Nassau University Medical Center opens first-of-its-kind Community Outreach Center

The Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow has officially opened its new Community Outreach Center — which aims to increase the hospital’s connection to surrounding areas and the people it serves.

The outreach center is the first of its kind at NUMC, and will feature a food pantry, provide assistance for Medicaid enrollment, offer career development initiatives, prescription education, among many other programs and services. The new center will also provide services to those impacted by the criminal justice system, assisting them in making a smooth transition back into society.

“As Nassau’s only public hospital, NUMC is deeply rooted in our community,” Meg Ryan, the hospital’s interim president and chief executive officer, said at the outreach center’s Sept. 9 ribbon-cutting ceremony. “We work daily with the county’s first responders, law enforcement, senior centers, libraries, schools, places of worship and, of course, community-based organizations.”

Ryan said over the last few months, the hospital has been making many improvements, including streamlining its community outreach programs. It currently runs 300 programs throughout the county, which draws thousands of participants annually.

NUMC recently held a back-to-school giveaway, distributing backpacks, books, additional supplies and raffle prizes to 350 attendees. Last month, the hospital also announced that a healthcare clinic would begin offering evening hours every Tuesday and Wednesday, from 6 to 9 p.m., providing general, pediatric and women’s health services. NUMC is the only public hospital on Long Island, and it treats all patients, regardless of their ability to pay.

“We wanted to create a new office, make it organized, visible and, most importantly, accessible,” Ryan said. “We formed a community outreach team, and this office now will be located centrally.”

The Community Outreach Center is located within the main entrance hallway of the hospital, just a few feet past its Carman Avenue doors, through which the vast majority of patients enter.

The center will have a mix of county programs and NUMC programs, and Ryan said the hospital is “looking forward to serving the public,” as it does every day.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony, said the new center demonstrates the county’s commitment to the hospital, which over the last several years has faced financial challenges due to state funding cuts.

“I’m very proud that you have this outreach center, because it demonstrates that we keep moving forward,” he said. “We want to excel, we want to do better, but more importantly, we want to get the community involved. This is an important health care facility — one of the most important in the state.”

The outreach center also includes Nassau County’s “Step Center” — a re-entry success program providing free, comprehensive and effective services to justice-impacted men and women, and their families. Hospital administrators said the Step Center would help people “access the resources necessary for a successful transition back into society” and that it “aims to support individuals as they navigate critical next steps following interactions with police and the courts, helping them reintegrate successfully into their communities.”

The Step Center was a collaborative initiative between the hospital, the Nassau County Department of Social Services, Department of Human Resources and local law enforcement. It will offer a variety of services, including probation check-ins, mental health intake, social services, housing assistance, workforce development and family services.

NUMC hosted its first open house on Sept. 17, where attendees were able to meet the hospital’s doctors and take a tour of the facility, as well as receive Narcan trainings, health screenings, education material, flu shots and more.

For more information on NUMC’s services, and questions about the new Community Outreach Center and the Step Center, call (516) 296-2345, or visit NUMC.edu.