The Catholic Health Association recently asked healthcare facilities to submit examples of how ministry values shaped innovative services for aging and chronically ill persons throughout the continuum of care. The three programs marked with an asterisk will be showcased as outstanding examples of best practices at the 83rd Catholic Health Assembly in June. You may submit a description of your program through the website Julie Trocchio, or send it to Julie Trocchio at the Catholic Health Association, 1875 Eye St., NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC, 20006-5409 (fax: 202-296-3997).
Catholic Care Option and Programs for the Elderly (CCOPE)*
Catholic Health Care Services
Philadelphia
CCOPE aids individuals who, because space is unavailable or placement would be inappropriate, cannot be admitted to one of the five nursing facilities owned and operated by the archdiocese. The program either helps the client find an alternative placement option or arranges for alternative community services and supports.
Contact: Ken Lewis
Catholic Health Care Services
222 N. 17th St.
Philadelphia, PA 19103-1299
Phone: 215-587-2487
Fax: 215-587-3773
Home Outreach Program for the Elderly (HOPE)*
Northwest Covenant Medical Center
Boonton Township, NJ
The program provides free light housekeeping services and companionship for 139 low-income older persons. The 10 HOPE workers are developmentally disabled adults employed by the medical center. The program thus fosters a sense of importance in both the workers and the persons they serve.
Contact: Deborah Quinn
Director of Gerontology
Northwest Covenant Medical Center
130 Powerville Rd.
Boonton Township, NJ 07005
Phone: 973-316-1801
Fax: 973-316-1949
Try Me First*
St. Joseph's Manor
Trumbull, CT
The program promotes residents' relaxation and reduces their agitation and restlessness by employing complementary methods — herbal teas, simple hand massage, rhythmic music, and aromatherapy — in place of psychoactive medications.
Contact: Karin "Teddi" Tomsic
Director of Pastoral Care/Mission
St. Joseph's Manor
6448 Main St.
Trumbull, CT 06611
Phone: 203-268-6204
Fax: 203-268-5271
Spiritual Wellness Workbook
Alexian Brothers Health System, Inc.
Elk Grove Village, IL
This book — subtitled An Activity Guide for Working with Cognitively Impaired Adults — describes 33 exercises caregivers can use to engage cognitively impaired patients in activities that will enhance their sense of well-being and quality of life.
Contact: Terrance P. McGuire, EdD
Vice President for Mission Services
Alexian Brothers Health System, Inc.
600 Alexian Way
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-3395
Phone: 847-981-3621
Fax: 847-981-5561
PACE in Residential Apartment Setting
Mt. St. Joseph, Inc.
Portland, OR
Mt. St. Joseph, in collaboration with Providence ElderPlace, sponsors a PACE (Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly) project in which older people live on site in residential apartments. The program allows residents, more than 90 percent of whom are Medicaid recipients, to remain independent as long as possible. A Medicare Demonstration Project, the program is designed to reduce institutionalization and healthcare costs.
Contact: Mary M. Klein
Mt. St. Joseph, Inc.
3060 S.E. Stark St.
Portland, OR 97214
Phone: 503-797-6722
Fax: 503-797-6702
Partial Hospitalization Program for Older Adults
St. Joseph's Health Services of Rhode Island
North Providence, RI
The program helps nursing homes care for residents with mental-health needs. Traditionally, Rhode Island nursing homes often transfer such patients to psychiatric hospitals as inpatients and refuse to take them back. This program, which provides care for such residents during the day but then returns them to the nursing home in the evening and on weekends, stabilizes care and keeps residents in their nursing home beds. It also allows nursing home staff to be involved in treatment.
Contact: Michael C. LaFerney
Program Manager
St. Joseph Hospital for Specialty Care
21 Peace St.
Providence, RI 02907
Phone: 401-456-4105
Fax: 401-456-4078
Memorial Services
Maryview Nursing Care Center
Suffolk, VA
Every six months, the center holds memorial services celebrating the lives of those residents who have died since the last services. Participants read aloud Scriptures, poems, meditations, and reflections and say prayers. The services both aid the grieving processes of residents, family members, staff, and friends and demonstrate the facility's compassion.
