This strategic partnership will encompass a variety of initiatives leveraging Pfizer’s deep knowledge base in health equity and health care delivery and LSA’s commitment to quality care for all individuals, regardless of race, gender, religion, income, lifestyle, or nation of origin. As part of the collaboration, LSA will work with Pfizer to present a Pfizer Rx Pathways  webinar, communicate to Latinx families through our virtual health fair and distribute Pfizer Rx Pathways program materials directly to the community through the food pantry to improve understanding of core issues in health equity.

“Family health and well-being is our core mission and is always front and center for LSA. We’re honored to partner with Pfizer,” said Reada Bunin Edelstein, former CEO of LSA Family Health Service. “We’ve seen firsthand the inequitable impacts that COVID-19 has had on communities like our own, part of which are the barriers that exist in accessing everyday health care.
Partnering with Pfizer provides us with the opportunity to help close some of these inequities and improve the lives of the children and families in East Harlem.”

About LSA Family Health Service
LSA Family Health Service, founded by the Little Sisters of the Assumption, strengthens and empowers vulnerable families and children by meeting their basic needs for food, healthcare, education and a safe home, in the belief that affirming families in their own dignity improves the entire community. Learn more at www.littlesistersfamily.org.

About Pfizer
At Pfizer, we apply science and our global resources to bring therapies to people that extend and significantly improve their lives. We strive to set the standard for quality, safety and value in the discovery, development and manufacture of health care products, including innovative medicines and vaccines. Every day, Pfizer colleagues work across developed and emerging markets to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases of our time. Consistent with our responsibility as one of the world’s premier innovative biopharmaceutical companies, we collaborate with health care providers, governments and local communities to support and expand access to reliable, affordable health care around the world. For more than 170 years, we have worked to make a difference for all who rely on us. We routinely post information that may be important to investors on our website at www.Pfizer.com. In addition, to learn more, please visit us on www.Pfizer.com and follow us on Twitter at @Pfizer and @Pfizer_News, LinkedIn, YouTube and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/Pfizer.

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Last week’s incident involving Mr. Yao Pan Ma is especially upsetting – taking place in the East Harlem community that we all know and love. 

Unfortunately, Mr. Ma is not alone.  There has been a 150% increase in hate crimes towards Asian and Asian Americans in 2020 – many of which have occurred in New York City.  This city, and East Harlem in particular, is a proud community of immigrants from all over the world; a place where everyone is welcome.  

We at LSA condemn all acts of violence against, and stand firmly with, members of the Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander community and dedicate ourselves to strengthening LSA’s work to end violence, racism, and prejudice.  We stand with members of our East Harlem community, and all New Yorkers, who are experiencing this and all forms of racism and xenophobia and will continue to fight for compassion, equity, and justice for who experience these terrible acts of violence.

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Between November 2020 and February 2021, LSA and our wonderfully generous donors have provided over 1,000 coats to the East Harlem community. Families in LSA’s Mental Health Services, Nursing, K-4 Enrichment, and Environmental programs have all benefited from the donations.

Additionally, LSA distributed more than 400 hats that were hand-knit by a long-time LSA supporter.

We give special thanks to Carmen Serrano, NY Cares, St. Augustine Church, Old Navy, the Brookdale Foundation, the Bowery Mission, Robin Hood, and the National Bank of Canada for their kindness and continuous support of LSA families.

The post Keeping East Harlem Warm appeared first on LSA Family Health Service.

In a virtual session with LSA supporters, clients and staff, Maya discussed her policy and what she sees for the future of New York City, especially marginalized communities like East Harlem.

In the coming weeks, other mayoral candidates who have qualified for City funding, Eric Adams and Scott Stringer, will also be invited to visit LSA and speak to our community.

LSA Family Health Service does not endorse any candidate but we are happy to offer a format for learning about each of their positions on the issues that matter to East Harlem and all New Yorkers. 

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While countless individuals make the holidays possible for our families, we’d like to give special thanks to these organizations and donors who coordinated support for LSA families.

