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Upstate Covid Vaccine Information Hotline

Upstate Covid Vaccine Information Hotline reaches 50K milestone

Upstate’s Covid Vaccine Information Hotline has fielded over 50,000 calls from the public on a variety of issues related to Covid-19 spread, symptoms, treatments, and vaccines. 

Upstate University Hospital CEO Robert Corona, DO, MBA, said this team is filled with true professionals who represent the best of Upstate. 

“I want to thank the team that provides this community service at a very difficult time in all our lives. We are so fortunate to have people like this who show up every day with an attitude that they will do what it takes to help those in need. I thank them for their service,” said Corona.

The hotline has been staffed by current Upstate employees, volunteers, and retired staff who came back virtually to help with the hotline call center from home throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. 

By answering public calls, the hotline team has provided reassurance to the community, helped schedule Covid testing and vaccination appointments, and supported communications from outside clinical partners. 

The Upstate Covid Vaccine Information Hotline is co-directed by Joey Angelina, RN, MS, and Michele Caliva, MA, BSN, RN, CSPI. 

Angelina is the administrative director of Upstate’s Triage and Transfer Center and Caliva is the administrative director of the Upstate New York Poison Center. Both volunteered to take on this added responsibility, while continuing to work full-time in their primary roles—a trend Upstate has seen throughout the pandemic by staff in every department, division and program. 

Angelina says this hotline team has been invaluable to our region by providing information on covid testing, symptoms, quarantine and exposure guidelines, test results, travel, and navigating online systems. The Upstate hotline allows the public to speak with a real person, which is where this team truly shines.

“This team has provided the community with an ear to listen, a voice to provide critical information, a shoulder to lean on and a friend when frustration hit a boiling point,” said Angelina.

Caliva says the team has worked diligently to help callers navigate the vaccine registration process.

“They express on a daily basis how gratifying it is to help someone with limited or no computer skills to make an appointment. Our team has helped schedule hundreds of vaccine appointments across New York state. On a daily basis the nursing staff reassure concerned callers about anticipated and actual vaccine reactions. They pride themselves on staffing a hotline where someone always answers a call,” said Caliva.

A leader in Covid-19 response since the beginning of the pandemic, Upstate has excelled in caring for covid patients, utilized technology to connect families when visitation was not possible, developed the number-one ranked FDA-approved spit test for covid detection, and has emerged as key participants in worldwide clinical trials for covid vaccine research. 

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