Health

by Amy Rolfs, RN, VMH Cardiac Rehab Supervisor
                
If you have a heart attack or other heart problem, cardiac rehabilitation is an important part of your recovery. Cardiac rehabilitation can help prevent another, perhaps more serious, heart attack and can help you build heart-healthy habits.
About 800,000 people in the United States have a heart attack every year. About one in four of those people have already had a heart attack. Cardiac rehabilitation not only can help a person recover from a heart problem but can also help prevent future heart problems.

Did you know one in seven people entering the hospital will need blood?

The next LifeServe Blood Center Blood Drive will be held Monday, March 4, from 12-5 p.m., at the First Baptist Church in south Waukon. Blood drives are held once per month in Waukon, the first Monday of the month. The LifeServe Blood Center supplies Veterans Memorial Hospital with its blood and blood products.

The LifeServe Blood Center is seeking donors to ensure a safe and plentiful blood supply in Iowa. Because there is no substitute for human blood, the need for donors is continuous.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Community & Home Care/Allamakee County Public Health warns of the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning, especially during the winter months, with these facts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, and toxic gas. Exposure to carbon monoxide impedes the blood’s ability to carry oxygen to body tissues and vital organs. Carbon monoxide may be emitted by vehicle exhausts, fuel burning furnaces, coal burning power plants, small gasoline engines, portable gasoline-powered generators, power washers, fire places, charcoal grills, marine engines, forklifts, propane-powered heaters, gas water heaters, and kerosene heaters.

Common symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure are headache, nausea, rapid breathing, weakness, exhaustion, dizziness, and confusion. Hypoxia (severe oxygen deficiency) due to acute carbon monoxide poisoning may result in brain damage or heart damage.

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 VMH. The next Stroke Support Group meeting will be held Thursday, March 7 at 2 p.m. in the Large Conference Room. 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.

Kee High School in Lansing is planning to host a blood drive Wednesday, February 28 from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. in the Kee High School gymnasium in Lansing. Participants can save five lives in one day with a blood donation, and earn a $20 Amazon gift card.

For an appointment to donate blood, call Allison Fitzwater at 563-538-4201, ext. 110 or visit redcrossblood.org. The event is sponsored by the Kee High School Student Council.

Those who donate at this blood drive are helping one or more graduating seniors earn a scholarship. Participants can save up to 15 minutes when they donate blood by using RapidPass. Visit redcrossblood.org/RapidPass for more information.
 

For the second consecutive year, Bandmates, Brothers and Friends will reunite in Waukon for another night of musical entertainment to benefit the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation. This year will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Toe Tappers, who will be part of the musical line-up for that benefit event.

The event will again be held Friday evening of Mother’s Day Weekend, May 10, from 6-11 p.m. This year the event will be held at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion to allow for more room for sitting to enjoy the show and for dancing. Plans are also underway for additional food and beverage options to be available this year.

Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) in Waukon began its own Cardiac Rehabilitation unit over three decades ago to help fulfill a need in the community - a need that has been and continues to be well utilized.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Half a million people die each year due to this disease. Many people develop symptoms of heart disease when they are in their 40s or 50s, interrupting a most productive time of life. Cardiac Rehabilitation is an important tool in the fight against heart disease. Rehabilitation involves monitored exercise, nutritional counseling, emotional support and education about lifestyle changes to reduce risks of heart problems.

Monica Enyart of PaperPie recently organized a Cuddle Bear Drive to give back to her community. This Cuddle Bear Drive was organized to give these book and bear sets, pictured above, to Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon and WinnMed in Decorah for their young patients. Enyart is a PaperPie representative. With the help of numerous community members who sponsored these sets, she was able to give 31 bear and book sets to each hospital. “Living in the Postville area, we are blessed to have so many options for hospitals so close to home,” states Enyart.  “Everyone needs a hug sometimes. Each set helps end childhood cancer too as a portion of the proceeds goes to cancer research.” PaperPie is a proud partner of the Scott Carter Foundation to help eliminate pediatric cancer. Submitted photo.
 

The Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Diabetes Support Group will hold its next meeting Thursday, February 15, 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, Angie Mettille, Diabetes Educator at Veterans Memorial Hospital will continue presenting the topic of food and discussing the foods that are advertised as healthy, but in fact are not. She will explain the types of foods that should be avoided and what some better alternatives would be.

This diabetes class is open to everyone who has diabetes or has a friend or loved one with diabetes.  In case of inclement weather, the Diabetes Support Group will cancel if Allamakee Community Schools are closed or starting late. Attendees are encouraged to stay home if they feel sidewalks or roads are too slippery to go out and stay safe.

Members of the Matt Sweeney Memorial Ride committee recently made a very generous donation to the Veterans Memorial Health Care Foundation for the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Department at Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon. These funds were raised at the Matt Sweeney Memorial Ride which took place August 6 of last year. Pictured above, left to right, are Steve Sweeney, Matt’s brother; Jacob Dougherty, Paramedic, EMS Manager accepting the check from Brad O’Hare, Event Coordinator and Matt’s close friend; and Joe Sweeney, Matt’s father. Dougherty shared his appreciation of these funds by stating, “These funds received by our group of dedicated EMS providers here at Veterans Memorial Hospital will be carefully utilized in a meaningful way in a goal of enhancing the services we provide our community.”