Septic systems are under-appreciated. Unless you live in a city on a municipal water system, septic systems dispose of all the waste that goes down the drains in your household, small business, church, school, restaurant and more.
When I go out to eat, I look for a Panhandle Health District gold star on display by the establishment's cash register or in the window. The giant gold star is part of PHD's Award of Excellence in food safety.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 11 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
My mother, 88, recently had a tumor removed from her colon. Her nurse practitioner had recommended a colonoscopy after a speck of blood showed up in my mom's stool. I had mildly encouraged a colonoscopy to rule out cancer. My mom scoffed at me.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 11 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AGO
Polio sparks images of a time long past - people in black and white photos wearing leg braces, using crutches, in iron lungs. Not too many years ago, polio terrified people living in the United States. An infectious viral disease that hit all ages, polio killed thousands of Americans every …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 11 YEARS, 8 MONTHS AGO
Mauri Bass smiled with delight as Asher, her 4-month-old son, rolled from his back onto his stomach on her living room carpet. Asher grinned and kicked his legs at his achievement.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 11 YEARS, 9 MONTHS AGO
Thanks to PHD's Aquifer Protection Program, many of us drink fresh, clean water every day from our household faucets. The Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, with help from Panhandle Health District's (PHD) Aquifer Protection Program, supplies us with such high quality water that it requires no special treatment before we drink it.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 11 YEARS, 10 MONTHS AGO
Warming weather has everyone ready for summer splashing in the lakes and rivers a short drive from our homes. That family time is important and will leave you with great memories, but it's wise to remember that precautions to protect your health are necessary in some areas.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 11 YEARS, 11 MONTHS AGO
When Panhandle Health District (PHD) needed to hire a new nurse practitioner for its Reproductive Health services earlier this year, Terri McCree answered the call. Terri was born in Sandpoint and recently returned to her home state to practice.
Everyone in my family, from my 16-month-old grandson to my 87-year-old mother, got a flu shot this year. They did it on their own, with no badgering from me even though I completely support the Panhandle Health District's firm stance on the importance of flu shots to public health.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AGO
A diagnosis in January of aggressive breast cancer frightened Lynnette Schaller. The diagnosis came exactly one year after her last mammogram and at a time she was uninsured.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AGO
COEUR d'ALENE - The 12 neighbors seated on my patio last week joked about the potential disasters that could throw us into survival mode. The late summer evening was warm and peaceful. No one wanted to imagine an earthquake or plane crash that could turn our neighborhood to rubble.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AGO
After a summer of sunny days in the great outdoors, children are back indoors in classrooms filled with their friends. It's nice to have friends close all day, but that nearness also brings risks.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 8 MONTHS AGO
Amanda Howell was 19, single and pregnant when her mother steered her to WIC, the Women, Infants and Children program at the Panhandle Health District.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 9 MONTHS AGO
If you live over the Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, the water out of your tap is fresh, clean and envied by so many people who don't have such a pristine drinking water source beneath them. With the population living over the aquifer constantly increasing, protecting the quality of the water is …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 10 MONTHS AGO
When it's summer in North Idaho, it's time for barbecues, family reunions, picnics, hikes and other fun no one wants to miss. The sun and warmth are irresistible, so make sure you stay healthy enough to enjoy them by following good food safety guidelines.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 10 MONTHS AGO
Warming weather has everyone ready for summer splashing in the lakes and rivers a short drive from our homes. That family time is important and will leave you with great memories, but it's wise to remember that precautions to protect your health are necessary in some areas.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 11 MONTHS AGO
No one wants a wastewater pool in the backyard, particularly if they have toddlers around who will splash in anything wet. Wastewater is exactly what you think it is - the stuff you flush and wash down your household drains.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 12 YEARS, 12 MONTHS AGO
Adding a baby to your family should take at least as much thought as buying a home. Most people who are in the market for a new home search for weeks and even months before making a choice. The cost has to fit their budget. The rooms have to be …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 1 MONTH AGO
The people in the Fit and Fall Proof class come for all sorts of reasons. It's free and that's a reason everyone mentions. But the price is just extra incentive.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
After my dad had a stroke last year, his doctor prescribed home health care as he left Kootenai Medical Center. My mother knew nothing about home health services. She was so focused on my dad that she was ready to agree to any home health provider the doctor chose, if …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 3 MONTHS AGO
The flu is as much a part of our lives this time of year as cold temperatures and icy sidewalks. People hardly notice other people around them when they cough or dab at their drippy noses with a tissue. But noticing when people around you are ill could spare you …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AGO
My dad quit smoking cold turkey when he was 49 years old. He'd smoked for at least 30 years and probably longer. He'd tried to quit, but few quit-tobacco aids were available back in the 1970s. The need for a triple heart bypass in 1976 accomplished what his enviable willpower …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 5 MONTHS AGO
When H1N1 flu hit in 2009, plenty of people panicked. This flu was unknown and scary. But even more upsetting than the illness was the chaos to daily life it brought.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 7 MONTHS AGO
Heather Heidt started her hunt for child care at the Child Care Resource Center (CCRC) at the Panhandle Health District (PHD). She was pregnant with her first child, but she knew she would return to work and wanted time to do a thorough job finding the child care right for …
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 8 MONTHS AGO
Justin English was hungry, but his tiny newborn mouth couldn't hold on to his mother's breast. For three days, his mother, Crystal English, tried to breast-feed her new son, resisting the urge to move to infant formula.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 9 MONTHS AGO
Laurie Klug proudly pointed to the certificate hanging on the wall at the base of the stairs in her home. She placed it where anyone entering the child care center she operates could see it.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 9 MONTHS AGO
Most Kootenai County and some Bonner County residents have a priceless resource beneath their feet. It's fresh, clean water from the Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, the sole source of drinking water for more than 500,000 people in two states.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 10 MONTHS AGO
Every summer weekend, a Post Falls family deserts its comfortable home and heads to the Coeur d'Alene River near Cataldo to picnic, kayak, float on water toys and relax.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 13 YEARS, 11 MONTHS AGO
Nearly 26 million Americans have diabetes and 90,000 of them live in Idaho. Another 79 million Americans have blood glucose (sugar) levels higher than normal and are considered pre-diabetic. More than 80,000 of them live in Idaho.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 14 YEARS, 2 MONTHS AGO
Three days after Louis Sundberg had a stroke, he was discharged from the hospital. The stroke was small, but it left him with garbled speech and weakness on his right side that hurt his walking ability.
COEUR D'ALENE PRESS | UPDATED 14 YEARS, 3 MONTHS AGO
People in tornado country prepare for disaster. We don't hear about the people who sit out killer tornadoes in underground shelters equipped with emergency supplies of food and water. They're not in the news unless they've lost their homes. Have you ever wondered how people who've lost everything survived to …
BONNER COUNTY DAILY BEE | UPDATED 14 YEARS, 8 MONTHS AGO
When Laurie Klug needed child care for her son, who's now 13, she wanted someone with authority to tell her which centers were good and which ones to avoid. But no such person or agency existed.
