As many of you know, I am the proud president for the past 5 years, of the Union County Ostomy Support Group of New Jersey (a lengthy title, but there is no question where we are located, is there?) Our group, housed at Overlook Medical Center in Summit, New Jersey, has grown larger yet closer over this period, and we are inviting and welcoming to all who need us. We started with a handful of members and now my database numbers close to 70! There are ostomates with colostomies, urostomies and ileostomies, and we have a designated Ostomy Center where outpatient ostomates from all over can be seen by one of our 4 Wound and Ostomy Continence Nurses (WOCN’s,) Angela, Stephanie, Ronnie and Pam.  We are an example of the difference that can be made when there is one goal…to support each other, whatever that means to each of us. We meet the second Tuesday of each month from 2:00-3:00 p.m., at the Medical Arts Building ll, adjacent to the Medical Center.

Last year at this time, I worked with the Wound Nurses, Denise and Kim, from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Somerset, New Jersey, to establish their Ostomy Support Group. It is wonderful to report that our numbers there are rising, as well, going from the proverbial one member to 15 on our list. We meet every other month (February, April, June, August, October and December) on the second Wednesday, from 1:30-2:30 p.m. We meet at the Steeplechase Cancer Center adjacent to the Hospital. Since we are still at the beginning of our development, we have the opportunity to hear the survival stories of our members, and that, alone, is cathartic. Clinically, we are all quite similar, but how we got to where we are, well that is as individual as these wonderful individuals!

It is now my pleasure to introduce the third Ostomy Support Group I will be facilitating. Working with Sandra Johansen, Director of Burn, Wound and Ostomy Clinic, from Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey, our first meeting will be on Thursday, October 10th from 3:00-4:00 p.m. Monthly meetings will be held the second Thursday of the month, from 3:00-4:00 p.m. in the Medical Center. Since St. Barnabas is the site of many ostomy surgeries, it is likely to start with many ostomates, and more to come, with the knowledge that the group exists. I am so excited to see what a difference we can make, since St. Barnabas serves a huge population, and is growing larger continuously.

Please reach out to me if you, or one you love, would like to attend any of the three groups I have referenced. There is always room for more, and I will personally speak with and encourage the participation of any in need. By the way, I always wear a flower to Support Groups so I can be spotted easily. I received countless flowers over the 23 years I was ill, and appreciated each of them…now it is my opportunity to help nurture ostomates as those flowers nurtured my soul!

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