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| February 20, 2012- In This Issue |
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Home
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Healthy Work Environment |
Sitting Dangerous to Health |
Empowering Women |
New Field Placement Program |
How Support Guided Me to Exercise | Heart
Attack Awareness |
Gap in Health Services
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PHBRIEFS |
PHRECIPE |
PHTRAINING |
PHEVENTS
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PHNEWS
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PHTECHTIP
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Adina Parson's office reinforces her
goal to create a peaceful and productive
office for a healthy work space.
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When Adina Parson arrived at the Georgia Department
of Public Health (DPH), she joined us with a new
mission. She had spent previous years working to
care for some of Georgia's most vulnerable citizens
- our children. She came to us with a great deal of
legal expertise and the key to optimal success at
work.
"When I first started with state government, I
realized that a large portion of my time would
be spent at work," said Parson, legal counsel
for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program
for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). "For
that reason, I decided to create a work
environment that was comfortable and that would
enable me to perform to the best of my
ability."
Her office décor holds the key to what matters
most to her. There are no florescent lights and
there are positive affirmations. "I thought
about the things that cause me stress, and I
tried to find art, inspirational phrases and
pictures that I could use to counter any
negative thoughts, feelings or experiences that
I may have throughout the work day."
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Sitting Dangerous to Health Despite Exercise
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Commissioner Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D.,
(center) leads DPH employees (L-R) Ryan
Deal, Bob Shaw, Khaliah Smith, Christine
Greene and Jennifer Felder in exercises
they can do for a few minutes throughout
the day to combat the health dangers
associated with a sedentary workday.
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Before settling in to read this article, stand up,
stretch, march in place, do a few jumping jacks,
walk to the water fountain and back, and ignore your
sedentary coworkers' puzzled expressions-they are
now more susceptible to obesity, heart disease and
diabetes than you are.
A study from the American Cancer Society
indicates that men and women who sit for more
than six hours a day are 40 percent more likely
to die earlier than people who sit less than
three hours per day. This number still holds
true for those who exercise. Even if you get
your recommended 30 minutes of exercise a day
and also sit for six hours, your mortality rate
is still higher than those who sit less. Sitting
for extended periods of time does significant
damage to health that exercise cannot undo. The
mortality rates nearly double for those who sit
and do not exercise.
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Empowering Women to Take Action Against Heart Disease
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Brenda Mims, R.N., reviews cholesterol and
blood pressure results with Go Red for Women
heart disease lecture participant Sherrie
White. |
As women, we don't always put our health as a top
priority. For many of us, we are busy being a
mother, wife and daughter, while working full time.
We juggle dropping one child off at dance lessons
then the next at a t-ball game. Even though it is
difficult to fit in the time to exercise for 30
minutes or make a nutritious meal, we should take
the time to make our health one of our top
priorities.
District 8-1 Health Director, William Grow, M.D.,
F.A.C.P, is traveling around the district throughout
February to spread this message to as many women as
possible through Go Red for Women heart disease
lectures.
Since the 1980's, women have been dying at a higher
rate from heart disease than men; although the
stigma of heart disease is more often associated
with men. Women tend to ignore the warning signs of
a heart attack, attributing it to menopause or
stress. But women must understand that heart disease
is our number one killer.
"While the message of heart disease prevention is
typically the same for men and women, women tend to
ignore the signs and symptoms of heart disease more
often than men," states Dr. Grow. "Many women feel
they will be embarrassed if they get to the ER and
the pain they feel isn't related to heart disease,
but there is nothing to be embarrassed about if
someone thinks they may be having a heart attack."
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DPH Seeking Sites for New Field Placement Program
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Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) is proud
to announce the Masters of Public Health (M.P.H.)
Field Placement Program, in partnership with the
Public Health Training Centers located at Emory
University and the University of Georgia, beginning
in the summer of 2012.
The goal of the program is to provide competency and
practice-based experiences for the future public
health workforce by placing M.P.H. students in
real-world public health settings. Projects are
intended to enhance a student's professional skills
and knowledge while giving them the opportunity to
use skills learned in the classroom. Students will
apply for individual placements at the state,
district or county health departments during the
summer, fall and spring semesters and they will
complete a defined public health project.
