March 7, 2012
Page 8
Club Sponsors Health Screenings
Dental Problems
Increase ER Visits
It’s a costly choice with
fewer treatment options
(AP) — More Americans are
turning to the emergency room for
routine dental problem s — a
choice that often costs 10 times
more than preventive care and
offers far fewer treatment options
than a dentist's office, according
to an analysis of government data
and dental research.
Most of those emergency vis
its involve trouble such as tooth
aches that co u ld have been
avoided with regular checkups but
went untreated, in many cases
because of a shortage of dentists,
particularly those willing to treat
Medicaid patients, the analysis
said.
The number of ER visits nation
wide for dental problems increased
16 percent from 2006 to 2009, and
the report released Tuesday by
the Pew Center on the States sug
gests the trend is continuing.
Many ER dental visits involve
the same patients seeking addi
tional care.
T hat's because em ergency
rooms generally are not staffed by
dentists. They can offer pain relief
and medicine for infected gums
but not much more for dental pa
tients. And many patients are un
able to find or afford follow-up
treatment, so they end up back in
the emergency room.
"Emergency rooms are really
the canary in the coal mine. If
people are showing up in the ER
for dental care, then we've got big
holes in the delivery of care," said
Shelly Gehshan, director of Pew's
children's dental campaign. "It's
just like pouring money down a
hole.”
"It's the wrong service, in the
wrong setting, at the wrong time,"
she said.
^ 'I lo r t la n b (Obsvrlnr
Established 1970
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EDiroR.Michael L eig h to n
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C reative D irector : P aul N e u feld t
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P ostmaster : Send address changes to Portland Observer,
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tion--^ a member o f the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885, and The National Advertising
Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY. and The West Coast Black Publishers Association
A volunteer assists in a free health screening sponsored by the
Oregon Lions Club.
The O regon Lions C lub is
working with the Oregon Li
ons Sight and Hearing Foun
dation to com bat preventa
tive blindness and deafness in
the com m unity through free
health screenings.
A series o f m obile health
screening clinics this m onth
will offer free tests in visual
acuity, hearing, blood pres
sure, diabetes (with a 3 hour
fast) and glaucom a.
Many community members
lacking primary care are un
aware they have health condi
tions that threaten their sight,
jobs, quality o f life and poten
tially their lives. The mission of
the Foundation is "to screen,
treat, save, and restore sight
and hearing, in partnership with
Lions Clubs, in orderto prevent
blindness and deafnessforthose
in need."
The screenings are sched
uled Saturday, M arch 10, from
8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the C om
m unity H ealth Fair, Hillsboro
P re sb y te ria n C h u rch , 172
N .E . 32nd A ve.; S unday,
M arch 11, from 9:30 a.m. to 3
p.m. at St. Pius X Church,
1280 N.W . Saltzm an Rd. in
B eav erto n ; and S atu rd ay ,
M arch 17, from 10 a.m. to 3
p.m. at Portland Com m unity
C ollege’s Cascade C am pus,
705 N. Killingsworth.
T o schedule a screening,
call 503-413-7329.
Recovery from Opioids
Doctor publishes
help guide book
Addiction to Prescription Pain
killers and the Street Drug Heroin
introduces readers to the physical,
emotional and environmental fac
tors of opioid addiction, the various
methods of treatment, as well as
provides inspiration to those seek
ing to escape addiction.
The book was written by Dr. Gre
gory H. Pierce to provide a clear
account of how opioid addiction
develops through physiological
changes and to give meaningful
insight into the pros and cons of
various treatment methods without
complicated medical terminology.
In 11 focused chapters, readers
Dr. Gregory Pierce
will discover why some people be
come addicted, and what they can
do to escape addiction. The guide
includes a chapter full of important
"seeds for success," key concepts
to remember that can speed the re
covery process and lead to con
structive self-management.
"Addiction to opiates is a com
plicated and challenging problem
that requires a change in one's be
liefs, thoughts and behavior to over
come it," says Dr. Pierce. "But, with
the right information and inspira
tion, it is achievable."
Dr. Pierce draws on his decades
of experience as a medical doctor
and director of drug treatment clin
ics to provide a complete guide to
help those seeking to overcome this
growing affliction.
Addiction to Prescription Pain
killers and the Street Drug Heroin is
a v a ila b le fo r sale o n lin e at
Amazon.com and other channels.