UM Shore Regional Health and Shock Trauma Center will provide hands-on Stop the Bleed training for Kent County health professionals and first responders. The training will be held at Kent County Health Dept. – 125 S. Lynchburg St., Chestertown on September 21, 9 am – 12:30 p.m. (Three sessions: 9 am – 10 am, 10:15 am – 11:15 am, 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. The sessions are divided between classroom lecture – first 30 minutes- and hands-on training – second 30 minute block). Stop the Bleed training will teach people how to stop bleeding in the event of traumatic injuries. Participants will be instructed how to apply tourniquets and pack a wound.

More than 50 people are signed up to be trained, including Kent County Health Dept staff, paramedics and EMTs with Kent County volunteer fire companies, members of the Kent County Healthcare Emergency Response Coalition (HERC), and Maryland Responds Medical Reserve Corp Volunteers.

Dr. Habeeba Park, Associate Professor at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Critical Care Surgeon at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center and STC physician lead for the Stop the Bleed Initiative, will lead the training. Assisting Dr. Park with the hands-on training will be Adam Brown, EMS Captain for Millington Volunteer Fire Company, and Charlene Perry, RN, Public Health Emergency Planner for Kent County Health Dept.

Stop the Bleed is a national campaign sponsored by the American College of Surgeons and Hartford Consensus to train people to assist in a bleeding emergency before professional help arrives. Massive bleeding from any cause, but particularly in a situation where a medical response is delayed, can result in death. Similar to how the general public learns and performs CPR, it is important for the public to learn proper bleeding control techniques, including how to use their hands, dressings and tourniquets. Victims can quickly die from uncontrolled bleeding — within five to 10 minutes — if the bleeding is not stopped.

Using mannequins, participants will be working hands-on to learn the appropriate ways to control bleeding. Interviews will be available with participants and trainers.

For more information:

– www.umms.org/ummc/health-services/shock-trauma/patient-information/stop-the-bleed
– www.bleedingcontrol.org
– https://www.umms.org/shore

Golfers met at the Eisenhower golf course on September 11^th to commemorate the heroic deeds of the first responders on that day 17 years ago and our wounded vets who are fighting for us everyday.

This is the first time that the golf tourney, the “Rider Cup,” sponsored by Talisman Therapeutic Riding, Inc. in Grasonville was held on the Western Shore. This year’s location did not dissuade the Eastern Shore golfers from participating but it did, in fact, make it more convenient for the organization’s Western Shore supporters to play.

Following a lunch provided by Pasta and Murphy Ameriprise, the golfers teed off at 1:00 PM and began the competition for longest drive, closest to the tee, low net, …… The day concluded with dinner and prizes.

Talisman Therapeutic Riding is the only year round PATH certified therapeutic riding facility on the Eastern Shore. After beginning with one horse and 2 riders in 2011, the organization’s instructors and therapists now provide more than 3500 lessons a year to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and children and adults with physical, emotional, and cognitive needs.

Compass Regional Hospice recently completed its 24^th Camp New Dawn, a grief retreat summer camp for children, teens and families, held annually at Camp Pecometh near Centreville.

The retreat, which took place from Aug. 18 to 21, is designed to meet the needs of all ages and stages of grief, serving children and teens between the ages of 4 and 17, as well as their families. This year, 92 children and eight families were served by Camp New Dawn.

Of those numbers, 35 participants were from Queen Anne’s County, 25 were from Caroline County and 12 were from Kent County. Other camp participants were from other Mid-Shore and Maryland counties, and some came from as far away as Delaware to take part in camp.

From left are Compass Regional Hospice’s Camp New Dawn Director Rhonda Knotts and Nathan Powell.

Camp New Dawn Director Rhonda Knotts, who has been involved with the camp for nearly 20 years, said, “It’s just a reflection of what our community, the losses they have suffered and the pain that is still out there. Remembrance is necessary in healing. You may not realize it at first, but Camp New Dawn helps you to take a step forward; just by showing up, honoring, remembering and crying for your loved ones … you move forward, just a little bit. Somehow, you walk through a doorway.”

Nearly 120 volunteers were on hand during the camp to make sure it ran smoothly. About two dozen more assisted with preparations prior to camp beginning.

The most visible volunteers are “Buddies” — caring and compassionate adults who were paired up with campers to provide support. There also were support staff volunteers who tended to every detail of camp by helping plan, set up and facilitate activities. Former campers, “PALS” and “Campatiers,” were found helping in a variety of ways around camp, as well as sharing their own personal camp experiences with new campers.

Knotts said every year the camp is notably full of amazing volunteers and memorable support groups, but this year, she also noted the impact of the younger volunteers – how many campers eventually become volunteers, helping other children and families through difficult periods of grief.

“I get so emotional about our volunteers, because they just keep showing up, every year,” Knotts said. “It’s these kids, too, these young adults, who, if we can give them pieces of this, they really can, through ideas of their own, make Camp New Dawn grow into the future.”

Pictured are participants following a therapeutic activity that involved spray-painting a van to express their feelings.

Knotts said it is not just the visible volunteers that make Camp New Dawn so special, but the ones behind the scenes, as well. Several of those behind-the-scenes volunteers include the Anthony family and several friends who make the opening night cookout possible; Carolyn Moorsehead who purchased all the food for the opening night cookout; Karla Horton of Dragonfly Paddle and Fitness who offered to teach yoga to children during opening night therapeutic activities; Dave Briguglio of Ridgely and owner of Greener Systems LLC, and several of his friends, who cook and provide boardwalk fries to the campers during the opening night cookout; and countless others who volunteer their time, talents and money to make sure the campers have a unique and memorable experience, before, during and after camp.

