Free CPR Class to be held at PMH
CPR (Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation) is an important skill that everyone should learn.  You never know when you may need to know CPR to save the life of a family member or perhaps a complete stranger.  Just seconds of a person being unable to breathe can cause irreversible brain damage.
Pocahontas Memorial Hospital will offer a free class for anyone who is interested in becoming certified in CPR.  The class will be held Monday, February 18, at 8 a.m. and will last approximately three hours.  While there is no charge for the class itself, a certification card issued by the American Safety and Health Institute will cost $6.  Space is limited, so please pre-register for the class by contacting Sara Casto at 304-799-7400 ext. 1020.
 For parents and childcare providers - knowing CPR is strongly recommended and encouraged.  Choking is a leading cause of death in children under the age of five.  Young children are much more likely to put things in their mouths; and certain foods pose choking hazards, as well.
Someday you may encounter a person whose breathing or heart has stopped.  Immediate action with CPR can mean the difference between life and death, as an ambulance might not arrive for several minutes.
 Do yourself – and your loved ones – a favor.  Get certified in CPR.
 
Show your heart some love with a cardiology appointment
February is National Heart Health Month.  If you have a heart, you could have heart disease.  Heart disease occurs when the arteries that supply blood and oxygen to the heart muscle become hardened and narrowed due to a buildup of plaque on the arteries’ inner walls.  As plaque continues to build, blood flow to the heart is reduced.  If the blood supply is completely cut off, it causes a heart attack.
Heart disease develops over time – sometimes beginning in childhood – and is a lifelong condition.  There is no true cure for heart disease; once you have it, you will always have it.  The state of West Virginia ranks fourth in the nation for heart disease death rates.  Heart disease is the #1 killer of both men and women in West Virginia - about one in four people die from heart disease.
Pocahontas Memorial Hospital works hard to better the lives of those who live in and visit our community.  One way we do this is by hosting monthly “specialty” clinics. 
Dr. Gary Roberts, a Cardiologist with Greenbrier Cardiology, holds a clinic at PMH on the second Wednesday of each month.  This is a wonderful opportunity for Pocahontas County residents to see a doctor specializing in heart health without traveling to Lewisburg or Elkins.  For an appointment, you will need a referral from your regular medical provider.  Please call Dr. Roberts’s office if you have any questions at 304-793-2574.