The Allegheny-Kiski Health Foundation Community Nurse


In the summer of 2012, the AKH Foundation launched its newest and most exciting community health improvement project, the Community Nurse Program, which began when Community Nurses Eileen Jones and Sue Rykaczewski joined the team. After six years of dedicated service, Eileen and Sue have decided to retire and spend more time with their families. In January of 2018, the Foundation was pleased to announce the addition of two new Community Nurses: Betty Sue Wilson, RN, BSN and Marion Marty, RN, BSN.

The AKH Foundation’s staffed registered nurses are charged with developing and maintaining lists of medical and community health resources, providing health education to individuals and groups, providing personal health counseling and advocacy as well as developing community educational programs on topics such as Medicare, elder care issues, mental health issues, health insurance, disease prevention, wellness, grief, and other topics.

The program is modeled after the highly successful Parish Nurse program, a nursing specialty recognized by the American Nurses Association. The AKH Foundation Community Nurses will be available to meet one-on-one with community residents over the age of 18.

What the Foundation Community Nurse WILL Do:

  • Develop and maintain medical referral and community health resource lists
  • Provide health education
  • Provide personal health counseling and advocacy

What the Foundation Community Nurse WILL NOT Do:

  • Will NOT offer medical advice or treatment
  • Will NOT give medications, change dressings, etc.
  • Will NOT prescribe medicine, diagnose illnesses or recommend treatment
  • Will NOT interfere with treatment or advice provide by physicians
  • Will NOT be a “hands-on” nurse or become a substitute for physicians
  • Will NOT be a social worker, psychiatric counselor, or home-health nurse
  • Will NOT make home visits or accompany individuals to health care appointments

There is more to watching your baby’s development than monitoring height and weight. There are many other milestones to watch for. You can begin to look for signs of emerging motor and language skills as early as the first month of your baby’s life. It is a very good idea to watch for these milestones, but be very careful not to compare your baby with other babies, even siblings. Remember that each child is an individual and there is a wide range for children to achieve a particular milestone. It is best to discuss any concerns with your baby’s physician. We have compiled a listing of various milestones to look for as your infant grows.

Your Child’s First Five Years
  • Birth to 1 month
  • Feeding 5-8 times per day
  • Sleeps 20 hours per day
  • Makes basic distinctions in vision, hearing, smelling, tasting, touch, temperature, and perception of pain
  • 1 year to 1 1/2 years
  • Creeps up stairs
  • Walks for 10 – 20 steps
  • Can make lines on paper with crayon
  • Dependent behavior – gets very upset when separated from mother
  • 2 months to 3 months
  • Color perception
  • Visual exploration
  • Cries, coos and grunts
  • Control of eye muscles
  • Lifts head when on stomach
  • Shows delight
  • 1 1/2 years to 2 years
  • Able to run, kick a ball and build a cube tower
  • Capable of bowel and bladder control
  • Vocabulary of more than 200 words
  • Sleeps 12 hours at night and takes a 1-2 hour nap
  • 4 months to 6 months
  • Localizes sounds
  • Babbling, makes most vowels and about half of the consonants
  • Feeding 3-5 times per day
  • Control of head and arm movements
  • Intentional grasping
  • Rolls over
  • 2 years to 3 years
  • Can jump from steps
  • Rides a tricycle
  • Uses crayons and can build a 9-10 cube tower
  • Starting to use short sentences
  • Very curious and exploratory
  • Fear of separation
  • 7 months to 9 months
  • Control of trunk and hands
  • Sits without support
  • Crawls
  • 3 years to 4 years
  • Can stand on one leg
  • Can jump up and down
  • Can draw circles and a cross
  • 10 months to 12 months
  • Control of legs and feet
  • Able to stand and creep
  • Able to grab with thumb and forefinger
  • Says one or two words together
  • Understands simple commands
  • Eats 3 meals with 2 snacks
  • Can express anger
  • 4 years to 5 years
  • Mature motor skills
  • Skips and broad jumps
  • Can dress themselves
  • Can copy a square and triangle
  • Talks clearly
  • Mastered basic grammar
  • Knows over 2,000 words

Middle Childhood to Adolescent Development

All children will reach developmental milestones at different rates. The below chart is a small sampling of how your child may develop during each age group. You should discuss any concerns you may have about your child’s development with his/her physician.

