ImageboxPittsburgh MercyLeft ArrowRight ArrowArrow RightCloseContactContactMenuPhone IconSearchFacebookGoogle +InstagramLinkedInPinterestTwitterYouTube
Skip to Main Content
close
Language:
Font Size:
- + Reset
Menu Contact
Close
  • Our Services
    • Behavioral Health
      • About Pittsburgh Mercy Behavioral Health
      • Services for Adults
      • Services for Children & Adolescents
      • Mental Health Rehabilitation & Recovery Services
      • Mental Health Residential Services
    • Addiction Services
      • About Pittsburgh Mercy Addiction Services
      • Services for Adults
      • Services for Children & Adolescents
    • Intellectual Disabilities
      • About Pittsburgh Mercy Intellectual Disabilities Services
      • Day Support & Community Participation Services
      • Residential Services for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities
      • Unlicensed Home & Community Services
      • Employment Services
      • Contact
    • Physical Health
      • About Pittsburgh Mercy Family Health Center
      • Our Services
      • Location & Hours
      • Getting Here
      • Insurances
      • Your Care Team
      • Pharmacy Services
    • Intervention Services
    • Homeless Services
      • Second Avenue Commons
      • About Pittsburgh Mercy’s Operation Safety Net
      • Street Outreach
      • Housing & Care Management
      • Physical Health
      • Project HELP
      • Student Placement Opportunities & Street Medicine Fellowship
      • Awards & Accolades
      • How You Can Help
      • Bethlehem Haven
    • Veterans Services
    • Faith Communities
      • About the Pittsburgh Mercy Parish Nurse & Health Ministry Program
      • About Faith Community Nursing & Health Ministry
      • Education for Faith Communities
      • Resources for Faith Communities
  • Your Care
  • Engage
  • Give
  • Our Organization
    • Home
    • About
    • Careers
      • Administration
      • Behavioral Health Services
      • Medical
      • Nursing
      • Professional & Management
    • Training
    • Events
    • News
      • Stories Of Hope
    • Contact Us
Close
  • Need Help? Call us.
  • Send us a Message

Pittsburgh Mercy
1200 Reedsdale Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15233-2109 USA

Call 1-877-637-2924

Email info@pittsburghmercy.org

Pittsburgh Mercy

Need Help? Call us.

1-877-637-2924

Send us a Message

  • Home
  • About
  • Careers
    • Administration
    • Behavioral Health Services
    • Medical
    • Nursing
    • Professional & Management
  • Training
  • Events
  • News
    • Stories Of Hope
  • Contact Us
  • Search
  • Your Care
  • Engage
  • Give
  • Behavioral Health
    • About Pittsburgh Mercy Behavioral Health
    • Services for Adults
    • Services for Children & Adolescents
    • Mental Health Rehabilitation & Recovery Services
    • Mental Health Residential Services
  • Addiction Services
    • About Pittsburgh Mercy Addiction Services
    • Services for Adults
    • Services for Children & Adolescents
  • Intellectual Disabilities
    • About Pittsburgh Mercy Intellectual Disabilities Services
    • Day Support & Community Participation Services
    • Residential Services for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities
    • Unlicensed Home & Community Services
    • Employment Services
    • Contact
  • Physical Health
    • About Pittsburgh Mercy Family Health Center
    • Our Services
    • Location & Hours
    • Getting Here
    • Insurances
    • Your Care Team
    • Pharmacy Services
  • Intervention Services
  • Homeless Services
    • Second Avenue Commons
    • About Pittsburgh Mercy’s Operation Safety Net
    • Street Outreach
    • Housing & Care Management
    • Physical Health
    • Project HELP
    • Student Placement Opportunities & Street Medicine Fellowship
    • Awards & Accolades
    • How You Can Help
    • Bethlehem Haven
  • Veterans Services
  • Faith Communities
    • About the Pittsburgh Mercy Parish Nurse & Health Ministry Program
    • About Faith Community Nursing & Health Ministry
    • Education for Faith Communities
    • Resources for Faith Communities
Stories Of Hope

Pittsburgh Mercy services adapt well to telehealth and remote therapy

Two women conducting telehealth visits via computer.
Posted on August 16, 2020 by Zandy Dudiak

Your gift to Pittsburgh Mercy during The Pittsburgh Foundation’s #OneDay Critical Needs Alert on Wednesday, August 19 will provide life determining services for Pittsburgh’s most vulnerable populations. Your gift will leverage additional funds from the Pittsburgh Foundation. Preschedule today or make a donation on August 19 at www.pittsburghgives.org/Pittsburghmercy.