Contact: Ron Rice
Chaplain
Maryview Nursing Care Center
4775 Bridge Rd.
Suffolk, VA 23435
Phone: 757-686-0488
Fax: 757-686-8211
Community Support Services for Chronic and Persistent Mentally Ill Clients
Alegent Health Behavioral Health Services and
Mission Services
Council Bluffs, IA
The program helps those who have experienced chronic difficulty coping with daily living. By providing clients with a wide range of educational, spiritual, and social activities, the program encourages them to live as independently as possible while remaining integrated in the community.
Contact: Laura Koch or Jane W. Smith
Alegent Health Behavioral Health
Services and Mission Services
800 Mercy Rd.
Council Bluffs, IA 51503
Phone: 712-328-2609 or 712-328-5525
Fax: 712-325-2411
Sensitizing Yourself to Aging
St. Anthony's Medical Center
St. Louis
This 45-minute, audience-participation program focuses on the spiritual, social, psychological, financial, and physiological issues facing the elderly. In it, participants use props (cotton balls stuffed in the ears, for example) that help them empathize with the changes elderly people face. Caregivers say the program gives them a heightened awareness of the elderly they serve.
Contact: Mary Jo Wich or Lois Kendall
Media Coordinators
St. Anthony's Medical Center
10010 Kennerly Rd.
St. Louis, MO 63128
Phone: 314-525-4005
Fax: 314-525-1212
Parish Nursing
Advocate Health Care and St. Michael
Catholic Parish
Overland Park, IL
A holistic team composed of a trusted communion visitor, a parish nurse, and an internal medicine resident delivers services to homebound elderly people. Besides providing high-quality healthcare, the visits also help break the cycle of isolation elderly people often get trapped in.
Contact: Kathleen Blanchfield, PhD, RN
Advocate Health Care and St. Michael Catholic Parish
14327 S. Highland Ave.
Orland Park, IL 60462
Phone: 708-340-0903
Fax: 708-349-6015
New Employee Orientation
St. Joseph Care Center
Louisville, OH
In this orientation program, the center articulates its values (compassion, commitment, respect, and integrity) in a way that sets the foundation from the very beginning. Employees receive feedback on how they are conforming to these values through an annual employee appraisal. Positive comments on our annual surveys consistently indicate a high rate of resident/family satisfaction.
Contact: John Banks
Administrator
St. Joseph Care Center
2308 Reno Dr.
Louisville, OH 44641
Phone: 330-875-5562
Fax: 330-875-8947
Health Ministries Partnership Program
Queen of the Valley Hospital
Napa, CA
The program serves local churches with a disease prevention outreach program that augments the Church's healing ministry. Three hospital employees serve as volunteer parish nurses, providing care to aging and chronically ill people and contributing leadership and educational services to participating churches. The purpose is to help congregation members care for one another and attain, maintain, or regain health of body, mind, and spirit.
Contact: Patricia Parker
Director of Healthy Communities
Queen of the Valley Hospital
1000 Trancas St.
Napa, CA 94558
Phone: 707-252-4411, ext. 2845
Fax: 707-257-4032
Project Eldercare
Hospital of Saint Raphael
New Haven, CT
This program, developed in collaboration with New Haven's health and public housing departments, extends Saint Raphael's primary care to two senior centers and four housing complexes for the elderly. The program has arranged for healthcare and social services for hundreds who previously went without help. Better management of chronic illnesses and social needs reduces unnecessary use of emergency and inpatient services.
Contact: Sr. Mary Canavan, SC
Vice President for Mission Services
Hospital of Saint Raphael
1450 Chapel St.
New Haven, CT 06511
Phone: 203-789-4329
Fax: 203-789-3107
Northwest Provider Network
Mt. St. Joseph, Inc.
Portland, OR
The network is a limited liability company formed by 12 independent, not-for-profit, long-term care and retirement facilities to do managed care contracting, joint benefits, group purchasing, and joint ventures. Positive results include several shared managed care contracts, a joint pharmacy, and a shared employee benefits program. Network offshoots include rehabilitation services for peer facilities, a shared certified nurse aide training program, and shared recruitment and retention programs.
Contact: Mary M. Klein
Mt. St. Joseph, Inc.
