Officials with Iowa Public Television today (Monday) announced they have cancelled the Iowa Press debate for the U.S. Senate race scheduled for October 20th, 2016. Senator Grassley (R-New Hartford) rescinded his acceptance of IPTV’s invitation, leaving former Lieutenant Governor Patty Judge (D-Albia) as the sole participant. Judge accepted IPTV’s invitation on September 23, 2016. Grassley’s campaign issued a press release on August 5, 2016, announcing his participation in IPTV’s debate.

The hour-long debate had been scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. in front of a live audience in the Maytag Auditorium at IPTV’s studios in Johnston. The program would have aired live on statewide IPTV and been live streamed on Iptv.org. The candidates had previously agreed to answer questions and discuss their platforms, concerns and future plans for the state of Iowa.

IPTV Executive Director and General Manager Molly Phillips said “Iowa Public Television has a longstanding tradition of candidate debates through Iowa Press, the longest-running statewide public affairs program. We are disappointed the debate will not be available to all Iowans on our air, online or in our studio.”

Officials at Cass County Health System announced today (Monday), that Brett Altman, Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT), Master of Business Administration (MBA), and Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE), will be the new Chief Executive Officer for the organization.  The Board of Trustees approved the contract for Altman during a special meeting this (Monday) morning. In a Press Release, Cass County Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees Chairman Ned Brown said  “After a thorough search and interview process, it became apparent that Mr. Altman has the vision, leadership skills and industry expertise to continue to move our organization forward.”

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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The Creston Police Department says three people were arrested over the past few days, two incidents of theft and one incident of vandalism was reported. On Saturday, 26-year old Alex Cunningham, of Creston, was arrested at his home on a Union County warrant for Violation of Probation on an original charge of OWI/1st offense. Cunningham was being held in the Union County Jail on a $1,000 bond. That same day, 35-year old John Morse, of Afton, was arrested on a charge of Disorderly Conduct. Morse was later released on a $300 bond. And on Friday, 57-year old Marlene Ploessel, of Creston, was arrested for Theft in the 5th degree. She was released on a Promise to Appear later in court.

Creston Police said also, a resident of the 500 block of W. Montgomery Street reported on Friday someone stole several guns, ammo, pieces of jewelry and various other antique items from his home, following a break-in. A complete list of the items and their value was not available. On Saturday, a man residing in the 1000 block of W. Adams Street in Creston told police someone stole two chainsaws from his home. The loss was estimated at $450.

And, on Sunday, a resident in the 800 block of N. Cherry Street in Creston reported someone drove a vehicle onto his yard and damaged a wood railing leading to the steps of his house. The damage was estimated at $150.

Researchers at Grinnell College say they’ve found that using a copper mix for all types of metal materials in hospital rooms can cut down on dangerous bacteria. Shannon Hinsa-Leasure led the research that studied materials made with a copper alloy at the Grinnell Regional Medical Center. “What we found was that on average, copper surfaces had 98 percent fewer bacteria than control surfaces,” Hinsa-Leasure says.

She says the use of copper to fight bacteria has been studied before, but they took it a step further. “What separates our study from some previous work that had been done in I-C-U’s — we were looking in medical surgical suite rooms — these are rooms where patients are up and moving around,” Hinsa-Leasure explains.  “We look at  surfaces around the patients, but we also looked in the bathrooms. We had copper alloy sinks and grab bars and toilet flushes in the bathroom that we were testing in this study.”

Hinsa-Leasure is an associate professor of biology at the college, and says they were also able to get a good comparison of rooms that were in use and those that weren’t. She says the unoccupied and occupied rooms that served as controls had relatively the same levels of bacteria, while the rooms with copper has significantly lower levels of bacteria, with the unoccupied room having much less bacteria than the occupied rooms. “So what this means is that even when you terminally clean a room, the number of bacteria build up in that room. Even though the room may look clean and ready for a patient, there’s a lot of bacteria there. So the copper really help maintain these terminal cleaning levels in vacant or empty rooms.”

Bacteria can lead to infections and that can lead to more problems for the patients and hospitals. “If you consider that one in 25 patients could get a hospital-acquired infection and roughly 10 percent of those patients died in 2011 who got a hospital-acquired infection, there’s a dramatic cost,” Hinsa-Leasure says, “not only in the patients that get sick, but for the hospitals. Hospitals are now starting to  get scored and not get as much money back if they are getting hospital acquired infections.”