Middle Childhood to Adolescent Development
  • Middle Childhood (6-8 years of age)
  • Show more independence from parents and family.
  • Start to think about the future.
  • Understand more about his/her place in the world.
  • Pay more attention to friends and teamwork.
  • Want to be liked and accepted by friends.
  • Show rapid development of mental skills.
  • Able to better discuss thoughts and feelings.
  • Less focused on self and more concern for others.
  • Young Teens (12-14 years of age)
  • Show more concern about body image, looks, and clothes.
  • Focus on themselves.
  • Experience more moodiness.
  • Show more interest in and influenced more by peer group.
  • Express less affection toward parents; sometimes might seem rude or short-tempered.
  • Feel stress from more challenging school work.
  • Have more ability for complex thought.
  • Able to better discuss feelings.
  • Develop a stronger sense of right or wrong.
  • Teenagers (15-17 years of age)
  • Middle Childhood (9-11 years of age)
  • Start to form stronger, more complex friendships.
  • Becomes more emotionally important to have same sex friends.
  • Experience more peer pressure.
  • Become more aware of his/her body.
  • Body image and eating problems can begin at this age.
  • Face more academic challenges at school.
  • Become more independent from family.
  • Have increased attention span.
  • Teenagers (15-17 years of age)
  • Have more interest in the opposite sex.
  • Have less conflict with parents.
  • Show more independence from parents.
  • Have a deeper capacity for caring and sharing and for developing more intimate relationships.
  • Spend less time with parents and more time with friends.
  • Learn more defined work habits.
  • Show more concern about future school and work plans.
  • Able to give reasons to support their choices.

Adult Health & Living

Below is a recommended “Health Screenings and Immunizations for Adults” table. High risk groups may require additional screenings and monitoring. Please consult your physician.

Adult Health Issues & Healthy Living
Screening Test Ages 18-39 Ages 40-49 Ages 50-64
Blood Pressure every 2 years every 2 years every 2 years
Cholesterol yearly for men at 35 yearly for women at 45 yearly for all
Blood Glucose ask physician every 3 years at 45 every 3 years
Colonoscopy every 10 years at 50
Fecal Occult Blood yearly
Flexible Sigmoidoscopy every 5 years without colonoscopy
Mammogram every 1 to 2 years every 1 to 2 years
Clinical Breast Exam every 3 years starting in 20’s yearly yearly
Pap Test every 1-3 years after first intercourse every 1 to 3 years every 1 to 3 years
Bone Density Screening ask physician ask physician
Pelvic Exam every 1 to 3 years every 1 to 3 years every 1 to 3 years
Chlamydia & Gonorrhea yearly if sexually active yearly if sexually active yearly if sexually active
Prostate Exam DRE for high-risk patients yearly
Eye Exam once between ages 20-29; twice between ages 30-39 once at age 40; then every 2 to 4 years every 2 to 4 years
Hearing Test every 10 years every 10 years every 10 years
Dental Exam 1 to 2 times per year 1 to 2 times per year 1 to 2 times per year
Skin Test / Mole Exam monthly self-exam monthly self-exam monthly self-exam
Depression / Mental Health ask physician ask physician ask physician
Height / Weight ask physician ask physician ask physician
Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine 3 does for females
Tetanus-Diphtheria Booster Vaccine every 10 years every 10 years every 10 years
Meningococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine 1 dose for college freshman living in dormitories
Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine 1 dose for college freshman living in dormitories
Seasonal Influenza Vaccine yearly yearly yearly
Pneumococcal Vaccine yearly

Elder Health & Living

Below is a recommended “Health Screenings and Immunizations for Elders” table. High risk groups may require additional screenings and monitoring. Please consult your physician.

Elder Health & Healthly Living
Screening Test or Recommended Immunizations Ages 65 and over
Blood Pressure every 2 years
Cholesterol ask physician
Blood Glucose every 3 years
Colonoscopy every 10 years; ask physician if over age 80
Fecal Occult Blood yearly
Flexible Sigmoidoscopy every 5 years without colonoscopy
Mammogram every 1 to 2 years through age 69; ask physician if over 70
Clinical Breast Exam yearly
Pap Test ask physician
Bone Density Screening yearly for women
Pelvic Exam every 1 to 3 years
Chlamydia & Gonorrhea yearly if sexually active
Prostate Exam yearly
Eye Exam every 2 to 4 years
Hearing Test every 10 years
Dental Exam 1 to 2 times per year
Skin Test / Mole Exam monthly self-exam
Depression / Mental Health ask physician
Height / Weight ask physician
Tetanus-Diphtheria Booster Vaccine every 10 years
Seasonal Influenza Vaccine yearly
Pneumococcal Vaccine yearly