Gregg graduates from ASU
Dawn Gregg of Bayfield graduated from Arizona State University at the spring 2014 commencement ceremony.
More than 12,000 ASU undergraduate and graduate students had their degrees conferred at the May commencement ceremonies. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan served as the speaker for the undergraduate ceremony in Sun Devil Stadium.
Arizona State University is located in Tempe, Ariz.
Consumer Reports lists Mercy Regional among top in nation
Mercy Regional Medical Center today announced it has been recognized in the February 2015 issue of Consumer Reports magazine as a top-scoring hospital in the nation for patient safety and patient experience.
Mercy is one of only 32 hospitals (out of 2,591) to be listed in the issue for receiving a safety score higher than 60, for earning the two highest ratings in at least eight of nine patient experience measures, and not getting a low score in any patient experience measures. Mercy was one of four Colorado hospitals in the top-performer list.
According to Consumer Reports, an analysis of the data found that higher patient-experience scores and higher hospital-safety scores are linked. Safety scores are based on factors such as mortality, infection rate, and hospital readmissions. Patient-experience scores include doctor- and nurse-patient communication, communication about discharge, and patients' overall impression of the hospital.
Scores are based on January 2014 data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
For more information on Consumer Reports scores, visit www.ConsumerReports.org.
Dog, trainer graduate from nose work course
Certified dog trainer Annie Phenix and her 10-year-old border collie, Radar, attended two "Train the Trainer" nose work clinics in Vallejo, Calif. in December.
The class was taught by Andrew Ramsey, a former military dog trainer. Phenix is a member of the National Association of Canine Scent work. She will go to Denver soon with two of her dogs for an Odor Recognition Test.
"Nose work is a very addicting sport for both the handler and the dog," Phenix said. Any dog can participate, and she teaches the concepts in 30-minute courses to local dog owners.
"I teach this skill in 30-minute sessions because it really tires dogs out, something that most dog owners love as a side effect of allowing a dog to use his most powerful, natural tool - his nose."
More information about nose work is on her website, www.phenixdogs.com.
