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“What can we learn from the dying?”

By
Guest Columnist
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For the last five years, I have had the great privilege of serving my local health system as Medical Director for Home Hospice. Every week I sit in a meeting with the multidisciplinary caretakers on this team – the nurses who provide the great majority of the hands-on care, social worker, pharmacist, dietician, and pastor. We discuss all the patients currently under our care and discuss how we can improve each patients suffering and maximize their quality of life.

The patients we care for on home hospice are those we believe to be at the end of life. Some are actively in the dying process; others are stable, still going about their lives, but have a terminal disease with a high likelihood of death in the next six months. On home hospice, most patients either stay in their own home with help from a caretaker, often a family member; or they might choose to reside in a care facility where they can get more extensive needs met.

Our nurses and other staff get to know these patients and their families extremely well, and I truly enjoy hearing our patients’ stories relayed. I don’t always get to meet the patients cared for by our team, as most continue to stay under the care of their primary care providers while on hospice. But even when I am hearing their stories second hand, a theme stands out as a common sentiment of our patients – the desire to reflect on their lives.

Patients facing their own deaths want to talk about their lives. Our staff frequently tries to facilitate what they call a “ review” in which a patient can openly talk about their childhood, family, career, service, and sometimes their regrets. This is therapeutic for the dying patient and their loved ones. Even some patients with dementia, with no memory of recent years, can delight in recalling a story from their childhood, looking through old photographs, or listening to music they once loved.

I have recently thought about this particular human need – to reflect and remember ones life. I take this as a reminder to both seek those stories from my own loved ones (gosh, I wish I had asked my grandmother more questions about her life) and, perhaps, to tell and write about the things in my own life I would want to be remembered after I am gone. For if there is another thing I’ve learned serving patients on hospice, it is that my death is also inevitable; but, I think, life’s finality is what gives it beauty and meaning.

Kelly Evans-Hullinger, MD. is part of The Prairie Doc® team of physicians and currently practices Internal Medicine at Avera Medical Group in Brookings, South Dakota. Follow The Prairie Doc® at www.prairiedoc.org, and on social media. Watch On Call with the Prairie Doc, most Thursday’s at 7PM on streaming on Facebook and listen to Prairie Doc Radio Sunday’s at 6am and 1pm.

“Teen Mental Health”

By
Guest Columnist
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The most recent survey of teen mental health by the Centers for Disease Control in 2023 revealed that 20.3% of adolescents in the United States have been diagnosed with a mental health condition. This reflects a 35% increase since 2016. The survey also found that 40% of teens reported persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, 20% seriously considered suicide, and, tragically, 9% attempted suicide.

These statistics should alarm any parent or grandparent of a teenager. As the mother of a 12-year-old and a 14-year-old, I often think about my children’s mental health and how to best support them. They are growing up in a world far different from the one I knew. Today’s teens face the challenges of social media, cyber bullying, academic pressure, and the struggle to fit in with their peers, all while navigating the changes of puberty.

Like every parent, I want my children to be happy, resilient, and safe. The first step is creating a space where they feel safe sharing their thoughts and feelings. Listening to them without immediately jumping in to solve their problems or dismiss their emotions is a crucial skill for parents to practice. Taking the time to talk and ask open-ended questions about how they feel can make a significant difference. What might seem minor to an adult with years of experience and perspective can feel overwhelming to a teenager. It is essential for our kids to know we are here to support them, no matter the size of the problem.

Another key parenting strategy is modeling good self-care and emotional regulation. That can mean working on improving our own mental health. Showing teens how to be kind to themselves and handle life’s setbacks teaches them invaluable lessons. Mental health is not a one-time fix; it is a lifelong process. Adolescence is the ideal time to equip teens with healthy coping strategies. Teaching them how to handle stress and overcome failures prepares them to become thriving, well-adjusted adults.

Parents should also trust their instincts when something feels off. If your teen shows a sudden drop in grades, stops enjoying activities they once loved, or seems persistently sad or angry, it’s time to seek help. If teens become more withdrawn or secretive, having a discussion about your concerns is warranted. Resources like pediatricians, school counselors, and therapists can provide support and guidance.

As a mother, I am committed to walking this journey alongside my children, every step of the way. Together, we can navigate the challenges, celebrate the victories, and build the tools they need for a happy, healthy future.

Jill Kruse, D.O. is part of The Prairie Doc® team of physicians and currently practices as a hospitalist in Brookings, South Dakota. Follow The Prairie Doc® at www.prairiedoc.org and on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads featuring On Call with the Prairie Doc®, a medical Q&A show, 2 podcasts, and a Radio

program, providing health information based on science, built on trust, streaming live on Facebook most Thursdays at 7 p.m. central and wherever podcast can be found.

