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Health & Fitness News Elsewhere
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Features
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Health care,
economic
development linked
[NOV.
18, 2002]
URBANA — The health care
sector can make a significant contribution to the economy of a rural
Illinois county, according to a University of Illinois Extension
consumer and health economics specialist who recently authored an
article on the topic.
|
"Health Care and the Local Economic
Vitality of a Rural Illinois County" by Paul McNamara, an assistant
professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics,
appears in the latest edition of the Illinois Rural Policy Digest.
It is available online at
http://www.farmdoc.uiuc.
edu/policy/digest/digest.html. [Click
here to download Adobe Acrobat reader for PDF file.]
McNamara and David Hancock recently
studied the impact of the health care sector on the economy of
DeWitt County, using health and economic databases, interviews with
local leaders from government, economic development and health care,
and an input-output model of the local economy. The study was one in
a series conducted by the Illinois Rural Health Workshop, a joint
program of U of I Extension and the Illinois Area Health Education
Consortium.
"We found that health care directly
contributes $12.98 million to DeWitt County incomes," said McNamara.
"However, secondary effects from the health care sector generate an
additional $3.13 million in income, leading to a total contribution
of the sector of $16.11 million."
Located between Decatur and
Bloomington, DeWitt County had a population of
16,798 in 2000 but has experienced a
slower population growth (1.7 percent) than the state average of 8.6
percent. It also has a greater proportion of its population aged 65
and older (15.9 percent) than the 12.1 percent state average. During
the 1990s, DeWitt County experienced a 7.8 percent decline in
non-farm employment, while the state as a whole saw that category
grow by 15 percent.
"In 1999, the health care system
generated 611 jobs directly from employment in hospitals, doctors’
offices, nursing homes and other health care services in DeWitt
County," said McNamara. "However, when we measure the secondary
impact of economic activity in the DeWitt County health care system
through the effects of supplier firms and health care employee
spending, we estimate the total employment effect of health care to
be 748 jobs."
[to top of second column in this
article]
|
The health care sector faces some
challenges in the DeWitt County economy. One problem stems from the
difficulty encountered by some local residents who work outside the
county and receive health insurance from their employers in using
DeWitt County providers. Interviews also revealed that there are
mixed perceptions about health care on the part of some residents.
"While nearly all residents with
exposure to the hospital (Dr. John Warner Hospital in Clinton) had a
favorable impression of the services delivered, some residents were
unaware of services available locally," said McNamara. "In addition,
some members of the local health care sector were not aware of what
services were available locally.
"Another issue identified from our
interviews with local leaders was the lack of awareness of how local
health care can contribute to the local economy and contribute to
future economic development efforts."
Having completed similar surveys in
other rural Illinois communities, McNamara said he is convinced
there is a strong connection between health care and economic
development.
"Our research and that of others
emphasizes the potential for economic gains if health care and local
economic development can partner together on issues of shared
interest, such as work force development programs, tapping into
economic development financing for expansion of local health care
services, and advocacy on health care issues that affect the
business climate," McNamara said.
"We believe that addressing the issues
identified in our study will further increase the contribution of
the local health care sector to the DeWitt County economy and the
quality of life of its residents."
[U of I news release] |
|
|
Riggins family campaigning to
restrict sales of ephedra products
[NOV.
16, 2002]
Kevin and Debbie Riggins have a mission.
|
They don’t want to
see another family go through what they have. Their only son, Sean,
died of a heart attack Sept. 3 after taking a product that contained
ephedra.
"I don’t want to see
another family deal with what we’ve had to deal with. We’ve had way
too many kids in this town die," Kevin Riggins said.
The 16-year-old
wrestler and football player had evidently been taking the
over-the-counter herbal product to pump up his energy for an
upcoming football game. His father feels sure Sean had no idea the
pills would do him any harm. He was an athlete who took care of his
body, he didn’t smoke, and no other drugs were found in his blood or
urine.
It wouldn’t have been
hard for Sean, or for any other young person, to get the herbal
stimulant. The pills are on sale at gas stations and convenience
stores all over town at prices youngsters can easily pay — $1.29 or
even 99 cents — the cost of a can of pop.
