20231121 - Stigma Free Meeting Minutes
Stigma Free 11/21/23
Attendees:
Paul Vigianos, Danielle Pagani, Surbhi Kapadia, Dawn Cetrulo, Corinne Scarpa, Mary Davey, Jan Bottcher, Beth Abbott, Dana Napoletano
Minutes:
· Mary shared she is interested in attending the Hoarding Workshop Ridgewood Health Department will be hosting at Village Hall on 11/28 with Unicity Healthcare. However, she is having difficulty registering on Community Pass. Danielle to register Mary for the program and noted Community Pass can be difficult to navigate for registration. Mary’s issue was related to being able to login. Danielle also mentioned Unicity Healthcare was recommended to the Health Department by Sheila Brogan. The workshop is drawing attention from various providers in the area. Mary asked if the workshop would be offered virtually or recorded as some colleagues at West Bergen would like to attend, but cannot at the date/time workshop is being offered. Danielle to reach out to Village IT to ask the feasibility of recording the event as well as Mary Didia with Unicity to see if she would be comfortable with a recording.
· Danielle shared the Cards of Joy Campaign has been launched. There is one collection box on the main floor reception area at Village Hall and 2 collection boxes at Library. One of the boxes at the Library is specifically placed in the newly renovated teen room. The goal this year is to collect 1000 cards.
· Paul shared he attended 2 Diwali festivals in the last month and enjoyed being a part of the celebrations. Diwali is the festival of “lights and celebrates light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.” He noted it would be great to celebrate Diwali every day, not just on Diwali. One event was hosted by the Ridgewood Indian Community at RHS on 11/5. The other event was held this past Sunday 11/18 by the Arya Samaj of New Jersey at BFMS. Over the last 30ish years Paul has lived in Ridgewood, the Indian community has grown. Ridgewood has become a more diversity town.
· Dawn shared that the Village Employee Health and Wellness days were held on November 1st and 2nd. Some of the events/activities that took place during those days included: assisted stretch with Stretch Recovery Lounge, massages, stress reduction strategies with Valley Hospital, presence of several therapy dogs, lunch and learn with HealthBarn, and wellness exams with My Wellness Express. The programs/activities were all wonderful and Dawn/Health Department received positive feedback from employees. During the pandemic, Village employees experienced distancing among each other and departments. The employee wellness programs allowed employee connections to be made. More employee wellness programming will offered in months to follow.
· Dana shared that the county had purchased a Hope One van. It is a mobile recovery access vehicle that offers critical support to persons struggling with addition. The goals include access to drug rehabilitation and counseling as well as prevent overdoses and deaths. In addition to being present at events, the Hope One van, be present at restaurants and hotels where overdoses may occur.
· Dana also reported the annual Mental Health Symposium will take place again in May 2024 at Biagio’s in Paramus. The Stigma Free sticker contest will also be launched soon. A theme for this year’s symposium has not yet been decided and they were asking for input. Dana is looking into ways to get more youth involvement.
· Mary attended a dinner for residents in West Bergen’s Partial Care Program in celebration of Thanksgiving. Mary shared that West Bergen is still struggling with their outpatient wait list. For quite some time now, there has been an increased demand for services. Most requests are for virtual appointments. West Bergen is also very busy with school based programs.
· Beth attended the annual Ridgewood Elder Dinner on 11/12 at Old Paramus Reformed Church. The dinner was a joint effort of Age Friendly Ridgewood, HealthBarn, and Ridgewood Parks and Recreation. The dinner helps combat loneliness among the elderly. In January 2024, Farleigh Dickinson University is hosting a summit on “Designing Places to Reduce Depression” as loneliness and social isolation are growing problem.
· Corrine was also aware of the FDU event in January. As the U.S. Surgeon General's declaration that loneliness is the biggest public health threat in the country at this time. To draw attention to this problem and develop ways to address it, The Community Chest of Eastern Bergen County is hosting a Summit on Combating the Loneliness Epidemic on Thursday, January 11, at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck. This is geared primarily to service professionals. New Bridge has several events coming up in December. On Friday 12/8 from 11am-12:30pm, the Veterans Association will be presenting the Comprehensive Prevention, Access to Care and Treatment (COMPACT Act) that allows veterans to obtain care for emergent suicidal intent. The event will be held at the Bergen New Bridge Medical Center Auditorium. Also at the New Bridge Medical Center Auditorium, there will be a breakfast event at 10am for World Aids Day. There will also be an event held in conjunction with the Rotary Club at New Bridge Auditorium on 12/12. Corrine with share all of the flyers as they become available with Danielle to circulate to the committee.
· Jan has tried to promote the Cards of Joy campaign with various community organizations and channels such as the Interfaith Council and Ridgewood Moms and Dads Facebook page.
· Jan also shared the federal government is giving out another round of Covid tests and shared the link in the Zoom chat. https://special.usps.com/testkits
· Jan is looking for a list of support groups in the area. Jan noted how attending support groups had helped her in the past. Danielle shared several local groups like Valley, Lukin, and West Bergen run support groups. The Health Dept has a list of resources that was recently updated for a grant deliverable. Support groups were not included in that list, but it can be updated to include this information. Health Department can work on adding support groups to the resource list.
· Jan shared an anecdote about someone she knows. The individual doesn’t have family to spend the upcoming Thanksgiving Holiday with. She reached out to others who would be alone on Thanksgiving, and created a plan for all of them to celebrate together. Jan asked what we are doing for people who are alone to offer them a seat at the table. Paul and Dawn agreed it was a great idea for an initiative to put energy behind. How do we find people to open up a seat at their home table? It is something to look into for next year or Christmas. Dawn also noted the campaign could be simplified to a “reach out to your neighbor campaign” as a way to start small. Paul to share the idea and plant the seed.
· Health Updates:
o Flu – as of week ending November 11, 2023 - the level of flu in nj is considered low statewide
o Everyone 6 months and older should get an annual flu vaccination, especially those at high-risk for severe complications from the flu, including: Young children, Pregnant women, People with certain chronic health conditions (asthma, diabetes, or heart disease), People 65 years and older
o As of week ending November 11, 2023 the COVID-19 hospital admission levels is low in all counties
o COVID virus keeps mutating, new strain EG.5 most common
o RSV activity has increased in recent weeks. At this time, there are two RSV vaccines for adults 60 and older.
o One rsv vaccine recommended during weeks 32 through 36 of pregnancy to protect infants
o Then an rsv preventive antibody has been recommended for infants and some young children
o This link was shared - https://www.cdc.gov/respiratory-viruses/whats-new/stay-healthy-during-holidays.html
o This link was also shared - https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/mcleans-guide-managing-mental-health-around-holidays
o This link was shared - Community Food Bank has a list of local food pantries. Use this link too search by zip code - Find a Food Pantry Near You - CFBNJ
· Gabrielle from Lukin Center for Psychotherapy sent a message that she would not be able to attend today’s meeting, but wanted to share the Ridgewood Health Department and Lukin will be hosting a virtual program on 12/12 evening at 7pm regarding mental health during the holidays.
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