Living Well Workshops Help DeKalb County Live Better with Chronic Conditions

February 21, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

For people with chronic health conditions, good medical care is just half of the equation. Equally important is their ability to make healthy decisions, follow their doctor’s recommendations and take care of their condition.

Living Well with Chronic Conditions, a workshop offered in DeKalb County, teaches people with lifelong health conditions to do just that. Participants have less pain, more energy and fewer hospitalizations.

The classes, offered weekly at the DeKalb County Health Department from March 5- April 9, are for anyone with a chronic disease. Chronic diseases are lifelong health conditions and include diabetes, arthritis, HIV/AIDS, high blood pressure, depression, heart disease, chronic pain, anxiety, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia and others.

There’s a significant need for support for people with chronic diseases, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls the most common, costly and preventable of all U.S. health problems. They are also the leading causes of death and disability, responsible for seven out of 10 deaths each year.

Living Well workshops are delivered in six two-and-a-half-hour weekly sessions. They are taught by two certified leaders; either one or both are non-health professionals who have a chronic disease themselves and can speak from their own experience.

During the six-week session, participants receive support from trained leaders and other workshop participants, learn practical ways to manage their pain and fatigue, learn about nutrition and exercise options, understand new treatment choices and learn better ways to communicate about their conditions with doctors and family members.

February 21, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

The executive director of the Upper Cumberland Human Resource Agency has been placed on administrative leave with pay pending an independent investigation.

Luke Collins is under scrutiny after a Channel 4 investigation into his questionable time sheets, per diem payments, and use of a public transit vehicle.

The UCHRA board met Tuesday morning in Cookeville and voted to put Collins on leave with pay and to ask the agency’s attorney to find another lawyer to lead an independent investigation.

According to reports, some members of the board argued that Collins should not receive pay while on administrative leave, but ultimately the motion was passed to allow him to be paid while the investigation was underway.

Rebecca Harris, the agency’s transportation director, will temporarily serve as executive director until next week when the board meets again.

February 20, 2018
By: Dwayne Page

Veteran Democratic consultant and activist Carol Brown Andrews is running for the Democratic Executive Committee in State Senate District 17, which includes Cannon, Clay, Dekalb, Macon, Smith and Wilson Counties.

“I am coming into this job prepared and willing to work hard for all the people in each of our district’s counties who are interested in recruiting and electing people to local offices to the U.S. Senate who will seek solutions instead of obstructions,” Carol said.

“Making sure our suburban and rural communities are heard in Nashville and Washington is critical. I have the experience and passion to work with each of our district’s local parties to ensure our voices are well represented.”

Each party in each state senatorial district elects a female and male executive committee member on the popular ballot during the August elections. Carol seeks the votes of Democrats in each of District 17’s counties in August to represent them on the Executive Committee of the Tennessee Democratic Party.

About Carol Brown Andrews
Carol is a partner in Grindstone Research LLP, a research firm based in Nashville and Lexington, KY. She and her partners provide research and strategic services to political, non-profits and corporate clients in more than 40 states and abroad. A member of the Association of American Political Consultants (AAPC), Carol has been awarded two “Pollies,” the bipartisan organization’s highest awards judged by peers, for best opposition research in the nation. She frequently appears on “Inside Politics” with Pat Nolan on WTVF-Channel 5+ as a Democratic commentator.

Carol previously served as communications director for the 2014 retention campaign for the Tennessee State Supreme Court Justice Campaigns “Fair Courts for Tennessee,” for former Congressman Harold Ford Jr. in his 2006 U.S. Senate bid and as Press Secretary to former Congressman Bob Clement in his 2002 Senate run. Carol was Tennessee communications director for the presidential campaign of General Wesley Clark in 2004. She has either run communications or managed U.S. Senate, Congressional, gubernatorial and legislative races in Maine, Kentucky and Tennessee. She also served as Communications Director for former Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle and former Washington State Gov. Chris Gregoire.

Carol served as a delegate to the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston and attended the historic 2008 DNC in Denver witnessing the nomination of former President Barack Obama. She has been active in recruiting Democrats to run for office and working to help them succeed.

Carol attended Smith County public schools, graduating from Smith County High School and earning at Bachelor of Science in Communications from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. A native of Lebanon, Carol grew up in the Beasleys Bend Community of Smith County on the farm that has been in her family for more than 150 years, and where she has resided most of her life.

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