Wellness Connection

Nutrition & Weight Management | Diabetes Program
Tobacco Cessation | Healthy Weight Initiative (HWI) | Prenatal Education

The Greater New Bedford Community Health Center is dedicated to helping the community achieve a healthy lifestyle through the establishment of its Wellness Connection. A highly trained and qualified staff offers education, support, and reinforcement on weight loss, diabetic self-management, smoking cessation, and exercise.

Wellness Connection Advantage

The Wellness Connection has the support of the Health Center medical team who make sure that all trainings and support groups are medically sound and beneficial for each client. In addition. our unique

medical campus houses a pharmacy, vision center, an urgent care department, and a full functioning laboratory all of which provide services to the Wellness Connection’s clients that no other wellness program can.

Meet Our Staff:

		Joyce Dupont, Director, MSHA, MLT, NCA Joyce completed her Bachelors degree in Health Care Services and her Masters of Science degree in Health Administration from the University of Phoenix. Joyce is not only the Director of the Wellness Connection but she also manages the Health Center Laboratory which was the only laboratory in Massachusetts to receive COLA’s Laboratory Excellence Award in the 2006-2007 award year.
		Martha Gonzalez, Program Manager Martha was a member of the Maternal Child Program team where she began the only Prenatal Classes in Spanish in the City of New Bedford. Martha earned her Certificate in Community Health Care Management at Suffolk University.

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Nutrition & Weight Management

The Greater New Bedford Community Wellness Connection offers

one-on-one counseling and support groups for a variety of nutrition issues. Maybe you want to increase your energy, manage your weight, bring down your cholesterol, and control your blood pressure or blood sugar. For anyone with health issues such as cardio vascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, weight issues, and general wellness issues, healthy nutrition plays an essential role.

Nutrition services include one-on-one counseling and group education and support with a Registered Dietitian who is also a Certified Diabetes Educator. Appointments can be scheduled by calling the office at the Wellness Connection at 508-992-6553. For any information on individual appointments or nutrition groups, you can contact Janet Forfia-Vecchione, RD. directly at 508-992-6553 ext. 157 or through her email: jvecchione@gnbchc.org

Meet Our Nutritionists:

		Janet Vecchione, Nutritionist, RD, CDE Janet is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from Simmons College and her CDE from the American Association of Diabetes Educators. Janet focuses not only on teaching, but also on empowering her clients to be successful in weight management.
		Barbara Soares, Nutritionist, RD Barbara is a Registered Dietitian specializing in nutrition support for Geriatrics, Acute Care, and Critical Care. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey.

Current Groups

• Weight loss 101: This group is perfect for beginners or those who want to learn nutrition basics, and the “how to’s” of weight loss. This is a 6 week workshop.
• Ongoing support group: Those who go through Weight Loss 101 group are welcomed to join us for a monthly support group.
• Am I Hungry?®: This is a non-diet approach to weight management. If you’ve tried diets many times only to regain the weight you lost, if you’re frustrated with the whole “diet” world, this group may be for you. We meet for 8 weeks, and focus on the WHY of eating. We teach you how to eat instinctively, empowering you to relearn how to use your natural ability to eat just the right amount of food, meet your other needs you may use food for, while losing weight. The website for the Am I Hungry?® program is: www.amihungry.com . Workshops are offered by Janet Forfia-Vecchione, RD, CDE, who is a certified Am I Hungry? ® facilitator.
• I’m Not Hungry…What Now?: This is a monthly support group that follows the 8 week Am I Hungry?® Program. We utilize the information from Am I Hungry?®, but also explore the destructive patterns, more deeply, that may be sabotaging your weight management.

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Diabetes Program at the GNBCHC

Diabetes Program | Symptoms | Links & Resources

The Greater New Bedford Community Health Center is proud of the diabetes care we offer. From early on in your diagnosis of diabetes, to living with diabetes for years, we take into account what your needs are.

• Do you want to learn about carbohydrate counting to better control your blood sugars?
• What about a refresher on low fat cooking?
• How much should you be eating?
• Do you need a new glucometer?
• Or what about learning how to use the one you have?
• Are you wondering about how to care for your feet now that you have diabetes?
• What does the test hemoglobin A1C mean?

