The Volunteer Voice
E-Newsletter
August 24th, 2018
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With many schools and universities starting back from summer break, we look forward to new students joining the
VIM Team!
"You're off to great places, today is your day, your mountain is waiting, so get on your way." -
Dr. Seuss
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Patient Centered Medical Home Update
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On August 15th,
Matt Cuddy, Regional Manager for Medent
, provided a training on the PCMH module in the clinic's electronic medical record system.
Matt has also offered to provide
additional training
to VIM's providers and volunteers as the clinic progresses in the PCMH certification process. We
thank him
for his time and expertise!
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Medications Available at VIM
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As per a
recent audit
of our medicine supply closet, the following is a list of the medications
available for distribution
to the patients of VIM:
Advair Discus
Proventil HFA Inhaler
Q-Var Inhaler
ProAir Inhaler
Spiriva
GE Test Strips for GE Glucometer
Levemir Insulin Pens and Vials
Novolog Flex Pens
Zithromax
Levaquin
Valtrex
Keflex
Doxycycline
Wellbutrin XL
Paxil
Zolof
Nasonex Nasal Spray
Orthotricyclen
Condoms
DepoProvera Injections
Orthocyclen
Orthocyclen lo
Bedwick's Pharmacy
, located at 452 Hazle Street in Wilkes-Barre (across from Angelo’s Pizzeria), is
very generous
in offering our patients discounted prices for medications. When a patient establishes care at our clinic, every effort is made to provide medications that are free or affordable to
maintain optimum health
.
Other
resources
in obtaining medications is the Patient Assistance Program through the Pharmaceutical companies. The VIM clinical pharmacist and pharmacy students assist the patients in filling out the very extensive application. Once approved, the patient can
obtain medication
for a year free of charge from the manufacturer.
Flu vaccines
will be offered to our patients once the supply is received from the Wilkes- Barre Department of Health. We will keep our patients
updated
when they are available. Two days a month will be set aside to offer a morning and afternoon
flu clinics
to accommodate our working population.
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Welcome to our New Students,
Residents and Volunteers
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Lisa Lau
began her six-week rotation at the clinic this week. She is in her second year of the Physician Assistant Program at
King's College
. Lisa is originally from
Houston, Texas
. She is currently undecided on the type of medicine she'd like to practice because with each
new rotation
she learns so much that it's hard for her to choose!
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Cole Walters
, a Pharmacy Student at Wilkes University, recently volunteered at the clinic. He spent the day organizing our
medicine supply closet
, which was a great help! Although Cole is currently a PharmD student, he plans on applying to medical school with hopes of becoming an
orthopedic surgeon
.
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Elise Mester
, a Geisinger Family Medicine Resident, spent time seeing patients in conjunction with Dr. Scott at the clinic this week. Upon
completion
of her program, she would like to continue to practice in Family Medicine. She was happy to be assigned to VIM as it gave her a chance to
learn about and serve
the community she lives in. She is also a proud
Villanova
alumni!
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Bridget Pepe
, a physician assistant student from
King's College
, completed her
clinical rotation
at the clinic this week. She enjoyed her time at VIM - "I loved that I was able to jump
between practitioners
and learn
different areas
and tricks of the trade." Pictured are Bridget and
Dr. Herb Weinman
who volunteers on Friday mornings.
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This coming Monday,
August 27th
, will be the summer's final Mondays at the Market! The theme will be
Farewell to Summer
and will celebrate the success of the inaugural program! Chelsea Collins, Social Care Coordinator at VIM, has attended all Mondays to
promote a healthy community
.
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Chelsea has been meeting with a patient who has two children, but desperately wanted a third. Unfortunately, she and her husband have tried, but with no success. Chelsea and the client
worked together
to identify different fertility resources in the local area, greater Philadelphia area, and on a national level. It was challenging to find fertility services at a reduced price or obtaining a grant through a scholarship program so the client started to accept that she may never be able to conceive a third child.
She reached out to Chelsea in the spring inquiring of
school supply programs
for possibly getting two new backpacks for her children when they return to school. Chelsea reached out to The Nomad Project, a small, one-woman organization who
organizes school drives and winter coat drives
. The client’s wish list was provided to Stephanie Santore at the Nomad Project and VIM quickly received notification that all of the supplies on the client’s list would be provided at no charge. The Nomad Project went
well above and beyond
what was initially asked for, and included a Visa gift card, which is very handy considering that the client revealed that she has finally been able to conceive a third child!
We are so happy for our
client’s success
in building her family and are grateful that we were able to provide her children with their school supply needs. VIM takes pride in
helping patients
in all areas of their lives, even if it extends outside of health needs.
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VIM's Social Care Coordinator
Provides Mindfulness Seminar
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Chelsea wanted to give a brief introduction to our staff and volunteers about the
concept of mindfulness
, which she uses when counseling patients. Mindfulness has become a buzzword in the past few years and for good reason. New studies are showing the
effectiveness of cultivating mindfulness
to help with issues relating to addiction, pain management, diabetes management, and mental health. John Kabat-Zinn, one of the fathers of modern, secular mindfulness defines this concept as
“Paying attention to something, in a particular way, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally”
.
Chelsea led the group through a mindful eating exercise, where the group experienced eating a raisin as if it was the first time. This type of mindful eating can be operationalized with clients who have poor
eating habits
to help them become conscious of the process of eating healthy and consuming smaller amounts. Chelsea also explained the basic tenets of mindfulness, along with demystifying the
difference between mindfulness and meditation
(meditation is one of the behaviors to develop mindfulness). At the end, the group participated in a mindfulness meditation which gave a sense of relaxation before starting the busy Tuesday at VIM.
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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
chelsea-vimwb@hotmail.com
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
Phone: 570-970-2864 | email: vimwb@hotmail.com
website www.vimwb.org
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