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Community outreach programs make check-ups more available

Free dental exams, preventative tooth care, and more Several outreach programs in Polk County recently offered free dental exams and other tooth services to spread awareness about the need for dental health care. At the Haines City Dental Clinic, the Florida Department of Health in Polk County (FDOH-Polk) offered free comprehensive dental exams to children…
Helping make the healthier choice, the easier choice

About the Building a Healthier Polk initiative Building a Healthier Polk is a group of community partners brought together by Polk Vision who are working towards the goal of reducing the obesity rate in Polk County. Polk Vision is a broad, community-led partnership of organizations, businesses, government, and individuals. In 2012, Polk Vision’s Quality of…
The trouble with trigger finger

Local surgeon develops alternate solution for a tricky procedure There’s no getting around this fact: you need your hands. When one or more of your fingers or thumbs doesn’t function properly, it interferes with work and play. Correcting a condition such as trigger finger once meant a trip to a hospital or surgery center for…

Editor’s Dose: Simple reminders from great women

As I read Chris Hazelwood’s Q&A for the first time (article on page 14), I was inspired by her bravery and strength during a very challenging time in her life. She would be the first to say that she did not make it through her fight against breast cancer alone, but it also reminded me…
PCMA Letter: Looking at breast cancer in a different light

It is unavoidable that illness effects many peoples’ lives, not just that of the afflicted. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and, while this disease is serious and at times life threatening, it should not be looked at with fear. As with diabetes and heart disease, cancer is another…
Healthy Cook: Cooking ideas for the cancer patient

Cooking ideas for the cancer patient and her family Drugs can do miracles these days, but the body has a wonderful aptitude for helping itself get better. Like using the proper octane in a car, we have to fuel the body with nutrients that help it do its job. This is just as important, if…