Our old bimonthly Chapter newsletters, CAPITAL IDEAS and CAPITAL CARDIOGRAM have found their way into our website as part of this Quarterly Activities page. Please note: parts of this Quarterly will change during the quarter and new items of interest will be added - SO, keep an eye on this page!
Unlike
most Mended Hearts
chapters that are located in smaller cities and serve a single hospital,
Chapter 94 operates in a large metropolitan area, visiting patients in four
hospitals offering cardiac surgery—the Hospital Center, Adventist, Suburban and
George Washington University. Visitors
usually live near the hospitals where they are assigned, but in recent months we
have had problems getting the entire membership together. In the past we have
tried different meeting spots near the District line at various times, ranging
from weekday afternoons at libraries or park recreation facilities to evenings in
hospital conference rooms. We have had mixed results with attendance, sometime
booking a distinguished speaker, only to be embarrassed with a small crowd.
Among the more successful efforts have been holding meetings before
regularly-scheduled heart-related seminars at GW and Suburban. But
these ad hoc meetings do not serve new heart patients well. We are often
asked, “When does Mended Hearts meet?” For someone who recently has had
surgery and is looking for support, “At various times” is not a good answer. We
now have a regularly scheduled time and place to meet—the first Sunday in each
month at 4 pm at Suburban Hospital. For most of our members, Suburban is
about as convenient a location as we can find. The hospital is very welcoming.
The parking is free. And on a Sunday afternoon, we should be able to avoid the
DC-area’s notorious rush hour. Most important, there is now a very specific reply
when someone asks about a Mended Hearts meeting. Programs will vary.
Sometimes we will book a speaker on topics
ranging from nutrition to information on new cardiology research to a report on
the invention of a medical device. At other times, the program may not be
heart-related at all. But
at every meeting, new people are welcome to share their stories and to get
support. After all, that is the primary purpose of the organization—to support
heart patients and their caregivers. Patients at Suburban who are mobile and
interested can come to the meeting. We will have reports from hospital
visitors on questions and comments they have heard from patients and caregivers
who they have seen during the month. Everyone has a story to tell; everyone
has a different experience. So
mark your calendars each month and plan to join us. --Neal
Gregory
Mended Hearts is the nation’s largest community-based heart patient support organization offering the gift of hope and encouragement to heart patients and their families. As a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization that is both local and national, we provide unique patient-to-patient support through our hospital-based visiting program, chapter meetings and online support. During this holiday season, we have launched a special Holiday Hope campaign to raise both awareness and much-needed funds to help us sustain and grow our program. Please go to www.mendedhearts.org and click on the special Holiday Hope icon. The Web site is secure, fast and easy to use. There, you will be able to donate and receive confirmation of your donation. And, an added plus: You can make the contribution in memory or honor of someone – we’ll process the acknowledgement. A written confirmation of our donation, with the donation amount specified for year-end tax purposes, will follow in the mail. Thanks in advance for your support!
Here is a summary of Chapter 94's annual visiting report for year of 2008.
Chapter 94 is currently visiting in 4 Hospitals: The Washington Hospital Center, George Washington University Hospital, Washington Adventist Hospital and Suburban Hospital.
The total number of visits we made at these hospitals for the year was 3,011. This comprises 2,823 individual heart patients visited, 155 family visited (families of heart patients visited in the surgical visiting waiting rooms), and 33 Internet visits.
Our current list of accredited visitors include; Don Couchman, Daniel Dollarhide, Bob Gelenter, Neal Gregory, Bob Hirano, Bill Koenig and Alec Wagenheim.
Respectfully submitted Robert H. Gelenter, Visiting Chairman of Chapter 94
The following information on Healthcare Reform has been provided to our Chapter members because of the great importance and impact Healthcare Reform will have on our members, their children, grand children and great grand children!
For those who have the interest in seeing the most prominent bills currently being considered go to the Library of Congress’ Web site "www.thomas.gov". There, you can view the pending Health Care legislation in its entirety.
Looking for other view points? Take a look at what "AARP" has to say and explore some of the links they have provided to gain additional insights.
Some older Americans fear that health-care reform would hurt Medicare. Many experts say just the opposite. Find out exactly how reform would affect this treasured American program…
Why should you participate? Taking just 10 minutes three times a day to walk will help you live longer. In fact, studies show that just one hour of vigorous exercise will increase your life expectancy by two hours. It makes sense to walk more and eat well – to live longer! To find out more please visit the American Heart Association’s "National Start! Walking Day" web link. Is there a cost to participate? No, it's free!
American Medical ID is pleased to offer Mended Hearts members a 10 percent discount on all American Medical IDs and accessories. American Medical ID will contribute 10 percent of sales of any American Medical ID product generated by Mended Hearts members to Mended Hearts. For more information about the American Medical ID/Mended Hearts relationship and merchandise, please click here now.
Those attending the MHI convention in Orlando were urged to return home and make plans to sound the alarm. We will be getting posters and other publicity materials for distribution in hospitals, senior centers, doctors’ offices and other places where patients with cardiovascular disease can get the message. Data show that those with heart disease are more likely to die from influenza than patients with any other chronic condition.
An advisory from the American Heart Association and the College of Cardiology calls on heart doctors to do something they may not normally do-- give flu shots to their patients Studies have found that annual flu vaccinations can prevent death in adults and children with chronic conditions of the cardiovascular system. But only one in three adults with cardiovascular disease was vaccinated against flu in 2005.
“If we vaccinated at least 60 percent of the 13.2 million people with coronary heart disease in the United States against influenza, we could prevent hundreds of deaths and thousands of cases of flu each year,” said Matthew M. Davis, M.D., lead author of the advisory and associate professor of pediatrics, internal medicine, and public policy at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
“The target goal set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is to vaccinate 60 percent of people with heart disease under age 65, and 90 percent of everyone 65 and over, many of whom have heart disease,” Davis said.
Overall, influenza is responsible for 36,000 deaths and 225,000 hospitalizations in the United States each year. People with cardiovascular disease are particularly vulnerable, because the flu can exacerbate heart disease symptoms directly, and can also lead to conditions like viral or bacterial pneumonia that cause flare-ups of cardiovascular disease, he said.
“A case of influenza tends to make people with heart disease even sicker than others who are healthy, and increases the chance of having to go to the hospital,” he said.
Immunization against seasonal influenza has a critical, but underappreciated, role in preventing death among cardiovascular disease patients. Patients with cardiovascular disease should get a flu vaccination (given by injection) every year by the end of November. Receiving a shot in January or even later should still protect from flu, as the flu season in the United States typically peaks in January, February or March.
Influenza vaccination is now recommended with the same enthusiasm as cholesterol and blood pressure control and other modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
The Mended Hearts campaign will be directed toward the annual flu season, not the special effort that also appears likely for combating swine flu.
Revised 11/13/2009