Living

Are you feeling alone and stressed taking care of a loved one? Would it be helpful to have a safe and confidential place to discuss your concerns and feelings related to being a caregiver? Would support, encouragement and connection to community resources help you in your role as caregiver?

Whether you are caring for a loved one full-time or part-time, please join us at our next Caregiver Support Group. You will be able to connect with others who are currently caring for loved ones (including long-distance) or perhaps are beginning to prepare for the responsibilities of care.

To raise awareness among local women that heart disease is their #1 health threat, the at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital today announces a series of events for February to promote the Heart Truth: a nationwide effort to spread information about women and heart disease, prevention and wellness.

The month long event will include:

• Radio series entitled Matters of the Heart (every Monday in February 9:15 AM on Live and Local)
• Red Dress breakfast with Phaedra McDonough, APRN (7:30 PM on February 26)
• Café Chats with Cardiac Nurses for Risk Factors of Cardiac Disease (February 11 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM)
• Love your Heart Blood Pressure Screenings (Mondays in February 12:00 – 1:00 PM)
• Rapid CPR Classes (February 19 & 26 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM)
• Walk this Way to Better Health fitness walks (Tuesdays at 4:30 PM and Thursdays at 3:15 PM)
• and more.
  

Have you heard of Barre or BarSculpt?  It’s a new fitness regime that has been sweeping the nation!  Think of it as “Pilates Evolved.”

BarSculpt is a unique combination of cardio, core strenghtening and stretching, that results in a strong, lean, flexible body.  It’s also a safe workout for people of any fitness level. 

BarSculpt classes have arrived in Putney and are being taught by Putney resident, Maria Ogden.  Maria has been involved in fitness activities for 30 years and brings her own love of this exercise to Hot Wheelz Cycle Studio.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital is pleased to welcome Robert Gailey as the new Director of Organizational Improvement.

In this position, Gailey will work closely with the hospital’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kathleen McGraw in leading the hospital’s Organizational Improvement efforts. He will also work with BMH’s quality director and department managers in developing quality improvement teams for specific “service lines” within the hospital.

Gailey, who has a Master of Science degree in organizational effectiveness with a specialization in healthcare, comes to BMH with 15 years of experience in healthcare supervisory roles and quality leadership positions. Most recently, he worked as the Quality Improvement Outcomes Coordinator at Union Hospital of Cecil County, a 122-bed facility in Elkton, MD, along the Baltimore-Philadelphia metro corridor. He is also well versed in both LEAN and Six Sigma methodologies for streamlining business processes and eliminating waste.

The Center for Cardiovascular Health at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital (BMH) was awarded funding of $5,000 from (VITL) for its participation in a pilot program. The pilot provided the Center early access to VITLAccess, which is designed to share patient health information through the Vermont Health Information Exchange (HIE), which is managed by VITL.

VITLAccess is a new, secure web based provider portal that allows healthcare providers to search and view information about their patients who may have received care from healthcare organizations across the state and in the surrounding area. This information includes radiology and lab reports, hospital admission, discharge and transfer summaries, medication history, and other health information. VITLAccess will be offered to all providers across the state beginning in the spring of 2014.

announced its diamond halo earring raffle raised $895.00 for Brattleboro Memorial Hospital’s “Doorway to Exceptional Care” capital campaign.

“The winner was Danielle Lauria,” said Caitlyn Wilkinson, owner of Renaissance Fine Jewelry on Main Street in Brattleboro. “She came in almost every day and bought tickets in both her name and the name of her newborn daughter. And the day after the drawing, Danielle’s husband brought her into the store and we surprised her. She was totally shocked; she couldn’t have been more excited. She even wore them out of the store,” said Wilkinson.

Georgio’s Pizza and Pasta Restaurant announced fifty two customers participated in its special fund raiser to support the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Emergency Department renovation and expansion project.

During the month of November, for every pizza sold to a customer presenting a special coupon, Georgio’s made a donation to “The Doorway to Exceptional Care” campaign.

“This is my hospital and I wanted to support the project” said George Leristis, owner of the restaurant located at 419 Canal Street in Brattleboro. “We are happy that we could support the hospital’s efforts to improve its Emergency Department. It is important it remains available for anyone who needs medical care, all day, every day.”