www.ostomygroupsnj.org SERVING OSTOMATES IN SOUTH JERSEY SINCE 1977 JANUARY 2016

INSIGHTS

The Newsletter of the

OSTOMY ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY

WELCOME!

The Ostomy Association of Southern New Jersey (OASNJ) is dedicated to providing information, advocacy and peer support to our members, their family and caregivers, and to the area’s intestinal and urinary diversion community at large.

We meet regularly to share experiences, provide mutual support and learn about the latest products and information for colostomy, ileostomy, urostomy and con-tinent diversions.

Meetings are held at the Virtua-Memorial Hospital Burlington County, located at 175 Madison Avenue, Mt. Holly, NJ 08060 in the 1st floor Con-ference Center. We meet on the 3rd Monday of each month with the ex-ception of July and August. The June meeting is traditionally held in an area restaurant. Meetings begin at 7:00 pm and adjourn by 9:00 pm. Families and friends of ostomy patients are always welcome to attend. There is no fee to at-tend and refreshments are served.

For more information about the OASNJ, contact us at our NEW web-site... www.ostomygroupsnj.org

AFFILIATION:

OASNJ is an affiliate of UOAA, the United Ostomy Associations of America. It has IRS 501(c)(3) Charity Status and 360 affiliates nationwide. Contact UOAA at 800 –826 –0826 or www.ostomy.org For more info sign on to Twitter.com/UOAA or Facebook.com/UOAAinc.

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Happy New Year … Wecome 2016

JANUARY 18, 2016: All are invited to participate in our “round table” discussion of living with an ostomy ... Learn how it has impacted other's lives!

FEBRUARY 15, 2016: Because of the possibility of snow cancelling our meeting, we will again have a round table discussion with our WOCNurses to answer your questions.

MARCH 21, 2016: Since March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month our program will center around this subject.

OASNJ Satellite Support Group . Where: Virtua Health Wellness Center, 401 Young Avenue, Moorestown, NJ When: The 1st Wednesday of the month, from Noon to 2:00 PM .. Next meeting January 6th. Hollis-ter Rep Kathy Detky will show and tell about new products Contact: Lois Moskowitz, 609-707-4368 or e-mail: Strongcoffee1@verizon.net for details.

Attention Gloucester County Ostomates and any-one else that is interested! The Woodbury Ostomy Sup-port Group meets the 3rd Wednesday of each month at the Inspira Medical Center Woodbury (Underwood Hos-pital’s new name) , Medical Arts Building, Suite #14 Next meeting 20th at 6:00pm. Contact Kathy Pfleger at pflegerk@ihn.org for details.

VISITING PROGRAM ... Please Note ... We Have a New “Help Line” Tel # ... 856-983-1433 If you, or someone you know is in need of a trained ostomy patient visitor, call Sandy Ritter at 856-983-1433 to arrange for an in-person or telephone visit.

Production and distribution of this INSIGHTS

newsletter is made possible thanks to the generosity of the:

AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY.

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EXECUTIVE TEAM OF THE OSTOMY ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN NEWJERSEY

Ken Aukett .. Chair, Newsletter Editor, Treasurer George Bishop ... Board Member 609-315-8115 ... kenaukett@gmail.com 609-871-6920 ... bishop.george12@comcast.net

Cos Contento ... Board Member Vikki Brisko ... Board Member 856-235-1899 ... chcontento@aol.com 856-336-2646 ... vikki_bee@comcast.net

Sandy Ritter ... Visiting Program Coordinator 856-983-1433 ... sanritter@comcast.net Medical Advisors

Kathleen Schuler ... Board Member Stephen Pilipshen, MD. Colon & Rectal Surgeon 856-813-5930 ... kaschul119@gmail.com 856-234-3322 www.pilipshencolonandrectal.com

Lois Moskowitz ... Patient Advocate Jane N. Johnson, CWOCN, MSN, APRN, ANP-C 856-273-1493 ... strongcoffee1@verizon.net jnjohnson@virtua.org jjohnson7@virtua.org

DISCLAIMER : No suggestions made, or any products named in any article or advertisement in this news-

letter, at our meetings or recommended by a member of our organization is to be considered as an endorse-ment by the Ostomy Association of Southern New Jersey or the United Ostomy Associations of America, Inc.. Always consult your doctor and/or WOCNurse before using any products of ostomy management procedures published in this newsletter.

