P age A4
M ay 18, 1994 • T he P ortland O bserver
Mental Health Considerations
M ental disorders in pregnant,
substance-using w om en often go un
detected by health care providers and
alcohol and otherdrug treatm ent staff.
It is essential that a dual diagnosis be
m ade, w hen ap p ro p riate, and a d
dressed in subsequent treatm ent p lan
ning. The com plex com bination o f
pregnancy, addiction, and m ental ill
ness requires a carefully coordinated
ap proach. T he fo llo w in g general
guidelines can be useful in assessing
the m ental health o f pregnant, sub
stance-using w om en.
M en tal H ealth A ssessm ent:
•
D istinguish b etw een d ru g -in
duced psychiatric sym ptom s and a
m ajor m ental disorder. Symptoms
such as anx icty, ag nation, anti para
noia can be m anifestations o f a
state o f drug intoxication or o f the
w ithdraw al syndrom e itself, and at
lim es require no m edications. On
going psychosocial support may
help m inim ize m any o f these sym p
toms.
On the other hand, confirm ed
m ental illness may necessitate the
continuation o f m edications, such
as antidepressants or antipsycho tics,
which have been previously effec
tive in treating the underlying d is
order. It is m andatory that a diag-
nosis o f m ental illness be ruled out
before such medication is stopped.
It must be rem em bered that evi
dence is inconclusive regarding the
safe use o f any psychotropic medi
cation in pregnant women. A thor
ough assessm ent o f the risks versus
the benefits must be made prior to
adm inistering these medications.
Establish any previous history of
psychiatric illness before develop
ing the m edical w ithdraw al treat
ment plan. Efforts should be made
to contactprevious therapists, treat
ing agencies, and m ental health
facilities for this crucial inform a
tion.
Establish com m unication early
in treatm ent with m ental health
personnel involved in the patient’s
care. These individuals often can
provide im portant history, help
build an alliance with the patient,
support discharge planning, and
provide assistance in the event of
an acute m anagem ent crisis.
In d iv id u a liz e m e d ic a l w ith
drawal plans for each patient. C are
fully review standard guidelines and
amend them ifthere are significant
psychiatric problem s to be treated.
Set up arrangem ents to involve
mental health personnel w here ap-
propriatc, in establishing diagnoses
and in developing the treatm ent
plan.
Continue prescribed medications
and provide appropriate followup
for patients who enter alcohol and
otherdrug treatment program s with
well-documented, diagnosed psy
chiatric illnesses that require psy-
chopharm acologic medications.
Continue any prescribed m edi
cations, such as m ethadone and
chlordiazepox ide .except as advised
by the patient’s health and mental
health care providers. P atients
should be supported in this deci
sion by treatm ent programs. Some
support groups may inappropriately
encourage women to abandon all
medications.
Do not avoid seeking therapy for
the patient because of the complex
com bination o f pregnancy, addic
tion, and psychiatric problem s.
Careful planning and stall coordina
tion arc usually effective in treatment.
Use well-validated psychiatric as
sessm ent scales in the diagnosis
and followup o f individual patients.
Consider issues of co-dependency,
adult children of alcoholics/other ad
dictions, and deep trauma from child
hood in the evaluation of patients.
Allergies Galore Await
Mmveomers To Western Oregon
W h e n it c o m e s to a lle r g ie s ,
y ou c a n r u n b u t y o u c a n ’t h id e .
T h a t ’s e s p e c ia lly t r u e f o r th e
te n s o f th o u s a n d s o f p e o p le w ho
e a c h y e a r m o v e to p o lle n - r ic h
W e s te r n O r e g o n .
K en E t t i n g e r , M l) , is an
a lle rg is t
at
K a is e r
P e r m a n e n t e ’s E a s t I n t e r s t a t e
M e d ic a l O ffic e in N o r th P o r t
la n d . “ P e o p le w h o m o v e to
P o r tla n d fo rm o t h e r re g io n s
u s u a lly h a v e a h o n e y - m o o n
fro m t h e i r a lle r g ie s f o r a b o u t
a y e a r . C a lif o r n ia n s le a v e b e
h in d th e a lle r g y - a g g r a v a tin g
m u lb e r r y a n d o liv e tr e e s , a n d
fo lk s fro m th e M id w e s t a n d
e a s te r n s t a t e s fin d ra g w e e d is
m u c h less o f a p r o b le m h e r e ,”
sa y s D r. E t t i n g e r . “ B u t fro m
th e ir fir st b r e a th h e r e , th ese
n e w c o m e r s are e x p o sin g th e m
se lv e s to W estern O r e g o n 's ow n
a lle r g y c u lp r it s .”