One such volunteer is Nathan Powell, who spent two weeks prior to the start of Camp New Dawn making gallons of homemade vanilla ice cream for the campers to enjoy during the opening night cookout.

“You know, it’s not the idea of him making the ice cream, really, it’s the idea of the devotion,” Knotts said. “What people are willing to do to somehow make Camp New Dawn even more special. Dr. (Thomas) Walsh (Compass Regional Hospice’s chief medical director) had a snow cone mobile show up on Monday during camp; Georgia and Jim Wilkison arranged for a snow cone mobile to show up on Sunday, in the heat of the afternoon … snow cones for every volunteer and every kid. It’s not the gift, it’s the idea that they want to make it more memorable for these kids.”

Knotts said the August retreat helps participants learn healthy ways to express their grief.

“Under the guidance of professional grief support staff and specially trained volunteers, participants are taught healthy ways to express their grief in a safe, supportive and fun environment, while also getting to know others who are on a similar journey,” Knotts said.

Campers ages 7 to 17 attended therapeutic workshops, age-specific grief support groups and participated in supervised camp activities, such as swimming, fishing, drumming, yoga and arts and crafts.

Camp New Dawn uses Camp Pecometh near Centreville as the site for the long-weekend camp, and Knotts said Compass Regional Hospice is “deeply grateful and appreciative for all the support from Camp Pecometh’s staff.”

Camp New Dawn also included an overnight adult and family retreat that began Sunday, Aug. 19. While their campers were busy learning how to cope with their grief, parents and guardians were invited to attend the adult retreat designed to help restore participants to a place of wholeness as they learn to navigate their own grief journey. Activities included grief support groups, therapeutic workshops and restorative activities, such as sunrise yoga and nature walks. The adults then were then joined by their children for overnight family camp, where they came together to learn skills they could take home with them. A mini retreat for children ages 4 to 6 was held Monday, Aug. 20.

The cost of Camp New Dawn was $30 per camper and $75 per family. These fees represent a small fraction of the actual cost of operating Camp New Dawn and no one is ever turned away because of an inability to pay. Compass Regional Hospice relies on community donations, grants and fundraising events to cover expenses, so that anyone who needs to attend may participate in Camp New Dawn.

During closing ceremonies, campers and volunteers gathered and walked to the ceremony together while chanting “We Heal. We Laugh. We Create.”

Knotts said she is grateful for a community who cares and who devoted time, resources and funding to make sure camp is available to those who need it.

“Camp New Dawn is a year-round priority for us at Compass Regional Hospice,” Knotts said. “We work really hard all year to make sure we have what we need for these children and families.”

For more information about Camp New Dawn, contact Knotts at 443-262-4109 or rknotts@compassregionalhospice.org. For more information about volunteering for Camp New Dawn, contact Courtney Williams, assistant Camp New Dawn director, at 443-262-4112 or cwilliams@compassregionalhospice.org. For more information about donating to Camp New Dawn, contact Kenda Leager, development officer, at 443-262-4106 or kleager@compassregionalhospice.org.

Compass Regional Hospice – Care on your terms

Compass Regional Hospice is a fully licensed, independent, community-based nonprofit organization certified by Medicare and the state of Maryland and accredited by the Joint Commission. Since 1985, Compass Regional Hospice has been dedicated to supporting people of all ages through the challenge of living with a life-limiting illness and learning to live following the death of a loved one. Today, the organization is a regional provider of hospice care and grief support in Queen Anne’s, Kent and Caroline counties. “Care on your terms” is the promise that guides staff and volunteers as they care for patients in private residences, nursing homes, assisted living facilities and the residential hospice centers in Centreville and Chestertown. Grief support services are offered to children, adults and families of patients who died under hospice care, as well as members of the community who are grieving the loss of a loved one, through The Hope and Healing Center. For more information about Compass Regional Hospice, visit compassregionalhospice.org.

Paul M. Katz, DO, FACA, FASAM will join the medical team at Eastern Shore Psychological Services (ESPS) full time this month.  As the Associate Medical Director for Recovery Services, he will lead the Agency’s recovery team in expanding state of the art Recovery Programs.  Dr. Katz will provide direct care services primarily at the agency’s Kent and Talbot County locations.  Dr. Katz is board certified in addiction medicine, anesthesiology and family practice.  He received his doctorate from Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine and training in anesthesiology at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.  Dr. Katz is Diplomat of the American Board of Addiction Medicine and President-Elect of the Maryland-D.C. Society of Addiction Medicine He in the Founder of the Chesapeake Wellness Center where he has provided specialized treatment in substance abuse in Cecil County since 2000.

Dr. Ben Kohl, Director of Mid Shore Programs for ESPS notes, “We are thrilled to have Dr. Katz join our team.  His philosophy of treating the whole person, commitment to promoting mental wellness and relapse prevention, and clear dedication to treating this epidemic in rural communities makes him a perfect match for our agency.”

Eastern Shore Psychological Services was formed in 1999 in Salisbury, Maryland by Dr. Kathryn Seifert and has grown to become one of the leading providers of behavioral health on the Shore.   The agency, which has locations in Somerset, Worchester, Talbot and Kent counties, annually helps over 3,000 consumers address mental health concerns, recover from substance use problems, and heal from the impact of trauma.  Dr. Larry Pezor, ESPS Chief Medical Officer, adds, “Dr. Katz’ expertise brings a level of care and quality of service unsurpassed by any Agency on the Eastern Shore”.

To learn more about how to access ESPS services please call 443-282-0102 or visit www.espsmd.com.