Dr. Stephanie Lash

Stephanie Lash MD, a neurologist at Pen Bay Healthcare, will talk about the use of medications in treating this disease on Wednesday, Feb. 25, from 10 am to 11 am, at the Education Center next to Waldo County General Hospital. The free presentation is open to anyone interested in Parkinson’s disease.

Dr. Lash treats adult patients with the full range of adult neurologic conditions, including Parkinson’s and Parkinson’s-like syndromes. After receiving her education at Dartmouth College and the University of Washington in Seattle, she practiced in Bangor for 18 years and has been at Pen Bay for the past five years.

For more information, call Margie Spencer-Smith at 322-5445.

Click here to view the presentation.

If you suffered a stroke or heart attack or were in a serious accident that left you unable to communicate with medical personnel, would your family know what your wishes are about end-of-life care? Would you want to be resuscitated? Put on a respirator? Have a feeding tube inserted?

Or what if the medical personnel couldn’t reach a family member? Would they or your primary care provider know what you want?

There is a way to ensure that your wishes are followed even if you can’t communicate them. On Wednesday, March 25, from 10 am to 2 pm, there will be an Advance Care Planning Open House at the Lincolnville Health Center on Route 1.

At the open house, you will be able to ask questions and get the assistance you need to make your healthcare wishes known. There will be free on-site assistance to fill out your advance directives, which will allow your family to know and honor your wishes, if you are unable to communicate.

There will also be light refreshments.

If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Holly Emerson, 338-2500, ext. 4181, and email: hemerson@wcgh.org.

Nancy Soule, seated, with some of the nurses who have worked with her over the years.

Nancy Soule of Liberty recently celebrated her 100th infusion of Tysabri, which helps her lessen the effects of her multiple sclerosis. It was also a big day for a young woman about half Soule’s age. After Nancy’s celebration broke up, the young woman entered the infusion therapy center for her first dose of Tysabri. With all the warnings she’d been given about the drug, the woman was clearly nervous. Talking with Nancy about her positive experience (no relapses or new lesions on her brain), clearly made the woman feel better.

Darby’s held a fundraiser for the Waldo County General Hospital’s Cardiac Rehab Phase 3 Scholarship Fund on Fat Tuesday. Above, enjoying their dinner were, from left, Gail Dudley RN, operating room director; Nicole Kenney RN, ICU nursing director; Donna Poulin RN, informatics; Pam Sprague RN, MSU nurse director; and Lisa Sirois, MSU clinical coordinator. At left, handing out Mardi Gras beads as diners entered were, from left, Mary Hanrahan RN, nurse manager

for cardiac rehab and Susan Driskell RN, who works in cardiac rehab. A total of $1,300 was raised from 10 percent of the proceeds from the meals, a silent auction, and donations.

Jon leads participants on a Hobbit adventure.

Jon Landers of Belfast has been volunteering at the Game Loft for about a year and in October he helped children in grades 3-6 with a hobbit adventure. He enjoyed being outside with the youngsters, running around and assisting them to complete the quests they were presented with. What he didn’t know was that he was helping those participants meet the goals of Let’s Go! Waldo 5-2-1-0.

That changed when Jon attended a celebration dinner Let’s Go! Waldo was having at the Waldo County Technical Center. At that dinner, as he described the hobbit adventure, he realized he had been helping the children get at least 1 hour of physical exercise, limiting their recreational screen time to less than 2 hours, keeping them from drinking sugary drinks and helping them get toward the goal of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day.

Jon says he had heard of the 5-2-1-0 slogan before; he and the participants were doing what they should be doing; and the principles are something he agrees with, but he hadn’t really thought of the hobbit adventure in that way.

Jon enjoyed the vegetarian meal at the 5-2-1-0 celebration. Seated across from him are the founders and facilitators of the Game Loft, Ray and Patricia Estabrook.

He also didn’t know when he agreed to go to the dinner with Ray and Pat Estabrook, the creators and facilitators for the Game Loft, that the food was going to be all vegetarian. But the high school freshman says the meal was delicious and he asked for the recipes so he could duplicate the meals at home. Among the dishes was roasted spaghetti squash, flavored with garlic, olive oil and parmesan cheese; roasted beets and carrots with cardamom and pepper; and maple poached pear with spiced syrup reduction.

The experience has gotten Jon excited about possibly attending the Tech Center in the culinary program. He’s also pleased to know that without really intending to, the children who attended the hobbit adventure were working toward developing healthier habits.

