What to wear?

National Wear Red Day has its own dress code. Wear your favorite red clothes or accessory – a red blouse, a red sweater, a red dress pin, a red handbag – put on red lipstick or throw on some red socks. Go red in your own fashion to show your support for women and the fight against heart disease.

And gentlemen, you’re not excluded from the fashion party, either. Show your support for your favorite ladies by donning red tomorrow. There are a couple of Chicago sports teams currently playing that prominently feature the color red. So bust out your Rose, Boozer, Kane or Toews jerseys!

If you visit Sherman Hospital tomorrow, you’ll definitely be seeing red. Do the same and show your support tomorrow!

Visit the Sherman Health Facebook Page for details on this month’s “What do you Heart?” contest.

February is American Heart Month, and throughout the month’s 28.25 days, we like to dispense plenty of heart-healthy tips, from nutrition to breaking news to expert Sherman voices. We’ll be doing that again this year (check the Sherman Heart Blog for frequent updates this February), but we also wanted to give a little bit of praise to hearts themselves, one of the hardest working and most underappreciated parts of our bodies.

Much like a railroad engineer or a football referee, the heart is typically noticed only when something goes wrong. We generally don’t notice any of the daily tens or even hundreds of thousands of beats our hearts pump out every day to keep us alive.

To maintain that amount of consistency, we have to fuel our hearts with things like proper nutrition, 30 minutes of daily exercise, and a good night’s sleep.

But along with those healthy staples, our hardworking hearts need emotional and mental fulfillment as well. Whether your passion lies in spending quality time with your spouse, playing with your kids, reading a great book, stretching yourself creatively, or running a marathon, doing what you love brings a warmth to your heart that you simply don’t feel after eating a great meal, no matter how healthy it may be.

Throughout February, we’re holding a contest on the Sherman Health Facebook Page that simply asks: What do you heart? Similar to the paragraph above, it can be anything you feel passion for. Tell us what you heart through a photo submission by Friday, February 17 at noon. If your submission is chosen by our judges to perfectly exemplify the spirit of the heart, you could win a 1-night hotel stay and spa treatment for two at the JW Marriott in Chicago or a 16 GB iPod Nano.

Entering the contest is easy to do. Just click here and then click the “Enter Contest” button to get started. All you need is a Facebook profile!

Stay tuned to the Sherman Health Blog and the Sherman Heart Blog for all sorts of wonderful heart tips this month, and start brainstorming about what you heart most!

1. Sherman Immediate Care – South Elgin
2000 McDonald Rd
2nd Monday of Each Month
8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

2. Sherman Bartlett Group Practice
864 Stearns Road, Suite 103
2nd Friday of Each Month
8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

For $139 for all, or $40 per screening, here is what you can get done:

• Carotid Artery Screening
• Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Screening
• Peripheral Vascular Screening (Ankle/Brachial Index)
• Cholesterol Screening which includes: Total Lipid Panel and Glucose
• Osteoporosis Screening for Women
• Blood Pressure Screening
• Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist Circumference

Tests will be read by a board-certified physician and the results will be sent to your individual physician. If you do not have a physician, we will help you find one.

To schedule an appointment, or if your business or organization is interested in the corporate screening process, please call 224.783.6500.

In stroke care, knowing the symptoms to look for is a huge advantage in treating the stroke itself and the subsequent recovery. The National Stroke Association has a useful acronym (F.A.S.T.) that will help you remember what to look for. If you answer “Yes” to any of these criteria, seek immediate medical attention.

• Face – Is one side of the face drooping?
• Arms – Does one arm droop downward after both are raised?
• Speech – Are words being slurred when speaking?
• Time – As the saying goes, “In stroke care, time is brain.” If any of the symptoms are met, time is of the essence. Get to the hospital as quickly as possible. Call 9-1-1. Act FAST.

Sherman Hospital has earned The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for certification as a Primary Stroke Center. We are always prepared to assist in stroke identification, treatment, and recovery.

January 13, 2012 — The Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council (MCHC), Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) and Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) today released a new public service announcement to raise awareness about Illinois Helps, a statewide database that registers volunteers to respond to major disasters or public health emergencies in the state.

MCHC, IDPH and CDPH are encouraging both medical and non-medical volunteers to register with Illinois Helps. More than 3,700 Illinoisans are already registered with the system and may be called upon to respond to any number of emergency situations including blizzards, disease outbreaks like H1N1 and bioterrorism attacks. Illinois Helps also allows hospitals to verify the licenses and credentials of professional health care volunteers who come to their facilities to care for the influx of patients experienced during emergencies.

The PSA is embedded below. If you’d like to volunteer, click here to register with Illinois Helps.