Happy Earth Day! Today is the 50th Anniversary of this cool day celebrating Earth and support for environmental protection. Since many of you are at home right now with your kids, this is a great day to learn about the Earth but also get some activity doing so with a scavenger hunt! It’s also a beautiful day to be outside!
Grandma Gerry (my mom) took my boys on a scavenger hunt in the yard. Some things they had to find were: flower, water, tree, spiderweb, antler (Corbin is demonstrating this one ;)), nest, bug, leaf, butterfly, rocks, grass, flower, dirt, water, cloud, etc. Some of these were staged and others not. Do a simple google search for lists to help you! This is a fun way to learn and be active!
Here I am sitting at my desk doing a telehealth visit. I can look directly at the patient, and discuss whatever we need to discuss, and yet I can still also visualize the patient without them having to come in. I also have direct access to their chart as well to review and update, and discuss whatever questions our patients may have. In this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had to become creative on how we can still keep taking care of our patients, and yet limit both our patients exposure, and our staff’s exposure to this virus. The telehealth visit also provides a means of triage to help us determine if someone is truly sick enough that they would have to come in and be seen in person. Brown Clinic is continuously changing our protocols on how we are adapting to this pandemic. We have never seen anything like this before, so it is not like we can just do everything in a day. We keep adapting to what works, and what does not.
Every patient coming into the clinic is triaged at the door. All staff is triaged at the door when they come in as well. One of our staff will be masked, gowned, and wearing a face shield as well. (My nurse here had just taken off her shield and gown, so I did not make her put it back on for the sake of the picture!) But she has a skin thermometer to take your temperature, and is holding stickers that is placed on the staff, and the patients, triaging them according to symptoms. For our staff, if they are sick, they are going to be seen immediately, and then sent home as well. For patients entering the clinic, this screening is done as soon as they walk in the door. This also serves as a factor as to whether the patient is gong to have to wear a mask, and whether they will need to be taken directly to a room to be away from everybody else. So if you are truly not sick enough, avoid coming into the clinic. We can also help determine if you should be coming in by doing a telehealth visit as well.
The staff at the clinic are wearing masks for every patient regardless of what they are seen for. Depending on the triage protocols, we then decide if we need to gown up, and wear face shields as well. Anything we can do to avoid unnecessary visits into the clinic is being done. We have also instituted drive up lab draws to still be taking care of all of the other health issues that we need to deal with daily as well, not just that related to COVID-19. We are encouraging people if they are sick, to get a hold of us at the clinic first, and set up a telehealth visit, whether by video, or telephone, and be taken care of this way first. The amount of information that we can get by these visits is incredible, and we can still take care of you, and at the same time limit both our patients, and our staff’s, exposure. People who thought they could never do this before are finding out that it is really pretty simple, and we will help walk you through every step of it in an attempt to take care of you. Our hours at Brown Clinic, just like many other facilities, have changed from 7:30-5:00 PM every day, Monday through Friday, but we have the capability and opportunity to create a telehealth visit, in one way or another, 24/7, 7 days a week. Our previous convenience care hours from 5-7 PM are staffed with more people as well to handle any increased telehealth visits as well. We are still available this way continuously, just we always have been, but in a way that limits exposure to everybody involved.
You can get a hold of us with this number, and in particular, after hours, hit option “0” and we will help you through the rest of it! Be safe. Be smart. Utilize this service as a means to be taken care of. This is consistent with our mission statement as well: “To provide quality and compassionate health care.” We are committed to continuous improvement…because that is the kind of care you expect from Brown Clinic–the people you know and trust. Keep moving everybody!
Spring is finally here! With longer days and warmer temperatures brings the chance to get outside and enjoy some physical activity. Along with a well-balanced eating plan, exercise is important both for losing weight and maintaining an overall healthy body and mind.
