Boquete Health and Hospice December Newsletter

[Boquete Health and Hospice]

View this email in your browser Table of Contents: • Best Wishes for the Holidays • Letter from the President • Accomplishments for 2020 • 1st General Meeting • Important Notice • Upcoming Community Events • New Team Structure • Thank You to Our Volunteers • Help Needed • Blood Drive Feb 6 • Tree of Life • Magic of Music • Happy New Year • Our Mission SENDING YOU THE VERY BEST WISHES FOR A JOYFUL HOLIDAY SEASON A WONDERFUL AND HAPPY NEW YEAR Letter from the President In January, 2020 the Council met and decided on some goals for the year.  Little did we know that Covid would strike one month later and everything would be changed.  Still, through the work of many, most of the goals were met.  The Council will be meeting again on January 6 to talk about the goals for 2021.  If you have any ideas/suggestions, please email them to someone on the Council. BHH Accomplishments for 2020 Abbreviated training program mapped out and initial training session held (Feb 28) RN Party held to learn how this special group wanted to contribute. Training of new members (16) held Panel Discussion video completed One interim administrator found  Being Prepared materials updated and printed (400 printed so far) Administrator interview video completed and on web site. Mini Training Session held for 6 members. Respiratory Repair Person found  Donation of Surgical Masks, N95 Masks, Face Shields and Disposable Gowns to CSS (Policlinicia) and Alfa Clinic, Clinicia Especializada and Dra. Boya Blood Donor Caravan (March 7, 2020) Donation of $300 to the New Blood Donor Center in David Initiation of the Tree of Life program to thank donors and volunteers. Donation of $1,314 worth of food and clothes to those affected by Hurricane Eta Basic First Aid training held at Valle Escondido Silent Art Auction First Aid at home presentations held at the Library Nov 19 and Dec 10 BHH Holds Its First Zoom General Meeting – Dec. 10 After almost 10 months, and in order to give a wrap-up of the year, BHH attempted its first ever Zoom Meeting.  16 volunteers and guests attended.  A summary of the years activities was given by Bev Tyler (Administrator), Sela Burkholder (Equipment), Merl Will-Wallace (Respiratory) and Lesley Hughes (General) and volunteers were thanked.  The proposed slate for next year was presented and floor nominations were requested.  Floor nominations will close on Dec. 30.  The method of holding the election was announced:  Ballots will be emailed to the membership of January 7 and must be returned to Laurie Collier (lojocollier@yahoo.com) by midnight January 9.  This method was selected to allow those who are concerned about attending an in-person meeting in January to still have a voice in selecting the Council. NOTE:  Starting with the January 13 General meeting, the monthly meetings for BHH will be held on the 2nd Wednesday of the month at the Animales Building starting at 1:00 pm. Upcoming Community Events: January 12 – ACCB Tuesday Talk at the BCP Theater – Joanie F and Char L will give a presentation of Being Prepared.  It is required that a hard copy of the Guide be with the attendees.  It starts at 10:30.   January 13 – First in-person General Meeting to be held at the Animales Building.  It starts at 1:00.  Limited to 50 people.  MINSA guidelines will be followed:  Masks required, temperatures will be taken, Alcohol Gel will be available, social distancing will be maintained.   February 4 – BCP Community Chat - the third presentation of First Aid at Home will be held at the Library.  Merl W. and Lesley H will be giving the talk.  It starts at 11:00.  Limited to 25 people.  Reservations required – email to Chats@Eventsboquete.org.  MINSA guidelines will be followed:  Masks required, temperatures will be taken, Alcohol Gel will be available, social distancing will be maintained.   February 6 – Gift of Life Blood Drive held at the Animales Event Center from 7 am – 1 pm.  To donate please contact WhatsApp 507-6590-2000 or email blood@boquetehealth.org. MINSA guidelines will be followed:  Masks required, temperatures will be taken, Alcohol Gel will be available, social distancing will be maintained.     February 18 – BCP Community Chat at the Library – Joanie F and Char L will give a presentation of Being Prepared.  It is required that a hard copy of the Guide be with the attendees.  It starts at 11:00.  Limited to 25 people.  Reservations required – email to Chats@Eventsboquete.org.  MINSA guidelines will be followed:  Masks required, temperatures will be taken, Alcohol Gel will be available, social distancing will be maintained.   NOTE:  Starting with the January 13 General meeting, the monthly meetings for BHH will be held on the 2nd Wednesday of the month at the Animales Building starting at 1:00 pm. Stay tuned, dates may change due to MINSA restrictions on gatherings. New Team Structure In the last newsletter, the new team structure was announced.  Below are the goals for each team.  At the January General meeting, volunteers will have the opportunity to review the list members on each team and sign up/recommit to the team(s) of their choice.     The goals for each team are: Administrator – act as the first point of contact for people needing some form of care.  Provide information and communicate needs to appropriate team. Hospice Patient and Family Care – provide assistance for patients and families needing end-of-life care. Blood Donor – Coordinate blood requests for patients needing blood and the hospitals/doctors and manage the blood drives. PR/Marketing – Create and publish the monthly Newsletter, flyers for events.  