Health

One of the newly hired navigators for Vermont Health Connect, Peter Sterling working on state-wide enrollment, will provide an overview of Vermont’s new health care exchange on Wednesday, August 21 at 7:00 p.m. in Conference Room Two at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital.

Beginning in 2014 radical changes will be occurring for Vermonters eligible for public health care programs. Catamount and VHAP are being eliminated and about 25,000 of the enrollees in these programs and thousands more who are eligible but not enrolled will for the first time be able to enroll in Medicaid at no cost!

Four Years ago my wife Beverly Beane, a resident of Guilford, was diagnosed with End Stage Renal Failure.  

We ask your help in finding a compatible live kidney donor – someone with type O blood, under 60 and healthy.  It takes a village . . .   Please take six minutes to watch the video.  If you can’t help, please share. 

Please contact Ed Liebfried for more information.  ed.liebfried@gmail.com  A wealth of info is also available through the Dartmouth-Hitchcock transplant center. 

The Main Entrance of Brattleboro Memorial Hospital re-opened to the public on Tuesday, August 6, 2013, and the new ambulatory entrance for the Emergency Department opened the following day. Brattleboro Memorial Hospital is expanding and renovating the hospital’s Emergency Department.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin and U.S. Congressional Representative Peter Welch were at the hospital on Monday to help cut the ribbon on the new Hospital and Emergency Department Entrances. Both praised BMH for its leadership and efforts to advance access to high-quality, affordable healthcare in the community.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital announced it will open its new Lobby Cafe in the newly renovated Main Entrance on Monday, August 26.

The Lobby Cafe replaces the coffee shop that was part of the old Main Entrance. It will be open Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 2:15 PM, serving breakfast items, soups, express salads, made to order sandwiches, specialty paninis and various snacks. Green Mountain Coffee and Mocha Joe’s coffee products will also be available. The cafe will also have a gift area with greeting cards, flowers and stuffed animals for purchase.

The Lobby Cafe will offer vegetarian and gluten free options and is open to the public. BMH is a proud supporter of the Vermont Fresh Network and Windham Farm and Food Network.

You can look up the safety rating for a particular hospital or for all the hospitals in a certain city or an entire state at:  http://www.hospitalsafetyscore.org/

Hospitals are given a grade, such as “A” “B” or “C” and you can also see the detailed breakdown for each category contributing to the overall score. For example, one category is: Surgery Patients Received Appropriate Treatment to Prevent Blood Clots at the Right Time.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital official announced they have hired Bob Rovella to be the new Director of Finance.

Rovella joins BMH after serving as Director of Finance at Central Vermont Medical Center in Barre, Vermont. Previously, he has held similar positions at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, Massachusetts and Lakes Region General Hospital in Laconia, New Hampshire. Rovella has an MBA from the UMASS Isenberg School of Business and a BS in Accounting and Business Administration from Connecticut State University.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and AARP are co-sponsoring a Driver Safety program on Saturday, August 24 from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM in the Brew Barry Conference Room.

This driver’s refresher course is for people ages 55 and over and is designed to provide awareness of aging as it affects driving. The class covers normal physical changes associated with aging, provides practical techniques to compensate and review “rules of the road” with an emphasis on defensive driving practices.

Space is limited to 20 participants. The cost is $12.00 for AARP members with a membership card & $14.00 for non-AARP members. Call 802-251-8425 to register in advance. Fee covers materials only. Participants are encouraged to bring a lunch.

Prescription drugs are so commonly used that some mistakenly believe they are harmless. These medications in your home may be easily accessible to youth, who often have a misperception that misusing medications is a safe way to get high. Many prescription medications, especially pain relievers and stimulants, can be extremely dangerous when used improperly, such as in combination with other drugs and/or alcohol. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administrations (SAMHSA), more free time and less adult supervision can make the summertime an exciting time for many young people, but it can also increase the likelihood of exposure to dangers and substance use.

Plans for the 5th Annual Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Touch a Truck event are underway. And we would love for you to participate.

This fun event annually brings over 50 vehicles to the BMH parking lot for kids (and many adults) to look at, climb on and explore. Fire trucks, police cruisers, motorcycles, backhoes, dump trucks, school buses and many, many more converge for a few hours. Last year it is estimated that over 800 children attended.

The Brattleboro Farmers Market hosts the Brattleboro Walk-In Clinic Saturday, July 20th, for a free blood glucose/diabetes screening from 9am to 11:30am.

