April 2021 Tidbits Around Here Gold Country Health Center | 530-621-1100 EXT:4036 | SNF Newsletter Celebrating April Finch Feeders Are Back I’m sure you have noticed the empty bird feeders around Habitat Awareness Month the facility since February. In February, Mountain Democrat did an article on Salmonellosis outbreak April Fools’ Day causing finch deaths in our area. We called Sierra Wildlife April 1 Rescue to inquire on what we should do here. To help reduce the spread and reduce disease transmission, we Easter haven’t filled the feeders. It has been sad not to see the birds and we can hear them sing to us to fill the feeders. April 4 at 3:00PM We were told to wait a month and the waiting has come to Talia’s Hymns in the Courtyard pass. The lockdown is over for the finches and new feeders have been bought and placed around skilled Morgan‘s Birthday nursing. If you wish to donate feeders or seed don’t Entertainment hesitate to call (530) 621-1100 EXT: 4036 April 9 at 4:00 PM in our Courtyard Gold Country Retirement and Health Centers Talia’s Student Recital Celebrates April 11 at 2:30PM in the NATIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL Courtyard WEEK Resident Council & April 18-24, 2021 Scrabble Day “Thanks for Being EPIC!” April 13 "REPRESENTING THE ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM" Denise Pirnik Kim Mattos Trisha Raines El Dorado Dance Academy Teresa Schoener Dawn Whitecotton Susan Keale April 17 at 2:30 PM in the Debbie Grote Ky Bessom Kate Stanford Parking Lot Claudia Bethke CoCo Decarlo Maureen Thompson EPIC: Essential*Phenomenal *Inspiring *Courageous Planting Party Outdoor April 21st at 2:30 PM Earth Day April 22 Kiss of Hope Day April 24 April 2021 An Olympian Task Unnatural History On April 6, 1896, the first modern Olympic Games If ever there was a day to believe in magic opened in Athens, Greece, nearly 1,500 years and hope for the impossible, it is April 9, after they had been banned by the Roman Unicorn Day. Unicorns have not entered our Emperor Theodosius I. The collective imagination from myth or legend but ancient games were a tribute to from natural history. Various ancient Greek the Greek god Zeus. Theodosius, historians recorded the existence of unicorns. a Christian ruler, abolished the games as part The Indus Valley Civilization emblazoned the of his campaign against paganism. It wasn’t unicorn on official seals, and a unique animal until 1894 that the Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin known as a re’em, which many believe to suggested reviving the competition. The 79 be a unicorn, is even mentioned in the Bible. delegates in attendance unanimously approved Even Leonardo da Vinci mentioned them in the proposal, and the International Olympic his famed notebooks. Modern-day scientists Committee (IOC) was formed. may have something in common with these scientists of centuries past. Researchers have What drove De Coubertin to revive the lost discovered evidence of a giant hairy rhino tradition of the Olympic Games? In 1890, he that roamed the grasslands of Eurasia as paid a visit to the Wenlock Olympian Society, recently as 39,000 years ago. This Ice Age organizers of the annual Wenlock Olympian relic survived long enough to live alongside Games, held in Shropshire, England. These humans. Scientists speculate that this games were spearheaded by local doctor William “Siberian unicorn” might very well have been Penny Brookes, a man who believed that sports the origin of many unicorn myths that pervaded and physical competition were as necessary so many ancient cultures. for one’s self-improvement as morality and education. Brookes organized the first Wenlock Every Day Is Earth Day Olympian Games in 1850 as a mixture of athletics (such as running, hurdles, quoits, football, and On April 22, 1970, Senator bicycle racing on penny farthings) and traditional Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin country games like blindfolded wheelbarrow races was so concerned about the and even an “Old Women’s Race” where the deteriorating natural landscape senior participants could win a pound of tea. of the United States that he Perhaps the most important aspect of the games organized the first Earth Day, was their egalitarianism. Aristocrats and working a day of teach-ins on college campuses to classes alike were invited to participate, for raise awareness of air and water pollution. Brookes keenly felt that athletics and friendly America’s passionate response to Earth Day competition could improve the entire town surprised Nelson. Millions of Americans, and community. regardless of political affiliation, race, or creed, banded together to support protecting the De Coubertin was deeply inspired by what environment. By the end of 