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Local Medical Academies Preparing Students for Health Careers

by CHERYL ROGERS Eighteen public schools in Polk County train students for future careers in healthcare through medical or health science programs. Here’s a look at how some of them have fared. Katya Viegas and Janet Hernandez are heading to medical school. Jesus Jimenez, or J.J., is glad he found an incentive to finish high…
Pop Quiz: Facts and Stats about Immunizations

by ERIKA ALDRICH August is National Immunization Awareness Month, and it’s a good time to explore the topic of immunizations around the globe. The efforts to immunize people against debilitating and life-threatening diseases is a global initiative that we are all a part of. Test your knowledge of facts and statistics about immunizations by taking…
Tips to Prepare for the New School Year

by Mary Toothman It’s that time of year again: School supply aisles will be flooded with parents and children, clutching lists of what is required. First-day-of-school outfits will be carefully selected by many students. Late-morning sleep-ins will be replaced by early wake-up calls. Back to school means many things to parents and students — some…

Healthy Cook: 5 school lunch ideas to satisfy kids’ hunger

School lunches have come a long way since I was a boy.If you didn’t go home for lunch, you brought a brown bag with a peanut butter and jam sandwich on white bread. Milk was in a jar that often leaked. The apple was bruised by the jar and the sandwich was squishy from the…
PCMA Letter: One of the hottest months in Florida

Besides the fact that school starts up this month, August is also notoriously known as one of our hottest months of the year! This is important to note for our kids, because the danger of dehydration in children during activity outside. Whether your child is at recess or you take them outside to play after…
Beware of ACA scams

As of October 1 until March 31, 2014, uninsured residents will be able to go to a federal website to shop for insurance plans and coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). According to federal reports, there are approximately 40 million Americans without insurance, and although it has been met with much criticism, the…