SIDS Training

SIDS Mid-Atlantic offers the following trainings for your staff, provided by Betty Connal, RN, MS, a nurse with over 35 years experience in perinatal education. Trainings can be done at your location, at your convenience.
Keys to a Healthy Baby; Sudden Infant Death for Emergency Department Personnel; Sudden Infant Death for Child care Providers; Sudden Infant Death for Health Care Providers; Sudden Infant for Nursery and Post-Partum Nurses; Grief and Loss in Pregnancy and the First Year of Life; Perinatal Depression; Prematurity: It’s a Bigger Problem Than You Think; Five A’s Smoking Cessation Program; Perinatal Substance Abuse; Infant Development in the First Year of Life; Shaken Baby Syndrome. For more information: bconnal@aol.com

Parenting Classes

For parents of children 1 to 6 years of age. Learn what motivates your child’s behavior, some discipline techniques and how to develop respect and cooperation within the child
Where: The Up Center (formerly Child & Family Services of Eastern Virginia)
1805 Airline Blvd.
Portsmouth, VA 23707
When: September 17th – October 29th, 2008, Wednesday nights, 6-8 PM
Cost: $ 50.00 per 7 week session
*Fee will be collected during first session*
To register call Heather Mathews at 397-2121 ext. 312
Seating is Limited!

Drive Safe coalition - volunteers needed

Drive Safe coalition is in need of help manning a regional safety seat check they are having on Sat. Sept. 20 from 10:00-1:00. It’s part of a national campaign to kick off CPS week (Sept 21 week). Checks will be happening across the nation on that day—it’s called Safety Seat Saturday. Our regional check is co-sponsored by Drive Safe, AAA, Safe Kids, and VDH. It will be held at the Tidewater AAA headquarters—on Va. Beach Blvd. near Haynes (between Witchduck and Newtown—sort of on the line between VB and Norfolk). Safety seat training helps but not required (you could still assist but couldn’t put in seats yourself). Senior checkers will be on hand—they just need more bodies. Please contact Pat for more details..
Pat.Davidson@vdh.virginia.gov

On-line Newsletter

Please click on the link below and sign up to receive this on-line newsletter, published by the Virginia Department of Health Office of Minority Health and Public Health Policy.
http://www.vdh.state.va.us/healthpolicy/access_newsletter.htm

Novelty Lighter Bill

I am again asking for your assistance with the issue of Novelty or toy-like lighters. We hope to have legislation reintroduced at the upcoming General Assembly and we are in need of stats and/or stories that you may have concerning these lighters.
One of the major concerns is that we do not have good records to prove that the lighters are causing an issue.
When filling out VFIRS, firefighters must be made aware that there is an area to designate on the form that a novelty lighter was used. It is deep in the report and not easy to locate but it is there. Please pass this along to your departments in case you do have an incident involving a novelty lighter.
Again, if you have had any fires involving novelty lighters, or know of any problems involving these lighters, please send me an email as soon as possible.

Thanks,

Lt. Wanda Willis
Harrisonburg Fire Department
101 N. Main St., Third Floor
Harrisonburg, VA 22802
wandaw@ci.harrisonburg.va.us
540-432-7717
For more information: http://www.theideabank.com/psa/NoveltyLighters.html

What's Working For and Against Healthy Schools

Action for Healthy Kids: Progress or Promises? What's Working For and Against Healthy SchoolsWebinar Phone Symposium
Thursday, August 28, 20083pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT/12pm PT75-minute session
Registration Required
Register for this 75-minute phone symposium/webinar by clicking here. Access information and presentation materials will be sent to participants by Monday, August 25, 2008.

Weekends May Stymie Weight-Loss Efforts

The holidays aren't the only dangerous time for dieters, says a new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Researchers found that people watching their weight tend to eat more on the weekend, causing them to lose weight more slowly. "We thought weekends would present a problem for some people attempting to lose weight, but the consistency of our finding before and during the interventions was surprising," says first author Susan B. Racette, Ph.D., assistant professor of physical therapy and of medicine. The findings appear in the online version of the journal Obesity.
Read the full article at: http://mednews.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/11972.html

Bedsharing and bassinets: 2 new studies assess the risks

The American Academy of Pediatrics revised its infant sleeping environment recommendations in 2005, and now suggests that room sharing without bed sharing is safest. However, bassinet safety has not been widely studied, and the U.S. government currently has no safety standards for bassinets. But two new studies on bed sharing and bassinet risks, upcoming in the Journal of Pediatrics, seek to shed light on these important safety issues.
Read the full article at: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-06/ehs-bab062308.php

CDC update on SIDS

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have updated their SIDS website to include download access for the Sudden Unexplained Infant Death Investigation Reporting Form (SUIDI RF) and training materials. You can now download training materials used in the SUIDI Training Academies. These materials will allow organizations the flexibility of offering in-house trainings based on the standardized curriculum already used to train hundreds of SUIDI Trainers.
http://www.cdc.gov/sids/TrainingMaterial.htm

