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PSOT is closing after 30 years. Over 10,000 patients have been supported.
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Patient Testimony
Patient Testimony
Patient Testimony
Dated Saturday May 9th, 2026
Important Clarification Regarding PSOT at Bellevue
Dear PSOT BENEFICIARIES and Family,
We need TO CORRECT MISLEADING INFORMATION that has been circulating about the program, and to speak honestly about what this means for all of us.
The PSOT program is our second home, and the care we receive here is irreplaceable. We are deeply hurt by the decision to close the program and confused by conflicting communications: the calls have been made SUGGESTING THE PROGRAM WILL REMAIN – ARE INCORRECT, because the main staT on the unit will NOT be returning to the seventh floor.
We love Bellevue, and we want to continue receiving care here. We urge the hospital to listen to the patients and families who depend on this program.
Contrary to what some of you may have heard, the Program for Survivors of Torture at Bellevue WILL NOT CONTINUE under a diTerent name with ALL SERVICES INTACT.
Here are the facts as of today:
The PSOT program as we know IS ENDING. The Program Director employment termination date is May 15, 2026.
The final therapeutic group session at Bellevue will be held on May 14, 2026.
Services will NOT remain intact at Bellevue DUE TO STAFF CHANGES.
Going forward, care will be available through your primary care doctors, who can make
referrals for specialized services.
We understand this confusion has caused false hope, and we are deeply upset about the distress this creates. This is not easy news to receive, especially after believing the program would continue.
THE TRUTH: We are not being abandoned. Over time, the team is committed to helping every single person with a safe transition plan. Please disregard any message stating that the program is simply "changing names" and that "all services remain intact” for the beneficiaries, that information is incorrect. We ask for more time, please to keep the core staT: Dr. Smith, Bakary Sanogo (legal services), and Dr. Aladjem, and Dr. Keller. Please maintain the PSOT team.
With respect and solidarity, PSOT beneficiaries. Signed,
Mamasita (PSOT patient) Ibrahim (PSOT patient)
Testimony
Patient Testimony
Patient Testimony
April 4, 2026
To Whom It May Concern,
I am writing to provide my enthusiastic support for the Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture (PSOT). I first learned of PSOT’s work in 1998 when I began to work with the Program for Torture Victims (PTV) in Los Angeles, California as a therapist. The Bellevue PSOT and the
PTV are both members of the National Consortium of Torture Treatment Programs (NCTTP), providing interdisciplinary services to survivors of torture. Over the past 28 years, I have
collaborated closely with multiple staff at the Bellevue PSOT program. Currently, I am a member of the NCTTP Executive Committee and the overall Principal Investigator of our NCTTP Study. In both capacities I interact with Bellevue PSOT staff multiple times each month.
The Bellevue PSOT is a leader in the field of torture treatment nationally and internationally. The high quality of the clinical and forensic services they provide to survivors of complex trauma is well known in the field and their staff are sought after as consultants and trainers. I have attended numerous superb trainings conducted by staff members of the Bellevue PSOT over the years on such topics as group work with survivors of torture, forensic evaluations, and vicarious trauma.
The Bellevue PSOT is a leader nationally and internationally of the torture treatment movement. The Director of the Bellevue PSOT has been serving as the President of the NCTTP for the past decade, elected and re-elected several times to this role by member centers across the United States. If the Bellevue PSOT program closes, it would be a profound loss to vulnerable survivors of torture in NYC who rely on their services to support their healing from severe human rights violations as they seek to rebuild their lives far from home. In addition, it would be a major loss to the torture treatment movement, as the specialized expertise their team has built over more than 3 decades in the field would be lost. I urge that all possible measures be taken to keep the Bellevue PSOT services operating, for the sake of survivors of torture and the movement.
IRCT Testimony
Patient Testimony
Center for Victims of Torture Testimony
Dear Madam/Dear Sir
I write to you as Secretary General of International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims; a global organisation of
176 torture rehabilitation centers in 80 countries around the globe. I write to ask you to reverse the decision to close
The Program for Survivors of Torture (PSOT) at Bellevue Hospital The Program for Survivors of Torture (PSOT) at Bellevue Hospital has been an impactful member of IRCT since 2003. We need their work to treat survivors of torture to continue.
Why?
First and foremost, they have treated over 600 torture survivors in NYC annually, providing medical support, psychosocial support, group therapy, community support groups, and a feeling of belonging and safety to persons seeking a safe space and professional care to recover from the worst crime of all: torture.
