Health

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) will sponsor the next Babysitting Seminar Friday, April 3, from 9 am to Noon. Corinne Cook, RN, will be leading this class which will be held in the Large Conference Room located on the lower level of Veterans Memorial Hospital.    

Intended participants are individuals 10 years of age and older who are responsible for their own care after school until their parents come home from work, and individuals who care for other children in or outside of their own home. Girls and boys are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) will be offering Grandparenting Classes again this spring. Corinne Cook, RN, Babysitting Class instructor, will teach the next Grandparenting Class Saturday, April 11 from 9:30 a.m. until Noon. The class will be held in the hospital’s Large Conference Room. 

In these classes, new or soon-to-be grandparents will learn all the new protocols to use when caring for their new grandchild. Some topics covered will include basic baby care, car seat safety, Tylenol/Ibuprofen dosing charts, home safety, poison control information, infant/child CPR, choking and other emergency medical information as well as tips to support parents such as handling the baby blues and postpartum depression. Free-will donations will be accepted to cover the costs of the class.

Blood donations are needed everywhere, even right here in Iowa. The following are interesting facts relating to blood from LifeServe Blood Center who supplies Veterans Memorial Hospital with their blood products:

• Every three seconds someone needs blood.
• Blood makes up about eight-percent of a person’s body weight.
• Blood is needed every minute of every day; summer, winter, spring and fall.
• Scheduled surgeries are often canceled around the country due to a lack of blood.
• Donating blood includes a health check for the donor (checking blood pressure, pulse, temperature and hemoglobin) prior to donating.
• There is absolutely no way you can contract any disease from giving blood.
• Blood can be split into different components (red cells, platelets, plasma, and cryoprecipitate) and used to help different types of patients.

Allamakee County Public Health shares the following Poison Prevention Tips compliments of the Iowa Poison Control Center, in observance of National Poison Prevention Week.

If you think someone has been poisoned, call 1-800-222-1222 right away.  Serious poisonings don’t always have early signs. Save the number of your poison control center in your cell phone contacts.  Text the word POISON to 797979 to download the business card for poison control to a mobile phone.

Keep medicines and household products in their original containers in a different place than food. Always read the product labels and follow any directions.

Keep household products and medicines locked up.  Put them up high and out of sight and reach of young children.

Buy products with child-resistant packaging, but remember, nothing is child-proof.

Never call medicine “candy.”  Poisons may look like food or drink. Teach children to ask an adult before tasting anything.

Each March, the Academy’s National Nutrition Month® (NNM®) campaign brings people together to celebrate how informed food choices and healthy habits can fuel better living. The 2026 theme, “Discover the Power of Nutrition,” highlights the everyday impact nutrition has on helping individuals and communities thrive.

Week 3 Focus: Stay Nourished on Any Budget
Eating well doesn’t have to be expensive. With the right skills and resources, you can build healthy meals that fit your budget and lifestyle.
• Learn simple cooking and meal-prep skills that make the most of what you have
• Plan meals and shop smart to reduce food waste and save money
• Explore community supports like SNAP, WIC, and local food banks
• Advocate for nutrition programs that help your family and community thrive

Healthy eating is possible at every budget - and small steps can make a big difference.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, March 19 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.

Speakers presenting to the groups this month will include Melanie Bauch, Director of the Northeast Iowa Wellness and Recreation Center in Postville. She will be sharing information about a falls prevention program starting soon in her facility. Falls are the leading cause of injury and injury-related death among adults age 65 and older in Iowa, so this program is very worthwhile in keeping this population in the local area independent and healthy.

The second speaker will be Amanda Pettit, RN and friends of Senior Life Solutions (SLS). This is a new program located right within VMH that promotes mental health and offers counseling for those in need. It is another program designed for those over 65.

Memorials were received by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation in memory Mike Foley by Frank and Jean Weymiller; in memory of Julie Halverson by the family of Julie Halverson; in memory of Toni Kolsrud by Gary Kolsrud; in memory of Judy Lonning by Chuck and Lois Votsmier; in memory of Dan Mathis by Rita Mathis, Arlen and Karlene Wonderlich, and Brian and Denise Wullner; and in memory of William “Bill” Moody by Chuck and Lois Votsmier.

Memorials were also received in memory of Walter Kurth, Jr. by Ron and Nancy Adam, Anonymous, Tom and Joan Fritz, Steve and Judy Kurth, Larry and Sharon Snitker, and Chuck and Lois Vostmier.

A donation to the Foundation was also given in honor of Hannah Kelly, NP, by John and Sheryl Prestemon.  

Pulmonary Rehabilitation Week is this week, March 8-14. Local Pulmonary Rehabilitation is a program offered at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) that teaches a person to live and breathe better with chronic lung disease. Conditions such as emphysema, chronic bronchitis, asthma, restrictive lung disease and cystic fibrosis can make doing everyday activities difficult due to shortness of breath and low activity tolerance. Participation in a pulmonary rehab program can help increase strength, manage shortness of breath, decrease anxiety and depression and implement a consistent at-home exercise program.

Senior Life Solutions is a new department opening at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) March 26. They will be providing outpatient services designed to meet the unique needs of individuals, typically 65 and older, experiencing depression and/or anxiety related to life changes often associated with aging. Services include group and individual therapy, medication management and after-care planning.

Services available with Senior Life Solutions are confidential and include comprehensive assessment, group therapy, individual therapy, and family therapy, as well as medication education, medication management in collaboration with our patients primary care provider, and after-care planning.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) will sponsor the next Babysitting Seminar Friday, April 3, from 9 a.m. to Noon. Corinne Cook, RN, will be leading this class which will be held in the Large Conference Room located on the lower level of Veterans Memorial Hospital.

Intended participants are individuals 10 years of age and older who are responsible for their own care after school until their parents come home from work and individuals who care for other children in or outside of their own home. Girls and boys are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Topics to be covered include fire and personal safety, accident prevention and emergency actions, nutritious snacks and basic care of children.