editorial
Op-Ed: How churches can help our city heal
BY DR. RAMON TALLAJ
In a matter of four short months,
our city has been ravaged by the
COVID-19 pandemic, which has taken
over 17,000 lives and forced more than
2 million people out of jobs. Communities
of color, also at the epicenter of
protest and activism over police injustice,
have borne the brunt.
New York is in a dark time. And
the uncertainty and fear are far from
over as the threat of a second wave
sits right on our doorstep – and major
questions linger over a safe way forward
to rebuild communities, safely
open schools and safely using public
transportation. Answers are in short
supply. We are nervous.
I’m an immigrant doctor who leads
a nonprofi t network of immigrant physicians,
who largely serve the communities
where we live, learn and pray.
We know well that even before the
pandemic and the protests, our communities
were already decades behind
the fi nancial and health advances of
the general population. COVID-19 has
magnifi ed those disparities.
Many of our community members
work low-income jobs – as line-cooks,
nurse’s aides, grocery store clerks
– majority of which can’t be done remotely
and don’t offer paid sick days.
Getty Images
Many of our families live in smaller
quarters with shared bathrooms and
living spaces with multiple people, so
they are not able to self-quarantine
as effectively. And many have limited
access to quality healthcare and
less likely to have a connection to general
practitioners if they come down
with a fever, dry cough or shortness of
breath—some of the top symptoms of
COVID-19.
They are in crisis.
And in a crisis, everybody needs a
partner to rely on. Who share common
values, and are joined by a common
mission. That’s why the partnership
that community doctors have formed
with the Archdiocese of New York to
test and treat the coronavirus is giving
thousands of lower-income New
Yorkers hope. In immigrant communities,
there may be little trust between
vulnerable populations and offi cial institutions,
including government and
big corporate hospitals. But there is
trust with the family doctor and the
church.
For many, doctors and faith leaders
alike are the essence of essentiality.
People are seeking the care they need
and together we are bridging the gaps
by helping restore hope in our hard-hit
communities and sharing a message of
healing and restoration preached and
practiced by the church. Priests are
working alongside doctors in nearly
fi fty churches and, so far, have tested
and treated over 100,000 New Yorkers
for COVID-19. And since they are on
the front lines, priests and church staff
are also being tested.
Like doctors, the church has long
recognized healthcare as a basic human
right that’s essential to the development
of each of our humanity.
Pope Francis and Cardinal Dolan
have joined health workers in their
cities and in crisis zones all over the
world to spread this message of healing
for the sick and caring for the poor.
That mission has also opened access
to many who experience barriers to
health care even on good days. That is
why it is critical that testing sites are
purposefully located in communities
of color and are staffed by priests and
doctors that speak Spanish and Chinese
as well as English.
It is in this time of disconnection,
despair and disunity, our parishes,
and our community doctors open the
doors and create safe spaces. It’s our
calling and our mission to care for,
treat, and uplift all who are weary and
burdened.
Our churches and our doctors are
ready. Together, let’s rebuild and come
back stronger than before. Through
this, we can piece together our brokenness,
unite and begin the process of
healing.
Dr. Ramon Tallaj is the Chairman of
SOMOS, a non-profi t, physician-led network
of more than 2,500 health care providers
serving over 800,000 patients.
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