Career Pulse

Orszulak Recognized by Sheriffs Association

WARE — Paul Orszulak, president of the Ware TRIAD and SALT Council, was recently recognized by the Hampshire County Sheriffs Assoc. at its annual picnic in Hatfield, where Orszulak received the Betty Desantis Award for Community Service. The award, presented annually, is based on volunteerism and was given to Orszulak for his tireless efforts and commitment to the TRIAD Council of Ware.

TRIAD is a community partnership between seniors and senior-services agencies. The Ware council membership includes Baystate Mary Lane Hospital, the Ware Police Department, the Hampshire County Sheriffs Department, the Ware Director of Emergency Management, and community members. The primary goal of the TRIAD council is to reduce criminal activity targeted at seniors, and to enhance the delivery of law enforcement and public health and safety services to senior citizens.

“I am proud of the work the Ware TRIAD Council has been able to accomplish,” Orszulak said. Some of the projects it has instituted in town are the Home Numbering Project, which makes it easier for police and fire personnel to find homes in the case of an emergency; the Are You OK program, which provides calls to seniors who are alone; the File of Life project, which uses red, magnetized holders typically posted on refrigerators, containing a resident’s medical history; and most recently, the Ware Emergency Preparedness Booklet For Seniors.

Orszulak is no stranger to community works; he retired from Ware High School in 1998, where he taught business and athletics for 35 years. Orszulak continues his work with Ware High School, volunteering for the athletic department and proctoring MCAS testing at the high school, tallying 47 total years of dedication to the Ware Public School system.

He also volunteers for the American Red Cross, works annually at the St. Mary’s Carnival and is a member of the Friends of Ware Seniors, a group that advocates for seniors. “Throughout my life, many people have been good to me or have helped me long the way. Volunteering is a way for me to return the favor,” he said.

CDH Childbirth Center Welcomes Orekondy

NORTHAMPTON — Cooley Dickinson Hospital welcomes Barbara Orekondy, a clinical nurse specialist and clinical practice manager who will work on the Childbirth Center.

Orekondy comes to Cooley Dickinson from Albany Medical Center in New York, where she served as an education specialist for nearly four years, specializing in perinatal nursing, and also worked as per diem nursing supervisor. Before returning to Albany Medical Center full-time in 2006, she was the clinical nurse specialist at Bellevue Woman’s Hospital in Schenectady, N.Y. for five years. She started her perinatal nursing career as a labor and delivery nurse for 11 years at Albany Medical Center.

At Cooley Dickinson, Orekondy says her goals are to initiate more unit-based perinatal education and patient rounding, and improve and facilitate the documentation procedure for nurses so they can spend more time at the bedside. “It’s exciting to me. I can achieve things here,” Barbara said. “I’m an educator first and foremost.”

She said that, because she has high standards and expectations, she thinks she will fit in well at Cooley Dickinson, where the organization models a philosophy that puts top-quality care at the forefront.

Over the summer, Orekondy and her husband, Basavaraja, or “Raja,” spent quite a bit of time in the Northampton area, talking with people about Cooley Dickinson Hospital and the Childbirth Center. “I’m hearing lots of positive stories,” she said. “Everyone raves about Cooley Dickinson Hospital and what a wonderful place it is and what a wonderful Childbirth Center it has.”

The Orekondys left the community where they had lived, raised two children, and worked in for the last 36 years because they are both excited about Cooley Dickinson Hospital and the opportunities here. Raja was a urologist in practice for 36 years before he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease, otherwise known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

Klyman Named to Elder Law Editorial Board

SPRINGFIELD — Attorney Carol Cioe Klyman, a shareholder of Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin, P.C. of Springfield, has been named to the Editorial Board of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) Journal.

The NAELA Journal is a peer-reviewed, scholarly publication of articles on elder and special needs law topics, which is published twice a year. Klyman specializes in elder law, estate planning, guardianships, special needs planning, and probate litigation.

Shumway Joins Southampton Practice

SOUTHAMPTON — Sharon Shumway, a family nurse practitioner, has joined Dr. Mark Bigda and Leah Carrasquillo, also a family nurse practitioner, at Nashawannuck Internal Medicine in Southampton.