Health

The Veterans Memorial Hospital Diabetes Management Program recently upgraded its continuous glucose monitoring system.  The Freestyle Libre Pro System offers the option of continuous glucose monitoring for up to 14 days, rather than the three-day maximum duration of the prior system.  This new system helps health care providers fine-tune their patients’ diabetes treatment plan, giving patients optimal control of their diabetes and their life.

What is Continuous Glucose Monitoring?
Continuous glucose monitoring is used to determine what a patient’s blood glucose levels are continuously, 24 hours a day, even while they sleep. When the data is downloaded at the end of the study, there are a total of 288 blood sugar readings available over a 24-hour time span. The information is able to be transferred into graphs which can show the healthcare providers how a patient’s blood sugar trends throughout each day.

The folks at WalkNEIowa.org are back with a new spring campaign to get folks moving. The Walking Rx campaign shares the stories of northeast Iowan healthcare providers that are promoting walking to their patients as a way to support their happiness and health. Veterans Memorial Hospital is now sharing these stories highlighting their providers on social media. They can be accessed anytime on the WalkNEIowa.org website.

It is hoped that hearing these stories will inspire people to do some walking of their own, because this is not just a campaign; it is a long-term commitment to work together to incorporate walking, wellness and health into all local communities.

by Sheryl Darling Mooney, RN, VMH Community and Home Care

It’s great to get out and enjoy the outdoors here in Allamakee County 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 repellent 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.

Eating sugar causes diabetes. All older adults develop diabetes as they age. Diabetes is contagious. Diabetes can be cured. Facts or myths?

All the statements above are myths. However, diabetes has become such a common disease that many times it’s hard to know what’s fact and what’s fiction. Fact - 29.1 million people have diabetes and over a third, 8.1 million, don’t know it. More than one out of 10 adults has diabetes.

Diabetes is a health condition that causes one’s blood sugar to be too high. High blood sugars can lead to other health problems, such as numb feet and fingers (neuropathy), heart disease and stroke, and difficulty seeing (retinopathy).

The good news is that one’s eating and activity lifestyle can help keep blood sugars in a healthy range.

Veterans Memorial Hospital and Walk-On Waukon, the organization with a mission of improving sidewalks and walking access throughout the Waukon community, are teaming up to sponsor the 2018 Cancer Survivor Walk scheduled for Thursday, June 28. The inaugural event is focused on honoring friends and family who are cancer survivors, as well as those continuing to fight the disease, while at the same time raising funds for both the Walk-On Waukon organization and the American Cancer Society.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, June 21 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 who has a friend or loved one with diabetes. For more information on the Diabetes Support Group, call Angie Mettille, RN at Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.
 

Veterans Memorial Hospital will be offering a course in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for health care providers (those working in health related fields such as physicians, nurses, EMTs, etc.) Tuesday, June 19, beginning at 5:30 p.m. This “Health Care Professional” CPR class 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 and all registrants should bring along their own pocket mask. The online certificate received with the course does certify attendants in CPR for two years.

Pre-registration plus a minimum of three participants is required. For more information and to register for the “Health Care Provider” CPR Course, call Veterans Memorial Hospital at 563-568-3411.
 

Incorporating balance training in a fitness routine can help improve exercise performance and help prevent falls and injuries.

Balance training is an aspect of fitness that is sometimes forgotten. One may participate in regular cardio exercise or weight-training and think that they are reaching every component of fitness. But have they thought about balance training?

“Balance training improves your body’s ability to react quickly to everyday missteps, which in turn helps prevent falls,” says Benjamin Nesseim, M.D., family physician at Mayo Clinic Health System – Franciscan Healthcare in Waukon. “Improved performance and injury prevention can also be significantly influenced with balance training during exercise.”

It is the right of the patient to choose the medical care they wish in any situation, even when the patient is too sick or hurt to tell their family members or their physician. The way to ensure the correct healthcare wishes are carried out is to complete an Advanced Directive.

Advanced Directives include: Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare and/or a Living will.

1. In order to have an Advanced Directive the patient will need to discuss their wishes with their family and physician. An Advance Directive should be done by discussing your wishes with your family and physician and then complete our Power of Attorney for Healthcare form.  

Veterans Memorial Hospital and Walk-On Waukon, the organization with a mission of improving sidewalks and walking access throughout the Waukon community, are teaming up to sponsor the 2018 Cancer Survivor Walk scheduled for Thursday, June 28. The inaugural event is focused on honoring friends and family who are cancer survivors, as well as those continuing to fight the disease, while at the same time raising funds for both the Walk-On Waukon organization and the American Cancer Society.