News Briefs from Around VNSNY…Here’s What’s Happening!
Welcome to the latest edition of “News Briefs from Around VNSNY”—a Frontline feature that provides brief updates on recent news and events across the organization. If you have a news brief you’d like to considered for an upcoming edition, please click here.
Five Additional Clinician Care Management Training Cohorts Announced
Dates have now been set for five new cohorts of VNSNY’s free online care management training course for clinicians. These popular webinars, offered through New York State’s Workforce Investment Organization (WIO) initiative, are open to all VNSNY nurses, rehabilitation therapists, social workers and physicians. Here are the dates for the upcoming cohorts—to register, click on your preferred date range. Once registered, your class schedule will be sent automatically to your online calendar.
- May 15 to July 17 (Meets every Wednesday at 4 p.m.)
- June 18 to August 20 (Meets every Tuesday at 12 noon)
- July 25 to September 12 (Meets every Thursday at 12 noon)
- August 1 to October 2 (Meets every Wednesday at 4 p.m.)
- August 13 to November 12 (Meets every Tuesday at 12 noon)
Join Your Colleagues (and Our Float!) in the 2019 PRIDE March on June 30!
The theme of VNSNY’s PRIDE entry this year will be “There’s No Place Like Home.” VNSNY will once again have its own float in this year’s parade, which takes place on Sunday, June 30. All VNSNY marchers will also receive a free T-shirt. In order to march with our official group, you must register with VNSNY, which is quite easy to do—just click here. VNSNY is limited to 300 marchers, so be sure to sign up as soon as possible!
And Don’t Forget the AIDS Walk NYC in Central Park on May 19!
To be a part of VNSNY’s entry, simply go to VNSNY’s official team page by clicking here.
Spring Means… the Return of VNSNY Outdoor Advertising!
Starting next week, VNSNY’s outdoor advertising will once again be visible across the city. Our “48,000 Lives” campaign—designed to build awareness and make VNSNY the first choice at time of need—will feature ads posted on the sides of 200 buses throughout the city and on 100 digital LINK wi-fi and information boards in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. Ads will also appear on additional Brooklyn and Queens subway entrances where the LINK network has not yet been installed. The VNSNY Marketing Team estimates that the ads will be seen nearly 90 million times by adults aged 45 and older between now and the end of the year.
Kudos!
The Home Care Association (HCA) of New York State will honor two VNSNY staffers at its 2019 awards ceremony on May 9th. Geraldine Singleton, Partners in Care’s second-longest serving home health aide, will receive an HCA Caring Award, given to an individual whose career exemplifies empathetic home care. Penny Feldman, senior research scientist and director Emerita of VNSNY’s Research Center, will be presented with the HCA’s highest honor, the Ruth F. Wilson Award,for herexceptional contributions to the field of home care.
Rose Madden-Baer, SVP for Population Health and Clinical Support Services, will be honored on May 6th with the United Hospital Fund (UHF) 2019 Excellence in Health Care Award for her work coordinating VNSNY’s shift to value-based care, as well as her leadership reducing hospitalizations and costs related to heart failure patients.
VNSNY’s first-ever Phyllis Mills Living Legend Award went to Yael Reich, Diabetes Clinical Support Manager. Yael was presented with the award at VNSNY’s April 26 leadership meeting, where CEO Marki Flannery hailed her as a “driving force” in VNSNY patient care and staff education for nearly a quarter-century. The award was inspired by Phyllis Mills, RN, who has been a strong advocate for staff during her 48 years as a VNSNY Board member.
Three VNSNY nurses were among a small group of nurses honored by the UFT at the organization’s annual Nurse Recognition Day ceremony on April 30. The VNSNY honorees are: Nicola Toney Jones, who received a Nurse of Distinction Award; Shawne Browne-Delaney, honored as a Homecare Nurse of the Year; and Ruth Caballero, who received the Trailblazer Award. (A more detailed article on these UFT award winners will be posted on Frontline next week.)
Department of Health Extends SelectHealth’s “Ending the Epidemic”Grant to 2020
New York State’s Department of Health (DOH) has extended CHOICE SelectHealth’s “Ending the Epidemic”grant through March 2020. SelectHealth’s grant funding was originally scheduled to run for three years, through 2018. The grant extension reflects SelectHealth’s outstanding work in managing its high-risk members and its excellent overall viral suppression rates, which have exceeded the state’s goals for the past three years.
VNSNY Earns Accreditation from NIJH
VNSNY Hospice and Palliative Care recently received accreditation from the National Institute for Jewish Hospice (NIJH). As part of this accreditation, VNSNY will be using the training tools provided by the NIJH to educate our staff on cultural sensitivity as it relates to Jewish law. As a result, the hospice teams will gain a deeper understanding on how to provide the highest level of care for Jewish patients and their families in a manner that reflects and respects their faith, tradition and values.
Nurse-Family Partnership Connects with the Community at Hofstra Public Health Fair
VNSNY’s Nassau Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) continued to build bridges with the Long Island community at the Hofstra University Public Health Fair in early March. “We spoke to many students, members of the community, and community partners about our NFP program,” reports NFP Nurse Manager Carolyn Sime. “Our ‘safe sleep’ teaching sessions, aimed at preventing infant crib death, were also a hit.” The program’s next community outreach will be at the Family Health Expo in Freeport, Long Island on May 4th.
VNSNY Social Workers Celebrate National SW Month
As part of VNSNY’s National Social Work Month recognition, celebrations saluting our social workers were held across the organization. The photo at left was taken at one of the events honoring the social workers with VNSNY Hospice and Palliative Care.
VNSNY Hospice to Collaborate with Chinese American Coalition for Compassionate Care
To help its teams connect with its Asian-American patients and their families, VNSNY is collaborating with the Chinese American Coalition for Compassionate Care (CACCC)—the nation’s leading non-profit organization focused on end-of-life issues in the Chinese American community—to recruit and train Mandarin- and Cantonese-speaking volunteers. The training will include educating volunteers on topics ranging from pain and symptom management to cultural issues around grief and bereavement. As a first step, CACCC and VNSNY are scheduled to co-host a Hospice & Palliative Care volunteer training this July in Flushing, Queens.
Home Care PT Earns NY State Senate Recognition
Physical therapist Michael Dolton, a clinician with Manhattan Branch 6B, was recently presented with a Certificate of Appreciation by New York State Senator Brian A. Benjamin for his invaluable services.
