As a new hire, Chandra Bishun-Freeman, Clinical Oncology Associate at the Derald H. Ruttenberg Treatment Center of The Tisch Cancer Institute, was wondering how she might align her desire to expand personal contact with patients and co-workers while continuing to learn the ropes of her new position. Chandra decided volunteering would be the perfect opportunity for her to utilize some free time, serve the Mount Sinai community, and start making connections between her job and her passion for health care. So this past August, she signed up to volunteer for the Chi Time program at The Mount Sinai Hospital, and learned much from a dedicated volunteer, Paul Carbone.

The purpose of Chi Time is to support Mount Sinai employees and is available at six of Mount Sinai’s hospitals. The program engages staff, utilizing a mobile cart that is brought to their work areas. Contents of the cart include herbal and decaffeinated teas and healthy packaged snacks, aromatherapy with lavender, rose, eucalyptus, and other scents. If the space permits, calming background music and dimmed lighting are also provided.

Paul is an Associate Chaplain at NYU Langone Health, where he ministers to seriously ill patients and their families.  Three years ago he learned about Chi Time at Mount Sinai through the One Spirit Seminary in in midtown Manhattan, where he became an interfaith/interspiritual minister. Paul became a volunteer at Mount Sinai because he was intrigued and excited about the opportunity to serve health care workers in this unique way.

On her first day, Chandra was assigned to shadow Paul. “Paul enthusiastically told me about the program and what his role entails as a volunteer,” she says. “I remember, later in the day telling my husband that Paul acted and moved with the passion and energy of someone brand new to the job. He was so gracious as he played his part, serving others with refreshing tea and a snack bar. Within minutes, staff members were pouring into the lounge looking forward for this moment in a happy, relaxed, joyful, and thankful mood. I saw moments of warmth, comradery, and care.”

Paul exemplifies the compassion and commitment volunteers bring to their missions, sometimes providing emotional and spiritual support to Mount Sinai staff, especially if there has been the loss of a patient or a staff member.

”Service work can drain energy,” he explains. “Giving these workers back energy, in the form of a snack or aromatherapy, an encouraging word, or creating a calm space, can help restore their energy. Helping them regain a bit of balance energizes me.”

Maggie Keogh, Director of the Chi Time program, thinks of Paul as a consistent, reassuring presence and a rich resource. “Simply put,” she says, “He’s amazing.” Chandra concurs, “I could not think of a better role model than Paul for embodying the essence of giving back. I can’t wait to work with him again.”

Clara Ceccanti, LMSW, MIA

PeakHealth at the The Mount Sinai Hospital is an intensive primary care program for patients at high risk for avoidable hospitalizations and Emergency Department visits due to multiple chronic conditions.

Patients typically have both complex medical and psychosocial issues and are possibly the sickest in the health care system.  Because of the complexity of care, the approach to managing their care is multidisciplinary and includes teams of physicians, nurses, social workers, and care coordinators. The goals of the staff are to modify patient behaviors that may be contributing to poor health; increase health literacy; and teach patients how to problem solve.

Clara Ceccanti, LMSW, MIA, came to The Mount Sinai Hospital and the PeakHealth Program in 2019, directly after completing her dual master’s degree in Social Work and International Affairs from Columbia University.

Norma Lopez, LCSW-R, Social Worker Program Specialist at MSHS, and Clara’s supervisor, has high praise for Clara’s work. “Clara is consistently invested in providing the best care and services to our patients, no matter what it takes,” she says. “During the height of COVID-19, our team worked remotely without interrupting patient care coordination, returning onsite in June 2020.”

Clara responded with great empathy to distraught family members who learned about the death of loved ones during the pandemic and did not know how to find their missing deceased relatives.

“With support from her colleagues, Clara found a way to reunite family members with their beloved deceased to help them obtain some type of closure,” Norma says. “This was even more remarkable because she was a new social work school graduate and had only been at Mount Sinai for six months prior to the pandemic striking.  Clara is a model of resilience and grace under fire.”

Clara feels that working in this high-risk clinic has helped her evolve both as a clinician and as a public health advocate. “For many patients, my clinic is a life-source, a place where they feel supported, seek empathy, and find a sense of home. Our patients depend on my team and my work to alleviate their anxieties and tackle their biggest fears.  This program bridges the gap between mental health and medical care while addressing disparities in public health in our community.  Seeing my patients evolve and overcome their life challenges is incredibly rewarding. I learn so much from them, and it is quite a moving experience.”

Makeba Archer

Makeba Archer, who has a background as an emergency medical technician and medical assistant, works on the overnight shift in the Mount Sinai Health System Patient Transfer Center.

According to Annabel Henry, RN, Senior Director of the Transfer Center, Makeba is “definitely the glue that keeps our overnight team together. She is always available to assist and has proven to be an excellent, consistent colleague.”

Makeba says she loves her job as a Patient Transfer agent and the problem-solving it entails. ‘”The overnights get busy; we are responsible for all intra- and inter-hospital transfers, from beginning of the process to the end.”

Recently, Makeba has also taken on the overnight telemedicine programs, ensuring that all patients are registered in a timely manner.  She is very busy off the job as well; Makeba is studying to be a nurse at Westchester Community College.