COVID-19 Initiatives

Work in Progress

With funding from the New York Community Trust, NYAM's COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Action Collaborative works to address vaccine access and education needs in under-resourced communities by offering technical assistance for community and faith-based organizations and bringing together community and faith-based leaders, health systems and government partners. Publications include the monthly COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Bulletin, in partnership with the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health (sign up here) and several fact sheets. Access the collaborative's resources here.
As part of Health Data for NYC (HD4NYC), a multi-institutional research platform created by NYAM and the NYC Health Department, workgroups conduct actionable policy-relevant research to promote health equity. HD4NYC facilitates access to Health Department data, mentorship, and collaboration for early- and mid-career academic and Health Department researchers. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, a new workgroup was formed to focus on the equity impacts of COVID-19. The workgroup is addressing issues including the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on birth outcomes among immigrant parents in New York City; COVID-19 vaccine confidence among foreign-born New Yorkers; and race, ethnicity, and air pollution in COVID-19 mortality in NYC.
YouthWorks, a virtual community program that focuses on health and well-being for older youth in foster care during COVID-19, in partnership with the NYC Administration for Children’s Services (ACS). Following a successful pilot in 2020, the program expanded in 2021 to reach more youth with funding from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation.
Around the Table, a quarterly series of roundtable discussions that focus on relevant health equity issues and offer tested, actionable solutions. Featuring Dr. Judith A. Salerno, President of NYAM and Dr. Wayne J. Riley, Board Chair of NYAM, President of SUNY Downstate, with a rotating list of expert guest panelists, each program defines the issue, shares information, answers questions and provides action items for the viewer to take. To date, topics have included buliding vaccine confidence among patients of color, protecting the mental health of frontline healthcare professionals, and sharing the latest information on children and the COVID-19 vaccines.

Since April 2020, NYAM has served as a crucial hub for professional events related to COVID-19, including informal conversations, panels, workshops and conferences.

View upcoming and past COVID-19 events.

External Task Forces & Workgroups

NYAM staff and Board members are active participants on both local and national COVID-19-focused task forces and workgroups. The following is a snapshot of the work in progress.

New York's Vaccine Equity Task Force
This New York State task force is working to break down barriers to vaccination and ensure there is equitable distribution of the vaccine across the state.

Rapid Response Coalition
A coalition of for-profit, nonprofit, and government entities that are working together to address the current needs of high-risk, chronically ill and underserved New Yorkers in order to keep them home and out of the hospital. NYAM staff participate on workgroups focused on meal delivery, access to technology, and engagement methods with hard-to-reach populations.

NYC Food Czar COVID-19 Weekly Call
Weekly call with advocates and nonprofits, which provides updates on city-run food and meal delivery and pick-ups to students, older adults, and others.

Human Services Council COVID Update Call
Semi-weekly updates on mandates, budgets, and other issues that affect the NYC nonprofit sector.

Long-Term Services and Supports Workforce COVID-19 Response
Addressing direct care workforce needs in the long-term care sector.

LiveOn NY Boots on the Ground Working Group
A coalition of aging service organizations that receive city and state updates on aging services and social services, with a focus on meal deliveries and wellness calls.

Policy Network on Aging, Housing & Public Health
Led by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies and The Hastings Center, the network will focus on rapid-response work supporting Covid-19 recovery (policy briefs) in the United States and seek to ensure that the policies and programs emerging from the pandemic support equity in older adults’ access to housing and age-friendly neighborhoods

Health + Hospitals Emergency Department COVID Action Team
Provided support in developing ethical guardrails for resuscitation in crisis situations in the Emergency Department. The result is currently under review in a peer-reviewed manuscript “The New York City Pandemic Resuscitation Equitable Allocation Principles.”

National Academy of Medicine Roundtable on Population Health's Health Care Expenditure
Since the onset of COVID-19 the roundtable has transitioned to thinking about healthcare costs in the context of the pandemic.

America’s Health Rankings Science Advisory Group
Currently focused on addressing COVID-19 in this year’s annual report.

