VNA celebrates 50 years of care
What started out as two nurses visiting a dozen patients in their homes has grown 50 years later to more than 200 employees serving 2,000 clients in five counties and part of a sixth.
VNA Western Pennsylvania, based in Butler, will mark a half century of providing home health services next month.
In 1965, the Alle-Kiski Visting Nurses Association was launched. Two years later another VNA started in Butler.
“Well, it began from prominent community members who felt very, very strongly that Butler County needed access to home health care. It started with just two nurses and then actually we currently have 275 employees,” said Margie Walsh, the VNA executive director.
She said, “It started with just home health which is a certified service delivered through Medicare. We added hospice in 1981.”
Also in 1981 the Butler VNA merged with Armstrong VNA and Alle-Kiski VNA, expanding the association's geographic reach.
“So we do cover all of Butler, Beaver, Armstrong, Mercer, Lawrence and the Alle-Kiski area, the northern part of Allegheny County and the area of Apollo and Vandergrift,” Walsh said.
Karla Pagan of Butler, a registered nurse who has been working for VNA Western Pennsylvania, for five years after stints as a hospital and military nurse, said she sees five to seven patients a day “depending on their medical needs.”
“Our visits last from 30 minutes to an hour,” said Pagan. “Our patients are a mix of young people that need IV therapy, elderly patients that are home alone, the chronically ill and post-operative patients. Those we visit one or two times until the staples are removed or the incision heals.”
Walsh said the length of home visits depends on circumstances, but generally run 30 to 60 days.
“I think we do see a significant number of wounds and patients requiring therapy IV treatment and chronic disease management,” Walsh said. “It's all about keeping the patients out of the hospital. Keep them healthly and at home.”
One such patient is Doris Coletta, 63, of Butler.
She said steroid treatment for her asthma “has left the top layer of my skin like cellophane.” Her skin is easy to wound and hard to heal, she said.
After bumping her right shin unloading her dishwasher in August, she is visited three times a week by VNA nurse Kathy Hall. “She cleans the wound and changes the compression bandage,” said Coletta.
“At any given time we are providing some type of care for 2,000 in the communities and that includes home health, hospice and palliative care, private duty and TeleHealth,” Walsh said.
TeleHealth is a VNA program that provides equipment to a client's home that can monitor the patient's vital signs, provide a personal emergency response system or dispense medication.“TeleHealth is when you place equipment in a home, monitor the patient remotely and use devices to allow the patient to get help. There is a lot more tech in home that you can use to help take care of these people. Technology helps us to care for them and promote health and independence,” Walsh said.“I can tell you I absolutely love my job,” said Pagan. “When you are working for a hospital you are putting fires out.”“Here, you can talk about the disease process. I love the teaching aspects of the job. You can make more of an impact,” said Pagan.“And we do a lot with chronic disease management, incorporating TeleHealth and home health visits,” Walsh said.“We also have an inpatient hospice facility on Technology Drive in Butler,” Walsh said.In addition to an administrative office at 154 Hindman Road, Walsh said VNA has a satellite office in Kittanning and another in Vandergrift.“In 2013, we merged with Lutheran Senior Life,” Walsh said.VNA employs nurses, therapists, social workers, home health aides, dieticians and also wound ostomy nurses and mental health nurses.And, Walsh said, if current trends hold, the private agency could be looking to hire more.Walsh said, “I think truly the government is guiding the elderly to concentrate on home and community-based services. All are looking at how are we going to care for all these elderly,” she said as more and more baby boomers reach senior citizen status.
“50 years is big for us. National Home Care and Hospice Month is November,” said Walsh. “So we have to really choose that month to reach out to the community. We care deeply about the people in the community we serve.”Walsh said VNA employees will be going to high rises, senior centers and referral sources and marking the 50-year anniversary with them.Walsh said, “We'll be taking something out to them, education and presentations to them in November. It will be somewhat of a celebration and doing education at the same time.”Walsh said the 50th anniversary will be tied to the Dec. 4 B.E. Taylor Christmas show at Community Alliance Church, 800 Mercer Road. VNA has sponsored the show for the last five years.“We were formed by the community, community has been such a big part of us. It is phenomenal the support we get from the outside, very dedicated to our success. We want to give back to the community that we are a part of,” Walsh said.
