| Letter from the President
Dear Friends, I'm excited to report that Kat McKay has taken over the vice president position recently vacated by longtime volunteer and past president Laurie Collier. Kat has been a valued member of the Equipment team for some time and the announcement follows below. There's also been quite a bit of activity in the personnel area at BHH this month as new volunteers take on roles within our organization as described in this month's BHH Transitions column. These changes represent a tangible and welcome strengthening of our organization. With the advisement of our medical director, Dra. Shannon Tuer, the Council has revised our Covid and vaccination policies after a very careful review. Please read the new policy, which may be found in this newsletter and on our website. We are now accepting unvaccinated volunteers for training. Masks and social distancing are still required at physical gatherings and with any contact with clients or the public in one's capacity as a BHH volunteer.
As a part of our mental health initiative, Dr. Rod Gottula recently gave a talk at the Boquete library about dementia and support for people caring for a dementia patient. Thirty people attended this important outreach event. Dr. Rod created an excellent dementia resources page for participants which we are now posting in both English and Spanish on the Boquete Health and Hospice website. It can also be found later in this issue.
In addition, as part of our outreach and education in dementia and care for dementia patients, our Patient Care Coordinators (PCCs) have been taking a course about suicide prevention under the direction of Michael Polacek, DNP, RN, PMH-BC, covering how to respond to suicide calls. Called QPR (for Question, Persuade, Refer), this course will help PCCs when they receive these types of calls. We are also developing a resources page for the website which will be available for the PCCs and the callers. Our Magic of Music team now has six speakers and 12 music players available for use by patients or caregivers. If you know of anyone who would like to experience the magic of music as an aid to healing you can refer them to the Magic of Music tab on our website. Different playlists are available to suit everyone's personal taste. Finally, if you're interested in donating to BHH, please check out the Tree of Life column in this issue. For the time being, PayPal is unavailable for donations, but there are still two ways to contribute. We appreciate your generosity! To sum up, the Boquete Health and Hospice organization is thriving.
May you be well and happy,
John Earle | | | Meet Kat McKay, BHH's New Vice President
This month we are thrilled to announce the appointment of Kat McKay as our new Vice President. Kat has been one of our most valuable volunteers since 2017. | | | | Kat started out on the Equipment team, loaning out and maintaining our inventory of medical equipment. Earlier this year, she became co-leader of that team with Sally Zigmond, who gave Kat a crash course in how things are run. "I was ready for a new challenge," says Kat, "and as team co-leader, my responsibilities included keeping regular inventory of our equipment, maintaining each piece, and always looking for a bargain on a new piece of equipment."
"I met many new members of BHH who have been excellent to work with," continues Kat. "The Equipment team leaders work closely with the Patient Care Coordinators and the manager of our new database to keep our list of available equipment accurate and up to date."
In her professional life, Kat served as Supervisor of the Nuclear Medicine department in many US hospitals. Her 45-year career took her from training in Atlanta to the west coast and ultimately back east to Virginia. In 2009, Kat and her husband Alan Nilson made the decision to retire to Boquete, and purchased a piece of land on which they built a small house and a huge garden. In 2013 they permanently relocated here. One of the first things Kat did was establish the Jaramillo Garden Club along with three friends. Kat calls gardening "one of my passions."
Kat's first volunteer experience in Boquete was with Amigos de Animales, helping at their monthly spay and neuter clinics. She continues to volunteer there, working on promotions, fundraising, and membership. Just last year both Kat and Alan became members of Rotario de Boquete (the Rotary Club of Boquete) and were asked to join the board as Administrative Directors. Kat says of Rotary, "We love our work there with so many dedicated people."
Kat also volunteers with Plants for Pooches, which raises funds for DogCamp Boquete's animal rescue efforts by selling plants. "Being an avid gardener, this is an ideal group for me! We have raised a phenomenal amount of money doing really fun things with just our hard work and knowledge of plants."
