Friday, May 25, 2012

Briefs


Summer air service to continue

Sun Valley will continue its partnership with Alaska/Horizon Airlines for seasonal summer daily nonstop flights between Seattle and Los Angeles and Friedman Memorial Airport in Hailey.

Horizon Air flights from Seattle begin June 3 and those from Los Angeles begin June 22. Both will continue through Sept. 16. One-stop flights from Los Angeles to Sun Valley (via Seattle) run June 3 through June 21.

Through Monday, May 28, special deals are available, with fares from $96 each way to/from Seattle, for travel June 3 through July 31. See the airline's website for details, at www.alaskair.com.

School board calls 'retreat'

The Blaine County School District board of trustees will hold a "board retreat" at the Sun Valley Club on Trail Creek Road on Friday, June 1, and Saturday, June 2.

While the retreat is not intended as a public meeting, members of the public will not be turned away if they attend.

According to the agenda, the board will meet from 12-3 p.m. on June 1 and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 2.

KPD to hold bike rodeo

The Ketchum Police Department, in cooperation with Sun Valley Adaptive Sports, will hold its third annual Ketchum Police Bike Rodeo on Saturday, May 26.

The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the south parking lot at the Wood River Community YMCA on Saddle Road in Ketchum. Youngsters of all ages are invited to attend.

Activities will include a police safety course, an obstacle course, helmet fitting, music, snacks and other fun activities. The Police Department has a limited number of helmets that will be given away to children who need them.

Veteran services offered

State Veterans Services Officer Milt Smith will be in the Blaine County office Tuesday, June 5, from 1-5 p.m. He will be in the upstairs meeting room of the county annex building, 219 First Ave S., in Hailey.

Anyone interested in meeting with him can contact Brooke Roberson at 788-5566 to set up an appointment.

St. Luke's earns performance awards

St. Luke's Wood River has received multiple national awards for its performance, based on patient surveys.

Avatar International, an organization involved in healthcare quality improvement services, awarded St. Luke's its Overall Best Performer award, presented to top facilities in its 400-hospital database with the highest overall combined score for inpatient, outpatient, emergency department and ambulatory surgery. 

The hospital also won the Bronze Innovation Award for its bedside handoff implementation. Bedside handoff is a method wherein nurses involve patients in their shift reports to improve transition and quality of care. 

St. Luke's was also awarded the Exceeding Patient Expectations Award, which is given to the facilities whose overall score exceeds expectations for all patient types, and the Five Star Service—Loyalty and Endorsement Award for the Emergency Department, given to the facility with the highest score for emergency room patients in Avatar's national database.

Cancer survivors night scheduled

St. Luke's has launched a new, free event to learn about being healthy during and after cancer.

Participants in the inaugural Community Cancer Survivors Night, next week in Twin Falls, can share their experiences with cancer and learn about care plans and staying active.

The program is open to all cancer patients and survivors, regardless of where they received care. Caregivers, health care professionals and representatives from community groups also are invited.

There will be a panel discussion and question-and-answer session.

Advance registration is requested. Call St. Luke's toll-free at 855-685-5409. Discounted hotel rooms are available at AmericInn.

The event will take place Thursday, May 31, from 5-8:30 p.m. at St. Luke's Magic Valley, 801 Pole Line Rd. W., Twin Falls.

A light dinner will be provided.

Modest increase in travel expected

Higher gas prices and a dose of consumer apprehension are expected to limit the growth of Memorial Day travel, according to AAA.

The travel organization projects 34.8 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home during the holiday period. That's a modest 1.2 percent increase — or 500,000 travelers — from the 34.3 million people who traveled a year ago.

"The domestic economic picture that drives travel represents just a slight improvement from a year ago," according to AAA Idaho Public Affairs Director Dave Carlson. "There's evidence household budgets are squeezed this year, but growing pent-up travel demand and some ingenuity will cause Americans to compensate their travel budgets to make it work."

Men 2.0 presentation in Hailey

The Advocates, in association with the Idaho Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence, will present a program for community members interested in helping the young men of Idaho grow into strong and healthy adults.

The program will be presented in the Minnie Moore Room at the Community Campus in Hailey on Tuesday, May 29, at 6:30 p.m.

The focus of the program will be on "teachable moments," when adults have unique opportunities to present a child with information.

"These teachable moments can happen while watching ads during the Superbowl or while sitting in the gondola on Baldy," said Travis Jones, coordinator of the Advocates' Engaging Men and Boys Project. "They are unique opportunities to teach our kids about right and wrong, and to help instill a sense of respect toward others."

Whooping cough strikes in region

Public health officials have identified two cases of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, in the last week, according to a news release issued by South Central Public Health District. Both cases are adults who live in Twin Falls County.

Health officials urge parents to check their children's vaccination status, but also to remember that adults are also at risk for the disease and should receive a pertussis booster vaccine.

"The pertussis vaccination isn't just for babies. Adolescents and adults need to be revaccinated, even if they were vaccinated as children," Mary Jensen, the health district's epidemiology manager, said in the release. "Immunization is our best tool, especially for adults in contact with infants. Infants may develop severe symptoms which may lead to hospitalization or even death."

For adults, cases of pertussis are easily mistaken for other types of coughing illnesses, the release states. Early signs include a persistent cough that follows a cold. The cough usually occurs in explosive bursts ending with a typical high-pitched whoop as the person catches their breath. It can also cause vomiting. Older children or adults may have less severe symptoms.

Symptoms usually develop within one to two weeks after contact with a person with pertussis.

For more information, contact Jensen at 737-5969.




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