The Jewish Home Family Charles P. Berkowitz Center for Rehabilitation Excellence officially opened last week, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Rockleigh, New Jersey, and the unveiling of cutting-edge warm-water therapies and other advanced modalities for Bergen and Rockland counties and beyond. “The Jewish Home Family has more than a century of service to our community,” said President and CEO Carol Silver Elliott at the ceremony. “Starting as an orphanage, we have grown into a continuum of services for older adults including assisted living, memory care, long-term care, short-term rehabilitation, home care, a specialized program for those with Parkinson’s disease, and the only elder abuse shelter in New Jersey.
By Bracha Schwartz | December 30, 2020
Residents of nursing homes, hit hardest by the pandemic since it began last spring, are now among the first to be vaccinated against COVID-19. New York began distribution of the vaccine on December 21 and New Jersey began on December 28.
At the Hebrew Home in Riverdale, New York, about 90% of residents opted to get the Pfizer vaccine, which was administered over three days, Monday, December 21-Wednesday, December 23. Dr. Zachary Palace, medical director, said he tried to educate residents, their families and staff about the importance of getting the vaccine.
“The risk is so small and the benefit is so great. Historically speaking, vaccines are a fundamental component of breaking a pandemic. The only way transmission will be halted is when people get immunized,” he said. “As physicians, we want to prevent disease so we don’t have to treat it.”