Most Americans can recall how following the September 11^th attacks, the nation changed overnight. The attacks impacted everything from how we navigated airports, to how Americans conceptualized national security, shaping the 21^st century for the two decades to come.

As Americans reimagined their lives in the face of these new threats, leaders at Nantucket Cottage Hospital were reimagining their role in Nantucket’s emergency preparedness.

“Before 9/11, hospitals used to be isolated organizations, when we thought about emergency management, we planned solely for ourselves, there was no interagency coordination, no system-level thinking for how to respond to a crisis,” said Martha Lake-Greenfield, NCH’s Emergency Department Manager from 1996 to 2020. “In the wake of 9/11 it became evident that we all had a role to play in emergency management, from your government agencies, to local hospitals and even individuals.”

In the years following the attacks, the Department of Homeland Security developed the National Incident Management System (NIMS), a comprehensive approach to coordinating government and private sector partners during disasters and emergencies.

“We had been working to develop a common emergency management language amongst our government partners before 9/11, but after the attacks, as more incidents happened, we began to develop that common language and common mission by using NIMS,” said Lake-Greenfield.

Today, every staff member at NCH undergoes NIMS training through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to ensure that in the case of an emergency, all staff members understand their role and responsibilities during a worst-case scenario.

“We always build our plans off a worst-case scenario because that’s when we can identify issues like staffing, stress and resource constraints,” said Georges Beckford, a New York firefighting veteran and Nurse Educator at NCH. “During a disaster, some people naturally respond well, and some collapse, that’s why its so important to train and prepare your team so they have that experience to fall back when a disaster strikes.”

In the decades following the September 11^th attacks, NCH has consistently worked with public and private partners to ensure a high degree of preparedness should a disaster ever strike Nantucket.

“When I first came to NCH, the largest emergency incident we had was a porch collapse, after 9/11 we went from preparing for porch collapses to preparing for plane crashes,” said Lake-Greenfield. “We started to run more and more drills, when there was a major event on Nantucket, we would physically take out the supplies we would need and run through how we would use them during a crisis.”

One of the most significant changes since the attacks, according to Beckford, is the level of interest the public has in playing their part during disasters.

“All the knowledge we were developing as first responders or clinicians we would turn around and give it to the public,” said Beckford. “The public began making emergency kits, learning first aid and had an enormous appetite to learn about what they can do to prepare themselves and their families for an emergency. This preparedness meant that patients could be stabilized well before they arrived in our emergency room.”

Two decades after the September 11^th attacks, Americans are more prepared than ever to respond to a disaster, both through individual desires to stay safe during an emergency, but also through the lessons learned over decades of training and responding complex emergencies. Nowhere is this refined preparedness more evident, than in today’s hospitals, as we emerge from one of the most complex crises demanding interagency support, and public understanding.

“COVID-19 has reiterated this need for preparedness, today, everyone from our housekeepers to our labor and delivery nurses are trained in emergency management, because as we’ve seen during these last 18-months, we expect everyone to play their role during a crisis,” said Lake-Greenfield.

Nantucket Cottage Hospital hosted its 110th Annual Meeting virtually on Friday, August 20th, 2021, led by Craig Muhlhauser, Chair of the Board of Trustees, and Gary Shaw, President and CEO, the meeting focused on the future of healthcare on the island through primary care and whole-person health and wellness.

NCH announced five annual awards to staff and community members who have made significant contributions to the mission of NCH over the past year, including:

Seinfeld/Hartmann Award for Compassionate Care:

• Ugne Aleknaite, NP – “Ugne is currently the Program Leader for Hematology-Oncology at Nantucket Cottage Hospital, where she provides direct patients care, ranging from diagnosis to chemotherapy and advance care planning for patients on Nantucket. Aleknaite holds a Master of Science in Nursing from Mass General Hospital Institute of Health Professionals and is a Certified Nurse Practitioner with certifications in Adult Gerontology Primary Care from American Nurses Credentialing Center, Chemotherapy Biotherapy, and Functional Medicine. As a program leader, Ugne was recognized by family members of those in her care for providing exceptional care during their loved ones in their final months of life. One Family member noted, “Ugne has a really special way of being able to deliver devastating news with empathy and true humanity. So many medical professionals could learn from her, how to be empathetic and caring, but also how to be realistic and honest. It is a real balance that I have rarely seen in a caregiver. When my (Family Member’s) condition was deteriorating, she spoke to us with such grace, but also with an understanding that the news she was delivering would change our lives.”

Sandy Craig Leadership Award:

• Dr. Elizabeth Hallett – “When Dr. Elizabeth Hallett became the Superintendent of the Nantucket Public Schools on July 1, 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 global pandemic she was stepping into an extraordinary leadership challenge. 5 weeks later she presented the community with a 50 page comprehensive plan for safely reopening the Nantucket Public Schools in a new hybrid model of education. Throughout the pandemic Dr. Hallett coordinated closely with NCH and the Nantucket Department of Health to provide for the safety of NPS employees, students and their families.”

