Hudson Valley Hospital Center Weathers First Snow of 2014

Cortlandt Manor, NY - (January 3, 2014) – Not everyone gets the day off from work during a snowstorm as Hudson Valley Hospital Center employees can testify.

About 45 employees spent the night Thursday sleeping in the emergency room, hospital rooms or makeshift dormitories in conference rooms, day rooms and exam rooms, according to Nursing Supervisor Anna Slempa.

Slempa, who was in charge of coordinating the Hospital’s snow plan, said those who spent the night were a combination of people who worked the night shift Thursday and others who were scheduled to work days on Friday and came in early. She said these included physicians, as well as, people from emergency, radiology, nursing, ambulatory surgery, engineering and environmental. It also included people from departments such as dietary and finance that might not be considered essential personnel.

The hospital sent a driver to pick up about 10 people, mostly nurses.

“Everyone was in good spirits and cooperative,’’ said Slempa. “The most important thing is that we were staffed appropriately to take care of our patients during the storm.’’

As a reward, employees who stayed the night were treated to breakfast.

“It’s the least we could do to show our gratitude,’’ said Hospital President John Federspiel. “My thanks to everyone for pulling together during the storm to make sure our patients were comfortable and safe. I’m very proud to have such a dedicated staff.’’

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Hudson Valley Hospital Center is dedicated to serving the health care needs of the community and to providing quality, comprehensive medical care in a compassionate, professional, respectful manner, without regard to race, religion, national origin or disease category. Offering state-of-the-art diagnostic treatment, education and preventive services, the Hospital is committed to improving the quality of life in the community.  In fulfilling this mission, the Hospital will strive to continuously improve the care provided and develop and offer programs, facilities, systems and alliances that most effectively respond to community health care needs.  Hudson Valley Hospital Center is located on Route 202 (1980 Crompond Road) in Cortlandt Manor, New York. Call 914-737-9000 or visit www.hvhc.org.