It is recommended that adults engage in a minimum of 150 minutes each week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 90 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity a week. With planning ahead and setting aside time, you can easily fit 30-60 minutes of aerobic activity into your routine most days of the week. Examples of moderate-intensity aerobic activities: walking, water aerobics, bicycling (under 5 mph), tennis (doubles), or ballroom dancing. Examples of vigorous-intensity activities: race-walking, jogging, running, swimming laps, bicycling (faster than 10 mph), tennis (singles), or aerobic dancing. Be sure to chose an activity you enjoy doing!! I included some pictures of my son Corbin–he loves being active–running, playing tag, biking, soccer, you name it, he loves it. Sitting still is not his specialty–something we could learn from! 😉
Thumbs up for his new bike! And yes, he does have a helmet, just wasn’t wearing it for the picture! 🙂
Choose activities that you will enjoy and can fit into your daily schedule. If you are starting from little to no daily physical activity, begin with five to ten minutes per day. Then increase your duration every week by 10-minute increments until you are up to 30-60 minutes most days of the week. It is important to remember good nutrition is needed for physical performance; carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water are all a part of a well-balanced and healthy diet. No excuses anymore now that the weather is getting nicer!! Get out and get moving!!
We talked about gardening yesterday and I mentioned it’s a great time to start one and I feel the same about the topic of meal planning–now is a great time to work on this!! We are home more so it allows us to have more time to do this. We can’t go to a restaurant to eat out (we can order take out at a lot of places though and that can be figured into your planning). Kids activities are not going on in the evenings, etc. In addition, supplies are limited in the grocery store, and if you are ordering online for pickup, many places require you to order several days in advance…..thus resulting in the great skill of PLANNING!!! I am a big proponent of meal planning as it really does help us make better choices but it also helps us manage the pocket book better. Here are some tips to get you started:
1. Think about your schedule. When are you going to be home for supper, when can you prep some food to make it easier, can you do any batch cooking, etc. Figure that into your planning.
2. Write down your choices for each day. You can plan out each meal or just supper–whatever works best for you (something is better than nothing!). Ask your family for input and have them help with the choices and prep. School age children at home can help with this!
3. Make your meals balanced: think about MyPlate–1/2 your plate fruits and veggies, 1/4 lean protein, 1/4 grains/starches. Figure that into your planning. I personally always start with the meat and work my way around with adding everything in.
4. Incorporate take out options and/or leftovers into your menu if you’d like.
5. Allow for some flexibility in case you change your mind with what you feel like that day!
6. Each week, look at your plan and make appropriate steps for you to follow it. Ie- take meat out of the freezer to unthaw, wash and chop the veggies so they are ready to go, brown the hamburger, slow cook the pork loin, etc. These little steps will make following the plan easier on you.
Here are a few ideas that I have done lately: Pork loin in the crockpot slow cooked—can eat a few meals out of this, sandwiches, plain with a side, etc. Spaghetti with a salad Scalloped potatoes and ham with a side of veggies (I used leftover ham from Easter). Slow cook chicken in the crockpot to shred and use for salads, quesadillas, tacos, casseroles, etc. These are simple things….it doesn’t have to be hard…..just take a little bit of time to put your mind and efforts to it! We can get into the habit of doing this now while we’re home more and it’ll stick with us when we go back to a busier routine! If you need any help, don’t hesitate to contact me! I do offer telemed visits as well! -Kelsey
Homegrown gardens are a great way to teach children about how food is grown and where it comes from and get them interested in healthy foods. Children are more likely to try a food that they have seen grow from a small seed. Now more than ever is a great time to start a garden. We are home more, food supply is limited in the store, it’s a great way to get some activity and fresh air, and help us eat healthy!! You can order seed online if you don’t want to go to a store.
Get your family involved!! Let them help you plant, groom, and care for the garden! There are many tasks children can do in the garden setting such as planting the seeds, pulling weeds, or watering the plants. Get them involved and help teach them where our food comes from! My mom has a great green thumb (better than I do!) and she is sharing that love and skill with my son Corbin. I am sure Carson will enjoy grandma’s garden too as he gets bigger. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of her garden harvests. The above one is of her butternut squash harvest a few years ago. Mmmm, my favorite squash!
Pumpkins and gords are my favorite part of the garden! We always have to take a picture with the harvest each fall!Halloween 2019 – Buzz and Woody showing off Grandma’s pumpkins.
Tomatoes which she makes into all kinds of goodies.
Grandma’s flower garden makes for some pretty cool pictures too!
It’s supposed to warm up next week so be sure to get out and take advantage of it! Maybe can’t garden today, but soon you can!! -Kelsey
