CampusRN Job Blog
The pharmacy threat
Friday, February 27, 2009
.... mostly across-the-board cut of four percent to many of the programs funded through the Vermont Department of Health Access (OVHA), the agency that oversees the state’s Medicaid program. His proposal means that many of the state’s direct care workers, the people ...
View Full Article
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
Salmonella outbreak attacks 486, FDA recalls 125 brands
Friday, January 23, 2009
.... outbreak has made the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recall 125 brands of foodstuff and ... and food science at the University of Vermont in Burlington, said, “If you think about ...
View Full Article
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
Douglas Looks TO Cut 600 State Jobs
Friday, January 23, 2009
.... address to lawmakers Thursday afternoon, Douglas said Vermont needs to look for about $200 million ... Board, increase premiums and copays for some Medicaid programs and reductions in school spending. ...
View Full Article
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
Future of Fluoride in Burlington’s Drinking Water Unclear
Sunday, January 18, 2009
A resolution to cut fluoride out of Burlington’s public drinking water supply was passed Monday night in a 3-2 vote by the Burlington Board of Health. The final decision now rests with the Burlington City Council.
“Everybody believes fluoride is a good thing. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing,” Allen Soucie, a registered nurse and member of the Board of Health, said.
The practice started in 1954 in an effort to prevent tooth decay. Soucie said fluoride doesn’t need to be in the water because it’s already in foods we eat every day.
“This has to do with treating me as a person, so I don’t have dental cavaties,” Soucie said. “I don’t want to be treated by the city of Burlington. I want pure water.”
Soucie’s concern is the chemical’s health risks. New studies show certain individuals are at increased risk from fluoride’s toxic affects on people with diabetes, infants, kidney patients, and those with thyroid problems. In fact, the National Kidney Foundation urges against patients drinking any fluoridated water at all.
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
My Turn: Aid in dying? It’s bad public policy
Friday, January 16, 2009
We are beginning to receive messages from advocates about something they call “Death with Dignity” (DWD). It used to be called “physician-assisted suicide.”
It is all about a proposed Vermont law that would authorize physicians to provide, to terminally ill patients who request it, a prescription for a fatal dose of sedative. “Terminally ill” means that you are expected to die within six months. Patients can then take the fatal dose, if and when they wish to. The law would provide controls and restrictions to guard against inappropriate use of this option. You can read the details of the 2007 version (H.44) at www.leg .state.vt.us.
Is this a law we really need? Is it wise public policy?
Advocates suggest that the law is needed to relieve suffering. But one should know that modern, state-of-the-art palliative care (care to relieve suffering) has become very powerful, so that physical suffering can be well controlled for the vast majority of dying persons.
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
A focused remedy is best cure for healthcare crisis
Thursday, January 15, 2009
As the Senate considers the nomination of former Sen. Tom Daschle as secretary of health and human services—and as the nation looks forward to health reform—it is important that policymakers focus on what it means to “fix” health care and ask some hard questions about how we deliver medical care.
First off, everyone should agree that we must strive to get every American the health care coverage they need.
Second, we can all agree that getting health care costs under control is both a health and economic imperative. Despite the “good news” this week that health care spending rose 6.1% to $2.2 trillion in 2007, that slowdown from previous years is still substantially higher than general inflation and health care now gobbles up 16.2 % of gross domestic product.
But high costs and the uninsured are only the visible problems with health care. The invisible problem is poor-quality care. Our third area of agreement must go beyond getting people care, to getting them the right care.
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
Virgin HealthMiles Kicks Off First Phase of 2009 Obesity Awareness Initiative With Capitol Steps Cha
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
BOSTON, MA - Virgin HealthMiles, a leader in developing employee wellness programs that reward individuals for getting healthy, today announced the kick-off of the Capitol Steps Challenge, the first phase in its year-long initiative to raise awareness around childhood obesity in America.
Virgin HealthMiles partnered with Governor Rick Perry (Texas), who has invited governors and their senior executive agency leaders across the U.S. to participate in the Challenge, which runs January 1st through the 14th. During this two-week period, these state leaders will lead by example to raise awareness of the correlation between increased activity levels and good health. Fourteen states, including Alabama, Alaska, California, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, North Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin, have joined the Challenge to put a spotlight on this important national health issue.
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
Nurse Charged With Stealing Pain Pills From Nursing Home Residents
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Thirty-six-year-old Dawn Ash of Charlestown was indicted last month on two counts of possession of a controlled drug and two misdemeanor theft charges. Investigators suspect her of stealing Percocet and Vicodin from residents at the William P. Clough Center. It’s a 58-bed nursing home attached to New London Hospital.
Through a lawyer, Ash denied the charges.
Last April, shortly before she was hired at the Clough Center, the state of Vermont suspended Ash’s nursing license. She was accused in Vermont of illegally obtaining regulated substances with false prescriptions.
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
Report: Vermont leads the nation in palliative care
Friday, January 09, 2009
BENNINGTON — Vermont has been given the nation’s highest score in terms of access to palliative care programs in a recent report from the Center to Advance Palliative Care.
The state received the only perfect score in the report.
Megan Castonguay, director of external affairs for the Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, said the care is offered at every acute-care hospital in the state.
“Palliative care is focused on the patient’s quality of life,” Castonguay said. “It’s not just for end-of-life care, but also for certain chronic conditions.”
Castonguay said palliative-care providers often acted as the “point person” for care. She cited a dying patient who was able to have his beloved dog in his hospital room during his last weeks of life as an example of such care. According to Castonguay, the palliative care service at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington does such things as bringing in a professional harpist to relax patients and providing room Reiki sessions.
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →
State reports spike in health insurance needs
Thursday, December 18, 2008
The state health care ombudsman says there has been a spike in calls this month from Vermonters who can’t afford their health insurance. Ombudsman Trinka Kerr told the Health Access Oversight Committee the callers are asking what their options are.
View Full Article
posted in: Vermont
Bookmark & share →