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How Hospice Helps1/31/2023 Hospice 101 For Family Caregivers  The first and most important rule when considering hospice is to find a trustworthy hospice care partner. Established in 1898, The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is the longest-serving VNA in the state of New Jersey. That’s 125 years of experience and innovation in helping patients and their families receive the medical care they need without giving up the comforts of home. Our VNA hospice team is more than a group of medical professionals. We are teachers, motivators, and comforting shoulders to lean on. We are able to help the family understand what is happening with their loved one, how to help them, and how the family can help enhance the quality of life even at the end of life. Our approach and capabilities are unique in that we provide a stress-relieving home hospice and inpatient hospice model with seamless transfers between them as needed. Hospice at Home provides supportive medical care, pain management, and emotional and spiritual support. For patients who require additional support, VNA’s Inpatient Hospice provides 24-hour care. Learn more about VNA’s Hospice Care and Palliative Care Program here. Medicare and supplemental insurance often do not cover all the end-of-life care our hospice patients and caregivers need. If you would like to help, please visit our Donation page. Get to know Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA), and all the home health services available to you and your loved ones, before you have a health emergency. We are proud to be the longest-serving VNA in the state of New Jersey, so we know a thing or two about helping seniors. The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is a leading provider of comprehensive home health care services in Morris, Hunterdon, Sussex, Warren, Somerset, and Passaic Counties in Northern New Jersey. Established in 1898, generations have known that just one call to VNA opens the door to quality, patient-centered home health care solutions that allow patients to remain in the comfort of their homes with dignity, health, and independence. © All content on The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey's website, including blog posts, may be reproduced only if attributed to our organization with a link to vnannj.org.
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Should You Use an Expired COVID Test?1/24/2023 No, you should not use an expired COVID test kit. At-home COVID tests do expire While it’s tempting to use at-home COVID test kits that you may have had for a while, it’s not recommended by the FDA. Typically, the FDA authorizes at-home COVID tests with a shelf life of about four to six months. Using one that has expired could result in a false negative because of a breakdown in test components. Where can I find my COVID test’s expiration date? The expiration date for FDA-authorized COVID tests is printed on the outside of its box. The location of the expiration date may vary by brand, so look at all box panels. Also, be sure to check out the FDA’s website to see if your test’s expiration was part of the extended shelf-life update. Want more information? AARP has an excellent article about at-home COVID tests on its website (Rachel Nania, December 2022). Get to know Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA), and all the home health services available to you and your loved ones, before you have a health emergency. We are proud to be the longest-serving VNA in the state of New Jersey, so we know a thing or two about helping seniors. The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is a leading provider of comprehensive home health care services in Morris, Hunterdon, Sussex, Warren, Somerset, and Passaic Counties in Northern New Jersey. Established in 1898, generations have known that just one call to VNA opens the door to quality, patient-centered home health care solutions that allow patients to remain in the comfort of their homes with dignity, health, and independence. © All content on The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey's website, including blog posts, may be reproduced only if attributed to our organization with a link to vnannj.org.
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How to Stay Healthy This Winter1/17/2023 Reduce your risk, avoid getting sick  The best way to avoid getting sick this winter is to make a plan to stay healthy. Here are some tips. 1. Avoid COVID: Many COVID cases are much milder now, but COVID is still life-threatening for some people, so don't let your guard down. Continue to take COVID precautions, including avoiding close contact and masking in crowds. 2. Boost: It's always wise to be up-to-date with COVID and FLU vaccinations. Check with your doctor if you are unsure of your vaccination history. And remember that although you may still contract COVID or FLU, vaccinations greatly reduce the severity of symptoms. 3. Strengthen your immune system: Eat a balanced diet with plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit and speak with your doctor about adding appropriate supplements, like Vitamin C and D. 6. Exercise: Do whatever you enjoy, but do some form of exercise every day because it increases blood flow and improves respiration – walk, swim, or go to the gym. 7. Sleep: Who doesn't like to sleep? And sleep is when your body rejuvenates, so lack of sleep can lower your body's defenses against cold, flu, and other common winter ailments. 8. Keep Medical Appointments: Winter weather may encourage you to skip routine health checkups but if you want to AVOID illness one of the best ways is to get regular health checkups. Get to know Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA), and all the home health services available to you and your loved ones, before you have a health emergency. We are proud to be the longest-serving VNA in the state of New Jersey, so we know a thing or two about helping seniors. The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is a leading provider of comprehensive home health care services in Morris, Hunterdon, Sussex, Warren, Somerset, and Passaic Counties in Northern New Jersey. Established in 1898, generations have known that just one call to VNA opens the door to quality, patient-centered home health care solutions that allow patients to remain in the comfort of their homes with dignity, health, and independence. © All content on The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey's website, including blog posts, may be reproduced only if attributed to our organization with a link to vnannj.org.
