Health

Officials at Veterans Memorial Hospital have announced that the hospital has recently “gone live” with a new electronic medical record. This new record is in response to Medicare’s rule requiring hospitals to meet certain standards related to medical records called “Meaningful Use.”
 “As we begin the process of moving portions of our documentation to the electronic medical record, I wish to apologize in advance for any disruptions anyone experiences with their care or services,” stated Mike Myers, hospital administrator. “We take great pride in providing the best care possible to all we serve. However, as with anything new, it takes some time to become familiar and comfortable with it.”
The hospital made this conversion to the electronic medical record July 1. The  staff has been training for the last month preparing for the transition to make it as seamless as possible.

Last summer, the life of John Belthuis of Waterloo was saved by Veterans Memorial Hospital’s Community Cardiac Arrest Specialty Team (CCAST) after he suddenly collapsed due to cardiac arrest while visiting the Harley-Davidson dealership in Waukon. In gratitude, Belthuis, with the help of friends and family, coordinated a motorcycle ride in Waterloo to raise funds for the Veterans Memorial Hospital ambulance service. Pictured in middle is Belthuis presenting a check for the over $4,000 raised at the June 7th event, to Veterans Memorial Hospital ER staff members Jeff Mitchell, EMT-P, EMS Coordinator, and Diane Butikofer, RN, ER Supervisor.

Warm weather means more outdoor activities, including picnics and cookouts. Every year, Iowa sees an increase in food-borne diseases during the summer. The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) reminds Iowans that a few simple precautions can reduce the risk of food-borne illness.
“Basically, preventing food-borne illness comes down to four simple rules: cooking food thoroughly, keeping cold food cold, hot food hot, and keeping your hands clean,” said IDPH Medical Director, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk. Always remember to:
• Cook meat thoroughly. Use a meat thermometer to measure the internal temperature of meat and poultry. Cook hamburger, pork and beef to 160 degrees F and poultry to 165 degrees F. If a thermometer is not available, cook meat (especially ground meats) until no pink remains and all juices run clear.
• Wash your hands with soap and water before preparing food. Don’t prepare food for others if you have diarrhea.

The 21st annual Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation Golf Tournament was held Monday, June 16 at the Waukon Golf and Country Club. Twenty-eight teams of three participated in this tournament. Each team enjoyed 18 holes of golf plus lunch and dinner prepared by Rich Schulte, Marge and Bud Strike and the Foundation Directors.
The Foundation gives credit for the success of this tournament to the many local businesses that provide prizes so everyone participating wins. Plus many businesses serving this area contribute as hole sponsors to the tournament making it an enjoyable, community-wide event.
Special hole-in-one contests were sponsored by Farm Bureau Agents Wade Bucknell and Andy Moore, and also by Waukon Implement.     

from the American Institute for Cancer Research and Veterans Memorial Hospital

As summer approaches, nothing appears healthier than a nice tan, right? Wrong. Though tan skin is associated with beauty and good health, just the opposite holds true.
“Tanning is actually a sign of skin injury and, combined with the sun, is responsible for virtually all aging on the skin,” explains Erica Krause-Wagner, NP, nurse practitioner at the Gundersen Lansing Clinic. “Freckles, skin spots and ultimately skin cancer are almost guaranteed down the road without proper sun protection.”
Every year more than three million Americans develop skin cancer, making it the most prevalent of all cancers, but because damage is not immediately visible, many people do not routinely use sunscreen.
In order to protect yourself and your family from the sun this summer, Wagner offers the following sun safety tips:
• Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 30 or greater.

Pictured above is Mrs. Stock’s Kindergarten class from West Elementary in Waukon, and pictured below is Mrs. VanderKolk’s Kindergarten class from Waterville Elementary, both in the ambulance port in Veterans Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Department. Each year, Machelle Bulman, RN, Education Coordinator at VMH, gives every Kindergarten class in the area a tour of the hospital. During these tours, the students become familiar with many hospital services. The tours include the Emergency Rooms, viewing films in the X-ray rooms, viewing the newborn babies in the Maternity Services Nursery, visiting the Rehabilitation Department and taking a short ride in the ambulance, all to help them feel comfortable with these services. Submitted photos.