• Relationships and Caring
• Visionary
• Innovative
• Advocacy
• Teamwork & Collaboration
• Clinical Expertise

The award recipients were nominated amongst their colleagues for outstanding performance in the following clinical areas:

• Medical/Surgical Nursing – Sheila Marshall, RN, Provident Hospital of Cook County
• Critical Care – Julia Sarazine, APN, John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County
• Ambulatory Nursing – Carmelita Coronel, RN, Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center
• Peri-Operative/Interventional Special Procedures – Phanne Sathissarat, RN, Provident Hospital of Cook County
• Quality/Case Management – Elaine O’Keefe, RN, John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County
• Public Health Nursing – Nancy Strait, RN, Cook County Department of Public Health
• Correctional Nursing – Cecilia Torres, RN, Cermak Health Services of Cook County
• Advanced Practice Nursing – Barbara Cleveland, RN, John H. Stroger Hospital of Cook County (Hematology/Oncology)

Read the full article here.

“Last year there were 36 cases of Lyme disease in suburban Cook County,” said CCDPH chief operating officer Terry Mason, MD, FACS. “Tickborne diseases can cause mild symptoms, severe infections requiring hospitalization and even death. Avoiding tick bites takes a few precautions and protects residents when enjoying their neighborhood and the many Forest Preserves in suburban Cook County.”

To avoid tick bites:

• Walk in the center of trails so weeds do not brush against you.
• Use repellent that contains 20 to 30 percent DEET on exposed skin. Always follow product instructions.
• Use products that contain permethrin to treat clothing and gear, such as boots, pants (especially the cuffs), socks and tents. Or look for clothing pre-treated with permethrin.
• Tuck long pants into your socks and boots. Wearing light-colored pants makes ticks easier to see.
• In heavily wooded areas or in tall grass and brush, check yourself, children and other family members every two to three hours for ticks (especially ears, hair, neck, legs and between the toes).
• If you let your pets outdoors, check them often for ticks. Ticks can “hitch a ride” on your pets, but fall off in your home before they feed.

If you find a tick, on yourself, others or pets, remove it promptly. The best way to remove a tick is to grasp it with fine-point tweezers as close to the skin as possible and gently, but firmly, pull it straight out. Do not twist or jerk the tick. Wash the bite area and your hands thoroughly with soap and water and apply an antiseptic to the bite site.

Within two weeks following a tick bite, if you experience a rash that looks like a bull’s-eye or a rash anywhere on your body, or an unexplained illness accompanied by fever following, call your doctor. The most common symptoms of tick-related illnesses can include fever, chills, aches and pains, and rash. Early recognition and treatment of the infection decreases the risk of serious complications.

For more information, please visit: www.cookcountypublichealth.org.

Dr. Claudia Fegan, past president of Physicians for a National Health Program and chief medical officer at John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, appeared on MSNBC’s “Up with Chris Hayes” on Nov. 24 as part of a panel that included Dr. Donald Berwick, former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Jacob Hacker, professor at Yale University; Joy Reid, an MSNBC regular contributor; and Josh Barro, a journalist at Bloomberg.com.

This 3-minute excerpt focuses on the planned expansion of Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act, how the ACA will shift current federal DSH payments now going to safety-net hospitals to individuals enrolled in the Medicaid program, and how some enrollees may have difficulty finding providers willing to take them as patients. Later in the program, in a segment on cost control, Dr. Fegan speaks about her skepticism that the ACA will be able to control costs and, by way of contrast, notes the huge administrative savings a single-payer system would yield — enough to provide quality care to all.

The full segment is available here.