Concordia Visiting Nurses

Programs: The organization is committed to providing the highest quality of care from nursing and therapy to specialized services such as iv therapy, wound care, palliative care, and psychiatric care, all from the comfort of the patient's home. Approximately 14,272 patients were served across twelve counties in western pennsylvania with an average daily census of 1,930. A total of approximately 264,853 visits (including 1,105 non billable visits associated with spiritual care, nutrition, etc. ) were completed by various disciplines. Our community educator and team of transitional nurse liaisons serve the community by providing a variety of screenings, speaking topics on healthy living as well as disease and sickness prevention. Each month our community educator and our transitional nurse liaisons schedule and attend several community gatherings to discuss our concordia visiting nurses "healthy topic" of the month, health fairs, community speaker programs and blood pressure screenings. Our goal is to reach as many people as possible in the community to promote wellness and teach prevention. Ideally, we would like to prevent the deterioration of existing health conditions and identify and teach early intervention for exacerbations of diseases and careful management to prevent hospitalizations. In providing screenings, health chats and "ask the nurses" programs, we are attempting to be proactive in the early diagnosis and treatment of chronic disease conditions. Any senior adult with questionable screening results or symptoms are always referred to their physician for further testing and treatment. Additionally, timely follow-up occurs with the senior who was referred to their physician as a result of questionable screening results and/or symptoms. We are receptive to and always looking for ways to enhance concordia's exposure throughout the community. Additionally, as part of the prevention efforts for the deterioration of existing health conditions, concordia visiting nurses provides tele-health monitoring free of charge to patients with chronic diseases like congestive heart failure. Tele-health monitoring is a free service to the community. Concordia visiting nurses (cvn) serves residents in the following counties; allegheny, armstrong, beaver, butler, greene, lawrence, washington and parts of clarion, indiana, fayette, mercer and westmoreland counties. Our community benefits services are conducted at a variety of apartments, housing centers, senior centers, events at local malls, churches, civic centers, and other health care facilities. The following are the venues attended in the armstrong county territory on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis for blood pressure clinics, health chats and health fairs: new bethlehem broadwood towers; allegheny hills retirement center; and the new bethlehem highrise. The following are the venues attended in the baden, cabot, new castle and monroeville service areas on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis for blood pressure clinics/health chats/fairs etc. For 2016-2017: southside senior center-1st wednesday of every month, shippingport; conway towers-3rd thursday each month, baden, pa; pa economy senior center-1st thursday of every month economy, pa; st francis gabini 50 plus women-1st thursday of every month, aliquippa, pa; senior day at the mall-2nd wednesday of every month, monaca, pa; center township apartments-1st wednesday of every month monaca, pa; new brighton life center coffee klatch-3rd monday each month, new brighton, pa; lutheran village seniors-1 day per month, beaver falls, pa; monaca senior center-1st thursday per month, monaca, pa; challenges senior center aaa new castle; neshannock woods apartments, new castle, pa; concordia havens i,ii,iii blood pressure clinic/screening and health chats-1 day per month for 3 hrs, cabot, pa; concordia adult day care-1 day per month for 1 hr at concordia lund building, cabot, pa; saxonburg commons blood pressure clinics/health chats-quarterly health chats, saxonburg, pa; winfield senior center blood pressure clinics/health chats-1st monday/4th tues-1 hour sessions, cabot, pa; butler senior center-3rd thursday of every month for 1 hour, butler, pa; the veterans chili cookoff at the center of the mall event at the senior center, monaca, pa; and the challenges senior center fitness walk 5k in new castle, pa. Additional health fairs attended in 2016-2017: senator vogel health fair in new castle, pa and beaver, pa; representative marshall health fair in beaver falls, pa; circle of friends health fair; slippery rock senior center health fair, tanglewood senior center health fair; and the butler county housing authority fall health fairs which included 1 fair at each of the hud high rises for butler county. Blood pressure screenings were attended at springdale senior center for one hour each quarter; congestive heart failure educational series at butler memorial hospital was offered 6 times per year; alexis manor blood pressure clinic (monthly); conway towers health chat and blood pressure clinic (monthly); chicora senior center health chat and blood pressure clinic (monthly); slippery rock senior center health chat (monthly); plum senior center; mt. Lebanon senior center; park manor health chat; mt. Chestnut health chat and blood pressure clinic sunbury fields fall prevention presentation and testing. Flu clinics conducted in 2016-2017 were held at octoberfest at the concordia haven apartments, baglier buick, ron gross trucking, xto energy in warrendale to offer flu shots to members of the community. As a part of community outreach, concordia visiting nurses teamed up with local supporting congregations to provide free health fairs at four sites within the territory. At each of these events, concordia visiting nurses provided blood pressure screening, health tips and community resources information by nurses and social workers as well as balance screening assessments by the physical therapists. Many employees of concordia visiting nurses volunteer their time to serve at the annual summer festival and octoberfest, both of which are sponsored by concordia lutheran health and human care and are open to the public as a way of providing entertainment, food and refreshments and a feeling of community. One cvn employee in particular devotes an extra 40 hours per year at a cost of $720 to coordinate the kids area for each festival which includes activities, crafts and face painting, all of which are provided free to the public. We also have an employee who began collecting expired medical supplies as of may 2017 and donates them to a local organization that is able to use them. The following, but not limited to, have received direct financial support from concordia visiting nurses: economy volunteer fire dept, knoch high school, heritage valley beaver, concordia of the south hills holiday bazaar, concordia lutheran ministries spring fashion show, basket auction, and golf outing, good samaritan hospice purse gala, and the community health clinic awards dinner. Additional indirect contributions have been through donations to 501(c)(3) member hospital systems. Total contributions made during fiscal year ended 6/30/17 equated $2,920.