Dr. Joe Gagliardi led a volunteer staff of 3 doctors and 10 nurses to provide treatment, advice and counseling to the “routinely neglected”
Dr. N. Joseph Gagliardi, who served as a dedicated and beloved volunteer physician for Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center since 2004, has retired from practice.
Dr. Gagliardi began his tenure with Grassroots as an “on call” doctor for Cold Weather Shelter clients. In 2008, he started making Saturday visits to the Grassroots Day Resource Center on Route 1. When the Day Resource Center moved to more expansive quarters at the Leola Dorsey Community Resource Center in Jessup, two rooms were dedicated to a clinic. Led by Dr. Gagliardi, a volunteer staff of three doctors and 10 nurses provided treatment, advice and counseling to scores of clients through the years.
“Joe Gagliardi was a singular force in providing comfort and care to a population of people that, for many years, were routinely neglected or disbelieved by the larger medical establishment,” said Day Resource Center Manager Melinda Becker. “He worked tirelessly to establish relationships with specialists so that our clients could receive the services that he could not provide, was available to anyone (client, volunteer, staff person) for advice, treatment, or just to lend an ear, and he was willing to jump in and help wherever he was needed at the Center,” she added.
Grassroots provides 24-hour crisis intervention, suicide prevention, and support to individuals and families with a mental health, substance use or homelessness crisis.
During the last year, Grassroots served 499 people in its shelter programs and 837 individuals at the Grassroots Day Resource Center, handled 58,429 calls to its Hotline, and made 2,324 face-to-face contacts. The Mobile Crisis Team made 1,115 community responses, and 251 clients were enrolled in the Substance Use Treatment program.