Minto-Mapleton Family Health Team

05/24/2023

It's finally Spring! And for many of us, that means spring cleaning. When you're getting into your spring cleaning this year, try not to think about just your house but also your old/expired medications, or medications that you are no longer using (and disposing of them in a safe & environmentally friendly way).

Go through your drawers, medicine cabinets (maybe even your refrigerator) and collect all of those mediations. Remember, this includes vitamins, ointments, and over the counter medications, as well as prescription medications.

Once your have collected all the medications that are expired or you are not longer using them, its time to dispose of them safely.

This DOES NOT mean flushing them down the toilet where they can harm our water supplies and landfills but rather bringing them to a pharmacy that accepts expired medications and will dispose of them safely and properly. We want to do what we can to preserve our environment & keep people safe.

Almost all of our local pharmacies will accept medications for safe disposal, free of charge. To see a list of specific pharmacies you can visit:

www.healthsteward.ca/consumers/ returning-medications/ -location

05/18/2023

Meet Tracy! Tracy has been a nurse for 31 years and is coming up on 11 years of working with the Minto Mapleton Family Health Team, primarily in the Lung Health Program.

As a nurse Tracy feels she can make a real difference in someone's life. She likes to offer hope to patients and their loved ones, sometimes during a time in their life when they are struggling greatly. She smiles with them when they receive good news, and becomes a trusted resource that they can reach out to later. Nursing is not only Tracy's job, but who she is.

In her spare time you can find Tracy on her farm with her husband Dave, where they raise Longhorn cattle and various crops or spending time at their cottage. She loves gardening, bird watching, cooking, and their three kids Rachelle, William, and Logan.

05/17/2023

May 17th is World Hypertension Day. ❤️

Hypertension is the medical term used to describe high blood pressure. Blood pressure is the force of the blood pumped from the heart against the blood vessels. This force makes blood flow possible, delivering nutrients and oxygen to organs and tissues throughout the body.

Hypertension occurs when there is too much pressure in your blood vessels. This can damage your blood vessels and cause health problems. Anyone can develop high blood pressure, but it becomes more common as your get older.

High blood pressure is similar to pumping too much air into a tire or balloon.

The first step in understanding high blood pressure is learning what your numbers mean. Blood pressure is measured with two numbers: systolic (the higher number) and diastolic (the lower number) (e.g., 120/80 mmHg):

❤️Systolic pressure occurs when your heart contracts
❤️Diastolic pressure occurs when your heart relaxes and fills with blood
❤️Blood pressure is measured using millimeters of mercury (mmHg), which is a standardized measurement of pressure.

The higher your systolic or diastolic blood pressure - and the longer it stays high - the greater the potential damage to your blood vessels.

Ideal values are variable depending on your health condition.

See the 6th image in this series to understand how to properly measure your blood pressure.

Lifestyle Considerations that will keep your blood pressure within an acceptable range include:
❤️Weight Management: Blood pressure often increases as weight increases
❤️Regular Exercise
❤️Balanced Diet
❤️Reducing Salt (sodium) In Your Diet
❤️Limiting Alcohol Use
❤️Stress Awareness & Control
❤️Adequate Sleep and Treatment of Sleep Conditions

05/16/2023

Meet Julia! Julia has been practicing nursing since 2012 and joined the MMFHT team in 2014, when she was hired for a one-year contact position on the telemedicine team and has been there ever since.

Julia also works at CMHAWW as a telemedicine nurse and the nursing roles complement each other in the community quite well.
Julia is one of the main contacts for the virtual psychiatry program, which includes partners from various parts of Ontario.

Julia assists and coordinates clients to connect with mental health resources virtually, mainly supporting psychiatry consultations. This role has been crucial during the pandemic, as mental health needs increased drastically.

Julia is passionate about mental health and wellbeing. She is an advocate for “progress over perfection” and an ongoing supporter of the importance of prioritizing mental health.

When Julia isn’t nursing at one of her two nursing roles, she can be found doing yoga, meditating or spending time in the nature! She loves camping in her camper van and travelling to beautiful landscapes!

05/16/2023

The Post-Partum Program starts today and we still have plenty of room for more participants!

Minto-Mapleton Postpartum Program.

Join this 6 week in-person, Education & Exercise Program where you will learn from a Registered Kinesiologist about returning to physical activity, nutrition, mental health, and community resources.

Starting TUESDAY MAY 16 in Palmerston.

For more information or to register please contact Leslie.
lstroeder 'at' communityresourcecentre 'dot' org

Community Resource Centre Countryside Midwifery Services Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health

05/16/2023

Meet Pam! Pam graduated from Conestoga Nursing in 1989 and has worked in a few different nursing roles in our area. In 2006 she returned to school to acquire her nursing degree and in December 2006 she started to work with the new MMFHT. By 2009, she had completed her nursing degree.

For the past 10 years she has been working solely in the role of telemedicine nursing. This role is now split by working part time with both the Minto Mapleton and the Mount Forest Family Health Teams, as well as the telemedicine nurses program Lead in the Waterloo Wellington area.

In her spare time she enjoys hanging out with her husband, children, six grandchildren and friends! She also enjoys spending as much time as she can at her parent's cottage on Lake Huron, where she gets to watch some of the most amazing sunsets, just a little bit of heaven! Her passion is to travel and her bucket list continues to grow. One of her favourite trips has been to travel to Greece and cruise the Mediterranean and Adriatic Sea to Venice.

The past years with MMFHT have been very a very rewarding experience and Pam is happy to be able to provide patients access to specialist care closer to home. She finds it pretty a pretty awesome way to provide nursing support for patients.

05/12/2023

At the MMFHT we are so lucky to have a plethora of amazing nurses on our team. From RPNs to RNs to NPs, we love them all and the work that they do!

If you see a nurse today make sure you thank them for all that they do.

Special thanks to Jodi, Samantha, Chantelle, Patrice, Alison, Leah, Pam, Tracy, Jenny and Julia!

05/11/2023

Meet Leah! Leah began her work as a Registered Nurse with the MMFHT over 10 years ago at the Clifford site.

In her role she loves to support her patients of all ages as they strive to optimize their holistic health. She considers it a rewarding privilege to support and advocate for her patients, who have become like family over the years. She is proud to collaborate with a fantastic multidisciplinary team and has seen the positive impact this approach has had on her patients' well-being.

Leah lives with her husband Andrew and their two children in Mount Forest. When she isn't working as an RN, you can find her at the local arena watching her kids play hockey or at the lake where she loves to swim, fish and waterski. She loves being active, reading a good book, golfing with her girlfriends, trying out new recipes and spending time with her family and friends.