News & Events
Press Releases
With staff safety emerging as a major concern for home healthcare workers across the nation, Visiting Nurse Services in Westchester (VNSW) and our affiliate, Westchester Care at Home, are partnering with POM, a personal safety tech firm, to provide our field staff with a new tool that will help ensure their safety when making home care visits to patients. A pilot program to launch later this fall will equip a group of staff members with the POM safety device, instantly connecting them to emergency responders through a sophisticated GPS tracking and alert system.
Joann Parliament has been appointed VNSW's new Director of Patient Services after serving as Acting Director since March 2018. Joann has a distinguished record of service to the agency, serving in a number of leadership roles for more than 30 years -- most recently as Director of Admissions for the past 15 years.
The Westchester Visiting Nurse Services Group, Inc. Board (WVNS Group), parent organization of VNS Westchester; the VNSW Foundation, Inc.; and Westchester Care at Home, appointed new officers and two new Board members at its May meeting.
Close to 200 supporters attended the VNSW Foundation's May 16th Gala at the Willow Ridge Country Club in Harrison, where we honored two outstanding individuals and an innovative digital health service provider who have helped VNSW expand our vital mission of improving the health and sustaining the independence of elderly and other vulnerable populations. The event raised approximately $100K to support critical patient services and free community health programs.
Timothy P. Leddy, President/CEO of the Westchester Visiting Nurse Services Group, Inc., the parent organization of VNS Westchester and Westchester Care at Home, announced the appointment of Andrea Winchester as the organization's new Director of Human Resources. She brings 30 years of of human resources experience in the health care field, including 11 years in the home care industry.
VNSW was privileged to serve as the host of HCA's "Stop Sepsis at Home NY" Regional Training Session in the Hudson Valley. The program, held on January 10th in our Putnam branch office in Brewster, NY, attracted a broad cross-section of home health care providers and their partners for training on a first-of-its-kind in the nation sepsis screening and intervention tool. VNSW, along with other program participants, are preparing to adopt the tool for use during patient visits to stem the tide of sepsis, the body's overwhelming and often life-threatening response to an infection.
Visiting Nurse Services in Westchester, Inc. (VNSW), has been awarded a $25,000 grant from Aging in America, Inc. to support the integration of an innovative Sepsis Screening, Education and Intervention Tool into its clinical practice. The funding will enable our home care work force to screen more than 10,000 patients in their homes annually as part of its best practices in patient care. The VNSW Foundation, Inc. provided a matching grant of $25,000 to underwrite staff training in identifying and managing sepsis in the home and in utilizing the screening tool for optimal patient outcomes.
The following Board members were elected to the WVNS Group, Inc. Board:
- Martin Considine, who joined in May 2016 was elected Vice Chairperson.
- Arlene Rosen joined the Board in May 2016.
- Natasha Bowman, joined the Board in May 2017.
- Dr. Amy Ansehl, a Board member since 2011, was re-elected as Board Chair.
- Andrea McKay-Harris, a Board member since 2008, was re-elected Board Secretary.
- James Martell, who joined the Board in 2014 was elected Board Treasurer.
The VNSW Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit organization established to help ensure the future of VNS Westchester's vital home healthcare services and communty health education programs, held a successful fundraising event on May 10th at the Willow Ridge Country Club in Harrison, raising $110,000 and hosting 200 leaders from the region's healthcare, business and nonprofit community.
Funded by a New York State Department of Health Workforce Retraining Grant, Westchester Care at Home is partnering with Vital Care Services to train our Home Health Aides, Registered Nurses and Administrators on a variety of digital health technology tools. The goal is to help our staff better track and improve the health status of the agency's largely elderly client population, many of whom are grappling with one or more chronic diseases.
