Conversations on Health and Well-Being

Master Herbalist and Naturopath Gigi Stafne completed a month-long residency at the North House Folk School in Grand Marais this fall.

In this installment of a WTIP original series Conversations on Health and Wellbeing, host Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Stafne about botanical and natural medicine.

The years 2018 and 2019 will be remembered for the retirement of many longtime community leaders on the North Shore.

Among those retiring this year is longtime nurse Teresa Borak of the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic. Borak’s role in childbirth, maternity and family care has touched the lives of many in Cook County over three decades.

In this interview, WTIP volunteer Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Borak about her nursing career supporting children and families on the North Shore.
 

Recent coverage by Minnesota Public Radio highlighted the complex situation for rural Minnesota families seeking birthing care.  North Shore community members asked WTIP for information about an aspect of rural birthing care that was not detailed in the series: midwifery and home birth.  How are midwives trained and what services do they provide?  Is midwifery legal?  How do North Shore midwives address the risks involved in rural birth?

In the latest installment of Conversations on Health and Wellbeing, WTIP Host Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Sadie Sigford of Grand Marais, a certified professional midwife, to learn more about midwifery and home birth in Minnesota.   
 

Cook County, Grand Portage and the North Shore are home to amazing people with amazing stories.  In this episode, host Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Kate and Bruce Dahlman about their involvement in healthcare education programs in northeastern Minnesota and their work to develop family medicine and nursing training programs in East Africa.

What has changed over the last 30 years in healthcare education, rural health, and how does this look different in rural Minnesota as compared to East Africa? Kristin finds out in this installment of WTIP’s Health & Well Being series. 
 

While healthcare is always changing, one thing that remains the same is the dedicated, skilled and compassionate people at the heart of healthcare.  Anyone who has had any interaction in healthcare can recall that one person - a nurse, physician, emergency responder, lab or imaging staff, or the office person who took an extra moment with you... a person who was there for you in a time of need.  As rural communities at times are challenged to recruit and retain healthcare providers, what creative solutions are addressing the needs of these special people?

In this installment of Conversations on Health and Wellbeing, Host Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Sheryl Sandahl, Interim Dean of Nursing at the College of Saint Scholastica to learn the differences between nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and family physicians. Kristin also talks with Bryan Slaba, CEO of Wagner Memorial Hospital, who created an innovative program to deal with Emergency Room staffing, community housing, and economic development in rural Wagner South Dakota.
 

The remote setting of Cook County on the North Shore of Lake Superior, coupled with the region’s small population, can present challenges when it comes to accessing health care. In this installment in Kristin DeArruda Wharton’s ‘Conversations on Health and Well Being,’ she takes a look at what health care looks like in other rural settings across the globe, including Cuba and India.

In this installment, DeArruda Wharton talks with Dr. Meg Little about health care in Cuba and perspectives on health from the Tibetan tradition. 
 

Morphine, fentanyl, the opioid epidemic. What are opioids and how have they caused a nationwide crisis of deaths and addiction? What is the response to this crisis?  And how can we better understand and support people in our communities dealing with chemical dependence and addiction?
 
In this installment of ‘Conversations on Health and Well Being,’ Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Dr. Rachel Mack, an educator and nurse practitioner who is an expert in safe and appropriate opioid prescribing. DeArruda Wharton also speaks with Karina Forest Perkins, a mental health and addiction expert, to understand the human side of addiction and a new paradigm for supporting individuals and families dealing with chemical dependence.  
 

Death and dying, these are topics not openly discussed in the dominant American culture.  And yet, each of us will deal with death and ultimately face our own. What is a good death? What are important things to say and hear before death? How can death, at times, be a twisted gift?

In this WTIP original segment, Kristin DeArruda Wharton speaks with Dr. Sandy Stover, a family physician with a commitment to end of life issues. Kristin also speaks with Brenda Hartman, a therapist who faced her own imminent death, miraculously did not die, and has dedicated her career to counseling people with cancer and educating health professionals.
 

Food as medicine and some of the hottest topics in rural health care, including birthing centers in remote areas of Minnesota, are the topics of a special Community Conversations program that debuted on WTIP Thursday, March 15.

In this episode, Guest Host Kristin DeArruda Wharton explores these topics and more with Dr. Kate Shafto and Will Wilson from the Minnesota Department of Health.

DeArruda Wharton is a Cook County resident and a current fellow with the Bush Foundation. She is calling her series ‘Conversations on Health and Well Being.’
 

In March 2017 the Bush Foundation announced a list of 24 fellowship winners who were selected based on their records of achievement and extraordinary potential to make significant contributions in their communities. Leaders were selected from Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and 23 Native nations in the region.

Among the 2017 fellowship winners was Kristin DeArruda Wharton of Grand Marais.

During the past year DeArruda Wharton has done extensive work as a means to become a stronger leader for rural health and to bring awareness to the value of local health care in Cook County.

In this Community Conversation program WTIP’s Joe Friedrichs speaks with DeArruda Wharton about the Bush fellowship. The program is split into two segments, including an interview conducted by DeArruda Wharton with another Bush fellow from Minnesota, Corey Martin, who is also focusing on a unique aspect related to health care.  The other portion of the show features an update from DeArruda Wharton about the first year of her fellowship and her expectations moving forward.