Winter Travel Reminders
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/ Categories: WELLNESS, 2021

Winter Travel Reminders

Winter weather is upon us, and with it increased risks involved in daily travel as well as long-distance road trips for holiday getaways. Many are not prepared to properly prevent and handle travel accidents. Now is an excellent time to review the steps that can prevent travel mishaps and the appropriate measures to take, should an untimely accident arise.

Keep your car equipped and in good repair. As winter approaches, equip your car with an ice scraper, a snowbrush, jumper cables, and snow tires. Abide by regular maintenance recommendations, and have a mechanic check the car before long trips for any mechanical issues. Also, ensure that the tires are properly inflated, that wipers thoroughly clear the windshield, that fluids are topped off, and that you have plenty of gas.  

Equip your car with a winter first aid kit.  Gathering an emergency kit of items you would need is well worth the time and expense. It would even make a great gift for those people in your life who are tough to buy for. Ensure your car is equipped with a jack and lug wrench to change a tire. Older vehicles do not always have their originally supplied equipment. For emergencies at any time of year, you would likely want to have several other items on hand. Pack a cell phone charger or rechargeable battery pack; a flashlight, hand-cranked or with extra batteries; a first aid kit, including band-aides, adhesive tape, antiseptic wipes, gauze pads, antiseptic ointment, and medical wrap; bottled water; and road flares or reflective triangles.

For winter travel emergencies, include windshield washing fluid, a bag of sand to be used for extra traction, a collapsible snow shovel, emergency blanket, work gloves, safety whistle, and hand warmers. Those who are traveling outside cell reception, could also include a car fire extinguisher; tire gauge; a multi-tool; baby wipes; duct tape; blankets; non-perishable, high-energy foods, like energy bars or trail mix; a battery-powered radio; matches in a water-proof container; cord and scissors; and a compass.

Know your route. Plan your route in advance. Be sure to prepare with both electronic means of navigation and paper directions, and let a friend or family member know which way you intend to go and when you expect to arrive. Check in with them once you get there.   

Check the conditions. Pay attention to the weather forecast for the time you will be traveling. Also, ensure that you, yourself, are in good health. Viral illnesses, like the flu or COVID-19, can slow response times significantly. If you are feeling unwell or the weather looks treacherous, cancel the trip.

Dress for the worst. Be sure to have clothes that would protect you from the cold, if your car could no longer be used as a source of heat or if you had to be outside for a while. Also have an extra pair of clothes to change into, should the ones you are wearing become wet. Wear or carry boots, a hat, warm gloves, scarf, and coat.

Leave extra time. Give yourself more time for travel. You may need to slow your speed and increase following distance. Do not be in a rush. Budget time to brush off car entirely, including the roof, bumpers, and all of the lights. Snow can slide off the roof of the car and impair visibility for you and other drivers. Clean the windshield and wipers of all snow and ice.

In case of an accident, leave your car only to place flares or reflective triangles at the front and rear. Don’t try to push your vehicle out of the snow. Make sure the exhaust pipe is free of snow, mud, or other objects, and keep the car running with the heat on, if possible. Call for help.

While we can’t prevent every instance of trouble, we can be prudent and prepare in ways that will improve our ability to keep ourselves and our passengers safe.

Crystal Labbe-Hasty, PA-C, is a physician assistant at SVMC ExpressCare in Bennington. It is part of Southwestern Vermont Medical Center and Southwestern Vermont Health Care.  

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Emergency Department: Open, Ready, Safe. 

The last 3 months have been a uniquely challenging experience in the SVMC Emergency Department (ED) and emergency departments and hospitals all over the country and the world. I am very proud of all our staff has done and continues to do to ensure safe care for patients during this era of COVID-19. We are grateful that cases of COVID-19 in our area have been the lowest in the U.S. and have decreased even further over the past several weeks. We are also heartened to see that patients who had been avoiding the ED are now confident to return to get the care they need.

It may be surprising to hear that over the past few months, the sickest patients we have seen in the ER have not had COVID-19. Many people have refrained from seeking care for serious medical problems due to the fear of being exposed to the virus, assuming that the hospital was not a safe place to be and not recognizing the seriousness of their symptoms. The most challenging moments of the past several months have involved critically ill patients who tried to stay away for far too long due to fear of being exposed to COVID-19. We have had many sad moments trying to care for those who waited until it was too late for us to help with conditions that could have been easily treated if presented sooner.

One might expect that the greatest challenges related to the pandemic were those needed to adapt our facilities and procedures and the work of caring for sick COVID-19 patients. SVMC is fortunate to have built a strong foundation of safety and infection-prevention methods over many years, which made this transition much easier. Still, when it became apparent that we were going to see COVID-19 cases coming through our doors, we implemented many COVID-specific changes very quickly.

From day one our staff have all been fully trained to use protective equipment effectively, to focus on cleaning and disinfecting, and to move patients safely through the new areas created to keep them safe. We also spaced the waiting room chairs to allow for plenty of distance and initiated drive-by testing to keep potentially contagious people outside and away from other patients.

We immediately increased our standard of protective equipment we use. For example, all staff who relate with patients now wear both a mask and protective shield, which is a proven and effective strategy to prevent transmission. Those staff who work with patients with respiratory or other contagious symptoms also wear a gown and advanced respirators developed in cooperation with Mack Molding in Arlington. They look strange, but they help us deliver care safely.

We also quickly built special spaces and units in the hospital to treat and segregate patients with respiratory symptoms who might be contagious from those with other routine medical problems. Outpatients with symptoms that could be related to COVID-19 are directed to a spacious area called the Respiratory Evaluation Center. There they can be taken to a safe treatment space called a negative-pressure room without encountering any patients who are using the ED for other reasons or any staff who are not fully equipped with protective gear. There are similar, safe, negative-pressure units for those who require treatment in the ED or hospital.

Our hard work paid off. We have treated a number of COVID-19 patients in our ED and, as far as we know, not a single staff member was sickened in relation to their work here, and no patients have contracted COVID-19 while under our care. With our current procedures and drastically declining COVID numbers, we are confident that we can continue that trend. Furthermore, SVMC recently received a perfect score on a rigorous survey specifically designed to judge our ability to prevent transmission of COVID-19. At this time our ED is safer than just about any other public place you could go.

My goal in writing today is to communicate that SVMC’s Emergency Department is open, ready, and safe. If you need emergency care, we are here and we can care for you safely. Please do not defer emergency care until it is too late for us to help. While many symptoms can represent a serious medical problem, the most concerning are chest pain, difficulty breathing, fast heart rate, confusion, high fever, intense headache, drooping face, dehydration, or weakness. Of course, with any other symptom you feel indicates a serious problem, come in right away or call 9-1-1.

For us, spending time with patients and connecting on a personal level is the best part of our jobs. We take pride in our life-saving role in our communities and the work we have been able to do during the pandemic, but we cannot help if you do not come in. Please don’t hesitate to get the care you need when you need it.

Adam Cohen, MD, is a board-certified emergency medicine physician at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center. He also serves as the chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine and the medical director of SVMC’s Emergency Department.

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