A positive decision by the Saratoga County Planning Board represents an important step forward for Saratoga Hospital’s plans to develop medical offices in close proximity to the its main campus, hospital officials said.
At a meeting in April, the board approved a change intended to align the zoning map with the city’s comprehensive plan. That would lead to a zoning change to allow for construction of medical offices on Morgan Street.
Community Emergency Corps: Providing Ambulance Service For More Than 50 Years
By Susan E. Campbell
Imagine calling for an ambulance and wondering when it will arrive, if at all. Yet that was the reality for first response some 50 years ago.
“Each township had different response territories, and it could take a long time for an ambulance to get from one end of a territory to another,” said William Smith, a recently retired career firefighter and chief of operations for Community Emergency Corps based in Ballston Spa.
Community Emergency Corps is a nonprofit organization Smith has been a member of since 1998. Founded in 1966 by a group of concerned citizens, it provides emergency transport for the Village of Ballston Spa, Milton, the northern part of Ballston, and Middle Grove, an abutting section of Greenfield.
The Wesley Community Treats Patients Of All Ages Through Its Outpatient Therapy Program
By Rachel Phillips
For almost half a century, The Wesley Community, located at 131 Lawrence St. in Saratoga Springs, has offered care and housing for seniors and aging adults. Though the organization is well known for the services it offers to elderly patients, its outpatient therapy program is open to patients of all ages.
The Wesley community is a 36-acre, nonprofit agency offering a broad variety of services. The senior-care services the organization is known for include providing market rate, affordable housing for independent seniors, as well as enriched living apartments for seniors who desire additional support, and in-home health care services, short-term rehabilitation and long-term nursing care.
Saratoga Bariatric Surgery And Weight Loss Program Earns Designation For Quality Care
BlueShield of Northeastern New York has recognized Saratoga Hospital with a Blue Distinction Center+ designation for bariatric surgery as part of the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program.
The Saratoga Bariatric Surgery and Weight-Loss Program at Saratoga Hospital, located at 1 West Ave. Suite 300, in Saratoga Springs, is the only program in the region to have earned this national distinction.
“The Bariatric Team was elated when we heard the news,” said Dr. Dmitri Baranov, medical director of the Saratoga Bariatric Surgery and Weight-Loss Program. “We have earned the Blue Distinction Center for the last three years, but to earn the ‘plus’ distinction this year is a true testament to the quality, safety and care our dedicated team has been consistently providing for our patients at every stage of their weight-loss journey. This recognition is quite special, and we could not be more proud.”
Patient Monitoring Technology Improves Safety, Clinical Outcomes For Hospital Patients
Royal Philips, a health technology company, has integrated the Philips IntelliVue Guardian system—with automated Early Warning Scoring (EWS)—into the general care units of Saratoga Hospital to help improve patient safety and clinical outcomes.
Since implementing Philips’ patient monitoring technology, Saratoga Hospital has reduced patient transfers to the intensive care unit (ICU) by 63 percent and eliminated patient codes within its 20-bed orthopedic unit, which dropped from three or four codes per year to zero, according to the company.
Skidmore Professor Develops App That Tells User What To Eat, When They Should Exercise
Noted researcher Dr. Paul Arciero has devoted his career to helping people get more active and eat more natural, healthier foods.
It all started in the dirt of a community garden.
“Some of my fondest childhood memories come from tending that garden with my mother,” Arciero said, recalling the hot summers harvesting in rural Connecticut. “Going there with her, tending to the earth, getting dirty – that was my introduction to healthy nourishment.”
The key themes of fitness and family continue with some of Arciero’s latest work as well. He recently developed a new app, with help from his son Nick, a developer and coder. The GenioFit app lets a person know what they should eat and when they should exercise, Arciero said. He leads exercise videos in the app, as well as guided meditations.
“GenioFit embraces all the fundamental premises and mission of the research I’ve done, the organizations I represent, and who I am,” Arciero said. “It’s imperative that we engage in lifestyle strategies that engage healthy eating and exercise. There’s a synergy that lets us derive a significantly greater benefit when the two are together.”