The fact that Game Loft programs met the goals of 5-2-1-0 isn’t really surprising when you consider their mission is to provide “a safe, supervised location for local youth to play games with friends, engage with the community, and eat a healthy meal.” In fact, the Game Loft is a registered Let’s Go! Waldo out of school site.

Receiving awards at the dinner for their work with Let’s Go! were:
•  Child care: gold level–Waldo CAP Early Head Start in Unity, Belfast Area Children’s Center, Grammie’s Child Care, Jim & Bon’s Daycare, First Steps,  Cindy’s Daycare; silver level–Broadreach Services, Walker Pre-K
•  Schools: silver level—Mt. View Elementary, Mt. View High School, Monroe Elementary, Troy Elementary, Walker Elementary, Captain Albert Stevens School, Searsport Elementary; bronze level—Islesboro Central School, Cornerspring Montessori, Ames Elementary, Kermit Nickerson Elementary
•  Out of School: gold level—Ames/Weymouth 21st Century program, Searsport Elementary 21st Century program, Searsport Middle School 21st Century program, East Belfast 21st Century program, Captain Albert Stevens 21st Century program
• Healthcare sites of distinction: Belfast Pediatrics, Belfast Natural Medicine, Donald Walker Health Center, Lincolnville Regional Health Center, Searsport Health Center, Stockton Springs Regional Health Center, Arthur Jewell Health Center, Waldo County Medical Partners Family Medicine and Belfast Family Practice.

Moriah Grant, OT, CVT, an occupational therapist and the driving force behind the creation of the Concussion Management Program at Waldo County Healthcare, has been named to the board of the Maine Concussion Management Initiative (MCMI).

Skip Philbrook, PT, clinical manager of Rehabilitation Services at Waldo County General Hospital, is pleased that Grant has been appointed to the MCMI board of directors. “She has done an exceptional job spearheading our Concussion Management Program, and her appointment will keep us up to date on the very latest research information and treatment techniques for patients with concussion. This allows our center to be at the forefront of treatment facilities in this fast changing and expanding field,” says Philbrook.

MCMI, now five years old, is dedicated to improving the safety of Maine’s youth by increasing awareness and education on concussion management and is a pioneer in concussion research and education outreach.

Grant is excited to be getting involved with MCMI. “I feel privileged to begin working directly with the founders and board members of the Maine Concussion Management Initiative. Through my research concerning concussion, I have become very passionate about recognition, management and treatment of people of all ages that suffer from concussion. I am so excited to assist with furthering our knowledge about these areas and to expand my abilities to help other professionals and my patients. As an occupational therapist, I feel like my perspective will assist in developing treatment strategies and promoting awareness. There is so much to learn about concussion. I feel like we are just scraping the surface and I am ready to help dig,” says Grant.

Grant and David Orsmond, PT, CVT, are the concussion treatment team at the hospital and are both certified vestibular therapists who treat mild brain injuries. Grant is also certified in craniosacral therapy, a light touch therapy that manipulates membranes within the nervous system to restore their normal function. Dysfunction of these membranes can contribute to headaches.

Grant and Orsmond treat patients who are referred to them because their concussion symptoms did not disappear with rest and have lasted for longer than expected. They can help to stop dizziness and improve balance; reduce headaches, decrease neck and/or back pain, and help patients return to work or sport. They also make referrals, if necessary, to various specialists.

Due to the high level of flu and pertussis (whooping cough) in our community, Waldo County General Hospital is imposing temporary visitor restrictions in the Women and Infants Health Care Unit. Newborn babies are at high risk of serious illness from these diseases.

The restrictions are as follows:

•  Children under the age of 18 may not visit unless they are siblings of a newborn

•  Visitors who are feeling ill or have signs of a respiratory infection (cough, sore throat, fever) will not be able to visit.

•  Children, who are allowed to visit, are asked to not visit any other patient rooms.

A two-day collectible sale is planned for the lifetime collection of one owner to benefit the Waldo County General Hospital Aid. The large collection includes many dolls ranging from porcelain baby dolls to Shirley Temple dolls, Effanbee Patsy dolls, and dolls from around the world including Russia, Japan and Scandinavia, most in pristine condition.

Timeless Treasures collectibles include a large porcelain doll named Vanessa with long red hair, an elaborate light green evening dress with fur hat and stole from 2003. Katherine, from 2002, has long blonde hair with handmade clothes in a 1970s style. Accessories range from doll clothing, trunks and furniture to tea sets, marbles, Christmas and seasonal items.

Animals are represented by wooden cats and Barrington, Dakin and Paddington bears in various sizes. Six framed Christmas prints by Belfast folk artist, Misko Willis, are also for sale.

