Valley Parish Nurses at Griffin Hospital to celebrate 30th anniversary

Valley Parish Nurse Program at Griffin Health will celebrate its 30th anniversary from 1-4 p.m. Oct. 13./  Contributed photo

DERBY - The Valley Parish Nurse Program at Griffin Health will host a 30^th Anniversary Celebration from 1-4 p.m. Sunday at Griffin Hospital, 130 Division St.

Recognized as the longest-running parish nurse ministry in the world, the celebration will feature displays about how the more than 30 active Parish Nurse Programs affiliated with Griffin Health have helped their community over the past three decades. 

Light refreshments will be served throughout the afternoon.

'Whole person health care' 

Started as a vision of the Rev. Fred Erson, former Director of Pastoral Care at Griffin Hospital, to provide “whole person health care,” the Valley Parish Nurse Program began in the fall of 1989 under the direction of Jan Sharkey, RN. 
The program grew from five parishes and six nurses to more than 40 churches and hundreds of active nurses and health cabinet members at parishes in Shelton, Derby, Ansonia, Seymour, Oxford, Naugatuck, New Haven, Waterbury, Meriden, Middlebury, Southbury, and Hamden.

Parish nurses serve as a health care resource and referral person to their churches and community. 

Free screenings

The goal of the parish nurse is to keep people healthy through education and preventative medicine practices, including offering free health screenings such as blood pressure, and to connect people to needed resources when appropriate.

In 1999, The Valley Parish Nurse Program expanded its services with the purchase of a Mobile Health Resource Van by Griffin. 
The van allows members of Griffin’s Community Outreach Department and the Valley Parish Nurse Program to conduct health screenings and provide health education practically anywhere. 

In 2006, Griffin purchased a larger, better-equipped van that has increased the frequency and types of health screenings.

“The Valley Parish Nurse Program provides us with a really unique dimension to health care,” said Griffin Hospital President and CEO Patrick Charmel. “Parish nurses are volunteers that live and work with people in their community and they develop a level of trust that allows them to connect, intervene, educate and understand the specific health care needs of their neighborhood.”

For more information about the Valley Parish Nurse Program, visit griffinhealth.org/vpn.

This is a press release from Griffin Hospital.

Learn to prevent falls in program at Griffin Hospital in Derby

Griffin Hospital to host a fall prevention program Dec. 7./ Contributed photo

DERBY -The Valley Parish Nurse Program at Griffin Hospital and Griffin Hospital Lifeline will host a free Fall Prevention Program from 9 a.m.-noon Dec. 7 at the hospital, 130 Division St.

The program will discuss the dangers of falling, especially for seniors, and will help attendees prevent falls by: Assessing their fall risk; teaching them to assess their, or a loved one’s, risk of falling; teaching and practicing exercises to improve balance and leg strength; providing a medication review; encouraging annual eye exams; teaching ways to reduce tripping hazards at home and learning how to get up or to call for fast help if a fall occurs.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of three adults 65 and older will fall each year. 
For those 65 and older, falls are the leading cause of injury, death, and hospital admissions for trauma. Those who fall, even if not injured, develop a fear of falling. This fear causes people to limit their activities reducing their mobility, causing loss of physical fitness, which in turn increases the actual risk of falling.

A light breakfast will be provided by Griffin Hospital Lifeline.

To reserve a seat or for more information, contact Esther, 203-732-1523 or ejones@griffinhealth.org.

This is a press release from Griffin Hospital. 

Save the date: Halloween Hoopla on tap at Warsaw Park in Ansonia

Learn to prevent falls in program at Griffin Hospital in Derby

Griffin Hospital is offering a free fall prevention program Sept. 22 at the hospital./ Contributed photo

DERBY - The Valley Parish Nurse Program at Griffin Hospital and Griffin Hospital Lifeline will host a free Fall Prevention Program Sept. 22 from 9 a.m.-noon at the hospital, 130 Division St.

The program will discuss the dangers of falling, especially for seniors, and will help attendees prevent falls by: Assessing their fall risk; teaching them to assess their, or a loved one’s, risk of falling; teaching and practicing exercises to improve balance and leg strength; providing a medication review; encouraging annual eye exams; teaching ways to reduce tripping hazards at home and learning how to get up or to call for fast help if a fall occurs.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of three adults 65 and older will fall each year. 
For those 65 and older, falls are the leading cause of injury, death and hospital admissions for trauma. Those who fall, even if not injured, develop a fear of falling. This fear causes people to limit their activities reducing their mobility, causing loss of physical fitness, which in turn increases the actual risk of falling.

A light breakfast will be provided by Griffin Hospital Lifeline.

To reserve a seat or for more information, contact Esther at 203-732-1523 or ejones@griffinhealth.org.

This is a press release from Griffin Hospital.