HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1987-01-28, Page 3e tune
VON cele
te
t niv
For the past six years Susan Scott,
District Nurse for the Victorian Order of
Nurses ( VON) with the- help of two relief
nurses, has been taking health-care ser-
vice to. the residences of 10 to 20 patients
per day in this area.
"It's the best work I've ever done," Scott
said. "It's personal; it's rewarding. Much
more personal than working in a hospital."
Scott, along ° with relief nurses Jan
Hullah and Thea Trick, service patients in
the local district of the Perth -Huron VON
Branch. The district covers Goderich,
Bayfield, Goderich Township and part of
Stanley Township. The nurses provide
home care to people with a wide variety of
medical problems.
"We do the whole gamut, from taking
care of newborn babies – some mothers
only want to stay in the. hospital for 24
hours and then go home – to doing
palliative care work with the dying," Scott
said.
The VON is celebrating it's 90th anniver-
sary of service in 1987. The focus of the an-
niversary activity is a promotional cam-
' paign this week, from Jan. 25 to Jan 31, as
the organization is making an effort to
make • the public more aware of the ser-
V'ices offered by the VON.
At the Annual Meeting of the •National
Council of Women in 1897, two resolutions
were read - one from the Vancouver. Local
Council asking that nurses be supplied to
the outlying districts in the far West, and
one from the Halifax Local Council asking
that a nation-wide nursing service be in-
augurated in commemoration of Queen
Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. Combining
these two resolutions the Council set up the
Victorian Order of Nurses. ,
The first National President of the Order
was Lady Aberdeen, wife of the Governor-
General. This lady was very interested in
visiting nursing and was personally ac-
quainted with ..Florence Nightingale in
England. Lady Aberdeen was much more
than a figure -head president, but rather
pitched -in personally,. to get the Order go-
ing. The first twelve nurses were admitted
at an official ceremony in November 1897. -
Just five months later, in April 1898 four V
O N nurses were sent to the Klondyke to
-accompany a Canadian Government ex-
pedition. to the gold rush area.
The first branches were established in
Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Halifax, Van-
coiiver and Kingston: • :Then the Order
started filling requests from remote
pioneer -districts in' the West where the
nurse had 'to travel long distances by
horseback or sleigh. Under these condi-
tions. visiting nurses became impractical,
so the order offered to establish hospitals
to which sick settlers could be brought.,
Beginning in 1901, 44 such hospitals were
set up between the Pacific Coast and
Labrador. As the country developed,.local
groups were able to assume responsibility
for the hospitals and the last V 0 N hospital
was handed over to local control in 1924.
•The V 0 N story reflects Canada's
development and history from 1898, with V
0 N nurses serving through typhoid and in-
fluenza epidemics and in two World Wars.
When the public health movement began
during the '20s the V 0 N became part of it
and since, then has 'worked closely with
provincial. Departments of Health,
although it has always retained its own
identity.
The order was originally set up by Royal
Charter, but in 1974 letters Patent were
issued authorizing continuation of the
order as a corporation under the Canada
Corporation Act. .
BRANCHES AND NURSES
There are 33 V 0 .N Branches in Ontario.
Each Branch has a Board of Management
consisting of volunteer interested citizens.
These Boards are largely autonomous -they
make their own decisions. It is true ''that
the .national office in Ottawa issues
guidelines on professional .matters
but these usually come to the
branch in the form of "recommenda-
tions which the board may adopt, or may
amend if local conditions warrant. There
are branches so small thatthey employ on-
VON District Nurse Sue Scott` (left) makes her regular weekly visit to Maple Grove
Lodge resident Daisy Bellinger, who will be 99 -years -old in February. Altho.ugh living on
.her own until a few years ago, Mrs. Bellinger has been under care of Victorian Order of
Nurses for the past 30 years. The VON is celebrating its 90th an;civersary off service this
year. (photo by Patrick Raftis) •
ly one 'nurse, other metropolitan branches
may employ 300 riurses The board has the
usual executive officers and allmembers
serve on committees such as Finance,
Transportation, Staff Relations, etc. The
Perth -Huron Branch employs nine regular
salaried nurses. In addition we have at
least an equal number of relief nurses who
can be called in when needed and who are
paid ata hourly rate. The main office is in
Stratford and there are two suboffices, one
in Listowel and the other in Clinton. .
• V 0 N nurseshave a minimal qualifica-
tiorl,, of R.N. and many have much more.
Some: have university degrees in nursing,,
some have the diploma in Public Health
Nursing. They are constantly increasing
their skills and knowledge by study, by at-
tending seminars and by regular in-
service training sessions.
V;O N SERVICE
The primary function of the V 0 N is to
'provide professional nursing service on a'
visit basis to -individuals .and families .in
their own homes. A visit by a V 0 N nurse
is a very personal affair. Not only do they
perform the required professional service
- giving a bed bath to an .elderly patient,
.helping a, young teenager learn to give.
diabetic injection, helping a young mother
in the care of her baby, changing a
surgical dressing, etc., but they try to size •
up the family situation, gain the con-
fidence of its member and give advice on
health matters - hygience, diet, anything
that will help the family to take better care
of themselves. With an aging population V
0 N is becoming very concerned with
geriatrics and with the problem of helping
a family cope with the trauma of the ter-
minal illness of one of its members. With.
the present shortage of hospital beds and
the astronomical cost of a stay in hospital,
it is becoming essential that, wherever
possible, patients be treated in the home.
