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| Eileen Lappin, RN | |
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| Gail Schwartz Hafele, RN, one of the volunteers on Staten Island | |
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| More NYSNA volunteers on Staten Island |
A baby, naked and shivering, saved
The baby was almost naked, cold, and shivering. Her mother was in tears.
“We got her some clothes. We got her some blankets. We got her warmed up.”
That’s Eileen Lappin, RN, a nurse at Staten Island University Hospital.
Today she helped save the life of at least one baby out on Staten Island, where she’s volunteering with a team of a dozen other NYSNA nurses. They’re going door-to-door in some of the hardest hit areas, places like Midland Beach and New Dorp Beach.
“We’ve found families living in their cars, families who have run out of food,” said Pat Kane, RN, a nurse at Staten Island University Hospital who’s helping coordinate the response.
“Thousands still have no power, no heat,” said Kane.
Nurses are helping out from all over. Four nurses from the National Nurses United Registered Nurse Response Network are on a plane now, heading to Staten Island. The nurses are working with ambulance crews from Georgia, Minnesota, and Missouri. Nurses say they will continue the relief work until the crisis is over.
Can you help? This relief effort needs your nursing skills. Call Gabe Kristal at 347.380.2069 or Deb Elliott at 518.937.6673.
The New York State Nurses Association is the voice for nursing in the Empire State. With more than 37,000 members, it is New York’s largest professional association and union for registered nurses. The association represents registered nurses, and some all-professional bargaining units, in New York and New Jersey. It supports nurses and nursing practice through education, research, legislative advocacy, and collective bargaining.