Page 18 - White Plains Hospital Annual Report 2020-2021
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COMING TOGETHER
Effective emergency management throughout the pandemic required a little help from our friends.
Anyone who has driven past the White Plains Hospital Emergency Department during the past year has likely noticed the large Western Shelter tents sitting prominently in the parking lot. And those who have been inside the tents, being screened for COVID- 19, have undoubtedly observed the orderly and efficient processes being carried out within. What may go unnoticed, however, is that this operation exists largely because of the partnership between the Westchester County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) and a group of White Plains Hospital employees who volunteer their time on the Hospital’s Emergency Response Team.
The Emergency Response Team consists of “23 active members who come from different departments across the Hospital,” says Ed Tangredi, Director of Emergency Management at White Plains Hospital and head of the team. Fifteen years ago, when the team first started, it functioned as a decontamination unit and then began regularly handling a variety of emergency functions. When COVID hit, they swung into high gear. “The first thing we were dealing with was how to isolate COVID and potential COVID patients. So, the Emergency Response Team and Hospital leadership together came up with the concept of screening patients in a tent,” Tangredi explains.
When he realized the Hospital did not have a structure large enough to accommodate the need, Tangredi knew exactly who to call for assistance: Dennis Delborgo, Director of the Westchester County Office of Emergency Management, one of the Hospital’s integral community partners. “They were ready to help immediately. They came out with the Western
Shelter tent and deployed the National Guard to help the Emergency Response Team to set it up,” he says. “It was a real collaborative effort.” (What started with one tent would eventually become two in the Emergency Department parking lot as well as one at Scarsdale Medical Group and one in Armonk at the White Plains Hospital Medical & Wellness urgent care location).
Throughout the pandemic, the County’s OEM continued to play a vital role in helping the Emergency Response Team and the Hospital-at-large. “They were so supportive right from the beginning and they continued to call us to check and see what we needed throughout the year.” Among other things, Tangredi notes, the OEM helped the Hospital secure crucial PPE including N95 respirators, surgical masks, gloves, gowns, and face shields; replaced an air-conditioning unit in one of the tents; assisted with other supplies; and provided additional logistical support when we needed it.
“We have enjoyed a very positive working relationship for many years with the Emergency Management Team at White Plains Hospital,” Delborgo explains. “We have collaborated on training, drills and exercises, and have worked together on numerous past emergencies. Those opportunities provided a solid foundation for which to work together on the COVID response.”
For Tangredi, the collaboration between the Hospital and the County OEM is “a great example of how COVID brought people together.” Proud to be such an integral part of the pandemic response, he says, “As a Hospital, we’re the beacon in the city and in the community, and we’re all on the same page with our community partners —we support one another.”
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WHITE PLAINS HOSPITAL
