Stories from May, 2025
Stories from May, 2025
On February 11, the Tulare County Board of Supervisors voted to appoint Dr. Asma Tariq to the position of County Health Officer, effective May 4. Dr. Tariq fills the position that has been vacant since Dr. Karen Haught retired in 2023. Dr. Tariq is a practicing family medicine physician with a passion for teaching and preventative health. She currently provides care in the outpatient and hospital settings and is a core faculty member for the Kaweah Health Family Medicine...
Adventist Health, in partnership with the Corcoran Hospital District and the Boswell Family Fund, held a check presentation event on April 9 to celebrate a transformative $7,020,000 philanthropic gift – the largest in Adventist Health's history. The event, held at Adventist Health Corcoran Medical Office, welcomed community members, patients, local leaders, and elected officials to honor this investment in the health and future of the Corcoran community. "This investment is...
June is World Elder Abuse Awareness Month and observances will be held in both Tulare and Kings Counties. World Elder Abuse Awareness Day was launched on June 15, 2006, by the International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse and the World Health Organization at the United Nations. Its purpose is to provide an opportunity for communities around the world to promote a better understanding of abuse and neglect of older persons by raising awareness of the cultural, social,...
The Kings County Commission on Aging Council (KCCOA) and Kings County In-Home Supportive Services will host its annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Event, featuring informational booths, food, entertainment and prizes. "The community will enjoy having a great time while socializing with friends and family," said Antonia Olivera, KCCOA community social service specialist. "They will have the opportunity to become familiar with various social service agencies and the services they provide," she said. The event will be held on...
Thanks to their genetic makeup, their ability to navigate mazes and their willingness to work for cheese, mice have long been a go-to model for behavioral and neurological studies. In recent years, they have entered a new arena – virtual reality – and now Cornell researchers have built miniature VR headsets to immerse them more deeply in it. Cornell researchers built miniature VR headsets to immerse mice more deeply in virtual environments that can help reveal the neural...
On April 10, Congressman David Valadao (CA-22) reintroduced the Supplemental Oxygen Access Reform (SOAR) Act alongside Reps. Julia Brownley (CA-26), Adrian Smith (NE-03), and Gabe Evans (CO-08). This bipartisan, bicameral bill makes critical reforms to improve access to supplemental oxygen for Medicare beneficiaries. The Senate companion bill is led by Senators Bill Cassidy (R-IL), Mark Warner (D-IN), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN). “Supplemental oxygen is lifesaving, but many people struggle to get access due to burdensome...
Kaweah Health held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new Woodlake clinic on Thursday, April 3. This is the second Woodlake clinic for the health care district. The increasing need for services in Woodlake prompted the second clinic, named Kaweah Health Valencia Clinic, as the number of patients and physicians were outgrowing the current facility. The Valencia Clinic will focus on primary care while the current clinic will remain in operation serving pediatric patients. "Our...
California Attorney General Rob Bonta is urging consumers to check their eligibility for compensation for certain generic drug purchases as California joins 50 states and territories in seeking preliminary approval of a $39.1 million settlement with generic drug manufacturer Apotex over conspiracy to inflate prices and limit competition. Bonta previously announced the settlement in principle with Apotex last fall, along with a $10 million settlement with Heritage Pharmaceuticals. At the time of that announcement, the...
Long-term exposure to high levels of air pollution may harm the brain health of older adults in England, finds a new study led by University College London (UCL) researchers. The research, published in the Gerontological Society of America's The Journals of Gerontology: Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, found that exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is linked to lower scores in key cognitive abilities, particularly language...
Now that tax time has come and gone, you may be wondering what to do with all of the legal documents, receipts and business papers you've accumulated over the past 12 months, especially your tax documents. "When you're working on your taxes, you're trying to figure out what can you keep," money expert Clark Howard says. "What can you discard? What had you better keep?" In this article, we'll discuss how long to keep your tax documents and why, according to Clark. Clark mostly subscribes to a "rule of sixes" when it comes to...
