Health

In a powerful show of what a community can accomplish together, generous donors from across the region have helped the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation reach its $200,000 fundraising goal for the Postville Clinic upgrade and expansion project - helping secure local healthcare services for years to come.

The campaign, launched in August of 2025 with a presentation to the Postville City Council, emphasized Veterans Memorial Hospital’s long-term commitment to the Postville community and its mission to strengthen access to care. 

Kent McCormick of rural Waukon had been dealing with numbness of his left hand for multiple years. He underwent surgery in 2024 without success, so he continued to pursue medical consultation. Kent was referred to orthopedics at Emplify Health in La Crosse, WI and underwent surgery at his elbow and wrist to release compression on his ulnar nerve. Following surgery, he was initially seen by an occupational therapist who worked in the surgeon’s office in La Crosse, however with his request, he was able to be referred for follow-up therapy at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH).

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Waukon and Postville Clinics welcomed Hannah Kely last fall as a family medical provider. Hannah has been caring for patients of all ages, spending a couple of days each week in each clinic location, and looks forward to watching her practice grow.  

“I love how accessible the clinics are to the community and how we are able to tailor care to the needs of each individual patient,” explains Hannah. “The staff at both clinics has been so welcoming and I am constantly impressed with how eager to help they all are.”

Hannah grew up on a family livestock and crop farm south of Waukon. She had nearly a decade of nursing experience in a variety of areas before finishing her family nurse practitioner master’s program and beginning this position.

Stress does not disappear with age. April is Stress Awareness Month and for many older adults, stress comes from life changes, health concerns, caregiving responsibilities, and feeling less connected than before. Over time, stress can affect mood, energy, and overall well-being. 

Support and connection play an important role in managing stress and maintaining emotional health at every stage of life. 

Veterans Memorial Hospital’s Senior Life Solutions provides outpatient mental health services for older adults coping with depression, anxiety, grief, and life changes. These outpatient services are designed to meet the unique needs of individuals, typically 65 and older, experiencing depression and/or anxiety related to life changes often associated with aging. Services include group and individual therapy, medication management, and after-care planning.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) will be offering Grandparenting Classes again this spring. Corinne Cook, RN, Babysitting Class instructor, will teach the next Grandparenting Class Saturday, April 11 from 9:30 a.m. until Noon.

The class will be held in the hospital’s Large Conference Room. 

In these classes, new or soon-to-be grandparents will learn all of the new protocols to use when caring for their new grandchild. Some topics covered will include basic baby care, car seat safety, Tylenol/Ibuprofen dosing charts, home safety, poison control information, infant/child CPR, choking and other emergency medical information as well as tips to support parents such as handling the baby blues and postpartum depression.  Free-will donations will be accepted to cover the costs of the class.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, April 16, at 10 a.m. The meeting will be held at Veterans Memorial Hospital in the Large Conference Room, located on the lower level of the hospital.

This diabetes class is open to everyone who has diabetes or has a friend or loved one with diabetes.  For more information on the Diabetes Support Group, call Angie Mettille, RN, Certified Diabetes Educator at Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.

April is National Occupational Therapy Month. Occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants work with patients to help them stay safe in their own home. They also help patients who have been hospitalized return to their homes by assessing the home setup and encouraging modifications or making recommendations to ensure safety within their home.        

Richard (Dick) Smrcina has been utilizing the Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) rehabilitation services of occupational therapy, physical therapy and home health nursing since February following a left leg, below the knee, amputation. He will continue with therapy to increase his independence with his home tasks as well as build up his strength and tolerance with walking with a walker.  

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) will be offering Grandparenting classes again this spring. Corinne Cook, RN, Babysitting Class instructor, will teach the next Grandparenting Class Saturday, April 11 from 9:30 a.m. until Noon. The class will be held in the hospital’s Large Conference Room.

In these classes, new or soon-to-be grandparents will learn all the new protocols to use when caring for their new grandchild. Some topics covered will include basic baby care, car seat safety, Tylenol/Ibuprofen dosing charts, home safety, poison control information, infant/child CPR, choking and other emergency medical information as well as tips to support parents such as handling the baby blues and postpartum depression.  Free-will donations will be accepted to cover the costs of the class.

In observance of Colon Cancer Awareness Month, Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) emphasizes the importance of early detection and prevention through regular colon cancer screenings. Despite being preventable, colon cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Routine screenings, such as colonoscopies, can help identify and remove pre-cancerous polyps before they develop into a serious health threat.

Colonoscopies are a vital tool in cancer prevention.  They are a very thorough test for detecting colon cancer and are routinely performed in the Veterans Memorial Hospital surgical suite. These procedures are quick and efficient, typically taking about three hours from start to finish. With general surgery available three days per week - Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays - scheduling colonoscopies is very accessible for those at risk.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Community and Home Care-Allamakee Public Health and the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (Iowa HHS) are working together to raise awareness about shingles (herpes zoster virus) and the vaccine that helps prevent it. Shingles is a viral infection that affects one in three people during their lifetimes, causing a painful rash that can lead to chronic nerve pain, vision loss and other serious health problems. Despite these risks, many people don’t know that shingles is preventable.