Holiday Gift Donors:

Brenna Moore
Catholic Charities
Church of the Heavenly Rest
Church of Saint Augustine
Columbia Grammar Preparatory School
Convent of the Sacred Heart
Giangrande Family
Horace Mann Nursery
Karla Haruich
L.I.F.E. Program
LSA Youth Board
Molly Reich and Friends
Mt. Sinai – Jennifer Cholewka
Multer-Pincus Family
National Bank of Canada
New York Cares
Old Navy – 34th Street
The Parish of St. Monica-St. Elizabeth-St. Stephen Church
Riverdale Country Day School
The Robin Hood Foundation
St. Frances de Sales Church
St. Luke Parish
Tacombi
Temple Shaaray Tefila
Walt Disney Company

On behalf of the families we serve, we give heartfelt thanks to holiday gift donors for bringing extra cheer to our community.  Thank you!

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Duncan Crow

Duncan was relatively new to New York when the pandemic hit, yet he’s managed to stay busy, volunteering with LSA since April 2020. Duncan supports the frontline volunteers by ensuring they are fully stocked with bags of food and other goods to hand out. He jokes that with how fast food is handed out, restocking ends up being intense, not unlike the marathon he ran last year! 

Marathons and volunteering aren’t the only things keeping Duncan busy.  In 2021, he looks forward to attending medical school, where his empathy and caring for others will serve him well. 

“A lack of compassion is poignant in modern America, and volunteering with LSA helps continue their legacy of empathy,” said Duncan.  “Not compassion to feel better about my actions, but rather a realization that we are all more interconnected than we realize and must share universal challenges. COVID-19 highlights the idea of our problems.”

Elianny Salcedo

Elianny has long been involved with LSA, first volunteering in the mentoring program over eight years ago.  When the global pandemic hit, Elianny knew that the East Harlem community needed support now more than ever and began volunteering in the food pantry in March.

Her longstanding commitment to LSA puts Elianny in a leadership role guiding the volunteers who come to the pantry and teaching them the systems in place.  And with making more than 600 pantry bags a week, those systems are important to ensuring that the community has their needs met (and, like Duncan, she gets in a great workout!).

Being a part of the community for so long, Elianny has seen first-hand the changes that the pandemic has had on East Harlem.  “We’ve seen an increase in the vitality of the pantry,” said Elianny.  “[The pandemic] has reinforced that it’s essential for people to have a trusted place for food and other essentials; even people who thought they would never rely on a pantry are coming to us now.  We’re providing essential relief.”

Bill Ofenloch

Bill is another volunteer with long time ties to the community, having lived in East Harlem for 45 years.  The COVID pandemic also called Bill back to volunteering, this time through the Benincasa organization.

Helping in the pantry, Bill has been blown away by the sheer volume of food that is distributed and the great number of people who receive it. “People are really grateful,” said Bill, “It is one of the major works of mercy to feed the hungry and I am glad to do it in a concrete way.”

The post Thank you to those who keep us going! Part 2 appeared first on LSA Family Health Service.

Many thanks to the GenNx Foundation, the Horace Mann School, the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Ponce Bank, and so many individuals like you who made the holiday possible for LSA families.

The post The 2020 Turkey Drive appeared first on LSA Family Health Service.

As the holidays approach, we want to thank our wonderful volunteers, donors, staff, and East Harlem families that make LSA’s work possible. When you become a part of LSA, you join more than just a community-based non-profit; you become a part of a family.

Reflection On My Experience

By: Jaylin Santos

During the summer of 2019, I was allowed to volunteer at a non-profit organization in East Harlem, New York City, called Little Sisters of the Assumption Family Health Services (LSA). I heard of this opportunity from my mother who has been a receptionist here for more than 10 years.

That summer really helped me grasp a deeper understanding of the poverty and health determinants that were very evident in the East Harlem community – a largely immigrant and minority community.

I was able to see before me first hand how my help could directly impact a community. LSA, which is mainly run by volunteers and of course some staff, covered a multitude of different issues that could occur in a family household. LSA provides families with legal advice, food, clothes, education services, prenatal care, and most importantly a sense of community where families are given hope. 

