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First African-American Medical
Missions Conference
T h e M y e r s F o u n d a tio n F o r
I n d ig e n t H e a lth C a r e & C o m
m u n ity D e v e lo p m e n t w ill h o s t
T c h u l a ’9 4 A f r ic a n - A m e r ic a n
M e d ic a l M is s io n s C o n f e r e n c e
in J a c k s o n a n d T c h u la , M is
s o u r i. R e v . R o n a ld M y e r s , S r .,
M .D ., m e d ic a l d o c to r , b a p t i s t
m in is te r a n d a c c o m p lis h e d ja z z
m u s ic ia n , h a s b e e n a lo n g tim e
a d v o c a te o f ru ra l C h ris tia n
h e a l t h c a r e in th e M is s is s ip p i
d e l t a . D r. M y e r s , w h o g a in e d
n a tio n a l
m e d ia
a tte n tio n
th r o u g h h is e f f o r ts to p r o v id e
h e a l t h c a r e to im p o v e r i s h e d
M i s s i s s i p p i d e lta to w n o f
T c h u la , M is s is s ip p i d e s p ite
g o v e r n m e n t o p p o s itio n , is c o n
c e r n e d a b o u t h o w h e a lth c a r e
r e f o r m w ill im p a c t th e r u r a l
p o o r.
“ C h ris tia n s m u st b e p r e
p a r e d to r e s p o n d to G o d ’s c a ll
to m e d ic a l m is s io n s w ith c o m
p a s s io n to th e n e e d s o f t h e p o o r
th ro u g h s a c rific ia l s e r v ic e ,”
s t a t e s D r. M y e r s . D r. M y e r s
h a s th e d is tin c tio n o f b e in g th e
f ir s t o rd a in e d an d c o m m is
s io n e d A f r ic a n - A m e ric a n m e d i
cal
m is s io n a ry
to
th e
M i s s i s s i p p i d e lta f ro m b la c k
b a p t i s t c h u r c h e s in W is c o n s in
a n d p e r h a p s th e f ir s t in th e h i s
t o r y o f t h e b l a c k c h u r c h in
A m e r ic a .
Dr. Ronald V. Myers examines sick toddler at the Tchula Family
Health Center in Tchula, Miss. Dr. Myers is conducting an African-
American Medical Conference in hopes it will encourage more
Christian physicians wanting to provide the same services his clinics
provide.
One With Heart
Presents:
A Traveler’s Safety
Workshop For Women
One W ith Heart, located at 4231 SE Hawthorne Blvd., presents
a self-defense workshop for women planning to travel this Summer
or Fall. The workshop will be held on Saturday, July 9th from 1:00-
4:30p.m. Cost is $40 if pre-registered by July 2nd. Other wise, cost
is $45. Call 231-1999 to reserve your place.
•
Learn practical physical and verbal self-defense skills
•
Develop strategies for preventing threats to your safety
•
Increase your awareness o f new surroundings
• Gain self-confidence and travel more safely
• Course sizes are limites. To register call 231-1999.
Men Needed For Prostate
Cancer Study
because older men are at highest risk
o f developing prostate cancer. About
98 percent o f prostate cancers are
diagnosed in men age 55 or older.
The men in the trial w ill be d i
vided random ly into two groups. Half
will take the drug for seven years, and
the other half will take a placebo, an
inactive pill that looks like finasteride.
The tw o groups will then be com
pared to determine whether their pros
tate cancer rates differ.
N e ith e r th e p a r tic ip a n ts nor
the stu d y p h y sic ia n s w ill know
w h ich m en are g e ttin g fin a ste rid e
an d w h ic h m en a re g e ttin g p la
c e b o . T h is p e rm its re s e a rc h e rs to
see th e p o ssib le b e n e fits a n d side
e ffe c ts o f the dru g w ith o u t b ein g
in flu e n c e d by o th e r fa c to rs, such
as e x p e c ta tio n s o f p a rtic ip a n ts o r
re se a rc h e rs.
“T here’s no guarantee that a man
who enrolls in the trial won ’t develop
prostate cancer,” Low e cautioned.
“ But all men in the study, whether
they get finasteride or placebo, will
have the opportunity for close follow
up for the detection o f prostate can
cer.”
One o f the main advantages of
using finasteride in a prevention trial
is that the drug w orks only in the
prostate, and its side effects are rela
tively rare and relatively mild, Lowe
said.
