Apple a Day

Our guest today is Nurse Practitioner Kayla Valdez from Lake Region Healthcare's neurology department, who shares expertise on the diagnosis, management, and treatment of headaches. The conversation covers the common types of headaches, particularly tension and migraine headaches, and the importance of proper diagnosis for effective treatment. It also touches on various treatment options from over-the-counter medications to prescription drugs, Botox and non-medication devices as well as the importance of lifestyle interventions, the risks of medication overuse, and the need to reduce the stigma associated with migraine as a serious neurological disease.

Meet, Keri Anderson, our newest physician assistant joining the emergency department at the Elbow Lake Medical Center. Keri shares her background, including her non-linear career path from nursing to cosmetology and back to medicine. She talks about her passion for the unpredictability of emergency medicine, her patient-centered philosophy of care, and explained the role of a Level Four Trauma Center. She also touched on her emerging interest in hormone therapy, her personal hobbies, and provided a health tip for listeners.

Paige Fritz is a Physician Assistant and is joining Lake Region Healthcare to serve as a Physician Extender for Dr. Dennis Gerold, Dr. Kristina England, and Susie Berg, PA. She's a Dalton, MN native and is excited to be back home to establish her PA practice here with these exceptional providers. Listen in to learn more about Paige, about the role of a Physician Extender, and to hear how Paige plans to use her background as a Medical Laboratory Technician to better serve her patients.

Today we welcome Dillon Boen, PA as the newest member of our growing medical staff. Dillon shares what led him to a career in medicine after growing up helping his parents run the “Bluebird Gardens” farm near Fergus Falls. He talks with us about his previous work in cardiology, his new dual role in internal medicine and cardiology at Lake Region Healthcare, and his patient care philosophy centered on listening and building relationships. He also shared his interests in preventive medicine and his personal hobbies, including coaching Brazilian Jiujitsu.

Today’s guest is Emily Janochoski, the newest nurse practitioner joining the family practice team at Lake Region Healthcare. Emily shares her motivation for becoming a nurse practitioner, her patient care philosophy, and the types of appointments she’ll be offering to patients of all ages. She also lets us in on one of her favorite hobbies, her dahlia garden and the hummingbirds it attracts!

Dr. Steven Moore from the LRH Urology department joins us for September, National Prostate Health Month, to discuss the symptoms, screening, and treatment of prostate issues including background on the controversy around PSA screening. He also emphasizes the importance of shared decision making between patients and providers as a crucial aspect of prostate cancer treatment and recognition.

Dr. Herold-Ordonez has returned to his home state of Minnesota to join the General Surgery team at Lake Region Healthcare. Listen in to hear more about his background, motivations for pursuing medicine and surgery, his patient care philosophy, the types of procedures he’ll perform, and his special interest in helping people find relief from hemorrhoid problems.

National Immunization Awareness Month: Addressing Vaccine Questions, Concerns & Misconceptions

Dr. Ibrahim Khan, a primary care family medicine physician at Lake Region Healthcare, joins us for this discussion during National Immunization Awareness Month.  We ask Dr. Khan about the most common patient concerns about vaccines, how he approaches these conversations, the evidence supporting vaccine effectiveness and safety, and his responses to specific claims about vaccine ingredients, natural immunity, and mRNA technology.

Today’s guest is Danielle Lesmeister, a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner who recently moved from her administrative role at Lake Region Healthcare to join the medical group and offer psychiatry services. She will see patients from infancy to older adulthood in both Elbow Lake and Morris. Hear about Danielle’s background in nursing, including work in home care and psychiatric nursing, and how her personal connection to mental health issues, having lost a close friend to suicide, inspired her to pursue this specialty. Danielle shares more about her practice’s holistic approach and her aim to make access to mental health care easy, encouraged, and free from stigma.

Today we’re excited to introduce Dr. Theresa Holladay, OB/GYN to our community. She is an experienced OB/GYN provider with over 30 years in the medical field. She has had a diverse career, including a solo private practice and working in federal clinic systems serving underserved populations, along with a wide range of expertise, including obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive psychiatry.

In addition to her background, we talk with Dr. Holladay today about her insights as a certified menopause provider and the importance of balancing lifestyle factors and hormone replacement therapy for women in the second half of life. We also spoke with her about what it means to be member of Postpartum Support International in providing comprehensive care and access to resources for new mothers.