Features - Los Alamos Daily Post

What Impact Do Medication Errors Have On Nursing Home Residents?

Submitted by Chris Clark on November 19, 2016

WILEY News:

A new analysis points to surprisingly low rates of serious impacts from medication errors affecting nursing home residents, despite the fact that these errors remain fairly common.

The investigators noted that it’s unclear whether medication errors resulting in serious outcomes are truly infrequent or are under-reported due to the difficulty in ascertaining them. The findings are published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

Medication errors can cause considerable harm, and older adults in nursing homes may be especially

Health Action New Mexico Commends Governor Martinez For Vowing To Protect Health Coverage Gains

Submitted by Chris Clark on November 19, 2016

HANM News:

ALBUQUERQUE ― Gov. Susana Martinez made clear that health coverage gains under the Affordable Care Act must be protected. According to the Associated Press, the Governor “has offered assurances that people won’t be left without health insurance as President-elect Donald Trump and fellow Republicans seek to overhaul the Affordable Care Act.”

More than 300,000 New Mexicans have gained coverage thanks to the Affordable Care Act, causing the uninsured rate to drop to historic lows.

“We commend Governor Martinez for her commitment

Cancer Comes In Colors Other Than Pink … November Is National Lung Cancer Awareness Month

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 18, 2016

CANCER News:

October has now left us and we have gone through a blizzard of pink on the playing fields of the NFL.

Celebrities have spoken of breast cancer awareness and pink t-shirts and ribbons seem to be everywhere. The National Breast Cancer Foundation has done a fantastic job of building awareness and fundraising for research. So much so that the survival rate for breast cancer is now at 89%.

Other colors and cancers have not done so well. Pearl is the color for lung cancer and November is Lung Cancer awareness month. You will not see any

IRS Opens New Registration For 2017 Advance Monthly Payments Of Health Coverage Tax Credit

Submitted by Chris Clark on November 16, 2016

IRS News:

PHOENIX ― The Internal Revenue Service has opened the new registration and enrollment process for qualified taxpayers to receive the benefit of the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) on an advance monthly basis during 2017.

Eligible taxpayers can have 72.5 percent of their qualified health insurance premiums paid in advance directly to their health plan administrator each month. Each payment made on their behalf to the health plan administrator lowers their out-of-pocket premium costs.

Taxpayers may be eligible to elect the HCTC only if they are one

LAPS Announces Kristine Coblentz As Healthy Schools Program Director

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 11, 2016

Healthy Schools Program Director Kristine Coblentz

LAPS News:

Last week Kristine Coblentz joined Los Alamos Public Schools as director of the new Healthy Schools Program.

The position was created as a result of the work of LAPS’ Mental Health Task Force and the Schools Board’s Strategic Plan, which prioritizes student and staff well-being as one of its eight focus areas. Coblentz reports to LAPS Superintendent, Dr. Kurt Steinhaus.

Coblentz will be working closely with a team that includes school clinical psychologist Dr. Christine Hazard, Prevention Coordinator Bernadette Read More

Harold Fishbine Founded Town’s First Big Band

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 11, 2016

Local resident Harold Fishbine started the first big band in Los Alamos during the Manhattan Project. Photo by Bonnie J. Gordon/ladailypost.com

The Keynotes on stage during the Manhattan Project. Harold Fishbine and his bass are at top left. Courtesy/Harold Fishbine

By BONNIE J. GORDON
Los Alamos Daily Post

Soldier Harold Fishbine was with the rest of his unit in California in the early 1940s, expecting to be sent to the Pacific. Then, out of the blue, he received orders to report to Santa Fe. He had no idea what it meant.

When he arrived at 109 East Palace in Santa Fe and was greeted by a nice Read More

Fundraiser Underway For Zee Stidham

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 11, 2016

Tony and Zandree (Zee) Stidham in October before they left for her bone marrow transplant in Denver. Courtesy photo

Zandree Stidham moments before her bone marrow transplant last month in Denver. Courtesy photo

Staff Report

A local 35-year-old assistant professor of English, wife, mother and aspiring writer has just undergone a lifesaving bone marrow transplant at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute in Denver.

Zandree (Zee) Stidham was diagnosed with Essential Thrombocythemia or ET (a disease in the same family as Leukemia and Lymphoma) in January 2010. After

SFCC Hosts Great American Smokeout Nov. 17

Submitted by Chris Clark on November 9, 2016

SFCC News:

Santa Fe Community College Hosts an American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout event noon-1:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17 in the SFCC Jemez Room at 6401 Richards Ave. .

Make it a smoke-free day. Learn about cessation resources, the dangers of second- and third-hand smoke to non-smokers, the effects on dental health and the truth about e-cigarettes.

Program participants include the American Lung Association, New Mexico Department of Health, SFCC Dental Department, SFCC Respiratory Care Program and Smiles of Santa Fe.

Call 505.428.1665, for information.

Heinrich To Hold Rural Health Care Listening Tour

Submitted by Chris Clark on November 9, 2016

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich

SENATE News:

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) will be holding a multi-day rural health care listening tour to meet with medical professionals and discuss tele-health for veterans, recruiting and retaining staff, and other issues facing New Mexico’s growing health care industry.

Beginning Monday, Nov. 7, he toured the Guadalupe County Hospital, a new Veterans Tele-Health Clinic in Mosquero, the Union County Hospital, and the Miners’ Colfax Medical Center, and convene listening sessions

State Auditor Releases Special Audit Of UNMH’s Indigent Care Program

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 8, 2016

State Auditor Tim Keller

STATE News:

SANTA FE ― State Auditor Tim Keller released a special audit Nov. 4 of the Indigent Care Program at the University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH).