He has spent 25 years at Skidmore College where he is a professor of nutrition and exercise science and director of the Human Nutrition & Metabolism Laboratory.
Arciero has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific journals, but his education in the world of healthy living didn’t all come from the classroom or the laboratory.
Mental Health Organization Names Judge James Doern As Its 2017 ‘Citizen Of The Year’
The Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health (SCCCMH) named Judge James E. D. Doern as its 2017 Citizen of the Year.
Judge Doern was honored at the group’s Mental Health Matters benefit at Longfellows Restaurant on May 3.
According to the mental health organization, Judge Doern’s community commitment dates to the early 1990s, beginning with his work with Rotary and continuing through the present with his dedication to a number of advocacy and human services organizations.
As Saratoga Springs City Court Judge for 18 years, he recognized the impact of un-met mental health, addiction, housing, transportation, and employment needs on people’s ability to function happily and productively in our community. As a result, Doern has worked tirelessly to improve the scope and collaboration of the community’s services.
In 2015, he was the force behind the establishment of a monthly gathering of human service providers, the mental health and substance abuse coalition. The purpose of this group is to identify and then rectify gaps in the continuum of care.
Saratoga Springs Housing Authority Policy Establishes Its Three Complexes As Smoke-Free
Saratoga Springs Housing Authority said in April that to protect the health and safety of its residents it has implemented a no-Âsmoking policy in all 339 of its housing units. It also limits smoking elsewhere on its properties.
The policies went into effect May 1.
“We are proud to take this important step in protecting the health and safety of our residents, employees and visitors,” said Executive Director Paul Feldman.”Whether it’s second-Âhand smoke filtering into neighboring apartment or common areas through doorways and ventilation systems, or the fire dangers associated with cigarettes, smoking presents risks that needed to be addressed.”
The policy is in effect at all three of the authority’s housing complexes: Jefferson Terrace, Vanderbilt Terrace and Stonequist Apartments.
In addition to prohibiting smoking indoors, the policy establishes a 25-Âfoot smoke-Âfree boundary around all outside entrances and exits and windows and a 50-Âfoot smoke-Âfree boundary around the authority’s playgrounds.
Feldman said the policy was discussed and developed over the past year in collaboration with Glens Falls Hospital’s Health Promotion Center, through its state-Âfunded Living Tobacco-ÂFree Initiative.
Citizens Committee For Mental Health Names Laurie Nelson As 2016 Citizen Of The Year
Laurie Nelson was selected as the Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health 2016 Citizen of the Year for her 30-plus year career serving people living with mental illness.
Nelson was honored on May 4 at the Mental Health Matters benefit at Longfellows Restaurant.
Nelson was formerly the deputy director for Transitional Services Association, where she worked for many years and in several capacities. She began her career working for the state Office of Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities, which is now the Office of Persons with Developmental Disabilities.
After joining Transitional Services Association, she worked in the community residences and served as a program supervisor for Hammond House.
'Hands For Hope' Give Casino Employees Opportunities For Local Community Service
Saratoga Casino Hotel has unveiled a new community service, company-wide initiative, Hands For Hope, that provides opportunities for employees to get involved with hands-on volunteer projects and community causes in the communities where they live.
“Hands For Hope represents all the things we do in the community,” said Tom Wiedmayer, general manager at Saratoga Casino Hotel, formerly known as Saratoga Casino and Raceway until a rebranding announced at the end of April.
“From support for the personal causes of our team members, to our annual charitable donations made to local organizations, to the thousands of hours volunteered by our team members in their communities, Hands For Hope brings these things together and represents our belief in the importance of supporting the communities where we live and work,” he said.
In 2015, the facility donated over $240,000 to charities across the Capital Region. More than $2.5 million in monetary, sponsorship and in-kind donations has been made since the facility first opened in 2004.