It might sound like Kat is keeping awfully busy with her extensive volunteer work, but she also makes time for fun, including traveling, outdoor activities, trying her hand at painting, discovering good restaurants, and mostly just being with people. "I am blessed with so many good friends in the US and Panama. It truly makes life worth living."
"I do love volunteering in any capacity and I strongly suggest that everyone with a bit of spare time become involved in any of the wonderful organizations based in Boquete," says Kat. "We have some of the best people here that I have ever been involved with. They are passionate and giving of their time and money, fun loving, and young at heart. Of all my volunteer positions, I love the people of BHH and the community that we serve. It is such a rewarding feeling to be able to offer our neighbors all that we do, and to be a leader in this effort for Panama."
In her new role as Vice President, Kat will work with the Council to enhance the services provided to improve the health and well-being of the Boquete community and enrich volunteer opportunities for our BHH team members.
We know our readers will join us in congratulating Kat on her new position and wishing her the very best. We are fortunate to have someone of her caliber and commitment in a leading role in our organization, and certain she will continue to do great things for BHH and the people we serve.
| | | New Policy ~
Communicable Diseases
Updated September 15, 2022 | | | | BHH Medical Director Dra. Shannon Tuer met with the Council to discuss her recommendations for our communicable diseases policy. After a discussion of various options a unanimous vote was taken to amend our policy and make it more general. Dra. Shannon also mentioned that there has been an increase in non-Covid illnesses in Boquete lately. The new policy is: At all indoor BHH events everyone shall be masked and social distancing practiced. If eating/drinking is part of the event, it will take place outside, and masks replaced before re-entering the room.
Item 1: Any team that interacts with the public or patients/families must be vaccinated. At the current time this applies to the following teams: Equipment, Bed, Respiratory, Hospice and Family Care, Patient Care Coordinators, Tuesday Market, and Being Prepared.
Item 2: Specifically for the Meal team, MINSA requires all preparers of food to be masked. Therefore: - All volunteers preparing meals for delivery must wear masks while preparing food.
- All volunteers must wear masks while delivering food.
- Patients/family members receiving meals must wear masks.
- Vaccination of BHH volunteers on the Meal Team is encouraged.
Item 3: Starting with the next New Volunteer Training class, the following changes were agreed upon: - The Volunteer Coordinator will meet with all class members prior to class to try to determine what team they may wish to join in order to determine if vaccinations are required.
- Only those who are vaccinated will be allowed to join the teams referenced above in Item 2. All others are encouraged to be vaccinated, but it is not a requirement.
- While in class, masks will be required.
- Food and drink will be consumed outside.
Your compliance with these policies is deeply appreciated. The safety of our volunteers, patients, and the public is our highest priority. | | | BHH Transitions
This month we welcome our newly trained volunteers in the roles they selected, as well as additions to the Council: | | | - Vice President – Kat McKay accepted the appointment to be our new Vice President. Her appointment was unanimously agreed to by the Council at the September 15 meeting.
- Treasurer – Bill Hinrichsen has now officially taken over from Lesley Hughes. Lesley will continue as Bill's backup and Bill will continue as webmaster.
- Blood and Events/Fundraising – John Quintana is helping out on the Blood team while Carmen Restrepo is away. Carmen still has the phone (6590–2000) and is answering calls while on vacation. John is in Boquete, doing what needs to be done to facilitate communication between those who need blood and the various hospitals and the Blood Center at Hospital Regional. John also has an extensive experience in managing events and has agreed to work on the Events/Fundraising team. BHH (and the community) are all looking forward to see what wonderful ideas he has. Ginny Woolley has also agreed to help the Blood team and Rob Ryan will be actively involved in Events/Fundraising.
- Equipment – Bob and Kelly Honyak were trained and began handling equipment requests the following week. Wonderful work! And a farewell to Don Norris, who did a superb job restoring our equipment but has left for the US. We are very grateful for Don's skill and dedication. Thank you, Don!