These and many other questions can be answered here at the Health Center and Wellness Connection by our dedicated staff of nurses, a dietitian, and by the two Certified Diabetes Educators who keep abreast of the many recent changes in diabetes care.

We are offering a new diabetes group at the Wellness Connection: Conversation Maps Education Groups: This group meets for 4 - 1 ½ hour sessions. The group is educational as well as supportive. The sessions are designed to help clients relate the information discussed to their personal health concerns with diabetes.

Diabetes Symptoms

Often diabetes goes undiagnosed because many of its symptoms seem so harmless. Recent studies indicate that the early detection of diabetes symptoms and treatment can decrease the chance of developing the complications of diabetes.

Some diabetes symptoms include:

• Frequent urination
• Excessive thirst
• Extreme hunger
• Unusual weight loss
• Increased fatigue
• Irritability
• Blurry vision

If you have one or more of these diabetes symptoms, see your doctor right away. You can also take The American Diabetes Association's Online Diabetes Risk Test to find out if you are at risk for diabetes. To learn more, visit the American Diabetes Association at http://www.diabetes.org

Diabetes Links & Resources

• American Diabetes Association - main web site
• American Heart Association "The Heart of Diabetes" Campaign - Learn more about diabetes and how it can increase your risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Colorado HealthSite Diabetes Center - Diabetes definitions and resources.
• Joslin Diabetes Center - Comprehensive diabetes site form one of the largest diabetes care facilities in the nation.
• Kidney School - Kidney School will help you learn to take an active role in your healthcare decision making. Research suggests that kidney patients who become active partners in their care are more likely to live long and live well. Professional Education also available.
• MEDLINEplus Health Information - Comprehensive medical information site sponsored by the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institute of Health.
• National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse - A service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (government agency), site include a diabetes dictionary, information on clinical trials, treatments, complications and statistics. Available in Spanish.
• New York Online Access to Health - Comprehensive compilation of diabetes resources.
• University of Iowa's Virtual Hospital - Diabetes tips for adults
• The Women's Health Site - A service of the Duke Academic Program in Women's Health. Information for healthcare professionals.

Organizations

• American Association of Kidney Patients
• American Diabetes Association - main web site
• American Diabetes Association Education Recognition Program
• American Dietetic Association
• Amputee Coalition of America (ACA)
• Canadian Diabetes Association
• The Charles Ray III Diabetes Association - Helps provide medical devices and supplies to those unable to afford the cost
• The Georgia Dietetic Association
  
• Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International
• National Anemia Action Council
• National Certification Board of Diabetes Educators - Information on becoming a CDE (Certified Diabetes Educator)
• National Federation of the Blind, Diabetes Division
• National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive and Kidney Disease
• National Kidney Foundation
• Pueblo Community Diabetes Project - A community collaborative organized to improve diabetes care in Pueblo and the Southern Colorado region.
• Spanish Federation of Associations of Educators in Diabetes (F. E. A. E. D.)

Internet Publications

• Diabetes Forecast
• Diabetes Monitor
• Diabetes Self-Management

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Tobacco Cessation

About Our Program | Benefits to Quitting | Dangers of Smoking
Quick Quit Tips | Telephone Help | Web Sites

About Our Program

The Greater New Bedford Community Health Center offers a Tobacco Treatment Program. This program offers individual counseling over eight to ten weeks. It is designed to help individuals quit and stay quit by using self-help measures and support. Quit aid options include Nicotine Replacement Products, Zyban (Wellbutrin SR), and Chantix (Varenicline). Tobacco Treatment Specialists are committed to working with clients, on a weekly basis, throughout their quitting phase. In addition, there are follow-ups offered, every three months, for the first year. These follow-ups support clients through the beginning of their maintenance phase and help prevent relapse.

The use of behavioral counseling and certain quit aids, may require longer treatment. Medication will not be provided until after the initial visit. Most insurances are accepted. If patients' Providers are located outside of the Health Center, referrals may be required. Uninsured patients are also accepted. Ongoing support groups are available to those who have participated in our program. For more information call 508-992-6553 Ext. 421.