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Martin Luther King Jr. Day1/16/2023  The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is a leading provider of comprehensive home health care services in Morris, Hunterdon, Sussex, Warren, Somerset, and Passaic Counties in Northern New Jersey. Established in 1898, generations have known that just one call to VNA opens the door to quality, patient-centered home health care solutions that allow patients to remain in the comfort of their homes with dignity, health, and independence.
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The Best Exercise For Seniors1/10/2023 Squatting for Longevity  It has been proven that we naturally lose muscle mass as we age, which is why strength training is so important for seniors. Of course, there are many options for strength training, including isometric exercise (bodyweight training), resistance training (using weights), and swimming. But the most convenient and effective way to build muscle and maintain mobility is the simple squat. In many cultures around the world, the squat is simply a way of life and helps to maintain mobility well into old age. Consider that every time you sit down, kneel down, and stand up, that’s basically a squat. But as we can readily observe in those of old age, these daily movements can become very challenging. Squats strengthen muscles in your legs, glutes, lower back, and core, helping to stabilize your body and keep knees and hips flexible, prolonging the ability to perform daily tasks. Squats also provide good cardiovascular exercise, making them an excellent full-body workout. Some studies have even shown a correlation between lower body strength and longevity, including being able to stand on one foot unaided and rising from a seated position without using your hands. Click here to read an article from AARP about performing squats safely. Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) physical therapists help our patients perform exercises like this to help them regain mobility and continue aging in the comfort of their own homes. But Medicare and supplemental insurance often do not cover all the care they need. If you would like to help, please visit https://vnannj.org/donate. Get to know Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA), and all the home health services available to you and your loved ones, before you have a health emergency. We are proud to be the longest-serving VNA in the state of New Jersey, so we know a thing or two about helping seniors. The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is a leading provider of comprehensive home health care services in Morris, Hunterdon, Sussex, Warren, Somerset, and Passaic Counties in Northern New Jersey. Established in 1898, generations have known that just one call to VNA opens the door to quality, patient-centered home health care solutions that allow patients to remain in the comfort of their homes with dignity, health, and independence. © All content on The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey's website, including blog posts, may be reproduced only if attributed to our organization with a link to vnannj.org.
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Did you know? Cold, Flu, or COVID?1/3/2023  Many symptoms of cold, flu, and COVID-19 overlap, including sore throat, runny nose, cough, headache, and body aches, while loss of taste and smell, diarrhea, and confusion may be indicators of COVID-19 rather than cold or flu. It’s complicated! AARP provides helpful information here, including:
Get to know Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA), and all the home health services available to you and your loved ones, before you have a health emergency. We are proud to be the longest-serving VNA in the state of New Jersey, so we know a thing or two about helping seniors. The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey (VNA) is a leading provider of comprehensive home health care services in Morris, Hunterdon, Sussex, Warren, Somerset, and Passaic Counties in Northern New Jersey. Established in 1898, generations have known that just one call to VNA opens the door to quality, patient-centered home health care solutions that allow patients to remain in the comfort of their homes with dignity, health, and independence. © All content on The Visiting Nurse Association of Northern New Jersey's website, including blog posts, may be reproduced only if attributed to our organization with a link to vnannj.org.
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