Over the summer I volunteered 40 hours every week for 8 weeks straight. Because the agency depends heavily on volunteer support, I was in high demand for the majority of my time here. Not that I minded, I loved it. It did however take a lot of hard work and dedication. I would go in with my mother every morning at 9 am.

On Mondays, I would get started stocking the pantry that would feed hundreds of families and work with a multitude of grateful people most of whom did not even speak English (good thing I’m bilingual!). On Tuesdays, I would visit The Sharing Place, a thrift store run by LSA that helps to provide low-cost clothing, housewares, and other items to the community. I’d work as the cashier and also help the clients on the floor when necessary. Some times when a client would come in without the money to buy what they needed, I would help them with stipends that could give them a fresh set of clothes. On Wednesdays, I worked with the summer camp and helped bilingual students learn how to read and write in English properly. On Thursdays, I would go to the nurses’ floor and help them organize the supplies that they would give out to less fortunate families. On Fridays, I would float and pick up whatever job needed to be done.

Needless to say, I was always exhausted but it was worth the feeling of doing good for a community that is less fortunate. Today, my sense of family at LSA continues and I work whenever able.

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During this multi-part series, we introduce a few of the volunteers who have continued to keep LSA running.  We thank all of our volunteers and supporters who have helped us in supporting the East Harlem community.

Fatimatujjohra Mim

Fatima first heard about volunteer opportunities at LSA from friends at CUNY Lehman College where she studies Dietetics, Food, and Nutrition.  Volunteering at LSA, Fatima assists with bagging food, ensuring products are flowing from production place to distribution place, helping the front line leader in handling bags to the customers, and making sure production places are clean. 

But this isn’t Fatima’s first experience working around food.  She previously volunteered at City Harvest and the Lehman Campus Food Bank before becoming a LSA volunteer. Volunteering at LSA not only gives her a sense of motivation and accomplishment in helping her community, but also will help her one day better serve her own clients as a doctor or registered dietitian. “I wanted to meet more people and learn more about food service and the community, and get to know about different races, what they eat, what kind of food they pick up when they go shopping,” said Fatima.  “It’s strange how helping others makes me feel motivated to do more for others, it motivates me to do more good things for the community, and it makes me appreciate my life more.”

Lisa Tadross

Originally from Vienna, Austria, but a New Yorker for over 15 years, Lisa and her family recently moved to the East Harlem neighborhood before the COVID crisis struck.  A flight attendant for American Airlines, Lisa used her time to help serve her new community. “I’ve been wanting to help the local community during these hard times,” said Lisa, “and I was fortunate to have the time to do so since my job/flying slowed down.”

As a Food Pantry volunteer, Lisa assists with the preparation and distribution of food packages to individuals and families.  And the community’s gratitude has not gone unnoticed. “The gratitude people have shown has been amazing,” said Lisa, “for example, some local mothers have been bringing the volunteers delicious home-cooked meals.”

Raymundo Gonzalez

Raymundo is a New Yorker, born in Mexico City with a long history with LSA.  A former, long-term East Harlem resident Raymundo and his family received services from LSA before becoming a volunteer and staff member.  Now in the food industry, Raymundo returned to his roots to support his fellow New Yorkers at LSA during the COVID crisis.  

“I strongly believe in giving back to those who have helped me get to where I am today,” said Raymundo. “During my time as a client, employee and now volunteer LSA has turned into a second home for my family and me.” With his many years of experience at LSA, Raymundo has truly touched every aspect of the agency.  From head custodian to working in advocacy, Raymundo has met a lot of extraordinary people. “[The people of LSA] are like angels, said Raymundo. “I didn’t know people like that could exist until I came to LSA.”

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Today, we talk to Dr. Brenda Brathwaite, DNP, CNM, and Director of Nursing at LSA about the importance of this program and the community impacts of COVID-19.

For those unfamiliar, can you provide an overview of the Nursing program?
The Nursing program is central to the history of LSA. Nursing is actually the flagship program, which was founded by the Order of The Little Sisters of Assumption, who came to the United States in the final decade of the 19th Century. Over the years, this program has evolved to offer critical services to our community. Today, we are very proud that our Nursing program offers a special focus on families and young children, with a proven track record of improving family health and well-being.

