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the HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
Be cautious with children, fireworks
Special to the HHJ
Each year, more than
4,000 children ages 14 and
under are treated in emer
gency rooms for injuries
involving fireworks.
Most of these injuries
occur in the few weeks
before and after the Fourth
of July. Children ages 5-9
have the highest rate of
iryury from fireworks.
“Do not let children play
with fireworks, period,”
warns Patsy Zoumberis,
RN, Health Educator for
Houston Healthcare’s
Community Education and
Exercising
outdoors
can be fun
Special to the HHJ
The playground is a great
place for the kids to run
wild while their parents
relax with a book. But par
ents can and should join in
the fun. Besides the physical
benefits, exercise is a great
mood lifter.
Warm up First
Start with a five-minute
warm-up before leaving
home. Do some calf stretch
es, arm circles and side
stretches. Rotate the head
in a clockwise and counter
clockwise motion. Lean the
head to each side. Do some
shoulder rotations, forward
and back. Now put on those
walking shoes, leave the
car keys behind and walk
briskly to the park.
Playground Fun
Once at the park or play
ground, keep moving. Play
dodgeball or tag with the
kids. Jump rope. Put some
muscle into pushing them
on the swings.
Parents can take turns
watching the kids and doing
some exercising themselves.
Take a seat on a nearby
bench and do the strength
ening and stretching exer
cises described below. (Hold
each position 10 seconds
before returning to the start
position; work up to eight
repetitions of each.
Make sure to breathe
through each move to pre
vent dizziness.)
■ To strengthen the chest
muscles, place hands on
shoulders and bring elbows
together.
■ To build arm strength,
lean forward and place
hands on shins. Push down,
keeping the back straight.
■ Strengthen legs and
abdominal muscles by plac
ing palms on the bench;
raise knees toward chest
and slowly lower them.
■ Stretch the back by
clasping hands above head.
Bend from the waist, lean
first to the right then to the
left, holding the lowest posi
tion.
Mind-and-Body
Workout
Finally, practice “mind
ful” walking to exercise the
spirit as well as the body.
Pay attention to the
sights, smells and sounds of
nature —the blue sky, a flut
tering butterfly, the smell of
freshly mown grass.
Tune into how the body
moves, and relax.
Other outdoor fitness
activities for the family to
enjoy could include golf
ing, riding bikes around the
neighborhood, walking a dif
ferent route, swimming in
the pool or working in the
garden.
Try to build some activ
ity, any activity, into the
family’s daily routine and
everyone will feel and look
better guaranteed.
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today
Call 987-1823
Services Department and
Coordinator of Houston
County’s Safe Kids
Coalition. “They are intend
ed for use by adults in open
spaces, with plenty of active
supervision for every child
present.”
Fireworks, including
sparklers and flares, can
cause serious burns as well
as blast injuries that can
permanently impair vision
and hearing. “Teach your
children what to do if their
clothing catches fire ‘stop,
drop and roll’ and how to
call 911 in an emergency,”
Houston Healthcare's Rapid Response Team helps save lives
Special to the HHJ
Houston Healthcare’s
Rapid Response Team is a
new quality improvement
initiative recommended by
the Institute for Healthcare
Improvement’s “100,000
Lives Campaign.” Research
shows that, six to eight
hours prior to a patient
experiencing a code situa
tion, there have been signs
and symptoms present that
indicated impending prob
lems for the patient - signs
that could have been avert
ed with earlier interven
tion. Hospitals implement
ing Rapid Response Teams
have experienced a decline
in the number of code situ
ations. According to Maggie
Kubia, Nurse Manager of
the SICU and MICU at
Houston Medical Center,
the Rapid Response Team
has already proven to be
very successful. “We began
trial runs with the team on
April 18 at both Houston
Medical Center and Perry
Hospital, and had five calls
total between the two hospi
tals during the trial period,”
she says. “We went ‘live’
with the team at both hos
pitals in May, and the team
responded to 12 calls during
that month alone.”
The Rapid Response
Team includes an Intensive
Care Unit or Emergency
Department RN and a
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pain
pain management
A Team Approach to Pain
Treatment For A Better
Quality of Life.
Unfortunately, many people experience great
difficulties dealing with chronic pain -pain that persists
for a long length of time and can cause stress and
disruption in their lives. The good news is that severe
chronic pain can be treated successfully, assuring
comfort for a better quality of life.
The Houston Pain Treatment Center, an
established and long standing service of Houston
Medical Center, offers a team of Board Certified
Anesthesiologists each with more than 20 years of
experience in evaluating and treating patients for
chronic pain.
We specialize in an array of procedures including
epidural steroid injections, facet and sacroiliac joint
injections, radiofrequency ablations, selective nerve
root blocks and sympathetic nerve blocks.
If you are suffering from Ghronic pain, talk to your
doctor today about pain management and treatment.
All insurance plans, including Medicare, Medicaid
and TriCare, are accepted.
urges Zoumberis.
Where permitted by
law, fireworks should be
handled and used in strict
accordance with the manu
facturer’s instructions and
all warning labels. In addi
tion, Safe Kids of Houston
County recommends these
precautions for adults using
fireworks:
■ Light fireworks only on
smooth, flat surfaces, and
aim them away from build
ings, dry leaves, flammable
materials and spectators.
