“Best Place to Work,” “Best Physical Therapy,” and “Best Doctor” were the three categories for which Grace Cottage Family Health & Hospital took home top honors in the 2018 Brattleboro Reformer Readers Choice Awards. All winners were recognized in the July 21st edition of the Windham County publication. This is the second consecutive year that […]
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Starting August 22, Grace Cottage Family Health & Hospital will host a new, free beginner level Tai Chi class in its Community Wellness Center. The series runs for six weeks, Wednesdays and Fridays, from 9:00 – 10:00 am. The soft, flowing movements of this ancient Chinese practice are widely acclaimed as one of the most […]
Read More...The 68th Annual Grace Cottage Hospital Fair Day will be held on the Townshend Common on Saturday, August 4. This free all-day, family-friendly event runs from 9 am – 5 pm. Rain or shine. Voted a Top 10 Summer Event last year by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, Grace Cottage’s Hospital Fair Day has also […]
Read More...The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Vermont (NAMI Vermont) is pleased to announce a new family support group that will be offered in Townshend from 6:30-8:00 p.m on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. The next meeting is August 14th. Grace Cottage has partnered with NAMI Vermont to offer the meeting at their Community […]
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By Dr. Anne Brewer, Grace Cottage Hospital
I was a Girl Scout when I was young, and well I remember the Scout motto: Be Prepared. It’s applicable to many areas in life, including medicine.
One of the most important ways that a patient can be prepared is by completing an Advance Care Planning document.
Advance Care Planning, also known as advance directives, offers all adults the opportunity to be prepared for a time when they cannot express their wishes about what type of care they want to receive. It allows them to give guidance to their family and medical care team in the event that they cannot speak directly for themselves because of terminal illness, serious injury, coma, dementia, or another situation.
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By Dr. Elizabeth Linder, Grace Cottage Family Health Pediatrician
The use of e-cigarettes is a rising trend these days, for adults, but also particularly for teens. In just over a decade, this fad has grown into huge industry, with hundreds of thousands of users.
Use among teens has seen the fastest growth. The National Youth Tobacco Survey for 2011-15 shows that the rate among teens was 2% in 2011 and had risen to 16% just four years later. In 2015, more teens reported use of e-cigarettes than conventional cigarettes (15% vs. 11%). Nearly one in four Vermont middle- and high-school students have tried an e-cigarette.
If you are a parent, or any adult who takes care of, and cares for children, what do you need to know about e-cigarettes? Are they really a safe alternative to regular cigarettes? How do you talk to your kids about e-cigarettes?
First, you have to know the vocabulary.
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By David McCormack, Grace Cottage Family Health FNP
Lyme disease is often in the news these days, so by now, most people know at least the basics about how it is contracted, what to do if you get a tick bite, and how to avoid it.
What about the other common tick-borne disease—anaplasmosis?
The Vermont Department of Health says that anaplasmosis is the second most commonly reported tick-borne disease in Vermont, and it’s on the rise. In 2011, there were only 10 cases of suspected or confirmed anaplasmosis. In 2016, there were 201.
When not diagnosed and treated properly, over one-third of those with the disease end up hospitalized, and anaplasmosis can in rare cases be fatal, especially for those with compromised immune systems. While less than 1% of people infected die as a result, this is a disease to take seriously.
One of the hardest things about diagnosing this disease is that, unlike Lyme disease, there is no telltale rash, and the symptoms are fairly common: aches and pains, headaches, chills, fever, fatigue. So how do you know if it’s anaplasmosis?
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By Dr. Moss Linder, Grace Cottage Family Health
In the doctor’s office, emergency room and hospital, we are always on the lookout for high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. Unfortunately, in the United States, hypertension is a common condition and is prevalent in about 32% of adults 18 years or older. The prevalence is higher in people over age 60 compared to younger adults and is higher in African-Americans than white or Hispanic Americans.
Hypertension is generally referred to as a “silent illness.” That is, most people who have elevated blood pressure do not have any symptoms associated with it. Sometimes someone with hypertension may have a headache, but this is more likely an exception, rather than the rule. Therefore, it is very important to have regular blood pressure checks.
Because hypertension is usually an asymptomatic illness, it would be recommended that people check their blood pressure once a year just to make sure that it is normal. This is probably best done as part of an annual wellness examination. The frequency of checking blood pressures in a person with hypertension would be at the recommendation of their clinician.
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By Margaret van den Bergh, Grace Cottage Physical Therapist
Are your feet happy?
Our feet hit the ground first every morning. They are so important to everything we do, but it is easy to ignore them. Many times we cram them into shoes that don’t even resemble the shape of a foot, or walk in heels that change everything about our gait. We stand on them all day long, and we carry heavy loads that add to the body weight our feet are already carrying.
The amount of force every time your heel strikes the ground can be 2.5 times your body weight and 3.5 times when running. Multiply all that force with the amount of steps that you take in a typical day, and you can begin to imagine how tough our little feet need to be to handle all that abuse. Our feet were initially designed to be barefoot and to be on softer surfaces than what modern life throws at us.
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Family Nurse Practitioner David McCormack has joined the staff of Grace Cottage Family Health and is accepting new primary care patients. Formerly a nursing supervisor at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and then a provider at Brattleboro Family Medicine, David lives in Newfane with his family. A native of Brockton, MA, McCormack earned his Associates Degree from […]
Read More...Grace Cottage Family Health & Hospital
185 Grafton Road (Route 35)
PO Box 216
Townshend, Vermont 05353
Email: info@gracecottage.org
Phone: 802-365-7357