This sale will offer something for everyone from the beginner to the distinguished collector looking for that special item at a reasonable price. Also a great opportunity for the early Christmas shopper or the collector of Christmas related items such as snowmen.

The sale will be held on Friday, April 17, from 3:00-6:00 p.m. and again on Saturday, April 18, from 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. at the Methodist Church Fellowship Hall, 23 Mill Lane, in East Belfast.

The hospital sponsored two teams in the Y’s 2015 triathlon. Top are first-time triathletes, front row from left, Kasie Kinney, Kim Blanchard and Christy Lanphier. In the back from left are Clae Seekins, Bill Jacobsen, health educator Hester Kohl, George Orestis who was on a team last year and did the entire triathlon himself this year, and Carlene Brown. Left, Darrell Smith hugs Christy Lanphier as they both completed the run. Looking on is Laurie Smith, who was co-chair for the event. Below, George celebrates after finishing the competition.

The Belfast, Monroe, Searsport and Searsport Bay Lions Clubs raised funds to purchase gas cards for oncology patients in need of financial assistance. On hand for the presentation were front row Bob Meggison of the Belfast Lions Club, Teresa Robbins, Zone 9 chairman, second row from left, Marilyn Knowlton and Mary Ann Dyer, oncology nurses at Waldo County General Hospital, Jeff Burgess of the Belfast Lions Club, Terri Fuller, oncology nurse, Judy Otis of the Searsport Bay Area Club, and Roberta Thompson, of Searsport. In the back row from left are David Doak of Monroe, Brenda Burgess, oncology nurse, Sharon Thompson from the oncology department, Denis Howard of Belfast, John Moran of Searsport, Maggie Raymond (partially hidden), clinical coordinator for the oncology department and Dick Thompson of Searsport. The money to purchase the gas cards was raised at a Zone 9 community dinner on April 18.

Helene Neville arrived at Waldo County General Hospital in Belfast on May 5, having run from Bucksport that morning.

It was New Year’s Day 2009 as Helene Neville was thinking about her mother, who had died of lung cancer in 2002. “I missed her so much and was restless, grieving and wanting to honor this remarkable woman.  On this, her birthday, I knew I had to do something incredibly big in her memory…I’d run across country and raise money for the memorial fund we created in Mom’s honor at the school that meant so much to her (the Maryellen Rouse Neifert Memorial Fund for St. Francis de Sales School in Philadelphia)” and “to honor her memory by helping my profession: nursing.”

But Helene wasn’t content to just run across the country, some 2,500 miles. After all, her mother raised six children after their father disappeared and had worked hard to put all six through parochial school. No, after she got started, she decided to run the perimeter of the continental United States: almost 10,000 miles. A lofty goal for anyone but particularly for a woman who was almost 50 years old and had fought cancer three times with three brain surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation.

None of that fazed Helene, who ran her first marathon, climbed mountains and entered body-building competitions after being told to get her affairs in order in 1998, following a cancer diagnosis.

On May 1, 2010, after writing her first book “Nurses in Shape: The Right Dose!” as she puts it, “I took the book and ran with it—2,520 miles in 93 days” from Ocean Beach, Calif. to Atlantic Beach, Fl.    She ran that southern leg during the hot and humid days of summer without a lot of resources and a 1987 RV “that broke down in every city.”

She was running toward the Louisiana state line when a nurse stopped her vehicle and said her son wanted to run with her for the nine miles left. Helene said okay but when the male got out of the vehicle, he was an awkward 10-year-old. As they ran, she asked why he wanted to run with her. He said, “School starts in another month and I want to be able to say that I ran to the state line with some old lady that was running across the country.”

He had been picked on and bullied but this would give him an achievement that no one else had. When she was interviewed by the local paper, Helene said she would give the reporter the story but only if the boy’s name appeared on the front page. It did.

When Helene returned to run the third leg of her journey from Florida to Portland, ME, in 2014 she checked with the family and found out the boy is now captain of his school’s cross-country team and has run a marathon. “My efforts cause a ripple effect,” she says, adding, “From a ripple can come a large wave of inspiration.”

After speaking at the Rockport opera House, Helene Neville had those at the talk pose with her in a running posture.

After finishing her first leg of the perimeter run, Helene was diagnosed with her fourth cancer, which delayed her run by two years but didn’t end it. Says Helene, “Hope is the most important thing in life. Turn hope into action and that action is an investment to help others see the possibilities.”

In 2013, she ran 1,560 miles from Vancouver to Tijuana, Mexico, without the old RV, instead couch surfing. She also did it carrying the ashes of her 56-year-old brother, a guitar player who had died unexpectedly. She stopped at every music shop along the way “to see the latest guitars.”

