KV Healthcare

Kittitas Valley

Beat the heat: Diabetic safety

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Photo: Even in summer, foot protection is a priority for people living with diabetes. Skip the sandals and barefoot walks. Keep them covered!

Wear sunscreen. Stay hydrated. Wear light, loose clothing. Anyone who’s lived in Kittitas County for more than a year knows these basics for survival in the summer heat. If you’re diabetic, there’s another concern to add to the list: extreme temperatures can spike your blood sugar levels, and wreak havoc on testing equipment and medication.

Recent findings show that the summer heat drives more people with diabetes to the ER, and more diabetics are hospitalized due to heat illness.

“First of all, be aware of your environment. Watch the forecast. When we’re in for a hot spell, there are some things you can do to prepare for diabetic safety,” advises Nicole Norton, Diabetes & Nutrition Education Coordinator at KVH.

Careful planning of your diet is always important, but even more so in extreme temperatures. Think through any adjustments you need to make. And be diligent in avoiding added sugars. “A lot of folks reach for sugared sodas, sweet teas, and juices when they’re thirsty,” warns Norton. “For someone with diabetes, it’s safest to stick with water.”

Another common mistake is skipping meals. Norton explains, “We’re more active in the summer, and we get distracted, forgetting to eat when we should.” That’s not good in normal conditions, but in the heat of summer, it’s even more dangerous. Be familiar with the early symptoms of low blood sugar, and keep some carbohydrates with you to eat if you need to raise your blood sugar.

Once you put the steps into practice, diabetic safety becomes just another automatic healthy habit.

Medication storage is another concern. While unopened insulin should always be kept in the fridge, storing any medications in the heat can degrade them. “Don’t keep medications in your car,” advises Norton. “In a high temp situation, use an ice pack in an insulated lunch pail.”

More frequent testing is also a good idea. Your diabetes educator can help you with guidelines for an appropriate testing schedule.

It’s easy to forget, but foot problems are common for people with diabetes, and summer is all about bare feet, sandals, and open toed shoes. “Keep your feet covered in well-fitting shoes,” says Norton, “even in warm weather. Check your feet every day, and get treatment right away for any injuries.”

It’s a lot to consider, but, like using sunscreen and staying hydrated, once you put the steps into practice, diabetic safety becomes just another automatic healthy habit. “We all have health limitations of some kind,” says Norton. “With a little preplanning and awareness of their surroundings, people living with diabetes can enjoy themselves in the summer like anyone else.”

Article updated 7/2021. Original post 8/2017.

Managed by Kittitas Valley Healthcare, HealthNews does not provide medical advice. For medical advice, please see your healthcare provider.

Talking about racism to children

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Contributor: Dr. Elise Herman, KVH Pediatrics

Racism is front and center now, and parents may wonder how to have important conversations with their child about diversity, equality, and discrimination. It helps to keep your discussion age-appropriate, share your feelings and listen to your child.

Under age 5 years – Studies have revealed that even infants notice different skin tones and preschool kids have been shown to view those who look like themselves more positively, so addressing racism early is important. Kids relate easily to the concept of fairness so it can simply be explained as treating someone unfairly based on how they look. Young kids may ask about why people’s skin colors are different. Explain simply that darker skin has more of the pigment melanin in it and that no skin color is ‘better’ than another. Celebrate human diversity by noting that “we are all human but can have lots of differences, too, making everyone special!”. Encourage your young child’s appreciation for diversity by reading books and playing with toys featuring people of different races.

6-11 years old – At this age, children are more aware of current events based on what they have heard and seen from adults, other kids and on the news or in social media. Ask your child about what they know and what questions they have. Kids this age understand empathy so discussing how it would feel to be judged unfairly can be helpful. Children of all ethnicities can be assured that people world-wide are upset about racism and are working to make things better.

12 and older – Kids this age are often very informed and have developed their own opinions about issues such as racism and protests. Discussing the news and current events and how it affects them opens the door to a deeper conversation. The same concepts of fairness and empathy apply, but now taking action may be a logical next step. It may be sharing something on social media, reading more about the history of oppressed peoples or attending an event.

All kids benefit from social experiences with a variety of people. Cooking food and listening to music of different cultures broadens our horizons. It is alright to let your child know that you are upset or sad about what is happening, but you also need to assure your child that they are safe in what can be a frightening time. This conversation will look different for families of color where the issue hits a lot closer to home than for whites.

As always, what we do and say speaks volumes to our children. It is vital that as parents we confront our own prejudices and biases and work to be more open and understanding. Let your kids see you speaking out against racism, embracing diversity and calling for justice for all people.

KVH Board Represents the Community

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Four years ago, I was elected to serve on the Board of Commissioners for Hospital District 1. As KVH’s governing body, the Board sets the organization’s strategic direction, ensures that it offers high-quality services, and maintains its financial viability. As President of the Board, part of my job is to make people aware of what we have been doing.