First and foremost, the Nursing program provides much needed prenatal and postpartum community health nursing visits to mothers and infants.  We also provide skilled community health nursing visits in the home to pediatric patients from birth to eighteen years of age. Additionally, we also provide skilled community health visits in the home or assisted living facility, offering nursing care for chronic health conditions, wound care, patient education for recovery and provide services for physical and/or occupational therapy for increased independence. Our services do not conclude with childbirth, but rather, LSA continues to work closely with families to ensure that the young and old alike have the services and tools for lifelong good health.

How has the Nursing Program responded to COVID-19 crisis?
Like many other nursing providers in New York and nationwide, the COVID-19 crisis was a startling reality that the LSA Nursing program has had to adapt to. Personally, while I had dealt with other health crises in NYC over my 39 year nursing career, COVID-19 however, has been quite different. I am now part of the leadership team of LSA during this pandemic. The COVID-19 crisis has challenged us all on a daily basis, but our mission is to keep the nursing program moving forward and serving our community without interruption or sacrifice of quality of care. The priority has been to keep our patients healthy and cared for; while keeping our community health nurses safe. 

To ensure safety of our staff, we have taken a number of precautions, these include: creating modified work schedules, allowing our nurses to work remotely, as well as, to work in the community. Through the generosity of our health partners, we have provided the needed PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) for our nurses to keep them safe. Additionally, via our partners at Memorial Sloan Kettering, we provided training for our nursing staff on appropriately donning and doffing PPE, as well as, providing fit testing of N95 masks to ensure they are sized appropriately for our nurses.
The nurses also completed certification training for nasal swabbing of community health patients for COVID-19, in case there is another surge in NYC. When testing was instituted for hospice, nursing homes and assisted living facilities, we organized testing for the community health nurses with our community health partners at Vista on 5th.  Lastly, our nurses are being tested weekly to ensure the safety of all of our clients.

How has COVID-19 impacted home visits?
The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated us to modify some of our services to ensure safety. We have converted to modified telehealth services, we have scaled back on home visits for our Maternal Child Health (MCH) patients, Primary Care Providers for our adult wound care clients changed wound care schedules from daily to three times/week to focus on safety for patients and nurses. One nurse is assigned to the community now that the curve has flattened. The other nurse works at an assisted care facility because the patients at our assisted care facility are considered to be high risk. The third nurse works remotely coordinating care for our MIH patients and also for CHHA patients and assisted living patients.

What impacts from COVID-19 do you see on the patients?
Our adult patients have expressed sadness about feeling isolated and lonely. Our adult patients’ children, friends, and extended family were unable to visit them because many adult patients had comorbidities that placed them in the high risk category for visitation during the peak of COVID-19. Our MCH patients were experiencing inability to obtain supplies such as diapers and formula; some of this was due to financial insecurities, as well as, not being able to get to stores during the peak of the pandemic.

Why do you think the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting East Harlem so greatly?  
Unfortunately, telecommuting isn’t an option for many workers in East Harlem because they are classified as essential workers, so it was mandatory that they reported to work at the outset of the pandemic, which led to increased exposure to COVID-19. Many people living in East Harlem live in shared housing arrangements, which also led to increased exposure. There are also health disparities that exist for immigrant populations due to underinsured status which leads to decreased access to preventive health services.

What can we as the community do to help?
LSA can continue to provide the critically-needed services like the Food Pantry, Advocacy, Environmental Health, Parent and Child Development and Nursing. LSA has to continue to remain focused on our mission and to offer the vital support services to our community. Additionally, it is key that we collect good data from all of our programs. By compiling and disseminating this information, in a safe and private way, to our local public officials we can have meaningful conversations around the health disparities that exist for black and brown communities in East Harlem. 

Let’s end on a high note!  What’s your favorite part of working with LSA patients?
As a Certified Nurse Midwife I have been able to appreciate the collaborative links between all sectors of health care delivery. Such links assist in seamless care for patients with health disparities and ensures closing the chasm that sometimes prevents entire populations from experiencing health equity.

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