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Being in the field of health and healthcare offers tremendous opportunities to be around gratitude. To hear it from others we care for; to reflect our own gratitude in being allowed to serve; to be grateful for all we have in our lives - most importantly, the people.
A recent conversation with a senior colleague in an area health system prompted me to re-consider how we allow other individuals their gratitude. Sometimes, in an effort to be modest or self-deprecating, we may not allow others to express their gratitude in a way that fulfills their need to be acknowledged and heard. And by not doing so, we may deny ourselves the opportunity to recognize that we are indeed, as a health/care community, privileged to serve others in their time of need.
Nearing the end of the year, the arc of holiday season mirrors (of course) an automotive arc as well. Eighteen years ago, my son was born and, shortly thereafter, we acquired a new Subaru WRX. For fans of such things, you will realize the background and history of this particular type of car. For everyone else, you know how Subaru uses ‘Love’ in its tagline, based largely on the loyalty the brand engenders - nowhere more so than the state of Vermont, where my son and this car entered our lives. The WRX transported him in car seats, booster seat, the rear seat, and about the time he grew taller than his mother, the front passenger seat which he and a parent would fight over. A couple of years ago, it also became the car he learned to drive on (stick, of course!), and then became his first car.
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186,401 miles and 18 years later, we said farewell to the WRX, just a few days ago. My son was back on break from college, and we matched the car with a wonderful family. Of course, they drove up in a Subaru, and the son - a newly minted 16 year old car enthusiast - was wearing a WRX sweatshirt as evidence of his commitment. We knew this was the right transition - right place, right time, right people.
Gratitude isn’t always the same. It can involve inanimate objects - whether cars or hospitals - and those objects are inevitably animated by their relationship to people. And Love is a pretty good tagline to capture that relationship.
I am grateful for you now, and throughout the year. Please allow my professional and personal family and I to wish you and yours a very happy Thanksgiving
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Delaware Journal of Public Health
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Disaster Preparedness and Response
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This issue of the Journal focuses on
Disaster Preparedness.
From preventive flu vaccination to evacuation routes and emergency preparedness drills, the work of preparing for the worst is never done. Our national and state preparedness
is the shared responsibility of all levels of government, the private and nonprofit sectors, and individual citizens.
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On October 23, 2019, the Partnership for Healthy Communities and the Academy/DPHA held a stakeholder meeting at the University of Delaware to discuss the Delaware State Health Improvement Plan (DE SHIP). The meeting was attended by over 150 stakeholders in the fields of chronic disease, maternal and child health, substance use/misuse, and mental health, as well as those vested in the public health of Delawareans.
Check out the executive summary, the annual report, and more from the stakeholder meeting at
www.delawareship.org
!
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The 2019 Communicable Diseases Health Summit will be on
Monday, December 9, 2019
. The conference will include presentations on one health, new and re-emerging threats, vaccine hesitancy, hospital acquired infections, infection prevention, and infectious disease threats due to the opioid epidemic.
The Medical Society of Delaware designates this live activity for a maximum of 6
AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
.
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The second annual JeffX Global Health Conference will be held on
January
24, 2020
, from 3:00 - 8:30 pm at the Thomas Jefferson University Campus in Philadelphia. This year's theme is Planetary Health.
Keynote Speaker: Jo Ivey Boufford, MD; President, International Society for Urban Health; Clinical Professor, Global Health, New York University; Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, NYU School of Medicine.
Registration information will be available soon!
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APHA's 2019 Annual Meeting and Expo was November 2 - 6 in Philadelphia! The theme of the meeting was "Creating the Healthiest Nation: For Science. For Action. For Health."
APHA's Annual Meeting and Expo is the largest and most influential annual gathering of public health professionals. Experts from the field of public health - including Dr. Kara Odom-Walker, Delaware Secretary of Health and Social Services and Dr. Omar Khan, President of the Academy/DPHA and CEO of the Delaware Health Sciences Alliance presented information about a slew of topics pertaining to public health.
APHA's 2020 Meeting will be held in San Francisco!
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Dr. Kayne received his D.D.S. from The Ohio State University College of Dentistry in Columbus, Ohio in 1969. He completed the advanced dental education program in orthodontics and periodontics at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia in 1979.