Advocates and policymakers have long sought more transparency about revenues and expenses related to healthcare for economically disadvantaged people. The special audit, conducted by an independent audit firm, examined UNMH’s indigent care costs and funding from fiscal year 2014 to 2016.

The audit found that UNMH had a total funding shortfall of more than $60 million, despite a reduction

Study Indicates Higher Injury Rates For High School Athletes Who Specialize In One Sport

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 6, 2016

Study reveals that student athletes who specialize in a single sport sustain lower-extremity injuries at significantly higher rates than athletes who do not specialize in one sport. Courtesy/NFHS

NFHS News:

INDIANAPOLIS — A study conducted by the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and funded by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Foundation revealed that high school athletes who specialize in a single sport sustain lower-extremity injuries at significantly higher rates than athletes who do not specialize in one sport.

The study Read More

Mutational Signatures Mark Cancer’s Smoking Gun

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 3, 2016

Research on mutational signatures in the genome of cancer cells shows that smoking increases the risk of several cancer types by raising the overall number of mutations, even in tissue not directly exposed to smoke. Courtesy/Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute

LANL News:

A broad computational study of cancer genome sequences identifies telltale mutational signatures associated with smoking tobacco and demonstrates, for the first time, that smoking increases cancer risk by causing somatic mutations in tissues directly and indirectly exposed to tobacco smoke. The international Read More

Letter To The Editor: A Letter To The Los Alamos Community And My Patients

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on November 3, 2016

By Dr. Phillip Hertzman

After practicing medicine for more than 39 years at Los Alamos Medical Center, I will be closing the Los Alamos office of Los Alamos Family Practice and Vein Care of New Mexico Nov. 29.

I received an impersonal letter from a representative of ‘PHC-Los Alamos Inc d/b/a Los Alamos Medical Center” in Brentwood, Tenn., threatening eviction from my current office 30 days after they purchase the property from Los Alamos National Bank. As of late October Los Alamos Medical Center was not the owner of this property.

It is astonishing that after having

Scenes From LAMC’s Annual Halloween Event

Submitted by Chris Clark on November 2, 2016

Staff and family gather at Los Alamos Medical Center Friday for the annual Halloween event open to the entire community. Staff decorate their departments and give treats to trick-or-treaters. Photo by Raphael Edralin

Scene from Friday’s annual Halloween event at Los Alamos Medical Center at which doctors and staff dress up and greet the community. Photo by Raphael Edralin

Scene from Friday’s annual Halloween event Read More

Public Turns In Nearly 366 Tons Of Drugs To DEA

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on October 30, 2016

Acting DEA Administrator Chuck Rosenberg

DEA News:

Safe disposal of unused medications addresses opioid epidemic

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Six years after the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) launched its National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Americans continue to turn out in large numbers to rid their homes of unused medications, including controlled prescription drugs (CPDs) such as painkillers, tranquilizers, and stimulants.

The public turned in 731,269 pounds—almost 366 tons—of medication to DEA Oct. 22, and more than 4,000 of its community partners at almost Read More

DaVita Dialysis Center Opens In Los Alamos

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on October 27, 2016

From left, DaVita Dialysis Center Medical Director and Los Alamos board-certified nephrologist David Mills, MD, Regional Coordinator Kat Reher, RN Gloria Diaz and Facility Administrator Sammy Benavidez in front of the new facility during Monday’s open house. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

Joe Vigil, center, is the first patient at DaVita Dialysis Center. he attended Monday’s open house and is shown here with RN Gloria Diaz and Facility Administrator Sammy Benavidez. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

DaVita Dialysis Center front lobby. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com Read More

Local Students Support Purple Pinky/Polio Eradication

Submitted by Chris Clark on October 27, 2016

Rotarian Steve Ciddio, Rotary friend Debbie Claytor, Rotarians Jane Phillips and Sarah Rochester salute Purple Pinky Day with little fingers raised at Chamisa Elementary School as they wait for students to participate in Rotary Club’s Purple Pinky project. Rotarians not shown include Rob Metcalf, Alison Pannell, Linda King, Mary Burns, Nancy Cerutti, Ed Van Eeckhout, Antonya Sanders, Chuck Tallman and Kim Selvage. Photo by Nancy Cerutti

ROTARY News:

To commemorate World Polio Day, Oct. 23, the Rotary Club of Los Alamos sponsored a Purple

Report: NM Strengthens Mental Health Care System

Submitted by Chris Clark on October 25, 2016

NMHSD News:

SANTA FE ― New Mexico Human Services Department Cabinet Secretary Brent Earnest announced that New Mexico improved 14 spots, from 36 to 22, in Mental Health America’s annual rankings, “The State of Mental Health in America 2017.”

The state’s vastly improved overall rank shows a lower prevalence of mental illness and higher rates of access to mental health care in New Mexico.

“The Human Services Department continues to strengthen our state’s behavioral health system as we prioritize providing care and treatment to the most vulnerable New Mexicans,”

LAVNS Holds Community Memorial Service Nov. 6

Submitted by Chris Clark on October 24, 2016

LAVNS News:

Each year the Los Alamos Visiting Nurse Service holds a Community Memorial Service to honor those we have loved and those who have died in the last year.

We would like to invite everyone in the community to this, our 20th Annual Memorial program.

A simple non-denominational service is held with a ceremony of flowers during which family members and friends have an opportunity to briefly remember their loved ones and place a flower into our memorial vase. (Flowers provided by Los Alamos Visiting Nurse Service).

This year our memorial

DaVita Dialysis Clinic Open House 5-7 p.m. Monday

Submitted by Carol A. Clark on October 19, 2016

LOS ALAMOS

ladailypost.com website support locally by OviNuppi Systems