Secondly, PSOT program at Bellevue Hospital in NYC has provided leadership across the United States within the
National Consortium of Torture Trauma Programs, NCTTP. Thirdly, PSOT program at Bellevue has been an internally
known rehabilitation program to which other programs in Italy, Chad, Kenya and Colombia have listened and learned.
The survivor group that I met with when I was at the clinic at Bellevue Hospital this past October 2025 were quite
clear. In a city of millions, at a time when the world is an extremely unstable place to be, the Program for Survivors of
Torture at Bellevue Hospital provided refuge but it was also clearly focussed on supporting people to become
productive members of society again. The goal was to help people heal, to assimilate, hold jobs, participate in
community activities and pay their taxes. The PSOT program demanded that the clients commit to and interact at a
speed they could manage in their therapy. There were interpretation sessions, culturally adapted programs, referrals
and helpful navigation of the NYC administrative systems.
In closing I ask that you not close the Program for Survivors of Torture Program at Bellevue Hospital. The cost benefit analysis is worth doing. The outcome of this program: the human beings who can tell their stories about being met with respect, support and a fierce feeling of inclusiveness and belonging which are the markers of the values that New York City and the United States, is a legacy not to be interrupted or ended.
Center for Victims of Torture Testimony
Center for Victims of Torture Testimony
Center for Victims of Torture Testimony
RE: Concern about the closure of the Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of
Torture
To Whom it May Concern,
I am writing to express my profound concern regarding reports of the closure of the Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture (PSOT). Since its founding in 1995, this program has been a beacon of hope and a cornerstone of human rights advocacy in New York City and across the United States. Its loss would be a catastrophic setback for the care of vulnerable refugees and for the international movement against torture.
As a staff member at CVT, the oldest torture treatment center in the country and I long-time partner of PSOT I implore the leadership at Bellevue and NYU to reconsider tocontinue your support for the program.re (CVT) in Minnesota to learn about our model to inform the creation of their program. It was clear then that Dr. Keller possessed a profound dedication to this work. PSOT did not merely replicate existing models; it grew into a pioneering leader in the field, setting the standard for interdisciplinary care that treats the physical, psychological, and social needs of survivors.
PSOT has treated thousands of individuals from over 100 countries, helping them find safety and rebuild their lives. However, its impact stretches far beyond the walls of Bellevue Hospital. PSOT has been instrumental in training new generations of clinicians and lawyers on how to serve this specialized population. PSOT team has been critical in providing technical assistance to other torture treatment programs via a national
consortium of torture treatment programs where Dr. Hawthorne Smith currently serves as president. I personally had the honor of providing training to all newly hired asylum officers with Dr.
Keller and other PSOT staff for over a decade. The full day training focused on survivors of torture; Dr Keller presented on the medical impacts of torture and then co-led mock interview training with new officers. Together we trained hundreds of officers in how to interview torture survivors sensitively in asylum and refugee interviews.
Marjorie Kovler Center Testimony
Center for Victims of Torture Testimony
Marjorie Kovler Center Testimony
To Whom It May Concern:
We write with deep concern to express our strong support for the Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture (PSOT) and to urge immediate action to prevent its closure. Founded in 1995 and embedded within Bellevue Hospital Center, the PSOT has served hundreds of survivors of state-sponsored torture and political violence each year, delivering integrated, trauma-informed care that addresses the physical, psychological, and social wounds of torture. Its multidisciplinary team — physicians, psychiatrists, social workers, and legal advocates — provides a level of specialized, culturally competent care unmatched anywhere else in the New York City metropolitan area.
Beyond direct services, the Bellevue PSOT has played a defining leadership role in the field of torture treatment both domestically and internationally. For nearly three decades it has trained clinicians across the country, shaped national policy through advocacy and testimony, contributed peer-reviewed research, and built partnerships with human rights organizations around the world. It has been a driving voice in strengthening the federal Torture Victims Relief Act and a model for torture
treatment programs globally. Losing Bellevue PSOT would not simply close a clinic — it would dismantle a cornerstone institution of the international movement to restore dignity to survivors of
torture.
The consequences of closure would be severe and immediate. New York City is home to thousands of torture survivors with no comparable alternative for specialized care. The program's closure would sever that lifeline, end a critical training pipeline, silence an authoritative advocacy voice, and send a devastating message to survivors already betrayed by the very institutions meant to protect them. They have endured the worst that human beings can inflict on one another — they deserve healing, not abandonment. We call on all those with the authority and resources to act to fund and preserve the Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture. We stand in solidarity with its staff, clinicians, and the survivors it
serves.
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