Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon Salutes Correctional Facility Nurses And Medical Staff For Valor During COVID-19 Crisis
Published on May 07, 2020
During National Nurses Week, Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon personally visited and thanked nurses and health care professionals who work in the Medical Unit of the Morris County Correctional Facility for their unhesitating commitment to care during the COVID-19 crisis.
Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon, at center in white shirt, visited nurses and healthcare staff at the Morris County Correctional Facility on May 7 to express his appreciation for their work on COVID-19 care.
Sheriff Gannon expressed his appreciation during a visit to the Medical Unit on Thursday, May 7, after Bureau of Corrections Undersheriff Alan J. Robinson brought muffins and cake to the unit.
Every one of you has my respect, admiration and thanks for setting aside self-concerns and focusing tirelessly on keeping all inmates healthy and those who tested positive for COVID-19, well cared for, Sheriff Gannon said.
The Medical Unit is a shining example of calm under pressure in that these professionals were faced with a health crisis beyond caring for individuals with pre-existing hypertension, diabetes, cardiopulmonary and other health concerns, Sheriff Gannon said.
The Morris County Correctional Facility for the past 16 years has maintained an in-house Medical Unit where inmates receive care 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Correctional Facility Medical Director Dr. Elmer Gilo and the 15 nurses who work shifts in the unit have been critical to overall Correctional Facility planning on how to minimize the potential for COVID-19 spread.
Health care professionals at the Morris County Correctional Facility
At the onset of the declared public health emergency in New Jersey in March, Correctional Facility medical professionals screened new inmate admissions with specific questions about symptoms and travels and took their temperatures. Later, the nurses and Medical Director established separate medical isolation units to care for male and female inmates who tested positive for COVID-19.
Banners were hung at the Morris County Correctional Facility in honor of nursing and medical unit staff during National Nurses Week.
The number of inmates who are and were nursed in the medical isolation units after testing positive for COVID-19 has decreased by 68 percent since the peak of positive cases in early April.
National Nurses Week extends from May 6 through May 12. On May 5th, Sheriff Gannon joined other Bureau of Corrections and Bureau of Law Enforcement Officers and multiple Officers from around Morris County in a motorcade to honor nurses and healthcare professionals at Morris County's four hospitals and clinics.
On that trip, the motorcade passed by the Correctional Facility to honor its Medical Unit staff.