The Prevent Defense
Flu Shot Protects Against Seasonal Flu

Fall and winter are a time for holidays, family gatherings and good times. Unfortunately, they also are the seasons for the dreaded flu virus.

More than simply a painful cold, the flu is a serious illness that each year sends more than 200,000 people to the hospital and kills between 3,000 and 49,000 people in the United States alone. It is characterized by symptoms that include fever, sore throat, stuffy nose and muscle aches.

The best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu shot each season, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC recommends vaccinations for everyone 6 months and older. The vaccine releases antibodies into your immune system that provide protection against infection from the flu virus.

Inova’s highly trained nurses can help protect you and your children with the flu shot. When you come to one of our clinics, you know you can trust the person providing your care. Only nurses fully employed (not contracted) by Inova provide our flu shots. That means our nurses are highly qualified, selected, screened and trained. And unlike some other providers, we can vaccinate children as young as 6 months. We also offer a nasal flu vaccine known as FluMist^® if you or your child struggles with shots.

Fight the Flu
Inova Fair Oaks Hospital is holding weekly on-site family flu shot clinics from September through December. On-site flu shot clinics for worksites and community groups are also available. For a complete schedule or more information, click here.

Color Your Plate
Brightly Colored Fruits and Vegetables Contain Precious Nutrients

Fall is a colorful season — and not just because of the foliage. There are orange squash, red apples and purple eggplant. Rather then eating the same, plain-colored foods, try matching the color of the food on your plate with the color of the season.

Consider buying foods in shades of orange, yellow, purple, green and red. Many experts say the compounds that give foods their bright colors are also responsible for giving them their unique health-promoting properties.

Personalized Weight Loss
With special expertise in weight-loss surgery, the bariatric surgeons at the Inova Weight Loss Surgery Program can help you lose weight. And if you’re not ready for, or don’t want surgery, we also offer the Inova Medical Weight Loss Program. We’ve helped almost 7,000 people uncover the person they want to be.

Join us for a free information seminar. Seminars are held on Saturdays at 10 a.m. and weeknights at 6:30 p.m.

Call 703-391-3783 or click here and register today!

Inova Weight Loss Surgery Program
Seminar dates:
Oct. 10, 11, 13, 20, 27 and Nov. 10, 14, 15, 17, 24

Inova Medical Weight Loss Program
Seminar dates: Sept. 27, Oct. 25, Nov. 15

InovaCares for Seniors PACE Program
A New Alternative to Traditional Senior Care

InovaCares for Seniors™ PACE^® recently launched its Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), the first and only program of its kind here in Northern Virginia. PACE is a program for older adults that helps to preserve the independence of seniors living in the community and allows them to receive the care they need and still remain in their home. Each InovaCares for Seniors PACE participant receives an individualized care plan that meets both their medical and social needs.

This care plan is determined by the collaborative efforts of an interdisciplinary team that includes a physician with an expertise in geriatric medicine, a nurse, nutritionist, occupational and physical therapist, social worker, activities coordinator, home care coordinator and transportation staff. “Often, the health problems senior citizens experience are because of non-medical factors, such as difficulty administering medications, poor diet, trouble getting to and from their doctor appointments, lack of exercise or insufficient social interaction,” says Terence McCormally, MD, Medical Director of the InovaCares for Seniors PACE program and a board-certified geriatric physician. “PACE helps with both their medical and non-medical needs.”

The PACE program provides comprehensive care for seniors. “A geriatrician in private practice in our area would typically care for about 900 patients. At the PACE center, our team cares for about 100 patients, and this allows for personalized, coordinated care by the whole team,” says Dr. McCormally.