Programa de Bienestar (Wellness Program)

1st Walk-a-thon kicks things off!

On July 3, 2010 the Good Samaritan Hospital's new Wellness Program kicked of awareness of healthy lifestyles by hosting the first annual Walk-a-thon, "Walk for your health."  The idea behind starting this program began with the death of one of our employees, Bernadeta Tirena, who died of a heart attack at just 39 years old, while she was working.  It began a discussion about how healthy our employees were or were not.  Within hours of presenting the program objectives to Moises Sifren, the hospital administrator, we had our first committee meeting with various employees and friends of the hospital.  Three weeks later, we had our first activity, a walk-a-thon, to raise awareness in the city of La Romana and the employees of the hospital.  The visiting work team from Wallingford, CT with over 82 members, also joined us in the walk.  We walked from the Good Samaritan Hospital to the Maranatha church through various neighborhoods and with many city representatives.  At the end of the walk, Maranatha band and Rayos de Luz band performed in a street concert for all participants.  We also raised money to have t-shirts, baseball hats and wrist bands given to all participants.  There were over 350 walkers!

Goals of the Wellness Program

Healthy Lives

The main goal of this program is to raise awareness of the Good Samaritan Hospital employees of what a healthy lifestyle really means.  We will focus on maintaining a healthy BMI (Body Mass Index) as well as learning about healthy eating styles and how to begin exercising through monthly meetings and guest speakers.  Employees will be monitored at the hospital by the physical therapy department. 
One of the first projects we would like to begin at the hospital is the building of a walking/running track at the hospital to be used by both physical therapy patients and hospital employees.  The idea is to provide employees with a safe and convenient location to begin their exercise program.  After building the track, we would like to build a gym within the hospital that would include weight machines, hand weights, exercise bands, balance balls, exercise machines and other equipment.
The next phase of the program, after getting the majority of employees to participate, is to encourage the community of La Romana as well as other businesses to adopt healthy lifestyles and other wellness programs.

Please feel free to contact Moises Sifren or myself about how you can help support this program.  If you'd like to see more photos of the walk-a-thon, please click on the following link:  http://tinyurl.com/1racaminata

 

Sincerely,

Kristy Engel
International Ministries, Kristy Engel