M arch 14, 2001
Page A5
ïtje ÿtartlanh (Dbseruer
SHHealth/Educatioii
The Doctor's Corner
Clinics Serve Woman
With No Insurance
Resolve Your Challenges
in a Healing Manner
DearJohn,
la m a 1 7 -yearoldgirl. L ately ,life
h asn ’t been treating m e kindly. M y
problem is that I ’m scared to death
that I m ay lose seven friends w ho are
suicidal. W e all m et on the Internet.
T hree o f them have been in the hos­
pital before because o f attem pts to
take their ow n l if e ..
Y ou see I ’m suicidal too. Itsca res
me. All m y Internet friends know this.
It seem s that the only ones w ho don ’ t
know are m y parents. I ’ve dropped
hints, b ut I ’m scared to death o f tell­
ing them . I f I even dare w rite so m e­
thing sad, they dism iss it as “m orbid”
and refuse to read it. W hat should I
do?
Teen Angel in Chicago
Dear Angel,
T hanks for w riting. I ’m sure this a
difficult tim e for you rig h t now. It
appears that you are very confused.
T he first step I feel you should m ake
is to explain the problem to y o u rp ar-
ents.
I f this is not w orking, tell your
counselor at school, and they w ill
provide you w ith fam ily counseling.
T he A m erican A ssociation o f Sui-
cidology has an online directory at
w w w .suicidology.org forsuicide cri­
sis centers to direct you to co u n sel­
ing alternatives so that you can co n ­
front an d reso lv e your challenges in
a constructive and healing m anner.
T here is also a directory for hotlines
in your area. T he N ational H ope Line
N etw ork runs one such hotline. T heir
num ber is (800) SU IC ID E (800-784-
2433).
It’s available 24 hours a day. Please
call it im m ediately and tell them ex ­
actly w hat you are experiencing, both
w ith your online conversations an d
w ith your ow n thoughts o f suicide.
Remember when you are confused,
this is an opportunity to learn ab o u t
yourself, and find new w ays to deal
w ith your challenges.
A ngel, you are an o u tstanding
person w ho is loved by your parents,
friends, and so m any others. T his is
also a healing tim e, so enjoy the p ro ­
cess o f getting to know w ho you are,
and find the life that aw aits you.
See ya at the top!
By John Oda, Ph.D.
for The Portland Observer
John P. Oda, Ph D., NLP is a
Peak Performance Expert with 13
years experience in the mental
health field and a regular featured
writer fo r the Portland Observer.
I f you have any questions fo r The
Doctor's Comer, email your ques­
tion
to
news(alPortlandObserver, com.
Oda Research International pro­
vides corporate training, work­
shops and seminars, also presonal
and professional coaching. For
consultations call 503-471-2954.
Women Urged to Heed Benefits of Folic Acid
Taking a daily multivitamin with folic acid can reduce risk of birth defects.
T aking a daily m ultivitam in w ith
folic acid before b ecom ing pregnant
helps ensure a healthy baby, yet only
about one-third o f w om en o f child­
bearing age follow ed this advice,
according to a study done by public
health officials at the O regon D epart­
m ent o f H um an Services.
“ Y ou c a n ’t buy b etter insurance
fo r 3 cen ts a d ay ,” says M artin
W asserm an, M .D ., adm inistrator at
the H ealth D ivision. “ W e estim ate
that betw een 40 and 50 pregnancies
are affected by neural tube defects
every year in O regon. T hat num ber
could be reduced by about h a lf if all
w om en o f childbearing age w ere tak­
ing a daily m ultivitam in w ith folic
acid.” N eural tube defects are serious
birth defects o f the b ab y ’s brain or
spine that o ccur ju st three to four
w eeks after conception. For this rea­
son, it is im portant that w om en take
m ultivitam ins w ith folic a c id p rio rto
becom ing pregnant and for the first
m onth after conception.
T he H ealth D ivision study show ed
that 79 percent o f w om en having a
baby had heard o f folic acid, yet only
30percent were taking a m ultivitam in
containing folic acid.
In 1999, the G reater O regon Chap­
ter o f the M arch o f D im es jo in e d the
H ealth D ivision in conducting a pub­
lic aw areness cam paign about the
benefits o f folic acid. “W e still have
m uch w ork ahead o fu s,” says Joanne
R ogovoy, program services director
at the M arch o f Dim es. “A recent
G allup poll in O regon supports these
survey findings. It show ed that 71
percent o f w om en o f childbearing
age have heard o f folic acid, yet only
35 percent are taking a vitam in co n ­
taining folic acid.” G ypsy Schrepel o f
Portland know s first-hand the im por­
tance o f taking folic ac id before p reg­
nancy. B efore becom ing pregnant
w ith her first child, G ypsy took all o f
the right precautions, but she d id n ’t
know about folic acid, and her p h y si­
cian h ad n ’t discussed it w ith her. H er
daughter G enevieve, now 4-1/2 years
old, was b om w ith a m ild case o f spina
bifida, a defect o f the spinal colum n,
and the very type o f birth defect that
folic acid helps prevent.