Now in season at the market: tomatoes, zucchini, peaches, blueberries, beans and peas, fresh basil, new potatoes, greens and broccoli…

Harvest Health Coupons are in for EBT customers! Double your money up to $10 at the market!

For more information, please call 802-254-8885.

– Brattleboro Farmers Market

Indulge your sprit and nourish your soles!
MFTP is offering a end of summer foot soak clinic.
Mondays in August (beginning August 12th) 2-5pm

Come try our half hour foot soak treatment featuring a relaxing foot bath scented with organic essential oils, herbs and salts, followed by a fragrant exfoliating foot scrub, and ending with a blissful foot massage.

Nourish, Detox, Soothe, Balance…Your feet will thank you.

One treatment – $40
Save and buy 3 treatments – $35

Call or email for more details and to schedule an appointment – info@medicineforthepeople.org 802-387-3028

Free Plant walks at the Brattleboro Farmer’s Market: Saturday July 20th, Aug. 3rd & 24th at 11am

The Brattleboro Farmers Market is open 9 to 2 outdoors on Rte 9 and SUMMER is hitting it’s stride! Peaches, blueberries, raspberries, tomatoes, beans and glorious delights of all shapes and flavors are in. Harvest Health Coupons are in: EBT customers, double your money up to $10 while supplies last! 802-254-8885

Join botanist, herbalist and naturalist Heidy Adams on a walk at the Brattleboro Saturday market. We’ll be exploring traditional uses of the native and introduced plants growing in the field, wooded areas and down by the river. There are over 40 plants to discuss!

For all ages! Anyone interested in learning more about the uses of wild local plants are welcome.

The field of psychosynthesis is a transpersonal psychology that works with the natural tendency to seek meaning and purpose in life, thus integrating both psychological and spiritual development. On Sunday, July 14th, the Synthesis Center is offering a free introduction to psychosynthesis at 6:30 p.m. in Brattleboro. The program includes a brief presentation on the principles of psychosynthesis, along with some experiential exercises and an overview of upcoming training opportunities.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital announced that Christine Trisko earned her Associate of Science degree from Community College of Vermont this past May. Trisko is the Scheduling Coordinator for the Radiology Department.

BMH Director of Radiology Marcy Rushford says the degree improves Trisko’s skills and knowledge and makes her a more rounded employee. BMH supports the personal and professional development of employees by offering a tuition reimbursement program.

Brattleboro Obstetrics and Gynecology announced it has hired Linda S. Buzby, MSN, CNM, to join the staff of Four Seasons Midwifery. She is now accepting new patients.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital announced that Phaedra McDonough, APRN has joined the medical staff at the BMH Center for Cardiovascular Health and is now accepting patients.

McDonough has eight years’ experience working in the Cardiology Unit at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Keene as well as previous experience in the Intensive Care Unit at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. She is a Cardiac Device Specialist with board certification from the International Board of Heart Rhythm Examiners.

Brattleboro Internal Medicine, a member of BMH Physician Group, announced it has hired Eilidh Pederson, MPH as its new Office Manager.

Pederson will be responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the practice, providing the infrastructure to support services offered by the six primary care practitioners, Richard Burtis, MD, Thomas W. Lewis, MD, Laura Metsch, MD, Andrea Galasso, DO, Anne Cloutier, PA and Roxanne Karter, APRN.

New cannabis research indicate that cannabis compounds may help in controlling blood sugar, yet health trends occur despite the fact that marijuana users take in more calories.

The most important finding is that current users of marijuana appeared to have better carbohydrate metabolism than nonusers. Their fasting insulin levels were lower, and they appeared to be less resistant to the insulin produced by their body to maintain a normal blood-sugar level. Current marijuana users showed fasting insulin levels that were 16% lower than those of former or never users, along with a 17% reduction in another measure of insulin resistance as well.

Brattleboro Memorial Hospital named Denny Rivers, MLT, its 2013 Employee of the Year during an employee appreciation event held May 16.

A member of the Laboratory Services secretarial staff since 1995, Rivers was nominated for the award in recognition of her problem-solving abilities, among other qualities. She holds a Medical Laboratory Technician certification from University of Vermont, which her peers say makes her a fast worker and thinker while guiding patients.

Everyone can play a role in prevention and you can make a difference!

Stop by the River Garden today between 12-1pm and join , and to play games, win prizes and have fun while learning how you can improve the health and safety of our community!