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Posted By admin on March 3, 2021

Seniors who signed up on Rockland County's waiting list get Covid-19 vaccine shots March 1, 2021. Refuah Health Center, Good Samaritan Hospital and the Rockland County Office for the Aging worked together to vaccinate 280 seniors. Rockland/Westchester Journal News

POMONA With so many seniors in Rockland County waitingfor their shot at a COVID-19 vaccine, the county and Refuah Health Center teamed up on Monday.

This week and last, Refuah, a federally qualified health center, received considerably more COVID-19 vaccine doses for its two Ramapo clinics 2,000 each week than the county health department's total of1,200 per week.

County Executive Ed Day said Refuah pitched in Monday to vaccinate seniors on the Office for the Aging's wait list.

They did tremendous work during our measles outbreak where countywide over 30,000 MMR shots were given," Day said. "They are true community partners who know how to get shots into arms.

The health center partnered with the county two years ago during a measles outbreak that was concentrated in eastern Ramapo and the Hasidic Jewish community.

A COVID-19 vaccine is administered at the Rockland County Fire Training Center in Pomona on March 1, 2021.(Photo: Peter Carr/The Journal News)

Refuah did extensive outreach, especially in portions of the Hasidic community where vaccine hesitancy seemed to be an issue. That included robocalls and town hall-style meetings, but also conversations with families when they came in for health appointments.

On Monday, Refuah hosted a vaccination site at the county's Fire Training Center for 200 seniors who had signed up with the county's Office for the Aging.

The county last week activated its Emergency Operations Center at the Fire Training Center for the first time in more than three years to help manage the growing list of seniors seeking vaccines.

While the county health department was using the Yeager Center clinic to administer vaccines to essential workers, county spokesman John Lyon said, the senior clinic was set at the Fire Training Center.

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Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern also worked with the county last week to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to 80 seniors from the county's wait list.

"Partof being a community health center is meeting the patients where they're at," said Alexandra Khorover, general counsel and chief strategy officer for Refuah.

That included various mobile clinics in the last week of February.

Refuah used its mobile clinic to reach seniors affiliated with a variety of groups, including Konbit Neg Lakay in Spring Valley, Centro de Amigos in Haverstraw Village, the Suffern Community Center, Esther Gitlow Towers senior community in Suffern, Yeshiva Spring Valley and Monsey schools, and more.

Refuah also teamed up on Monday with Konbit Neg Lakay to register and administer COVID-19 vaccines in Spring Valley.

About 32 people were vaccinated Monday afternoon, and Refuah willset up another clinic later in the week to complete about 100 vaccines total, saidRenold Julien, president and executive director of Konbit, a Haitian community organization based in Spring Valley.

"Clinics like this help people understand that Refuah serves the entire community," said Julien, who serves on the board of Refuah.

Konbit and Refuah have worked together for more than a decade, Julien said.

"Refuah has been a good friend to Haitian-American community," Julien said. After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Refuah secured and administered needed vaccinations for a Konbit Neg Lakay-sponsored relief team heading to that nation.

I want to give a special acknowledgment to Refuah as I know they have reached out to many community groups across Rockland and gotten folks vaccinated, Day said.

"We serve underserved communities," said Khorover. "People who are socioeconomically challengedand medically compromised."

But anyone who is qualified get a vaccination appointment at Refuah, Khorover said. They just have to "get into the queue."

Margie Mazzamorra of Sloatsburg was among the seniors who got the call to come to the Fire Training Center on Monday.

"Everything was easy," she said. "I'm glad to get back to my life again."

Turning to Khorover, Mazzamorra said, "I want to congratulate you. Great job!"

Ken Pollinger of Nyack gets a COVID-19 vaccine shot at the Rockland County Fire Training Center in Pomona March 1, 2021. Rockland County worked with Refuah Health Center, Good Samaritan Hospital and the Rockland County Office for the Aging to vaccinate 280 seniors from the senior waitlist.(Photo: Peter Carr/The Journal News)

Ken and Maureen Pollinger of Nyack also lauded their visit to the vaccine clinic.

"I've forgotten how many lists we've put ourselves on," Maureen Pollinger said. She even thought about grabbing appointments at the Plattsburgh International Airport near the Canadian border more than a four-hour drive on a good day.

"I'm so glad I decided not to go," Maureen Pollinger said after she and Ken finished their shots and their 15-minute observation stint.

Many pharmacies, health centers and county health departments have repeatedly said they wanted larger shipments than the state provided. Refuah is in the same boat, Khorover said. "We regularly request more doses than they send us."

The overall goal, Khorover said, is to "not waste doses."

Rockland residents ages 65 and oldercan still sign up to the Senior COVID-19 Vaccine Waitlist by calling the Rockland County Office for the Aging at 845-364-2110, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday or going to rcklnd.us/c19-waitlist.

From Pound Ridge to Potsdam or from Pomona to Plattsburgh, The Journal News/lohud wants to know if youve traveled long distances to get a coveted COVID-19 vaccine dose and if the hundreds of miles were worth the trip. Westchester, Putnam and Rockland residents can reach out to David Propper atdpropper@lohud.comif youre interested in telling your story.

Nancy Cutler writes about People & Policy. Click here for her latest stories. Follow her on Twitter at@nancyrockland.

Read or Share this story: https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/rockland/2021/03/02/rockland-refuah-health-center-coronavirus-vaccines/6874664002/

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Partnership forged in measles outbreak: Rockland and Refuah tackle COVID-19 vaccinations - The Journal News

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