By: Robert Remler
The program will take place at Winthrop's Community Outreach Center, 101 Mineola Boulevard in Mineola. Appointments are required and can be scheduled by calling 516-663-8301 from Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon.Winthrop will also provide volunteer nursing staff for the distribution of flu and pneumonia vaccines at two other locations: Mineola Community Center (Mineola residents only) on Monday, Nov. 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Call 516-465-4075 after Oct. 28, for an appointment and Garden City Recreation Center (Garden City residents only) on Monday, Dec. 3, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Call 516-465-4075 after Nov. 5, for an appointment.The program is CO-sponsored by the Nassau County Department of Senior Citizen Affairs, the Nassau County Department of Health and Nassau University Medical Center. There is no out-of-pocket expense for the vaccines.Those who are unable to attend the above listed programs can obtain information about additional sites by calling the Flu Information Line at 516-571-1627.
LIJ cancer support group
The Long Island Jewish Medical Center will offer a support group for people with Cancer and their families on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 19, Tuesday, Dec. 3 and 17.The group will meet at Long Island Jewish Medical Center at 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the hospital's Oncology Building, second floor located at 270-05 76th Ave., New Hyde Park.Pre registration is required. For more information or to register contact Sharon Lerman, CSW at 718-470-8964.
Community wellness lecture
Otolaryngologist Andrea Vambutas, MD at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, will host a lecture, "Common Ear Problems; Vertigo, Hearing Loss & Tinnitus," on Monday, Oct. 21, at 2 p.m. in the hospital's Teaching Center 201 A, B, & C, located at 270-05 76th Ave., New Hyde Park.Refreshments and blood pressure screening will be offered at 1:30 p.m. and the lecture will begin at 2 p.m.For more information or to register, contact the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System's Department of Professional and Public Health Education at 516-465-2500.
Support nursing recruitment
With the nursing shortage threatening to balloon to 800,000 by 2010, administrators at South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside are joining a growing chorus of health care providers nationwide urging Congressional leaders to appropriate the necessary funding to support the Nurse Reinvestment Act.The American Hospital Association-backed law, adopted unanimously by Congress last month and signed by the President on Aug. 1, is the first step in expanding and improving current federal initiatives that encourage nursing as a profession.President and CEO Joseph A. Quagliata said it is imperative that Congress properly fund the programs created through the Nurse Reinvestment Act in order for its benefits to be realized. A report recently released by the Joint Commission for Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations points out that 126,000 nursing vacancies currently exist, thereby creating a nursing staffing crisis and threatening our public health system. The report cites some of the changes that are needed to address the shortage, including improving access to nursing education and increasing federal funding to reach these goals.The Nurse Reinvestment Act establishes hospital grants for nurse retention, a national nurse service corps scholarship program, and comprehensive geriatric training grants for nurses. It also calls for a multimedia campaign designed to promote the image of nursing, career ladder grants, and loan repayment programs that require nurses to spend a set amount of time in a faculty position at a school of nursing.
Blood pressure screening
Long Beach Medical Center Registered Nurses will provide free blood pressure screening and information on hypertension on Thursday, Oct. 24 from noon to 2 p.m. at the Long Beach Public Library, 111 E. Park Ave., Long Beach. For more information, call the LBMC Health Styles Program at 897-1090.
So. Nassau offers help
South Nassau Communities Hospital of Oceanside has numerous support groups, programs and seminars available to the public. The following are just some of what the hospital offers: The Divorced and Supported Group meets from 7 to 8 p.m. the first and third Monday of the month; the Bereavement Support Group is scheduled to begin an eight-week series that will meet on Mondays from 6 to 7 p.m. beginning Oct. 21; the Cancer Support Group will meet on Oct. 23 in Conference Room 2 from 8 to 9:30 p.m.; the Breast Cancer Support Group will meet on alternate Tuesdays from 8 to 9 p.m. beginning on Oct. 29 in the Mental Health Counseling Center; the Irritable Bowel Syndrome Support Group will meet on Oct. 24 from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Mental Health Counseling Center; an Infant and Child CPR Course is available at a cost of $35 per person on Oct. 24 from 7 to 10 p.m., Oct. 26 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Oct. 26 from 2 to 5 p.m. in the Mental Health Counseling Center; a Diabetes Fair will take place on Nov. 4 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in Conference Room 2.The hospital is located at One Healthy Way in Oceanside. The Mental Health Counseling Center is located at 2277 Grand Avenue in Baldwin. For more information on these and other happenings at the hospital call (516) 632-4460. Pre-registration is recommended.
