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Page 2 Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing Alumni Newsletter Committee Reports (Scholarships & Assistance) Belknap Committee The Lenora E. Belknap Scholarship Fund was created in 1991 through funds given to the Samaritan Hospital SON Alumni Association, Inc. to establish a lasting memorial to Miss Belknap. The original donor stated that the fund should be used “ as a scholarship assistance for a Samaritan graduate of the Registered Nursing Program of the Samaritan Hospital SON who has matriculated into a Masters level program in nursing.” ( Manual of the Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing Alumni, Inc., revised: 1996). The Alumni Board members determine when the Belknap Funds are to be dispersed annually to one sustaining alumni member. This year’s recipient received $1000 and is enrolled at SUNY IT at Utica NY in the Master’s Nurse Practitioner program. We extend our congratulations and wish her good luck. Alumni who wish to apply for next years award may do so by requesting an application form by addressing a letter to the Alumni Association at Samaritan Hospital Attn: Belknap Committee. Mary Ellen (Varcasio) Dziarcak, MS, RN ’76, Chair Courtesy Committee The Courtesy Committee maintains a separate financial account within the Alumni. Monies to finance the account are derived from the annual dues. Therefore, the amount available to the committee depends on the Sustaining (dues paying) Membership or donations made by alumni or other interested persons. Since January 1, 2007, 11 condolence donations have been made to the Leora Belknap Scholarship Fund in memory of deceased alumni or members of their immediate family. The Infirmed List currently is comprised of 17 alumni. Cards are sent to these members at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. If anyone has knowledge of an alumni who should be placed on the Infirmed List or a grad who is recently deceased and should have a donation made to the Belknap Fund, please notify Karen Henchey at (518) 283- 4967 or any other of the other following committee members at the 518 area code: Kathy Davis 273-4503 Donna Reed 674- 2569 Ellen Dunn 283-0431 Diane Dare 783- 8790 Karen Henchey, Chair District Liaison The district committee acts as a liaison between the Samaritan Alumni Association and the Capital District #9 of the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA). All bills proposed in the NYS Legislature and newly enacted laws and other pertinent information affecting the nursing profession is brought to the attention of the alumni membership. Current issues in committee are Mandatory Overtime, Safe Staffing (nurse/patient ratios), Education Advancement (requires RN’s to attain a BS degree in nursing within 10 years of the initial licensing) and Work Place Violence. NYSNA was successful in having support for nursing programs and nursing faculty support included in the NYS Budget. For further information, you can visit the NYSNA.org/Legislative Advocacy website. The committee currently consists of Karen Henchey and Ellen Ladieu. We are looking for another member. If anyone is interested please contact me at (518) 283-4967. Karen Henchey, Chair Mosley Committee The Winifred A. Mosley Fund was created in 1985 through monies left to the Alumni Corporation by Winifred A. Mosley, ’26. The Mosley Funds are used for communication activities, to improve attendance and participation in the membership meetings and for charitable donations. The committee holds two meeting a year before the May and November Alumni Meetings. We arrange for various guest speakers to present information on current nursing or medical topics such as; genetics, women’s health care, electronic medical record documentation and nursing historical topics. The committee welcomes suggestions for guest speakers and restaurant locations for our dinner meetings. New member participation on this committee is also welcome. Our next dinner meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 13, 2007 at 6pm at the Foundation of NYS Nurses located at 2113 Western Avenue, Guilderland, NY. A buffet dinner will be available for $12.00 for members and $20.00 for non-members. Please see reservation form in this newsletter. Joy Aloan, Chair Seber Committee The Seber Scholarship Committee is available to women who desire to become Registered Nurses and to female and male Registered Nurses who desire to do graduate study in nursing. (the award from this fund for people who wish to become an RN is restricted to women only based on stipulations in the donors Last Will and Testament). Applicants are required to document a need for financial assistance in order to receive an award. Awards are dispersed for Spring and Fall semesters. Applicants must be Samaritan School of Nursing (SON) graduates who are members of the Alumni Inc. in good standing (dues paying members) or female students in the Registered Nurse program of the SON who receive a recommendation from the Director of the School of Nursing. Applications may be obtained from any Seber Committee member or by written request to the committee chairperson % of the Alumni Office, Samaritan Hospital, Troy, NY 12180. The chairperson may also be reached at (518) 326-9075. Eleven scholarships totaling $1,650 were awarded for the Fall ’07 semester. Shirley DeCamp, Chair Sheldon Committee The Doris Sheldon Fund was established in 1986 by a gift from Doris Sheldon Collins and her husband Robert to the Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing (SON) Alumni Association Charitable Foundation. The fund was created to provide financial assistance based on need to graduates of and others associated with Samaritan Hospital SON in their retired or mature years. “The intent is to help those with limited resources enjoy a fuller life, particularly when they no longer are gainfully employed.” (Manual of Samaritan Hospital SON Alumni Association Charitable Foundation, revised: 1997). Awards from the fund are given out biannually. This year there were four $800 awards from the fund totaling $3,200. The deadline for applications to receive benefits from the fund is 10/31/07. The committee will meet in November to review applications. Please address letters to Samaritan Hospital SON Alumni Association Charitable Foundation Attn: Sheldon Fund. Mary Ellen (Varcasio) Dziarcak, MS, RN ’76, Chair