OSTOMY PRODUCT DISTRIBUTORS OSTOMY PRODUCT MANUFACTURERS American Ostomy Supply .... (800) 858-5858 Coloplast .......................... (888) 726-7872 Bruce Medical Supply ....... .. (800) 225-8446 ConvaTec .......................... (800) 422-8811 Byram Healthcare .................(877) 90-BYRAM Cymed ............................... (800) 582-0707 Edgepark Surgical .................(800) 321-0591 Dansac .............................. (800) 538-0890 Express Medical Supply ........(800) 633-2139 Securi-T USA........................ (877) 726-4400 Liberty Medical Supply ..........(866) 486-2379 Hollister Incorporated ...... (888) 740-8999 Medical Care Products ..........(800) 741-0110 Marlen Manufacturing .... (216) 292-7060 Ostomy Care Supply ..............(866) 207-5909 New Hope Laboratories ... (800) 899-5017 Parthenon ..............................(800) 453-8898 Ostaway x-Bag ................. (800) 774-6097 SGV .......................................(800) 395-6099 Ostomy Secrets ................ (800) 518-8515 Shield Healthcare ..................(800)-675-8847 Torbot .............................. (800) 545-4254 Sterling Medical Services ......(877)-856-1286 TOTAL eMEDICAL ............... (800)-809-9806

WOUND, OSTOMY and CONTINENCE NURSES SOCIETY ... www.wocn.org

Area WOCNurses: Arlene Peahota (856) 764-6634 Diane Wagner (215) 707-3092 Kathy Pfleger (856) 845-0100 x 3725__________ Gillian Reeve_______ (856) 566-2059

Nancy Fonte, WOCN ... (609)-484-7300 ext 185 ... Nancy.Fonte@atlanticare.org Ostomy Support Group meets 2nd Wed of each month at 4:00 PM at the Atlanticare Center,

2500 English Creek Avenue, Bldg 400, Egg Harbor Township, NJ

WHEN TO CALL A DOCTOR OR WOC NURSE 1. If cramps last more than two or three hours. 2. If you get a deep cut in your stoma or bleeding at the juncture of the skin and stoma. 3. If you have excessive bleeding from the stoma opening or a moderate amount in the

pouch after several emptying. 4. If you have a strong odor lasting more than a week. 5. If you have severe skin irritation or deep ulcers. 6. If you have severe watery discharge lasting more than five or six hours. 7. If you have an unusual change in the size or appearance of your stoma.

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A New Year… to Exercise

UOAA UPDATE

Is exercise at the top of your 2011 New Year’s Resolution List and if it is, how long do you think you can keep this resolution? The following are frequently used excuses for giving up and just sitting back in your easy chair and some good reasons why these excuses not to exercise are just full of soup!

I DON’T HAVE TIME: One less cup of coffee in the morning and a few more minutes in your busy day taken from other less beneficial activities will add up! Say to yourself, “I’m worth 30 minutes a day!”

BORING, BORING: Exercise is not a dirty word or a second job without pay! Find some form of exercise you enjoy and you just might stay with it.

TOO TIRED: Studies have proven that exercise revs up the bloodstream which produces en-ergy. A brisk walk in the cool of the evening will relax and revive you—it may even add to ro-mance!

TOO OLD: Oh, Please!! Have you seen Sophia Loren lately? She may have been born beautiful but staying there is no gift. But don’t have unrealistic expectations, just go at your own pace. You just might find some of your younger friends wanting to know what your secret to your vibrant life style is, and what you do to maintain it.

