In 2009, the Missouri Foundation for Health funded efforts to prevent intimate partner and sexual violence against women as well as assure access to health services for affected women. Citizens Against Domestic Violence/Victim Outreach Center (CADV/VOC) received this three year $146,761 Women’s Health Grant to hire a full-time licensed Clinical Coordinator. This position will provide FREE counseling services to any adult female client, as well as facilitate a weekly support group. CADV/VOC anticipates approximately 300 women will receive counseling services through this three year grant.

CADV/VOC is pleased to introduce Jill Wade, M.Ed. LPC, as the new Clinical Coordinator. Wade and her three sons have been residents of the Lake Area for the past 15 years. Wade vacationed at the Lake every summer since she was three and always promised herself one day she would live at the Lake. Wade received her BA degree in Marketing and Psychology from Upper Iowa University in Fayette, Iowa.

Wade served six years as Alderman of Lake Ozark and stated many times, “Our little tourist town is fast becoming a full time community with full time community needs.” In Wade’s quest for improving her community she went back to college graduating with a Masters Degree in Education with an emphasis on Agency Counseling at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri. She interned at the Rape and Abuse Crisis Shelter in Jefferson City, worked for Cedar Ridge as a Counselor’s assistant, provided therapy at the Change Academy Lake Ozark and most recently an Adolescent Substance Abuse Counselor for Pathways in Camden, Miller and Morgan counties.

Wade recently began and will continue providing FREE counseling services to female adult victims of domestic or sexual violence. If you or someone you know would like more information about this FREE service, please call Jill Wade directly at 573-873-2277 or CADV/VOC toll-free at 888-809-SAFE (7233).

The 31st Annual Lake of the Ozarks Products and Services Show, the largest show of its kind in the Lake of the Ozarks area and Central Missouri, will be held March 20th and 21st, 2010 at the Country Club Hotel in Lake Ozark. "We are really excited about this year's show", said Bruce Mitchell, Executive Director of the Camdenton Area Chamber of Commerce, sponsor of the annual Products and Services Show. "Each year the show gets better-more elaborate displays draw more people, and more people draw more exhibitors."

The show will feature a wide range of products and services including consumer goods; building contractors and suppliers; plumbing and electrical supplies; home improvement and remodeling; home furnishings; heating and air conditioning; landscaping; financial and banking services; insurance; office equipment; electronics; insurance; boat and marine products, recreational vehicles, and more. The Show allows businesses to promote and sell their goods and services to two markets—other businesses, and end-line consumers.

To-date, 125 exhibitors have signed up for the show, representing 146 booth spaces. Mitchell estimates that over 5,000 people will attend during the two-day show, which is free to the public. “Exhibitors from four states and 30 different communities in Missouri have already signed up for this year’s show, making it the largest show of its kind in central Missouri” said Mitchell. "This is an ideal opportunity for any business that markets its products and services at the Lake of the Ozarks. Excellent booth locations are still available, but people interested in exhibiting in the show should act as soon as possible," Mitchell concluded.

For more information and exhibitor application forms call the Camdenton Area Chamber of Commerce at 573-346-2227 or download an application at the Chamber Web site: www.CamdentonChamber.com/ProductShow

Throughout the week of Feb. 14-20, Lake Regional Health System’s Cardiopulmonary Rehab department will join health care organizations nationwide in observing National Cardiac Rehabilitation Week. Cardiac rehabilitation programs are vital for individuals who have suffered a heart attack or stroke, or who have undergone recent heart surgery.

“Cardiac rehabilitation can help reduce the risk factors for heart disease that can lead to another incident,” said Mike Sullivan, R.N., director of Cardiopulmonary Rehab at Lake Regional Health System.

Structured and supervised by a physician, a cardiac rehabilitation program can help patients improve their cardiovascular fitness, monitor their heart rate and blood pressure, reduce their intake of foods high in saturated fat and cholesterol, quit smoking and manage stress. It also allows patients to meet others who have experienced a similar event.

“Cardiac rehab often is about more than just exercise for patients,” Sullivan said. “For many, it also is a support system. Friendships are formed through shared experiences.”

Cardiac rehab at Lake Regional is a three-phase program that includes consultation and monitoring by a registered nurse, exercise physiologist and registered dietitian. Throughout the phases, patients learn about their medications, diet and how to exercise safely.

