Life stories – Here for Life

National Adolescent Health Month themes highlight ways to support youth

May 18, 2023

Each May, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Population Affairs (OPA) hosts the National Adolescent Health Month™ (NAHM). This annual observance has emphasized the importance of building on young people’s strengths and potential, encouraging meaningful youth engagement in adolescent health activities, and highlighting key topics in adolescent health.

Adolescent health encompasses changing transitions within multiple physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and intellectual domains. The fast-paced development of these different domains can lead to phenomenal growth during this period. This growth can also occur at different rates, putting adolescents at a higher risk for risk-taking behaviors and emerging mental health issues. It is important to understand adolescent development, environmental influences, and the risk and protective factors that can affect adolescent health so that organizations and individuals who work with youth can support the health and healthy development of all adolescents. (more…)

How Clinical Associates fill a critical staffing need while they build their healthcare careers

April 20, 20231

During the pandemic, Chanel Bloodsaw cared for her child and family as a stay-at-home mother. As she watched doctors and nurses on the front line of a crisis, she felt a pull she’d had for years—to work in healthcare. It was a dream she’d had since college when she earned her associate degree as a pre-physician’s assistant.

“It was always a love of mine to do, but I never had the opportunity to do it,” she said. “I wanted to be a doctor but thought, that’s beyond me.”

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A match in more ways than one

March 30, 20232

When Callie Eide was a little girl, she used to read her mother’s Reader’s Digest. There was a popular health series, starting with “I am Joe’s Heart,” which, spoken in the body part’s voice, detailed parts of Joe and Jane from 1967 to 1990. Callie read about kidney transplantation, and found out early on that people can donate one kidney to someone, and that you can live with just one remaining kidney. At that point she was certain that one day, she would give one of her kidneys to someone who needed one. (more…)

Teen pregnancy and mental health

March 29, 2023

For many, pregnancy is usually a time of emotional well-being. For those who are teens, pregnancy can impact their mental health in drastic ways that differ from older pregnancy experiences. It is estimated 20% of pregnant people suffer from mood or anxiety disorders during pregnancy. However, researchers found that teens ranging from 15 to 19 years old experienced postpartum depression at a rate that was twice as high as people aged 25 and older. As a teen or parent of a teen, understanding some of the emotional stages that pregnant teens go through is important. Understanding and offering support can significantly alleviate stress experienced throughout the pregnancy. (more…)

How a supply chain initiative helped Kamesha Davenport grow her small business in life-changing ways

March 22, 2023

When Kamesha Davenport got a call from the Supply Chain team at Hennepin Healthcare, she was excited—and surprised. Kamesha’s landscaping business, Pinky Fence, was a small business with just Kamesha as the main employee, marketing her services by word of mouth through her personal Facebook. Kamesha still worked a full-time job at Wells Fargo. She didn’t have a website or an accountant.

The call from Hennepin Healthcare was the biggest opportunity so far to make her entrepreneurship dream a reality. She had memories of her grandmother’s last moments at Hennepin Healthcare, and she’d lived across from the downtown campus as a teen. “I just remember being a little kid running through the hallways,” she said. “The campus has a special place in my heart because of that.” She was overwhelmed—but determined to make it work. (more…)

American Heart Month highlights an employee patient story tearing at your heartstrings

February 21, 2023

We usually celebrate February’s American Heart Month promoting heart disease prevention, healthy habits, and education. Taking care of your heart health is a lifestyle we can all embrace. But some people aren’t so lucky.

Megan Ireland is a nurse on 5 Medicine at Hennepin Healthcare. She loves where she works, and the diverse population she cares for. She is currently on a medical leave and missing her co-workers terribly. (more…)

Frostbite sidelines patient visiting from New York

January 17, 2023

On the one-year anniversary of his first visit to Minneapolis, Minnesota, David Rice reflects back on the eventful and memorable trip.

Back on January 8, 2022, the 35-year-old accountant – a native of New Zealand now based in Brooklyn, NY – and a few friends paid a visit to Minnesota for the weekend to enjoy ice fishing on one of our beautiful lakes, a Minnesota Wild hockey game, and a Minnesota Vikings football game. Unfortunately, David was sidelined at the football game on January 9 by injuries he sustained the night before. That’s when he spent time outside in brutally cold conditions without gloves and it didn’t take long for frostbite to set in. (more…)

The longest living HCMC kidney transplant patient – DuWayne’s story

January 16, 20232

DuWayne Virnig of Little Falls, MN, formerly of Coon Rapids, is Hennepin Healthcare’s longest living kidney transplant patient, at the age of 82. Thanks to a donor kidney when DuWayne was 37 years old, he has led a long and prosperous life with a loving family and much to be thankful for.

DuWayne began dialysis in 1978 at the age of 37 and, within 6 weeks, had surgery to receive a donor kidney. He and his wife, Lottie, had two small children, Jon and Lora, and were living a good life in Coon Rapids, MN. His daughter, Lora, tells his story. (more…)