This week on Inside Appalachia, we meet a craftsman who builds exquisite, handmade fly rods and shares his love of fishing with others. We also talk about Appalachia’s nurse shortage, and we hear stories about Appalachian baseball.
This week, we meet a craftsman who builds exquisite, handmade fly rods and shares his love of fishing with others.
We also talk about Appalachia’s nurse shortage. Experts say tackling racism could help attract and keep more nurses.
We also hear stories about Appalachian baseball and listen to the story of how a minor league team in Tennessee traded its shortstop — for a turkey.
You’ll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.
The path from making the fly fishing rod to using it is long, but still ends in the river.
Credit: Zack Harold/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Fly fishermen are a different breed. There’s plenty of newfangled fishing gear out there, but some folks prefer to fish with hand-made rods made with traditional materials.
Folkways Reporter Zack Harold takes us along on a trip to the Elk River to learn more.
Nursing Crisis In Kentucky
Health care access is still a major problem in our region. Along with a lack of facilities, there’s a growing need for more nurses — especially nurses who are people of color.
WFPL’s Morgan Watkins reports.
Reviewing The Story Of West Virginia’s Statehood
Mason Adams hears more about West Virginia’s split from Virginia, which was more complex than choosing to stay with the union.
Courtesy
If you live in and around West Virginia, you’ve probably heard the history of how the state split off from Virginia. But if your history classes didn’t get into it, or if you don’t remember the finer points, West Virginia University (WVU) history professor Hal Gorby explains what people get wrong about the creation of West Virginia.
Inside Appalachia Host Mason Adams spoke with Gorby.
Baseball Lore In Appalachia
“Tales from the Dugout: 1001 Humorous, Inspirational & Wild Anecdotes from Minor League Baseball” explores some of the stories of the minor leagues.
Courtesy
Minor league baseball is back. Through early fall, there’s almost always a game happening somewhere. Veteran minor league baseball announcer Tim Hagerty is the author of “Tales from the Dugout: 1,001 Humorous, Inspirational & Wild Anecdotes from Minor League Baseball.”
Bill Lynch spoke with Hagerty about minor league ball and some of Appalachia’s best baseball lore.
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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Tyler Childers, Erik Vincent Huey, Jeff Ellis, and Alabama.
Bill Lynch is our producer. Zander Aloi is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens.
You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.
With numerous West Virginia area air quality levels in the unhealthy range due to smoke from Canadian wildfires, medical experts are advising health precautions for both the general public and those at greater risk.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
Updated on Thursday, June 29, 2023 at 3:30 p.m.
The particles that wildfire smoke produces are small enough to cause big problems according to Dr Sunil Sharma, the division chief for pulmonary critical care at West Virginia University. He said they are not allergens.
“These are so small particles that our body’s filters – the nasal hairs and others, are not able to filter them,” Sharma said. “They have the ability to go all the way deep into a respiratory symptom. They also have an ability, which we call a spillover, to go into our blood. These are not allergens. These are irritants that can cause inflammation inside your lungs. And that’s why they’re so dangerous. Imagine people who already have lung problems.”
Sharma noted that West Virginia has the highest number of COPD patients in the U.S. He said this obstructive lung disease, a very fatal condition often caused by smoking, means people’s lungs are already damaged and inflamed. He said any extra inflammation can tip them over, causing increased hospitalization and emergency room visits.
Dr Sunil Sharma
“The small particulates, when you’re exposed to these and they spill into your blood, can cause heart attacks, “Sharma said. “You see increased rates of heart attacks during these periods of acute exposure to these very small particulates.”
Sharma said the air quality in Morgantown Thursday registered above 215 on the Air Quality Index — a level he said is very severe, offering comparison.
“Anytime you’re above 200 it’s almost equal to smoking half a pack of cigarettes a day,” Sharma said. “You can imagine that if people are susceptible in the areas that are already inflamed, and you light up one cigarette after the other, by the end of half a pack a day, your lungs would be severely inflamed. You would definitely be looking at some kind of an exacerbation in your underlying disease.”