1970, President Brookes had accomplished in Shropshire, and Nixon had created the Environmental Protection he modeled the IOC after Brookes’ Wenlock Agency, and shortly thereafter Congress Olympian Society. Although those very first passed the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act. Olympic Games in Athens featured 280 athletes It’s been over 50 years since that first Earth from 13 nations, the games lacked popular support. Day, and environmental action has never Not until 1924 were the first truly successful Summer seemed more urgent. Olympics held in Paris. After the first Winter Olympics were held later that year, De Coubertin felt his work was finally done, and he retired as IOC president in 1925. April 2021 From the Desk of Sandy…. But you can also get a copy from the resident’s Well a full year has passed in our world of a new primary support person. Again we are enforcing normal – the pandemic. While I/we see a distant light guidelines to protect you, your residents, and of at the end of the tunnel, I am asking each of you to be course staff. Not everyone could get the vaccine, and not everyone had COVID. patient and please continue to practice Social Distancing and Mask wearing. Please understand we are not trying to keep you away – we just have to be cautious so we don’t have In March, LTC facilities were authorized to another outbreak. We know many facilities that had temporarily modify their facility’s visitation policies 2 or more outbreaks and we hope we won’t join in accordance with CMS and CDC COVID-19 their ranks! Please reach out if you have any guidance when necessary to protect health and safety questions about where we are in our progress or if of residents, staff, and the public. Given progress with you have questions about our guidelines. vaccination, CDPH recommends a cautious and gradual lifting of certain restrictions because vaccines We had hoped to have the Call bell systems are highly effective in the prevention of severe and replaced and/or fully functional in both health symptomatic COVID-19. There is still limited center units last spring. This of course is now information on how much the vaccines reduce delayed for both units (ALU-completion and SNF transmission and how long protection lasts. In begin and finish) because of the no visitor rules (we addition, the efficacy of the vaccines against emerging can only have emergency repair person in). More SARS-CoV-2 variants is not known. We are working on this incomplete project in the upcoming months on creating availability for anyone on campus to get – hopefully with happy news that we will be the Johnson and Johnson vaccine if you missed an finishing this project on both units. opportunity for Pfizer or Moderna. Stay tuned for upcoming “clinics” down at the health center! Have a thought, question or suggestion on how we can be even better? Feel free to call me at You will see increased visitation in the Health Center, (530) 621-1100, or email me at with indoor visits allowed (with guidelines); and [email protected] outside visits encouraged. In our apartments we are slowly seeing families return to visit using our WE SALUTE OUR LOCAL PHYSICIANS recommended Social Distancing recommendations. NATIONAL DOCTORS DAY Our dining rooms are slowly starting to serve MARCH 30, 2021 residents again in small groups that can socially Thank you for a year of extraordinary support! distance. And the constant fear of an outbreak has Dr. Gregory Smith, MD been relieved by the many who have been vaccinated Medical Director & Attending Physician (thank you Residents on campus you ROCK with Skilled Nursing almost 95% participation!). Instead of picking just ONE MD to be our MD of the Year we had to recognize these physicians who served, with their We mailed out our updated visitation policy recently teams, over and above the call of duty during the pandemic! both by snail mail and email if you have an email Including providing COVID19 Vaccines – door to door – to address on file. (Hint hint, let us know your our Apartment Residents! residents’ name and your name/email and we’ll add 2021 PHYSICIAN(S) OF THE YEAR you to the list………..email it to us at Dr. Ceridon Dr. Barba [email protected]) Please be patient as we open back up to visitation. If you are not the person who Dr. Young Dr. Koble gets the resident’s mailings on the ALU or SNF, we Dr. Ramassubbaiah can provide you a copy at the front desk. April 2021 What’s Up, Doc? The Almighty Dollar On April 30, 1938, Warner Bros. released a new The U.S. dollar is one of the strongest Looney Tunes cartoon featuring Porky Pig as a and most traded currencies on the hapless hunter trying to unsuccessfully bag a planet, and its symbol $ is instantly humorously hyperactive rabbit named Happy.