It’s been a busy seven months for Stacey Melliere RN. She joined Deaconess Nurse Ministry late last year, and she’s already worked with hundreds of people living in St. Louis City to as far as South St. Louis County.
Stacey is a firm believer that through compassion and present listening, trust is possible with her clients. From that, quality health and social outcomes can prevail.
She’s currently onsite at three locations during the week. Most of her time is spent at the High Ridge Food Pantry. She also serves clients at the Arnold Food Pantry and Isiah 58, a community center located in downtown St. Louis.
It’s critical for Stacey to fully understand a client’s physical, mental, and spiritual health needs. Through this holistic approach, she’s been able to provide better care or make a referral to a community resource that can best help.
Most commonly, she provides blood pressure screenings, nutrition counseling, and social services (Mainly through the Senior Project, which focuses on utility assistance and other social support referrals.) to clients experiencing various hardships, both in health and financially.
And, her care and work approach are working.
Since the beginning of the year, Stacey has served 101 clients at High Ridge. From those clients, 36% have revisited her at least once. 83% of repeat clients have lowered their blood pressure, and 61% have reduced their pressure level by at least 10 points.
She’s cared for over 100 people at Isiah 58 and Arnold Food Pantry as well.
Beyond these promising statistics, she’s helped three individuals in the last few months with blood pressure levels so critical that severe complications were imminent. But, by monitoring their levels, guiding diets, and conducting follow up visits, Stacey was able to reduce their blood pressure dramatically. Stacey has given them a new lease on life.
If you ask Stacey, she’ll immediately share there’s still much to be done in the communities she serves. However, she’s making a powerful impact to so many, and we’re grateful for her dedication and compassion.
We can’t wait to witness more people with improved health and living, thanks to Stacey.