Author: marketing

Is your future child or newborn a Future Saluki? Register for a chance for your child to be the Shawnee Health Care Future Saluki of the Game! You will win a custom Future Saluki onesie and be recognized during a Saluki basketball game this year. Individuals will be selected to be recognized at each home Saluki Men’s Basketball game.

If basketball isn’t your thing but you still would like to support Saluki Athletics and get the custom onesie, simply submit a photo of your baby or your family to be displayed on the jumbotron.

To register, visit any Shawnee Health Care location, or send an email with the following information to shsinfo@shsdc.org:

Name of “Future Saluki”

Full Name of Parent or Guardian (1) and Relationship to “Future Saluki”

Full Name of Parent or Guardian (2) and Relationship to “Future Saluki”

City or Town of Residence

Best way to reach you if you are selected.

Note: Only pre-born to one-year-old patients of Shawnee Health Care may enter. 

Flu season is in full swing, and the best way to protect yourself (and others) from getting sick is by getting a flu vaccination. Wondering if you and your family members should get a flu vaccine this year? Here are eight good reasons:

1. The flu vaccine is the best way to avoid the flu.
The flu is very contagious. It can easily spread for one person to another.

2. Health officials recommend it.
Flu vaccines are recommended for everyone over 6 months of age. It comes as a shot or as a nasal spray. The nasal spray vaccine is an option for healthy people ages 2 to 49.

3. The flu can be serious.
The flu comes on suddenly. It can cause a high fever, headache, and extreme tiredness. It can be especially dangerous for pregnant women, children and teens, older adults, and people with certain medical conditions.

4. You’ll protect yourself and others too.
Complications from the flu can lead to hospitalization. In the United States, about 36,000 people die from the flu every year.

5. Getting the flu can disrupt your life.
A flu vaccine may help you avoid missing work or school. You won’t have to miss any fun social events either!

6. The flu vaccine is low cost and easy to get.
You can get vaccinated through any Shawnee Health Care health center.

7. You only need it once a year.
October or November is the best time to get a flu vaccine, but you can get it later than the year as well. You should get a new seasonal flu vaccine every year.

8. It is safe for most people.
You cannot get the flu from the flu vaccine. Most people have no side effects or only have very mild body aches. (However, you should not get a flu vaccine if you currently have a fever. Wait until you are well. Also, do not get a flu vaccine if you have had a reaction to a previous flu vaccine or to eggs, or if you have Guillain-Barré syndrome).

What else can you do to avoid the flu?

1. Wash your hands often. Use plenty of soap and water and wash for 20 seconds.
2. When coughing or sneezing, use a tissue and throw it away, then wash your hands.
3. Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose, and mouth.
4. Teach children when and how to wash their hands, as well.
5. If possible, avoid being around people who are sick.
6. Exercise, eating healthy foods, getting enough sleep, and reducing stress may also lower your chance of getting the flu.

To schedule an appointment for you or your child to receive the flu vaccine, call (618) 519-9200.

Open Enrollment is the period when people can enroll in a health insurance plan. This year, the Open Enrollment Period for Medicare runs from October 15, 2017 to December 7, 2017. The Open Enrollment Period for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace for 2018 runs from November 1, 2017 to December 15, 2017.

When you decide how to get your Medicare coverage, you might choose a Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C) and/or Medicare prescription drug coverage (Part D). There are specific times when you can sign up for these plans, or make changes to coverage you already have. You don’t need to sign up for Medicare each year. However, each year you’ll have a chance to review your coverage and change plans.

If you don’t have health insurance through a job, Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), or another source that provides qualifying health coverage, the Marketplace can help you get covered. Starting November 1, you can log in to HealthCare.gov, fill out an application, and enroll in a 2018 Marketplace health plan.

Shawnee Health Service wants to help you get covered!

Our Navigators can help you go through the online system as well as answer questions you might have about the Marketplace.  While online you will be able to compare insurance options and find out if you might be eligible, based on your income, for financial assistance to lower your costs.

Navigators can help you understand things like Essential Health Benefits and how these will help improve your health.  Navigators are available during clinic hours and special event times.  You do not need to be a patient of Shawnee Health Service to receive assistance at no cost!

For assistance, please call: (844) 331-3069.

This October, Shawnee Health Care is proud to participate in National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is the second most common kind of cancer in women. About 1 in 8 women born today in the United States will get breast cancer at some point. The good news is that most women can survive breast cancer if it’s found and treated early.

If you are a woman age 40 to 49, talk with your doctor about when to start getting mammograms and how often to get them.  If you are a woman age 50 to 74, be sure to get a mammogram every 2 years. You may also choose to get them more often. Talk to a doctor about your risk for breast cancer, especially if a close family member of yours had breast or ovarian cancer. Together, you and your doctor can decide what is best for you.

Regular high-quality screening mammograms and clinical breast exams are the most sensitive ways to screen for breast cancer. Insurance plans governed by the federal Affordable Care Act must cover screening mammography as a preventive benefit every 1–2 years for women age 40 and over without requiring copayments, coinsurance, or deductibles. Shawnee Health Service Navigators are available to help you understand things like Essential Health Benefits and how these will help improve your health. If you do not have health insurance, Navigators can help you get coverage during Open Enrollment beginning November 1.

In addition, be sure to get your well-woman exam every year. Use this visit to talk with your doctor or nurse about important screenings and services to help you stay healthy. To make your well-woman exam appointment with Shawnee Health Care, OB/GYN, call (618) 519-9200.

Supporting the fighters, admiring the survivors, honoring the taken, and never, ever giving up hope.

Please join us Wednesday, September 13 at the Shawnee Health Service Administration Building for our Career Fair! Learn more about our opportunities and what it’s like to work at Shawnee Health Service.

Please bring your resume and any applicable certifications and licensure.
View all open positions here: http://bit.ly/taq-shawnee

On February 17, 2017, the People page of the Southern Illinoisan awarded Honorable Mention for Best Doctor (General Practice) to Dr. Jeff Ripperda, Shawnee Health Care, #7 S Hospital Dr, Murphysboro, IL, (618) 519-9200.

Shawnee Health Service is pleased to announce the expansion of oral health services at Shawnee Health Care, Dental in Marion.  This expansion is funded in part by the Illinois Children’s Healthcare Foundation.  The goal of this planned expansion is to create additional access for children to a dental home.  The planned expansion will add 1200 square feet to the existing building, adding five additional dental exam rooms to the current eight exam rooms.  Along with this expansion will come a large clean/dirty work room and a larger patient waiting area.  Construction began November 1, 2016 and expected completion is February 2017.