Last week, we sent out messages of thanks on our Facebook page to thank some of the audiences that we wanted to acknowledge during Thanksgiving week.
Our thanks to the BCH Board of Directors, the BCH Foundation Board of Directors, our Medical Staff, patients, families and residents, local elected officials, and of course, #teamchaffee (our employees!).
Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday have led up to this: #givingtuesday.
Please consider giving a gift in support of Bertrand Chaffee Hospital and the Jennie B. Richmond Nursing Home through the Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Foundation.
Representatives from maurices of Springville presented a donation to the Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Imaging Department and BCH Foundation on November 20.
Store Manager Karen Baker and Assistant Manager Megan Slisz delivered a check to Lead Mammographer Judy Heary, which will go to the BCH Foundation. The gift is dedicated for use in promoting 3D mammography and encouraging women to get screened as recommended by their healthcare providers.
This donation came from maurices’ in-store activities throughout the month of October related to National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Thank you to all of maurices staff and the volunteer work that made this support possible! We appreciate how local businesses can take on the challenge of supporting local healthcare and promoting community health!
The annual appeal for the Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Foundation has begun! Letters will be sent out over the next two weeks. Our appeal this year is asking donors to reflect on the question, what does Bertrand Chaffee Hospital mean to you?
Here’s a look at what BCH meant to the community, from an article in the Springville Journal in the 1960s:
“Your hospital must meet the most unpredictable needs – it must continually be ready to serve and offer its services, and bring more roads to recovery, in an age that is filled with tremendous medical advances.”
Those words ring true today.
Your gift to our foundation funds equipment for the hospital and nursing home that helps your neighbors. Help us keep patients on their roads to recovery with a donation to our appeal before the end of the year.
Melanye Deuble-Hankins will join the Bertrand Chaffee Hospital Primary Care Center on Monday, November 27 as a physician assistant.
Deuble-Hankins has nearly two decades’ experience as an NCCPA-certified physician assistant, and has worked in cardiology and clinic settings. As a primary care provider at an occupational health clinic in Salamanca, she has also been in charge of emergency response for about 13 years.
“I am so happy to be joining the Bertrand Chaffee Hospital medical staff,” said Deuble-Hankins. “I am looking forward to greeting patients with a genuine smile, a willing ear, and sound judgement. I never forget what an honor and privilege is it, to be caring for you and your family!”
Deuble-Hankins began her career in the healthcare field as an ambulance attendant and flight medic with the STARFLIGHT program in Jamestown, New York. She moved into cardiology as a cardiac ultrasound technologist before earning a bachelor’s degree from D’Youville College. She has been a physician assistant in medical offices in Chautauqua County and Cattaraugus County, bringing extensive cardiology diagnostics training to the care she gives to her patients.
“Our primary care practice has been able to recruit patient-focused providers to our staff since opening in 2010,” said Nils Gunnersen, BCH CEO. “We’re excited to have Melanye join our team.”
The BCH Primary Care Center is scheduling patients with Deuble-Hankins immediately, and she will be accepting all major health insurances. For an appointment, call (716) 592-8140.
Bertrand Chaffee Hospital will coordinate monthly diabetes support group meetings for Type I and Type II diabetics and their loved ones in 2018.
Interested individuals are invited to participate in this group to share recipes, coupons and information about topics related to diabetes and health in a supportive and welcoming environment. The group will meet at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital on the first Monday of each month from 6-7 p.m. A Certified Diabetes Educator will facilitate the group, and meetings are free of charge. This group is part of the BCH diabetic education program, which is accredited by the American Association of Diabetes Educators.
There will not be a meeting in January due to the New Year’s holiday. Topics starting in February include: February 5, Infections; March 5, What is Type 2 Diabetes?; April 2, Plate Method Diet; May 7, Kidney Disease; June 4, Carb Counting; July 2, Diabetes Bingo; August 6, Mediterranean Diet; September (closed for holiday); October 1, Asthma and Diabetes; November 5, Diabetes Distress; December 3, New Year, New You.
For more information, call (716) 592-9643. Meetings will be canceled when Springville-Griffith Institute schools are closed for a snow day.
Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s event calendar is published on Google Calendar.
Bertrand Chaffee Hospital has established itself as a rural health provider for more than 70 years. The care we provide is a testament to the power of rural communities.
November 16 was designated National Rural Health Day. Leading up to this date, Bertrand Chaffee Hospital is pleased to announce that the Village of Springville, Town of Concord and Town of Sardinia boards each passed resolutions in support of National Rural Health Day.
Key elements from the resolution:
#powerofrural
November 14 is World Diabetes Day, an occasion to raise awareness of diabetes around the globe.
Employees at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital and the Jennie B. Richmond Nursing Home will be participating and we’ll be taking pictures from around the facility on that day.
#teamchaffee
Springville resident Kathleen Hebdon, RN received one of two “Rising Star” Awards from the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE) at its August meeting. She was recognized as a diabetes educator who has demonstrated leadership and commitment in her practice.
Hebdon leads the diabetes education efforts at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital, which has a program that is accredited by the AADE. She became a certified diabetes educator, and established an AADE chapter in Buffalo, the fourth chapter in New York State and the only one west of Albany. Hebdon was also named a president-elect of the New York State AADE board of directors. Her four-year term will begin in 2018.
There are more than 800 diabetes educators in the NYS AADE organization. The mission of AADE is to empower diabetes educators to expand the horizons of innovative education, management and support to provide optimal health and quality of life for persons with, affected by or at risk for diabetes and chronic conditions.
Kathleen Hebdon, RN and Nancy D’Hondt, RPh, President of the American Association of Diabetes Educators.
The following was sent to local newspapers and shared with Bertrand Chaffee Hospital.
There’s the saying, “you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone,” that I think about from time to time when I remember Tri-County Memorial Hospital in Gowanda.
I was a registered nurse at Tri-County when the village flooded and the hospital closed. I then became a full-time employee at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital before taking another registered nurse position in Gowanda. I remain a per-diem nurse in the BCH emergency department. From where I sit, I have a good view as to the value of local hospitals, both in terms of keeping people healthy and making for a thriving area.
The loss of Tri-County Hospital ripped a hole in our community. Jobs were lost and healthcare services were diminished. There’s a gap that may be filled, but the scars will remain for a long time. Sadly, that’s a scenario that has played out at other rural hospitals across the country.
In contrast, BCH has created a healthcare facility that not only offers vital and needed services, it is a hospital that has withstood the test of time. That hospital’s future, with the multimillion dollar state funding award and investment in primary care and technology, is assured.
As I look to my east toward Springville, I have a message for the people of Springville and the leadership at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital: keep doing what you’re doing. Your growth has been steady and your services have kept up with community needs. I am glad to know that your hospital is there for me and for my neighbors.
Sincerely,
Katie Pawlak, RN
Gowanda
