Mount Sinai’s medical volunteers awaiting their flight to Puerto Rico.
Three physicians and seven nurses from the Mount Sinai Health System flew to Puerto Rico on Thursday, October 12, to begin a two-week mission to the island, which is still in dire need more than three weeks after Hurricane Maria devastated hospitals and other infrastructure.
The group will provide clinical care to citizens, many of whom have no access to electricity, potable water, medications, or relief from the sweltering heat and humidity.
The Mount Sinai contingent is part of a group of 70 medical professionals from New York State, in a humanitarian initiative developed in collaboration with the Governor’s Office, the State Department of Health, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Greater New York Hospital Association, the Healthcare Association of New York State, the New York State Nurses Association, and 1199SEIU. Additional groups are expected to deploy to Puerto Rico in the weeks ahead.
Back row from left: Kevin Munjal, MD, Assistant Professor, Emergency Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Melanie Pratts, RN, Director of Medical Systems, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai; Helen Rosario, RN, Mount Sinai Brooklyn; and Erin Hogan, RN, The Mount Sinai Hospital. Middle row from left: Colleen Fischer, RN, Nurse Manager, Mount Sinai Beth Israel; Christine Mahoney, RN, MS, AGACNP-BC, CCRN, Senior Vice President, Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer, Mount Sinai Downtown; Juan Baez, RN, Mount Sinai St. Luke’s; and Karendip Kaur Braich, MD, Nephrology Fellow, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Front row from left: Stacey A. Conklin, MS, MSN, RN, NE-BC, Vice President for Patient Care Services, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai; and Emma Kaplan-Lewis, MD, Assistant Professor, Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.