PAH Skilled Care Nurse Works Tirelessly to Aid Others – Both in the Hospital and Out
For Wanda Rogers, RN, nursing isn’t just a career. It’s a way of life. Wanda, a Clinical Nurse III who has worked on 5 Spruce in the Skilled Care Center for the past 12 years, has dedicated both her career and her life to helping others.
With the assistance of PAH co-workers, a local pastor and her two daughters – both of whom are also nurses – Wanda has started the HERO Project. “HERO stands for Healthcare, Education, Referral and Outreach,” explains Wanda. “Through this initiative we will offer education, support and health care access to low income populations, starting in Germantown and hopefully branch out into other areas in the City.”
For Wanda, Germantown is a natural location to launch the HERO Project; it’s her hometown neighborhood. This Saturday, May 19, from 11 am to 4 pm, Wanda and her 5 Spruce colleagues Delores Stanford, MSN, RN, Clinical Nurse III, and Darlene Andrews, LPN, will be staffing the New Hope Outreach Center Health Fair in Germantown.
Held at the Happy Hollow Playground and Recreation Center, 4800 Wayne Avenue, the New Hope Outreach Center Health fair will be a family-friendly event. There will be free music by a live band, caricature drawings, face painting, Philly-style soft pretzels, hot dogs, Rita‘s Water Ice and cold drinks. “The health fair is a real family affair,” said Wanda. “But we’ll also be offering as much health information we can that is relevant to the population. We’ll be giving blood pressure screenings and offering information and counseling about diabetes, heart attack, stroke, high cholesterol, prostate cancer and colon cancer screenings. We’ll also have information about HIV, teenage pregnancy and prevention, pap smears and breast cancer screenings for women.”
Not one to rest on past laurels, Wanda is spearheading several more projects that will be launching this summer and fall. One she is most excited about is the New Hope Outreach Center Health Care Counseling Clinic. A walk-in clinic to be held every Tuesday from 11 am to 3 pm, people are welcome to come and talk with a nurse about any health issues or concerns they may have. “We want to help people better their own health. To learn what they need to go do get proper care and where. We will help the uninsured, partially insured and insured all the same and offer counseling on obtaining health insurance as well,” said Wanda.
Two future projects that Wanda and the HERO Project are currently working on are the New Hope Outreach Center’s House of Hope and the PAH Skilled Care Center Community Fall Prevention Clinic. The House of Hope will provide services for people recovering from addictions. “Through the House of Hope we’ll arrange health care referrals and offer information on housing, drug rehabilitation programs, health care and spiritual counseling,” said Wanda.
Experienced in treating and caring for older adults with orthopaedic issues, Wanda understands the need to educate the elderly on fall prevention. Through the Community Fall Prevention Clinic, Wanda and her team will visit senior citizen centers and assistant living facilities to provide a 20 minute presentation and information session on fall prevention. “We are providing this service free as just one or our ways of reaching out to our community to help them at a time of need,” said Wanda. “We don’t need special equipment or extra space to present our program. All we need are participants with the desire to maintain or improve their level of physical safety and have fun while learning!”
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