Health

Simple precautions from the Iowa Department of Public Health can reduce risk of food-borne illness

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.
Always remember to:

The members of the Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) are actively recruiting new and returning members to join them during their annual membership drive.

The Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital is devoted to providing the hospital and its patients and visitors with many services. The Auxiliary also holds annual fundraisers, such as the Women’s Health Day Luncheon each fall, the Pillow-Perk and Masquerade sales in October and their annual membership drive each July. All the money the Auxiliary receives goes back to the hospital for equipment.

Veterans Memorial Hospital will be offering a variety of free health tests and education at the 2022 Allamakee County Fair.  Testing and educational materials will change daily and will include the following schedule:

In May 2022, a global outbreak of monkeypox - a rare viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus - was confirmed with a cluster of cases found in the United Kingdom. Since then, countries around the world have seen an uptick in monkeypox cases, including the United States.

While monkeypox cases are increasing across the country, the general population is currently at low risk of contracting the disease.  The spread of monkeypox is different from the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic for the following reasons:

• There is a vaccine for monkeypox.
• Monkeypox can be treated with available antiviral medicines.
• While COVID-19 passed easily from person to person, monkeypox does not spread as easily between people. Monkeypox transmission typically requires skin-to-skin contact, direct contact with body fluids, or prolonged face-to-face contact.

The next LifeServe Blood Center blood drive will be held Monday, August 1, 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 become 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.

Veterans Memorial Hospital will be offering “Hands Only” CPR training Sunday, July 24, at their booth in the Pavilion at the Allamakee County Fair. “Hands Only” CPR is a simple technique for performing CPR that is intended for non-trained bystanders to use easily and effectively on any adult or teen needing CPR.

“Hands Only” CPR is a simple two step process.  Whenever a teen or adult suddenly collapse, the bystander should first send someone to call 911 or call 911 themselves. Then place the heel of one hand in the center of the patient’s chest, with the other hand on top, and press hard and fast until help arrives.

The chest compressions should be performed at a rate of 100 beats per minute, or to the beat of the song “Staying Alive.”  There is no need to perform any mouth to mouth breathing. It has been proven that it is most important that the circulation be maintained through the chest compressions.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital Medical Clinic in Postville opened Tuesday, July 5, at 124 West Green Street in the same location of the former Postville Medical Clinic in downtown Postville. The clinic will follow a consistent schedule Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The clinic will remain open over the lunch hour, then close from 1-2 p.m. each afternoon.

The Postville Clinic has one full-time provider, Michelle Crary, Nurse Practitioner, and Dr. Thomas McMullan, who will continue to see patients in the clinic on a part-time basis.

Michelle Crary, Nurse Practitioner, is working four days a week in the clinic. She has over 10 years of nursing experience at both Gundersen Health and Mayo Clinic in La Crosse, WI as well as Winneshiek Medical Center in Decorah. She has been seeing patients at the Veterans Memorial Hospital Medical Clinic in Waukon for the last two months.

As of Friday, July 8, Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) is temporarily closing its Urgent Care department, which has been available evenings and weekends for walk-in, non-emergent cases. The hospital does plan to reopen the Urgent Care Area again in the fall.  During this time, patients seeking immediate or emergency care should visit the VMH Emergency Department (ER).

For all other needs, patients should utilize either of the Veterans Memorial Hospital Medical Clinics located in Waukon at 105 E. Main Street, or in Postville at 124 W. Green Street.  

The Waukon Medical Clinic is open Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. In addition, Mondays, this clinic offers early access hours beginning at 7 a.m., and evening appointments are available Thursdays until 7 p.m. Starting July 5, the Postville Medical Clinic will be open Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

submitted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)

What You Need to Know
• COVID-19 can make children and teens of any age very sick and can sometimes require treatment in a hospital. Some children and teens have even died from COVID-19.
• The benefit of COVID-19 vaccines, like other vaccines, is that those vaccinated get protection without risking the potentially serious consequences of getting sick with COVID-19.
• Help protect children from severe disease, hospitalization, or death by getting them vaccinated against COVID-19.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital Medical Clinic-Postville opened Tuesday, July 5 at 124 West Green Street in the same location of the former Postville Medical Clinic in downtown Postville. The clinic will follow a consistent schedule Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The clinic will remain open over the lunch hour, then close from 1-2 p.m. each afternoon.

Minor renovations have been completed to the clinic building which mostly consisted of new flooring, paint and furniture.

This will be the second clinic to be opened and managed by Veterans Memorial Hospital in just over a year. The Waukon Clinic opened May 3, 2021, with three full-time providers and one part-time provider. The Postville Clinic will open with one full-time provider and one part-time provider. Both locations will work closely, sharing many services and staff, ensuring patients are seen by a medical provider at one location or the other as soon as possible with great continuity of care.