Dr. Steven Raheb serves as physician and owner of The Women’s Health Center of Putnam in Connecticut. In addition to his medical practice, Dr. Steven Raheb donates to charitable causes, such as Wreaths Across America (WAA).
Many homes leave an empty seat at the dinner table for a loved one who is or has been in the armed forces. WAA honors this sentiment by sponsoring memorial wreath-laying ceremonies on the second or third Saturday of December at Arlington National Cemetery. In addition, WAA volunteers place wreaths at more than 3,700 locations in the United States and elsewhere. WAA traces its origins to 1995, when Morrill Worcester, president of the Worcester Wreath Company, discovered he had thousands of unused wreaths remaining after the winter holidays. He organized an effort with several patriotic organizations to truck them to Arlington. These pilgrimages became more elaborate over the years. A 2005 photograph of wreaths laid in the snow at Arlington drew national attention, and thousands of people contacted the company offering to help. WAA was incorporated as a nonprofit in 2006 to accommodate these requests. The organization’s programs now salute veterans year round. For instance, Gold Star families can visit the company’s tree farm in Maine to place customized dog tags on balsam firs that will eventually be made into wreaths. The WAA Museum contains hundreds of donated personal mementos, such as helmets, photographs, and awards. The group also educates America’s K-12 students by publishing historical materials for teachers. To learn more, visit the WAA at wreathsacrossamerica.org.
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Steven Raheb has enjoyed a diverse career, serving as a physician at the Women's Health Center of Putnam, PC, for nearly 20 years before transitioning to a role as an adjunct professor at Quinebaug Valley Community College (QVCC). An active volunteer at local nonprofits, Steven Raheb attended and laid a wreath at a 2021 event for Wreaths Across America (WAA).
WAA honors American military veterans via both ceremonies and year-round outreach. In addition to events on Veterans Day and Memorial Day, volunteers hold speaking engagements at local veterans’ groups and schools, explaining the symbolism behind the wreaths. The organization’s largest event, WAA Day, is held in December and calls for supporters to lay wreaths at their local cemeteries to honor the military’s ongoing sacrifices. Through these actions, members seek honor all veterans so that no one will forget then or their service. Supporters can sponsor wreath placements at the over 1,200 cemeteries nationwide, with each wreath dedicated to either a living or deceased veteran. Families can additionally partner with WAA via the Veterans Remembrance Tree Program, whereby families place customized dog tags at the site of a chosen balsam tree (the source of the wreaths). To supplement the funds generated by wreath sponsorships, the WAA encourages allies to purchase its merchandise or print out its outreach materials and spread its mission however they can.
I published Glass Blowing — Safety Precautions on Medium.
Before taking his position as an adjunct professor at Quinebaug Valley Community College (QVCC), Steven Raheb provided obstetric and gynecologic care for patients at the Women's Health Center of Putnam, PC, between 1992 and 2011. Active in his hometown’s nonprofits and community events, Steven Raheb volunteers for the Woodstock Fair, hosted by the Woodstock Agricultural Society.
The Woodstock Fair takes place annually on Labor Day weekend, beginning on the Friday before Labor Day. The Woodstock Agricultural Society supports local concession vendors and individuals desiring to host exhibitions, including those featuring their own livestock. The organization draws on multiple sponsors to provide logistical assistance. Attendees can purchase tickets in advance, either from select Woodstock businesses, online, or onsite. Online purchasers receive a discount when compared to day-of attendees, and an even larger discount when buying tickets in bulk. Active-duty military veterans also receive a discount after showing a valid military ID on site.
I published Wreaths Across America Honors Veterans on Medium.
Steven Raheb, MD completed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the United States Naval Hospital in 1990. He then worked with his father as an OB/GYN at the Women's Health Center of Putnam, which he owned. Dr. Steven Raheb is an adjunct professor in the Biology and Human Sciences Department of Quinebaug Valley Community College. When he's not teaching, he enjoys making hand-thrown pottery pieces.