NOT ENOUGH SPACE: All you need is enough room to lie down—but avoid drafts which may cause muscle cramps. Or better yet, go walking outdoors. That will use all your muscles and you get fresh air to boot!

TOO EXPENSIVE: You don’t need fashionable regalia and the high-priced equipment. If you plan on walking, a good, but not necessarily really expensive, pair of shoes is all that is re-quired.

TOO PAINFUL: No pain/No gain does not apply here. You don’t have to agonize to exercise. Take care of your body and it will reward you in return.

BUT I HAVE AN OSTOMY: Physical therapists tell us that you can do anything if your inci-sion is healed. Rough contact sports and maybe those abdominal crunches are the exception. Your pouch will not fall off and your other muscles in your body don’t care how you elimi-nate!! They need attention, too! And to keep track of things, get yourself a “Fitbit” monitor bracelet. It’s a great incentive to watch those daily steps you take turn into miles.

Exercise ... try it!! Take your spouse, your dog, a friend, a friend with a dog, or maybe someone you met at an ostomy meeting for a walk ... take time to converse and enjoy your time together. You survived your ostomy surgery—you are alive—take the chance to live your new life in the New Year!!!

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What’s The Best Thing To Do For The Flu?

Stay Away From It ! What You Can Do.

UOAA UPDATE

It is now the height of the flu season and you need to keep your defenses up! People all around you are infected and it is almost impossible to keep from coming in contact with the virus. While you are still healthy and not showing any flu symptoms take the following very simple steps to keep these viruses from spreading in your body:

Get a flu shot!

Wash your hands frequently or use a hand sanitizer.

Keep your hands away from your face ... Resist all temptations to touch any part of your face.

Gargle at least twice a day with warm salt water ... Use Listerine if you prefer.

Clean your nostrils at least once a day with warm salt water. Blowing your nose hard once a day and swabbing both nostrils with cotton tips dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing down viral populations.

Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C. If you choose to supple-ment with Vitamin C use the chewable or sublingual tablets and make sure that you also take a Zinc tablet to boost absorption.

Drink as much warm liquids as you can. Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gar-gling, but in reverse. They wash off the proliferating flu viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, spread or do harm.

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Skin Attention UOAA UPDATE

Some ostomates can use anything on their skin and “get away with it.” Others, more sensitive, have to search for just the right combination of products for satisfactory use. New ostomates benefit from the advice provided by a WOC Nurse because of their experience regarding the ef-fects that various products may have on the skin around the stoma.

If you are experimenting on your own, consider the following information before using a differ-ent product. Patch testing is a must. The skin on the inner surface of the arm or leg or the oppo-site side of the abdominal area from the stoma are good areas to use for a simple test. For exam-ple, cut a piece of the washer, tape, disc, etc. and affix it to a chosen area. Secure with a strip of micropore tape and leave on the area for 48 to 72 hours (editor’s note: Be careful of the tape too; it could be a problem also). Any burning sensation or itching during the testing time could sig-nify sensitivity to the material being used and therefore, should be removed immediately, washed and dried well.

If you have no itching or burning after 48 to 72 hours, remove the “patch” and if there is no red-ness or irritation, it is safe to assume that the product can be used. With some persons, a “delayed reaction” may not occur until a few days later. For more extensive testing than this, contact a dermatologist.

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Nine Reasons for Ostomy Pouch Leakage

1. Poor Adherence to Peristomal Skin – Make sure that your peristomal skin is “bone dry” before applying your pouch. Hold a warm hand over the pouch and stoma for 30-60 seconds af-ter application to warm it and assure a good initial seal.

2. Wrong Size Pouch Opening – If the size of your stoma has changed (due to postopera-tive shrinkage or change in body weight) and you have not remeasured and adapted the opening accordingly, undermining of the wafer and leakage may be the result.

