News Release                              For Immediate Release

                                                                                                                         May 8, 2012

Grey Bruce Health Unit Celebrates Nursing Week

Nursing Week 2012, May 7 – 13, celebrates Nursing - The Health of Our Nation.

Nurses at the Grey Bruce Health Unit work with the Grey Bruce community to protect and promote health.

Nursing Week offers an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) Best Practice Guidelines underway at the Health Unit. The Grey Bruce Health Unit is one of 15 health-care organizations, and the only health unit selected in 2012, to sign agreements with the RNAO to implement its Best Practice Guidelines.

The Grey Bruce Health Unit will implement and evaluate five Best Practice Guidelines.

Breastfeeding Best Practice Guidelines for Nurses – Increase the success and duration of breastfeeding mothers and resulting positive effects on the health of the infant.

Client-Centered Care – Client-related documentation will be streamlined and clients will receive holistic, timely and client-centered care.

Intervention for Post Partum Depression – Earlier detection of post partum mood disorder and result in earlier referral to appropriate services and support.

Primary Prevention of Childhood Obesity – Increase capacity of the health unit and partner agencies to create and adopt policies that address and prevent childhood obesity.

Prevention of Falls and Falls Injuries – Increase awareness of the severity of the issue and lead to development of policies and procedures leading to a safer environment for seniors in the community.

During the three-year partnership with the RNAO, the Health Unit will apply guidelines, identify ways to sustain best practices, and evaluate their impact on clients and the organization. Upon completion, the Health Unit will receive designation as a RNAO’s Best Practice Spotlight Organization and will join over 200 sites already on board in Canada and abroad.

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For more information:

Maureen Handley

Chief Nursing Officer

Grey Bruce Health Unit    

519-376-9420 or 1-800-263-3456 ext. 1441

m.handley@publichealthgreybruce.on.ca