Prior to her second pregnancy,
G ypsy again took all o f the right pre­
cautions but this tim e inc luded a daily
folic acid supplement. H er son Ellory,
now age 2, was bom healthy.
“ W e know that m ore w om en take
folic acid if their physician encour­
ages them to do so,” R ogovoy adds.
“For that reason, w e’re also educat­
ing health providers.” The O regon
G allup poll show ed that only 28 per­
cent o f w om en o f childbearing age
learned about folic acid from their
physician. M ore inform ation on folic
acid and the current public aw are­
ness cam paign is available online at
the W eb sites for The N ational C en­
ter for D isease C ontrol and P reven­
tion and The March ofD im es. The CD
Sum m ary is also available in PDF
format online.
Smith Supports National AIDS Policy Office
In a letter to President Bush, Sen.
G ordon Smith, R-Ore. supported the
adm inistration’s decision to retain the
O ffice ofN ational AID S Policy at the
WTiite H ouse and urged President
Bush to continue to keep the battle
against H IV /A ID S a high priority o f
the A dm inistration. Globally, 36 m il­
lion people are living with HIV and 22-
two m illion have already died from the
disease. HIV and AIDS are decimating
populations in certain regions o f the
world. Last year, Smith introduced the
Global AIDS Prevention A ct authoriz­
ing funding for fighting AIDS w orld­
wide. H e plans to introduce a broader
bill in the 107th Congress. “Inm y home
state o f Oregon, alm ost 5,000 cases o f
Multiracial Babies
Boom in Oregon
Oregonians are having an increasing
number ofmultiracial babies, state health
statistics show.
One out o f seven babies bom in Or­
egon in 1999 was o f more than one race
or had one parent who was Hispanic and
one who was not, according to state birth
records studied by The Oregonian. In
addition, multiracial children were more
common than single-race children when
a parent was Asian, American Indian or
black
Multiracial people make up 8 percent
o f the U.S. population, but more detailed
information about the state’s multiracial
make-up will be released Monday, when
the U.S. Census reports on people who
indicated more than one racial identity on
their census form.
Evenso.peopleofcoloraremore likely
to marry someone o f another race when
they live in predominantly white states
such as Oregon, said Sharon M. Lee, a
professor o f sociology at Portland State
University.
"That’s always the rule: If a minority
community is very tiny, just by chance
they will be more likely to marry someone
else from adifferent group,” she said. For
example, in 1990, fewer than one in 10
Oregon babies were multiracial.
By 1999, one o f every seven babies
were multiracial. Two-thiids o f those
babies were part white, but there were
also black-Filipinos, Asian-American
Indians and Hispanic-blacks. O f all ba-
bies bom in Oregon in 1999 with at least
one black parent, about 60 percent were
multiracial.
Chisao Hata, a thud-generation Japa­
nese American who lives in Portland, has
three children who are part Japanese, part
black "You’reAfro-Asian,whichispart
o f Africa and part o f Asia, so you’re half
the world. It’s a position o f strength,"
Hata told her youngest daughter, 10-
year-old Kalia Tamiko Hata Watts. But
Hata said many Asian Americans are
womedmultirac ial children will lose con­
nection with Asian culture and language
— a concern she doesn’t share.
Meanwhile, die state's Amencan In­
dians are having more multiracial children
because o f migration to urban areas and
government relocation o f tribes. About
75 percent ofbabies bom to an American
Indian parent in 1999 also had a white or
black parent.
Brent Merrill, a tnbal spokesman for
the Confederated Tribes o f the Grand
Ronde in Oregon, said the federal
government’s termination o f the tribe
and dispersing o f members in 1954 led to
greatly increased intermarriage
Merrill said while the Grand Ronde
don't discourage intermarriage, the tribe
has a “blood quantum,” a minimum
amount o f tribal ancestry required for
tribal membership.
"Whether their children will be tribal
members is a legitimate concern, but it’s
a personal choice," he said.
AIDS have been reported since the
early 1980s,” Sm ithsaid.“O urnation’s
response to this epidemic m ust be
com prehensive. A t home, w e must
m ake efforts to stop new infections
from occurring, provide vital care and
treatment to those already living with
HIV and AIDS, continue our invest­
ment in researching a cure and recog­
nize the global impact o f the w orld's
m ost in fec tio u s d ise a se .” S m ith
pledged to work with President Bush
to help strengthen this office and to
provide adequate funds to end the
two-decade long AIDS epidemic in
America.
N eighborhood H ealth C linics have
sta rte d o ffe rin g s e rv ic e s in the
M ultnomah County health buildings
a t3653 S.E. Powell andat Martin Luther
K in g Jr. B o u le v a rd a n d N E
Killingsworth. These new clinics will
serve w om en w ho have no insurance
and are not eligible for the Oregon
Health Plan, providing them with gy­
n e c o lo g ic a l a n d b r e a s t e x a m s,
mam m ogram s and education. In the
future, the clinics will also offer acu­
puncture, naturopathy and m ental
health services.