3. Folds or Creases – If folds or creases develop in the skin and leakage always occurs along the crease, wafer pieces or ostomy paste can be used to build up the area. Consult your WOC Nurse for proper methods.

4. Peristomal Skin Irritation – Pouches will not stick well to irritated skin. So practice me-ticulous skin care in order to avoid irritated or denuded skin. If any of these problems develop, consult your WOC Nurse or physician at once so that the problem can be nipped in the bud.

5. Improper Pouch Angle – If the pouch does not hang vertically, the weight of its contents can exert an uneven, twisting pull on the wafer. Ostomates must find an optimal angle for their own individual body configurations.

6. Too Infrequent Emptying – Pouches should be emptied before they become half full. If they are allowed to overfill, weight of the effluent may break the seal and cause leakage.

7. Extremely High Temperatures – Wafer melt-out may cause leakage in warm weather. Try more frequent pouching system changes or check out a system made by another manufac-turer.

8. Faceplate “Pull-Away” - Apply elastic barrier strips around the perimeter of your barrier plate to keep it securely in place.

9. Pouch Wear and Tear – Disposable wafers do wear out. If you are stretching your wearing time, leakage may be due to the wafer wearing out. Change your pouching system more fre-quently.

10. Improperly Stored Appliances or Aging Materials – Store your ostomy supplies in a cool dry place since humidity may affect your pouch adhesive. Also, pouches won’t store forever. Ask your vendor what the shelf life is for your supplies and always keep some extra pouches on hand. As always, consult your WOC Nurse if a leakage problem persists!

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Who Knew? … Here’s the Proof!

To remove a bandage painlessly, saturate the bandage with vodka. It dissolves adhesives.

To clean caulking around bathtubs and showers, fill a trigger-spray bottle with vodka, spray the caulking, let it set five minutes and wash clean. The vodka kills mildew.

To clean your eyeglasses, simply wipe the lenses with a soft, clean cloth dampened with vodka. The alcohol in the vodka cleans the glass and kills germs.

Using a cotton ball, apply vodka to your face as an astringent to cleanse the skin and tighten your pores.

Add a jigger of vodka to a 12 ounce bottle of shampoo. The alcohol cleanses the scalp, re-moves toxins from hair and stimulates the growth of healthy hair.

Fill a sixteen ounce trigger spray bottle with vodka and spray wasps to kill them.

To relieve a fever, use a washcloth to rub vodka on your chest and back as a liniment.

Pour vodka over an area affected with poison ivy to remove the plant oil from your skin.

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How to Prepare for Chemotherapy

By Mikel Theobald | Medically reviewed by Niya Jones, MD, MPH … Everyday Health

Chemotherapy is likely to disrupt your normal routine and family life. Preparing ahead of time can help relieve stress and minimize chemo's impact on your physical and emotional health.

Chemotherapy isn’t a one-and-done treatment — it’s a journey and, as with any journey, planning ahead can make the road less bumpy. Chemotherapy encompasses a wide variety of medications and active chemical agents that work toward killing abnormal or cancerous cells. While there’s no way of knowing what your individual experience with chemo will be like, there are practical steps you can take to prepare for the impact treatment might have on your day-to-day responsibilities as well as necessary tests to schedule to make sure your body is ready for the challenge.

Prep to Minimize Daily Living Disruptions

Anticipate downtime after chemotherapy treatments to give your body the rest you’ll need. By mak-ing arrangements for routine tasks prior to beginning chemo, you’ll have less to worry about once the effects of treatment sneak up on you. Create a list of tasks you do on a daily, weekly, and monthly ba-sis, and create a support team to help you when you are not able to do them yourself. Here are more specifics when preparing for chemotherapy.

Plan Ahead for Healthy Eating

Have meals as a family or with a friend so that you are more likely to eat something. When noth-ing sounds good, have soft, bland foods cooled to room temperature, such as eggs, mashed pota-toes, and cooked cereals. Start eating healthy now to boost nutrition and set a pattern that can be followed for as long as possible once chemo begins. Cook and freeze meals for the future or create a schedule for friends and family who offer to

bring meals to your home while you are undergoing treatment.