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Support Guided Me to Exercise
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Katherine Kahn (far right, flower on
t-shirt) stayed committed to
exercise, even at four months
pregnant, by meeting her boot camp
group every morning at 5:45.
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Working in public health we know we are supposed
to eat right and be physically active, but it
can be difficult to find the time to exercise
when working full time, putting dinner on the
table, helping with homework, putting kids to
bed, catching up on personal emails, and getting
things done around the house. The weekends are
often taken up by kids' sports activities and
birthday parties, running errands, doing
housework, and attending social obligations.
It is also often outward appearances that
motivate people to get in shape, rather than
just knowing how important exercise is for
your heart and mental health and to maintain
strong muscles and bones. I have been
fortunate to be thin my entire life, so
exercise has never been a necessity for
losing or maintaining weight. But as I had
children and got older, I noticed that I had
lost muscle tone. Despite this, I was at a
loss for coming up with a plan to start
exercising. But then more and more of my
friends started doing an exercise boot camp.
It sounded good, but I am far from a morning
person, and this boot camp started at 5:40
a.m. The more I thought about it, the more I
realized that this really was the best time
of the day for me to get in my exercise.
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Chatham County Health Dept. Raises Heart Attack Awareness
Through Let's Dance, Savannah: Don't Miss a Beat!
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Children and adults at the
"Let's Dance Savannah: Don't
Miss a Beat!" event dance to
the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services' Office on
Women's Health's "Make the Call"
song, which promotes heart
attack awareness in a catchy
tune that lists the seven most
prevalent symptoms of a heart
attack for women.
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In television shows or on the big screen,
actors simulate having a heart attack by
clutching their chests and falling to the
ground in a very dramatic fashion. And while
chest pain and pressure is a sign of a heart
attack, other less commonly known symptoms
can also signal the onset of heart distress,
particularly in women. But, according to a
2009 American Heart Association survey, few
women were aware of the most common heart
attack symptoms and only half of women
indicated they would call 9-1-1 if they
thought they were having a heart attack. The
Chatham County Health Department and the
U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services' Office on Women's Health found a
creative way to try and change that in
southeast Georgia.
"Make the Call. Don't Miss a Beat." is a
campaign by the Office on Women's Health to
educate women about heart attacks. "Let's
Dance, Savannah!" is a Chatham County Health
Department initiative to encourage dancing
as a legitimate form of exercise and a way
to prevent heart disease. Put them together
and you get two fun-filled, educational
events called "Let's Dance, Savannah: Don't
Miss a Beat!"
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Participants at the Chattahoochee Valley Health
Expo had access to 40 free health screenings
including bone density, cancer screening, and
cholesterol.
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On Saturday, February 4, the Columbus Department of Public
Health partnered with local healthcare providers and
professionals to sponsor the 2012 Health Expo. Residents
from all over West Georgia and East Alabama packed into the
Columbus Trade Center to benefit from over 40 free health
screenings, which included: blood pressure checks, stroke
assessments, mental health exams and a number of different
cancer screenings for men and women.
Regular health exams and screenings are useful tools in
maintaining good health. The earlier a person can
detect an illness, the easier it is to treat.
Unfortunately, the cost of healthcare is steadily on the
rise; many people are unable to afford even the most
basic health services. In Muscogee County alone, 18
percent of the population lives on or below the poverty
level; those who are not insured by Medicaid or Medicare
are left at a disadvantage. The Health Expo's focus is
addressing this growing burden in the community.
Since the Health Expo began, more than 12,000 people
have taken part in the event and over 51,900 health
screenings were given at no cost to the participant.
This year, an estimated 974 people participated in the
expo. Over half of all attendees came this year for the
first time, and over a quarter of all participants
claimed to have no health insurance at all.
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Home
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Healthy Work Environment |
Sitting Dangerous to Health |
Empowering Women |
New Field Placement Program |
How Support Guided Me to Exercise | Heart
Attack Awareness |
Gap in Health Services
|
PHBRIEFS |
PHRECIPE |
PHTRAINING |
PHEVENTS
|
PHNEWS
|
PHTECHTIP
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