Some not so sunny facts about lead poisoning, child obesity Posted on September 8, 2014 by Dakota PikeTips to curb weight gain, lead exposure July 16, 2014 Leader HeraldGLOVERSVILLE – Nathan Littauer Hospital and Fulton County Public Health are sharing some facts about children and summer vacations. Children’s health can be more compromised during the summer months than when school is in session, a news release said. “There are two local problems that can negatively impact our children’s overall health” said Cheryl McGrattan, Nathan Littauer’s hospital spokesperson, in the release. “Specifically, children have a tendency to gain weight in the summer, and we typically see higher lead levels during the summer months. These two public health issues strike at the core of our preventative health efforts for the last few years. The two organizations have chosen lead poisoning and obesity prevention as part of their community implementation focus for our region.” “We want the community, particularly parents, to know the facts about summer safety,” said Dr. Irina Gelman, director of the Fulton County Public Health Department, in the release. Regarding weight gain, the CDC released a longitudinal study June 12 suggesting the rates of weight gain accelerate during the summer compared with the school year, particularly among racial/ethnic minority and overweight children, according to the release. Although the study finds that more information is needed, many in the medical community agree that the gains can be attributed to a lack of structure, disrupted sleep patterns and more time spent in front of electronic devices, the release said. “Summer camps and getting kids outside are a great way to keep your children active, and as a result, help them to maintain healthy weights during the summer,” said Littauer pediatrician Dr. Shannon Colt in the release. Gelman noted in the release that “unfortunately, higher rates of elevated blood lead levels are also evident in the summer months for the opposite reasons.” She explained, “When children are away from computers and smart phones, they may be playing in lead-contaminated soil.” According to the release, it is recommended that children living near older houses be provided with sandboxes with sand purchased from a hardware store, and outdoor toys are washed regularly. Open windows can also play a role in higher lead levels, as children reach into window sills where paint chips often accumulate. The Fulton County Public Health Department advises parents to pay close attention to their backyard garden and make sure it is situated far from runoff from older homes.’ “If you have a garden, please look to see where the water goes the next time it rains,” Gelman said in the release. Often the inside of a home can be lead-free, but the garden may be in the path of runoff from houses that aren’t, according to the release. Gelman highlighted the importance of having the soil adjacent and/or in close proximity to the older home tested. Home lead tests are easy to use and available in most hardware stores, while soil lead testing kits may be ordered online. The lead testing supplies cost ranges from $10 to $20 per kit, the release said. The family dog can be another potential source of lead. One family had a dog that was chained outside for a portion of the day in lead-contaminated soil. When the dog came in to the home it carried lead on its fur, and the children had elevated blood lead levels simply because of petting their dog, the release said. In the release, the two organizations recommended removing shoes before entering the house and using play clothes. Removing the play clothes when first entering the house and promptly washing them afterward can reduce exposure to lead. Removing work clothes for parents upon returning home is equally important, as some work uniforms, depending on the profession, such as automotive repair or mechanical engineering, carry inherent risks. This also works to help keep ticks at bay. Washing hands often always remains on the priority list, the release said.
Officials praise health care sign-ups Posted on September 8, 2014 by Dakota PikeOfficials praise health care sign-upsMore than 4,000 enrolled in countiesJuly 13, 2014By ARTHUR CLEVELAND , Leader HeraldMore than 4,000 individuals in Hamilton, Fulton and Montgomery counties enrolled in the health care sign-ups.Nearly 1 million New Yorkers enrolled in the marketplace in total during the first-year open enrollment period.According to a news release from New York State of Health, a study of the first-year open enrollment period shows more than 80 percent of enrollees reported being uninsured at the time of application. Enrollment occurred in every county in the state and across all eligible health plans, and across a mix of age groups.Across the three counties, 4,157 people have enrolled, according to the report.In an email, Mike Ostrander, Nathan Littauer Hospital’s chief financial officer, said the hospital was pleased with the amount of enrollments. New York State of Health website navigators employed by Littauer enrolled roughly 1,200 individuals in the program.“Nathan Littauer Hospital is pleased with the response we have had to the marketplace. We feel that 1,200 applications processed is a good starting-off point,” Ostrander said in the email. “We have offered multiple channels for people to enroll in quality, affordable coverage through this new marketplace. People now have options.This marketplace is part of the Affordable Care Act, informally known as Obamacare.Cheryl McGrattan, vice-president of marketing at Nathan Littauer, said this was uncharted territory.“This is the first time our country has done something like this in 230 years,” McGrattan said.From Oct. 1, 2013, through April 15, 960,762 New Yorkers enrolled in a health care plan through NY State of Health.