- Respiratory – Bob Honyak was trained and is now ready to handle any respiratory equipment requests.
- Librarian – Herta Bernbach became our BHH Librarian. Over the last 14 years books have been purchased or donated, and then given to the Boquete Library so that they are available for use by the community. Most of them have to do with dealing with terminal illnesses and how to handle the death of a loved one. One of our retired members, Beverly Stearns, who was very involved with these written resources, has agreed to help Herta. They will visit the library to see what books are still there, make a list (including the location of the books), and then make suggestions for replacements if any of the books need replacing or suggestions for new purchases to flesh out the offerings. The PCCs will refer anyone who may need these resources to Herta and she can recommend which books may be of value. Herta will also be at our registration table at our Blood Drive in November and our Being Prepared Workshop in January.
- Marketing – Deb Hornstra has an incredible background in marketing and public relations. She has jumped in to write for the newsletter and took over posting on social media while Dave Nichols was away. Her engaging posts on Facebook and other social media have boosted our presence in the community and attracted volunteers for open positions.
- Mental Health – Ginny Woolley is very interested in helping those with dementia and their caregivers and is a great addition to the team.
- Training – Maxine (Max) Wolfe has an extensive training experience and even though she was a member of the recent New Volunteer class, she also took on some of the training duties. BHH is looking forward to the next New Volunteer Training Class which will be held in the first quarter of 2023.
| |  | Bob and Kelly Honyak after completing their first assignment. Look at those happy faces! It feels good to help others and the community.
Did you know that BHH has medical equipment for loan such as oxygen concentrators, wheelchairs, walkers, bedside commodes, etc.? Anyone who lives in the Boquete area is eligible to borrow the equipment needed. It is a wonderful community resource. | | | Deb Hornstra Joins Marketing Team
We are pleased to welcome Deb Hornstra to our Marketing team. Deb just retired to Boquete this summer. She will be working with Natalie Kelly, John Quintana, and others to elevate and expand BHH's marketing, promotional, and fundraising efforts. Focusing initially on strengthening our social media presence and growing our volunteer and donor | | | base through consistent engagement, Deb brings a wide range of skills and experience to her new volunteer role. She holds a Bachelor's in Communications and a Master's in Health Advocacy, and has served in similar capacities for many nonprofit organizations, mostly in the healthcare and education fields.
For the last eighteen years Deb has marketed residential properties in New Jersey and Pennsylvania as an agent with Coldwell Banker Princeton. She is a talented writer and editor who is comfortable with today's digital technologies. Deb is an energetic ideas person who is excited to help take BHH's marketing to the next level. "I have an abiding interest in health care provision, and I greatly admire what BHH has been able to accomplish in its first fifteen years. I see many opportunities for the organization to continue to provide even more people with services they need and cannot otherwise get."
Deb has two children and two grandchildren back in Jersey. She enjoys live music, reading books, traveling, and learning new things. She spent six years living in the Netherlands and speaks fluent Dutch. She's working on her Spanish! Deb says, "If you have not done so already, I urge all readers of this newsletter to like our Facebook page, follow our Instagram account, and subscribe to our YouTube channel. All are easy to find by searching for Boquete Health and Hospice. This is the best way to make sure you always know what we are doing and how to access our services." | | | Blood Program Helps in Time of Need
We recently received this testimonial about our blood program. When you or a loved one needs blood, knowing that BHH has your back is a comforting thought.
"The Blood bank was a huge help when my wife needed another donation. Not only did they supply a unit of blood at no cost and with minimal information, they stayed on top of the process the entire time. When the hospital became difficult they where there to talk and help me through the process. In the days that followed they continued to check in on us and make sure that there was nothing else they could do to help my wife. If you are able to, please donate blood through them. There is little to no cost for blood through the program. When I donated directly to my wife through the hospital it cost me $333 for my own blood." | | |
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