Experienced communications and public affairs professional with deep expertise across global healthcare, government, and public health, leading high-impact media strategies, crisis response, and integrated campaigns for Fortune 500 companies and public sector leaders
June 2020How New York’s Coronavirus Response Made the Pandemic Worse
Worked to combat a number of erroneous allegations on the City’s public health system’s pandemic response during the first surge in the spring of 2020. I worked with system executives and specific hospital department chiefs to combat allegations through facts and reinforce the system’s values, preparedness, and expertise during the pandemic.
Once the article published, I prepared the health system’s CEO to join then-Mayor Bill DiBlasio in his daily press briefer the next day.
Read the piece here.
October 2020‘Very Confident’: NYC Hospitals Prepare for Virus Resurgence
Collaborated with reporter Jennifer Peltz and the Associated Press multi-media team to document how the City’s public hospital system had prepared for future pandemic surges and how strategic investments made by CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz before the pandemic positioned the system to respond rapidly in its earliest days. I managed all components of the piece, including executive interviews and tours of newly upgraded hospital wings, ensuring HIPAA compliance throughout.
With a reputation management lens, this piece was to showcased the system’s preparedness to combat pandemic surges through forward-thinking investments made prior to the start of COVID-19.
Read the piece here.
March 2021As Contact Tracing Ebbs in Parts of US, NYC Stays Committed
Provided behind-the-scenes access for reporter and multi-media team to the country’s first and largest coordinated COVID-19 contact tracing program, connecting them with program executives and frontline contact tracers conducting both remote and in-person outreach. I coordinated all aspects of the project, including interviews, tracer preparation, and legal clearances.
During a time of effectiveness and security doubts, this piece brought the public into the operations and expertise of the city’s COVID-19 contact tracing efforts.
Read the piece here.
Proactive Media
Summer/Fall 2019Launching a Healthcare Access Program in NYC
In August 2019, NYC Health + Hospitals launched NYC Care, a no- to low-cost health care access program for uninsured and underinsured New Yorkers, beginning in the Bronx and expanding citywide within a year. The launch consisted of several community events and press conferences, which were coordinated with the Mayor’s Office.
I led media outreach focused on humanizing the program’s impact, particularly for undocumented and low-income residents who often face barriers to care and public visibility. Despite significant challenges in securing participant stories, I placed a cover story in Spanish-language daily El Diario featuring an undocumented NYC Care member—using a pseudonym and concealed identity—whose access to care proved lifesaving during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additional NYC Care launch coverage included:
February 2020Cover Story: NYC Health + Hospitals Gambles on Expansion Over Cutbacks
Modern Healthcare ran a cover story examining how strategic financial investments made by NYC’s public health system CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz since 2017 stabilized and grew the system—preventing layoffs and closures at a time when public hospitals nationwide were contracting. Featuring interviews with nearly the entire senior leadership cabinet, the piece highlighted how coordinated decision-making across finance, technology, clinical care, and patient experience fueled growth.
Published just weeks before the first COVID-19 surge, the story laid critical groundwork for positive pandemic coverage, as those same investments enabled the system’s agility and resilience during the crisis.
Read the piece here.
Body of Work
Public Affairs
Spring 2023Borough-Wide Newsletters
Produced a weekly electronic and separate quarterly mailed newsletter to over 24K constituents and partners with administrative and policy updates, as well as community events and opportunities.
COVID-19 Crisis Response
June 2020‘Still Scared’: Health Workers Feel the Toll of Virus Fight
Partnered with reporter Jennifer Peltz and the Associated Press multimedia team to document the mental health effects on New York City public health system frontline workers months after the initial COVID-19 surge, following a period in which they treated more than three times the average daily patient volume, largely severe cases. I coordinated all elements of the project, including interviews with system leadership and frontline health care workers.
With a reputation management lens, the purpose of the piece was to showcase the commitment of the health system to staff during the unprecedented pandemic.
Read the piece here.