Health And Fitness

This month, Virginia Gay Hospital is joining forces with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (Iowa HHS) to raise awareness about the risks of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and encourage Iowans to talk with their healthcare providers about vaccines available to protect against serious illness. Each year, RSV leads to thousands of emergency department visits and hospitalizations, particularly among infants, young children, older adults and individuals with weakened immune systems.

It takes less than one hour to donate blood and in that one hour, blood donors will do more than most will do in a lifetime – they will save lives. Just one blood donation will help save the lives of up to three different hospital patients in your community. Every two seconds, someone in our country needs blood. You can pay it forward by giving a lifesaving donation and be a community hero.

 Virginia Gay Nursing & Rehab is thrilled to announce that it has received a 2025 Customer Experience Award from Activated Insights, formerly Pinnacle Quality Insight, the leading provider of training, recruitment, retention, experience management and recognition tools to improve and grow long-term and post-acute care organizations. This recognizes VG Nursing & Rehab’s outstanding performance and solidifies their position in the top echelon of care providers nationwide.

The Memory Cafe is held on the 2nd and 4th Fridays of each month in the lower level Board Room of the Library. Individuals living with dementia, along with their caregivers, are invited to join our Memory Cafe. We will serve coffee and freshly baked cookies in our library board room. We will provide dementia-friendly activities and conversation starters on Friday, February 14, 2025 at 10:00 a.

Attached you will find the February 2025 Words on Wellness newsletter. This edition features:Be Sugar SavvyRecipe for Frozen Fruit CupsSNAP for Health!It’s All about Handwashing! Check out upcoming human sciences events on the calendar -- https://www.extension.iastate.edu/humansciences/events

State submits Implementation Plan outlining steps for improving the delivery of responsive, effective mental and behavioral health care services for childrenLast Friday, a federal court preliminarily approved a Settlement Agreement in a class action lawsuit brought against the Director of the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (Iowa HHS) to ensure that children with mental health disabilities receive the legally required and medically necessary mental health care services they need when and where they need them, without being segregated from their loved ones and communities.

February is American Heart Month! In that spirit, Benton County Public Health will be hosting an open house at the Benton County Service Center on Tuesday, February 11th from 8:00am - 4:00pm. Stop in and get your blood pressure & heart rate checked by our nurse, take home a magnet on recognizing the signs of a heart attack, take part in our hot chocolate bar, & view our updated office & clinic spaces.

 The Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation is now accepting 2025 funding requests for oral and overall health projects that help advance their mission to strengthen and transform the health and smiles of all Iowans. As a major funder of oral and overall health projects in Iowa, the Foundation typically invests more than $3 million in Iowa nonprofits and community initiatives annually.

Join us on February 11, at 5:30 p.m. at the Parent Cafe. We will meet at Pizza Ranch. This event is for parents who have children under the age of 18.  The cost is free.-Make new friends -Explore your family’s strengths and challenges -Free dinner, childcare, and gas card For more information contact Meridith Myers at mmyers@ypniowa.org or call 319-364-8909.

UnityPoint Health - St. Luke’s Foundation is accepting applications for its Rural Healthcare Grant Program, which provides matching grant funds towards health care services for rural residents living in Benton, Buchanan, Cedar, Delaware, Iowa, northern Johnson, Jones and Linn counties. The maximum grant request is $6,000. St Luke’s Foundation Rural Healthcare Grant Program can help with funding for these needs:Equipment for emergency care in the pre-hospital environmentTraining for emergency personnel to gain or enhance their skillsBasic life supporting training equipment such as hands-only CPR and Little AnneMileage reimbursement for transportation programs Eligible entities include:Ambulance ServicesParamedicsFire and Rescue DepartmentsTransportation ProgramsFirst Responder Since 1980, St.