Health

by Sheryl Darling Mooney, RN
Veterans Memorial Hospital Community & Home Care

It’s great to get out and enjoy the outdoors here in Allamakee and Clayton counties, but remember to be vigilant about checking yourself and others with you for ticks. Examine your skin as best you can and use a hand held mirror if available. Fine-toothed combs can also be used in helping to check your scalp. “I’d Like to Check You for Ticks” isn’t just the catchy title to a country song, but a good idea to have someone else check the areas you can’t easily see.

There are ways to help decrease the likelihood of a tick bite or attachment:

- Treat dogs and cats for ticks
- Wear insect repellant containing the ingredient DEET (not recommended for children under two months of age)
- Wear permethrin-treated clothing
- Check yourself for ticks after being outdoors, especially after being out in the woods
- Shower soon after coming indoors.

The Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital will be holding its monthly Euchre Marathon for all individuals of the community interested Thursday, June 15. Men and women are welcome to attend, even if not an Auxiliary member. The Euchre marathons are held the third Thursday of each month at the Senior Citizens Room at the Waukon Wellness Center.

The Auxiliary’s Euchre Marathons begin at 11:30 a.m. with dinner, if chosen. Call Northland Agency on Aging at 877-838-8077 to eat dinner. Card playing will follow at 12:30 p.m. until approximately 2:30 p.m.  Anyone wishing to stay and play cards following the Senior Citizens meal is more than welcome to do so.  The cost is $3 per person with all proceeds going towards the Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital. Prizes will be awarded.

Anyone interested in attending, but preferring to play Bridge is also welcome to join in. It is asked that they come with their own table of four players, however.

Memorials were recently received by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation in memory of Hazel Rissman by Les and Ada Marie Kerndt, Marv and Marge Strike, Frank and Patty Goltz, Geralyn and Fred Smith, Rick and Cathy Larson, Orrin and Nan Grangaard, Bob and Marilyn Bulman, Bob and Linda Thompson, Chuck and Marcy  Fritz, Mike and Teresa Myers, Steve and Maureen Thode, Gordy and Darlene Kaeser, Nyles and Ruby Herman, John and Sheryl Prestemon, Betty White, Jerry and Linda Siegrist, Meg Schaller,  Dan and Sue Schlitter, Gary and Carol Bahr, Marian Smedsrud, Cyril and Shirley Larkin, Marlys Leiran, Lois Evans, Joel and Teresa Sommer, Laura Duvel, Jane Dietrich, Gayle Larkin, Mae Jean Bakke, Leotia Flage, Marcella Selberg, Mary Fink, Joan Bieber, and family and friends of Hazel Rissman.

The Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital recently awarded Jacob Dougherty of Waukon a $500 college scholarship as he furthers his education in paramedic studies at Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) in Peosta. He is the son of Dave and Brenda Dougherty and is a 2017 graduate of Waukon High School. He has already achieved his Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) license and is an active EMT on the hospital’s service. Pictured awarding Dougherty the scholarship are many members of the hospital’s Auxiliary including: Left to right - Front row: Jane Butler, Connie Gallagher, Judy Ferguson, Donnalee Osland, Carolyn Thomson and Bev Larson-Needham. Back row: Ann Roed (Auxiliary Secretary), Linda Siegrist, Ann Rademaker, Shirley Steffenson, Jacob Dougherty, Nona Sawyer (Auxiliary President), Lillian Larson (Auxiliary Treasurer), Kay Sewick, Janet Palmer (Gift Case Coordinator) and Maralyn Welsh. Submitted photo.
 

Community blood drive scheduled for June 12 in Waukon

The next LifeServe Blood Center blood drive will be held Monday, June 12 from 12-5 p.m. at the First Baptist Church located in south Waukon. Blood drives are held once a month in Waukon to allow for more donors to give. The LifeServe Blood Center supplies Veterans Memorial Hospital with its blood and blood products.

Blood centers across the United States see a decrease in blood donations during the busy summer months. During the summer, people are more active, have busier schedules, spend more time outdoors and take vacations.

While donations decline, hospitals see an increase in the need for blood. More driving can mean more automobile accidents. A person who has suffered severe injuries from an automobile accident can need up to 50 units of blood.

The Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation’s 24th Annual Benefit Golf Tournament will be held Monday, June 19 at the Waukon Golf and Country Club beginning with a shotgun start at 9:30 a.m.

Teams of three will play 18 holes of golf. Breakfast rolls, lunch, dinner and prizes for everyone will all be provided for the donation of $75.

This is the 24th annual golf tournament the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation has sponsored. All those interested are asked to pre-register their team by calling the Waukon Golf and Country Club at 563-568-9939. There are a few spots remaining for teams to join.

The Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation is a volunteer board that raises funds to help promote health care in the area communities served by Veterans Memorial Hospital.
 

Veterans Memorial Hospital, in cooperation with the American Heart Association, is offering a course in cardiopulmonary resuscitation for lay people (those not working in healthcare), which includes child care providers, Monday, June 12, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The CPR class, which will cover adult, child and infant CPR, will be held in the Large Conference Room located on the lower level of the hospital. The cost of the class, for certification or recertification, is the same. The card received with the course does certify attendants in CPR for two years.

CPR is administered when someone’s breathing, pulse, or both, stop. When both of them stop, the victim has suffered sudden death, which can be caused by poisoning, drowning, choking, suffocation, electrocution, smoke inhalation, or the most common cause, heart attack.

The local Grief Support Group will hold its monthly meeting at Veterans Memorial Hospital Wednesday, June 14 at 2 p.m.

This informal meeting is open to anyone suffering from any type of loss, whether it be death, divorce, illness or some other grief.

Feel free to attend and bring a friend. This grief support group meets the second Wednesday of each month at Veterans Memorial Hospital.
 

Memorials were recently received by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation in memory of Dan Otting by the 9 O’Clock Coffee Group at the S&D Café, Angie Schulte, Dr. Dave and Suzanne Hahn, Wayne and Nona Sawyer, Dean and Lynn Sorensen, Dacia and Clint Johnson, Bernard Welsh, Dave and Gail Prestemon, Kate Wooden, Marlys Leiran, Dan and Traci Byrnes, Lyle and Marilyn Larson, Bill and Shirley Schneeberger, Carol Krumme, Houg Insurance Agency, Jeff and Amy Sommer, Bob and Marilyn Bulman, Jane Dietrich, Chuck and Lois Votsmier, Gladwin and Darlene Anderson, Lesa Moose, Dave and Rita Newton, Susan and Tom Counters, Pat Pettingill, Jim and Eli Klenske, Joel and Teresa Sommer, John and Barb Lacewell, Frank and Patty Goltz, Marv and Marge Strike, Frank and Chereen Hogan, Bruce and Sue Torkelson, Dale and Ann Rademaker, Orrin and Nan Grangaard, Jim and Patty Clarke, Dr. Arlen and Karlene Wonderlich, Rick and Cathy Larson, Russ and Mary Jo Meyer, Dr.

National EMS Week honors the lifesaving care EMS providers offer nationwide, 24-hours a day, seven days a week

The area ambulance services who commonly arrive with patients at Veterans Memorial Hospital (listed in alphabetic order) includes the Caledonia Ambulance, Harpers Ferry Rescue Squad, Lansing Ambulance Service, Monona Ambulance Service, New Albin Fire, Postville Ambulance Service, Waterville Rescue Squad, all in addition to the Waukon Veterans Memorial Hospital service.