The Indoor Environment for Houseplants in Kansas

By
Guest Columnist
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The indoor environment for houseplants in Kansas is not the most ideal! In fact it can be difficult with a lot of trial and error on your part. Sometimes no matter how hard we try we sometimes kill these plants. Improper light intensity ranks close to improper watering as a frequent cause for failure with houseplants. A plant in proper light is better able to withstand the high temperature and low humidity of many homes. The amount of light necessary for good growth varies with different types of plants

Flowering plants
All flowering plants need moderately bright light. Plants kept continuously in poor light will have spindly shoots, few flowers, yellow foliage, poor flower color and, often, little or no growth.

South, east or west windows are excellent for most flowering potted plants, with the possible exception of African violets and related plants, which prefer a north window. Plants in bloom should be kept out of direct sunlight or the flowers will heat excessively and collapse more quickly.

Light in the average room, away from windows, is not bright enough for most flowering plants, even when ceiling fixtures are kept on.

Fluorescent lights located fairly close to houseplants will improve growth of plants that cannot be placed close to windows. When using artificial lights, place them about one foot above the top of the plant and keep them on for about 16 hours each day. The effects of insufficient light cannot be cured by extra fertilizer, water or repotting.

Foliage plants
Foliage plants are generally divided into those suitable for low-light areas, moderate-light areas and bright-light areas. Only a few plants can tolerate dimly lit room interiors. Most foliage plants do well with light at a north window, daylight with no direct sun, or sunlight diffused through a lightweight curtain. Plants that require full sunlight should be put in a south window.

Plants can become acclimated to a location. An abrupt move from a low-light to a bright-light location may be damaging. Leaves gradually face toward light for maximum light absorption, especially in low-light areas. Moving a plant disrupts this orientation and causes the plant to use light less efficiently for a period of time. This is especially true of large plants.

Abruptly moving a plant to more intense light — especially direct sunlight — results in bleaching or burning of foliage. Any lighting changes should be made gradually. Many plants can be kept from getting one-sided by turning them once a week.

The End of Groundhog Day as we know it???

By
Steve Gilliland
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If my 73 years on this rock has taught me anything, it’s just when you think you have seen and heard it all, you haven’t! Our friends at PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) are at it again, and frankly, we should have seen this one coming. Their latest quest involves trying to free the self-avowed weather prognosticator and main character of Groundhog Day, Punxsutawney Phil.

Here are excerpts of a letter from PETA to Phil’s handlers at the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club trying to barter Phil’s release. “Groundhogs are shy prey animals who, when allowed, actively avoid humans, yet year after year, Phil is transported to Gobbler’s Knob, whisked on stage, and subjected to a noisy announcer, screaming crowds, and flashing lights against all his natural instincts. If approached in his natural habitat, he would run away in fear, not volunteer to live in captivity, unable to do anything that’s natural and important to him like hibernate or burrow – just to be a town’s once-a-year fake meteorologist. Our letter suggests the groundhog club respect Phil and set a wonderful example for how everyone can move beyond “Groundhog Day” by replacing him with a delicious vegan “Weather Reveal” cake that revelers can enjoy as an alternative to exploiting wild animals. The time is long overdue.” The letter also urged Groundhog Day officials to “sprinkle some happiness” into Phil’s life by letting him retire.

Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania was settled and named by the Delaware Indians as a campsite halfway between the Allegheny and Susquehanna Rivers. When German settlers arrived in the 1700’s, they brought with them a tradition known as “Candlemas Day,” celebrated in Germany on Feb. 2nd, which happens to be the mid-point between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, (winter and spring.) Tradition held that if Feb. 2nd were sunny, the last half of winter would be nasty and cold, and visa-versa if Feb 2nd was cloudy. In Germany, for whatever reason, hedgehogs were observed to see if a shadow was cast. In Pennsylvania, given the absence of hedgehogs, groundhogs were selected to assume that role. An old German saying read: For as the sun shines on Candlemas Day, so far will the snow swirl until May, for as the snow blows on Candlemas Day, so far will the sun shine until May. So, in other words, if Phil sees his shadow, 6 more weeks of winter will ensue. Pennsylvania’s first official celebration of Groundhog Day was in 1886, when the legendary groundhog was named Punxsutawney Phil, and the first trip to Phil’s mythical home on Gobbler’s Knob, was made the following year.

