Audio clip
Nina Ventra
At age 91, Hazel Adams lives alone with good blood pressure, stable blood sugar and no immediate health concerns.
But if she had problems, registered nurses from Southern Adventist University are there to help.
"We're promoting community health," said registered nurse Jared Coston, one of nearly a dozen registered nurses from Southern who make weekly visits to elderly and disabled residents in East Chattanooga.
The Southern Adventist University school of nursing and the East Chattanooga Weed and Seed program are partnering to provide Door2Door, a home visitation program in which registered nurses visit residents once a week to check on their well-being.
The East Chattanooga Weed and Seed program started about two years ago with a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The grant is to be distributed over a five-year period to rid the community of crime and help start programs to benefit residents.
There is no charge for the nurse visits, and they don't replace home health services. However, they do teach about healthy living, organize and explain medicines and assist with residents getting access to community resources.
"Those who really benefit are those who are alone and have trouble getting out and about," said Nina Ventra, community outreach director for Weed and Seed. "We don't want to limit anybody, but those are the people we want to target."
About 12 residents participate so far, she said, and Weed and Seed hopes to add more.
"Sometimes residents have limited transportation and they can't get to the doctor regularly. With this, residents are getting weekly basic medical check ups," said Vivian Hixson, Weed and Seed site coordinator.
Ms. Adams said her family members come to see her, but she has no children and she appreciates the nurses' visits.
"It's nice when they check on you to find out if anything is wrong," she said.
Participating students earned their registered nurse certification in May. Working with the residents allows them to earn clinical experience and goes toward completing their bachelor's of science degrees, Ms. Ventra said.
Chattanooga police officers paved the way for the Door2Door program when they started visiting elderly residents in East Chattanooga in the 1990s under the Oasis program, Ms. Hixson said.
Weed and Seed officials used the Oasis list of residents to begin the list for Door2Door. Ms. Ventra said she also went with some officers to inform residents of the Door2Door program.
"There are people who, as they get older, have limited contact with others," she said. "They are uncomfortable going out as much because they think they may fall. We want to let them know there are people out there who want to help."
TO LEARN MORE
For more information about Door2Door call the East Chattanooga Weed and Seed office at 752-4449 or the Southern Adventist University School of Nursing at 236-2940.
Yolanda Putman has been a reporter at the Times Free Press for 11 years. She covers housing and previously covered education and crime. Yolanda is a Chattanooga native who has a master’s degree in communication from the University of Tennessee and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Alabama State University. She previously worked at the Lima (Ohio) News. She enjoys running, reading and writing and is the mother of one son, Tyreese. She has also ...
Or login with:
New Account