Volunteers resume work at Long Island hospitals
LONG ISLAND - After a sixteen-month suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic, volunteers have resumed responsibilities at NYU Langone Hospital Long Island.
Angela Flesche and her schnauzer poodle, Schnoodles are visiting with patients once more. The hospital’s WAGS pet therapy program helps ease stress among patients.
"We are so looking forward to restarting the program and experiencing life and celebrating it now," Flesche said.
Thomas Roccotagliata was admitted this week with a bacterial infection in his hand.
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"It’s like being back at home," he said. "I have two dogs. Petting them, you feel really happy. Kinda makes you forget like you’re dealing with something for a little bit."
When it comes to the WAGS program, it’s not just the patients who benefit. Even the staff can use some extra love and support after the time and hard work they’ve put in over the past year.
Pre-COVID, there were more than 400 volunteers on the hospital’s roster, ranging in age from 16 to 65 years old. So far, one hundred volunteers are already signed up to restart and another 80 are expected to join in the fall.
"Some of our patients don’t have visitors on a regular basis," Jean Zebroski, Dir. of Volunteer Services at NYU Langone Hospital - Long Island. "They are those visitors and they mean the most to those patients."
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Sharon Essner who volunteers with her mini Goldendoodle Oliver, says it feels good to be back.
"You can just see it in their eyes when the dog comes to them," she said. "It’s this unexplainable feeling of love and gratitude."