In 2016, the Board hired a CEO that shares our vision for KVH. Instead of cutting services to protect the bottom line, we have developed new services to meet the demand in the community and keep care local. As a result of priorities set by the Board, KVH now has an outpatient pharmacy, Workplace Health, expanded physical therapy, integrated behavioral health, dermatology, wound care, an “ouchless” ER, and digital mammography. For the first time in many years, KVH clinics are accepting new patients, and for the first time ever, we are offering pediatric services.

KVH has expanded its footprint to include the Radio Hill Annex and the Medical Arts Center (MAC). For several years, KVH planned to build a new medical office building. After the election in 2016, the new Board changed direction. Our decision to purchase the MAC gives us more space at a cheaper cost, and without disrupting the existing neighborhood south of the hospital. Renovations are incorporating design ideas that were developed during brainstorming sessions for the original building. The MAC will open in early 2020, and it will be a state-of-the-art facility in which we can deliver excellent patient care and form partnerships to offer even more services to Kittitas County. It will also help us to recruit providers so that we can better meet the needs of the community in the future.

When I was elected to the Board, one of my priorities was to open lines of communication with the community. We regularly have Coffee with a Commissioner, where people can tell Board members what’s on their minds. Community members now serve on the Quality Improvement Council, the Finance Committee, and, of course, the KVH Foundation Board. We have also recently created a Patient & Family Advisory Council, where several county residents will have input on hospital operations.

There are other notable achievements behind the scenes, including the implementation of a new electronic health records system, several successful state audits, and award-winning quality improvement. All these efforts are guided by the strategic plan, which we developed in 2017 and which defines our work in terms of four key strategies: access, community engagement, partnership & collaboration, and financial sustainability. We will be revisiting the strategic plan in 2020.

Earlier this year, I attended the American Hospital Association annual meeting, and people there were concerned about the challenges facing healthcare providers, especially in rural areas. Many independent hospitals throughout the country are either closing or being absorbed into larger systems. Despite these national trends, KVH has maintained its independence and its financial stability. Even though District 1 has the lowest levy rate of any public hospital district in the state, we are the envy of many other Washington hospitals, some of which are struggling.

Ultimately, KVH’s success is due to the dedication of its many employees: the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, technicians, dieticians, housekeepers, receptionists, and administrators who do amazing work every day. From the patient perspective, the Board is probably invisible, and it should be. Rest assured that the other Board members and I are doing our best to represent the community, to make sure that KVH is a great place to work for its employees and your first choice for high-quality healthcare.

Matt Altman is President of the KVH Board of Commissioners and a professor at Central Washington University.

More than medical care: Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners

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April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

Last week, some 100 forensic nurses from around the country gathered in Washington DC, seeking help with funding for research, education and prevention efforts related to sexual assault. It’s an ongoing battle to represent the needs of patients who rarely speak for themselves.

Here in Kittitas County, we’re nearing the 6-year mark of our local Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program at KVH Hospital. The program involves a collaborative effort between local law enforcement, ASPEN, CWU, and the hospital; in every situation, trained staff are involved from the initial report of assault through the victim’s medical examination.

Ask any SANE and you’ll find a person who cares deeply about the care and treatment of sexual abuse victims. “It’s very emotional,” says Pam Clemons, RN and SANE at KVH Hospital. “One of the most important responsibilities we have is to be objective – but it’s not always easy.”

Objectivity for SANEs is key, because they are not only caring for and treating patients – they’re also collecting evidence. The SANE program is an example of forensic nursing, providing specialized care for victims and perpetrators of intentionally and unintentionally inflicted trauma. Forensic nurses have a specialized knowledge of the legal system and skills in identifying, evaluating and documenting injuries. According to the International Association of Forensic Nursing, after attending to a patient’s immediate medical needs, a forensic nurse often collects evidence, provides medical testimony in court, and consults with legal authorities.

As an emergency room nurse, Clemons was already familiar with helping patients in crisis situations. Then she saw an unmet need in care for sexual assault victims. “I thought, I can do this. I took the training, and the passion I now have grew out of my experiences.”

The nature of emergencies and traumas is unpredictable and unplanned, which means Clemons and other SANE professionals can’t predict how many patients they’ll see in a given month. Clemons says, “For some reason, patients often come in waves. We won’t see any for months, and then have 3 in one weekend.”

Weekends treating multiple sexual assault victims are tough on these examiners. The emotion and empathy, combined with heightened awareness needed not just for physical care, but forensic procedures, can quickly drain a nurse’s energy. But the sense of satisfaction that comes with helping victims can be almost as overwhelming. It’s one reason why Clemons encourages others who are interested to seek out SANE training. “Every time a nurse joins the group, we learn something from them,” she says. “They bring ideas and past experiences that give us a fresh perspective on what we’re doing.”

Video from the Office for Victims of Crime, US Department of Justice.

Related:
Online SANE training

Managed by Kittitas Valley Healthcare, HealthNews does not provide medical advice. For medical advice, please see your healthcare provider.