Five Ways to Have a Safe and Fun Halloween

Tonight as the sun goes down, little ghosts and goblins will pour into the streets to go trick-or-treating through the neighborhoods.  We’ve got a few tips to help keep the entire celebration a safe and fun one.

 

Let’s start with carving those pumpkins! This is definitely an activity that requires adult supervision. Leave the kitchen knives in the drawer and pick up a pumpkin carving set. These will still give you a good cut if you slip but they aren’t likely to send you to urgent care for stitches. 

Flashlights or glow sticks are great for increasing your child’s visibility and just simply add to the fun of the evening.

Consider giving treats that aren’t candy. You will find individual packets of pretzels, raisins, and cheese-flavored crackers, and other non-sugary treats. Halloween-themed pencils, temporary tattoos, or other party favors for kids are easy to find.

Avoid using colored contact lenses to change the color of the eye, for all kinds of reasons.

Make sure that your trick-or-treaters have a good and well-balanced meal before they head out. Sort through their haul when returning home. Some candy may not be appropriate for your child – too small and it could be a choking hazard. Set limits on how many treats they can have. A morning-after tummy ache is not a fun way to remember a great Halloween.

And all the common sense stuff is still true. Stay on the sidewalk, watch carefully for cars, don’t take homemade treats from people you don’t know, set a curfew for your older kids if you aren’t going out with them.

Should you need us, we’ll be here. Manatt Family Urgent Care is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 7 a.m. until noon on Saturday, for the morning after stuff. And of course, our emergency room is always open 24 hours a day.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/firstaid_safe/home/halloween.html#

http://www.cdc.gov/family/halloween/

http://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/news-features-and-safety-tips/Pages/Halloween-Safety-Tips.aspx

Keeping Ahead of Ebola

While the world is still focused on the Ebola virus, there is some good news coming forward this week. We have learned that people who have been exposed to the virus have passed the required 21 days of quarantine with no further illness. Nigeria has been declared “Ebola-free.” There have been no additional reported cases of Ebola in the United States for several days. And hospital and public health leaders across the nation are working hard to make sure we all stay safe.

Grinnell Regional Medical Center also learned that one of our partners, Bioquell, is helping in the fight against the Ebola virus. This week, Bioquell reported that their germ-eliminating robots and services are being used by health facilities around the world to decontaminate locations where Ebola-infected and exposed patients are being treated. This includes Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas and at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center.

The portable, automated system uses a 35 percent hydrogen peroxide solution, which is distributed as a vapor throughout the contaminated area, ensuring complete, three-dimensional coverage. This is very important because this technology will totally eliminate any risk of residual contamination.

GRMC started using Bioquell early in 2014 in all patient rooms throughout the hospital as a preventive measure against the spread of hospital-acquired infections. GRMC is the first hospital in Iowa and the first hospital in the nation under 50 beds to use Bioquell’s unique hydrogen peroxide vapor decontamination technology in our patient rooms. Even though GRMC’s hospital infection rate is well below the national average, we’re committed to doing all we can to making sure that it stays that way.

Hospital-acquired infections include methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, otherwise known as MRSA, Clostridium difficile, commonly referred to as C-diff, and vancomcin-resistant enterococci, (VRE). We fight these hard all the time because these infections have become resistant to the antibiotics typically used to treat them.

Bioquell’s process eliminates 99.9 percent of pathogens on surfaces, including the Ebola virus. GRMC uses this technology today to fight infection.  It’s already part of our standard protocol and now other hospitals are turning to Bioquell to eliminate the Ebola virus. This only strengthens our belief that we are doing the right thing for patient and staff safety and health at our community hospital.

What you need to know about Ebola

One of our main objectives for this blog is to help you sort out the avalanche of health information available on the internet. The current media coverage tracking the Ebola virus that has found its way into the United States is no exception.

Information on the spread of the virus and how it is affecting people in West Africa and here in the U.S. abounds – on television, in the newspaper, on the radio, online, coffee shops, hospitals, and just about everywhere. Additionally, there is a good deal of sensationalism. There is no question that the Ebola virus is very serious and we need to do all we can to stop its spread as quickly and effectively as we possibly can.

That said, the Ebola virus is not as easy to catch as the coverage suggests.

Viruses are spread in a number of ways and some are spread very easily just simply through the air. Sneezes, coughs, touching contaminated surfaces such as door handles or shopping carts are all ways in which viruses travel from person to person.

Ebola is only transferred through contact with bodily fluids such as sweat, saliva, urine, feces, semen, vomit, or blood. This means that you must actually come in contact with bodily fluids from an individual who is infected, their used linens or clothing, or a used needle syringe, for example. Ebola is not spread through the air, water, or food.

