Health

Veterans Memorial Hospital will be offering the next course in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for health care providers (those working in health related fields such as physicians, nurses, EMTs, etc.) Wednesday, June 19, beginning at 5 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.
 

When a person is diagnosed with a chronic illness, a lot of focus and attention is put on how to keep that person as independent and as healthy as possible. When a person loses some of their abilities to care for themselves the burden of care is often assumed by the spouse, a child (or children), or sometimes friends and neighbors. While everyone who becomes a caregiver handles the added responsibility with different skill sets, attitudes, and understanding levels, there is no question that there is a very real strain associated with care giving.

Recent studies have estimated that the stress caused just by becoming the caregiver of an adult with a chronic illness or disability will take seven years off of a person’s life. With more and more Iowans aging, this is a real concern right here in the local community.

There are a few spots still available for any child age six to 14 years who would like to attend the Veterans Memorial Hospital Safety Day Camp. This camp will be held Thursday, June 13 at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds in Waukon from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The day camp is designed to increase children’s awareness of a wide variety of safety hazards, as well as provide them with hands-on, first aid training to help themselves or someone else survive an accident should one occur.

Individual topics covered at this year’s safety camp will include the following:

- ATV & Motorcycle Safety
- Farm Equipment Safety
- Electrical Safety
- Lawnmower/Weed Eater/Chainsaws
- Pinch Point Safety
- Bicycle Rodeo
- Grain Bin Safety
- Internet Safety
- Fire Arm Safety
- First Aid
- Water Safety
- Drone Safety
- Snake Awareness.

Veterans Memorial Hospital will be hosting its biannual Safety Day Camp for children ages 6 to 14 Thursday, June 13, at the Allamakee Fairgrounds from 8:15 a.m. to 2 p.m. The camp is open to all children in the area. It is a true safety camp that instructs many areas of safety that address every child’s life.

Each year, many children are killed or injured on America’s farms and at home. This summer, safety day camps, such as the one being hosted by Veterans Memorial Hospital, are being held to teach children how to prevent injuries and reduce the risk of accidents. During the camps, children participate in interactive activities that reinforce the importance of taking responsibility for their own safety, respecting parents’ safety rules and sharing safety tips with their family and friends.

Individual topics covered at this year’s safety camp will include the following:

The Auxiliary of Veterans Memorial Hospital has funded the recent renovations of the outpatient treatment room which is located across from the nurse’s station in the hospital. This room is widely used for a variety of outpatient treatments and thanks to all of these renovations, the room is much more comfortable for the patients, their families and the hospital staff. The Auxiliary donated the needed funds for all the renovations including the new counters, flooring, chairs, wall mounted blood pressure machines, painting and wall coverings thanks to fundraisers this past year.
 

The Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation’s 26th Annual Benefit Golf Tournament will be held Monday, June 17 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 26th 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.

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, together with the Alzheimer’s Association® will be offering a series of presentations concerning Alzheimer’s and dementia this summer for both the general public and for caregivers of anyone with these conditions.

The first of this three-part series will begin Wednesday, June 5, in the ICN Conference Room of Veterans Memorial Hospital. The first session will be held at 12 Noon for the general public. Anyone who wishes to attend is welcome to bring their own sack lunch in with them to enjoy during the session which is entitled “Understanding Alzheimer’s.”

In the United States alone, more than five million individuals are living with Alzheimer’s and 16 million are serving as their unpaid caregivers. The disease is a global crisis that impacts numerous families right here in the local community. However, no one has to face this disease alone or without information.

Back by popular demand, Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging (NEI3A) is bringing back its walks. The NEI3A Aging, Active and Alive Walks will be held during Older Americans Month to celebrate the strength and vitality of older Americans and to emphasize the importance of being active.

This year’s walks will be held Friday, May 31 at 20 locations throughout NEI3A’s 18-county region in northeast Iowa. The local walk is being held at 10:30 a.m. at the Waukon Wellness Center. The walks are free and people of all ages are encouraged to participate. If there is inclement weather there will still be an activity scheduled at that date and time.

To register visit https://tinyurl.com/AgingActiveAliveWalk or call Vicki Hyke at 319-874-6847 or Janet Buls at 319-231-1551. Those who would like to be a sponsor should contact Lisa Wetzel at 319-874-6879 or email lwetzel@nei3a.org.
 

Do you know 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 between five and 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 between 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 Monday, June 3 from 12:30-5 p.m. The blood drive will be held at the First Baptist Church in south Waukon.

Parents can do more to ensure that accidents don’t become a part of their children’s childhood memories. One way to start is by having your 6 to 14 year old children attend the Veterans Memorial Hospital Safety Day Camp. This camp will be held Thursday, June 13, at the Allamakee Fairgrounds from 8:15 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The day camp is designed to increase children’s awareness of a wide variety of safety and farm hazards, as well as providing them with hands-on, first aid training to help themselves or someone else survive an accident should one occur.
Individual topics covered at this year’s safety camp will include the following:

• ATV and Motorcycle Safety
• First Aid
• Electrical Safety
• Farm Equipment Safety
• Grain Bin Safety
•Lawnmowers/Chainsaws/Weed Eater/Pinch Point Safety
• Bicycle Safety/Rodeo
• Drone Safety
• Fire Arm Safety
• Water Safety
• Snake Safety