HEALTH MINISTRY TEAM

PARISH NURSE  --  Gary Gorline, RN (716-213-6536)

HEALTH MINISTRY TEAM 

Bill Scheider, nutrition;                       Nancy Naffziger, psychologist;    

Mary Ess, health aide                       Dan Brown, psychologist      

Debbie Kampff, school RN               Sharon Holland, retired school RN         

David Felser, dialysis RN                 Carolyn Butler, ICU RN

Rev. amos acree, RN, pastor  

HEALTH MINISTRY PROGRAMS

We are excited about this new phase of ministry here at EACC with our new Parish Nurse, Gary Gorline.  We are collecting a new Congregational Health Needs survey this month, to help determine where we place our emphasis over the next couple of years.  If you have input, please let us know.  Also, Gary has a special phone line for you to contact him directly - (dial all numbers as listed:)  716-213-6536.  Or call the church office, and we will pass along any message.  He works with us 10-12 hours a month.  And he is available for consultations, questions, visits.   Our next Health Ministry Team meeting will be Wednesday, July 15, 7 pm.  We will evaluate the survey and plan for the new year. 

We continue our program of "transition coaching" in conjunction with the Parish Nurse Ministry of NY.  This involves tracking the well-being of people as they "transition" from one type of health care situation to another.  This includes being sent to the hospital and then back home or to rehab or other living arrangements.  It is to help empower patients and their families in this often difficult process.  This will involve anyone of whatever age.  Even after the formal program is over, if you or a loved one is admitted to a hospital, and could use some assistance in getting through the complex health care system, please contact Pastor acree or Parish Nurse Gary Gorline.  It involves a visit to the person in the hospital, helping them understand what is going on, and then follow-up with visits and/or phone calls once the transition has been made.  For more information about this special program, contact Pastor acree or Gary.  Particpation is voluntary.  It is hoped that this program will alleviate a lot of problems that people have in these transitions, and hopefully avoid major problems from developing down the road, leading to repeated admissions.

We also offer Blood Pressure screenings each month at our Fellowship Hours following worship, one Sunday each month.  Check the calendar of events for specific dates, or contact the church for individualized help.  The next date is June 28.   

Even though the formal phase of our "Get Fit with Faith" program has ended, we continue the walking club portion of it, and look for ways to enhance the nutrition information we have received.   We are asking folk to walk twice a month.  At this time, we will be walking on the 1st Saturday & 3rd Thursday, 9:30 am.  (upcoming dates are July 4 & 16, Aug. 1 & 20.) We are back outside walking.  So join us at the church parking lot.  We encourage walking on your own, but an integral part of this program is the "group walk," which enables us to commit ourselves to a group goal, and encourage one another.  More information is available, and each walker should have received a walking packet, including a pedometer and a stop watch.  This is part of a wider community effort to prevent heart and stroke disease.  WNY has the highest incidence of heart/stroke disease in the US.  The goal is to be active at the target rate for approximately 30 minutes each time. 

  OUR Parish Nurse is getting to know us, and work with our Team and congregation.  You can still get answers or help with health related issues by contacting the church, or calling Gary at 716-213-6536. 

Moment of Wholeness  --  God’s Gift of Good Health Habits

My View on Health News Recent stories about swine flu have surely stirred our concerns about health and disease. This is but the latest of several accounts of sickness that have affected groups of people in several places. Serious respiratory illnesses like influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), whooping cough, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) are spread by: w Coughing or sneezing and www.cdc.gov offers many resources for development of good health habits. Some CDC articles were used as a basis for the remainder of this article. These are very likely a good review of common sense. Stop the Spread of Germs that Make You and Others Sick! Healthy habits can protect everyone from getting germs or spreading germs at home, work, or school. To help stop the spread of germs: Clean Hands Saves Lives!; Wash Your Hands Often; Take Action Clean Hands Campaign; Consumer Advice: Clean: Handwashing; It's a SNAP Toolkit: Handwashing
Avoid close contact. Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.Stay home when you are sick. If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.

w Unclean hands. Often relatively large numbers of individuals have taken ill. The infections seemed to spread quite rapidly. Some individuals became very ill and others died. Words like "pandemic" were offered by some to describe the events. I will leave the labeling of these kinds of sickness outbreaks to the experts. What I want to think about at times like these is how we as people of God will respond.

It is my belief that good health habits are a gift from God. We are able to respond with thanks and gratitude to Him for this gift or we can take such gift for granted. It is also possible that we can over- react and become so disturbed by events like this that we choose a ‘blame game’. The result of this mind set most likely will be a negative outcome in several ways. What is most valuable as a grateful response is to do the right things. In the instance of good health habits, we know that some experts in science and health have given some guidelines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at

ź Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.

• If you don't have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve, not your hands.
• Put your used tissue in the waste basket.

Cover your mouth and nose. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. Clean your hands after coughing or sneezing

ź Wash with soap and water. or ź Clean with alcohol-based hand cleaner.

Note: You may be asked to put on a surgical mask to protect others.Clean your hands. Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs.

• It is best to wash your hands with soap and warm water for 20 seconds
• When water is not available, use alcohol-based products (sanitizers)
• Wash hands before preparing or eating food or after going to the bathroom
• Wash your hands after handling waste products, garbage, or other clearly dirty items

Here are some other bulletins at the CDC website that can be printed for more details -

My wish is for Good Health Habits and Good Health to All.

Parish Nurse Gary