 11th nationally for Ophthalmology and 44th for Ear, Nose, and Throat. Mount Sinai Beth Israel, Mount Sinai St. Luke's, Mount Sinai West, and South Nassau Communities Hospital are ranked regionally.

For more information, visit http://www.mountsinai.org/, or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

SOURCE Mount Sinai Health System