Health

The Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital will be holding its monthly Euchre Marathon for all individuals of the community interested Thursday, November 16.  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 if choosing 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. All proceeds go 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.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital Radiology staff recently received a donation toward its new 3D Mammography machine by the Postville High School volleyball team, which hosted a “pink out” night October 5 at its home volleyball match. The money raised was presented by Lakken Cox, Captain of the Postville Pirates volleyball team. Pictured above during the check presentation, left to right, are Rachel Wagner, Ultrasonographer; Lakken Cox; Renee Stokman, X-ray Technician and Kelly Baxter, X-ray Technician. The new 3D mammography machine pictured with the group above is the first of its kind in northeast Iowa. Submitted photo.
 

By Teresa Myers RN/CDE
Veterans Memorial Hospital

We all feel stress at various times in our lives. The stress you experience may include worrying about paying bills and/or having money to buy essential items such as food, clothing and medications. It may be feeling anxious or emotional as a result of a new job, a new home or the birth of a child. Stress has many forms and comes from multiple contributing factors; it can be defined as sad stress or happy stress. Regardless of the source of the stress - stress is stress.

Learning you have diabetes can be hard, and living with diabetes is not simple. Emotions have a profound effect on managing blood sugar levels and following a diabetes treatment plan. Our bodies make and release “stress hormones” when we are “feeling stress”. The release of these hormones into our body system can make your blood sugars levels go up or even go down.

For parents, it can be hard to tell whether your child’s illness requires antibiotics or if there are other ways to effectively treat their symptoms. In order to prevent over-use of these drugs, it’s important to know which situations can use home remedies instead of antibiotics.

“If your child has an ear infection, consider using over-the-counter pain relievers in place of antibiotics,” says Steven Perkins, D.O., family physician at Mayo Clinic Health System - Franciscan Healthcare in Waukon. Children’s ear infections usually improve within two to three days, especially for kids who are two years or older. If your child’s health does not improve within a few days, it would be wise to take them in to see their provider.

Congratulations to the numerous students who completed the recent Veterans Memorial Hospital Baby-sitting class. The class, which was held Saturday, October 21, consisted of teaching the qualities of being a good baby-sitter including basic child care, accident prevention and first aid. These new baby-sitters learned CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) and the Heimlach Maneuver, to be used in the case of a choking infant or child, and also learned about fire safety.

The students who completed the Veterans Memorial Hospital Baby-sitting seminar included Ava Johnson, Jayden Knox, Mallory Mohn, Kaylee Hawes, Ethan Palmer, Blake Bresnahan, Dylan Christensen, Caleb Helgerson, Bethany Colsch, Max Howe, Mason Howe, Taylor Kiel, Alyssa Connelly, Mallory Berns, Molly Peake, Elle Wilkins, Faith Cooper, Madilyn McNamara, Caydence Lloyd, Mariana Hager, Logan Troendle, Ryland Egan, John Blake, Lauryn Howard, Brianna Bedore, Aleandra Koozer and Millie Koozer.

There has been a lot of talk recently about the opioid and addiction crisis, both in the Midwest and throughout the country. The impact of these crises can be devastating to individuals struggling with addiction; they can also be deadly. The impact also goes deeper, affecting family, friends and loved ones.

As awareness of the opioid epidemic spreads, the need for services to address substance abuse treatment and recovery will also increase. There may already be agencies in the area that can offer assistance with these concerns.

To find out more about substance abuse resources in the tri-state area, including assessment, counseling, treatment and community support, contact Great Rivers 2-1-1 to speak to an Information & Referral Specialist.

The local Grief Support Group will hold its monthly meeting at Veterans Memorial Hospital Wednesday, November 8 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.
 

How much blood is needed by certain patients? Here are some facts from the LifeServe Blood Center.

·Cancer patients can use up to eight units of blood a month.
·Bone Marrow Transplant patients can use up to two units a day.
·Cardiovascular Surgery patient can use between two and 25 units.
·Liver Transplant patients can use up to 100 units.
·Auto/Trauma Accident patients can use anywhere from five to 100 units.
·Premature infants can use up to one to four units.
·Burn victims case use up to 20 units of platelets.
· Heart surgery patients can use three to eight units of red cells and one to 10 units of platelets.
· Organ transplant patients can use 10-30 units of blood.

The next LifeServe Blood Center blood drive will be held Thursday, November 2 from 12:30-5 p.m. The blood drive will be held at the First Baptist Church in south Waukon.

Reservations are being taken now for the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation’s 26th  Annual Christmas Fantasy to be held Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, November 10, 11, 12 and 13 at the Allamakee Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon. The theme for this year’s event will be “A Christmas To Remember.”

Reservations are now being taken for the popular Saturday and Monday Noon luncheons and the Saturday evening Wine, Cheese and Dessert Event.

The luncheons are sponsored by the Allamakee County Cattlemen’s Association and will be held Saturday, November 11 at Noon, and again Monday, November 13 at Noon. A full meal will be served plus entertainment will be provided at both events. All guests will have ample time to view all of the displays.

Reservations can be made by calling 563-568-6262.

Veterans Memorial Hospital Community and Home Care is offering flu shots every Wednesday afternoon during regular immunization clinics. The next flu shot clinics will be held Wednesday, October 25 from 1-4 p.m. and again Wednesday, November 1 from 1-6 p.m.  The Community and Home Care Immunization Clinic is located on the upper level of Veterans Memorial Hospital.

Immunization clinics are held from 1-6 p.m. the first and third Wednesdays of the month, and from 1-4 p.m. all other Wednesdays. Flu vaccine, pneumonia vaccine and a combination of flu and pneumonia vaccine will all be available. Tetanus shots will be offered as well.

Medicare does cover the costs for a flu shot. Billing for Medicare will be completed by the Community and Home Care staff, but participants will need to bring their physician’s name and their Medicare number with them.  Pneumonia shots and Tdap shots are also available.