Philadelphia, PA - Bayada Nurses is pleased to announce the appointment of Deborah Schmidt, RN, MSN, as the new director for the Bayada Nurses Special Contracts office.

Established in August 1986, the Special Contracts office provides home health aide services to elderly residents throughout Philadelphia. The office operates under several Medicare and Medicaid contracts with health-care providers such as Jefferson Home Health and the VNA of Greater Philadelphia.

As the new director, Schmidt brings more than 20 years of healthcare experience with her, with in-depth experience in home health care, community health, and healthcare management. Most recently, she worked as an independent nurse consultant on home care. From 1993 to 1999, Schmidt was a Nurse Manager for Penn Care at Home, a Philadelphia-based home health agency that is part of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Presbyterian Medical Center. From 1990 to 1993, she was the Director of the Homemaker-Home Aide Programs for VNA-Community Services in Willow Grove, PA. From 1988 to 1990, she served as Executive Director of the Montgomery County Homemaker-Home Health Aide Service, which merged with VNA-Community Services in 1990. From 1972 to 1986, she held a variety of community health and nursing positions.

Schmidt received a master's degree in nursing administration-as well as a bachelor's degree in nursing-from Villanova University. Her professional memberships include the American Nurses Association and the Pennsylvania Nurses Association. She is also a published author on the topic of home care administration and supervision of home health aides.

Founded in 1975, Bayada Nurses is an independently owned home health care agency that employs more than 6,000 nurses, home health aides, and therapists working from more than 65 offices in 11 states.

For more information on Bayada Nurses Special Contracts office, call 215-568-6666. For more information on Bayada Nurses, go to www.bayada.com.

For an electronic version of this press release, send an e-mail to jlabunetz@bayada.com