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2012 | Edition 1

Kit Whittington

Dear SHC Clients,
As we say goodbye to 2011, I like to look back even further into past years, in order to understand where we’ve been and to also provide better insight to our future direction. It’s hard to believe that in 1987, SHC had only 12 employees and a handful of clients. Now, 25 years later, we have grown to over 160 employees and are now servicing clients throughout the entire St. Louis Area! It has been a great privilege and responsibility interacting and impacting
so many families – both client and caregiver. 

I am so excited to celebrate our 25th year anniversary in business – but I have also not forgotten how we got here! As we continue to grow, so too will we continue to bring the strength and compassion of premier in-home care services to our clients; and to our employees, we will maintain the nurturing employment values by which everyone has come to know us. 

I look forward to sharing this New Year with all of you! Thank you for your trust, support and dedication.

Yours in services,
Kit Whittington R.N., B.S.N.

Tech Spec: The Nest Thermostat

Activity Sensors

Nest's activity sensors have a 150° wide-angle view so Nest knows when to set itself to Auto-Away.

Temperature Sensors

Three temperature sensors track your home's heating and cooling. A one-degree difference can reduce energy use up to 5%, so precision is important.

Weather Aware

Nest uses its Wi-Fi connection to keep an eye on current weather conditions and forecasts so it can understand how the outside temperature affects your energy use.

Senses Your Approach

Walk up to Nest and it'll light up, but not too brightly. Light sensors automatically set Nest's brightness so it won't blind you at night.

Builds A Schedule

Nest programs itself in about a week. It creates a personalized schedule based on the temperature changes you’ve made. This flexible schedule
adapts to your changing life.

The Leaf

The Nest Leaf appears when you set a temperature that saves you energy–and money. The Leaf guides you in the right direction and helps you be energy-efficient.

Auto-Away

About two hours after you’ve left the house, Nest will sense you’ve gone and adjust the temperature to avoid heating or cooling an empty home.

Energy History

Nest shows you how much energy you’ve used and if your temperature adjustments, Auto-Away or the weather affected your energy use most.

Real-Time Control

Control your home’s temperature from your laptop, smart-phone or tablet. Make adjustments in real-time, miles from home.

Your Nest Account

Log in online or download the Nest Mobile app to your smart-phone. You'll be able to see and adjust your schedule, change the temperature and check weather.

Automatic Updates

Software updates will load automatically as long as Nest is connected to your Wi-Fi.

By: Nest Labs (www.nest.com) — Cost: $249.00

13 Things to Look Forward to in 2012

  • London 2012 Olympic Games from July 21st – August 12th
  • 2012 College Regionals stop to play in St. Louis on their way to the Final Four
  • Technology & Gadgets – Amazon Kindle Fire, iPhone 5, new high tech tablets
  • 433 Eros (near Earth asteroid) will pass within 17 million miles (close enough to see with a telescope)
  • American Presidential Election
  • Total solar eclipse November 13 across Australia and South Pacific
  • Leap Year!
  • Carlos Beltran reunites with Lance Berkman… As a Cardinal
  • Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II
  • World Expo – Yeosu, South Korea
  • St. Louis will host 2012 & 2013 USA Cross Country Championships
  • The “Mars Science Laboratory” is scheduled to land on Mars between Aug 6th & 20th
  • The Freedom Tower (replacing World Trade Towers) will be complete in New York City

Ice Your Cell Phone

One of the difficulties long faced by emergency services personnel is how to locate next of kin for (or obtain other necessary information about) a victim
who is unconscious, dead, or otherwise unable to respond to questions. Even if the victim is carrying one or more forms of identification which have remained with him/her (such as a driver’s license), those items don’t necessarily provide information about where and how relatives or other interested parties can be reached, resulting in delays as officials try to track those people down through ancillary details.

This issue has been addressed through a variety of means over the years, as many people have taken to carrying lists of emergency contacts (and vital medical details) in their purses and wallets, or wearing items such as bracelets and necklaces with such information engraved on them.

Bob Brotchie, a paramedic who works as a clinical team leader for the East Anglian Ambulance NHS Trust, has launched a campaign to get people to store In Case of Emergency (ICE) information in items that have become ubiquitous in many parts of the world: cell phones. The way ICE works is to store the number(s) of a contact person(s) who should be contacted during emergency under the name 'ICE' (In Case Of Emergency). In an emergency situation, emergency service personnel and hospital staff would be able to quickly contact the right person by simply dialing the number you have stored as 'ICE.'

For more than one contact name simply enter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3 etc. A great idea that will make a difference!

Let's spread the concept of ICE by storing an ICE number in our mobile phones today!

Source: Snopes.com

Valentine Trivia

  • In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a bowl to see who their valentines would be. They would wear these names on their sleeves for one week. To wear your heart on your sleeve now means that it is easy for other people to know how you are feeling.
  • The oldest known valentine that is still in existence today was written (in the Tower of London) by Charles, Duke of Orleans to his wife. The greeting is now at the British Library in London.
  • Hallmark has over 1330 different cards specifically for Valentine's Day.