Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation

Heart disease can be a life-changing diagnosis. Jefferson Community Health & Life provides an outpatient phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation program. If you have had a recent heart surgery or stent placement or have congestive heart failure, you may be eligible for cardiac rehabilitation. Medicare and most commercial insurances cover cardiac rehabilitation.

Cardiac rehabilitation helps control symptoms of heart disease and teaches patients to reduce cardiac risk factors such as weight, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking. What patients learn and practice during the program will carry over into their daily lives long after cardiac rehab classes are complete.

Cardiac rehabilitation is a monitored exercise program of aerobic and resistance training exercise. It also includes education to reduce your risk factors for heart problems. Rehab includes nutrition counseling and stress management techniques. Rehab helps you gain strength, endurance and confidence to return to your normal daily activities. A physician’s order is required to attend.

Pulmonary Rehabilitation is an individually tailored program to help those with breathing disorders learn better breathing techniques, proper exercise, endurance building, stress handling and more. It provides education and specific training to help those with breathing disorders live the fullest life possible. Pulmonary rehabilitation is covered by Medicare and many commercial insurances.

Twila Scheetz, RN is the cardiac and pulmonary rehab nurse at Jefferson Community Health & Life. For more information, call her at 402.729.3351.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy for cancer treatment is available at Jefferson Community Health & Life. Carol Blobaum RN, an oncology certified nurse, works with oncologists who order chemotherapy. Jefferson Community Health & Life Pharmacy mixes and prepares chemotherapy drugs for administration. Joni Tilford, MD, oncologist from the Southeast Nebraska Cancer Center in Lincoln, visits Jefferson Community Health & Life once a month for consultation with patients. Jefferson Community Health & Life works with other oncologists as well.

Diabetes Education

You can learn how to live an active live with diabetes and we can help! The mission of the Jefferson Community Health & Life diabetes education program is to provide quality diabetes self-management education to individuals through collaboration with physicians and the Jefferson Community Health & Life diabetes care team. The diabetes self-management education program at Jefferson Community Health & Life is recognized by the American Diabetes Association. This recognition signifies that the program meets the national standards for diabetes education and provides dedicated staff members who help people manage diabetes effectively.

• Learn to make good choices to prevent or delay complications from diabetes.
• Develop skills in coping with the demands of living with diabetes.
• Let us help you identify problem areas and assist in overcoming those problems.
• Learn to identify barriers that make it hard for you to control your blood sugar.
• See how smart nutrition can make managing your diabetes easier.
• Learn how to count carbohydrate grams.

Diabetes self-management education is recommended:

• For those who are newly diagnosed with diabetes
• For those with poor blood sugar control
• When A1C test is greater than 7%
• For complications that have required hospital or emergency room treatment

Are you at risk for diabetes? Take a risk test today to find out.

Classes at Jefferson Community Health & Life are available in both individual and group settings. If you are interested in education and would like to schedule an appointment please call 402.729.3351 ext. 4496.

Instructors

• Rebekah Kimberlin, PharmD, BC-ADM
• Lisa Edeal, RDN, LMNT

Diabetes Self-Management Education is a service covered by Medicare and many private insurance companies. A physician referral is required.

Immunization Clinic

Blue Valley Community Action Partnership provides immunizations for children at Jefferson Community Health & Life throughout the year. Use the Outpatient/Emergency Entrance to access our clinic services. Appointments are required – call 402.826.2141 to schedule. Please have your insurance or Medicaid information ready when you call for an appointment, and bring your card with you on the day of your visit. Click here to view this year’s immunization clinic schedule.

Lung Cancer Screening

Lung cancer continues to be the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. There are 94 million smokers in the United States, many of them at high risk for lung cancer.

A study was done by the National Cancer Institute where the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) compared CT scans with chest x-rays to screen for lung cancer in patients ages 55-74. The CT scans were found to reduce the number of deaths from lung cancer by 20 percent.

Based on these results, the radiology department at Jefferson Community Health & Life Health Center has created a program using Low-Dose CT Lung Cancer Screening Program for patients meeting the criteria below.

