Elmhurst Hospital Auxiliary was founded more than 65 years ago to ensure that the community served by NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst receives the finest in patient care. We make funds available where and when patients need them the most. Whether its arranging transportation services to and from our Cancer Center in the Hope Pavilion, to the acquisition of critical pieces of equipment, to children’s books for our pediatric patients, to new training equipment for staff, our dedicated volunteers have lent their time and expertise to elevate patient care at Elmhurst Hospital, the second oldest public hospital in New York City. 

 

Through our year-round fundraising efforts, including commemorative bricks on our Walkway of Honor, our formal gala, and community outreach events, the Auxiliary’s unwavering commitment has made certain that patients and their experience at Elmhurst Hospital take center stage.

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As the largest hospital in Queens, it is Elmhurst’s mission to make certain that all those who come through our doors receive high quality care and personalized attention, regardless of their ability to pay. Today, Elmhurst Hospital serves close to 1 million patients each year, and has been ranked by US News & World Report as high performing in care for COPD, diabetes, heart attack, heart failure, kidney disease, orthopedics and stroke. We serve one of the ethnically diverse communities in the world, with 20,000 recent immigrants from 112 different countries. Our patient population is primarily from South & Central America, Asia, the Caribbean and Eastern Europe. 

 

In 2020 our corner of Queens was besieged by the COVID-19 pandemic and Elmhurst Hospital was referred to as "the epicenter within the epicenter" for the disease in the United States by the New York Times. The community served by Elmhurst Hospital was impacted unlike few others. At the height of the pandemic, emergency room visits more than doubled from an average 200 per day to over 400 patients seeking help with COVID symptoms.