Meet Our Tobacco Treatment Specialists:

		Daphne Carvalho, BSN, RN, CTTS-M Daphne received her Bachelor degree in Nursing from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth and her Certificate as a Master Tobacco Treatment Specialist from the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester. She maintains her certificate through continuing education at various institutions including Yale. She has also received training as a Medical Interpreter through the Area Health Education Center of Southeast Massachusetts.
		Gretchen Pohl, LPN, TTS Gretchen graduated from the Diman School of Nursing and received an Associate degree in Clinical Child Care. She attended the Tobacco Treatment Specialist Certification Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester.

Benefits to Quitting

After 2 hours: nicotine and carbon monoxide start to clear out of your system

After 6 hours: heart rate and blood pressure decrease (may take up to one month to return back to normal)

After 12 hours: carbon monoxide exits your system, lungs work more efficiently

After 2 days: sense of taste and smell improve, your breath, hair, fingers, and teeth feel cleaner

Within 2 months: energy increase, breathing improves, circulation to hands and feet improves

Within 3 months: cilia (hair-like cleaning system in your lungs) recover and remove mucous

After 1 year: lung cancer risk decreases and heart disease risk decreases to half that of smokers

Dangers of Smoking

• Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 poisons and carcinogens (cancer causing agents)
• Congestion and shortness of breath
• Poor airflow
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Peripheral Vascular Disease
• COPD (Asthma, Bronchitis, Emphysema)
• Increased risk of stroke
• Premature or stillbirths, low birth-weight babies in pregnant women, or infant death within first year
• Increased premature menopause leading to the possibility of osteoporosis
• Increased impotence in men
• Premature aging

Quick Quit Tips

• Set a quit date, if possible get a quit buddy.
• Assess when and why you smoke.
• Change your smoking routine.
• Get rid of all your cigarettes.
• Throw away your ashtrays and lighters.
• Avoid places you associate with smoking.
• When you crave a cigarette, WAIT! A craving will pass within 3-5 minutes.
• Chew sugar-free gum, practice deep-breathing exercises, or call the Quitline.
• Buy cigarettes one pack a day; the same time each day.
• Switch to a brand of cigarettes you don't like.
• Reward yourself weekly.
• Join Nicotine Anonymous or other support group.
• Remind yourself "ONE DAY AT A TIME GOES A LONG WAY"!

Additional Resources

Telephone Help

The Smoker's Quitline: 1 -800-879-8678
Nicotine Anonymous: 1 -800-622-6828
Quit Tips Line: 1-800-943-8284

Web Sites

Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program:
www.trytostop.org

Nicotine Anonymous:
www.nicotine-anonymous.org

www.quitnet.org

www.about.com

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Healthy Weight Initiative (HWI) Sponsored by The CAVU Foundation

We are now offering clinic appointments for pediatric patients (ages 4-18 years old) who have a BMI > 85%. Eligible patients will have a comprehensive intake visit with our Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, Health Center Nutritionist, & HWI Case Manager. Patients will come in for monthly follow up visits to receive support and to evaluate their progress over a two year period.

Healthy Guides: Click on image for larger size.

The Goals of the HWI are:

• Teach a healthy lifestyle to all participants
• Assist in developing strength of habit for exercise activities; by increasing daily & weekly exercise time
• Increase vegetable consumption within their daily meals
• Reduce sweetened drinks consumption
• Cut back on video and Internet time
• Provide support and encouragement for behavior modification to all participants and their parents
• Unlimited access to a certified trainer (Lite Weights) within an exercise facility to all participants
• Reduce BMI by 9% within 2 years

This program is structure to achieve results within our overweight pediatric population, to encourage better nutrition skills, to build self-esteem, and to move more while having fun to reach each participant's goal.

Please contact Denise Gagnon, MSN, CPNP for more information or to make an appointment to be evaluated for eligibility (508-992-6553, x 304).

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Wellness Connection Prenatal Education

The prenatal program is offered in English and Spanish. During the course of three sessions, English and Spanish speaking clients are given the tools to have a healthy pregnancy and create a supportive environment that promotes healthy behaviors. Clients are encouraged to bring support persons to the sessions and are empowered to be assertive informed consumers of prenatal services. English sessions are evaluated after each meeting.

The prenatal program has been developed for diverse audiences and a great deal of consideration is given to being culturally sensitive. An intensive assessment is done by facilitators after each series to ascertain how they can better serve the clients.