Sharma suggests if the air quality is severe, people who are susceptible should consider enjoying the indoors, people who work outside should limit their hours and all should avoid – or limit – outdoor exertional activity.
“Anytime you do a very exertional activity, you have to take very deep breaths,” Sharma said. “That means that many of these particles can go very deep down inside your lungs and settle in your alveoli or have a spillover effect. So if you’re jogging, turn it into walking. If you are spending four hours outdoors, spend only two hours.”
Dr. Michael Kilkenny, CEO and health officer for the Cabell-Huntington Health Department, said this wildfire smoke contains a number of hazardous small particles and chemical contaminants.
“You’re having air quality that is not only going to potentially cause problems for people who have underlying conditions like asthma or COPD,” Kilkenny said. “It’s also going to be unpleasant for some members of the general public who may just find themselves getting a little bit congested or coughing from it.”
Kilkenny said there are short-term and long-term effects in terms of people at risk.
“People are at risk of having a short-term reaction to this,” Kilkenny said. “Like coughing, shortness of breath, nasal congestion or allergy symptoms – those that are going outside and feeling worse, would be those people who are more elderly and who have respiratory or even a chronic cardiovascular disease. It can be hard for people with asthma and younger people, especially infants.”
Kilkenny suggested those with lung disease or sensitivities to stay inside and set your air conditioning on recirculation mode to lessen bringing these outside smoke particles into your living quarters.
He said the general public should use common sense.
“Don’t be doing really strenuous exercise or long-term working outdoors in this environment if you can help it,” he said. “The harder you’re breathing, the more you’re going to breathe this. If you are outside, you want to avoid really strenuous work, exercising. Today might not be a good day for you to go for a run outside.”
Kilkenny said if you don’t have air conditioning, he recommends avoiding strong exposure to this smoky air by not “getting really worked up and breathing hard.”
He said there’s also the potential for long-term effects as very small smoke particles get deep into the lungs and become a risk for long-term health issues.
“Something that we’re going to worry about, oh well, I was out for an hour today,” he said. “But in terms of how many times in my life, am I going to be exposed to this, for how many days – then we’re talking about trying to keep young children from really getting a lot of exposure to this kind of smoke. Parents should watch after the long-term effect on their children as far as how much they’re exposed to this.”
This week on Inside Appalachia, a high school football game, a street festival, and a kids’ classroom are all settings in a new film about how coal mining shapes Appalachian culture. We also learn about the results of a new survey showing alarming mental health trends in Appalachia’s LGBTQ community. And we meet a taxidermist in Yadkin County, North Carolina who was just a teenager when she found her calling.
This week, a high school football game, a street festival, and a kids’ classroom are all settings in a new film about how coal mining shapes Appalachian culture.
We also learn about the results of a new survey showing alarming mental health trends in Appalachia’s LGBTQ community.
And we meet a taxidermist in Yadkin County, North Carolina who was just a teenager when she found her calling.
You’ll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.
Lanie Marsh in the Cranberry Backcountry filming for “King Coal.” Courtesy
Elaine McMillion Sheldon is best known for the academy award nominated documentary “Heroin(e),” which highlighted the opioid epidemic in Appalachia through the city of Huntington, West Virginia.
Her latest film is the visionary “King Coal,” which is a kind of hybrid documentary that explores Appalachia’s relationship to coal.
Host Mason Adams spoke with Sheldon, co-producer Molly Born and breath artist Shodekeh Talifero.
The Troubling Toll Revealed In The Trevor Project
The Trevor project is a national non-profit organization that focuses on suicide prevention among LGBTQ youth. In May, the project released the results of a survey about mental health and the LGBTQ community. It revealed some concerning numbers.
Chris Schulz brought us the story.