Think about dividing meals you freeze into small portion sizes, since bigger meals may be harder to tolerate during treatment.

Stock up on non-perishable, healthy food items for times you are unable to get to the grocery store.

If you like bottled water, stock up so that you’ll be able to stay hydrated.

Plan Ahead To Avoid Germs

Hire a service or housekeeper to come in on a weekly basis to keep your living space as clean as possible, especially the bathroom.

If it isn’t already a habit, get used to washing your hands often. Start talking with family and friends now about the need for them to wash their hands any time they plan to be around you. Adopt a no-handshakes and no-kiss policy to further limit your risk of exposure.

Keep anti-bacterial wipes in your pocket.

If your doctor gives the all-clear for sexual activity, practice safe sex with condoms.

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Get Finances Set Up

Set up bills to be automatically paid from your checking account. Even if a specific company does not offer auto-pay, your bank may offer an online bill-pay service where they will generate the pay-ment for you at a pre-determined time.

If finances are going to be tight, make arrangements for payment plans prior to beginning treatment. No one wants to deal with bill collectors in general, let alone while going through chemo.

Make Arrangements at Work

Talk with your human resources representative or employer to let them know you will be taking time off. They can provide you with Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) forms

to complete. FMLA entitles eligible employees to take 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave from their jobs without losing their health insurance.

If someone will be taking over your duties while you are away from work, plan to train them or dis-cuss responsibilities before you leave to ensure continuity.

Caring for Kids and Your Home

Make arrangements for someone to provide transportation to and from school for your children. If they are involved in after-school activities, ask a trusted parent with a child involved in the same ac-tivity if she would provide rides for your child.

If you have family nearby, ask them to attend games and performances when you can’t — your body’s defenses against illness will be weakened by the chemo, making it necessary to stay away from situa-tions where you could be exposed to illness-causing germs.

Consider inviting a relative to stay with you to help care for your children. Even if another parent is in the home, chances are your spouse will be busy helping to take care of you. Plan ahead for lawn maintenance and trash days. If necessary, hire services.

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A Recent Rumor

Rumor has it that the doctor removed one of your parts.

The same rumor said that they didn’t take out your heart. So you can still love.

Also, none of your mind was removed, so you can still dream of sunshine and flowers. Apparently, they left your family and friends. So you still have someone to care for and someone to care for you.

Did the surgeon remove your grandchildren’s laughter?

Did he leave you your lips to smile with, your nose to smell the morning air, your ears to hear the birds singing, your eyes to see the evening sunset surely, he didn’t touch your soul. That belongs to God.

If he left you all of these things, did he remove anything really important?

Remember what Hubert Humphrey, who was also an ostomate, once said,

“It isn’t what they take away from you that matters, it’s what you do with what you have left that counts.”

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2016 UOAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference

PAINT YOUR FUTURE April 29, 30 and May 1, 2016

Holiday Inn Washington Dulles 45425 Holiday Drive, Sterling, VA 20166

Hosted by the Ostomy Support Group of Northern Virginia Bill Hawes contact .... billatmaccom@verizon.net

Notice: It is expected that REGISTRATION will be open on our website (www.osgnv.org) in the November-December timeframe. As soon as we get more information we will pass it along.

RATES FOR THE HOTEL:

$79.00 (+13% tax) per night for a king bed; $85.00 (+ 13% tax) for two double beds

(these rates are good for the nights of April 27 through May 2).

