This fall, the American Heart Association announced new standards in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for everyone from healthcare professionals to the lay public. Called the 2010 ECC (Emergency Cardiovascular Care) Guidelines, these place a strong emphasis on calling 911 early to activate the Emergency Medical System, initiate early CPR, get an automatic external defibrillator to the patient and have the patient receive advanced life support.

Health Fair

The annual Martha’s Vineyard Health Fair takes place Saturday, March 12 from 8 a.m. to noon. There will be screenings and exhibits designed to increase awareness about health issues, promote healthy lifestyles and highlight all of the health services and medical programs available on and off the Island.

For more information call 508-693-4645 or visit mvhospital.com.

Let’s Move

Let’s Move Martha’s Vineyard, a community health initiative funded through the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital and the Farm Neck Association, will be starting a free, small pilot program that will run for three months from March 13 to June 12. The committee invites people who may be concerned about their weight and that of a child to contact us. The committee plans to assemble 10 teams of three people who are concerned about their weight.

New Year’s resolutions seem to come at the wrong time. It’s the middle of a dark and dreary Island winter. Who wants to turn over a new leaf when just smiling seems to require an extra burst of energy?

But how about a spring resolution? The sun is getting friendlier, feeling a bit warmer and not retiring to bed so early. Crocuses will be pushing their way into the party soon. It’s just easier to embrace a change of direction when birdsongs rather than cold north winds wake us from our slumber.

The shocker of the TV series Mad Men, about a Manhattan advertising agency in the early 1960s, is the freedom, the elan, the absolute je ne sais quoi with which people smoked. And not just some people — everyone.