We think of other viruses like SARS or H1N1 that affected other countries much more than it has the United States and these are more easily spread than Ebola.

Some viruses that are transferred through the air include seasonal flu, pertussis (whooping cough), rubella, mumps, measles, bacterial meningitis, among other heavy hitting illnesses.  We have developed vaccines against these illnesses because they are easily spread.

There is no vaccine at present for the Ebola virus.

In an editorial published in the October 12, 2014 issue of The Des Moines Register, editorial staff noted that if there were a vaccine for Ebola, people would line up for hours.

Complications from seasonal influenza can lead to death. Depending on the year and the severity and prevalence of the particular influenza strains moving through the population, it is estimated that anywhere from 3,000 to as many as 49,000 people annually die of complications from seasonal influenza.

And yet, only half of American adults get a flu shot on an annual basis. Seasonal influenza is very easily transmitted. You can catch seasonal influenza by simply talking within three to four feet of someone who is infected.

Complications can include dehydration, pneumonia, and secondary infections. Persons who live with chronic illnesses can become very ill with seasonal influenza and also from any complications they may develop. The risk of getting seasonal influenza is far greater for the average American and the risk of developing serious complications from seasonal influenza is much greater than the odds of contracting Ebola.

The Ebola virus must be taken seriously, but not sensationally. GRMC public health officials, emergency staff, public safety and disaster preparedness officials,  and health officials from Grinnell College, are working together on protocols and procedures in the chance it is needed. These representatives work together year-round on many issues of public health and safety and the Ebola virus is no exception.  

For more information, you can go to:

http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/pdf/what-need-to-know-ebola.pdf

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/keyfacts.htm

Five Reasons Why You Need to Access Your Patient Information Portal

Ok, first of all, what is a patient information portal?

According to healthIT.gov, a patient portal is a secure online website that gives patients convenient 24-hour access to personal health information from anywhere with an Internet connection. Using a secure username and password, patients can view health information such as:

Recent doctor visits

Discharge summaries

Medications

Immunizations

Allergies

Lab results

Some patient portals also allow patients to:

Exchange secure e-mail with their health care teams

Request prescription refills

Schedule non-urgent appointments

Check benefits and coverage

Update contact information

Make payments

Download and complete forms

View educational materials

There are two patient portals currently offered by Grinnell Regional Medical Center. The hospital has a patient portal that contains health information for inpatient visits starting July 1, 2014. As each patient uses inpatient services, the information available will increase.

Patient portals from GRMC physician clinics, such as Grinnell Regional Family Practice, have much more data available from several years.

To set up your GRMC hospital patient information portal, go to www.grmc.us or https://grmc.intelichart.com/PatientPortal /account. You will be given instructions to create your account. You can also add your dependents who are age 17 and younger.

To access your medical record at GRMC affiliated clinics, go to https://www.followmyhealth.com/Login - or follow the links from the GRMC website, www.grmc.us.

Five reasons why you should access your patient information portal:

1) You can exchange a secure email with your healthcare provider through the clinics.

2) Prescription refills are a breeze.

3) Track your childrens’ immunizations.

4) Follow your vitals taken at each appointment – blood pressure, height, weight, and related information.

5) Hospitals and clinics have financial incentives from the federal government for making this information available through a patient portal and for their patients setting up an account to view your health information. The more patients use these portals in a meaningful way, the greater the financial incentive for the hospital and clinic.

It’s all about you and your access to your personal healthcare information. We want you to become engaged and comfortable with your healthcare team and this technology is one more way GRMC can help you do just that.

For more information, go to:

http://www.healthit.gov/patients-families

Pink

From coast to coast, October heralds a change of season and color. Fall shades of russet, burnt orange, and gold color the landscape and often our homes.

And then, there’s pink.

Since 1991, when the Susan G. Komen Foundation gave away pink ribbons in honor and memory of breast cancer survivors and those who had lost their lives, pink has become an unexpected fall color.

Pink is everywhere in October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It serves as a reminder to all that breast cancer is prevalent and affects both women and men.

Many women schedule their annual mammograms in October and you can too. Grinnell Regional Medical Center is proud to be one of the first hospitals in the state of Iowa to have 3D digital mammography, the latest technology to detect abnormalities at a very early stage. With the top mammography radiologists in the state through Iowa Radiology, GRMC can offer the latest in diagnostic breast health.

And if something is found, GRMC stands at the ready to assess and provide the care needed through extraordinary and caring healthcare providers.

As they say, “Do it for the ones you love. Do it for yourself.” If you haven’t had a mammogram in a while, please speak with your doctor about a referral and tell them you want to come to GRMC. Our mammography team is highly trained and experienced. They will put you at ease. And our technology and radiologists are second to none. Peace of mind is a valuable thing.

Call to make an appointment today. 641-236-2355.