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Seven work-related issues that may affect your health

Disease saps our energy. Our productivity slips, we miss work or school, and our healthcare expenses rise. We may blame our work, or work environment, for the illness. But that may only be part of the equation. “Is it the chicken or the egg?” asks Dr. Ulyee Choe, Polk County Health Department director and a…
Trends and observations in child health

A Look at An Emerging Frontier in Healthcare and Other Relevant Issues The Academy of Pediatrics has designated the month of October as Child Health Month. The Academy strongly feels that newborns, infants, children, adolescents, and young adults up to the age of 21 years in the United States should have access to comprehensive healthcare.…
New programs to help improve foster care

Heartland for Children Calls for 80 Additional Foster Homes While Improving Child Protective Services There is no gift greater than giving one’s time to a child. For 155 local families, that means serving as a foster family to a child in need. Heartland for Children is the lead community based care agency responsible for re-designing…

Medical Advice: ESF8 Health and Medical Coalition: Creating bonds that strengthen disaster response

The world can be a dangerous place. There are natural disasters such as hurricanes, man-made disasters such as bioterrorism, and infectious disease outbreaks such as H1N1. When it comes to preparing and managing for these incidents and/or outbreaks, the Florida Department of Health in Polk County (FDOH-Polk) is equipped with one of the county’s most…
PCMA Letter: Counting our blessings

As Thanksgiving quickly approaches and swiftly thereafter we will be swung into the hectic pace of the holiday season, now is the best time to count our blessings. At this time of year, we should try to show our gratitude to our loved ones and friends who support us through thick and thin. For those…
Don’t forget to exercise your right to vote

Thomas Paine, one of the fathers of the American Revolution, wrote in the year 1795, “The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which other rights are protected. To take away this right is to reduce a person to slavery, for slavery consists in being subject to the will of another…” While…