“Year one of the marketplace has been a tremendous success with more than 960,000 New Yorkers enrolling in quality, low-cost health insurance,” said Donna Frescatore, executive director of NY State of Health, in a news release. “The year-one results show strong activity throughout the state and across many important measures, such as age, prior insurance status, affordability and health plan options. We’re looking forward to building upon this success during the next open enrollment period, which begins for individuals and families on November 15, 2014, for coverage starting on January 1, 2015.”The report, filed between Oct. 1 and April 15, shows 370,000 enrollments in qualified health plans. According to Healthcare.gov, a qualified health plan is an insurance plan that is certified by the Health Insurance Marketplace set up by the Affordable Care Act, provides essential health benefits and follows established limits on cost-sharing, like deductibles, copayments and out-of-pocket maximum amounts. Roughly 65,000 individuals enrolled in a Child Health Plus plan, and 525,000 enrolled in Medicaid.In Fulton County, 2,101 people enrolled in the marketplace. Of that number, 1,067 enrolled in Medicaid, 208 in Child Health Plus plans and 826 into all qualified health plans.McGrattan said during the enrollment period there was no way the hospital could have predicted the amount of people that would enroll.Fulton County Supervising Public Health Nurse Dale Woods said while her department does not keep track of health insurance enrollments, her department does refer clients to navigators who can help enroll them in insurance programs.Woods did say she felt the numbers sounded reasonable for their population.Montgomery County saw 1,836 enrollments, with 1,016 enrolling in medicaid, 161 in Child Health Plus plans and 659 in qualified health plans.Kim Conboy, Montgomery County Public Health director, said that prior to the requirements of the Affordable Care Act, approximately more than 5,000 individuals in Montgomery County were uninsured.Fact BoxLocal enrollmentThe following is the number of enrollees in the New York State of Health health care marketplace:Fulton County: All programs – 2,101; Medicaid – 1,067; Child Health Plus – 208; all other qualified health plans – 826; total – 2,101Montgomery County: All programs – 1,836; Medicaid – 1,016; Child Health Plus – 161; all other qualified health plans – 659Hamilton County: All programs – 220; Medicaid – 87; Child Health Plus – 21; all other qualified health plans – 112
Greener lighting saves Littauer and environment Posted on September 8, 2014September 8, 2014 by Dakota PikeEnergy-saving lights installed at LittauerJune 22, 2014Leader HeraldGLOVERSVILLE – Thanks to an incentive by National Grid, all the lights in Nathan Littauer Hospital & Nursing Home’s parking lots were changed from high pressure sodium to LED, a news release said.According to the release, the move will save Littauer close to 330,000 kilowatt hours and nearly $70,000 per year. The lights also will save more 175,000 pounds of carbon dioxide gas and greenhouse emissions.“Nathan Littauer Hospital & Nursing Home goes above and beyond just saving energy,” said energy consultant Debra Sickles of Wolberg Electric Supply Company in the release. “I wish other hospitals were doing a fraction of what Littauer is already doing.”The NLH Engineering Department and its director, David Bruhns, work with electric suppliers, such as Wolberg Electric, Warren Electric, Constellation New Energy and National Grid, with the goal of using electricity wisely, the release said.Littauer’s other green initiatives include indoor lighting fixture upgrades from 64 to 34 watts; solar-powered, hands-free faucets; LED replacements of fluorescent bulbs and fixtures in corridors and stairwells; and repurposing materials and existing buildings.“Green initiatives are not just one project; it’s a mindset,” Bruhns said in the release. Fixtures on all Littauer campuses have been changed overPHOTO: Electricians with Fulton County Electric install LED lighting in the Nathan Littauer Hospital parking lot. Photo submitted.
Early allergy season a doozy Posted on September 8, 2014September 8, 2014 by Dakota PikeBless you! Allergy season is a doozyFriday, June 20, 2014By Leah Trouwborst CAPITAL REGION — After a long winter, the Capital Region emerged from flu season only to walk right into the waiting arms of a very aggressive allergy season.“I’m kind of overbooked,” says Dr. M. Asghar Pasha of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Albany Medical Center. He blames the long winter for raising pollen levels. “Everything blossomed all together instead of blossoming gradually — one pollen on top of another — so the patient is hit with a large amount of pollen at one time.”Trees usually release pollen well before June, but cold temperatures delayed the budding process this year. Add to that the grass pollen which June always brings, and you’ve described the double whammy now hitting the Capital Region. (Ragweed, the third major type of pollen, won’t peak until August.)Along with nonseasonal allergens like mold and animal dander, tree and grass pollen have triggered unusually severe allergy attacks in the Capital Region. According to Pasha, Albany Medical Center has seen “a significant influx of patients calling and complaining about [allergy] symptoms, saying their medications aren’t working, et cetera.”Even though 2012 and 2013 saw quite a few complaints about bad allergies, Pasha considers 2014 to be even worse. “If you had to put a number on it, 20 percent to 30 percent more patients reported symptoms of allergies [than last year]. If I look at my schedule, I can tell you that,” he says.Dr. Suzanne Palmieri, a primary care physician at Ellis Medical Group, points to wet weather as another contributing factor behind this severe allergy season. Not only was it a rainy spring, but beforehand “we had a lot of snowfall late in the winter. That provides a lot of water for the trees, and that increases pollen count.”Adding a third factor behind pollen levels, Dr. David Shulan of Certified Allergy and Asthma Consultants brings up a simple science fact, one that people forget affects pollen levels: the law of gravity. “We’re in a valley, and