Helene began her third leg on May 1, 2014 and spent the next 67 days running from Florida to Portland, ME.  In New Jersey, from the publicity about her run on Facebook, she met a half-brother, who she did not know existed.

Helene is now on the final leg of her run. She stops at hospitals, schools, veterans hospitals, fire and police stations and National Guard headquarters with a goal of helping them “realize their own dreams and to rethink impossible.”

She left St. Stephen’s, New Brunswick on May 1 and plans to end her run on Sept. 5 in Ocean Shores, Washington—some 3,500 miles in 121 days.   On that run, she will stop in Iowa to get her teeth cleaned by her son, who is a dentist, and then will stop in North Dakota to visit with her granddaughter, Emma, and her other son, who is a college basketball coach.

“I run for nurses and causes and I meet people across this nation. I want to inspire people to be the best version of themselves that they can possibly be,” she says.

On Saturday, Aug. 1, from 10 am to noon at the Waldo County YMCA, Caitlin Cross, DPT, a physical therapist at the hospital’s Sports Physical Therapy Center will lead a Sport Injury Prevention Clinic for youth athletes in grades 6 to 12. Coaches and parents are also welcome. Contact Caitlin at ccross@wcgh.org or the YMCA to register.

Robert Porter enjoys smiling now.

Robert Porter, 31, of Belmont has always been a bit of a daredevil. He even had to leave the military seven years ago because of an injury.  Over the last few years, he’s had broken bones, torn knee muscles and head injuries; now he’s living with the consequences. The head injuries he suffered led to a seizure disorder, sometimes as many as 60 seizures in three days. During those seizures, he was prone to grind his teeth.

Many of his teeth were badly damaged and he has suffered with 17 abscesses during those five years. The pain was so intense that he drained many of the abscesses himself and pulled out a couple of teeth.

Porter says he couldn’t find anyone to help him. The insurance he had with his disability coverage wouldn’t pay to fix his teeth. Other dentists he checked with weren’t willing to put him under general anesthesia to remove what remained of his teeth because of his seizures.

Several other times, he says he was looked at like he was a drug user because of the state of his teeth. When he did find a dentist willing to work with him, he couldn’t afford the cost.

Meanwhile, nobody would hire him for a job he could do because of how bad his teeth were.

Three years ago, he got engaged but maintained he wasn’t going to get married until he could smile in his wedding pictures.

He was assisted locally by his primary care provider, Paul Mazur MD, who recommended he contact Waldo County Dental Care at Waldo County Healthcare. Then he met Mandy Hood and Michelle Gallant, members of the dental team, who connected him to their network of area voluntary dental providers.

This unique partnership allowed Porter to receive help from local dentist John Lewis DDS and Bruce Spaulding of Coastal Prosthetics Dental Lab. They were also able to connect with Phillip Higgins DMD, who extracted Porter’s remaining 22 teeth at Eastern Maine Medical Center.

While Spaulding was making the dentures, Porter spent several hours in the lab with him and he remembers Spaulding saying he was going to make the dentures out of the strongest material available for dentures. While Porter is still getting used to his new dentures, he is quick to add, “It’s a better pain than feeling sick from the infections.”

Porter is hopeful with his new smile that he might be able to get a job where he doesn’t have to do heavy lifting but rather gets to interact with people.

His fiancé is thrilled with the new smile and after three years, they have set a wedding date.

“Honestly,” Porter says, “these guys, Mandy, Michelle, the dentists, his doctor and Spaulding, have been great. I can’t thank them enough for how much they’re done. They are very good people and I would recommend them to anyone.”

 Barbara Plummer’s home on the Shore Road in Northport

The Hospital Aid will hold a summer tea on Thursday, August 6, from 2 pm to 5 pm at the home of Barbara Plummer, Shore Road, Northport. Attendees can enjoy refreshments at the home with  spectacular views of Penobscot Bay. The first floor will be open to tours with its lovely seaside decor. Attendees will be shuttled to the home from the Drinkwater School, 56 Bayside Rd., Northport, as parking is not allowed on Shore Road. Donations will be accepted to benefit Waldo County General Hospital.

The living room

The annual fall Baby Fair with new and used items for infants and young children will be held on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Troy Howard Middle School, 175 Lincolnville Ave., Belfast.

Gently used baby and children’s clothes up to size 12, toys, books and furniture will be for sale. New items may also be available by local crafts people.

There is an admission fee of $1 for adults, which benefits the Belfast Public Health Nursing Association.

For more information, call Lois Dutch of Waldo County General Hospital’s Education Department at 930-6713.