April 18, 2001
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Health/Education
Doctors Help Underserved Patients In Need
A group o f em ergency room
doctors at Providence Portland
M edical are part o f the O regon
Em ergency Physicians group
that will donate $ 16,000 this year
to organizations that support the
undeserved.
Initiated in 2000, the chari­
table donations project has been
contributed to the Bradley Angle
House, Portland Rescue M is­
sion and Central City Concern,
the operator o f the Hooper Cen­
ter.
Vicki Sands, M .D .,oneofthe
project organizers, says the phy­
sicians decided to make the an­
nual donations because o f a
strong need in the comm unity.
"These organizations serve the
same population as we do, w ith­
out getting a lot o f financial re­
im bursem ent,” Dr. Sands said.
“W e’re concerned about con-
tinuing care.” The physician
group sets charitable giving goals
every year. This year the goal is
to support organizations that help
wth domestic abuse, safe hous­
ing and mental health. “ We see
a lot o f people in crisis in the
E.R., especially from drug and
alcohol abuse and with psychi­
atric problem s,” said Sands.
“ We want to give an amount
large enough to make a differ­
ence to the organization that
help these people.”
Susan Steiner, m anager o f the
Hooper Center, an alcohol detox
program that also operates the
CHIERS outreach van. says the
donation will be used to provide
m ental health training for the
staff.
Like the Hooper Center, the
PPMC em ergency room does
not turn anyone away. “T hat's
why we want to help, “ said
Sands. “Our mission is to help
people.”
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ricki Sands, M û " treat patient with a sprained arm in the Providence Portland Medical Center emergency
room. Dr. Sands and other physicians contribute to non-profit organizations that help Providence patients.
Study: Americans ’
Bodies Full of Toxins
Bv E rin M c C lam
T he A ssociated P ress
Americans’ bodies harbor sur­
prisingly high amounts of mercury
and a questionable chemical used
in soap and cosmetics, federal
health officials reported in a land­
mark study on environmental tox­
ins in the body.
The study is the first nationwide
to measure levels o f 24 environ­
mental toxins in people’s blood and
urine, providing crucial informa­
tion that could be used to pinpoint
pollutants that cause disease.
Animal studies have suggested
that large amounts o f the chemi­
cal, diethyl phthalate, may dis­
rupt normal hormone function
and cause birth defects. Its ef­
fect on humans hasn’t been de­
termined.
The report found that phtha­
lates - additives found in prod­
ucts from perfume to nail polish
- appeared in humans at levels
“considerably higher than one
would have predicted,” said Dr.
Richard Jackson, director of the
National Center for Environmen­
tal Health. Previous studies of
environmental toxins had only
tested air, soil and water.
“Seeing chemicals in people’s
bodies elevates their importance,”
said Lynn Goldman, a former En­
vironmental Protection Agency
regulator.
The cosmetics industry con­
tends phthalates are perfectly safe.
“We haven ’ t seen any documented
health effects in humans from this,”
said Marian Stanley, manager of
the American Chemistry Council’s
phthalate panel.
The study also found higher
than expected levels of mercury,
which is believed to cause fetal
brain damage.
While the study found low levels
of mercury in children 1 to 5 years
old, women of childbearing age
reflected higher levels than previ­
ously estim ated by the EPA,
Goldman said.
“That would mean we haven’t
been taking the problem seriously
enough,” she said.
The numbers, based on a 1999
study of 3,800 people across the
country, may affect government
regulation of toxins such as lead,
mercury and pesticides. In many
cases, there are no previous num­
bers available for comparison.
The government plans to con­
duct the study annually, expanding
it to more than 100 chemicals. The
reports will be broken down by
demographic categories such as
race, age, education and geographic
region.
,
“It could be revolutionary in
terms of environmental health in
the United States,” Jackson said.
Free Workshops Help You Compost at Home
W hy throw vegetable scraps
o r yard trim m in g s aw ay when
you could use them to m ake
rich com post for your yard
and garden?
M e tr o ’s
f re e
hom e
c o m p o stin g w o rk sh o p s w ill
show you how. A ll you need is
a little space for a com post bin
and a few m inutes a week.
W orkshops co v er the basics
o f com posting, different types
o f co m p o stin g bin d esig n s,
worm bins and tro u b le sh o o t­
ing. All w orkshops m eet from
9 a.m . to 11 a.m . at M e tro ’s
hom e com posting d e m o n stra ­
tion centers around the tri­
county region. No appointment
is necessary.
In stru cto r John Foseid e x ­
plains the fundam entals o f get­
ting a com post pile started.
He also an sw ers q u e stio n s
about how to create a good
mix o f m aterials in your bin
and how to rem edy any p ro b ­
lem s you m ight have with your
co m p o st. T hese free hom e
c o m p o stin g w o rk sh o p s are
offered on the follow ing S at­
urdays at the follow ing loca­
tions:
M ay 19 - Fulton Com m unity
G ardens, Portland.
June 30 - Mt. Hood Com -
m unity C ollege, G resham .
A p ril 21 a n d J u n e 2 -
C lackam as C om m unity C o l­
lege, O regon City.
A pril 28 and June 9 - Leach
B otanical G arden, Portland.
M ay 5 and June 16 - M ary
W o o d w a rd
E le m e n ta r y
School, Tigard.
M ay 12 a n d J u n e 23 -
K e n n e d y C o m m u n ity G a r­
dens, B eaverton.
For m ore inform ation about
these w ork sh o p s o r any o f
M e tr o ’s fre e s e m in a rs on
natural gardening, call M etro
R ecycling Inform ation at 503-
234-3000.
Contact your local Air National Guard Recruiter to determine eligibility
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Census Finds 1 in 5 Americans Disabled
Nearly one in five Americans
has some level of disability, ac­
cording to the latest information
from the U S. Census Bureau.
Among the 53 million with a
disability, 9.7 million cannot work
and another 7.2 million are lim­
ited in the type of work they can
do, according to the data
Although the number of people
with disabilities has remained un­
changed from the last report is­
sued in 1995, the number of
people with severe disabilities
increased from one in 10 people
to one in eight in 1997.
The Census Bureau defines a
person with a disability as some­
one who has difficulty perform­
ing daily living activities or has a
learning or developmental dis­
ability.
People are considered to have
a severe disability if they are
completely unable to perform one
or more of daily living activities
or need personal assistance.
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