Thursday, June 14, 2018

Recuperation journey: Dramatic sunset seen in Derby

I had to pull over Thursday and take photos of the amazing sunset I saw when I was leaving a meeting at the Center for Cancer Care at Griffin Hospital in Derby.

Logan's band concert to benefit St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Shop in Derby


Friends:

My band, "Electric Lady Band," will play a show this Friday at Toad’s Place in New Haven.

Proceeds from my band’s concert will be donated to: https://m.facebook.com/StVincentdePaulThriftShop/

Our band will start playing at 9 p.m. sharp and we will finish our set by 10 p.m.

Please spread the word and come out to see us on Friday to benefit a great cause!


*This is a message from state Sen. George S. Logan, R-Ansonia.

Celebrating National Cancer Survivors Month at Relay for Life in Shelton


Below are several of my favorite survivors who celebrated June 2. 


We all belong to the 'Circle of Friends' breast cancer support group at Griffin Hospital in Derby. 
We posed after enjoying a Survivor Luncheon provided by Griffin Hospital at the American Cancer Society Relay for Life at the Shelton Riverwalk.

It was quite hot as survivors and caregivers walked laps in the direct sun around the field. 
I really don't know how all of the volunteers did all they had to do to keep the event running. They did a great job!

Cassetti launches Adopt-A-Spot program in Ansonia


East Main Street Gateway landscaping was completed this week. The photos show the site before and after the work was done.
The site will now be privately maintained by a city resident as part of Ansonia’s new Adopt-A-Spot program./ Contributed photo

ANSONIA - For years, most communities throughout the state have offered successful Adopt-A-Spot programs which offer select parcels of public property to be maintained privately.
Today, Mayor David S. Cassetti launches Ansonia’s first such program. 
“It’s a program I’ve been wanting to initiate for some time,” said Cassetti. “Like other towns, I envision this growing quickly in popularity here. 
“Bottom line is, it creates desired community beautification involvement, and will reduce the amount of public works manpower hours needed annually for these sites, and redirect those hours elsewhere, such as parks and other infrastructure maintenance and improvement.”
The basic overview of Ansonia’s Adopt-A-Spot is an individual, civic group, business or other, agree to volunteer consistent maintenance of a pre-determined city property including weeding, litter pickup, possible mowing, pruning, flower planting, etc.
In exchange, the City will erect an attractive and visible Adopt-A-Spot sign which includes site sponsor name and/or business logo. 
Sites are high traffic areas. Those interested are also welcome to submit other locations for consideration not shown on the adoption target list. Sites can maintained by sponsors or outsourced to a third party landscaper.
Four sites have already been privately adopted including a “pending adoption.”
The City has undergone a major “Clean & Green” initiative under Constituent Services Director Greg Martin and Cassetti. Twice annually citywide volunteer litter cleanups in spring and fall debuted in 2017; hundreds of graffiti tags were removed in fall ’16; a 50-count graffiti tag removal is schedule later this month; and a major landscaping project on the Armory grounds hill began earlier this week. The Armory project is being sponsored in full by ION Bank, Regional Water Authority, and Southern Connecticut Dental Group.
Initial Adopt-A-Spot sites listed below. 
For a complete overview of the program, visit www.cityofansonia.com or contact Greg at Cassetti’s office, 203-736-5963 or gmartin@ansoniact.org.

CITY OF ANSONIA ADOPT-A-SPOT PREFERRED SITES

SITE                                                                            STATUS
HISTORICAL MARKER TRAFFIC ISLAND (ELM ST)  Adopted/Southern Connecticut Dental Group
EAST MAIN ST/TREMONT STREET GATEWAY  Adopted/Private Resident
MOTT ST/MYRTLE AVE TRAFFIC ISLAND  Adopted/Private Resident
TREMONT ST/BIG Y PLAZA TRAFFIC ISLAND  Adoption Pending
SCHUMACHER DR/MARSHALL LANE TRAFFIC ISLAND  Available
WAKELEE AVE/DIVISION ST TRAFFIC ISLAND  Available
JEWETT ST/COOKS POND HISTORICAL MARKER/FLOWER BED Available

