Wentworth-Douglass expands Primary Care into the Rochester Area: Seacoast health news

Wentworth-Douglass expands Primary Care into the Rochester Area

ROCHESTER — Wentworth-Douglass Hospital and the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce celebrated the addition of Primary Care of Rochester to the community on Sept. 21 during a ribbon-cutting ceremony and Business After Hours event outside the new practice at The Ridge Marketplace.

Primary Care of Rochester, a Mass General Brigham Healthcare Center, is an appointment-based primary care practice committed to providing primary care and preventative health care to the entire family from newborn to seniors. The practice opened to the public on Monday, Sept. 26.

“Rochester has been, and continues to be, a part of Wentworth-Douglass Hospital’s primary service area. As a not-for-profit health care system with a mission focused on meeting the health care needs of the community, we saw a need for these healthcare services in the Rochester area and we’re proud to be here to help fill that need,” said Wentworth-Douglass Hospital President & CEO Jeff Hughes. “Our aim is to provide patient-centered care delivered with pride, that patients will recommend. We are pleased to be able to strengthen our ties to the Rochester community.”

Services offered at Primary Care of Rochester include routine checkups, physicals and health screenings, immunizations, and scheduled lab draws.

In addition, patients at Primary Care of Rochester also have access to the Wentworth-Douglass network of specialty and urgent care services, and access to additional specialized and subspecialized healthcare services at Wentworth-Douglass, or throughout the Mass General Brigham health care system, depending on individual needs.

“This is really an exciting time for Wentworth-Douglass. Rochester is our first location featuring our new Mass General Brigham/Wentworth-Douglass Hospital brand identity,” said Assistant Vice President of Wentworth Health Partners Melisa Bartlett. “As we continue to integrate with Mass General Brigham and all the services they help us provide to our local communities, we’re excited to bring those services here to Rochester.”

The staff of Primary Care of Rochester will include Jean Ball, APRN and Lori Wood, APRN, two experienced advanced nurse practitioners with strong professional ties to the Rochester area. Peter Janelle will serve as Practice Manager.

Approximately 60 local business leaders, state lawmakers and city officials came out to welcome Primary Care of Rochester to the community.

The practice is located at The Ridge Marketplace (92 Farmington Road, Route 11, Suite 9). The practice’s hours of operation will be Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Primary Care of Rochester is accepting new patients and those who are interested should call 603-516-4212 or visit https://wdhospital.org/rochester.

Foundation for Seacoast Health announces RFP from organizations serving older adults

PORTSMOUTH — New Hampshire has one of the fastest growing older adult populations with nearly 20% of Rockingham County residents 65 years of age or above. Research shows that social isolation and loneliness have a serious impact on older people’s longevity, physical and mental health, and their quality of life.  To address this growing need, The Foundation for Seacoast Health is seeking proposals from organizations that reduce, improve, or positively impact the social isolation of Seacoast individuals over the age of 65.  Priority will be given to grant proposals from organizations who serve people facing barriers to access such as income, inequities (race, cultural, gender, disability, other), or transportation.

The Foundation expects to award $100,000 during this upcoming grant cycle.  The maximum request is $50,000.  Organizations are encouraged to apply for new or existing programs; the program’s proven ability to be sustainable will be taken into serious consideration.  The final grant type will be dependent upon the proposals selected for funding. In some cases, multi-year general operating funding may be awarded.  Foundation staff will work with selected grantees to structure the funds to best meet the needs of the organization and those they serve.

The deadline for proposals is Nov. 1.  Grantees will be notified of their status by Dec. 5. For more information visit https://www.foundationforseacoasthealth.org/grantmaking.

Cornerstone VNA selected as The Fabulous Find beneficiary for October

ROCHESTER — Cornerstone VNA, a local nonprofit home health and hospice care provider, was chosen as one of four recipients of proceeds from October sales at The Fabulous Find in Kittery, Maine. The Fabulous Find, a 501c3 non-profit organization (listed under A Caring Community), is a beautifully merchandized boutique style resale shop, located at 139 State Rd (Route One) in Kittery, which partners with different worthy, local non-profit organizations each month.

According to Marcye Philbrook, The Fabulous Find Board President, “All profits are donated to whatever organizations are selected by our board for that month. Our overhead is low, and the more sales we do, the bigger the check to each nonprofit at the end of the month.” Philbrook adds, “We opened in mid-July of 2010, and with tremendous support from the community, we have given out over $2.3 million dollars to more than 150 local non-profits. Amazing!”

Julie Reynolds, RN, MS, CEO of Cornerstone VNA remarks, “Cornerstone VNA truly appreciates being selected as one of the October beneficiaries alongside the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire, Triangle Club and Pro Portsmouth.”  Reynolds adds, “The quality of The Fabulous Find store and the money they raise to benefit local non-profit organizations is quite exceptional.”

Cornerstone VNA encourages community members and supporters to donate gently worn clothing, jewelry, and home décor, and also shop at The Fabulous Find all month long. Additional details on what the boutique accepts for donations can be found at www.thefabulousfind.org/donate.

To learn more about Cornerstone VNA, visit www.cornerstonevna.org or call 800-691-1133.

New Hampshire Hospital Association receives 2022 Power of Associations Gold Award

CONCORD — The New Hampshire Hospital Association has announced it earned a Power of Associations Gold Award from the American Society of Association Executives for its COVID-19 Response and Recovery initiative.

The New Hampshire Hospital Association and its affiliated organization, the Foundation for Healthy Communities, demonstrated the Power of Community Support and Engagement through its response to the COVID-19 pandemic on behalf of the health care community and residents of New Hampshire. Those efforts included establishing its incident command on behalf of member hospitals, launching the COVID-19 Response & Recovery team that remains in place today, and transforming staff resources to prioritize the needs of member hospitals and New Hampshire residents.

“Congratulations to the New Hampshire Hospital Association and its partner, the Foundation for Healthy Communities, for exemplifying the impact associations have on the industries and professions they represent, and on society at large,” said ASAE President and CEO Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE. “It’s always so incredibly satisfying to see associations going above and beyond their everyday mission to change the world. We’re very proud to spotlight this award-winning initiative.”

The NHHA engaged the Foundation for Healthy Communities and its Granite State Health Care Coalition, the regional health care emergency response coalition that works across the continuum of care with hospitals, long-term care facilities and public health networks, along with public health officials with the Department of Health & Human Services, member hospitals and others in support of the state’s public health response to the pandemic. Strengthened by this collaboration, the NHHA continues to address variant surges, clinical and public health recommendations, vital updates on COVID-19 responses, trending COVID-19 metrics, and vaccine and anti-viral medication distribution efforts as well as vaccine hesitancy and misinformation.

“From the very beginning of the pandemic, our priority was to ensure the highest level of collaboration and engagement on behalf of New Hampshire residents,” stated Steve Ahnen, president of the New Hampshire Hospital Association. “The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the true depth of community support and engagement needed in order to support patients and communities across New Hampshire, and we couldn’t be more proud of those efforts.”

“New Hampshire hospitals came together to face the worst public health crisis they have ever experienced with such strength and resilience on behalf of their patients and communities,“ stated Kevin Donovan, Chair of the New Hampshire Hospital Association Board of Trustees. “Their partnerships with the state and other stakeholders throughout COVID-19 continues to be an absolute testament of their commitment to end this pandemic, together.”

To learn more about the ASAE and the Power of Associations Awards program, visit them online at www.asaecenter.org.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Wentworth-Douglass into the Rochester Area: Seacoast health news