Manhattan Borough President Honors Inwood Doctor As 2020 Hero

INWOOD, NY — A doctor that serves the Inwood community was announced Monday as a 2020 Hero by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer.

Dr. Jason Compton, an optometrist that heads Compton Eye Associates at 4738 Broadway, was awarded the distinction for volunteering his office as a self-testing site during the pandemic.

"Optometrist Jason Compton knew that many Inwood community members weren't getting COVID tested — he himself didn't have the time to stand in an hours-long line — so he volunteered his office as a pop-up self-testing site," Brewer wrote.

Specifically, on Nov. 24, two days before Thanksgiving, Compton helped over 100 people get tested at Compton Eye Associates.

The group included Compton and Brewer's staff, and nobody waited more than 15 minutes in line to get their test.

Compton's work is made even more important by the location in which he's doing it.

Throughout the pandemic, Inwood and Washington Heights have been the hardest hit neighborhoods in Manhattan — at points even reporting the highest COVID-19 positivity rates in New York City.

The most recent coronavirus data from the city shows the top four ZIP codes with the highest rates in Manhattan are all in Inwood and Washington Heights.

Along with his professional work in Upper Manhattan, Compton is the President of the Inwood Merchant Association and a former treasurer of Community Board 12.

Patch was not able to reach Compton for comment.

To submit your own nominee for a Manhattan Hero, email the Borough President's office at info@manhattanbp.nyc.gov.