3060 S.E. Stark St.
Portland, OR 97214
Phone: 503-797-6722
Fax: 503-797-6702
Wholeness in Healing
St. Francis Medical Center
Trenton, NJ
The program provides complementary healthcare services — including psychotherapy, wellness sessions, support groups, massage therapy, and tai chi — to chronically ill members of the community. Transportation is available for those who need it.
Contact: Roseann Pizzi
Mind, Body, Spirit Department
St. Francis Medical Center
601 Hamilton Ave.
Trenton, NJ 08629-1986
Phone: 609-599-6469
Fax: 609-599-5773
Geriatric Assessment Program
St. Mary Medical Center
Langhorne, PA
The program offers a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, outpatient evaluation of older adults who exhibit changes in mental, physical, or social functioning. Staffed by a physician who is board certified in geriatrics, a neuropsychiatrist, a geriatric nurse practitioner, and a social worker, the program promotes quality of life for older adults and their caregivers. It is also a resource for primary care physicians and community agencies serving the elderly.
Contact: Carol Benderson
Director of Social Work and Senior Services
St. Mary Medical Center
Langhorne-Newtown Rd.
Langhorne, PA 19047
Phone: 215-750-2073
Fax: 215-750-2141
Community-Wide Long-Term Care Partnership Program and Assisted Living Program
St. Jude Medical Center
Fullerton, CA
The program, which aims to reduce hospital admissions from long-term care facilities throughout the community, includes a bioethics committee, resources for the assessment of pain management, and video training for caregivers in assisted living complexes.
Contact: Barry Ross
St. Jude Medical Center
101 E. Valencia Mesa Dr.
Fullerton, CA 92835
Phone: 714-871-3280, ext. 3862
Fax: 714-773-9278
Home for the Holidays
St. Joseph Nursing Care Center
Dorchester, MA
This is a discussion group in which staff share their cultural and ethnic traditions and ways of celebrating Christmas. The goal is to heighten awareness and sensitivity to the effects of holidays on residents and staff members.
Contact: Sr. Geraldine Nevaras, CSJ
St. Joseph Nursing Care Center
321 Centre St.
Dorchester, MA 02122
Phone: 617-825-6320
Fax: 617-825-7410
Holy Family Adult Day Centers
Spokane, WA
The centers, a subsidiary of Holy Family Hospital, Spokane, offer support, health, and rehabilitative services to frail and elderly adults, especially those with Alzheimer's and other dementias; those with Parkinson's disease, strokes, multiple sclerosis, and other physical diseases; and frail or isolated older adults in need of general health monitoring or socialization.
Contact: Marie E. Raschko
Chief Executive Officer
Holy Family Adult Day Centers
1104 W. Heroy
Spokane, WA 99205
Phone: 509-482-2475
Fax: 509-482-2490
Long-Term Ethics Committee
The Franciscan at St. Leonard
Centerville, OH
The committee, which meets semimonthly to educate itself about current ethical issues, helps residents and their family members make ethical decisions about care. The committee also updates staff members on end-of-life issues and reminds them of their obligations to honor and respect residents' rights.
Contact: Rev. Jim Van Vurst, OFM
The Franciscan at St. Leonard
8100 Clyo Rd.
Centerville, OH 45458
Phone: 937-436-6300
Fax: 937-439-7165
Tender Loving Care Givers
Laurel Lake Retirement Community
Hudson, OH
In this program, volunteers recruited from the retirement community pay regular visits to other residents, providing them with a caring, comforting presence. The program enhances human dignity for individuals during times of special need, particularly at the end of life.
Contact: Sr. Marie Ruegg, HM
Laurel Lake Retirement Community
200 Laurel Lake Dr.
Hudson, OH 44236
Phone: 330-650-0681
Fax: 330-650-6725
Volunteer Program
Mt. Joseph Senior Community
Concordia, KS
This program provides volunteer opportunities for learning-disabled students to help prepare tables for meals, visit with residents, and perform such housekeeping duties as working in the kitchen, washing windows or wheelchairs, or doing clerical work. Both students and residents feel valued and appreciated.
