Health

By April Toler— INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—Mental health issues among Americans have continued to soar throughout the pandemic, and youth are no exception. In fact, the U.S. surgeon general recently issued an advisory highlighting the urgent need to address the nation’s youth mental health crisis. The funding will support IU Schoof Medicine experts who help pediatricians catch and address mental health concerns early and improve access to treatment. Thanks to $2.7 million in recent grants, the Indiana University School of Medicine’s Indiana Behavioral Health Access Program for Youth will be able to help more children and families facing mental health challenges. Known…

By Tim Harms, American Heart Association— Risk factors, treatments, COVID complications among top heart, stroke science INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — While COVID-19 vaccines and variants continued to capture health headlines, a number of significant scientific research breakthroughs offered promising news in the fight against heart disease, stroke and cardiovascular risk factors. The American Heart Association, the largest non-governmental funder of heart and stroke related research in the United States, has been compiling an annual list of major advances in heart disease and stroke science since 1996. A complete review of the Association’s top 10 picks for leading cardiovascular-related research accomplishments published…

By K. Aleisha Fetters— MUNCIE, Ind.—Grief is a hard journey. But it’s one that Muncie church members are increasingly walking together. They are doing so through the aptly named GriefShare, a grief recovery support program that is helping people in the US, Canada, and more than 10 other countries find meaning and rebuild their lives following the loss of friends, family members, and loved ones. “GriefShare provided me a lifeline during my time of loss,” says Cheyrl McCoy, a former participant. “Sharing my story with others who could relate to what I was going through was comforting. I was grateful for…

By Tim Harms, American Heart Association— INDIANAPOLIS—Thousands of Hoosiers with high blood pressure may now have easier access to monitoring devices that will allow them to check their own blood pressure, which could help them better control their blood pressure and lower their risk of heart disease, thanks to a change in state policy that was recommended by the American Heart Association. On Dec. 2, the Indiana Office of Medicaid Policy and Planning (OMPP) approved a policy request to expand coverage of blood pressure monitoring devices for the diagnosis and management of patients with hypertension and to address barriers to the…

By Courtney Schmoll— MUNCIE, Ind.— The National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), a quality program administered by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) has granted accredited status to the IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital Cancer Center in Muncie, Indiana. To achieve voluntary NAPBC accreditation, a breast center demonstrates compliance with the NAPBC standards that address a center’s leadership, clinical services, research, community outreach, professional education, and quality improvement for patients.  Breast centers seeking NAPBC accreditation undergo a site visit every three years. As a NAPBC-accredited center, the IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital Cancer Center is committed to maintaining levels…

By Meridian—  MUNCIE, Ind. – Meridian Health Services is excited to bring back Flu-Lapalooza, a One-Day FREE Flu Shot Clinic, on October 6, 2021, from 11a-7p at Meridian locations throughout Indiana. Flu-Lapalooza will take place at Meridian locations in Anderson, Bluffton, Connersville, Dunkirk, Indianapolis, Muncie, New Castle, Portland, Richmond, and Rushville. Participants can enter to win a $50 grocery gift card to be given away at each location! The flu shot is a vaccine is effective in reducing the number of illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths attributed to seasonal influenza. With the COVID pandemic still surging, it is ALSO essential to receive…

By Erin Pinkerton— MUNCIE, Ind. — It’s no secret that having a baby permanently changes a woman’s body. The secret might be that, even after having a baby, a woman’s body should still function well. Women are often told that incontinence, pelvic pain and other pelvic health issues are the price they pay for having carried or delivered a baby. Women believe these issues are normal, so they wait to seek treatment or don’t seek treatment at all. “If you have incontinence, or leaking, after childbirth, that’s considered normal. In reality, it’s common, but it’s not optimal. It’s something that…

 By Steve Cooke— Roberto Darroca, MD, is the immediate past president of the ISMA. INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.– The Indiana State Medical Association (ISMA) elected its officers and American Medical Association (AMA) delegation members at its 172nd Annual Convention, held Sept. 10-12, 2021. The event was held virtually for the second year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.  Elizabeth Struble, MD, North Manchester, was sworn in as ISMA president for 2021-2022. Pardeep Kumar, MD, Terre Haute, was sworn in as ISMA president-elect.  Other ISMA officers sworn in include the following: Speaker of the House of Delegates, Andrew Trobridge, MD, Fishers; vice speaker of…

By Kadee Klafka, RN, Cardiac Intensive Care, IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital— From a nurse’s eyes. I’ve been surrounded by a lot of different views of the global pandemic. I am entirely full of anger; I’ll do my best to keep all the emotions I’m personally dealing with out of these experiences and thoughts I’m about to share. In the beginning of the pandemic, we were all scared. We didn’t know what this virus was. We didn’t know how it would affect our lives. I vividly remember the first case we thought we had in our ICU because the chest x-ray…