FORD ST/FINNEY ST TRAFFIC ISLAND  Available

ELM STREET HISTORICAL ISLAND (front of Police Station)  Available

MAIN STREET TREE DIRT BASINS, FLOWER PLANTERS &
SITTING PARK INLET (Adjacent Lewis Jewelers)  Available

DIVISION ST/SILVER HILL ROAD TRAFFIC ISLAND  Available

FATHER SALEMI DRIVE/CENTRAL STREET TRAFFIC ISLAND          Adopted/Private Resident

DR. HADDAD PARK (Corner Main St & Bridge Street)  Available




This is a press release from Cassetti's office.

Recuperation journey: A bloom, finally


It was so nice to see this pop of color first thing this morning. 
Enjoy this lovely day, local friends.

Griffin Hospital in Derby honors employees at 48th awards dinner

Michael Currie of Waterbury was named Griffin Hospital Employee of the Year for 2018./ Contributed photo


DERBY - Griffin Hospital recently honored more than 600 employees and physicians who reached service milestones of five years and more and announced employee and department of the year award winners at its 48th Annual Service Awards Dinner.
The event was held at Aria in Prospect.

Environmental Services Quality Control Supervisor Michael Currie, of Waterbury, was named Griffin Hospital’s 2018 Employee of the Year and the Surgical Physician Assistant Program won Department of the Year.
At a colorful “neon-bright” themed celebration, Griffin Hospital CEO and President Patrick Charmel personally presented gifts of appreciation to longtime employees and announced the winners. 

Currie Named Top Caregiver
Currie has been a caregiver at Griffin for 10 years and is directly responsible for managing hands-on educational sessions for staff.
He conducts rounding throughout the hospital which contributes to Griffin’s consistently high HCAHPS scores for cleanliness. Coworkers praise Currie for his excellence in providing customer service to hospital patients and visitors and his ability to communicate effectively with all caregivers regardless, of their position, to make sure all questions are answered and requests are met.
In his supervisory role, Currie has taken on numerous challenges, including running the department’s bed board, consistently showing exceptional performance and strong leadership in each new responsibility.
The hospital's Employee of the Year selection come from its monthly I Take It Personally (ITIP) program where employees are nominated by their colleagues for outstanding work. Each month, one employee is selected from the hospital’s four service divisions - Ancillary, Nursing, Service and Support - for his or her efforts to improve patient satisfaction and promote Griffin Hospital’s commitment to patient-centered care. Of these employees, four are selected as finalists for the honor of “Employee of the Year.” 
In addition to Currie, Maria Cantito, Cardiac Rehab, Michele Derbyshire, Professional Development, and Kaila Parkins, 2 North B, were finalists for the top honor.

Surgical Services Named Departments of the Year
Griffin Hospital’s Surgical PA Program was honored with Department of the Year for providing clinical support that is integral to the recent growth and success of the hospital’s surgical services.
The program was established more than 10 years ago, and the group has grown exponentially with the addition of services and coverage expectations. 

Surgeons rely on the Surgical PA Program to provide high-level care to their patients and to provide detailed updates on their patients’ healing. The PA service is also always available to assist other hospital departments with emergency case assistance, nursing and care coordination expectations, floor procedures, consultations, emergency codes and rapid response events, and providing patients’ families with updates.
The group showed their dedication to the growth and success of Griffin’s surgical department recently with their involvement in the implementation of the robotic surgery program. The surgical PAs and APRN quickly made themselves available to participate in the training necessary to meet the assisting needs and post-operative care requirements of the new program. The Department of the Year is selected from the four hospital departments selected as “Department of the Quarter” by the ITIP program. 

In addition to the Surgical PA Program, this year’s Department of the Quarter winners were Griffin Faculty Physicians Administration and Billing, Materials Management, and Spiritual Care.


This is a press release from Griffin Hospital.

Happy Flag Day today


Quoting from Wikipedia: 
Flag Day "commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States, which happened on June 14, 1777, by resolution of the Second Continental Congress."