Answering the tough questions
By Colleen Gundlach

Kathy Shortelle

According to the Center for Disease Control, more than 1 million people have knee or hip replacements each year, and untold numbers of Americans will contract influenza. In addition, there are almost 80 million members of the baby boomer generation contributing to the aging of this country’s population. When diseases or infirmities strike, it is often difficult to know where to find help in dealing with the activities of daily living.
Salisbury Visiting Nurse Association (SVNA) has recently implemented a community service to provide just that kind of help. Called “Ask Kathy,” this service is a help line where area residents can ask the tough questions about how to access the care they or a family member may need.
The Kathy in “Ask Kathy” is Kathleen Shortelle, RN, BS, who has been SVNA’s clinical director for more than 25 years. “I will be helping people to access the resources they need in the community,” she says. “If someone needs to know how to get assistance after surgery or what to do to help an aging family member, we can help. “Ask Kathy” is for questions as complicated as ‘when is it time for hospice?’ to as simple as ‘where can I get a flu shot?’.”
The help line will also assist residents of the Northwest Corner connect with services available to them when health insurance doesn’t cover the assistance they may need. “We take our commitment to serving our communities very seriously and realize that many people don’t really know when home care services are appropriate, needed or covered by insurance,” says SVNA’s Care Transition Specialist Tina Hogan. “We developed our Ask Kathy line as a way to give back to the communities we serve.”
Salisbury Visiting Nurse Association was established in 1904 as a way for one nurse to care for the people of the town. Since then it has grown to a staff of 30, covering twelve towns in Northwest Connecticut, including, most recently, Norfolk. When it began, the agency offered skilled nursing services. Today’s services include home care, hospice and personal care assistance.
The “Ask Kathy” help line is free of charge and may be accessed by calling 860-435-0816.