Men who arc interested in par
ticipating in the study, should contact
the testing.
Eighteen thousand men, age 55 the Division o f Urology at Oregon
and older, will participate nationally. Health Sciences U niversity, (503)
The minimum age limit was selected 494-5601 or (503) 494-4784.
Men in the Portland/V ancouver
area will have an opportunity to p ar
ticipate in the first large-scale pre
vention trial for prostate cancer in the
United States. The study, designed to
establish w hether taking the drug
finasteride will prevent prostate can
cer, will be coordinated by Southwest
Oncology Group and is sponsored by
the U.S. N ational Cancer Institute.
“The Prostate Cancer Prevention
Trial is a very important prevention
effort,” said Bruce Lowe, M.D., asso
ciate professor o f Urology at Oregon
Health Sciences University. “This year
in the U nite States, there will be about
165,000 new cases o f prostate cancer
and about 35,000 deaths. Prevention
o f cancer is our highest goal, and the
need for effective prevention strate
gies is clear.”
The U .S. Food and Drug Adm in-
istration approved finasteride in 1992
for the treatm ent o f benign prostatic
hyperplasia, a non-cancerouscnlarge-
ment o f the prostate gland. Because
prostate cancer is influenced by sim i
lar horm onal factors, researches be
lieve that finasteride may also p re
vent cancer.
M ore than half a m illion men in
25 countries arc currently taking
fin a ste rid e fo r b en ig n p ro sta tic
hyperplasia, but the drug has never
been tested for cancer prevention.
The National Cancer Institute is pro
viding about $60 million to conduct
North Portland!
Vision Center!
Closes
“ H e a lth c a r e is m o v in g to
w a rd s a m a n a g e d c a r e s y s te m
w h e re p h y s ic ia n s , m e d ic a l s e r
v ic e p ro v id e rs a n d h o s p ita ls w ill
c o m e to g e th e r to o f f e r a fu ll
ra n g e o f s e r v i c e s ,” s ta te s D r.
M y e r s . “ In r u r a l M is s is s ip p i,
w h e re h o s p ita ls h a v e c lo s e d a n d
m a n y to w n s d o n o t h a v e d o c
to r s , a tte n tio n m u s t b e g iv e n to
w h e th e r th e h e a lth p la n s p r o
p o s e d in W a s h in g to n w ill m e e t
th e n e e d s o f th e p e o p le in p o o r
r u r a l c o m m u n itie s lik e T c h u la .
C h r is tia n s m u s t c o n t i n u e to
s ta n d in th e g a p a n d s e r v e in
p o o r c o m m u n itie s .”
T h e p u r p o s e o f th e c o n f e r
e n c e is to lo o k a th e A f r ic a n -
A m e ric a n c h u r c h e s c a ll to m is
s io n s a n d e x a m in e s o m e o f th e
h o lis tic r e s p o n s e s to th e n e e d s
in o u r c o m m u n itie s , s p e c if ic a lly
lo o k in g a t r e s p o n s e s to h e a lth
c a r e n e e d s . T h e c o n f e r e n c e is
b e in g h e ld in a s s o c ia tio n w ith
D e s tin y M o v e m e n t, I n c ., th e
C h r is tia n C o m m u n ity H e a lth
F e llo w s h ip a n d th e M is s is s ip p i
A s s o c ia tio n o f C h r is tia n F a m
ily H e a lth C e n te r s . C o n f e r e e s
w ill to u r M is s is s ip p i C h r is tia n
h e a lth c e n te r s in J a c k s o n ,
T u tw ile r , C a r y a n d T c h u la .
F o r m o r e in f o r m a tio n , c a ll
(6 0 1 ) 2 4 7 -3 3 6 4 .
The Pacific University College of Optometry has an
nounced that it w ill be closing its Cascade Campus Fam ily
Vision Center which serves residents o f North and North
east Portland with vision care services. The effective date
o f this closure is Joly 15, 1994. The Cascade Campus
Vision Center is located at 600 N . Kiliingswortb (across
the street from the Portland Community College Cascade
Campus).
Inner-city residents and community agencies and re
sources seeking affordable vision care services are invited
to contact Pacific University’s Portland Family Vision
Center which is located at 4 1 1 SW 10th Ave^ Suite 500 in
downtown Portland.
The Pacific University College o f Optometry hopes to
re-establish, w ithinthe neat several months, a vision clinic
serving inner-city residents which w ill operate as a p art of
the M ultnom ah County Nortb/Northeast Clinic which is
currently located on N. M L K Jr. Blvd.
