Health

Over 950,000 Americans die each year from cardiovascular disease. Since February is National Heart Month, Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) provides the following facts and tips on heart health:
• 250,000 people die within one hour of onset of a heart attack.
• 60-70% of those individuals are male.
• Heart disease is the #1 killer of American women and men.
• 75-80% of cardiac arrests happen in the home.
• Bystander CPR does improve the outcome once someone has arrested.
• Traditional CPR courses are not reaching those who live with high-risk populations.
• Rapid defibrillation is the most important treatment for victims.
• For every minute delay in defibrillation there is a 10% loss for chance of survival.
• In the case of heart attack, “Time is Muscle.”
• In the case of stroke, “Time is Brain Tissue.”

Shared by Brandy Strub, Dietitian, Veterans Memorial Hospital

Monday, February 24 through Sunday, March 2 is National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. Eating disorders are definitely something to be concerned about. There are many health complications associated with an eating disorder such as heart attacks, kidney failure, electrolyte imbalances, osteoporosis and premature death, including suicide.

The sooner an eating disorder can be detected and treated, the better. The following information is shared from the “Report: Economic Costs of Eating Disorders”, conducted by Strategic Training Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders (STRIPED), in collaboration with the Academy for Eating Disorders (AED) and Deloitte Access Economics.  Those agencies state approximately 9% of the U.S. population, or 28.8 million Americans, and 9% (277,830) of Iowans will have an eating disorder in their lifetime.

The local Grief Support Group will be holding its monthly meeting at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) in Waukon Tuesday, March 11, at 4 p.m. in the Meditation Healing Center, located just inside the main entrance of the hospital.

Make note of the 4 p.m. start time, with Grief Support Group meetings returning to the 5 p.m. start time in the spring. This informal meeting is open to anyone suffering from any type of loss, whether it be death, divorce, illness or some other grief.

Feel free to attend and bring a friend. This grief support meets the second Tuesday of each month at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon.
 

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Speech - Language Pathologist Steven Mazzafield offers a Stroke Support Group for individuals who have experienced a stroke, as well as caregivers and family members affected by stroke. Monthly meetings are held the first Thursday of every month at 2 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Hospital. The next Stroke Support Group meeting will be held Thursday, March 6 at 2 p.m.

The Stroke Support Group provides opportunities to share tips, tricks, or trials among participants, offer support for caregivers, and provide an opportunity for socialization.

While strokes can happen at any age, risk of stroke is greatest as we get older with the majority of strokes occurring after the age of 70. Risk factors for stroke include obesity, sedentary lifestyle, binge drinking, diabetes, smoking, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure.

February is Heart Month and an opportunity to consider giving back to the heart of the community by making an appointment to give blood. The next local blood drive is scheduled to be held Monday, March 3, from 12-5 p.m. at the First Baptist Church in south Waukon.

Blood donations play a vital role in heart surgeries, emergency treatment and other medical needs that impact lives. Donating blood is a loving gesture that supports those who rely on the generosity of others.

Memorials were recently received by the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation in memory of Ina and Amos Pederson by Scott and Diane Pederson; in memory of Richard Plein by Gary and Jean Gilbertson; in memory of Patricia “Pat” Powell by Scott and Kim Bollman; in memory of Jim and Alta Prestemon by Pamela Setera; in memory of Paul Quandahl by Quentin and Mary Quandahl; in memory of Mike Quillin by Gary and Jean Gilbertson and Mary Beth Regan; in memory of Jacob Regan by Diane Regan; in memory of James ‘Jim” Reicks by Shari Reicks; in memory of Mary Reierson by Chuck and Lois Votsmier and Randy and Lori Hesse; in memory of the Ronan Family by Rod and Sandy Ronan; in memory of Chester Schlake by Chuck and Lois Votsmier; and in memory of Clem Schulte by Elizabeth Shew.

National Phlebotomist Recognition Week was February 10-14. Phlebotomists are “Drawn to Help Others” through their skillful abilities in drawing blood from patients for clinical or medical testing, transfusions, donations, or research. Administrative duties include accurately preparing, coding, and organizing blood samples for analysis. Phlebotomists are certified professionals who must pass an exam and have the required education and experience to receive professional certification.

Karli Rains, pictured in the submitted photo below, is the Phlebotomist at Veterans Memorial Hospital. She works full-time in the Laboratory drawing blood from patients along with many administrative duties. Riley Palmer, pictured in the submitted photo above, is the Phlebotomist in the hospital’s Waukon Clinic who also works full-time, drawing blood from patients, then running the samples over to the hospital’s Laboratory for testing and quickly receiving results.

Chest pain is a commonly presented complaint in any emergency room, including the emergency room at Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH). There is always the possibility of heart disease in every complaint of chest pain or upper abdominal pain and it must be taken very seriously.

The common signs and symptoms of an acute myocardial infarction, commonly called a heart attack, are;
1. Chest pain (crushing, squeezing or heaviness).
2. Sudden onset of weakness, nausea, fainting and sweating without an obvious cause.
3. Pain that radiates to the shoulders, neck or arms.

These symptoms occur when the blood flow to a part of the heart is blocked, often by a blood clot. This happens because coronary arteries that supply the heart with blood slowly become clogged from a buildup of cells, fat and cholesterol called plaque.

Monica Enyart of PaperPie recently donated another box of books, puzzles and activity workbooks to Veterans Memorial Hospital for the patient floor and waiting room. Enyart is a PaperPie representative and is pictured here with all of the items she recently donated. PaperPie allows a 50% match; all the donations are then donated back to the community by Enyart. She has given thousands of dollars of books to organizations in northeast Iowa and beyond through this grant matching program. For anyone who would like to give books back to the community, Enyart would be a great resource to help. Submitted photo.

The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, February 20 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 month’s topic is exercise, specifically the importance of gaining muscle mass. Amy Robinson, VMH Physical Therapist, will share her wealth of knowledge of ways to build muscle. The more muscle in the body, the better the body’s ability to burn sugar and the better everyone’s blood sugars are.

Also, metabolism speeds up when the body has more muscle mass.