Dr. Kayne is one of only a very small number of dentists in the United States who is a specialist in both orthodontics and periodontics. He has extensive training in dental implant therapy and has been placing dental implants since 1989.
Dr. Kayne was the President of the Delaware Academy of Medicine from 2008 – 2010.
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Delaware Reports First Flu Cases
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DOVER (Oct. 14, 2019) – The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) is reporting the state’s first laboratory-confirmed cases of influenza in Kent and Sussex counties, for the 2019-2020 flu season. The Kent County case involves a 26-year-old female, while the Sussex County case involves a 7-year-old male. This brings the total number of flu cases this season to three. The first confirmed flu case for New Castle County was announced last week. There are two main types of influenza (flu) virus – types A and B – that routinely spread in people and are responsible for seasonal flu outbreaks each year. All three lab-confirmed influenza cases were type B.
“With flu cases confirmed in all three counties, we are urging Delawareans not to delay getting their flu vaccine,” said DPH Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. “Vaccination is not just about protecting yourself, it's also about protecting your children who are quite vulnerable to effects of the flu, other family members and those with whom you work.” Vaccinations not only prevent people from getting the flu, but they can reduce the severity of flu illness and prevent visits to the doctor, clinic, emergency room and hospitalizations. Vaccinated people also have less chance of missing family, school and work events due to influenza illness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced last week concerning national numbers that show only about half (54%) of pregnant women surveyed report getting a flu vaccine either before or during pregnancy. When pregnant women are vaccinated they pass on antibodies to the fetus that provide protection after birth, during the time babies are too young to be vaccinated. Newborns who get influenza or whooping cough are at high risk of hospitalization and death. Additionally, pregnant women have more than double the risk of hospitalization compared to non-pregnant women of childbearing age if they get influenza. The CDC and DPH recommend that expectant mothers be up-to-date with recommended vaccinations as part of their routine prenatal care.
The flu vaccine is recommended for Delawareans 6 months of age and older. Since it takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies that protect against influenza virus infection to develop in the body, it is important to get vaccinated as early as possible to give your body time to build immunity. DPH will offer various flu clinics throughout the season. A schedule can be found at
https://dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/fluclinics.html.
Flu vaccines also are offered through physician offices, many pharmacies and some grocery stores. To locate where flu vaccines near you are being offered, Google "CDC flu finder" and enter a ZIP code.
Getting the flu vaccine now also will provide protection during the entire flu season. During the 2018-2019 flu season, Delaware recorded 6,387 laboratory-confirmed flu cases. More than 1,000 Delawareans were hospitalized due to the flu and 24 people died from flu complications.
For more information about the flu and where to get vaccinated, visit
flu.delaware.gov
or call 1-800-282-8672.
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American Diabetes Month
COPD Awareness Month
Home & Hospice Care Month
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Trust for America's Health: Wellness and Prevention Digest -
Subscribe
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The Delaware Academy of Medicine / Delaware Public Health Association
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Academy of Medicine
2018 - 2020 Board of Directors
President:
Omar A. Khan, MD, MHS
Vice President:
S. John Swanson, MD
Treasurer:
David M. Bercaw, MD
Immediate Past President:
Daniel J. Meara, MD, DMD
Executive Director:
Timothy E. Gibbs, MPH, NPMc
Directors
Stephen C. Eppes, MD
Eric T. Johnson, MD
Joseph F. Kestner, Jr, MD
Rita Landgraf
Brian W. Little, MD, PhD
Arun V. Malhotra, MD
Joseph A. Napoli, MD, DDS
John P. Piper, MD
Albert A. Rizzo, MD
Emeritus
Robert B. Flinn, MD
Barry S. Kayne, DDS
Leslie W. Whitney, MD
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DPHA
Advisory Council
President:
Omar Khan, MD, MPH
Executive Director
: Timothy E. Gibbs, MPH, NPMc
Members
Louis E. Bartoshesky, MD, MPH
Gerard Gallucci, MD, MSH
Richard E. Killingsworth, MPH
Erin K. Knight, PhD, MPH
Melissa K. Melby, PhD
Mia A. Papas, PhD
Karyl T. Rattay, MD, MS
Margot L. Savoy, MD, MPH
William Swiatek, MA, AICP
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The Delaware Academy of Medicine / Delaware Public Health Association
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