Ky. Rural Health Association seeks entries in reporting contest

The Kentucky Rural Health Association invites nominations for its annual rural health reporting awards, which aim to encourage more and better coverage of Kentucky’s rural health-related issues by the state’s newspapers.

The contest has daily and non-daily divisions, each with two categories: series and single story. Each of the four winners gets a plaque and a $100 prize at KRHA's summer conference. Articles must originally have been published during the preceding fiscal year. Entries will be accepted from staff writers, editors, freelance writers and others affiliated with a Kentucky-based newspaper, and from KRHA members and community members at large on the writers’ or newspapers’ behalf. Each entry should include three copies of the article as it originally appeared in the newspaper. The awards will be based on relevance to rural health, quality of reporting, impact on health care policy and new insights generated by the reporting.

For entry information, contact Ernie L. Scott of the Kentucky Office of Rural Health at 750 Morton Blvd., Hazard KY 41701, or 606.439.3557 ext. 83689, or ernie.scott@uky.edu.

Floyd County woman is Kentucky's smoke-free advocate of year

For her work spreading the word about second-hand smoke and founding the coalition that ultimately helped Prestonsburg pass a smoke-free ordinance in 2009, Floyd County's Jean V. Rosenberg was named 2012 advocate of the year at the annual Smoke-Free Policy Conference hosted by the University of Kentucky's Kentucky Center for Smoke-Free Policy. She stands with center Director Dr. Ellen Hahn, left, and Dr. Melissa Walton-Shirley, right, the Glasgow cardiologist who won in 2011.

Rosenberg started her work in 2005 when she began working for the Floyd County Health Department as a program specialist to increase awareness about the dangers of second-hand smoke, reports Ann Blackford reports in a university press release. During that time, she founded the Breathe Easy Floyd County Coalition, which educated people about second-hand smoke and supported local smoke-free initiatives.

On Nov. 1, 2009, the City of Prestonsburg implemented a 100 percent smoke-free ordinance in all workplaces and enclosed public places, with Rosenberg at the helm to propel the effort forward. (Read more)

Ky. Citizen Doctor of the Year nominations being accepted

The Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians is accepting nominations for Kentucky's Citizen Doctor of the Year award. Patients are encouraged to send in their recommendations by Feb. 1.

The award honors an outstanding, community-minded family physician who provides compassionate, comprehensive care. Candidates should be role models of their profession and of their communities. They must also be members of the academy.

Kentuckians wishing to nominate should send a letter (two-page maximum) that includes the nominee's name, office address and phone number and reasons why the nominee has earned the award to: Kentucky Citizen Doctor of the Year, c/o KAFP, PO Box 1444, Ashland KY 41105-1444. They should also include their own contact information, including email. For more information about the academy, click here.

Kentucky Rural Health Assn. gives first newspaper writing awards; Kentucky Health News writer wins for previous work

Tara Kaprowy, the chief writer for Kentucky Health News, won one of the first awards given by the Kentucky Rural Health Association for newspaper writing.

Kaprowy won the prise for best series in a non-daily newspaper for her five-part series in The Sentinel-Echo of London titled “How Healthy Are We?” The August 2010 series examined how Laurel County compared to state and national averages for tobacco use, obesity, access to health care, and so on.

Ivy Brashear, formerly of The Hazard Herald, won prize for best story in a non-daily paper for her April 6, 2011, article, “Health study has Perry near the bottom,” about a Population Health Institute study that ranked Perry’s health status as 115^th among the state's 120 counties. There were no daily entries; each winner received a plaque and $100 prize.

These types of reports can be done by any news outlet in Kentucky, because plenty of data are available on sites such as http://www.kyhealthfacts.org/. For a look at Kaprowy's series, go here.

UK prof receives Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians award

Dr. Samuel Matheny has received the 2011 Distinguished Service Award from the Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians. "It is his peers recognizing him for some of his unselfish activities, particularly things focused on the overall good for patients in the commonwealth, improving quality of life for patients and for the family physicians that take care of patients," said Gerry Stover, executive vice president of KAFP.

Matheny practices in Lexington, and for the past 17 years, has been a professor and chair of Family and Community Medicine in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, of which he is graduate. He is double board certified in family and preventive medicine.

In service to the KAFP, he has invited renowned speakers to speak to the membership. He has also created new awards that honor physician volunteers and opened up nominations to community members for the citizen doctor award. He has also addressed the needs of the physician workforce Kentucky.

Madisonville hospital earns national award for program that helps pregnant women maintain, improve oral health

For its work in improving oral health in prenatal patients, the Center for Women's Health at Trover Health System in Madisonville has received a national award.

The William J. Gies Award for Outstanding Innovation is given to individuals and organizations dedicated to improving dental education, research and leadership. Trover Health System's program "Centering Pregnancy Smiles" focuses on educating women about the importance of maintaining their oral health while pregnant.

"Women may mistakenly think they can skip dental care when pregnant. However, now more than ever, regular oral health check-ups are very important," said LeAnn Todd-Langston, director of the Center for Women's Health. "Pregnancy causes hormonal changes that put women at increased risk of dental disease. Some studies even suggest that infections in the mouth, including gingivitis and cavities, may increase the risk of delivering early. Additionally, some studies have shown that the bacteria responsible for tooth decay are passed from the mother to the baby. By incorporating oral health education into the care our prenatal patients receive, we have been able to reduce the number of preterm and low birth-weight births at Trover." (Read more)