When Governor Tom Wolf ordered all non-life-sustaining businesses in Pennsylvania to close their physical locations as of March 19 to slow the spread of COVID-19, Pittsburgh Mercy, as an essential organization, faced the challenge of continuing to provide services to children, adolescents, and adults with the restrictions brought by the pandemic.

Doctor looking at computer during a telehealth visit.
Dr. Jack Todd Wahrenberger, Pittsburgh Mercy chief medical officer, conducts a telehealth visit with a person served by Pittsburgh Mercy Family Health Center.

Pittsburgh Mercy has embraced telehealth as a way to keep providing services to those in our care at this time. In psychiatry, the clinical outcome so far shows that the persons served are more likely to visit and talk more, according to Dr. Jack Todd Wahrenberger, chief medical officer. Persons served have been grateful not to have to have office visits and especially not to have to use public transportation.

“Patient satisfaction is pretty good,” he adds. “For people who are really scared, this is good. It’s been a lifeline for people.”

Pittsburgh Mercy’s Operation Safety Net began offering telehealth visits to people experiencing homelessness who are served by Bethlehem Haven, Light of Life Mission, and other homeless services providers. Residents in our Intellectual Disabilities Services have been able to meet with their support coordinators via Zoom.

The Child & Adolescent Partial Hospitalization Program (C-PHP) staff began in March to develop new telehealth programming, which went live on April 13. Pittsburgh Mercy colleagues sent the children a packet of the materials they needed for group therapy before their start date, so they knew what the expectations are for each day. The children and adolescents quickly adapted and the program reported nearly 100% participation from our persons served for group therapy.

“I can’t speak highly enough of all the staff who got comfortable with ZOOM and created programming to accommodate our new PHP way of life,” says Nichole Sakmar, Child & Adolescent PHP supervisor. “We created a foundation for the new programming together, but they took so much time to really make it come alive.”

Workbook pages
Students receive activity packets with materials they will work on with their therapist through our School-Based Outpatient Services. (Photo by Lynne Napoleon)

The COVID-19 restrictions also moved our School-Based Outpatient Services outside the school walls and into telehealth. In addition to wellness checks, our colleagues are encouraging youths to attend virtual groups.

“Our colleagues are doing a fantastic job reaching out to the students we serve,” says Lynne Napoleon, program administrator. “Because of the ability to use telehealth, our colleagues have become very creative in conducting sessions and show great flexibility.”

Colleagues are conducting more family sessions, particularly with the younger children, Lynne says, and this seems to work well to keep the children engaged. Colleagues are finding creative ways to use games and activities to help those we serve practice skill building, like self-control, feelings identification, positive self-regard, and task completion/ prioritization.

And beyond physical and behavioral health, Pittsburgh Mercy Parish Nurse & Health Ministry colleagues have moved into a different concept of telehealth, offering monthly virtual prayer gatherings, “Sharing our Light,” via Zoom that provide a quiet place and time to prayerfully reflect on whole-person health … balancing body, mind, and spirit.

Two women conducting telehealth visits via computer.
Two Pittsburgh Mercy colleagues conduct telehealth sessions with children serviced by Pittsburgh Mercy’s Child & Adolescent Partial Hospitalization Program.
Tagged in:
  • Adult Outpatient Services
  • Bethlehem Haven
  • coronavirus
  • COVID-19
  • health ministry
  • Operation Safety Net
  • Outpatient Services
  • Parish Nurse
  • Pittsburgh Mercy Family Health Center
  • Pittsburgh Mercy Operation Safety Net
  • Pittsburgh Mercy Parish Nurse & Health Ministry Program
  • Pittsburgh Mercy’s Operation Safety Net
  • School Based Outpatient Services
  • School Services
Share on:
  • In the News
  • News Releases
  • Social Media
  • Media Relations
  • Stories Of Hope
  • Annual Report
  • Credits

Categories

  • Art In Therapy
  • Employment
  • Family
  • Gratitude
  • Health & Well-Being
  • History
  • Independence
  • Lifesharing
  • Mindfulness
  • Mission
  • Recovery
  • Street Outreach
  • Therapeutic Gardening
  • Uncategorized
  • Veterans Services

Archives

Back to Top
Pittsburgh Mercy

A member of Trinity Health, serving
in the tradition of the Sisters of Mercy

A Member of Trinity Health

Pittsburgh Mercy
1200 Reedsdale Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15233-2109
USA

Call 1-877-637-2924

Email info@pittsburghmercy.org

Contact Us Feedback

Connect with Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • Notice of Nondiscrimination & Accessibility Requirements
  • Notice of Privacy Practices
  • Terms of Use
  • Site Map
  • http://CARF%20Accredited

© 2023 Pittsburgh Mercy

Website by Imagebox