Criteria for Low-Dose CT:

• Men or Women 55-74 years of age
• 30 pack-year smoking history
• If former smoker, quit date within last 15 years
• No weight loss greater than 10 pounds in the last month
• No chest CT scan in the last 12 months
• Change in cough, shortness of breath or hemoptysis (blood in sputum)

Scheduling a Low-Dose CT Scan:

• Make an appointment with your physician to discuss whether you meet criteria.
• Call Jefferson Community Health Center at 402.729.6841.
• Results are interpreted by a board-certified radiologist and will be sent to the ordering physician.
• If insurance does not cover the cost of the screening, it can be completed for $250 payable at the time of service.

Nutritional education

Need help making healthier eating choices? Medical nutrition therapy by our nutrition counselor, Lisa Edeal, RDN, LMNT, can assess your dietary habits, food intake and health needs and determine what changes need to be made. Once those changes have been determined, she can work with you to set nutrition and health goals and create a plan.

Health concerns discussed in this program include:

• Cholesterol reduction
• Crohn’s disease
• Diabetes
• Food allergies
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Weight loss

Medical nutrition therapy may be covered by Medicare and some commercial insurance, and must be ordered by a physician to be covered. An appointment with the dietitian may also be scheduled on a private pay basis.

For more information, please call Lisa Edeal, RDN, LMNT at 402.729.6846.

Outpatient Services

Whether you need an allergy shot, blood thinning medication, blood products, fluids or other infusion, Jefferson Community Health & Life is able to assist you through our outpatient services. A physician’s order is required. Contact Jefferson Community Health & Life outpatient services at 402.729.6851 for more information.

Sleep Studies

About 70 million Americans suffer from sleep problems. A sleep study can be very helpful in the identification of sleep disorders. Rural Sleep Solutions provides sleep studies at Jefferson Community Health & Life as an outpatient service through the Respiratory Therapy department. A sleep study requires a physician’s order and is typically covered by Medicare and most commercial insurance companies.

Services:

• Polysomnography – records several body functions during sleep, including brain activity, eye movement, oxygen and carbon dioxide blood levels, heart rate and rhythm, flow of air through the mouth and nose, snoring, body muscle and limb movements and chest and belly movement
• Split-night polysomnography – is done when moderate or severe sleep apnea has been discovered or strongly suspected during the first part of the night’s study. The second half of the night is used to determine the CPAP pressure needed to offset apnea. On some occasions, if solid sleep is not obtained until late in the sleep study or the criteria for a split night study is not nearly enough in the study, a patient may be asked to return for a second study to complete the CPAP titration portion of the study.
• CPAP/BiPAP/Adapt SV Application and/or Titration Polysomnography – CPAP (including CPAP, BiPAP and Adapt SV) are devices used to treat sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is a disorder characterized by repeated episodes of stoppage of airflow caused by collapse and closure of the airway at the level of the pharynx. The concept of CPAP is to increase the pressure of the air that you breathe during sleep. Then, the inspired air, under pressure, acts as a splint and holds the airway open. CPAP is an extremely effective method of treating sleep apnea. The CPAP device consists of a mask, connected by tubing to a small air compressor that sits at the bedside. This machine does not breathe for you. It just changes the pressure of the air that you breathe. Before going to sleep, the tech will fit you with a CPAP mask or nasal pillow device. During the night of the titration, the pressure will be gradually adjusted by the tech until the apnea is resolved and airflow is normalized. You will be monitored throughout the study. At the conclusion of testing, the data collected during the study will be reviewed by a doctor of sleep medicine and we will obtain orders based on his recommendations. If you are already using a CPAP, any changes to your existing orders will be sent to your home care provider. If you are not currently on CPAP, we will work closely with you to arrange set up of CPAP equipment.
• Oxygen Administration
• Home sleep test – also called an Out of Sleep Center Test — used exclusively for the diagnosis of sleep apnea. Portable equipment is sent home with the patient. The parameters/channels for a home study are usually limited to airflow, respiratory effort and oximetry. A more in depth study performed in a sleep center may be required if a home sleep test comes back positive for sleep disordered breathing.

Limitations:

• Clients over 500 pounds in weight will be referred to a sleep medicine center equipped to care for bariatric patients.
• Clients 13 years and younger will be referred to a sleep medicine center equipped to care for pediatric patients.

For more information, please contact Stacy Shumard RRT, director of respiratory and sleep lab services, at 402.729.3351, ext. 4436.