guild gifts put to work at saint john's

Working in healthcare is never easy but the past few years have been enormously taxing for caregivers everywhere.  The Irene Dunne Guild is pleased to support caregivers at Saint John's with supportive programs and equipment that helps care for them and enhanced the personalized care they provide for our community. 

At our January General Meeting, Guild members heard how our fundraising dollars are deployed at the Health Center. Recent gifts from the Guild include: Massages for Caregivers, Biocon Bladder Scanners, a FloWater Station for staff in the Cancer Center, electric gurneys for the Pre-op and the GI Departments, a Cardiac i-StatMachine for the Heart and Vascular Department, portable battery headlights for the Heart and Vascular Department, portable fetal monitors for the Labor and Delivery department, Locker Room Refresh for ICU and PCCU and Nursing Scholarships.

Caregiver representatives from various departments described each of these gifts and how they are being used at the hospital. Their excitement and heartfelt appreciation for these gifted programs and equipment was palpable! 

We also heard from our Guild member liaisons to various institutes in the Health Center who updated fellow members on exciting new programs and research at Providence Saint John's. One example was guild member Kathy Yawitz's update on the Pacific Neuroscience Institute (PNI).  

She said that PNI has been creating “a roadmap to brain health.” This combines memory training, exercise, and nutritional-based curriculum. They are offering classes to the community, with various packages to choose from and individual, group and virtual sessions available for varying time lengths and prices. One example was a class called Vital Minds – catered towards individuals experiencing cognitive changes, covering brain-healthy behaviors such as diet, exercise, sleep, stress reduction, cognitive stimulation, and memory strategies. She mentioned another class addressing memory care, helpful for individuals, loved ones and for home health caregivers. Another class, LifestyleHealth Coaching, offers virtual classes which focus on healthy lifestyle behaviors including sleep, stress management, exercise, diet – certainly something that all of us could appreciate. This and many other classes are available at affordable prices.

For more information, please refer to the Pacific Neuroscience Institute's website.www.pacificneuroscienceinstitute.org/brain-health/lifestyle/