Contact: Sr. Joann Schneider, CSJ
Mt. Joseph Senior Community
1110 W. 11th
Concordia, KS 66901
Phone: 785-243-1347
Fax: 785-243-1907
Nursing Home Conversion
St. Catherine's Residence
North Bend, OR
St. Catherine's Residence is converting large, institutional nursing home units into smaller interior neighborhoods that house private, catered living suites for traditional heavy care nursing home residents. Family-style dining and activities for small groupings are designed to promote one's sense of home. Data reveal fewer falls, pressure ulcers, medication errors, and occasions of weight loss among residents living in the converted neighborhoods.
Contact: William Healy
St. Catherine's Residence
3959 Sheridan
North Bend, OR 97459-2899
Phone: 541-756-4151
Fax: 541-756-5669
BEST Community (Businesses Encouraging Students and Teachers)
Holy Cross Care Services, Inc.
South Bend, IN
The program has connected 850 students and teachers from three middle schools with the residents and staff of three residential or long-term care facilities. The goal is to encourage character/citizenship development, intergenerational service learning activities, and promotion of interest in healthcare careers.
Contact: Kathleen Newman
Holy Cross Care Services, Inc.
105 E. Jefferson Blvd.
Suite 700
South Bend, IN 46601
Phone: 219-232-3512 or 219-233-3117
Fax: 219-234-8071
Mercy Medical's Continuum of Care
Mercy Medical
Daphne, AL
The program offers a unique continuum of care for the elderly, ranging from inpatient rehabilitation to residential options. Founded on a medical model, the program focuses on helping individuals reach their highest level of functioning. It is designed to help elderly individuals navigate the healthcare system and move to the most appropriate level of care.
Contact: Charles Kondis
Mercy Medical
PO Box 1090
101 Villa Dr.
Daphne, AL 36526
Phone: 334-621-4221
Fax: 334-626-0315
Fall Free Program
Resurrection Nursing Home
Castleton, NY
This program was designed to keep at-risk residents in a safe place for a specified period of time and to relieve the nursing department of the extra supervision duty during a busy time. The program, for which appropriate residents are selected by the nursing department and the activities director, is offered Monday through Friday.
Contact: Suzanne Ellsworth
Director of Activities/Volunteers
Resurrection Nursing Home
90 N. Main St.
Castleton, NY 12033
Phone: 518-732-7617, ext. 154
Fax: 518-732-4211
JOY (Joining Old and Young)
Franciscan Homes and Community Services, Inc.
Crown Point, IN
Through this program, children visit the elderly residents in St. Anthony Home, assisted living apartments, and Caritas Adult Day Health Services. With the residents, the children make art projects, read books, and play balloon volleyball. Residents' faces light up when they see the children, and the children learn that the aging residents and those with physical disabilities have many of the same feelings they do.
Contact: Kevin Rose
Franciscan Homes & Community Services, Inc.
203 Franciscan Dr.
Crown Point, IN 46307
Phone: 219-681-6805
Fax: 219-757-5890
Adult Day Center
St. Joseph's Retirement Community
West Point, NE
The retirement community is remodeling its lower level into a state-of-the-art adult day center for small groups of older adults with memory or cognitive impairment. In the center, participants will have the use of a large communal activity/dining room, a television lounge, and a resting area.
Contact: Sr. Angeline Hensen, OSF, or
Teresa Hasenkamp
St. Joseph's Retirement Community
320 E. Decatur
West Point, ME 68788
Phone: 402-372-3477
Fax: 402-372-6600
Diabetes Dialogue Education and Support Group
Good Samaritan Regional Health Center
Mt. Vernon, IL
The group's primary objectives are to provide education, foster communication, teach self-management skills, and provide positive feedback. Participants are primarily elderly people who are chronically ill with diabetes. The group provides professional programs at no cost and especially encourages attendance from underserved, at-risk clients.
Contact: Diane Terry, RN
Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center
605 N. 12th St.
Mt. Vernon, IL 62864
Phone: 618-241-2055
Fax: 618-241-3803
Free Health Insurance to Employees
Lafon Nursing Facility of the Holy Family
New Orleans
Under this program, free health insurance is provided for some employees. As a result, staff can seek medical appointments as needed without fear of high costs.
Contact: Sr. Ann Elise Sonnier, SSF
Lafon Nursing Facility of the Holy Family
6900 Chef Menteur Highway
New Orleans, LA 70126
Phone: 504-246-1100
Fax: 504-241-6672
Copyright © 1998 by the Catholic Health Association of the United States
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