Sean’s parents and
Logan County Coroner Charles Fricke have already made a trip to
Washington, D.C., at the request of Sen. Dick Durbin, to testify
before a Senate subcommittee that oversees regulation of drugs.
Durbin wants a federal crackdown on ephedra sales.
Although he would be
glad to see changes in federal laws regulating the stimulant, right
now Kevin Riggins is concentrating on the local level. He wants to
get the colorful, tempting, highly advertised pills out of the hands
of the youngsters of Logan County.
To do that, he is
building a coalition of local organizations and agencies, going to
meetings to explain the dangers of these pills, and displaying an
assortment of ephedrine products sold over the counter.
The pills have
intriguing names — Black Ice, Go Go Go Juice, Energy to Burn,
Stacker II, Super Stingers, Ultra Energy Now and the kind Sean took,
Yellow Jackets. Some of them contain more than ephedra. Black Ice
has three stimulants: ephedra, caffeine and synepherine. Most
packets contain three pills, although some have more.
Advertising claims
say they boost your energy, enhance your performance and cause you
to lose weight fast.
In very small print,
some pill packages carry the words, "Not to be sold to those 17 and
under," but there is no law in Illinois that penalizes those who do
sell to minors. Some states, such as Texas, New Hampshire and
Florida, do have such laws, Riggins said.
Because they are
considered herbal supplements and not drugs, the Food and Drug
Administration has no authority to regulate these products. There is
no check on the quality or quantity of their contents; one capsule
could contain two or three times as much ephedra as the next. And
anyone of any age can buy them — as many packages as they want.
Young people buy them
to get pumped up for an athletic event, to get a "buzz" or a "rush,"
to lose weight, or just to feel more energetic. Many see them as a
"safe" alternative to street drugs. Truck drivers use them to stay
awake on a long haul, Riggins said.
Sean’s friends have
told his parents about the way students use the drugs, taking them
before athletic events, often spiking them with high caffeine
drinks. Riggins doesn’t think these young people had any idea that
the attractive, available, affordable pills could be truly
dangerous.
"Sean’s friends won’t
touch this stuff again," he said. But he knows other kids will. His
mission right now is to limit the access young people have to the
drug here in Lincoln.
"I don’t think you
should be able to buy these in a gas station," he said at a meeting
Thursday in the Lincoln Safety Complex. "We want this out of areas
kids frequent. We want to see strict penalties for vendors who sell
these products to kids under 18."
He said he and his
wife have talked to all the gas stations in town, asking them to put
the pills behind the counter, but so far only one, Illico, has
cooperated. The rest say they can’t do anything without talking to
the head office.
[to top of second column in this
article] |
[Photo by Joan Crabb]
[(From
left) Kristi Lessen of Logan-Mason Mental Health, Kevin Riggins,
Marcia Greenslate of the Lincoln Park District and Marcia Dowling of
the Logan County Health Department examine ephedra products.]
He agrees with Kristi
Lessen of Logan-Mason Mental Health, one of those at the meeting,
that the pills should be sold only at pharmacies and should be kept
behind the counter so buyers have to ask for it.
Riggins is working to
get the cooperation of local groups in his campaign to make ephedra
harder for youngsters to get hold of. Thursday he met with
representatives of the Logan County Health Department, Logan-Mason
Mental Health, the Park District, the Healthy Communities
Partnership and Police Chief Rich Montcalm.
One group, the
Healthy Communities Partnership/Healthcare Committee of the
Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of Commerce, has already voted to
support the creation of an ordinance that limits the access of
herbal ephedra products to minors.
Riggins plans to
appear before the Lincoln City Council and the Logan County Board to
see whether ordinances can be passed to limit the sale of the drug.
He will also meet with church groups, civic organizations, law
enforcement personnel, Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital, Family
Medical and other doctors, coaches, and other school officials.
"I’ll talk to anybody
who wants to listen," he said.
He is also
circulating petitions for local residents to sign.
He’s getting in touch
with state officials, as well. Thursday he was on his way to
Springfield to talk to state Sen. Larry Bomke. He has already spoken
with state Rep. Dan Brady of Bloomington and says Brady has started
looking into what can be done to regulate the drugs at the state
level.
He wants national
organizations, as well as local ones, to give him a statement of
their official position on ephedra. He’s writing to prestigious
health care groups such as the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins and
Harvard Medical School to get their positions on the drug’s health
hazards.