■ Do not try to relight
fireworks that malfunction.
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Respiratory Therapist who
will respond within five to
10 minutes to the bedside of
a patient in the general care
areas when called by the
patient’s nurse. The team
will assist the patient’s
nurse with assessment and
intervention. There are spe
cific Medical Staff approved
protocols in place that the
team cam initiate while the
physician is being notified,
and the team will assist
the nurse in communicat
ing to the physician about
the patient. “We chose those
employees who we know
have certain skills and have
three to five years of hospi
tal experience to be mem
bers of the team,” explains
Kubia.
Kubia says that the
number of code situations
outside the Emergency
HEALTH
■ Do not carry fireworks
in your pocket or hold them
close to your face.
■ Visit www.recalls.gov to
make sure the pyrotechnic
devices you are using are
not subject to any safety
recalls.
■ Do not modify fireworks
or use homemade fireworks.
■ Keep a phone handy,
and know first aid for burns.
Also, keep a fire extinguish
er handy and know how to
use it.
Finally, as in any activity
involving hazardous equip
ment, keep all children
Departments and Intensive
Care Units has decreased
at both hospitals since
implementing the Rapid
Response Team. “We antici
pate that we will see the
number of codes continue
to decline at both hospi
tals while the number of
Rapid Response Team calls
increases,” she comments.
“The goal of implementing
Rapid Response Teams is to
improve patient outcomes.”
Hospitals using Rapid
Response Teams also report
increased staff satisfaction
and decreased turnover
rate. According to Kubia,
nurses are encouraged to
call the team when they are
concerned that the patient’s
condition is worsening and
may lead to a more serious
medical condition even if
E. Douglas Culverhouse, Jr., MD
Medical College of Georgia
Certified, American Board of
Anesthesiologists
James Dawson, MD M
Medical College of Georgia ;B|g|
Certified, American Board of
Anesthesiologists ill
F. Hunt Sanders, MD Houston Pain
Treatment Center
Anesthesiologists at Houston Medical Center
Medical College of Georgia WatSOH Boulevard
Certified. America,, Board of Warner Robin S, Georgia 31093
Anesthesiologists 329-3451
Roger Williams, MD
Medical College of Georgia
Certified Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine,
American Board of Anesthesiologists
under active supervision
in sight and in reach at
all times, with an adult’s
undivided attention focused
on them when they are
near fireworks. “The safest
way to enjoy fireworks is to
watch them at a community
event where professionals
handle them,” recommends
Zoumberis.
Safe Kids of Houston
County works to prevent
accidental childhood injury,
the leading killer of children
age 14 and younger.
Its members include vol
unteers from the Houston
Mubmittcnl
Karla Jessup,
Perry Hospital,
and Dr.
Appavuchetty
Soundappan,
Internist,
discuss a
patient’s
chart follow
ing a Rapid
Response
Team call.
he or she cannot specifically
‘put the finger on the prob
lem.’ “The nurses do not
have to ask permission from
their Supervisor before call
ing the Rapid Response
Team,” says Kubia. “They
are encouraged to call
because the process is a
learning and a teaching
experience for everyone
involved.” Karla Jessup,
RN, at Perry Hospital, has
already seen the benefit of
having a Rapid Response
Team in place. “Only a few
hours after I had been given
the information about how
to call our Rapid Response
Team, one of my patients
became distressed,” she
explains. “We called the
team; they responded quick
ly and were a great sup
port. While the team and I
were in the patient’s room,
I was able to relay all of
the patient’s information to
the doctor who gave orders
over the phone. Within 15
minutes, we transported
the patient to the ICU, her
doctor arrived and she was
transferred to another facil
ity for valve replacement
surgery that evening.”
Kubia says that the Rapid
Response Teams have been
well received by all of the
hospital staff, particularly
the team members. “They
have embraced our teams
because they have seen the
FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 2006 ♦
County community. Safe
Kids of Houston County
is a member of Safe Kids
Worldwide, a global network
of organizations dedicated to
preventing accidental injury.
Safe Kids of Houston
County was founded in
1992 and is led by Houston
Healthcare.
Safe Kids of Houston
County meets the third
Tuesday of each month,
except for July, at 12:30
p.m. For more information
about Safe Kids of Houston
County, contact Patsy
Zoumberis at 923-9771.
outcomes and know they
have made a difference in a
patient’s life,” says Kubia.
“No one feels intimidated
by them coming in to help
with a patient.”
Jessup agrees. “Having
the Rapid Response Team is
a great support to our nurs
ing staff when a patient is
showing signs of distress,”
she says. “I have worked
with the team already on
two patients and it really
does work.” Kubia believes
having the Rapid Response
Teams in place will also
prove to be very beneficial
for the community. She also
assures that calling the
Rapid Response Team in no
way affects the level of care
other patients receive dur
ing the process. “Staffing
protocols are in place to pro
vide continuous patient care
when the team members are
on duty,” she states. “No
patients are left unattended
should the team be called.
Houston Healthcare is one
of more than 3,000 hospitals
and hospital systems partic
ipating in the Institute for
Healthcare Improvement
100,000 Lives Campaign ini
tially launched in December
2004. The campaign is the
first-ever national initiative
to promote saving a speci
fied number of lives in hos
pitals through the imple
mentation of proven, evi-
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