The Volunteer Voice
E-Newsletter
September 7th, 2018
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Save the Date!
VIM's Annual Luncheon
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Save the Date! VIM's annual luncheon will be held on
Tuesday, January 29th, 2019
at the Westmoreland Club in Wilkes-Barre. Sponsorship opportunities will be available soon. Stay tuned for additional information!
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The photos above are from VIM's 2018 Annual Luncheon.
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Patient Centered Medical Home Update
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This week, the
clinic's staff
had a zoom conference call with the Americares team to complete the review of the clinic's
electronic medical records system
. New functionalities of the program were identified and will help the staff and volunteers effectively track data and ultimately provide the best care.
The next assignment for the VIM staff from the Americares team is to complete a
Gap Analysis Worksheet
. This project will help staff identify the current state of clinic and project ideas for future goals.
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Dr. Kathleen Hirthler Receives Innovation Award
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On Tuesday, August 21st,
Dr. Kathleen Hirthler
, VIM's volunteer Assistant Medical Director, received the
President’s Award for Excellence in Innovation
from Wilkes University for her efforts in promoting programs, ideas, and sustainable practices. Hirthler has
developed five new
graduate nursing programs at Wilkes including the University’s first Ph.D.
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Pictured above from left to right are Dr. Kathleen Hirthler, Evene Estwick, Zbigniew J. Witczak, Wilkes University President Patrick F. Leahy, Melissa Howells and
Deborah Tindell.
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Flu Vaccines Will Soon Be Available
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Once again,
flu season
is upon us as witnessed recently with the grounding and decontamination of two overseas flights landing in the USA with positive confirmation of
13 passengers
on board with influenza.
The clinic has already made preparation with the
Wilkes-Barre Department of Health
on the donation of approximately 200 doses of influenza vaccines. Walgreens has also contacted the clinic and is preparing to obtain vouchers to offer a
flu clinic on-site
at VIM from 1 PM until 4 PM on two dates in October. Sign up sheets will be posted for our patients in the very near future.
Best practices for the
prevention and spread of germs
is frequent and proper hand washing, covering nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, and
awareness of signs
and symptoms of the flu which include body aches, fever, coughing, extreme fatigue, and/or diarrhea. If influenza is contracted, individuals should rest, increase or maintain fluid intake, take Tylenol or Ibuprofen for fever and body aches.
See a physician
if symptoms persist longer than 4-5 days or if you begin to experience shortness of breath.
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VIM Welcomes New Dental Hygienist
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VIM is pleased to welcome our newest staff member,
Shelby Goss
, RDH. Shelby is a
registered dental hygienist
and will focus on teeth cleaning and educating patients on preventative measures for good oral hygiene. She is a graduate of Luzerne County Community College and hopes to one day become
an educator
for new hygienists.
Join us in welcoming Shelby to the team!
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Welcome to our New Students,
Residents and Volunteers
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Debbie Burge
is the newest
volunteer nurse
at the clinic.
She chose to volunteer at VIM to
help members
of her community in need.
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VIM welcomes
Bailey Evans
and
Mary O'Neill
from
Luzerne County Community College's
Dental Hygiene Program.
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In April 2018, a patient came to VIM in
need of dire
dental care
. The patient, a sixty-three year old male and
cancer survivor
, met with Dr. Singh, to establish a treatment plan. Due to all of the medications the patient had to take during his battle with cancer, it was determined that he would need a
full-mouth extraction
since he had numerous cavities and abscesses.
Over the course of
five appointments
, the patient had eleven maxillary (upper) teeth and eight mandibular (lower) teeth extracted and impressions taken for a full set of dentures. After a month-long healing process, the patient’s permanent dentures were fitted. The
entire process of extractions and fittings took four months. The patient left the clinic
smiling ear-to-ear
, which he hadn’t been able to do for years. He was pleased with his new appearance and looking forward
to eating many of the foods he hadn’t been able to enjoy for quite some time.
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VIM's Executive Director Attends
Financial Management Conference
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On Thursday, September 6th,
Kelly Ranieli
, VIM's Executive Director, attended
"Fundamentals of Financial Management"
conference at the Courtyard Marriott in Scranton. The full-day seminar was presented by the
Scranton Area Foundation’s
Center for Community Leadership and Nonprofit Excellence in partnership with the
Moses Taylor Foundation
. Topics discussed included reading financial statements, expense allocation and fraud prevention.
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Save the Date
Upcoming Educational Community In-Services
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Learning about other Luzerne County
community agencies in order to refer patients
is one of the many ways that VIM provides case management services. If you would like to join us for the next presentation, please
RSVP to Chelsea at
[email protected]
or 570-970-2864
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Tuesday, September 25th
9:00am to 10:00am
Wyoming Valley AIDS Council
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Volunteers
in
Medicine
190 North Pennsylvania Avenue
Wilkes-Barre PA 18702
website www.vimwb.org
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