By th e ir se c o n d o r th ird
y ea r in P o r tla n d , s u sc e p tib le in
d iv id u a ls w ill be fu lly se n sitiz e d
to lo ca l a lle r g e n s an d m ay face
fu ll-b lo w n a lle r g y a tta c k s.
“T he c h ie f v illa in s in th is
a rea a re g r a ss p o lle n s ,” sa y s D r.
E ttin g e r . “ T he W illa m e tte V a l
ley has a la r g e g r a ss-se e d in d u s
tr y . P o lle n form th o se g r a s s
fa rm s, as w e ll as from m ead ow s
and r o a d sid e s, d r ifts in to P o r t
lan d on th e w in d . T h e r e are
m a n y s p e c ie s a n d m o s t are
‘c r o s s - r e a c tiv e .’ If you are a l
le r g ic to on e k in d , su ch as b lu e
g r a ss, you w ill u su a lly be a lle r
Best News Program
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B ro ad casters A sso c ia tio n nam ed
K PTV -12’s The 10 O ’Clock News
the “Best New s Program ” in the Port
land m etropolitan television m arket
for 1993. KPTV general m anager
M arty B rantley com m ented, “ I t’s
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nel 12 are very proud o f The 10
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K PT V -12 swept the AP category,
“Best Treatm ent o f sS in g lc Subject,”
with the follow ing aw ards: fist place
to Lars Larson and G ordon Coffin for
“Sound D ecisions,” and honorable
.......
gic to a h o st o f o th e r s, su ch as
fescu e and r y e g r a ss. A n y o n e
o f an y ra c e can be a f f e c t e d .”
S u r p r isin g ly , sh o w y b lo s
so m s u su a lly in d ic a te a tr e e or
sh ru b is not a so u rce o f s n iffle s
and sn e e z in g . T h a t’s b e c a u se
su ch p la n ts ty p ic a lly a r e a t
tr a c tin g b ees to carry th eir p o l
len r a th er th a n r e ly in g on the
w in d , sa y s D r. E ttin g e r . S o less
p o lle n g e ts c a r r ie d in to h u m an
n o s t r ils . P o r t la n d ’s a lle r g y
s e a s o n r u n s fr o m M a r c h
th r o u g h f a ll. H e r e ’s w h a t ’s
p ro v o k in g th ose ru n n y n oses
and itc h y e y e s d u r in g d if f e r
en t m o n th s: M a r c h -J u n e , tree
p o l l e n s ; M a y - J u ly , g r a s s
p o lle n s; J u ly -S e p te m b e r , w eed
p o lle n s.
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m entions to Dave T hom pson and
Larry Cm ich for “C haos in C roatia,”
as well as “ Romania: The Children
Forgotten.”
The AP “ Best News Program ”
honor for K PTV -12 follow s other re
cent highly-acclaim ed new s recogni
tion such as the Peabody Award;
National G abriel Award silver medal;
the National Headliner Award; the Sil
ver Gavel Award from the American Bar
Association; and consecutive honors for
Mike O ’Brien as the Oregon Sports
caster of the Year in 1991 and 1992.
The 10 O ’C lock News continues
its tradition o f aw ard-w inning jo u r
nalism at a time that w orks for w ork
ing people.
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Millennium
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One in six A m ericans has a
speech, language or hearing disor
der that affects the ability to com
municate. A com m unication dis
order can happen to anyone at any
time, limiting the potential for aca
dem ic, social and career achieve
ment. But m any com m unication
disorders can be prevented, say
p ro fessio n als o b serving B etter
hearing and Speech Month this
May.
L o u d n o is e c a n p e r m a
n e n tly d a m a g e h e a rin g . Y o u r
la w n m o w e r, th e h e a d p h o n e s on
y o u r p e rso n a l ste re o , and the
a p p lia n c e s in y o u r hom e can
ta k e a to ll on y o u r h e a rin g . To
p ro te c t y o u r h e a rin g from no ise
d a m a g e , turn d o w n the v o lu m e,
w e a r e a rp lu g s w hen o p e ra tin g
loud e q u ip m e n t, and g iv e y o u r
c a rs a re st by a lte rn a tin g n o isy
a c tiv itie s w ith q u ie t o n es.
In ju rie s re s u ltin g from a c
c id e n ts can d a m a g e y o u r a b ili
tie s to sp e a k and u n d e rsta n d .
F a ith fu lly b u c k le se a tb e lts. A l
w ays use c h ild c a re safety scats
p ro p e rly . W e a r a p p ro v e d b i
c y c le safety h e lm e ts to p ro te c t
y o u rs e lf and y o u r fam ily from
b ra in in ju ry .
Speech, language and hearing
disorders in children can result in
developm ental and academic dc-
lays. Help your child develop good
speech and language skills. Talk to
your child naturally. Talk to your
child naturally. Talk about what you
are doing, what you see, what your
child is doing, and w hat your child
secs. If you have concerns about your
child’s speech, language, or hearing,
d o n ’t w ait to get professional help.
Early identification and treatm ent are
critical to reducing developm ental
delays and to expanding com m unica
tion skills.
If yo u h av e a n y q u e s tio n s
a b o u t h e a rin g o r s p e e c h , o b se rv e
B e lte r H earin g a n d S p e e c h M onth
by c a llin g on th e p ro fe s s io n a ls
w ho d ia g n o se an d tre a t c o m m u
n ic a tio n d iso rd e rs. A u d io lo g ists
s p e c ia liz e in p re v e n tin g , id e n ti
fy in g , and a sse ssin g h e a rin g d i s
o rd e rs as w ell as p ro v id in g tr e a t
m e n t in c lu d in g th e se le c tio n an d
fittin g o f h e a rin g a id s and o th e r
a s s is tiv e lis te n in g d e v ic e s .
S p e e c h - la n g u a g e p a th o l o g i s t s
id e n tify , a sse ss, and tre a t sp e e c h
and la n g u a g e p ro b le m s in c lu d in g
sw a llo w in g d iso rd e rs.
R e c e n t a d v a n c e s in te c h n o l
ogy and tre a tm e n t h av e e n a b le d
sp e e c h -la n g u a g e p a th o lo g ists and
a u d io lo g ists the a b ility to o ffe r a
v a rie ty o f re h a b ilita tiv e o p tio n s ,
such as so p h istic a te d hearin g a id s,
c o m p u te r te c h n o lo g y fo r s tu tte r
ing tre a tm e n t, and a u g m e n ta
tive co m m u n ic a tio n sy stem s fo r
in d iv id u a ls w ho a re u n a b le to
sp eak v e rb a lly .
B e tte r h e a rin g and S p e e c h
M onth is o b se rv e d by sp eech -
la n g u a g e p a th o lo g is ts and a u
d io lo g is ts a c ro ss the c o u n try
w ith free sp e e c h , la n g u a g e and
hearin g sc re e n in g s, open houses
at c lin ic s and o th e r fa c ilitie s ,
and a v a rie ty o f o th e r e v e n ts to
in fo rm th e p u b lic a b o u t c o m
m u n ic a tio n d is o rd e rs and tr e a t
m en ts.
T he A m e ric a n S p e e c h -L a n
g u a g e H e a r in g A s s o c ia tio n
(A S H A ) is the n a tio n a l p r o fe s
sio n a l, sc ie n tific and a c c r e d it
ing o rg a n iz a tio n fo r m ore than
7 7 ,0 0 0 a u d io lo g is ts , sp e e c h -
la n g u a g e p a t h o l o g i s t s , a n d
s p e e c h -la n g u a g e an d h e a rin g
sc ie n tists. A S H A ’s In fo rm a tio n
R e so u rc e C e n te r p ro v id e s free
b ro c h u re s an d o th e r in fo rm a
tio n on s p e e c h ,la n g u a g e , and
h e a rin g d is o rd e rs to m ore than
2 0 ,0 0 0 c o n s u m e r a n n u a lly .
C o n su m e rs can c a ll 1 -8 0 0 -6 3 8 -
8255 fo r b ro c h u re s on to p ics
such a s n o ise and h e a rin g lo ss,
how to buy a h e a rin g a id , s tu t
te r in g , v o ic e d is o r d e r s , la n
g u a g e d e la y in c h ild re n , and
e a r in fe c tio n s and h e a rin g loss.
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Practical Tips To Prevent Or Treat Speech, Language And Hearing Disorders
Good Health Plan. It's a simple choice that provides
at
&
s Better hearing
Speech Month
A good old fashion get together
[organizations bring an E T H N IC food dish
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Inform ation about YOUR program s to share with the patrons
D ate: M ay 21, 1994 - Noon to Dusk
F o r M o re In fo rm a tio n C all:
281-0746 o r 727-2694
Call us today for more information. Because good
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