Temporary Coronavirus Outpatient Facility Opens in Yeshivah Sh’or Yoshuv

A temporary outpatient care facility has opened in Yeshivah Sh’or Yoshuv in Lawrence, to serve ambulatory, low-acuity and recovering coronavirus patients in in southwest Nassau County and southeast Queens, Northwell Health announced Wednesday.

Following reports of overwhelmed hospitals as the pandemic swept across the New York area, the Jewish community organized to raise donations and outfit the facility to provide care in the event it was needed, and invited Northwell to participate.

The center will initially serve as an assessment center for those with COVID-19 symptoms. If needed, the facility is prepared to transition at a future date into a 24/7 operation to provide observation and respite care as a bridge to home for recovering patients upon discharge from their hospital stay. The site will be managed by Northwell Health, and staffed by Northwell physicians and clinical volunteers recruited by Hatzolah Air.

The yeshivah, like all schools across the state, is currently closed due to the pandemic.

“We’re thankful that the worst did not come to pass and that the facility we developed can be used to heal those most impacted by this pandemic,” said Rabbi Boruch Bender, founder and president of Achiezer, a resource center in the Five Towns which worked with community leaders to create and equip the temporary health facility.

“We are pleased to have been invited to partner with the community to fulfill the medical needs of the region as the nature and scale of the COVID-19 pandemic evolves,” said Michael Goldberg, executive director of Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park. “This temporary clinical facility, run in concert with Hatzolah Air, is a unique way to provide routine care to local residents, avoiding the need for hospital emergency care.”

The site will take similar precautions as regular hospitals: patients generally may not have visitors or supporting persons, and staff will don personal protective equipment during patient interaction, practice regular hand hygiene, clean equipment and disinfect the site.

Sh’or Yoshuv is located at 1 Cedar Lawn Ave. in Lawrence. The site will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. For information or to make an appointment, call (718) 316-6868.