Riggins’ employer,
Bridgestone-Firestone of Normal, and the union that represents its
workers, United Steel Workers of America, are both helping him get
the word out through letter-writing campaigns and newsletters.
"Both the company and
the union are helping out. This is an issue that transcends labor
and management, Democrats and Republicans," he said. "It’s about
people. It’s about kids."
Experts agree that
products containing ephedra can be dangerous. A 1994 FDA advisory
says reactions can include everything from mild effects such as
nervousness, dizziness, gastrointestinal distress and headache to
severe and life-threatening events such as heart attacks, hepatitis,
stroke, seizures and psychosis.
There have been 33
deaths in the U.S. military, causing all four branches to ban the
supplements. At least 81 deaths nationally have been attributed to
ephedrine. The American Medical Association would like to see it
regulated. During the five-hour testimony before the Senate
subcommittee last month, doctors and other experts testified about
the dangers of these products, Riggins said.
In spite of these
expert opinions, Riggins knows changing the laws, either state or
federal, will be a long, hard fight.
"The companies that
make these pills have billions of dollars. I’m lucky to have $25 in
my wallet."
But he’s encouraged
to keep up the fight by, among other things, letters he’s received
from students at Lincoln Community High School. One girl wrote:
"I ask you, please make Yellow Jackets
illegal before more teens and adults get killed from them."
[Joan Crabb] |
|
CICBC blood drives
help ALMH patients
[NOV.
13, 2002]
Abraham Lincoln Memorial
Hospital, after a long-standing agreement to purchase blood and
blood products from the American Red Cross, made a decision to
purchase blood and blood products from Central Illinois Community
Blood Center of Springfield. CICBC is the sole supplier for
ALMH, Hopedale Medical Complex, St. John’s, Springfield Memorial,
Doctor’s Hospital of Springfield and seven other central Illinois
health care providers.
|
ALMH, in contracting with CICBC,
realized a $30,000 annual savings without sacrificing the quality of
blood and blood products. This arrangement makes it possible to pass
along savings to the patient.
The blood and blood products supplied
by CICBC are collected from the areas in which the hospitals
operate. This arrangement affords area residents an opportunity to
support ALMH directly when donating blood rather than have their
blood and blood products disseminated nationwide.
We in central Illinois are fortunate to
have extensive medical facilities available locally. However, with
these facilities comes the responsibility of providing the needed
blood supply to support the patients in the hospitals.
[to top of second column in this
article] |
Each community in the coalition is
encouraged to have community members donate blood to the CICBC. The
only way the plan will work is for our community to do our share of
giving blood in our area.
The CICBC is in need of more donors,
volunteers and good ambassadors to spread the word in our community.
If interested as a volunteer or a blood
donor, or if you desire more information, you may call Central
Illinois Community Blood Center at 753-1530 or fax (217) 753-8116.
The local representative for CICBC is Terry Bell.
The next
blood drive will be at Immanuel Lutheran Church on Tuesday, Nov. 19,
from 3 to 6:30 p.m. It’s about life.
[Shirley M. Helton, CICBC
board member] |
|
Health
Matters A
monthly feature from Logan County Health Department
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[Click here
for "Let’s talk turkey -- safe
turkey"]
|
|
Health Department offers
flu shots for the public
[OCT.
9, 2002]
Logan County Health
Department has flu and pneumonia immunizations available now. Flu
and pneumonia shots can be obtained at the Health Department, 109
Third St., on a walk-in basis during normal business hours,
Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 pm. Please arrive by 4:15 p.m.
|
The Mobile Medical Van will also have
flu and pneumonia immunizations available at all regularly scheduled
times of operation in all 14 communities.
It is recommended that the flu
vaccination be received by the end of November.
The cost for flu and pneumonia vaccine
is $16 per shot. Medicare will pay for both shots. All clients are
asked to have their Medicare cards with them when coming to get flu
or pneumonia shots.
Influenza is caused by a virus that
spreads from people infected to the nose or throat of others.
Influenza can cause fever, cough, chills, sore throat, headache,
muscle aches in people of any age.