that concentrates the pollen,” he explains. Reforestation has armed the mountains with even more pollen to send wafting down on lower ground.Both Shulan and Dr. Lawrence Horowitz, chief of pediatrics at Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville, express less concern over the current allergy season than over a larger trend in the Capital Region. “Over the last 30 years, there’s definitely been an increase in pollen levels,” Horowitz says. Shulan agrees that he’s seen “a general increase of [allergy] patients over a 24-year period.”But why? Shulan suspects rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have increased pollination. But Horowitz believes that the cause of the trend is twofold, both the climate and the human body’s ability to tolerate the climate. “As we get healthier, we may be having more of an allergy problem,” says Horowitz. “It’s a trade-off.”One Capital Region resident is putting up a fight against pollen. Patrice Jordan, who lives in Schenectady and works as a substitute teacher in Niskayuna, enlisted some help. “Yesterday my kids came over and washed my car for me. It was all covered with that yellow gunk,” she says. According to Shulan, very few are actually allergic to the pine pollen that resembles yellow gunk, even though we associate it with sneezing.But Jordan’s allergies qualify as severe. She says childhood doctors, adhering to now-outdated wisdom, kept her from taking ballet classes in fear of an allergic reaction. Now, nearing her 60th birthday, she credits a cutting-edge prescription medication for allowing her to spend hours at a time in her garden. “It costs $600 per treatment” but “it’s made a tremendous difference,” she says.Straightening up from her flower bed, she says “my allergies still go nuts” when the flowers bloom in her yard. Extending her left arm, she shows me where a patchy rash has bloomed. Nevertheless, she’s decided over the years that being outside is worth the tradeoff. Anyone looking at her garden would be likely to agree; amid the other yards, Jordan’s gives the impression of an oasis in a desert.For those still working out a strategy to combat their allergies, a few simple changes can help outsmart pollen. Installing a window air conditioner “can cut the pollen and mold in the [home] by 90 percent,” according to Shulman. If you’re tempted to substitute a window fan for an air-conditioner, keep Palmieri’s warning in mind: “Those window fans tend to pull the pollen into the house.”Finally, if summertime to you means open windows, wait until after 11 a.m. to crack them open. Plants release most of their pollen in the early-morning hours.
Littauer applauds measure proposed by Sen. Schumer Posted on September 8, 2014September 8, 2014 by Dakota PikeMeasure targets physician shortage June 6, 2014 By ARTHUR CLEVELAND , The Leader HeraldU.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., says the number of primary care physicians is falling across the region, and he is proposing a measure to increase the numbers.In a news release this week, Schumer announced the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act, which he said would increase the number of Medicare-supported physician training residency slots by 15,000 over the next several years. Schumer said there has been a steady decline in the number of doctors in rural areas, with New York only meeting 40 percent of its primary care needs. He said 65 percent of rural communities reported they do not have enough doctors to serve their community.Currently, Medicare provides funding for hospitals to host a specific number of residents at a given time through Graduate Medical Education funding. Schumer’s legislation would allow Medicare to fund an additional 3,000 slots each year for five years, and priority would be given to hospitals serving areas that face a shortage of physicians. Under Schumer’s plan, hospitals in states that emphasize training in community health centers, community-based settings or hospital outpatient departments would receive preference when applying for additional support to host physician residents. “We have tremendous doctors providing top-notch care all across upstate New York, but we no longer have as many primary care physicians as we need,” said Schumer.“Unfortunately, in upstate New York, our hospitals and community health centers are losing these primary care physicians left and right, as many are beginning to age out of the profession, and they are unable to hire replacements at the same pace, as new doctors frequently choose to go into more lucrative specialty fields or gravitate to more urban areas,” Schumer said. According to Schumer, in a 2010 survey by the Center for Health Workforce Studies at the University at Albany, the average primary care physicians per 100,000 people in New York was 75. In 2013, it dropped to 63. Fulton County’s numbers dropped from 90 in 2010 to 82 in 2013, and Montgomery County’s fell from 80 to 69. Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville and St. Mary’s Healthcare in Amsterdam both say they have no major shortage of physicians.“At Littauer, we are currently not experiencing the same level of difficulty recruiting physicians as many other upstate hospitals are during this shortage,” according to a statement from Littauer. “All our physician staffing needs are filled with the exception of one or two in the emergency room. However, we applaud Sen. Schumer for addressing this problem happening throughout upstate.”Jerri Cortese, spokeswoman for St. Mary’s Healthcare, said, “We have experienced some of the same issues for recruiting into the area.” However, Cortese said, St. Mary’s has a sufficient number of physicians and midlevel providers.Fact Box Dropping Below are the number of primary care physicians per 100,000 people in area counties in 2010 and 2013, according to U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer’s office. Fulton, from 90 in 2010 to 82 in 2013. Montgomery, from 80 to 69. Rensselaer, from 82 to 69. Saratoga, from 74 to 65. Schenectady, from 91 to 64.
