Health

People with lung-related health problems really have a hard time in heat and humidity. An official from the Wisconsin chapter of the American Lung Association says people with lung conditions should take extra precautions.

Dona Wininesky says it's not so much the heat and humidity as it is the byproducts of those conditions...

Some significant announcements are coming out of a national meeting on Alzheimer's Disease and a local spokesperson says more are coming.

The Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Boston this week made headlines this week says Diana Butz from the Greater Wisconsin Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association...

People just above the poverty line and soon to be bounced off BadgerCare will be informed that the money to fund the additional program benefits is still available.

The recently-signed state budget doesn't include money offered by the federal government to fund BadgerCare for people close, but just above, the federal poverty line.

But Kevin Kane from Citizen Action Wisconsin says there will be an effort to let people know that the money rejected by Governor Walker is still available from the federal government...

The mid-summer heat and humidity will stay for a couple of days and the American Red Cross says don't  over do it.

Among the tips they provide is drink lots of water and avoid caffiene and alcohol, try to move activities to the cooler parts of the day, wear light-colored, loose fitting clothes. If you get too hot, find a public building that has air-conditioning. Always check to see pets are protected from the sun's rays and have plenty of water. Health-threatening heat exhaustion and heat stroke can come on quickly.

Some people love to catch and eat lots of fish, but since the 1970’s, we’ve been warned about certain species of fish in specific waterways that may be more contaminated with poisonous substances like mercury or PCB’s.

Wisconsin Department of Health Services Researcher is Pamela Imm has been surveying men over 50 who eat fish to find out if they pay attention to fish consumption advisories provided by the state. Imm says most of them are very aware of them...

A Northwoods dentist has been honored for his work to build a dental clinic in Lac du Flambeau.

Dr. Paco Fralick is also a member of the Lac du Flambeau tribe of Lake Superior Chippewa. At the Wisconsin Technical College System Board meeting this week in Rhinelander, Fralick was honored for his work in birthing the state-of-the-art Peter Christiansen Dental Clinic and training facility. The clinic has 20 chairs in a 36,000 square foot building that is open to the public and tribal members.

For some people Fourth of July is the perfect excuse to play with fire…but it can also be the perfect time to cause an accident or an injury.  That’s the message from Oneida County health officials, who are warning people to use caution around fireworks.  

Public Health nurse Rob Deede says this isn’t the time for experimentation.

Wisconsin has a problem with low-income access to dental care.  

That’s according to a new study from the Pew Charitable Trust.   It finds the state ranks second worst in the nation for the number of low-income kids receiving dental care.  Jane Koppelman is Research Director with the Pew Children’s Dental Campaign.

“In 2011 almost 72 percent of kids on Medicaid in Wisconsin – that’s nearly three quarters of the child Medicaid population – did not receive any dental care in 2011.  Not even a routine exam.”

A new assisted living center has opened in Rhinelander.  The Rennes Health and Rehab Center held a ribbon cutting ceremony today.

A few dozen staff members, community leaders and patients gathered at the new nursing facility to celebrate its opening.  But the Rennes Health and Rehab Center has actually been taking care of patients since March 1st.  That’s when the group closed its location in Phelps and moved 33 patients to the new Rhinelander facility.

A spokesperson says The Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center in Iron Mountain has hired nine mental health professionals to meet the demand.

Those hires are part of more than 1,600 new mental health hires within the VA system.

Spokesperson Brad Nelson says four of the new hires are under an Executive Order signed by President Obama to meet the needs of veterans and their families. He says with more than a decade of combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the need is there.