As w ith the Cascade Campus Vision Center, Pacific’s
Portland Family Vision Center provides vision care ac
cording to individual and fam ily income. Patients pay for
services using a sliding fee scale. The Portland Vision
Center also is able to offer patients a more comprehensive
list o f vision services than was available at the Cascade
Campus Vision Center including free vision screenings,
complete vision examinations, eye disease and special test
ing services, vision therapy services, low vision care,
contact lens care, infantZpediatric care, referral services
for special needs, and eye wear dispensing services.
For more information regarding affordable vision ser
vices for inner-city residents, please call the Pacific Uni
versity Portland Fam ily Vision Center at 224-2323.
Kidney Failure, High Blood Pressure
Kidney failure, one o f the lead
ing health problems in A m erica to
day, is a serious concern for African-
Americans. Although whites still con
stitute the largest num ber o f kidney
patients, the rate o f kidney failure
am ong A frican-A m ericans today is
nearly four tim es as great as the rate
o f kidney failure among whites. M ost
alarm ing, that rate is grow ing. This
high rate o f kidney failure is a result
o f the incidence o f high blood pres
sure and diabetes among African-
Americans, the two leading causes of
kidney disease.
In healthy individuals, the two
kidneys, which are about the size o f a
fist, perform several vital, life-sus
taining functions. One o f their major
functions is to filter the blood o f waste
products to remove toxins (poisons)
from the blood. The kidneys also
maintain the body’s fluid levels, regu
late blood pressure, synthesize vita
mins, and generate erythropoietin, a
hormone that regulates the produc
tion o f anem ia-preventing red blood
cells. Many other organs in the body
depend on the kidneys to function
why African-Americans havea higher
incidence of hypertension is not
known. High-fat diets, alcohol con
sum ption and smoking are all risk
factors. It may be that African-Ameri
cans have a genetic predisposition to
hypertension and kidney disease. A f
rican Americans also tend to develop
more sever cases o f disease and to get
it at an earlier age. For this reason,
A frican-Americans have a com para
tively high risk o f kidney failure as
well as other diseases associated with
high blood pressure, such as strokes
and heart failure.
Having regular blood pressure
checkups is one o f the most im portant
ways to avoid kidney failure as well as
many other diseases. Checkups are
critical because people often have no
symptoms with high blood pressure
and don’t know they have it until
checked by a doctor, nurse or other
health professional. Blood pressure
checkups are quick and painless —
and may be offered free o f charge at
some clinics. It is important to re
member that hypertension is easy to
treat. Side effects from medications,
normally -- and when the kidneys
become damaged by disease, the rest
of the body is affected as well, some
problems associated with kidney dis
ease include pericarditis (inflam m a
tion o f the heart), dementia, bone
disease and anemia.
Kidney failure is primarily caused
by hypertension and diabetes. In Af
rican-Americans, the most common
o f kidney disease is hypertension, or
high blood pressure. Continued hy
pertension dam ages small arteries in
the kidneys and causes them to be
com e thick and rigid. W hen this hap
pens, blood flow to the kidney is
limited. Therefore, the kidneys can
no longer filter wastes efficiently or
perform any o f their other vital func
tions. If hypertension is left untreated,
the risk of total kidney failure in-
creases.
High blood pressure is a leading
cause of death among African-Ameri
cans. W hile about 24 percent o f the
w hite population has high blood pres
sure, the incidence among African-
Americans is significantly higher -
about 36 percent. The exact reason
if any, usually can be managed. Any
one experiencing side effects should
discuss tfiem with their doctor, who
may prescribe a different medication.
It is also important to recognize
some of the warning signs of kidney
disease. These include high blood
pressure that becomes more difficult
to control, shortness of breath, swell
ing of the hands and feet, blood int he
urine, and pain in the back below the
rib cage. The benefit o f intervention
is that the progression of kidney dis
ease can be slowed down, ideally to
the point a patient experiences no
symptoms at all.
The best treatment for kidney
disease is prevention. People who eat
w ell-balanced m eals and exercise
regularly can sharply reduce their
risk o f high blood pressure. But be
cause high blood pressure can cause
so many different health problems —
and is so common among African-
Americans - it is important to get a
checkup on a regular basis. Taking
these steps may not only help put off
kidney disease, they may also help
people live longer, healthier lives.