Copper alloy material does cost more than other metal products, but she says there’s a savings in the long run.  “If you look at the minimal increase in cost to put in a copper alloy, it pales in comparison to what you are saving. Not only lives, but also money to keep hospital running,” according to Hinsa-Leasure.  Hinsa-Leasure says copper has the right properties to prevent the bacteria from thriving.

“There have been some studies that have been done that show the mechanism of action — so it’s the copper ions themselves that get into the cells. And they are able to damage the D-N-A, cause some oxygen radicals and really do a lot of damage to the cells,” she explains.  Hinsa-Leasure says hospitals should consider using the copper alloy material to cut infections. But she says they don’t have to make every room in the hospital look like a penny. “We don’t need copper everywhere — but it should be strategically placed in environments where people are immune compromised,” according to Hinsa-Leasure.  “So especially if hospitals are looking at doing renovations or restructuring, that’s the time to put it in. Also, you might want to put it into some areas you already have in your hospital, your I-C-U’s and  different areas of the hospital where it could be important.”

Hinsa-Leasure led the research team that included undergraduate students Queenster Nartey and Justin Vaverka. They  published their results in the American Journal of Infection Control.

(Radio Iowa)

The area’s top news at 7:05-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A monthly survey of business leaders suggests the economy will continue slowing in nine Midwest and Plains states because of weakness in agriculture and energy businesses. The overall economic index for the region declined to 45.5 in September from August’s 47.8. Any score below 50 suggests the economy is weakening.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says energy and agriculture manufacturing is especially weak in the region. The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth in that factor. A score below that suggests decline.

The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

Iowa motorists are reminded harvest time is underway and drivers should be prepared to encounter combines and other large farm equipment on the road. Chuck Schwab, a safety specialist with Iowa State University Extension, says rear end collisions are among the most common crashes involving farm machinery. “Motor vehicles go at a much higher rate of speed than agricultural equipment, so you have this fast closing distance and rear end collisions are very prominent if you’re not prepared to stop,” Schwab says.

When attempting to pass farm machinery, Schwab urges motorists to be patient and make sure they know the farm equipment won’t be turning left. “You need to make sure you’re in line and know that they’re not turning left, watch for the signals and the movement of equipment before you make that pass,” Schwab says.

In addition to roadway collisions, Schwab says the most common type of farm vehicle related accidents include roll-overs involving tractors, lawnmowers, and all terrain vehicles.

(Radio Iowa)

An Iowa high school’s homecoming queen shared her crown with a classmate late last week and by Sunday night video of the kind gesture had been viewed nearly 200-thousand times on the internet. During a school assembly on Thursday, Katie Gassman was crowned the homecoming queen for Wayne Community Schools in Corydon. Gassman had passed a note to the adults in charge of the ceremony and asked that it be read if she won. The teacher who read it choked back emotion as she told the crowd what that note said.

“Tonight I would like to share my crown with the girl who always has a smile on her face and has overcome so many hardships,” the woman said. That girl is Chelsea Sloan, who has Down Syndrome, kidney problems and arthritis — and she was part of the queen’s court, too. Chelsea’s mother was the one videotaping the scene and you can hear her surprised AND pleased reaction to the announcement. The crowd in Corydon cheered as Chelsea stood between her school’s homecoming king and queen and posed for pictures, with the crown on her head.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — Council Bluffs working to upgrade its levees before homeowners are forced to pay higher premiums for flood insurance. City officials say the levees are being upgraded because of the 2011 flood along the Missouri River that lasted for months, but the levees must be certified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

KEOKUK, Iowa (AP) — Iowa authorities say 29-year-old woman fatally wounded in shooting Sunday morning in Keokuk. The state Division of Criminal Investigation is looking into the woman’s death. The woman was found in an alley shortly after midnight Sunday morning.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Christian college in northwest Iowa to begin offering vocational programs to fill gap in its offerings. Dordt College officials say they decided to add the program after noticing how many students graduating from Christian high schools were enrolling on vocational programs at other colleges.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Former Iowa State running back Troy Davis arrested on suspicion of public intoxication roughly 14 hours after being honored at the Cyclones’ game against Baylor on Saturday. Iowa State University Police say Davis refused to take a sobriety test when officers contacted him early Sunday morning. Davis will be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame later this year.