The only hospital on the Rockaway Peninsula is set to further increase access to healthcare through grant funding.
St. John’s Episcopal Hospital in Far Rockaway is the recipient of two major grants — the G.A. Ackermann Fund Grant Award and the Expanded Access to Care Grant — which will help the facility improve services to a historically underserved population that was severely impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Funding from the G.A. Ackermann Fund Grant will go toward the staffing and operations of St. John’s new Mobile Health Unit, which is an RV that travels throughout the communities served by St. John’s to provide health screenings and vaccinations to the public. The second grant, the Expanded Access to Care Grant, is aimed at ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 vaccinations and primary care services in Far Rockaway.
“St. John’s is fully committed to enhancing access to healthcare services in the Rockaways,” said Lorna Manning, RN, MHM, MBA, ACM, assistant vice president of Integrated Case Management & Population Health at St. John’s. “Better access to healthcare can significantly improve the overall health of a community, and these grants help us to provide essential services to our fellow community members.”
The Expanded Access to Care Grant from the city Department of Health, acting through the Fund for Public Health NYC, will reimburse St. John’s up to $908,077 for implementation activities aimed at ensuring equitable access including an increased presence at community health events, enhanced communication with the community regarding COVID-19 vaccination availability and medical screenings for people receiving at least one dose of the vaccine.
The G.A. Fund Grant of $150,000 will go toward the hospital’s Mobile Health Unit, which will provide blood pressure screenings, cancer screenings, cholesterol, glucose, lipid testing, A 1c and/or depression screenings. The unit will increase educational outreach to the community including information on diabetes self-management, nutritional information, weight management, smoking cessation and stroke prevention.
The Mobile Health Unit will also connect community members with primary care clinicians.