Completed Initiatives

NYAM Research & Programs

In December 2020 and January 2021, NYAM conducted a series of five pilot public deliberations on behalf of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene focused on informing priorities for distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine in New York. NYAM’s Center for Evaluation and Applied Research (CEAR) has developed a set of resources for use by other localities to gain informed constituent recommendations on fair distribution of the vaccine during the COVID-19 pandemic. These resources may also be useful for developing public deliberations soliciting community guidance on related population health and equity questions. These resources can be found on the website of the deBeaumont Foundation, which provided support for their development. Funding for the NYC pilot was provided by the Altman Foundation, the New York State Health Foundation and United Hospital Fund.
With the recognition that health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic involve rapidly changing information on clinical interventions and patient needs, NYAM and Metropolitan Hospital formed a partnership to support decision-making with real-time data and outreach. We conducted analyses of electronic health record (EHR) data during the first surge of the pandemic in NYC to gain a better understanding of how COVID-19 impacted the patient population, processes of care and outcomes during the pandemic, and ultimately to improve patient care. We also developed user-friendly guides on housing and free- or low-cost mental health resources in Spanish and English for the Metropolitan discharge team to use with patients upon discharge.
NYAM partnered with LeadingAge New York to serve as a Training Center for the AHRQ ECHO National Nursing Home COVID-19 Action Network, an interactive community of practice for nursing home staff to collaboratively advance improvements in COVID-19 preparedness, safety and infection control in more than 100 facilities across New York State. The training center also served as a vehicle for educating nursing home staff about the vaccine.
NYAM partnered with the Yale School of Nursing (YSN), with support from Saraya Co. LTD, to advance the understanding and prevention of infections in long-term care settings. Following a virtual global summit in December 2020 and the development of research and reports on this topic, NYAM and YSN released the first-of-its-kind Infection Prevention Compendium for Long-Term Care Facilities in August 2021. This digital resource hub makes a significant contribution to the development and maintenance of effective infection prevention and control by centralizing globally sourced guides, resources and toolkits that address the complex operational elements of long-term care facilities.
Over six months of 2020, NYAM held a virtual convening of over 30 Age-friendly Neighborhood leaders to share innovative strategies for serving their communities during COVID-19. NYAM also awarded grants from the Age-friendly Neighborhoods Fund for local organizations to carry out this work, with support from the New York State Health Foundation and UJA-Federation of New York.
NYAM’s data visualization tool IMAGE: NYC, the Interactive Map of Aging, provided a sophisticated mapping resource to help government agencies, service providers and other professionals identify neighborhoods with specific socio-demographic risk factors for severe COVID-19 outcomes. In early 2021, we overlayed this information with COVID-19 vaccination locations, proving the tool’s flexibility and usefulness to disaster mitigation.
NYAM researchers participated in the enhancement of an existing patient-centered study funded by PCORI with Mt. Sinai and other partners to evaluate adaptations in New York State Medicaid Health Homes due to COVID-19 on the process and outcomes of care for patients with diabetes in New York City. Published in BMJ Open Diabetes Research and Care, the study found that New York State’s Heatlh Home program improved access to care for Medicaid recipients with diabetes. These findings have implications for New York State Medicaid as well as other providers and care management programs.

East Harlem Initiatives

In March 2020, NYAM staff interviewed the members of the East Harlem Action Collaborative, who are community resident caregivers of young children, to assess their barriers and challenges during the pandemic. Based on this feedback, we were able to work together with our local elected officials to bring needed resources including food deliveries to the East Harlem community.
As part of EHAC, we formed the East Harlem Youth Advisory Board, which engaged youth to learn about their needs over the summer when all summer programs had been halted. Through this pilot program with local elected officials, a group of six young people designed a survey that was disseminated to more than 130 youth. The survey results will inform a statement of district needs for youth, led by youth and for youth in East Harlem, that can serve as a model for other districts around NYC and inform youth programming.
NYAM partnered with Trinity Commons Wall Street and several local networks to deliver 780 bags of groceries to East Harlem families.
NYAM also volunteered our building space as a central hub for the distribution of 6,400 meals through the youth services organization SCAN-Harbor.
As an active participant in the East Harlem Human Services Consortium and the East Harlem Community Partnership Program, NYAM connected and convened partners to directly address and provide solutions for the local community pertaining to issues that have been exacerbated as a result of COVID-19.

