Aziz Zindani began his career in medical equipment warehouse operations in 2002 after he saw an ad in the newspaper for a home health company that needed a driver.
“I enjoyed helping senior citizens because I come from a place where these services are not provided,” Zindani said. “I came from Yemen, so this was a shocker for me to see that I was helping. … It was just like I’m servicing my grandmother or mother.”
Within six months at his first job in the industry, he became the warehouse manager. As the company grew and acquired another company, Zindani also became the distribution manager. He now works for home medical equipment provider Valmar Surgical Supplies Inc., where he runs warehouses in Staten Island, New York; southern New Jersey; Jacksonville, Florida; Atlanta and Philadelphia. Zindani regularly wakes up at 3 a.m. and often travels across five different states to support warehouse operations and ensure patients receive the medical equipment and supplies they need.
“You’re waking up at three o’clock in the morning knowing that you know you’re making sure the driver goes early enough to make sure that the bed is set up before the patient gets home,” he said. “So, that’s what drives me, really.”
Valmar Surgical Supplies provides everything from walkers to CPAP devices and supplies to hospital beds. The organization offers regular resupply as well as one-time orders. In total, Valmar delivers 1,500 orders a day.
“What makes Aziz a hero is not just his commitment to logistics, but his understanding that every order represents a patient in need,” said his nominator Joe Zicherman, Valmar’s CEO. “He goes above and beyond to make sure nothing is overlooked, working long hours when necessary and supporting his team with patience and professionalism.”
Zindani has a knack for logistics, but he said he owes his understanding of the field to a woman named Alicia who hired him for his first job.
“She treated me like her son, and she really walked me through everything,” he said. “You have to find solutions and … any problem has a solution. I owe it to her.”
Throughout his time in the industry, he’s most proud of the role he played in allowing Valmar to reach more patients.
“Joe Zickerman always tells me that I gave them the ability to grow,” Zindani said. “When I started, they had a warehouse manager who just didn’t care. So, when I first started, we went from doing 80 orders a day to 150. And then the second year we were up to 200 … now we’re up to 1,500. So, I took away the logistical headache from them and they were able to concentrate on getting new business.”
The most complex part of his job is communication and education. Zindani said his team aims to teach whoever is in the patient’s house about the equipment they are delivering, whether it’s a family member or a home health aide. Sometimes they have to visit three or four times before a family member will sit down with them to learn about the equipment. But those relationships and conversations with patients are what make him realize the impact he has on their lives.
“I’ve had patients call me on my cell phone when their bed breaks down at 1 a.m. and I would actually get up and get dressed,” he said. “If I can’t find the driver, or the driver on call is not answering, and they happen to live in the same city, like in New York, I would actually go out of my way (to help them).”
That mentality is what he tells new hires to keep in mind.
“I tell them my experience and how I started and how I grew with the company, and how you know, you have to put in the time, put in the effort every bed,” Zindani said. “We have to think it’s going to our parents or our mother or grandmother.”
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