Healthy Kids Running Series Kicks Off April 27
Courtney Carter
/ Categories: WELLNESS, 2024

Healthy Kids Running Series Kicks Off April 27

A Bennington chapter of Healthy Kids Running Series, a national, community-based nonprofit that provides fun running and competition opportunities for kids, is slated to kick off on April 27th at 2 p.m. at Mount Anthony Union High School.

According to Joel Stark, the program’s community coordinator, Healthy Kids is designed for children ages 2 to 14 and “aims to inspire children to be active and healthy while creating meaningful relationships within our community.”

Held over a series of five weeks, the series involves once-a-week races on Sundays. Participants are grouped with age peers and challenged to run age-appropriate race distances. Runners compete each week for a chance to earn points. At the end of the Series the boys and girls who accumulate the most points in their respective distances are awarded trophies, while all participants receive a medal on Week 5. 

The local program co-coordinator Laura Stark notes, “The program provides a safe, family atmosphere and welcomes children of all abilities. It’s a great way to build their self-esteem while helping them discover the joy and sense of accomplishment that can come from being active and pushing yourself.”

The first weekly session of Healthy Kids will be Sunday, April 27 at 2 p.m. at Mount Anthony Union High School at 130 Park Street, Bennington.

Early bird registration for the Healthy Kids Running Series is live at this link. All registrations received before April 6 will be discounted to $48.70 (including fees); registrations received after April 6 will be $54.00 (including fees).

To learn more, click here.

Print
975

Theme picker


 

 

 

Six Questions with General Surgeon Gina Diaz, MD

Both outpatient surgical procedures and those requiring an overnight stay are once again being offered at SVMC. General Surgeon Gina Diaz, MD, answers six questions about resuming surgical procedures safely.

1. How does it feel to be able to, once again, offer all of the procedures you had in the past?

As a surgeon, I like to do surgeries. So, to be honest, it feels wonderful get back to the work I enjoy. From late March through the beginning of May, we were still performing emergency surgeries, so everyone who needed a surgery was able to receive one during that time. But it's good to be back to a mix of scheduled and emergency procedures.

 

2. What types of procedures you perform?

My mentor during training sub-specialized in colon and rectal surgeries, and he passed that expertise and interest on to me. But I decided not to sub-specialize, because I also enjoy doing gall bladders, ulcer surgery, hernias, and the removal of skin lesions, cysts, and melanomas. Dr. Charles Salem and I work as a team on breast cancer surgeries. As a group, we provide thyroid and parathyroid and endocrine surgeries. And I provide colonoscopies. I grew up playing video games, which have a lot in common with colonoscopies, I think.

 

3. What do you like most about your job?

Surgery allows you to fix a problem for a patient right then and there. You don't have to wait 6 months for the problem to get better. You can make a problem go away. It’s very rewarding in that way.

 

4. In general, what additional precautions have been put in place to ensure that care is safe?

As surgeons, our precautionary measures have always been among the most advanced. We have always washed and sanitized many, many times a day. We were accustomed to wearing masks and shields, long before COVID-19. We implemented all of the recommendations from our industry, state, and national health institutions and review them consistently.

The whole team takes and reports their temperature daily. If patients are at risk of COVID-19, we wear N95 masks and can convert the operating room into a negative-pressure room. All of these precautions ensure that we don’t transmit infections to patients and they don't transmit them to us. I feel really good about the precautions that we have put in place.

 

5. What would you like to share with people who postponed care because of COVID-19?

I would share that it is safe to come to the hospital, see your providers, and have surgeries done. Adequate precautions are in place, and they are not going anywhere. We, as a group, feel it's safe. We encourage patients who are apprehensive to ask a lot of questions. We want them to be as comfortable as we are about having their procedure done.

 

6. How do you feel about providing care during this time?

I feel comfortable and safe providing care at this time. The new precautions we have put in place really protect both patients and staff, and the quality of care we provide is as high as ever. 

Theme picker


Theme picker


Theme picker


Our Services

PARTNERSHIP IS POWERFUL MEDICINE

A commitment to excellence and a patient-centered approach sets Southwestern Vermont Health Care apart.

 Cancer Care
 Orthopedics
 Emergency
 Maternity
 Primary Care
 ExpressCare
 Cardiology
 Rehab & Residential Care
View All Services

Theme picker

Theme picker

Theme picker

Theme picker

Theme picker