S eptember 14, 1994 • T he P o r u and O bserver
P age A4
Sickle Cell
Focus On
September
Alberta Park Festival, Free
Health Checks Scheduled
The Portland Sickle Cell Ane
mia foundation is gearing up for
Saturday, September 17th which is
Awareness Day. There will be free
hot dogs, free beverages and bal
loons given to the kids at Alberta
Park. Festivities will go on from
11:00 A M. until 4:00 P.M. free
Blood Pressure checks and free Sickle
Cell Testing will take place.
Pastor Marcia Taylor, Execu
tiv e Director for the foundation says
she looks forward to the Police Bu
reau and The American Red Cross
being a part o f this event. The month
of September is National Sickle Cell
Awareness Month and we have cho
sen Saturday, September 17th as
Awareness Day to bring this disease
to the mind again in the community
and to hopefully bring the commu
nity together in a united effort against
this Life-Threatening Disease. Vol
unteers are needed, a hot dog cart
and prizes are still needed says, Tay
lor.
Sickle Cell Anemia is an inher
ited blood disease which is not con
tagious and is the result o f a person
receiving a Sickle Cell Gene from
each parent. This disease affects
about one in 400-600 blacks, and
some Caucasians. Sickle Cell Ane
mia and its variant forms occur
among hispanics o f Caribbean An
cestry, (one in every 1000 or 1500
hispanics), and also affects people of
Arabian, Greek Maltese Turkish,
Sicilian, Sardinian and Southern
Asian Ancestry .
Symptoms usually announce
themselves between infancy or 6
months and include shortage of red
blood cells, shortness ofbreath, palor,
frequent infections, jaundiced eyes,
fever and severe pain. These symp
toms can be in any combination or
all at the same time.
The foundation will hold its 3rd
annual Sickle Cell Telethon Satur
day, September 24th hosted by Mult
nomah Community Television. The
event will take place in the TV studio
from 4:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M. on chan
nel 21 with Rev. J.W. Friday as the
host. R ecording a rtis t A rvis
Strickling-Jones will be featured live,
along with the Golden Eagles, New
Hope Baptist Church Choir and Little
Goldie. "We encourage the public to
join us for a wonderful time o f enter
tainment.
"Sickle Cell has been histori
cally known as a “Black M an’s Dis
ease” . Using the telethon as a ve
hicle, we hope to inform the public
that this disease frequents many other
races and because we don’t all know
everything about our heritage, it is
imperative to find out if one carries
sickle trait or another abnormal he
moglobin which may be passed on
their children. If so, this could result
inathird generation child being bom
with Sickle Cell Disease.” says Tay
lor. For more information, to volun
teer or to be tested, call (503) 249-
1366.
National Sickle Cell Month
Caring And
Sharing Can
Make a
Better Life
Together we
can make a
difference
For more information contact :
Portland Sickle Cell Anémia Foundation
(503) 249-1366 Portland, Oregon
SICKLE CELL DISEASE IS
A GLOBAL PROBLEM
Cickle Cell Awareness Day at Alberta Park Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Failed Drug Test Brings
Jobless Benefits Loss
Workers fired for failing a drug
test can no longer collect unemploy
ment benefits under rule changes
announced by the Oregon Employ
ment Department.
Until now, State unemployment
insurance rules have disallowed
claims in only three kinds of drug-
related dismissal cases: if an em
ployer could prove, without a test,
that drug use caused impairment on
the job; if a drug test showed such
impairment occurred in certain oc
cupations which could threaten
someone’s health or safety ; or if a
worker agreed to and failed a drug
test under a last chance agreement.
However, hundreds o f other
workers fired for failing drug tests
didn’t fit into one o f these three
categories. In a typical month, about
60 such workers eventually received
benefits from the state
Amendments to the Employ
ment Department’s administrative
rules make workers discharged for
Sacred Heart
Urologists
Offer Tests
To encourage early detection oÇ
prostate cancer and educate men
about the disease, Eugene-area urolo
gists are volunteering to provide free
prostate cancer screen in gs. The pros
tate specific antigen blood tests and
digital rectal examinations will be
offered to all participants. Men over
50 (African American men over 40)
who have no history of prostate can
cer and who have not had a prostate
check in the last 12 months are eli
gible. The screenings will be avail
able at S acred H eart G eneral
Hospital’sCancerCareCenter, 1255
Hilyard St. Eugene., weekdays from
Sept. 19 though Sept 23. Call 686-
7257 to schedule an appointment.
)
• • r
* *
failing a properly administered drug
test ineligible for unemployment in
surance benefits. According to the
Portland-based Regional Drug Ini
tiative, 73% o f Oregon employees
work at companies with drug poli
cies.
The Employment Department
tightened its regulations on drug use
in the workplace as a result ofa series
o f public meetings in 1991 and 1992
which considered reforms to the un
employment insurance program.
Formal hearings on the drug rule
revisions were held in March 1993
and May 1994. Labor, business, and
community leaders from across the
state participated in both series of
meetings.
“ We heard from a broad spec
trum o f opinion and we value the
attention people paid to this pro
cess,” said Pamela A. Mattson, di
rector of the Oregon Employment
Department. “Today's changes are
the result o f that public input .”
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k id s
c o u l d
O pen G ate
A cupuncture
C linic
B ut now , at le a s t th e ir h e a lth
Allergies • Asthma
Pain • G.I. Disorders
Stop Smoking • Stress
Menstrual Disorders
Diet • Nutrition
1011 E ast B i rnsidf .
232-3857
c a re c o s ts c a n be c o n tr o lle d .
Sound the trum pets, heat the drums: Someone has finalli/ come up icith afford
able healthcare coverage fo r your children. Like a rate o f just S29 50 per kid. per month
Best o f all, that someone is Blue Cross and Blue Shield o f Oregon, the largest, most
respected name in the business. What we’ve done is base premiums strictly on the aver
age medical expenses and needs o f kids, unlike most programs \\ e ve also formed an
alliance with the 80 affiliated physicians o f Legacy Emanuel Children \ Hospital For
details, contact your local independent insurance agent or call 1-800-762-4831 or 223-
4910. But don 't put it off. The only thing predictable about kids is their unpredictability
—
(C V)
OH
n>* ' BlucShicId
o f < >n*<on
I egacy Emanuel
Children's Hospital