PLATTSBURGH — The Get Healthy North Country Community Integrated Health Network is offering training for peer leaders to help individuals and families better manage chronic health conditions.
The training is scheduled to begin on Thursday, July 11, and continue weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays through Aug. 22. A total of 13 virtual sessions will be held; each session runs from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Residents of the following counties are eligible to participate: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Washington, Warren and St. Lawrence. Training sessions are offered free of charge.
“Peer leaders are community members trained to help others understand how to recognize the signs and symptoms often associated with chronic conditions,” said Jerome James, Access Program director at the St. Lawrence County Health Initiative, a member of the Get Healthy North Country coalition. “These individuals also empower people to become better managers of their health and lead fuller lives.”
To enroll in the training, visit bit.ly/gethealthypeerleaders or contact the Health Initiative Lifestyle Program at (315) 261-4760 ext. 239 or email nocosupport@gethealthyslc.org.
Get Healthy North Country is a network of medical and behavioral healthcare providers, public health units, area offices of aging, social care agencies, and other chronic disease prevention program stakeholders that collaborate to offer coordinated, comprehensive evidence-based products and services designed to reduce the burden of chronic disease. A key aspect of the coalition’s work is developing capacity in communities to help individuals take control of their health.
Peer leaders should be friendly and open-minded, motivated by helping others from diverse backgrounds, comfortable speaking in group settings, willing to follow an evidence-based scripted manual, able to lead and/or facilitate with a co-leader, and be dependable to lead at least two workshops annually.
Earlier this year, Get Healthy North Country trained and placed 16 new peer leaders with eight regional organizations, including Clinton County Office for the Aging, Essex County Prevention Team, Oswego County Health Department, St. Lawrence Health System, Warren County Offices for the Aging, JCEO, The Heart Network, and Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center.
Get Healthy North Country’s website — gethealthynoco.org — offers an array of in-person, virtual and telephonic workshops tailored for people living with chronic conditions, including diabetes, cancer, pain and more. Each program aims to provide participants with the tools and strategies to get and stay healthy. All workshops are grant-funded and offered at no cost to the individual. To learn more, visit gethealthynoco.org.
To learn more about the Get Healthy North Country Community Integrated Health Network, contact Ann Morgan at amorgan@heartnetwork.org or Anne Marie Snell at anne@gethealthyslc.org.