However, people at risk for
getting serious cases of influenza are people 65 years of age or
older, residents of long-term care facilities, anyone with serious
long-term health problems, people with weakened immune system, and
health care workers coming in close contact with people at risk of
serious influenza.
[to top of
second column in this article]
|
People who have had a serious allergic
reaction to eggs or previous dose of influenza vaccine, and people
with a history of Guillain-Barre Syndrome should consult with a
doctor before getting the influenza vaccination.
Pneumonia vaccine protects against
pneumococcal pneumonia, a serious lung infection. Symptoms of
pneumonia include fever, aches, fatigue, chest pain, cough and
confusion. People 65 years of age and older should receive the
pneumococcal immunization. Re-vaccination of people at highest risk
for serious pneumococcal infection is recommended only once, after
five years have elapsed.
For further
information, please contact the Logan County Health Department at
(217) 735-2317.
[News release] |
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Red
Cross
|
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West Nile Virus
|
West Nile virus links
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LDN articles
Federal websites
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State websites
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Honors
& Awards
|
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Announcements
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Immanuel
Lutheran Church hosts blood drive
[NOV.
7, 2002]
Immanuel Lutheran Church
will host a blood drive with the Central Illinois Community Blood
Center on Tuesday, Nov. 19, from 3 until 6:30 p.m.
|
Central Illinois Community Blood Center
provides all of the blood and blood products for 12 area hospitals,
including those in Lincoln, Hopedale and Springfield. CICBC is a
community-based blood center whose mission is to provide a safe and
adequate blood supply for patients in local hospitals in a
cost-effective manner. No other organization provides blood in these
hospitals.
Patients in these hospitals are your
friends, neighbors, and family members, and they depend on healthy
community members for the lifesaving blood they need. Less than 5
percent of the population donates blood for the other 95 percent.
Please help save lives in your community by donating blood to your
community blood center.
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You may donate blood if you are at
least 17 years old (16 years old with a signed permission slip from
parent or guardian), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in good
health. There is no upper age limit. You need only be in good health
and have a picture ID or two other forms of ID. Please remember that
as a blood donor, you are truly saving lives.
Please
donate blood… It’s about life.
[CICBC
press
release]
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Mobile
health unit schedule
The
Rural Health Partnership has announced the schedule for its mobile
health unit for 2002.
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Morning:
9-11 a.m. |
|
Afternoon:
1-3:30 p.m. |
Monday |
1st and 3rd |
Hartsburg |
1st and 3rd |
Emden |
|
2nd and 4th |
San Jose |
2nd and 4th |
Greenview |
Tuesday |
Weekly |
Chestnut |
Weekly |
Mount Pulaski |
Wednesday |
Weekly |
New Holland |
Weekly |
Middletown |
Thursday |
1st and 3rd |
Elkhart |
Weekly |
Atlanta |
|
2nd and 4th |
Friendship
Manor-Lincoln |
|
|
Friday |
1st, 2nd,
4th |
Village Hall-Latham |
1st |
Beason |
|
|
|
2nd and 4th |
Broadwell |
|
3rd |
Maintenance/ special
events |
3rd |
Maintenance/
special events
|
The
mobile health unit does not operate on the following dates for
holidays
during 2002: Jan. 21 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day), Feb. 18 (Presidents’ Day),
March 29 (Good
Friday), May 27 (Memorial Day), July 4 (Independence Day), Sept. 2 (Labor Day), Oct.
14 (Columbus Day), Nov. 11 (Veterans Day), Nov. 28-29
(Thanksgiving break) and Dec. 24-25 (Christmas break).
For more
information on the mobile health unit schedule and services, contact
Dayle Eldredge at (217) 732-2161, Ext. 409.
|
|
Community
resource list
This
family resource list to save and use is provided by the Healthy
Communities Partnership and the Healthy
Families Task Force, 732-2161, Ext. 409.
