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Kaunakakai, HI
- Clear sky
- Temperature: 71.6 °F
- Wind: Northeast, 9.3 km/h
- Pressure: 1018 hPa
- Rel. Humidity: 78 %
- Visibility: 16.1 km
Thu, 2010-09-02 04:54
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This Week's Cover
Health
Native Hawaiian Health Care Gets Funding
Representative Mazie Hirono News Release Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawaii) today announced the awarding of $9,044,880 in U.S. Department of Health and Human Services grant funding to support Native Hawaiian health centers on Kauai, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, and the Island of Hawaii. These grants keep vital health care providers operational by enabling them to pay for rent, salaries, various overhead, and medications for qualified patients.
1 CommentsHow to Save a Life
Hawaii Life Flight has saved countless lives around the islands, but in life-threatening situations, they want local communities to be the first line of defense. In that spirit, the emergency air medical service will provide a free CPR and First Aid training on Saturday, July 31, in the Molokai General Hospital (MGH) dining room.Participants will practice CPR on inflatable mannequins that they will then be able to take home. Since this is not a certified class, practice will be essential to properly learn the skills.It’s helpful “to learn the life saving skills should [someone] get into an emergency cardiac episode, so at least [you] have the knowledge,” said Kat Revuelto, Hawaii Life Flight’s business development manager.
Veterans Get a Dose of Technology
VA promotes new initiatives in health care.
Long after the war wounds heal and scars fade, veterans in rural areas see a gap separating them from the proper medical care they need.“It can be difficult when veterans need care and have to go off island because they can’t get it here,” said Larry Helm, commander of Molokai Veterans Caring for Veterans.In an effort to provide all veterans with adequate health care, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) is becoming a major adopter of mobile health technology – also known as telemedicine. Last week, board members of the VA Pacific Islands Healthcare System (VAPIHCS) visited Molokai to discuss these innovations and how they could eventually service Friendly Isle vets.
Healthy Keiki
Molokai welcomes new pediatrician.
It was nothing short of an eventful day for the island’s new and only pediatrician, Dr. Kawika Liu. Last Thursday marked his first full day at Molokai Community Health Center (MCHC), complete with stuffy noses, upset tummies and check ups. Liu, a native Hawaiian himself, comes to Molokai with a can-do attitude and an esteemed career in pediatrics and internal medicine. He first ventured to the Friendly Isle in the 1990s and came back in 2006, where he practiced for a short time at the MCHC before moving back to Oahu. Liu said what brought him back was the island’s close-knit community.
Healing Hands
New therapy training program on Molokai.
It’s not often you see Molokai women donning plastic aprons and latex gloves, armed with a tray of surgical-like instruments. They were preparing to learn anatomy and physiology in a hands-on lab as part of an intensive year-and-a-half course that will produce 16 certified physical, speech and occupational therapy aides by its end. Hosted by Wai Ola O Hina, a health-care services organization located in the Moore Center in Kaunakakai, the Therapeutic Activity Aide Certification (TAAC) program comes to Molokai as the first of its kind. Envisioned by Jodie Diener, Wai Ola O Hina project manager, the course seeks to educate participants in multiple therapies, while advancing long-term care and developing Molokai’s workforce.
Caring for Kupuna
Adult day care center receives blessing.
“A community is only as good as it takes care of its oldest members,” William Akutagawa said to a large crowd last Friday at Home Pumehana. Community members gathered to celebrate the blessing of the new adult day care center, which finally came to fruition after 10 years of planning.Akutagawa, executive director at Na Pu`uwai, said the facility – known as the Senior Enrichment Center – is a step in the right direction and will provide Molokai families with the help they need in caring for their kupuna.
All Dolled Up
Workshop teaches girls beauty is not skin deep.
Sometimes all it takes is a bit of eye shadow and lip gloss for a girl to feel her best. Just ask the young women who attended Manawahine’s “Happy to Be Me” workshop last Friday at Lanikeha Community Center.“I feel like a princess,” said Tatiana McGuire, 12, after getting spruced up at the makeup and hair booths.Dozens of Molokai girls, ages 13 to 18, gathered at the workshop to celebrate a day of beauty while learning about makeup application, skincare, women’s health and safety. They also received massages, and hair and nail makeovers.Tatiana McGuire flashes a smile as she gets her locks curled at last week’s “Happy to Be Me.”
Hope For Health
Molokai program helps diabetics cope.
Robert Takeuchi was in denial of his diabetes for 20 years. It wasn’t until two of his friends, who were also diabetic, had their limbs amputated within the same week that he decided to do something about it. The Diabetes Self Management group successfully completed the six-week course, and will meet again in December to evaluate their progress.“That was my wake-up call,” he recounts. Those sobering images prompted the Molokai resident to seek the information he needed to help prolong his life and better manage his disease. He found help in the form of several diabetic programs – the latest proved to be most effective.
Discuss Health
Hawai‘i HIE to visit Molokai for input on the State HIE plan.
Hawaii Health Information Exchange News Release This week, members of the Hawaii Health Information Exchange (Hawaii HIE) will be visiting Molokai to meet with health care providers and community members to present an update on the development of the State HIE Strategic and Operational Plans. The presentation will take place on Tuesday, June 29, 1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. at the Old Pauhana Inn. Following the presentation there will be an open discussion, during which time the Hawaii HIE will be gathering input from the audience. Molokai is one of several locations around the state they will be visiting.