HEALTH NEWS DIGEST | Check Out Hunger

Check Out Hunger

YOUNGSTOWN

Through April 23, Sparkle Market customers can help Check Out Hunger, a program to benefit the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley, while they are checking out.

Cashiers will ask customers to tear off a $1, $5 or $10 coupon, which will be added to the grocery bill.

Customers can also donate nonperishable food items.

Sparkle Markets participating in Check Out Hunger are: Cortland Sparkle Market, 169 South High St.; Frattaroli Sparkle Market, 11045 Main St., New Middletown; Klingemier’s Sparkle Market, 5634 Mahoning Ave., Champion; Parkman Road Sparkle Market, 2587 Parkman Road, Warren; and West Side Sparkle Market, 1912 Mahoning Ave., Youngstown.

The community can also donate nonperishable food items at Cochran’s Sparkle Market, 4121 South Ave., Youngstown, and Niles Sparkle Market, 140 North Main St., Niles.

Achievement award

YOUNGSTOWN

Northside Medical Center has received the Get With The Guidelines-Heart Failure Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award from the American Heart Association for excellence in the treatment of patients with heart failure. The award is given to hospitals that achieve 85 percent or higher adherence to Get With The Guidelines-Heart Failure Quality Achievement indicators for two or more consecutive 12-month intervals, and 75 percent or higher compliance with four of nine Get With The Guidelines-Heart Failure Quality Measures to improve quality of patient care and outcomes.

Get With The Guidelines is a quality-improvement initiative that provides hospitals with tools that follow proved, evidence-based guidelines and procedures to improve outcomes and prevent future hospitalizations.

Healthy hospital

SHARON, PA.

Sharon Regional Health System has received the Healthy Hospital Award from Ascent, a division of Stryker Corp., a designation reserved for hospitals that demonstrate outstanding efforts to reduce their environmental footprint on health-care delivery.

In 2010, Sharon Regional Health System reduced supply costs by $68,441, savings that have been redirected to improving patient care.

At the same time, using remanufactured and reprocessed medical devices has reduced the hospital’s medical waste by 1,757 pounds. The health system is also helping to care for the environment by diverting its medical waste from local landfills through participation in the reprocessing program.

New schedule

WARREN

The Warren Family Mission’s new schedule for distribution of clothing and food baskets is 9 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday. Participants whose last names begin with A-E come on Monday; F-J, Tuesday; K-O, Wednesday; P-S, Thursday, and T-Z, Friday. A photo identification is required. There is a one-bag- per-month limit.