Vigo County Historical Society

Reception to honor nursing group

This numbered print of a watercolor by D. Omer "Salty" Seamon pictures the building at 328 S. Fifth, which formerly housed what is now the Visiting Nurse Association of the Wabash Valley Inc.

The organization is celebrating its 18th year of service to the community with a reception at the Vigo County Historical Museum from 1 to 4 p.m. today. The public is invited.

The organization has an interesting history. Miss Lillian Rose, president of the Vigo County Graduate Nurses Association and the nurse for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Policyholders, at a meeting in 1915 of the Terre Haute Council of Women’s Club, presented a resolution setting forth the need for a public health nursing organization in Terre Haute.

In April 1916, the Public Health Nursing Association was established. Miss Lillian Rose, who was employed as the first Public Health Nurse, began her duties on Oct. 1, 1916.

Nursing services were the primary focus of the association, with several clinics being sponsored over the years. The most recent clinic being offered was the Well Child Clinic, which began in 1959 and was initially funded through contributions.

A bequest from the estate of Christine Crawford Family was designated to provide new health services and led to the establishment of the Maternal Health Clinic in March 1996. The Well Child Clinic was transferred to the Vigo County Board of Health in July 1976, while the Maternal Health Clinic was assumed by Union Hospital in October 1979.

The name was changed in 1957 to Visiting Nurse Association to reflect the evolving nature of home care. The association presently is a separate corporation of the Union Hospital Foundation. In 1993, Hospice of the Wabash Valley, established in 1982, merged governing boards with the Visiting Nurse Association to form VNA Inc.

The agency is license by the State Board of Health as a Home Health Care Agency and Certified provider of Medicare (1966) and Medicaid (1969). Physical Therapy and Home Health Aide Services were added as agency disciplines prior to certification from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations in 1991.

The agency expanded services into Parke, Vermillion and Sullivan counties in 1979, with financial assistance of a Public Health Service Grant. Clay County was added in May 1985.

The scope of all disciplines was expanded in 1983-84. Medical Social Services were added in February 1984 and Speech and Occupational Therapies in November 1985.

The print, along with other items collected through the years by the Visiting Nurse Association are on loan to the Historical Museum, and are exhibited as part of the anniversary celebration.

The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.