Trees have played an important part in Tulare County history, and as a result many have achieved celebrity status, including the Douglass Tree that stood in downtown Visalia, the General Sherman Sequoia in Sequoia National Park, and the Election Tree located along the Kaweah River about seven miles east of Visalia. One of the oldest, the Election Tree, sometimes called the Charter Oak or Witness Tree, dates back to the very beginning of the county, and was part of the...
Residents from Visalia's Quail Park communities visited Kaweah Health Rehabilitation Center's mobility course on April 3. Seniors from Quail Park at Shannon Ranch and Quail Park on Cypress practiced safely navigating a variety of terrains while walking or using wheelchairs. The mobility training course, which opened in September 2024, features a range of surfaces, including river rock, gravel, brick walkways, flagstone, pebbles, crushed rock, turf, curbs and various ramps....
Tracey Nottingham knows that not knowing what to do when someone you love is dying can be very stressful. That's why she wants to make sure the residents of Tulare County know what to do when facing difficult end-of-life situations with their loved ones. Nottingham began as the Volunteer Specialist for Kaweah Health Hospice in November, after both of her parents passed away. She was introduced to hospice when her dad's health was failing, and she didn't know anything about...
Community Services Employment Training (CSET) has announced the 53rd Annual Senior Day in the Park will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, May 9, at Mooney Grove Park, 7000 S. Mooney Blvd., Visalia. This annual event, hosted in partnership with the Kings/Tulare Area Agency on Aging, will bring together seniors for a day filled with "aloha spirit," entertainment and community celebration. This year's Senior Day in the Park will feature Hawaiian-themed entertainment, a...
The City of Visalia Parks and Recreation Department hosted the 2025 Visalia Senior Games March 27-30. "This year's Visalia Senior Games saw great success," said Holly Ellis, recreation supervisor for the City of Visalia Parks and Recreation Department. "While, some events were cancelled, many were quite successful." The largest event this year was pickleball, held over two days and attracting 278 participants. Track and field had 48, and 26 athletes competed in archery or...
Surprise package on your doorstep? What could be wrong with free products being delivered to your home? Turns out, you could have been targeted for a recent scam called "brushing." A brushing scam occurs when scammers send unordered packages to people, using their address to create fake verified reviews and boost product ratings. These items, often inexpensive and lightweight, help third-party sellers appear more legitimate and increase sales. In brushing scams, third-party online sellers create fake orders, and deliver...
I am seeing more and more Baby Boomers my age get dementia. Is there anything that I can eat or drink that might help prevent me from getting that disease? There have been a lot of studies done on how highly processed foods that we regularly eat, such as bacon, luncheon meats and basically anything with preservatives, have a negative effect on our cognitive abilities. Start reading the ingredient labels on the foods you purchase and basically anything you cannot pronounce is not healthy for your brain. The National...
June means hot and dry weather, with occasional drops in temperature. Daytime temperatures average around 92 degrees Fahrenheit daytime and 58 degrees Fahrenheit at night. Expect almost 14 hours of sunshine per day, but don't expect rain: June is historically the third driest month of the year. We need to keep our gardens healthy and growing with water-efficient practices and low-water-use plants. Planting Your ornamental planting should be finished by the middle of the...
Three-quarters (73%) of adults age 50 and older are more likely to support movies or TV that include characters similar to them in age and life experiences, according to "Breaking Stereotypes: The Push for Real Representation of Older Adults in Movies and Television," a new survey from AARP. For more than two decades, AARP's Movies for Grownups program has championed movies for grownups, by grownups, by advocating for the 50-plus audience, fighting industry ageism and...
Hey all, It's me again. Dropping pearls of wisdom on you. Well, if not pearls of wisdom, maybe food for thought, or at the very least, things that make you go hmmm. In this edition, I want to talk about making money while going to school. If you are veteran continuing your education or know of one, and want to make a little coin, listen up. The VA Veterans Work-Study Program can help you earn money while you're enrolled in a college, vocational school, or professional...
