Southwestern Vermont Medical Center to Host Women's Health Webinar Series

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BENNINGTON, Vt. — This February, Southwestern  Vermont Medical Center (SVMC) will host four webinars focused on a range of public health topics designed for women in the community.

In this webinar series, women will gain knowledge and skills aimed at improving their physical, emotional, and social wellbeing from knowledgeable community partners.

"Healthy women are an integral part of a healthy community," said Rory Price, SVMC's coordinator of Population Health. "We are thrilled to provide opportunities for learning, sharing, and discussion, all within a judgment-free environment."

The webinar series will be held 6 – 7:15 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays over the course of two weeks beginning on Tuesday, Feb. 16. All are free. Interested individuals are invited to sign-up for the series or just the sessions that interest them. Those interested in attending should visit svhealthcare.org/classes-events to register.

"This webinar series will be especially useful for any woman currently navigating a substance use disorder," said Lindsay Spitz, a SVMC's AmeriCorps VISTA fellow, who is organizing the event. "Though we are confident that the series offers something for every woman in our community."

Each session will feature mini-lectures led by dedicated medical staff and community partners, followed by a short question-and-answer session with the evening's presenters. The series will also feature an opioid education component, including a Narcan administration training. Topics include:

Sexual Health 101
6 – 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021
Speakers include Kelsey Dueland of the Project Against Violent Encounters (PAVE); a local provider from Planned Parenthood, Bennington Health Center; and Kimberley Sampson, MD, of SVMC OB/GYN. They will cover sexual and reproductive health for women and address relationship dynamics, sexual health, and long-term contraception in a series of mini-lectures.

Opioid Safety
6 – 7:15 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021
Speakers Julea Larsen, of the Turning Point Center of Bennington County, and Sue Conely of AIDS Project of Southern Vermont (APSV), will demonstrate NARCAN administration and share information on syringe services. This session will be especially useful to any woman currently navigating Opioid Use Disorder, whether it be her own or that of a loved one.

Social Health 101
6 – 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021
Speakers including Stephanie MacCrea of the Vermont Department of Health; Shelly Faris of BROC; Wendy Callert of the Vermont Association of Business, Industry, and Rehabilitation (VABIR);  Wendy Morse of the Vermont Department of Labor; Kara Pallman of the Vermont Department of Children and Families Economic Services Division; and Maria Burt of Vocational Rehabilitation of Vermont in Bennington, will address food access and nutrition, employment, and financial literacy in a series of mini-lectures.

Opioid Recovery
6 – 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2021
Speakers including Pamela Aulicino, MSN, RN, of Southwestern Vermont Healthcare and Vermont Blueprint for Health; Themarge Small, MD, of SVMC OB/GYN; and Julea Larsen of the Turning Point Center of Bennington County will cover recovery resources available to local women. Together, they will discuss pregnancy and OUD, medically assisted therapy (MAT), and community recovery resources in a series of mini-lectures. This session will be useful to women looking to begin their recovery journey, especially expectant mothers.

Those interested in attending should visit svhealthcare.org/classes-events to register.

 


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We Can be Thankful for Vermont's Wild Turkeys

MONTPELIER, Vt. — One of our native wildlife species historically played an important role on Thanksgiving Day.  
 
North America's native wild turkeys were the ancestors of the Thanksgiving turkey on our dinner table. 
 
Originally found only in the wild, turkeys now exist as meat-producing domesticated varieties -- the broad breasted white, broad breasted bronze, white Holland, bourbon red, and a host of other breeds – all of them descended from our native wild turkey. 
 
More than 140,000 servings of Vermont wild turkeys are harvested each year – that's 140,000 servings of free-ranging, wild and sustainably harvested protein. 
 
Wild turkeys exist throughout Vermont today, but that was not always the case.  Wild turkeys disappeared from Vermont in the mid-to-late 1800s due to habitat destruction when land was cleared for farming and only 25 percent of the state was covered by forest.
 
The wild turkeys we see in Vermont today originated from just 31 wild turkeys stocked in Southwestern Vermont by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department in 1969 and 1970.  Vermont's forest habitat was once again capable of supporting turkeys.  State wildlife biologists moved groups of these birds northward, and today Vermont's population of turkeys is estimated at close to 50,000.    
 
This is just one of many wildlife restoration success stories we can be thankful for in 2024.  Funding for Vermont's wild turkey restoration was derived from the sale of hunting licenses and a federal tax on hunting equipment. 
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