Agency |
Phone number |
Address |
Lincoln
agencies |
911 |
911 (emergency)
732-3911 (office -- non-emergency)
|
911 Pekin St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Abraham Lincoln
Memorial Hospital
|
732-2161
|
315 Eighth St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
American Red Cross
www.il-redcross.org |
732-2134 or
1 (800) 412-0100
|
125 S. Kickapoo
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Catholic Social
Services
www.cdop.org |
732-3771 |
310 S. Logan
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Lincoln/Logan County Chamber
of Commerce
www.lincolnillinois.com |
735-2385 |
303 S. Kickapoo St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Community Action (CIEDC) |
732-2159
|
1800 Fifth St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Crisis Pregnancy Center/
Living Alternatives |
735-4838 |
408 A Pulaski St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
DCFS (Department of
Children
& Family Services) |
735-4402 or
1 (800) 252-2873
(crisis hotline)
|
1120 Keokuk St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Heartland Community
College
- GED program |
735-1731 |
620 Broadway St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Housing Authority |
732-7776
|
1028 N. College St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Illinois Breast &
Cervical Cancer Program (IBCCP)
www.logancountyhealth.org |
735-2317 or
1 (800) 269-4019
|
109 Third St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Illinois Employment and Training Center (replaces JTPA office) |
735-5441 |
120
S. McLean St., Suite B
Farm
Bureau Building
Lincoln,
IL 62656
|
Lincoln Area YMCA
|
735-3915 |
319 W. Kickapoo St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Lincoln/Logan Food
Pantry |
732-2204
|
P.O. Box 773
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Lincoln Parents’
Center |
735-4192 |
100 S. Maple
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Lincoln Park District |
732-8770 |
1400 Primm Rd.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Logan County Department
of Human Services (Public Aid)
www.state.il.us/agency/dhs |
735-2306 |
1500 Fourth St.
P.O.
Box 310
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Logan County Health
Department
www.logancountyhealth.org |
735-2317 |
109 Third St.
P.O. Box
508
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Logan-Mason Mental
Health |
735-2272 or
735-3600
(crisis line)
|
304 Eighth St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Logan-Mason
Rehabilitation Center |
735-1413 |
760 S. Postville Drive
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
The Oasis
(Senior Citizens
of Logan County) |
732-6132 |
501 Pulaski St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Project READ
|
735-1731 |
620 Broadway St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Salvation Army |
732-7890
|
1501 N. Kickapoo
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Senior Services of
Central Illinois |
732-6213 or
1 (800) 252-8966
(crisis line)
|
109 Third St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
U. of I. Extension
Service
www.ag.uiuc.edu |
732-8289 |
980 N. Postville Drive
Lincoln, IL 62656
|
Springfield
agencies |
Department of Aging
www.state.il.us/aging |
785-3356 |
421 E. Capitol, #100
Springfield, IL 62701-1789
|
American Cancer Society
www.cancer.org |
546-7586
(24 hour) |
1305 Wabash, Suite J
Springfield, IL 62704
|
Community Child Care
Connection
www.childcaresolutions.org |
(217) 525-2805 or
1 (800) 676-2805
|
1004 N. Milton Ave.
Springfield, IL 62702-4430
|
Hospice Care of
Illinois |
1 (800) 342-4862
(24 hour) or
732-2161, Ext. 444
|
720 N. Bond
Springfield, IL 62702
|
Illinois Department of
Public Health
www.idph.state.il.us |
(217) 782-4977
|
535 W. Jefferson
Springfield, IL 62761
|
Legal Assistance
Foundation |
(217) 753-3300 or
1 (800) 252-8629
|
730 E. Vine St., Suite
214
Springfield, IL 62703
|
Sojourn Shelter &
Services Inc.
http://www.sojournshelter.org/
|
732-8988 or
1 (866) HELP4DV
(24-hour hotline)
|
1800 Westchester Blvd.
Springfield, IL 62704
|
U. of I. Division of
Specialized Care for Children
www.uic.edu |
524-2000 or
1 (800) 946-8468
|
421 South Grand Ave.
West
Second Floor
Springfield, IL 62704
|
Logan County
libraries |
Atlanta Library |
(217) 648-2112 |
100 Race St.
Atlanta, IL 61723 |
Elkhart Library |
(217) 947-2313 |
121 E. Bohan
Elkhart, IL 62634 |
Lincoln Public Library
www.lincolnpubliclibrary.org |
732-8878 |
725 Pekin St.
Lincoln, IL 62656 |
Mount Pulaski Library |
792-5919
|
320 N. Washington
Mount Pulaski, IL 62548
|
|
(updated
2-15-02) |
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