Inside Allergies In Appalachia
If your allergies are making you miserable this spring, you’re not alone. Caroline MacGregor talked to a West Virginia allergy specialist who confirms this year is a particularly tough one for seasonal allergy sufferers.
I Was A Teenage Taxidermist
A lot of people are fascinated by taxidermy, but we tend to be a little uncomfortable with the process that goes into making these animal mounts. The preservation and mounting of dead animals has been around for centuries.
Folkways Reporter Margaret McLeod Leef has the story of one expert practitioner in Yadkin County, North Carolina.
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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Tim Bing, John Blisard, Erik Vincet Huey and Little Sparrow
Bill Lynch is our producer. Zander Aloi is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens.
You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.
A local nonprofit healthcare quality improvement company, Quality Insights, is marking its 50th anniversary by offering $100,000 in grants to nonprofits and community organizations seeking to improve health and health care in West Virginia.
A local nonprofit healthcare quality improvement company, Quality Insights, is marking its 50th anniversary by offering $100,000 in grants to nonprofits and community organizations seeking to improve health and health care in West Virginia.
Quality Insights was established in West Virginia in 1973 and has since expanded to Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Dr. Jean Storm, medical director of Quality Insights, said the organization utilizes four tools in its work: science, data, education and collaboration.
“We have provided support for tens of thousands of health care providers, and have impacted millions of patients,” Storm said. “I like to say simply put, we are working behind the scenes to bring people and information together to improve health.”
The nonprofit plans to fund eight to 15 grants in amounts up to $20,000 in areas where its staff collaborates with community coalitions, healthcare facilities and patients to address provider care, grassroots efforts, and education and research.
The grant submission period is now open and will close on June 30, 2023.
The Public Employees Insurance Agency (PEIA) finance board voted Thursday in favor of straight premium increases. The board’s decision follows four public hearings on changes to PEIA and comes after the idea of adopting two blended approaches was rejected.
The Public Employees Insurance Agency (PEIA) finance board voted Thursday in favor of straight premium increases.
The board’s decision follows four public hearings on changes to PEIA and comes after the idea of adopting two blended approaches was rejected.
Those plans would have resulted in lower premiums but higher deductibles, out-of-pocket and prescription costs.
Under the new plan, state employees and educators will see a nearly 24 percent increase in premiums, effective July 1. The change reflects a return to the 80/20 employer/employee premium split.
Employees insured by local government agencies that opt into PEIA can expect premium increases of 15.6 percent.
A monthly surcharge of between $140 and $150 will apply to spouses of active policyholders who opt into PEIA. The cost will vary based on the plan’s tier levels.
Also effective July 1, reimbursement to providers will increase to a minimum of 110 percent of Medicare’s reimbursement.
The changes to PEIA follow legislative efforts to rescue the insurance carrier from fiscal insolvency and more recently, the announcement by Wheeling Hospital that it would no longer accept the insurance carrier.
For more information on the new PEIA plan, visit peia.wv.gov.
On this West Virginia Morning, more than a decade ago, Huntington made headlines as the “fattest city in the nation.” We listen to an excerpt from our latest episode of Us & Them with host Trey Kay Kay, where we look at continuing efforts to teach healthy habits in West Virginia.
On this West Virginia Morning, more than a decade ago, Huntington made headlines as the “fattest city in the nation.” We listen to an excerpt from our latest episode of Us & Them with host Trey Kay Kay, where we look at continuing efforts to teach healthy habits in West Virginia.
Listen to the full episode of Us & Them Thursday at 8 p.m. or an encore broadcast on Saturday, March 25 at 3 p.m.
Also, in this show, two West Virginia chefs are in the running for one of the most prestigious awards in the culinary world. Randy Yohe spoke with Charleston Chef Paul Smith, who says it’s a humbling honor just to be nominated.
West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.
Support for our news bureaus comes from West Virginia University, Concord University, and Shepherd University.
Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning
