Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 20, 1985)
Portland Observer, M arch 20, 1906, Paye 3 METROPOLITAN Portlanders f ightSickle Cell Anemia by Lamia Duke Ten percent o f all Afro-Americans inherit a genetic trail commonly re ferred to as the Sickle Cell trait If two trait carriers start a fam ily, there is a 25 percent chance that each child will have Sickle (. ell GRASSROOT NFW S, N.W — A nxjlUK o f severe and trequou pain affects an estimated To Portlanders afflicted «uh Sickle ( ell Anemia A hereditary h lixxl disease. Sickle Cell gels us name from the sickle shape ol red b lin d cells. This unusual shape presents oxygen from circulat ing throughout the bods When the brain, lungs and kidneys do not gel enough oxygen, pain and illness are the results. Dr. Robert Bigley, Professor o f Medicine and Medical Genetics at Oregon Health Sciences University, said the physical complicaiions from infections, dehydration and other deficiencies created by the lack ol oxygen makes Sickle Cell a lile short ening disease. "T e n years ago the medium age for survival was 40 years old Now, it's fit sears old “ Next to cancer, Sickle ( ell is one Of the most devastating diseases I ’ se h e r treated.'’ said I> Gunner Waage from kaiser Permanente. " A ll sse can do is otter the patient hospitalization and pain reduction.” The Sickle Cell Foundation pro sides supportive services to Portland Sickle ( ell patients Marcia la v lo r. Smith named to bank PR team Floyd Smith has been named to the newly created position o f sice presi dent, public relations. First Interstate Bank o f Oregon. His office is in Portland where he may be reached at (5031225-2180. Smith recently joined the bank following four years as director o f news and publications with Northwest Natural Gas Company, headquar tered in Portland Prior to that, he was a reporter for K O IN -T V , also Portland. A Board member o f the Portland chapter o f the Public Relations Soci ety o f America, Smith also belongs to the City Club o f Portland, the Friends o f Jeff M orris (building the fire mu seum at Central Station), and the Downtown Light Rail Public Infor- Executive Director, said currently a calendar o f events are being planned to network and fund various resources Our primary purpose is to educate and increase awareness o f the dis ease," said Taylor. “ We provide counseling and support to those with Sickle ( ell Also, we plan to develop free Sickle ( ell screening for low income fam ilies." Jimmy king, 25, lives in constant pain. He receives infections o f m or phine four times a day. Bigley said narcotics arc necessary to control recurring pain. "M o st pain is man ageable but there are crises which re quire hospital admission. There is no point in suffering when you have something to control the p a in ." " I go to sleep with pain and wake up with p a in ," said king. "Some times ii hurls so bad all I can do is lie here. His mother said his education was constantly interrupted with Sickle Cell crises and that he was too ill to work. "B ut I did get married and we have a 5 veai-old daughter. M y wife could r»x tiandlc me staying sick all the tim e," king added. " I ’ ve told my- sell I'm not going anywhere until I take iny kids to the zoo without get ting sick," king said while praising his family for giving him the strength to survive. "Whenever I start feeling sorry for myself, my lather starts lecturing me on the tact that there are people worse o tt than I am. and it brings out the light io me. And it's just enough to light Sickle ( e ll," king noted. Announcing wide area paging coverage without the wide area price. The paging people who have always brought you selection and service now bring you one of the widest coverage areas in Portland Plus one big advantage: Our competitors t harge you for "extended coverage." RAM includes it ,i~ standard bill of fare Premium coverage without a premium price Because at RAM we believe your pager Is only as good as the area It reaches. -1 5 0 7 RAM Broadcasting ol Oregon. Inc . 713 S W 12th Avenue lavlor said her foundation wants to lap and organize this fighting strength. "W e want Sickle Cell pa tients to know they are not alone." Job information fair coming F L O Y D S M IT H mation Adsisory Committee. He is a 1966 English literature graduate o f Portland State. Northeast Portland residents will have a chance to learn about jobs in State Government and how to ap ply for them a, a job inform ation fair being held in the cafeteria o f the M a r tin Luther king Elementary School from noon to 6:30 p m Tuesday, March 26. This is the second year for the fair, "w hich provides a unique opportun ity for the community to learn about state employment opportunities, including summer jobs, current open ings and positions which are trequeiillv advertised by Stale Government," Mid Vicki Nakashima, O D O I uvil nghts manager "A pplications for specific positions will not be accepted at the fair However, inform ation on the application process w ill be pro vided, as well as an opportunity to meet with representatives from vari ous state agencies," noted Nakashima. Representatives from the Transpor- tatxxi Department's Highway, Parks, and Motor Vehicles divisions. Executive Department's Personnel Division, State Police, and t f r (¡ovemor's Affirmative Actual Office will be present. Also, the Department of Human Resources will provide rewHirce people Irian several divisions Adult and Family Servfc.es. Children's Services, (orrectKm. Em- pkwmenl. Health, Mental Health, Sen ior Services and Vncational Rchabili tadon For more information, call the Urban 1 eague ( Iflice at 2HO-26(M> brought to vou every week bv A M E R IC A N STA TE B A N K M U S I A I I M A A l OCAOSIT W S U A A N t l C O A A O A A tlO N Maine is the only state in the union that borders on only one other state: New Hampshire. A letter is coming, it’s believed, if your nose itches. W hat some considered to have been the first English- language newspaper in America, P ublic Occurrences, was published in Boston in 1690. W e do n o t d o business w ith S o u th Africa Clinic caters to Blacks by Robert l.olhian CASCADE NATUROPATHIC CLINIC "O u r Goal Is Healthy Families " Safe, Effective Natural Therapies • Individualized Health Appraisals • family Medicine • Herbal and Homeopathic Medicines • Athletic and On-The-Job Injuries • Women’ s Health Cate Complete Laboratory and Diagnostic Testing Phone 289-9914 Dr. S teven Bailey Dr. A d a m Ladd Licensed Naturopathic Physicians 819 N. KILLINGSWORTH PLAN YOUR FUTURE IN V E S T IN N O W ! THE OREGON o STATE THE OREGON QUALIFIED EXCITING IF STATE POLICE POLICE APPLICANTS AND OFFICE REWARDING OR POLICE, TRAINING m m ’ W r» LOOKING SEEKING FOR THE NEAREST STATE TO OREGON STATE DIVISION, «CM* R* CONTINUALLY ARE CAREER. WRITE BUILD IN G , SALEM , OREGON oux IS WHO INTERESTED - CONTACT POLICE ' I0 7 PUBLIC SERVICE 9 7 3 I0 . j k i » i » <» amv * ura AN EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY AGENCY AN Stephanie Taylor, community support team leader at the N orth/ Northeast Community Mental Health ( enter, recalls a client who was poor, unemployed and who ended up in a hospital under psychiatric care. Through the help he received at the center, she said, he is now living in the community and benefit!ing from |ob training. "There are a lot o f healthy persons there that in a lot o f cases you can deal w ith ," said Taylor. Persons in crisis can walk into the center at 310 N.E. Oregon St., be tween 8:30 a m. - 5 p.m ., Monday through Friday. In addition, the chronically mentally ill can avail themselves ol counseling, medication advice, help with housing, medical care and advocacy in dealings with utilities and other agencies. About 40 percent o f the center's 300-400 clients are Black, and the center staff, many o f whom arc Blacks or other minorities, are attuned to the mental health care needs o f minor ity clients, said Taylor. Richard C. lo u d d and Ann C. Smith, for instance, co-coordinate recreation programs for clients who often can't a fford recreational op portunities important to maintaining mental health. Recently, they invited a Portland artist who had visited kenya to make a presentation with slides, traditional ly designed robes, and hand-carved dolls "U sually, what I get with this is a lot o f heckling, but (the clients) seemed fascinated,” said Loudd Minorities and whites alike enjoyed the pro gram, he said, Loudd and Smith also organized a Wednesday film program, with movies like " la d y Sings the Blues," about Billie H olliday, and "Trading Places" with Fddie Murphy. ( lients have a t tended Blazer and hockey games with donated tickets, and they visited an exhibit o f the work o f Black artists at the Interstate Firehouse Cultural (enter. Such activities are important for building a better self-image, but clients would probably not do them on their own, said l oudd "Once they pay the rent, there's just not enough left over to do recreational kinds o f things," he said. "M oney, money and more m oney" would go a long way toward solving many dienLs’ problems,” said Taylor. Mental health care agencies also need funds to continue serving the com munity. but impending budget cuts may affect their ability to deliver services, she added. That could be a particularly tragic situation at the North/Northeast center, she said, because it is provid mg statewide leadership in m inority mental health care. "W e probably serve the largest number o f Black clients o f any agency in the state, other than the penal system, and dial’s not what I ’d call a mental health sys tem ," she said. Each year the center sponsors an Ethnic M inority Conference, focus ing on agencies and topics, education and training for cross-cultural social services. Taylor and Loudd feel that the North/Northeast center has been able to correct some problems faced by other agencies in providing mental health care for minorities. “ Nowhere in my professional training were m i nority health issues discussed,” said Taylor, who did graduate work in clinical psychology at Western ken- tucky University. "B lack people have traditionally been underserved by the mental health system. . and poor Black people in particular,” she said. Originally from The Dalles, Loudd worked at mental institutions through out the state helore finding his home at the center. "F o r me, personally, it helps my identity as a Black person working with Black people in need," he said. " I feel really good about what I ’ m doing, I leel like I'm making an impact in the com m unity." Donated tickets and other services are always appreciated, he said " These people arc part o f the community. They have special needs, and we hope the community w ill offer support by being g ixxl to these fo lks." American State lia n h AN INDEPENDENT BANK Head Ottica 2737 N. C. U iih jii Portland, Oregon 97212 ------“S Support our advertisers Se'P ---------- S»* v .V'' PORTLAND OBSERVER - ... »
