Community Benefits: Community Services

	Community Services
	Holding Hands Through Suburban Hospital's HeartWell HeartWell is a chronic disease management program introduced by Suburban Hospital in February 2001 to provide care and monitoring services in two senior centers in Montgomery County. The focus of the program is to teach patients with cardiovascular disease how to manage their symptoms and disease. Today, Suburban Hospital's HeartWell program is available in five senior centers throughout the county, including: Holiday Park, Longbranch, Margaret Schweinhaut, Rockville, and Gaithersburg senior centers. Suburban Hospital chose these locations because the senior citizens who attend these centers comprise a diverse community with moderate to low income. To support this diversity, with more than half of the participants representing minority populations, most of the RN staff are bilingual. The sites were also chosen because they have easy public access, and have large numbers of people with cardiovascular disease. The program supports a holistic approach to disease management, providing an RN with cardiovascular disease experience in a clinic at each of the senior centers one to four days per week. In addition to on-site nurse monitoring and care management at the centers, the HeartWell Program sponsors classes in Tai Chi, weight training, nutrition, and gait and balance. As the nurses build ongoing relationships with the participants, they often end up managing more than a patient's disease, but also caring and guiding individuals through a continuum of care. The Suburban Hospital HeartWell Program currently provides services-free of charge-to more than 600 participants in Montgomery County. In addition, Suburban's HeartWell nurses also provide consultation services for nearly 100 more county residents who do not meet the specific program criteria.

Community Services

Holding Hands Through Suburban Hospital's HeartWell
HeartWell is a chronic disease management program introduced by Suburban Hospital in February 2001 to provide care and monitoring services in two senior centers in Montgomery County. The focus of the program is to teach patients with cardiovascular disease how to manage their symptoms and disease. Today, Suburban Hospital's HeartWell program is available in five senior centers throughout the county, including: Holiday Park, Longbranch, Margaret Schweinhaut, Rockville, and Gaithersburg senior centers. Suburban Hospital chose these locations because the senior citizens who attend these centers comprise a diverse community with moderate to low income. To support this diversity, with more than half of the participants representing minority populations, most of the RN staff are bilingual. The sites were also chosen because they have easy public access, and have large numbers of people with cardiovascular disease.

The program supports a holistic approach to disease management, providing an RN with cardiovascular disease experience in a clinic at each of the senior centers one to four days per week. In addition to on-site nurse monitoring and care management at the centers, the HeartWell Program sponsors classes in Tai Chi, weight training, nutrition, and gait and balance. As the nurses build ongoing relationships with the participants, they often end up managing more than a patient's disease, but also caring and guiding individuals through a continuum of care.

The Suburban Hospital HeartWell Program currently provides services-free of charge-to more than 600 participants in Montgomery County. In addition, Suburban's HeartWell nurses also provide consultation services for nearly 100 more county residents who do not meet the specific program criteria.