New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) recently announced two processes by which New York City nursing facilities may request surge staffing assistance. GNYHA is working closely with NYCEM on these processes, and we request information from your facility to ensure that you can access any available resources.
Clinical Staff
NYCEM has activated the New York City Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) to assist nursing homes experiencing clinical staff shortages. The MRC is a national network of clinical volunteers organized locally to assist their communities. NYCEM has requested that nursing facilities that are members of associations make the requests through their membership associations, and the associations coordinate the requests with NYCEM. Please note that clinical resources available through the MRC are very limited. Also, we remind you that requesting facilities are responsible for any costs, including compensation, associated with staff secured through this process.
Any GNYHA continuing care member seeking additional clinical staff from the MRC should complete the attached form and email it to Kathryn Sorte.
Non-Clinical Staff
New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently authorized the deployment of the National Guard to assist New York City nursing facilities struggling with severe staffing shortages. Guardsmen can only assist not-for-profit and public organizations. Guardsmen to be provided are not clinical staff; the available guardsmen, who could number in the hundreds, can assist paraprofessional staff or otherwise provide general purpose assistance to nursing homes and perform non-direct patient care tasks. Guardsmen will be provided to nursing facilities at no cost to the facility. Facilities receiving support are required to accommodate at least two guardsmen for a minimum of 40 hours per week (any shifts, though weekend availability may be limited) and provide appropriate personal protective equipment. The National Guard will work directly with facilities on exact schedules. Based on our conversations with NYCEM and the National Guard, guardsmen would be available through mid-March.
Any GNYHA continuing care member seeking additional non-clinical staff from the National Guard should complete the attached form and email it to Kathryn Sorte.