Action for Healthy Kids

Action for Healthy Kids is pleased to announce the release of Progress or Promises? What's Working for and Against Healthy Schools a special report on the state of school wellness. This report is an important overview of the current state of school wellness and will guide the work of Action for Healthy Kids and its Teams and Partners for the coming years.
The release of Progress or Promises? What's Working for and Against Healthy Schools? is an opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of school wellness. Together with its Teams and Partners, Action for Healthy Kids will continue to promote healthy eating and active living to children, youth, and schools.
http://www.actionforhealthykids.org/

Comprehensive Coalition-Building Training Series

The Maryland Partnership for Prevention (MPP) is pleased to announce the 2008-2009 schedule for Coalition University. Coalition U is a nationally recognized training series designed to provide the unique skill set necessary to create, participate in, and sustain coalitions. Utilizing a multi-disciplinary staff, Coalition University provides interactive instruction on topics that a re critical to coalition success, including: Coalition Infrastructure --Coalition Leadership --Membership Recruitment --Fundraising --Board Development --Advocacy --Media Relations --Program Planning and Evaluation
Coalition University offers three "semesters" of learning that incrementally provide students a comprehensive foundation for coalition-building. For registration and information, see below and go to: http://edcp.org/pdf/Coalition_University_Registration_08-09.pdf

Robert Wood Foundation New Updates

Study Predicts 86 Percent of Americans Overweight by 2030A study published online in the journal Obesity suggests that, if current trends continue, more than 86 percent of American adults could be overweight or obese by 2030, the Baltimore Examiner reports.

NYC High Schools Designate Double Dutch an Official School SportIn an effort to engage more students in physical activity, New York City school officials have sanctioned double Dutch as an official sport in their high schools, the Associated Press reports.

The Partnership for Prescription Assistance bus

The Partnership for Prescription Assistance bus (the big orange bus that is promoted by national spokesperson Montel Williams) will be in Virginia the week of September 15th - 19th. The bus will be making two 2 hour stops at various locations throughout the state.

The goal of this bus trip is to expose as many people throughout the state as possible to PPA. We hope to do this by making many stops at very visible locations and inviting the media to help us inform people about PPA through newspaper and television. While the counselors on board the bus are a great resource for patients, there is no magic in the bus. Patients can access information and service using the PPA toll free number and/or website. We want to make sure people know both exist.

The second goal of the bus trip is to expose Virginians to all other healthcare resources in the community. We hope that the media will not only tell people about the bus but also of the programs and services those that we partner with provide to the community. We will encourage the media to share information about the programs and service or services that are offered at the location where the bus is parked.

If you are interested in partnering with PPA and serving as a host for the bus, please contact Nicole Pugar at (804) 225-5828 or nicolevqhn@gmail.com.

Free Water Watcher Toolkit

Virginia drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional injury death among children under the age of 14. Injury and death from drowning can be avoided provided children have active parental supervision, are taught basic water safety skills, swim in safe environments, use appropriate safety gear and when parents demonstrate water safety behavior.
The DIVP is seeking your assistance in helping to prevent drownings by becoming the designated Water Watcher for children in and around water. A Water Watcher is the adult on duty who is responsible for actively supervising children in and around water. A Water Watcher wears an “official” tag and whistle when supervising children at the pool, beach, lake, river, or in open water. The Water Watcher kit contains:A Water Watcher tag, Whistle and Lanyard
• Information card that explains the Water Watcher program, responsibilities of a Water Watcher, and life saving information
• Drowning Prevention Tip Card
• 9.25” by 12” bag that holds the materials and has space for your agency’s information
Individuals can order up to 5 kits. Organizations can order up to 50 kits. To order your free Water Watcher Kit (s), click on the link below to complete an online order form. Kits will be mailed within two weeks and until supplies last.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=TSlhnUEzW1B8iyKVxXPKPQ_3d_3d.

Pediatric Grand Rounds schedule for August

August 7, 2008 “Hematology-Oncology ALLPLAY”
8:00 - 9:00 am Faculty from the Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology
Brickhouse Auditorium Department of Pediatrics, EVMS/CHKD
Objectives: Discuss topics in the field of pediatric hematology & oncology and evaluate their impact on the treatment of patients.

August 14, 2008 "Shock in Children"
8:00 - 9:00 am Arno Zaritsky, MD
Brickhouse Auditorium Department of Pediatrics, EVMS/CHKD
Objectives: Identify the different categories of shock; summarize the physiologic characteristics for the different categories of shock; explain the importance of tissue perfusion; and summarize the interpretation of lactic acid and base deficit in children with possible shock.

August 21, 2008 "Pediatric Hospitalists: Then, Now and Future"
8:00 – 9:00 am Bryan R. Fine, MD
Brickhouse Auditorium Pediatric Hospitalist, Children’s National Medical Center, Washington, D.C.
Objectives: Define and discuss the role of the hospitalist in the management of inpatient pediatric patients.


August 28, 2008 “Hot Topics in Pediatric Allergy & Immunology - ALLPLAY”
8:00 – 9:00 am Faculty from the Division of Pediatric Allergy & Immunology
Brickhouse Auditorium Department of Pediatrics, EVMS/CHKD
Objectives: Discuss topics in the field of pediatric allergy & immunology and evaluate their impact on the treatment of patients.