Living Healthy Together

Stroke Signs We Miss – and Why They Matter

A stroke is a medical emergency in which every second matters. This week on Living Healthy Together, we explore how awareness, rapid treatment and coordinated care and clinical support can change everything.  Genie Denton of Central Vermont Medical Center shares her powerful personal experience surviving multiple strokes, joined by her husband, Steven Harnois, a firefighter and longtime EMT. Genie recounts the subtle and often confusing symptoms that nearly went unnoticed, and how quick action and timely treatment made a life-changing difference for her.  Christopher Commichau, MD, director of Cerebrovascular Disease, Neurocritical care and the Stroke Center at UVM Health, and Jenna Wydra, RN, Stroke Program manager for UVM Health, break down what strokes look like in the moment and discuss the importance of recognizing symptoms using the ‘BEFAST’ (“Balance, Eyes, Face, Arm, Speech, Time”) framework. They highlight how a coordinated, regional system of care ensures patients receive timely, high-quality treatment no matter where they live. Tracy Madsen, MD, an emergency physician and vice chair of Research at UVM’s Larner College of Medicine, and Daniela Zambrano, MD, a vascular neurologist and stroke specialist at UVM Medical Center, discuss emerging clinical insights around maternal stroke risk. Their discussion emphasizes the importance of prenatal care and recognizing possible stroke symptoms during pregnancy.

Navigating Life with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is unpredictable, often invisible and lifelong. For those living with this spectrum of conditions, every day can be shaped by pain, uncertainty and the need to constantly adapt.  We explore the realities of IBD through the decades-long medical journey of Joshua Peets, a North Country resident and Crohn’s disease patient, and the clinical expertise of members of the care team at the Chron’s & Colitis Center at UVM Medical Center.  Shruti Khurana, MD, a gastroenterologist and the founder/director of the Center, and Jeremy Dressler, MD, a colon and rectal surgeon, describe how IBD care is evolving to combine medical management, surgical interventions, nutrition guidance and mental health and pharmacy support. The goal: better manage a complex spectrum of conditions that impact a person’s whole body, not just their digestive tract.  Meta Surjaputra, PsyD, a clinical psychologist who specializes in gastroenterological psychology, explores the powerful brain-gut connection and explains why anxiety, depression and stress are closely tied to outcomes for individuals living with IBD. A member of the Clinic’s care team, she shows how psychological support can improve patients’ ability to manage their symptoms and improve their overall quality of life.  Kathy McGinnis, RD, a clinical dietician who specializes in gastroenterological disorders, discusses the role of nutrition as a critical tool for managing symptoms and supporting long-term health. She offers practical insight into diet patterns and common misconceptions around the causes and impacts of IBD in the kitchen.

Generations of Care: A Family Practice

What does it take to build a medical practice that lasts not just decades, but generations? Join us as we visit Green Mountain Family Practice in Northfield, Vermont, and explore the human connections and experiences that form the core of family medicine for the Sullivan family, over the course of a hundred years.  Craig Sullivan, MD, began caring for families in Northfield in 1983, practicing medicine in a small town where care extends beyond clinic walls and trust and lifelong relationships with patients defined family medicine. Dr. Sullivan shares stories and insights drawn from a career shaped by house calls, handshake agreements, and a sea-change that fundamentally reshaped primary care.   Matt Sullivan, MD, describes his own winding path to family medicine. From filmmaking to primary care and ultimately a journey home to practice alongside his father Craig. He reflects on how medicine has changed, the challenges keeping physicians from choosing to practice family medicine, and what it takes to preserve meaningful relationships in an increasingly complex and business-driven health care system.  Together they offer an intimate look at medicine as a vocation grounded in time, trust and presence within the lives of patients.

Dr. Google Will See You Now: Health Literacy in the Digital Age

Health information is everywhere: online resources, third-party apps on your smartphone, artificial intelligence-driven chatbots; even the patient portal to your electronic health record.  So why does understanding and using health information remain a challenge for millions of Americans? And how does communication, trust and misinformation shape health care experiences for patients and providers alike?  Join Chrissy Keating, health literacy specialist at UVM Medical Center, as we explore why nearly nine in 10 adults struggle with health information; hear volunteer patient and family advisor Susanna Stinnett and patient engagement partner Vicki Mascareno-Nelson discuss how lived experiences improve patient-provider communication systems; explore the impact of misinformation and a crowded digital landscape with infections disease specialist and medical ethicist Tim Lahey, MD; and learn how preparing for your care can transform your health care appointments, with tips from professional health care risk manager Geri Amori and community outreach manager Maria Avery.  Get a hopeful, practical look at how better communication, shared decision-making and curiosity on both sides of the exam room can lead to better health outcomes.  Resources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [https://www.cdc.gov/] National Institutes of Health [https://www.nih.gov/] (searchable health condition information) Mayo Clinic [https://www.mayoclinic.org/] (patient-facing medical information) Harvard Medical School [https://hms.harvard.edu/] (health education and condition overviews) American Academy of Pediatrics [https://www.aap.org/en] Infectious Diseases Society of America [https://www.idsociety.org/] American Heart Association [https://www.heart.org/] American Diabetes Association [https://diabetes.org/] Health Bytes and Insights [https://libraries.uvm.edu/about/community] (Request a session [https://uvm.libwizard.com/f/form-request-workshop])

When Something Isn’t Right: Understanding Child Abuse and Neglect

Preventing child maltreatment is complex, and everyone has a role to play. Child abuse and neglect affect every community. In this episode of Living Healthy Together, we mark Child Abuse Awareness Month by bringing together medical experts, foster parents, forensic specialists and community leaders to explore how we can keep children safe and how prevention truly works.  James Metz, MD, a pediatrician, division chief of child abuse medicine and director of the Child Safe Program at Golisano Children’s Hospital, explains why child maltreatment is more common than many childhood illnesses; the role of pediatricians and how multidisciplinary teams investigate and respond to reports of suspected abuse while putting children and families at the center of everything they do.  Whitney Barkhuff, MD, a neonatologist and foster parent, shares what families should understand about foster care, addresses common misconceptions and explores the many ways individuals and families can support children without committing to long-term foster placements.  Tracey Wagner, MSN, RN, CPN, SANE-P, a forensic and sexual assault nurse and longtime foster parent, explains the spectrum of child maltreatment, how science is evolving, the importance of education, and how honest conversations can help protect children.  Meghan Masterson, MA, BCBA, a board-certified behavior analyst and executive director of Kidsafe Collaborative, Chittenden County’s only independent agency dedicated to prevention of child abuse and neglect, explains how prevention is a shared responsibility. Learn how individual action, community support and strong systems create safer environments for children