Page 23 - Bulletin Vol 26 No 2 - May - Aug. 2021 - Final

Member Article|

Volunteerism - Enriching, Educational & Gratifying
By Kathy Leibowitz, DDS

After the Hurricane Sandy disaster, the Medical Reserve Corp (MRC), a truly diverse group of Nassau
County, City and State volunteers of New York and nationwide was established. The volunteers are called
upon to help out in an emergency and I signed up as soon as I found out about this great organization. We
participate in triage trainings, marathons, Special Olympics, village fairs and the pandemic.

As expected, a call went out to MRC volunteers in January to help vaccinate the population at Point of
Dispensing stations (PODs). The Centers for Disease Control designed PODs during the 2001 Anthrax
attacks in the U.S. The idea was to quickly vaccinate people during a biohazard terrorist event. In essence,
PODs would be set up throughout the community for mass vaccination.
The Corp volunteers generally get extra and specific training regarding mass casualty events and
emergencies. I was not sure what to expect when I arrived at Nassau Community College’s POD. For the
COVID-19 Pandemic, the training was efficiently introduced to the volunteers that morning. To my surprise,
I ran into both our own Dr. Steven Akseizer of Nassau County Dental Society, and my own physician! Later I
found out a professor from NYU College of Global Public Health, whom I know, was also helping out in
Manhattan.
The main workers at PODs are managers, vaccinators, triage specialists and flow control team leaders.
Since there are no prerequisite skills needed, I was initially assigned to the triage. The training and
orientation were done efficiently as to how to process, screen and assign patients. The doors opened at
9:00 am and the line was already 25-30 people deep. The line was monitored by the security officers and
we worked nonstop until 5:00 pm.
The first steps were to review the screening questionnaire. Typically, do you have this and/or that? Were
you out of the country? Out of state? The vast majority of clients were older adults; the women all needed
to be asked if they were pregnant which resulted in some whimsical answers. The next question, however,
was a little uncomfortable: Do you have cancer, AIDs or HIV? This is a very personal and serious question
which, I believe, everyone answered honestly. The rest of the questions were about symptoms, tests and
contact with anyone with Covid-19.

The process of vaccination, aside from standing on line, was comfortable, quiet and most people were
done in less than 20 minutes after the check in process. My next assignment was as a vaccinator. Whether
entering the data on the Department of Health’s website or using retractable needles to vaccinate or calm
the apprehensive patients, the experience was truly enriching and educational. In short, there were long
but very gratifying days.

I want to thank the Nassau County Department of Health and Office of Public Health Emergency and
Preparedness, for assembling these PODs so efficiently. We have a few more POD days coming up and I
can’t wait to go back.

As we say in MRC Nassau County: Prevent, Promote and Protect. Now with more vaccines available to
distribute, we are getting back to a better normal.

Dr. Katayoon (Kathy) Leibowitz received her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Northwestern Dental School in Chicago. She has
completed an advanced certificate in Global Public Health from NYU and is a clinical assistant professor at New York College of
Dentistry in the departments of Cariology/Comprehensive Care, Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics. Teaching and education are
at the forefront of her academic career, and she has provided mentorship and advising to pre-dental and dental students. She has

participated in ADEA’s Academic Dental Career Fellowship Program and has presented scientific and educational posters. She is
presently a NCDS Board member and Chair of the NCDS Council on Membership and Communications.
Nassau County Dental Society ⬧ (516) 227-1112 | 23