Now, everything I can find, tells me that Phil’s “subjection to a noisy announcer, screaming crowds and flashing lights” lasts less than one-half day each year, and for the other 364 days, 23 ½ hours, he enjoys a climate-controlled room at the Punxsutawney Library. complete with all the dog food and ice cream he wants. Now certainly if we trust Phil to predict the arrival of spring, he must be able to communicate, so let’s ask him what he thinks of PETA’s proposal. I imagine the conversation going something like this;

Me: So, Phil, have you heard that PETA wants to “free” you by retiring you to a preserve somewhere so you can live out the rest of your life like a wild groundhog?

Phil: Say what now??? I really hope you’re joking (as he takes another bite of ice cream)

Now, I know common sense is a flower that does not grow in everyone’s garden, but just like I know David Copperfield cannot really make the Empire State Building disappear, I also know Phil cannot really predict the arrival time of spring, probably having no clue whether he sees his shadow or not, but it’s fun to think so. So why mess with it? I have no doubt there are animals in this country, both pets and domestic livestock, that are truly abused, and where PETA could do some real good. So, to the well-intentioned folks at PETA, please concentrate your efforts on causes worthy of your time; people will take you a little more seriously. Continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors.

Steve can be contacted by email at [email protected].

Playing Ketchup

By
Lee Pitts
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0
lee pitts
I live on the edge of a small town whose only fast food is a Subway. The void has been filled by food trucks. I don’t know if they’ve come to your town yet but every day at lunch time there are at least two food trucks open for business and some days three in my town. These include food trucks named The Greasy Weiner, Hanna’s Street Tacos and La Taqueria. The trucks appear to be doing a land office business judging by the long lines of construction workers and nine-to-fivers on their lunch hour.
One of the good things about a food truck is that if you don’t like your present location you just up and move. I don’t know what’s in it for the people who own the parking lots where the food trucks set up shop but I’m sure they get at least a free taco or two as rental income. The food trucks are so popular that restaurants in the bigger towns are playing catch-up, or is it ketchup, and are copying items invented by the food truck owners. For example, “street tacos” have found their way onto menus at fancy restaurants and my wife really likes them. They are about half the size of a regular taco and they can be made with fish, beef, pork even bison. The one thing I haven’t seen yet are food trucks that specialize in hamburgers and we really need one or two of them.
Whenever I see a food truck it reminds me of the old photos I’ve seen of cowboys gathered around the chuckwagon at a roundup only instead of cowboy hats the construction workers are wearing hard hats and there are no chaps and spurs. Since there is no seating provided the construction workers can be seen sitting uncomfortably on a curb or on their haunches. The advantages of a food truck are it costs about a third of what a restaurant meal would cost and it’s fast, so people on their lunch hour don’t have to worry about clocking in late when their lunch hour is over.
Food trucks really are modern day chuckwagons. Legendary cattleman Charles Goodnight invented the chuckwagon in 1866 when he got an old army wagon with extra durable iron axles and he put a box on the back that served as the cookie’s kitchen. They became so popular that Studebaker, the only company I know of that made the transition from selling wagons to selling cars, sold their version of the chuckwagon for about a hundred bucks. They were called chuckwagons because the grub the cowboys ate was also referred to as chuck. The chuckwagon, which was sometimes also called “the crumb castle” by the cowpokes, was the center of activity during a branding and cowboys “put on the nose bag” and even took an afternoon siesta underneath the chuckwagon because it provided the only shade for miles around.
I don’t know why someone doesn’t launch a “chain” of chuckwagon food trucks that serve hamburgers and other beef items. Instead of a truck the chuckwagon would be a wagon designed to look like chuckwagons of yesteryear, with the addition, of course, of brake lights and turn signals. If one location was bad you could just hook up the chuckwagon to a vehicle and move it to a new location, no horses necessary.
My idea of a chuckwagon food truck could be a great “green” concept that environmentalists should love. Picture in your mind six burley construction workers ordering gigantic beef and bean burritos and chimichangas and then getting in their work truck with all the windows rolled up. In the cab would be an on-board methane digester that would turn the gas produced by the workers into fuel. It would be a totally enclosed enviro system and the gas produced would propel the workers far enough to get to them to the next chuckwagon where they could re-fill on beans again. I can even envision a hybrid version for people who don’t want to eat beans for every meal.
If Elon Musk ever caught wind of my concept I have no doubt that in a matter of weeks we’d have thousands of Tesla Taco Trucks at Tesla charging stations around the country, thus giving an all new meaning to the words “gassing up.”
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