Maintain our social media presence. Maintain our web site and video page. Translator – provide translation services for patients and teams as needed. Equipment – provide equipment (both respiratory and medical) as directed by Administrator. Training/Recruitment – meet and vet potential members and provide training. Home Comfort – As requested by Administrator, provide meals and music to patients. Ambassadors – be the public face of Hospice.  Staff the tables at events, answer questions or direct people to the person that can answer them, sell BHH products.  Write thank you notes to donors.  Set up for meetings as needed. Education – provide community education through various programs – CPR, Caregiver support, Being Prepared. Thank You to our WONDERFUL volunteers who have done so much during this year: Council Lesley Hughes Liz Bolt Merl Will-Wallace  John Ferguson Laurie Collier   Administrators Bev Tyler  Craig Gatrel   Equipment Sela Burkholder Michael Gallawa Judy Sacco Cat Vann Kat McKay Luis Botero Sally Zigmond   Respiratory Merl Will-Wallace John Ferguson  Luis Botero Mike Gallawa Sally Zigmond Meals Evie Jones Beverly Stearns Sarah Terry Cat Vann Kay Wade Mona Portalance  Nancy Halbert  Joan Schuetz  Nairn Kennedy Molly Traynor George Huff Linda Hart Jane Ruth Karen Hill Sandy Dillon Linda Sanchez  Joanie Feuerstein  Craig Gatrel John Ferguson  Dee Horn Hospice/Home Care Barbara Lapid Babbie Earle John Earle Being Prepared Joanie Feuerstein Char Lintz Genie Vidal PR/Marketing Laurie Collier Chris McCall Trish Christofferson Betty Landis Lorraine Handler Rod Parker Penny Barrett Blood Donor Carmen Restrepo  Marjorie Ramos-Sarner Translator Luis Botero Carmen Restrepo Music Val Strahl Beverly Stearns Ambassadors Erin Ross Kay Wade Penny Barrett Shirley Maffett Cat Vann John Sandeen CPR Team Linda & Bob Archer Jayden & Caden Boss Ivonne Cummings Sherry Sherritt Lesley Sherling  Merl Will-Wallace Babbie Earle Luis Botero Marsha Bowman Tita Hamm Denese Rodgers Lindy Colenda Lisca Bruna It is with great sadness that we announce that Sela Burkholder has informed the Council that she will be give up her leadership role on the Equipment Team.  For so many years Sela has made sure that the equipment is ready and available for loan to whomever needs it.  This has included repairs, maintaining inventory, tracking which patient has which piece of equipment and for how long, providing month-end reports of the team’s activities.  She has been available whenever her team or the Administrator had questions and always with a good spirit and heart.  Sela, THANK YOU!   It is with great happiness that we announce that the team leadership role for Equipment will be filled by co-leaders Sally Zigmond and John Ferguson.  The Council is very happy to have these two excellent volunteers step in.  Sally and John, THANK YOU! HELP NEEDED: Boquete Health and Hospice is compiling a list of those people in the community who are qualified as Grief and/or Stress councilors.  It has been suggested that there is a need for this service.  BHH will put together a list and provide it to those who are interested or in need.  These are NOT recommendations, and it is up to the person requesting the information to follow up.   Click Here to Enlarge Tree Many Thanks to Our Donors Who Have Helped Fill Our Tree of Life   With your generous donation of $100+, you get a leaf on our Tree of Life!  Help us Grow  Our programs will continue in 2021; hospice care, education events, medical equipment, help and blood are available to all.  We are grateful for your caring donations!  Thank you!  Boquete Health and Hospice Magic of Music Our music team includes Val Strahl, Beverly Stearns.  This team will provide music to any of our BHH patients who request it.  We will ask you to tell us about your favorite music, and then create a personalized playlist for you.  This is a lending program and we will lend you a small digital music player so that you can listen to this personalized music using earbuds. We could lend you cd’s if you prefer.  Music can bring back memories, take our mind off our worries and pains and sometimes change our moods too.  This program serves all patients recovering from illness, surgery or a fall, but it may especially help those with Dementia and Alzheimer’s.     The Magic of Music to help our patients Our Mission Our mission is to provide palliative care for the terminally ill in order that they may experience death with dignity and limited pain; to inform and promote community health; and, to support people with health and wellness needs by providing information, equipment and volunteer services.   To Make a Donation  BHHF functions with donations provided by the community. If you are interested in supporting the work we do, please make a donation. To make a financial contribution by check, cash or direct deposit to our Global Bank account, please contact Merl Will-Wallace, our treasurer, at dharma49@icloud.com” You can also click here to make an online Paypal donation. For more information visit our website: http://www.boquetehealth.org We also have a Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/boqueteheartshandsandhelp/?ref=bookmarks  Please Like our page and share the contents with your family and friends. Confidentiality All patient information shared with any Boquete Health and Hospice volunteer is kept in the strictest confidence. To Contact Us Hospice/Health:  (507) 6781-9250 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday,  9am to 1pm Saturday and Sunday    Please!    Blood Donor Program:  WhatApp (507)-6590-2000 or call (507)-6781-9250 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday,  9am to 1pm Saturday and Sunday, Please.   Email:  info@boquetehealth.org