By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Savannah Bochy recently celebrated her one-year anniversary as an employee at the Barton County Health Department. What a first year it has been. As a Maternal Child and Health Home Visitor, Bochy made 151 home visits around Barton County in her first year. Last week, she was named Home Visitor of the Year by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Health Department Director Karen Winkelman recognized Bochy during Tuesday's county commission meeting.
"The Home Visiting Program is a voluntary program that brings a trained family support professional to the homes of clients at no cost," Winkelman said. "In addition to home visits, she also offers prenatal support and programming for children to the age of one."
As a home visitor, Bochy works with new parents on all things baby and family, from breastfeeding, to how to put on a diaper and hold a baby, to home safety items like checking smoke detectors, installing carbon monoxide detectors, and monitoring bath water temperature.
"I go in the home, I help new moms and even pregnant moms, set up their cribs in the correct areas that are safe for the children to be laid in," Bochy told commissioners. "We talk about Safe Sleep. We go over feeding routines and any questions they might have."
Bochy recently completed her certification as a Safe Sleep instructor to help lower the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). She will soon get her certification in car seat installation.