Packwood And Dole Unveil Health Care Plan
Oregon Senator Bob Packwood,
the ranking R epublican m em ber of
the Senate Finance C om m ittee, and
Senate M inority Leader Bob Dole, R-
Kan. have unveiled a health care re
form bill they say will fix what’s broken
with America’s current health care sys
tem without the drastic disruption called
for under various other proposals.
“W e believe this bill will provide
the necessary reform s to our current
chasing cooperatives so small busi
nesses, the self-employed and indi
viduals can increase their access to
affordable insurance.
The Dole/Packwood bill would
open insurance plans offered under
the Federal Employees Health B en
efit program to small businesses and
self-employed individuals, thus giv
ing immediate access to the nation’s
largest health insurance purchasing
health care system that Americans
w ant and need,” Packwood said.
Specifically, the bill calls for:
Insurance reform s guaranteeing
all Americans access to affordable,
portable and non-exclusionary insur
ance for them selves and their fami
lies; low income subsidies making
insurance affordable for low-income
fam ilies; and voluntary purchasing
pools - establishing voluntary pur
Discount Coupons On Bike
Helmets Available
Property and casualty insurance
com panies throughout the W estern
Insurance Information Service (WHS)
are offering coupons for $10.00 off
the purchase o f any Bell Brand Hel
m et (except CycleRight Helmets) in
the Portland M etro area.
“The insurance industry has sup
ported public safety program s like
this for a long tim e,” says Jean-Pierre
Fontenot, W1IS Speaker Bureau Co
ordinator. Noting that a majority o f
fatal bike accidents involve head in
juries, Fontenot continues, “W earing
a bicycle helm et may not reduce the
num ber o f accidents, but taking the
measure to w ear a helm et can make
the difference between getting a bump
on the head and having a serious,
possible fatal, head injury.”
Recognizing that he use o f bike
safety helmets dramatically reduces
the num ber and severity o f head inju
ries to young bicyclists, and that
O regon’s new bike helmet law re
quiring bicyclists 16 years o f age and
younger to wear an approved helmet
goes into effect July 1,1994, the WHS
O regon Insurance C ouncil (O IC)
wanted to find a way to make afford
able helmets available to the public.
W orking with Bell Sports Cycle Right
C om m unity H elm et Program , the
safety helmet m anufacturcrhas made
coupons available to WIIS to distrib
ute in the Portland area.
These $10.00 discount coupons
arc redeemable at any Bike Gallery
location in the Portland area (Eastside:
5329 Sandy Blvd.; Downtown: 821
SW 11th Ave.; Beaverton: 2625 SW
Cedar Hills Blvd.). Coupons arc now
available and will be through the
month o f Septem ber at many o f the
com m unity cycling program s and
events sponsored by the City o f Port
land Bureau of Traffic M anagem ent,
The Com m unity Cycling C enter (an
urban bicycle education center and
bicycle repair school: 2407 NE A l
berta, Portland) and by calling the
WHS office (503-643-6355). Indi
viduals, civic or com m unity groups
can contact the W IIS office to obtain
these coupons to use or distribute as
part o f bicycling education program s.
WHS is a nonprofit, nonlobbying
consum er insurance inform ation and
community service organization sup
ported by the proper/casualty insur
ance com panies in ten w estern states.
It has been serving insurance con
sum ers for more than 40 years.
1
• » ' • » *
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pool for millions o f Americans.
Packwood pointed out that the
bill is significant not only for w hat it
does, but for what it doesn’t do.
“The Dole/Packwood bill preserves
America’s choice of health care, unlike
other approaches that limit choices to a
one-size-fits-all minimum set of covered
benefits,” Packwood said.
He added “W e don’t appoint a
com m ission in W ashington to run the
nation’s health care system . W e don ’t
change the insurance you have, we
only guarantee your right to keep it.”
Finally, Packwood said that the
bill also does not include em ployer
m andates which would make any bill
unpassable in the Senate.
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C O M M ISS IO N MEETING
Date: July 13,1994
Place: N ew Copper Penny
Restaurant
5932 SE 92nd Ave
Portland, Oregon
Time 7:00 p.m.
Commission meetings are open to
the public. A complete agenda is
available at PDC or by calling
823-3200. Citizens with disabilities
may call 823-3232 or TDD 82.3-6868
for assistance at least 48 hours in
advance
PDC is the Q ty of Portland's urban
renewal, housing and economic
development agency.