MediSys Vaccination Team

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted many communities in the Borough of Queens. Several of which have experienced record-high rates of infection, including those served by the MediSys Health Network (Jamaica and Flushing Hospital Medical Center). Both hospitals were located at the epicenter of the outbreak in New York City.
Having experienced first-hand the devastation caused by the virus, the MediSys Health Network knew that one of the best ways to help its employees and communities was to take an aggressive approach to vaccination as soon as vaccines became available. In mid-December, the network opened vaccinations centers on both campuses, initially to vaccinate our essential front-line employees, and later as guidelines permitted, to all eligible members of our community.
The Network put this project in the hands of James Villavicencio, Administrator for the Ambulatory Care Network and Patrick Rudden, Manager of the Ambulatory Care Network, to manage the vaccination effort. James and Patrick assembled a multi-disciplinary team of 40 dedicated employees from both hospitals to tackle this worthy cause. The vaccine effort was eventually centralized on the Jamaica Hospital campus, where the team continued to provide the tireless effort of vaccinating members of the community.
The MediSys Health Network is responsible for providing care to a largely underserved population that is faced with many social and economic disparities that can affect overall health. The COVID pandemic magnified these issues as there were not many vaccination centers in the area, but the vaccine team was determined to help our community.
As one of the only hospital-based vaccination centers open to the public, the Jamaica Hospital vaccination center has administered nearly 45,000 vaccines. At its peak in early March, the vaccine center vaccinated approximately 800 people per day.
The positive response from the community has been overwhelming, with many expressing their appreciation and gratitude publicly. In fact, the vaccine center received many 5-star reviews on Google, praising the team for the caring, compassionate, and efficient service they provided.
Congratulations to the MediSys vaccine team for their heroic efforts.