The first phase of cardiac rehab begins while patients are hospitalized. An educator visits patients in their rooms to discuss changes to their medications and diet, as well as the need to increase or modify their exercise routines.

In the second phase, offered at Lake Regional Hospital in Osage Beach, participants work with registered nurses and exercise physiologists on individualized exercise plans three times per week for seven to 12 weeks at the gym. They also receive education on medications, risk factors, cholesterol levels and healthy eating.

The third phase is offered at Lake Regional’s Cardiac Rehab clinics in Camdenton, Eldon, Lake Ozark, Laurie and Osage Beach. It includes supervised exercise, monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate, as necessary, and a dietary consult. In addition to cardiac rehab patients, this phase is open to anyone who wants to improve their heart health or get in shape.

Lake Regional’s Cardiopulmonary Program is certified by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation. Certification assures patients that the program meets essential standards of care specified by federal guidelines for cardiac rehabilitation programs.

For more information, call 573-302-2253 or visit lakeregional.com.

Lake Regional Health System is pleased to welcome Wayne Cooper, M.D., to its hospitalist team. Hospitalists specialize in treating inpatients, from admission to discharge. Because the lake is a tourist destination, Lake Regional’s seven hospitalists treat many patients who may not have immediate access to their family doctors.

“I have always enjoyed hospital work and taking care of patients with acute problems,” Dr. Cooper said. “It’s very rewarding to be back at Lake Regional in that capacity and working with an excellent support staff.”

Originally from Kentucky, Dr. Cooper moved to the lake area in 1981 to work in Lake Regional’s Emergency Department. Previously, he served at the Campus Crusade for Christ’s Village Health Worker Training Center in Baugio City, Philippines, from 1977 to 1980. He graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington and completed an internship at the University of Louisville.

Before joining Lake Regional’s hospitalist team, Dr. Cooper was in private practice in Camdenton for

23 years. He also has served as state representative for the 155th district since 2002 and donates his time to Medical Missions for Christ Community Health Center, a free clinic in Camdenton.

The medical staff at Lake Regional Health System includes nearly 90 physicians who provide primary and specialty care for lake-area residents and visitors. For more information or to view physician profiles, visit lakeregional.com.

Nationwide program assists schools, churches, charities, and other NPOs

A new nationwide grant program will provide qualifying Non-Profit Organizations with thousands of dollars in cash allowances and services for the purpose of installing new energy efficient lighting systems. The program was created by VistaBright Lighting, a national supplier of energy efficient lighting products (www.vistabright.com). The grants are designed to assist educational institutions (private and public), churches, charitable organizations, community groups, and all other qualifying NPOs in reducing the costs of buying and installing state-of-the-art light fixtures in their facilities before the end of 2010. Using this “green technology” results in a significant reduction in monthly energy costs, which can have a major impact in lowering an organization’s annual expenses.

Old technology lighting is notoriously power hungry. Such systems use metal halide, incandescent or sodium lamps, and are typically found in light fixtures in gyms, auditoriums, factories, warehouses and outdoor lighting applications. Energy usage can be reduced by over 50% by using high efficiency fluorescent or LED lights in new construction projects or in retro-fitting existing facilities. Additional benefits include reduced eye strain, improved visual acuity, and the environment is protected through the reduced consumption of fossil fuels.

The grant program is made possible through the on-going efforts of VistaBright Lighting in organizing the nationwide Energy ALERTSM Alliance, comprised of lighting industry manufacturers, distributors, and electrical contractors. ALERTSM is an acronym for Advanced Lighting Equipment Replacement Technology.

“ALERTSM Grants provide qualifying NPOs with products and services worth thousands of dollars and are scalable to the size of each project” said Craig Pringle, President of the Alliance. Pringle went on to say, “In addition to the cash allowances towards the purchase of fixtures and lamps, the program includes free professional design and consulting services, reduction of installation costs through the ALERTSM electrical contractor network, and possible additional grants directly from Energy ALERTSM Alliance member firms”.

Interested organizations can download grantee qualifications, application instructions, and an application form at the ALERTSM website:

www.energyALERTalliance.com/grants.php

Grants will be issued on a weekly basis, with March 31, 2010 being the application deadline. Applying early will improve an organization’s eligibility for a grant.