REGULAR REGISTRATION

$40 per person Spouse/Companion OSGNV Member $35 per person

Banquet $40 per person

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

Friday, April 29, 2016

4:00 PM - 7:00 PM Stoma Clinic 4:00 PM - 9:00 PM Registration 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM Informal Reception

Sunday, May 1, 2016

7:30 AM - 8:45 AM Breakfast 9:00 AM -12:00 Half Day Beverages 9:00 AM - Noon ASG'S in Action

Saturday, April 30, 2016 6:30 AM - Noon Registration 7:00 AM - 8:15 AM Breakfast Buffet 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM Exhibit Set-Up 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM All Day Beverages 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Stoma Clinic 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM Exhibits 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM Opening Session/Program/Speaker 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM Morning Break/Exhibits 10:30 AM -11:30 AM Workshops 1-3, Titles TBD 11:45 AM -1:30 PM Lunch/Speakers/Exhibits 1:45 PM - 2:45 PM Workshops 4-6, Titles TBD 2:45 PM - 3:30 PM Afternoon Break/Exhibits 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM Workshops 7-9, Titles TBD 4:45 PM - 5:45 PM Workshops 10-12/Breakout Groups-Rap Sessions 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM Banquet (Dinner Dance

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A Holiday Idea Ken Aukett, INSIGHTS Editor

Recently I received an email from one of our members who suggested an off-beat way for us to show our Holiday spirit. In our December newsletter I asked you to take one of your ostomy appliances and any other ostomy related items you need and use them to make a Holiday decoration. Give your work of art a name and show your originality. So that’s exactly what some of our members did and showed them off at our December meeting. Thank you Eric and Stephanie! Check out the following:

“POUCHSETTIA” “OSTY THE STOMAN” “UNDERCOVER ANGEL”

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Have You Checked Out the OASNJ New Website ??? Ken Aukett, Insights Editor

www.ostomygroupsnj.org

Well what do you think of OASNJ’s website ... www.ostomygroupsnj.org ?? This has been made possible through the outstanding work of our “webmaster”, Stephanie Urzi, and her husband Chris. But our site will only be as good as your inputs. You could start things off by sending Stephanie an e-mail describing how your ostomy has changed your life; by providing some stoma management tips that you have found to be useful; or tell us about things that you have been doing that the general pub-lic might think an ostomate can no longer do … toss in a picture or two while you are at to illustrate your point … remember it is often said that 1 picture is worth 1,000 words.

Send your messages to Stephanie at ladydiver13@yahoo.com . Thanks!

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Virtua Ostomy Outpatient Clinics

Jane N. Johnson, CWOCN, MSN, APRN, ANP-C and Kathy K. Judge ACNS-BC, NP-C, NEA-BC, CWON-AP, have advised that Virtua has two ostomy outpatient clinics, one in Virtua, 175 Madison Avenue, Mt. Holly headed up by Jane, and one in the Virtua Berlin Wound Healing Center, 100 Townsend Ave-nue, Berlin headed up by Kathy . These medical professionals are available to help patients that have problems with their ostomy appliances or other related medical issues. Jane , at the surgeons request can also stoma site pre-op patients. Appointment to see either Jane or Kathy can be obtained by calling 856-322-3222.

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~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ TO BECOME A MEMBER OF THE ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ OSTOMY ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY

Membership in the Ostomy Association of Southern New Jersey is open to all persons in-terested in ostomy rehabilitation. Membership dues are only $10.00 per year.

PLEASE PRINT THIS INFORMATION:

NAME: ________________________________________________ PHONE: ____-_____-_______

ADDRESS: ________________________________________ EMAIL: ________________________

CITY: _________________________________ STATE: _______ ZIPCODE: ____________________

To help us complete our records, please answer the following:

Please check if you have/are: ____ Colostomy ____ Continent Ileostomy ____ Other: ___________________________ ____ Ileostomy ____ Continent Urostomy ____ Spouse/partner/family member ____ Urostomy ____ Ileo-anal Pull Thru ____ Friend

Date(s) of Ostomy Surgery: ________________________________ Date of Birth: ____________

Make check payable to “OASNJ” and mail to: Ken Aukett, P.O. Box 318, Collingswood, NJ 08108