It’s official. Following the signing of a definitive agreement earlier this fall, RVNAhealth, Bethel Visiting Nurse Association, and New Milford Visiting Nurse & Hospice have merged operations and are serving our patients and communities as one unified RVNAhealth.  The merge was made official on Friday, November 20 by the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health, which oversees the three Medicare-certified agencies. The single agency will now operate as RVNAhealth with the primary location in Ridgefield CT and a branch office in New Milford. The new RVNAhealth presently serves 35+ towns in Connecticut, located in Fairfield, Litchfield, and New Haven counties.

Since the agreement was signed, the three agencies have not been idle. Bethel and New Milford team members have been onboarded to RVNAhealth; all clinical team members have been trained in HomeCare Homebase — the RVNAhealth electronic medical system — as well as in RVNAhealth clinical methodologies and best practices; administrative teams have been aligned for the expanded operational needs; and, of utmost importance, all current Bethel and New Milford patients have transitioned under RVNAhealth care, and new patients have been directed to the RVNAhealth intake coordination team.

“It’s been a remarkable few months,” says Theresa Santoro, MSN, RN, CHCA, President & Chief Executive Officer of RVNAhealth (both new and former). “If you’ve experienced a merger yourself, you understand the volume of effort and considerations, and the potential complexities of every action and decision. From ensuring that every single patient knows how important they are and how well they will be cared for, to merging the financial operations, to determining how the phones will be transferred, to training and onboarding team members so we operate consistently and exceptionally as one across the board. It’s exciting, it’s energizing, and our whole team has been, and is, absolutely outstanding.”

Paul Sirois, RVNAhealth Chief Financial and Business Operations Officer, who has also served as the project manager for the merger, agrees. “Uniting operations, locations, and teams is never simple, but we have benefitted by having common values and direction. An additional aspect that has been especially gratifying is the reception from patients, customers, physicians, and other colleagues across the healthcare industry. They understand and applaud this union and see the immediate value in having one, strong, united RVNAhealth — delivering excellent care and easy and professional to work with. We’re all looking forward to the future.”