Publications, Media, Resources

NYAM Publications

COVID-19 Vaccines & Employers, Guidance for Community-Based Employers, September - October 2021
New York City
Westchester
Long Island

Journal of Urban Health, Volume 97, Issue 6, December 2020

Journal of Urban Health, Volume 97, Issue 4, August 2020

Journal of Urban Health, Volume 97, Issue 3, June 2020

An Intergenerational Guide to Helping Your Friends and Family During COVID-19, May 2020

An Intergenerational Guide to Helping Your Community During COVID-19, May 2020

How You Can Contribute to the 2020 Census Effort In Your Community, April 2020 (updated August 2020)

Supporting Your Older Neighbors in NYC in this Time of Need, March 2020
En Español: Apoyar a su vecino mayor en NYC en su tiempo de necesidad

Supporting Your Older Neighbors in this Time of Need, March 2020
En Español: Apoyar a sus vecinos mayores en este momento de necesidad

Supporting Older Adults in NYC Without Internet Access: A Guide for Professionals, March 2020

Identifying At-Risk Populations During COVID-19, IMAGE-NYC Interactive Map of Aging, March 2020

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

“COVID-19 Outbreaks at Correctional Facilities Demand a Health Equity Approach to Criminal Justice Reform,” by NYAM Senior Policy Associate Michele Calvo and Graduate Policy Intern Daniel Alohan, Journal of Urban Health, June 3, 2020

“COVID-19 Related School Closings and Risk Of Weight Gain Among Children,” by NYAM Vice President for Research, Evaluation & Policy Dr. Claire Wang and colleagues, Obesity, March 30, 2020

Curated Research & Resources

What Can I Do?
A temporary website (www.whatcanido.nyc) of resources for action and learning curated through a health equity lens launched March 2020. What Can I Do? effort includes ongoing website updates with social media support and weekly themed newsletters. To date, themed releases have included: racism, violence and health; LGBTQ+ health, health equity; older adults; mental health; housing; child health; maternal health; food access; East Harlem; maternal health; health equity.

COVID-19 Research Database
Curated by NYAM Scholar-in-Residence Dr. Elaine Larson, this new COVID-19 research database for clinicians and medical researchers was launched on the Wolters Kluwar website in April 2020 with ongoing updates.

COVID-19 Research Resources
Curated by NYAM librarians, this resources list provides a starting point for researchers.

In the Media

“Beyond Age, Race & Income: Sociodemographic Factors to Track During COVID-19,” by NYAM Program Officer Elana Kieffer, National Council on Aging blog, May 22, 2020

“Let’s Thank All Caregivers, Not Just the Most Visible,” by NYAM President Dr. Judith Salerno and Deputy Mayor Phil Thompson, Gotham Gazette, May 18, 2020

“How Social Isolation Can Bring Us Together,” by NYAM President Dr. Judith Salerno, Thrive Global, May 8, 2020

“Love in the Time of Covid-19: Inequities and Supporting Children,” by NYAM Senior Scholar-in-Residence Dr. Danielle Laraque-Arena, Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences (HOPE) blog, April 6, 2020

“How stores can serve older people better during the coronavirus pandemic,” by NYAM Policy Associate Alyssa Kies, New York Daily News, March 27, 2020

Media Coverage of Dr. Salerno’s Return to Clinical Practice

“Helping at the Epicenter of the COVID-19 Emergency,” USC Schaeffer Center, May 28, 2020

“Out of Retirement, On to the Frontline,” Stonehill Alumni Magazine, May 18, 2020 (Winter/Spring 2020 issue)

“President of the New York Academy of Medicine, Dr. Salerno on #TeaWithMrsG,” Channel Kindness, May 7, 2020

“In the trenches: Three physicians in three distinct settings detail life in the midst of pandemic,” The Harvard Gazette, April 27, 2020

“When Duty Calls, and Menaces,” The New York Times, April 17, 2020

“Doctors From Across Country Are Volunteering in New York City Hospitals,” The Wall Street Journal, April 16, 2020

“Concerns for clinicians over 65 grow in the face of COVID-19,” Medscape, April 9, 2020

“Meet the retired docs and nurses as old as 78 being called back into action to fight coronavirus,” The U.S. Sun, April 2, 2020

“Retirees returning to help hospitals treat coronavirus,” MSNBC, March 27, 2020

“Meet the retired doctors and nurses helping to fight the coronavirus,” New York Post, March 27, 2020