“The w om en’s clinic responds to a
community need to better serve women
40 years and older, particularly women
o f color,” says Heidi Steeves, NHC
medical program manager. The new
clinics are expected to serve hundreds
o f w omen each year, those who are
among the w orking poor and cannot
afford health insurance or w hose jobs
do not offer insurance coverage. The
clinic will be open from 6 to9p.m . every
W ednesday, alternating betw een the
Northeast and Southeast sites. More
and more people every year have been
seeking services at NHC ’ s walk-in c lin­
ics. In the fiscal yearofJuly 1998 to July
1999, NHC served 6,300patients. Dur­
ing the following fiscal year, a record-
breaking 9,980 patients were served.
And during the current fiscal year, just
halfway through, NHC already has
seen more than 6,000patients. "W e’re
going o ff the charts,” says Steeves.
The w om en’s clinics were made
possible through a $ 10,000 grant from
Providence Health System, the City o f
Portland and m any individuals.
Neighborhood Health Clinics, Inc.
was formed by the 1987 m erger o f
H ealthH elp( 1976)andNeighborcare
(1984). NHCisanot-for-profitcommu-
nity health agency whose clinics and
counseling programs are staffed en­
tirely by volunteer health care and
social service professionals. O ver 650
health care professionals donate their
valuable time to meet the health care
needs o f our community.
Guns Changing Hands
on Portland Streets
S tory C ontinled F rom F ront P age
tion also helps us identify fre­
quent gun traffickers.”
Portland traced 2,085 guns
that were recovered in relation
to 2,210 crim es betw een No­
vem ber 1998 and D ecem ber
2000, Anderson said. Most were
carried in drug offenses, gang
assaults and burglaries.
About 55 percent o f the re­
covered crim e guns were taken
from adults, 25 or older. Thirty-
four percent were taken from
young adults ages 18 to 24.
Juveniles were connected to
11 percent o f the crim e guns, a
figure slightly higher than the 9
percent recovered from ju v e­
niles nationally.
M ayor Vera Katz requested
the Crime Gun Trace Report,
compiled for the first time by
the Portland Police B ureau’s
Youth Gun Anti-V iolence Task
Force and the U.S. Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Katz set up the gun task force
in 1998 to curtail youth violence
after four youths were shot to
death in Portland in the summer
o f 1997.
A cco rd in g to the rep o rt:
Nearly 94 percent o f crime guns
changed hands at least once —
either through legal sales, illegal
“ s tra w -g u n ” p u rc h a s e s , o r
thefts — before they were used
in a crime.
Sixty-two percent ofthe 2,085
Portland crime guns traced since
1998 were bought initially in the
state — 31 percent o f those
were purchased in M ultnomah
County. The other 38 percent
were bought in California, Idaho
and W ashington.
The most frequently recov­
ered crime guns in Portland are
Smith & W esson ,38-caliber
revolvers; Bryco Arms .380-
caliber pistols; Ruger ,357-cali-
ber revolvers; and Sm ith &
Wesson .357-caliber revolvers;
and North China Industries 7.62
mm rifles that can penetrate a
police officer’s protective vest.
Good mood lighting.
Dimmers are another way
to save energy.
And it's important that we all find as many ways as we can to reduce
our energy use. By working together, we've been able to make a difference
and keep the power flowing. But the cold w eather's not over yet.
We still need to be thoughtful about how and when we use electricity.
Installing dimmers in areas where they make sense, like the dining
room and bedroom, will help lower energy use. The amount you dim
equals your energy saved. For example, dimming lights by 15 percent
cuts energy consumption by 15 percent.
Here are some other tips that can save you energy and money
on lighting:
■ Turn off extra lights, especially
between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
And get in the habit of
switching off the light every
time you leave the room for
more than a few minutes.
Let’s all do our part.
W ait 'til late to use electricity.
Call us at I -800-222-4335, and ask for
a copy of our Bright Ideas booklet
for more energy-saving tips.
T
■ Clean lightbulbs and fixtures.
Dust can reduce light output by
as much as 10 percent!
■ Put compact fluorescent bulbs
in light fixtures that are used
more than three hours a day.
These bulbs use one-quarter
the energy and last 10 times
longer than regular lightbulbs.
■ Install motion sensors or timers
to automatically turn lights on
and off. Motion sensor lighting
is great for outdoors and in
your workshop or laundry
room. Timers are the right
choice if you’d like an indoor
light switched on and off at
specific times.
■ Use low-wattage bulbs when
you can. Bright lights are
often not needed in hallways
and closets.
■ When working at a desk or
workbench, use task lighting.
Other lights in the room can
then be turned off or dimm ed
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