Northwell Health sends nurses to Henry Ford Health System as part of strategic alliance to fight COVID-19

NEW HYDE PARK, NY – Northwell Health, New York State’s largest health system, has sent 12 nurses to Michigan-based Henry Ford Health System to help clinicians there care for a rising number of patients suffering from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The staff sharing is occurring as part of a newly formed strategic alliance between the health systems, created to strengthen their ability to fight the new coronavirus and more effectively support the health and well-being of their communities.

The alliance is designed to enhance crisis preparedness through collaborative emergency and COVID-19 planning and the sharing of best practices. It enables participating organizations to swiftly increase staffing capacity through temporary staff sharing – institutional requirements are worked through ahead of time to allow faster onboarding and reduce time-to-bedside for reinforcements. In the current exchange, which comes in answer to a call for assistance from the 30,000-employee Henry Ford Health System, Northwell’s intensive care and medical-surgical nurses are providing hands-on care at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit and Henry Ford Macomb Hospital in Clinton Township.

“By promoting collaboration and forward planning, this alliance supercharges the ability of participating health systems to respond quickly and effectively to any crisis,” said Joseph Moscola, PA, senior vice president and Northwell’s chief people officer. “It implements and institutionalizes the lessons Northwell learned this spring in treating more COVID-19 patients than any other health system in the country, which is particularly important now as case counts climb in nearly every state.”

Northwell and Henry Ford were both recipients of aid in the form of staff-sharing by other organizations during the spring surge of COVID-19. During the summer, as caseloads threatened to rise in Utah, Northwell provided critical care nurses to a hospital there. The current round of staff-sharing between Northwell and Henry Ford is the first to occur under the alliance and is particularly significant because the ongoing onslaught of COVID-19 is affecting almost every state, making it more difficult for hard-hit hospitals to find temporary staff from agencies or other health care institutions.

The alliance, which may expand in the future to include other health care institutions around the country, provides an important relief valve for participating organizations and demonstrates shared values and the ability to collaborate in crisis in order to put patients first.

“There is no doubt that nearly ten months into this pandemic, our nurses are not only combatting the virus but the fatigue that comes with the daily stress of keeping our COVID-19 patients alive and helping them recover,” said Robert G. Riney, president, healthcare operations, and chief operating officer, Henry Ford Health System. “Not only will this provide some welcome relief for our nurses, but it is also a tremendous morale boost to have your colleagues from another hard-hit region support you in this way.

“Everyone here at Henry Ford is grateful for the selflessness and generosity of spirit of these highly trained nurses from Northwell Health. We stand ready to provide the same support to them should the need arise,” said Riney.

# # #

About Northwell Health
Northwell Health is New York State’s largest health care provider and private employer, with 23 hospitals, nearly 800 outpatient facilities and more than 14,200 affiliated physicians. We care for over two million people annually in the New York metro area and beyond, thanks to philanthropic support from our communities. Our 74,000 employees – 18,500 nurses and 4,500 employed doctors, including members of Northwell Health Physician Partners – are working to change health care for the better. We’re making breakthroughs in medicine at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research. We're training the next generation of medical professionals at the visionary Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies. For information on our more than 100 medical specialties, visit Northwell.edu and follow us @NorthwellHealth on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

About Henry Ford Health System
Founded in 1915 by Henry Ford himself, Henry Ford Health System is a non-profit, integrated health system committed to improving people’s lives through excellence in the science and art of healthcare and healing. Henry Ford Health System includes six hospitals including Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit; Henry Ford Macomb Hospitals; Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital; Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital; Henry Ford Allegiance in Jackson, MI; and Henry Ford Kingswood Hospital – an inpatient psychiatric hospital.

Henry Ford Health System also includes Henry Ford Medical Group: Henry Ford Physician Network; more than 250 outpatient facilities; Henry Ford Pharmacy; Henry Ford OptimEyes; and other healthcare services. Our not-for-profit health plan, Health Alliance Plan – HAP – provides health coverage for more than 540,000 people.

As one of the nation’s leading academic medical centers, Henry Ford Health System trains more than 3,000 medical students, residents, and fellows annually in more than 50 accredited programs, and has trained nearly 40% of the state’s physicians. Our dedication to education and research is supported by nearly $100 million in annual grants from the National Institutes of Health and other public and private foundations.

Henry Ford Health System employs more than 33,000 people, including more than 1,600 physicians, more than 6,600 nurses and 5,000 allied health professionals. For more information, go to henryford.com.

MEDIA CONTACTS: Lisa Davis / ldavis9@northwell.edu / 205-542-8053 / John Gillespie / Jgilles3@hfhs.org / 314-708-9090