Pottery is one of the earliest craft and decorative art forms and involves creating objects such as stoneware, earthenware, porcelain, and ceramics from clay hardened with heat. Making pottery includes mixing, molding, shaping, firing, baking, glazing, and painting the clay. The most common pottery-making techniques are hand building, wheel throwing, hand throwing, and slip casting. Hand building involves using the hands to craft objects from clay. Hand building techniques include slab construction, coil construction, and pinch pots. In contrast, wheel throwing and hand throwing involve using a potter’s wheel to mold and shape clay into different products. In slip casting, the potter pours melted clay into specially shaped molds to take on the inner shape of the mold. The clay is left to settle so the mold can absorb some of the water from the clay. This process causes a thin layer of hardened clay to form around the mold. Once this happens, the potter removes the excess liquid clay so the newly shaped clay can dry. Unlike other methods, slip casting does not require manual manipulation of the clay.
I published Changing Child Birth Practices on Medium.
I published Two Main Methods of Glassblowing on Medium.
Laparoscopy is a surgical technique where a surgeon accesses the interior of the abdomen or pelvis without making skin incisions. Also known as keyhole surgery, laparoscopy is a minimally invasive surgical method that uses a laparoscope, a tube with a camera, and light at one end, which relays abdominal cavity images on a monitor.
Doctors perform laparoscopy for urological, gastroenterological, and gynecological purposes. Notably, laparoscopy originated as a gynecological procedure but later found its way to other medical fields. Often used as an alternative to open surgery, laparoscopy has benefits, including reduced scarring, less bleeding and pain after the procedure, shorter hospital stays, and faster recovery. Laparoscopy helps diagnose, treat, or both. A surgeon may recommend diagnostic laparoscopy for various cases, including infertility, chronic pelvic pain, and a history of infection in the pelvis. Some common medical conditions that laparoscopy may help diagnose include uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts and tumors, ectopic pregnancy, endometriosis, and pelvic inflammatory disease. Additionally, laparoscopic treatment procedures include removing fibroids, removing ovarian cysts and tumors, removing the ovaries, hysterectomy (removing the uterus), and reversing tubal ligation, a type of contraceptive surgery, among others. Depending on the type of laparoscopic surgery, a doctor may recommend a patient to take imaging tests or fast. They may also recommend an enema. This is a technique where the doctor injects fluids to stimulate the bowel resulting in stool evacuation. Importantly, the patient should tell the doctor about any medication and supplements they are taking. The physician may require the patient to stop taking such before the procedure. Additionally, one should ask a friend or family member to pick them up after surgery since driving is not advisable. Laparoscopy is always performed under anesthesia, meaning the patient will be unconscious during the procedure. Nonetheless, in most cases, you will get discharged on the same day. After administering general anesthesia, the surgeon inserts a small tube known as a catheter to collect urine. Using a needle inserted into the abdomen, the doctor fills it with carbon dioxide to widen the abdominal cavity, allowing a clear view of the organs. Again, this gas helps keep the abdominal wall away from the organs, thereby minimizing injury risk to the organs. The surgeon then makes a small cut below the navel and inserts the laparoscope. It immediately starts transmitting images of the internal organs to a screen. For future reference, the doctor may record the video. Depending on the type of laparoscopic surgery, the surgeon may make one or more incisions. For diagnostic laparoscopy, they only need one incision, which helps view the abdominal cavity. If a surgical procedure is required, the surgeon may make extra incisions through which they insert other instruments. In this case, the laparoscope acts as a guide. After the procedure, the doctor removes all instruments, stitches the incisions, and bandages the patient, ready for recovery. In advanced laparoscopy, a surgeon may use a robot. The rationale behind this is that a robot’s arms are steadier and provide finer manipulations than human hands. Another approach is microlaparoscopy, which uses a small scope and doesn’t necessarily require the patient to be completely unconscious. After the procedure, a patient recovers until the anesthesia wears off. Depending on the surgery type, discharge may happen the same day or within 48 hours. One can resume activities in one or two days, but extreme activities like lifting heavy loads are not allowed. In case of swelling and bruising, the doctor may prescribe antibiotics and painkillers. |
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August 2021
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