There is the added psychological advan-
tage that, being surrounded by familiar
objects and loved ones, the patient.;5 pro-
spects for recovery are enhanced..
THE COST, WHO PAYS
At the beginning of each year V 0 N
Branch estimates its total cost for the.,
following year and the probable total
number of visits for the year. Dividing the
first by the second, the Branch arrives at
its "cost per visit".
In the old days, and in fact until com-
paratively recent years, a patient who
needed V 0 N services contacted the V 0 N
personally. The nurses made the call, per -
HOT LINE
1-80011.265m5503
For details on...
*Increased contribution limits
*Eligibility of Pension Income
*Rules for members & non-members of
company Pension Plans
*Guaranteed Rates from 30 Trust
Companies
*No Load Mutual Fund, 75% Guaranteed
®Transferring of present RRSP's
EXTENDED R.R.S.P, HOURS
Monday to Iriday Open till 8 p.m.
Saturday .....................°....Open 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
..3
formed the service, and collected 4the'
"cost -per -visit" from the patient. If the pa-
tient could not afford the fee, it was scaled
down according to his ability to pay, and, if
necessary, the nursing visit would be pro-
vided free. of charge. In those' days the
chief function of the board of each V °0 N
branch was to devise and carry out fund-
raising projects such as tag days, etc. This
personal type of service still exists today
and we '-consider it important, but it now
represents a very small percentage of the
work. ' '
Today, in Ontario, more than 90 per, cent
Of the cases are referred on die authority
of the patient's physician, through one or
another government agency, provincial or
municipal. The "cost -per -visit" is then
paid, not by the patient himself, but by the
organization which referred him to us.
The' V 0 N's largest customer is the
Home Care Division of• the Ontario
Ministry of Health. Each county has a
Home Care' Director.' and staff and itis
through this office that a high percentage
of patients are referred. Small numbers of
patients come through the local Welfare
Services, Workmen's compensation and,
private insurance plans. .
It is the order's policyto supply a V 0 N.
automobile to each of the regular salaried
nurses. At present, the Perth -Huron
branch own nine cars for 10.nurses. Relief
nurses drive theinown cars and the branch
pays them ;a mileage allowance. , •
V 0 N Philosophy has always been to
meet and respond to community needs.
The present government has indicated
more financial support to community ser-
vices especially .for the 65 and over, age
group.
Within the past year, the local branch
has been preparing to meet those
challenges and provide diversification of
service.
Perth' -Huron Branch has submitted a
proposal to Community and Social Ser
vices for an Adult Day Care Program to
commence in Stratford and Mitchell and to •
expand to "Listowel. ; This ' program, to be
provided by V 0 N staff is to provide
,. social/recreational activities to the frail
elderly population within Stratford and
Perth County. It will run from Woodland
Towers in Stratford, Ritz Lutheran Villa in
Mitchell, and Maitland Terrace in
Listowel.
This new project will add yet another
dimension to the complete care package
already offered by the V 0 N. .
GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 19$7—PAGE 3
OF PHASE 11
in thn xt issue of the Goderich Sign
Star , r d the Focus Ma :.azhie
LYMOUTH
CHRYSLER `®
"Shake nand® with the Horns et the Sr eat ®®Be
Where Service. Sells Cars and Truck®I
414 Huron Rd. Goderich 524.73®3
®�
7 --til
CFnaaIRIT
TIRE
HURON RD. 524-2121
THIS WEEK'S SPECIAL
COMPUTERIZED
WHEEL
'ALIGNMENTS
2 WHEEL
Inspect all components & perform
necessary front-end adjustments
eg. 26.95
9?5
4 WHEEL
For vehicles with front wheel drive
ncludes above service for front &
rear wheels. Shims extra if required.
Reg. 46.95
3;6c
SATURDAY ONLY SPECIAL Jan. 31
$10°00 Off Complete Tune -Up
VALENTINE BALLOONS
Heart 40C
1 1" Heart 60C
Helium 50C Extra
"Make up a
Bouquet!"
[111
GREEN FOCH
44 Ontario Street, Stratford
4
+' rel ROTARY C0NCElZTSERIES +
+ �„-��` FOR .1987 +
♦ SUNDAY, FEBRUARY lst, 1987
ORCHESTRA LONDON
ALEXIS HAUSER, Conductor. Feature Artist:
ERIK SCHULTZ, Trumpet.
"The Music, The Mel
(The
+.'l+
M IS THIS CLASS OF ENTERTAINMENT MAILABLE IN THE GODERICH AREA" +
The tickets are value a4 $30, per person, per con TICKETS FOR BOTH CONCERTS
cert. But through the generous assistance of the ADULTS - $26.00 FAMILY $50.00
• Sully Foundation and The Ontario Arts Council (Tickets for the series may, he used for one concert it you wish) ,
we are able to offer them ,ata significant reduction. Available at: RW Bell's, Campbell's, King's and Studio Gallery, Goderich.
At Bartl'iff's and Clinton News Record, Clinton, Nip & Tuck Variety in Bayfield.
oven.
eethoven: Wind Octet in Eh Major, op. 103;
Beethoven: Romance No. 1 in G , op. 40;
Beethoven: Romance No. 2 in F , op. 50;
Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 in B flat ', op. 60.
NORTH ST. UNITED CHURCH
8:00 RM.
rsRD MINEVICH, violin.
4-