NYC Health + Hospitals Fundraising Campaign Raises $5.8 Million To Provide Meals for Frontline Workers
Thanks to generous contributions from individual donors, the health system will provide fresh meals for the month of February
The Healthcare Heroes campaign continues to support frontline workers with meals, personal care items, groceries, transportation, childcare stipends and hotel lodging
Feb 05, 2021
NYC Health + Hospitals today announced that contributions from the ongoing Healthcare Heroes fundraising campaign will provide 30 days of fresh daily meals for its more than 30,000 healthcare workers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic at the health system’s acute care hospitals and five post-acute long-term care facilities. Since its launch in March, 2020, the campaign has directed funds to purchase comfort items like meals, groceries, taxi rides and hotel rooms for health care workers on the front line of care to New Yorkers with COVID-19. In collaboration with World Central Kitchen, NYC Health + Hospitals will serve more than 150,000 meals a week, seven days a week, over several hours to ensure all tours receive support with nearly $6M earmarked since announcing the initiative.
“As we experience a surge in cases, our frontline healthcare providers and first responders are working around the clock. They are tirelessly treating COVID-19, other patients with medical emergencies and keeping New York safe, and we want securing food to be the least of their worries, said Dr. Eric Wei, NYC Health + Hospitals Chief Quality Officer and Emergency Medicine Physician. “We are so thankful to those who have supported our hospitals, long term care facilities and health clinics to make this possible for our heroic workforce.”
World Central Kitchen and NYC Health + Hospitals previously partnered through Bloomberg Philanthropies to provide meals. The organization was selected after a request for proposal which championed several food options including a uniquely designed grab-and-go “cafeteria hospital.” The partnership boasts a variety of internal and external set-ups tailored to each individual facility’s needs, ensuring that the highest safety standards are met, frontline workers experience little to no wait for meal dissemination, and that food is available to staff who work overnight shifts. The partnership aims to also meet workers’ dietary restrictions with as little burden as possible.
The fundraising efforts are on-going for the public health system, and will continue to support the overall health and wellbeing of the workforce. Donations can be made through the NYC Health + Hospitals Network for Good fundraising page. NYC Health + Hospitals launched a fundraising campaign in March, 2020 to help address additional needs caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The campaign will direct funds to provide necessities for health care workers. Donations for equipment and supplies can directed to Help Now NYC.