It happened in Milton’s Windstone neighborhood! A group of “mostly” retired nurses who live next door to each other started talking about health and wellness needs in Sussex County. They met each other through neighborhood social events and a new organization called Nurses and Neighbors was born. The founders are licensed or retired/volunteer nurses who started small in 2022 but have big aspirations. The group recently helped sponsor the Women’s Forum organized by the Fund for Women at the Cambria Hotel.
Bet Key Wong is one of the founders of Nurses and Neighbors and is currently a member of the Board of Directors. She says that the group currently has about 300 people on its mailing list including nurses, Wong, MSN, RN, CFCS, CNORe has been in healthcare for over 40 years and is a self-described social entrepreneur and innovator.
Nurses and Neighbors is a membership-based but there is no actual membership “fee”. The group has partnerships with or has received funding from several reputable health-oriented organizations and agencies such as AARP, Highmark, DART, and Community Resource Center. It also relies on contributions from individuals. Wong estimates that the organization now has about 300 people on its mailing list including approximately 50 nurses but also supporters, neighbors and community partners.
Like Village Volunteers, the organization provides transportation services for health and medical appointments. It’s web site notes that the 2023 Delaware Statewide Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan and multiple Community Health Needs Assessments, by Bayhealth, Beebe, and ChristianaCare, cite lack of transportation as a top barrier to medical care and social participation for older adults. “The Nursing-Transportation Partnership began when one of Wong’s neighbors shared that he couldn’t visit his wife in the hospital because he was afraid to drive home in the dark.
The need s great and the infrastructure for transporting the growing aging population is just not there – especially in Sussex County,” Wong says.
Another major concern regarding the senior population is proper foot care.
Neighborhood Foot Care Patrol™ is a Nurses & Neighbors initiative brings foot screenings and foot hygiene education directly to vulnerable populations—especially older adults, unhoused individuals, and underserved neighbors. According to the group’s web site, “foot health directly affects health and longevity. Healthy feet help prevent falls, support mobility, and protect independence — especially for older adults and vulnerable neighbors.”
The trained foot patrol volunteers screen for infection, skin breakdown, and injuries, educate on daily foot care and safe footwear and refer to medical care before problems become serious. All members of the patrol need to be trained and registered through Volunteer Delaware which provides insurance for volunteers
At the Women’s Forum, board member Bet Wong had an eclectic display of over the counter and household products such as olive oil ad cider apple vinegar.
“I learned these home remedies from Dr. Kate Clayton-Jones of FootCare by Nurses,” said Wong. “At the end of each foot care visit, she gives a massage to her client from their feet up to the calf using olive oil with a few drops of po sum on medicated oil. The mix softens the skin and nails and has anti-infective properties. The massage promotes circulation and movement of the microvasculature.” Nurses and Neighbors is looking for additional foot patrol volunteers and also locations to host events.
The organization is also on the move to improve the health care system in Sussex County especially for seniors. It has secured partnerships with Delaware Diabetes Coalition, La Red Health Center, and Delaware Podiatric Medicine
By Mary Jo Tarallo, Resident Journalist
Mary Jo Tarallo spent much of her career in public relations with various non-profits and spent 40 years involved with the ski industry as a journalist, public relations director for a national trade association and as executive director of the Learn to Ski and Snowboard initiative. Prior to her ski industry involvement she worked for the Maryland International Center in Baltimore and United Way of Central Maryland. She won a Gold Award for TV programming for a United Way simulcast that starred Oprah Winfrey. She has been cited for her work by numerous organizations. Mary Jo grew up in Baltimore, attended the University of Maryland and Towson University, lived in Washington, DC for 21 years and has been a full time resident of Rehoboth Beach and Milton since May 2019.
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