Bruce A. Percelay Philanthropy Award:

• Melanie Sabelhaus – “Melanie Sabelhaus has been a member of the Board of Trustees and Chair or co-Chair of the Marketing and Development committee since 2018. Her impact on philanthropy at NCH goes back much further. She has Chaired the Boston Pops on Nantucket twice and her energy and innovations transformed the Pops into Nantucket’s most treasured event. She was also a founding co-chair of the popular annual Women+Wellness event. Most recently, her relentless effort to build support for NCH despite the cancellation of The Pops concert in 2020 and 2021 has been critical to NCH’s financial stability.”

Phil Murray Business Award:

• 97.7 ACK-FM, Nantucket’s ‘True Island Radio’ – “The radio and digital media company is a trusted media partner that was instrumental in communicating NCH’s messages to the community throughout the pandemic. As information during the pandemic was constantly evolving, NCH relied on Executive Vice President, Laura Burnett and her team to quickly relay messages to the community and their efforts contributed significantly to the success of the testing and vaccination programs. In 2021, 97.7 ACK-FM gave additional support to NCH in the form of a gift in memory of Dr. Robert Shapiro. Owned by Jeff Shapiro, the company’s media products include the radio stations 97.7 ACK-FM and 89.5 Quahog Country, and the digital newsletters Daybreak and Mahon About Town.”

Myrt Eldridge Volunteer of the Year:

• Meryl Bralower – “Meryl is one of three women who co-founded Women+Wellness, an annual event that brings likeminded individuals together to learn about health and wellness-related topics from NCH and MGB clinicians. Since founding the event in 2017, Meryl has co-chaired each year’s event and personally recruited leading MGH clinicians as speakers Meryl is the consummate volunteer who is always willing to cheerful address and challenge.”

The NCH Board of Trustees also welcomed one new member, Lisa Clarey-Lawler, and thanked three outgoing members, Jack Burke, Bruce Chabner and Liz Winship.

Gary A. Shaw, President & CEO of Nantucket Cottage Hospital, together with Craig Muhlhauser, Chair of the Board of Trustees, invite you to Nantucket Cottage Hospital’s 110th Annual Meeting.

Friday, August 20th, 2021 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
UPDATE: The event will only take place virtually. Register and join at this link: https://partners.zoom.us/j/83214663024 

The annual meeting will include an update on the state of hospital operations as well as strategic plans for the future. We will also recognize several volunteers and staff members who have provided exemplary service and leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic.

(July 22, 2021) – In response to a regional surge of COVID-19 cases, Nantucket Cottage Hospital is expanding its COVID-19 testing services for symptomatic patients or those potentially exposed to COVID-19 on Nantucket, beginning Friday, July 23rd, 2021.

Testing will be offered in the Anderson Building, across the parking lot from the main Nantucket Cottage Hospital building. Patients are asked to wait in their vehicles until they are called to enter in through the side of the building, following the signs from the parking lot. To schedule an appointment, members of the public exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms or who been exposed to a COVID-19 positive individual should call (508) 825-1000 and request COVID-19 testing. Phone lines are open Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., tests on Saturday should be scheduled during the Monday – Friday business hours, and the testing center is closed on Sundays.

“Nantucket Cottage Hospital will continue to respond and adapt to the needs of the community as this situation develops,” said James Lanza, Public Information Officer for the Nantucket Cottage Hospital. “The most important steps individuals can take to safeguard their own health, and the health of others in the community is still to get vaccinated, consider wearing a mask in crowded and public areas, and to follow CDC guidelines as they evolve.”

Boston Pops for Nantucket

Gather with family and friends on Saturday, August 14th at 8 p.m. for a televised special on NCTV Channel 18, the Best of the Beach, in celebration of previous year’s Boston Pops on Nantucket concerts. The program will feature a compilation of our favorite songs from Kenny Loggins in 2016, a selection from RAIN, the Beatles tribute band, from 2018, as well as songs from The Spinners who joined us at Jetties Beach in 2019.

“With the difficult news of The Pops cancellation this year, we wanted to give the community something we can all rally around in celebration of Nantucket Cottage Hospital as we look back at some of our best performances,” said Gary Shaw, President and CEO of Nantucket Cottage Hospital. “The Best of the Beach is just that, an opportunity for our community to get together in our homes, for an event highlighting the spirit of inclusivity and celebration that The Pops brings to Nantucket year after year.”

Sponsored by White Elephant Resorts, Jill and Stephen Karp, the Best of the Beach telecast will air on Nantucket Community Television Channel 18 at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 14th.

We all wish we could be together at Jetties Beach this summer for what would have been the 25th anniversary of the Boston Pops on Nantucket. Unfortunately, as the island transitions out of COVID-19 protocols, municipal resources are stretched too thin to accommodate even a scaled-down concert. Throughout the pandemic, NCH was here for the community – keeping us safe by administering over 30,000 COVID-19 tests and over 18,000 vaccinations. Now is the community’s opportunity to give back and say thanks to our frontline healthcare workers. Every gift makes a difference – from lemonade stand proceeds to corporate gifts – help us raise $2 million to cover the unexpected expenses incurred responding to COVID-19. Click here to donate now and save the date for next year, August 13, 2022!