Alumni Newsletter Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing Page 3 Welsh Committee The Welsh Fund was established in 1968 by the last will and testament of Blanche C. Welsh. The purpose of the fund is to aid or help sick and/or disabled nurses with their medical expenses. A maximum of $200 may be paid to a member in a calendar year. An estimated $1600 will be awarded this year. Applicants must be in good standing (dues paying members) with the Alumni Association For more information regarding the Welsh Fund or an application, please feel free to contact the Welsh Committee Chairperson at the Samaritan Hospital Alumni Association, Troy, NY 12180 or at cyerdon@nycap.rr.com. Christine Yerdon, Chair Pharmacy Update: Medication Reconciliation Working Together to Improve Patient Care Medication Reconciliation is recognized as one of the most important steps in coordinating our patient’s healthcare. While writing down a list of medications seems so very simple, it isn’t until we follow a patient through multiple transitions of care where medications are changed, added, or deleted by multiple caregivers that we realize how easily mistakes can be made. If we add to this outside influences such as therapeutic substitutions due to drug formulary restrictions, we can easily see why reconciliation must occur at every change in a patient’s level of care by trained professionals in varied disciplines. Computerization: Utilizing our clinical software we have created routines and menus to optimize work flow. This has allowed Pharmacy and Nursing to work from any computerized location to document and update critical patient information such as height, weight, allergies, adverse drug reactions, specific medical information, and current home medications including dose and frequency of administration. Interviews: Each patient interview is made up of a three step process that includes documentation, education, and verification. A printed medication order form can be provided for the physician to review and sign. This process has been extremely successful with our PAT (Prior Admission Testing) and Emergency Room admissions. A medication list for the patient can also be provided for them to keep and update. Information: Since the hospital’s focus is to provide the Best Possible Medication Continues on page 4 Bits & Pieces Condolences: Joan Sibley Gemmill, ‘68 on the loss of her mother, Lois Sibley. Roberta Nelson Fath, ’75, on the loss of her husband, Joseph H. Fath. Karen Del Giacco, ’97, on the loss of her father, Frederick Anameier at age 97. Alumni News: Shirley Armitage Leer, ’47, of Vestal, N.Y. Every September she tries to get together with her class sisters. In September, 2006, the following class members met: Joan Hoffman Carroll, Beth Bromley Flatt and Helen Filkins Hendry. Florence Rotelli Page, ’48, has had knee replacement surgery and will be having shoulder replacement surgery. She is keeping active at age 84. Harlene O’Hara, ’55, and her husband Gerald recently celebrated their 501h wedding anniversary. Frances Jastranski Meyers, ’56, of Springfield, Illinois, is doing volunteer work for her church and HIV/AIDS organizations. She became a great-grandmother in July of 2006. Jillian Rita Hughes Westbrook, ’60, of Rome, N.Y., has her B. S. ED and M. S. ED and currently is Educational Coordinator for a local church, the Children’s Bible Institute. She retired in 1995 as administrator of the Children’s Psychiatric Program as Mohawk Valley Psychiatric Center. Her first granddaughter was bom on January 3, 2007, Lyne Luella Lillian. Carol Harens Woltemate,’60,of Doylestown, Pa., continues to work in her own business, Woltemate Associates. She recently celebrated her 40th year of playing violin with the Bucks County Symphony. Margorie Stone Barrows, ’69, works as a Nurse Practioner at the V.A. in Albany in Pain Management and Women’ s Health. She is also on the faculty for Excelsior College, teaching Pain and Symptoms Management/ Palliative and End of Life Care. Darlene LeFebvre, ’71, of Odessa, Fla., works at the Pedi Cardiac ICU at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tampa. Doreen James Vidulich, ’74, recently attended her husband’s family reunion in Florida, visiting Disney World and then three parks in one day. She states “I wish I had had a Torino shoe.” Diane Mertrude, ’75, of San Diego works in the ICU at USCO. Louise Cuay Brooks, ’76, of Dorwin, Minnesota, saw her daughter, Leslie Anne, get married in 2006. Joy Rosso Aloan, ’77, is the Primary Care Network Director at Northeast Health. Daughter Erin was recently married and is continuing her education at Michigan State. Son Marc is stationed at Fort Gordon U. S. Air Force Base. Kathleen Somnitz Gallichio, “79, moved back to the area with her husband and is currently CNS for Cardiac Surgery and ICU at St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany. Geraldine Jones Nabozny, ’79, in 2006 was awarded Academic Scholarships from District #9 NYSNA and National Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association. Joan St. Leger Speziale, ’80, celebrated her 25th anniversary in June, 2006; she and her husband took a cruise for the first time, visiting the Caribbean. Son Josh was married in August, 2007; son Thomas graduated from high school in June, 2007 and son Sam is in the sixth grade. Joan has worked AMCH Pre-Op and Ambulatory Surgery for 22 years. She is an active member of the Temple Baptist Church in Halfmoon Tracy Wagner Ivory, ’81 (New Hartford, N.Y.) received CRN I in infusion nursing and graduated in February, 2007 from the BSN program. Susan Bunk Darnell, ’84 (Palmer, Alaska), is a Lt. Col. in the USAF reserves working at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska. Her civilian job is working as a part-time cardiovascular nurse in Anchorage. She had lunch with Maria Pendergast Mull, ’83, at Christmas time. Terry Dawson Bedard, ’91, received her bachelor of science in management of Health Care from Empire College in March, 2006 and currently works as Nurse Manager of Ambulatory Surgery at Saratoga Hospital. Theresa McGraw Larson, ’96, is RN Educator at Baptist Health Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She orients new nurses and in-services staff. Elizabeth Kownack Madigan, ’03, was married on January 18, 2006 and works full time in the Samaritan Hospital Emergency Department. She is currently enrolled at SUNY IT working toward a bachelor of science degree.
Page 1: Alumni Newsletter Samaritan Hospita

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