The Public Health Nursing Program is part of several services within Cooperative Public Health Service (CPHS), a regional health district serving fifteen Boards of Health in Franklin County. The nurses and health educator are available to support residents with health concerns in a variety of community settings. CPHS staff work to improve the public’s health through environmental health inspections, communicable disease prevention & investigation, code enforcement, health education and wellness programming.
Details
CPHS Public Health Nurses provide the following services:
- Nursing Drop-in Hours at community sites including senior centers, town halls, and food pantries, where nurses assist residents of any member town with a variety of health care needs, including:
- Support in learning how to better manage health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, COPD and asthma
- Support with managing multiple medications and navigating the health care system
- Blood pressure, blood glucose and other preventative and diagnostic health screenings
- State-mandated infectious disease surveillance, reporting and case monitoring. This includes assistance to residents and local agencies regarding the prevention and spread of disease, and to assure appropriate treatment
- Vaccination, including home visits for residents in need, and providing clinics in community settings for flu and COVID-19
- The nurses serve as Vaccine Managers for member towns, including ordering, storage, state reporting and insurance billing
- Emergency preparedness planning and response
- Mercury thermometer and sharps disposal and container exchange (through a collaboration with the Franklin County Solid Waste Mgmt. District)
- Facilitating Age and Dementia Friendly Planning, in coordination with LifePath
Vaccinations (Home and site-based)
Information regarding flu and covid vaccinations can be found through the links section below. If you or a loved one are having trouble accessing vaccine, please contact Lisa White or Meg Ryan.
Health Education
CPHS nurses and health educators partner to provide information on a variety of health-related topics. Check our Health Education Resource Library regularly for new or updated content!
Nursing Drop-in Hours Information
1st Tuesday of the month that is also the Food Pantry Tuesday
First Congregational Church
3 – 5 p.m.
2nd Thursday of the month
Bernardston Senior Center
9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
3rd Tuesday of the month
Federated Church
4 – 5:30 p.m.
(Note: runs concurrent with Good Neighbors Food Distribution)
and
4th Wednesday of the month
Federated Church
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
3rd Wednesday of the month
Griswold Memorial Library
4 – 6 p.m.
1st Friday of the month
Conway Town Hall
9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
1st Tuesday of the month
Erving Senior Center
9 – 11 a.m.
2nd Friday of the month
Stoughton Place Community Room
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
2nd Wednesday
Town Hall
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
1st Wednesday of the month
Senior Center at Northfield Town Hall
12:30 – 2:30 p.m.
and
Squakheag Village Community Room
3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
4th Tuesday of the month
Shelburne Falls Senior Center
10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Resources
Documents
Public Health Nursing Drop-in Hours Flyers
- Conway
- North County (Bernardston, Colrain, Erving, Gill, and Northfield)
- West County (Ashfield, Charlemont, Colrain, and Shelburne)
Links
Infectious Disease and Vaccine
- FRCOG COVID-19 Information and Resources
- CDC influenza webpage
- Mass.gov influenza page
- Mass.gov Vaxfinder page
CPHS Member Town Senior Centers
Maureen O’Reilly
x206
Meg Ryan
x158
Lisa White
x156
