Features,
Health Matters,
Red Cross,
Calendar,
West Nile Virus,
Honors & Awards,
Announcements
Health & Fitness News Elsewhere
(fresh daily from the Web)
|
Features
|
CICBC brings state-of-the-art
technology to Community Health Fair
[MARCH 29, 2003]
Visit CICBC's bus or booth
at the Community Health Fair in April and check out the technology
and services Central Illinois Community Blood Center provides for
Logan County residents.
|
CICBC is much more than simply the
blood provider for Lincoln residents. Central Illinois Community
Blood Center provides a variety of services, including some of the
latest automated technology for blood component donation.
On Saturday, April 5, at the local
health fair, CICBC will have its "blood bus" and new double red cell
machine. CICBC invites the public to tour the bus, check out this
new technology, and sign up to win a T-shirt. There will also be
information about other available technology and services.
Therapeutic phlebotomy for people with
hereditary hemochromatosis is a new service offered by CICBC. This
service is provided free of charge, either at your local blood drive
or at the blood center in Springfield. More information will be
available on the bus at the Community Health Fair.
[to top of second column in
this article]
|
Central Illinois Community Blood Center
is nonprofit, governed by a local volunteer board of directors,
licensed by the FDA and operates as a partner with local hospitals.
CICBC is your community blood center and the sole provider of blood
to Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital, Hopedale Medical Complex, all
of the Springfield hospitals and seven other local hospitals. It is
also a member of America's Blood Centers, an association of 75
community blood centers representing over 500 blood collection sites
that provide over 50 percent of the blood for this country. After
these blood centers meet local needs, blood is shared throughout the
United States through a resource-sharing network. Through this
network CICBC is also called upon to help supply blood to our troops
in time of war.
Be sure to
visit Central Illinois Community Blood Center's "blood bus" or their
booth to find out more about how your community blood center helps
your community.
[CICBC
press release]
|
|
|
Drug task
force begins
to prioritize activities
[MARCH 24, 2003]
A strategic planning meeting called to address the
problem of substance abuse among area teenagers and young adults
drew around 40 participants to Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital on
March 17. Eight substance-related deaths of people under 25 have
occurred locally in the past 15 months.
|
Led by Jeff Nachbar,
a project director from Minnesota, meeting participants exchanged
insights about alcohol and other drug problems in the community and
provided input for prioritizing a list of actions to be taken. The
meeting was scheduled to run from 4 to 7 p.m. but was shortened to
enable those present to attend the Lincoln City Council meeting or
watch President Bush's address. As a result, Nachbar, who opened by
saying, "I believe in trying to figure out how to get things done,"
had to stop short of identifying clear-cut actions to be taken.
Instead, support for nine possible areas of effort will be tabulated
and the results presented at the next Alcohol, Tobacco and Other
Drugs Task Force meeting.
Nachbar is project
director for the Minnesota Join Together Coalition to Reduce
Underage Drinking, which focuses on changing statewide public policy
to reduce youth access to alcohol. He has additional experience as a
community organizer for the Minneapolis Police Department's Crime
Prevention Unit.
Participants in the
strategic planning meeting included elected officials,
administrators of city and county departments, school personnel,
substance-abuse counselors, mental health practitioners, high school
students, organization representatives and others. At least one
recovering addict attended, and a woman who had lost a grandson.
"This is an impressive gathering," Nachbar summarized. "You are
people who can get things done."
Kristi Lessen,
substance abuse prevention specialist for Logan-Mason Mental Health,
and Lincoln Chief of Police Rich Montcalm are co-chairs of ATOD.
Lessen provided a list of possible areas of effort culled from
previous responses to an ATOD questionnaire. They are (1) parental
education; (2) tailor consequences for underage drinking; (3)
outreach programs for school-aged children; (4) expand to younger
youth throughout the county; (5) programs that involve parents; (6)
educate adults and parents with meetings, news media, Internet; (7)
more community interest; and (8) look at social norms, regulations,
laws governing alcohol, tobacco and other drugs in Logan County.
Participants added a ninth possibility: drug testing for
extracurricular activities in schools.
In four groups, task
force members first narrowed and interpreted the eight original
activities and noted their responses using four distinctive colors
of ink. For example, parental education generated these notes:
"parental attendance at drug education, pending registration -- and
consequences of not attending"; "work with a role model"; and "use
school enrollment days to provide information to parents."
The next step was to
prioritize the annotated activities. Individuals received 14
self-adhesive dots, representing available resources such as time,
money and enthusiasm. They then pasted the dots next to activities
on which they would like to spend their resources. The greater the
level of interest, the more dots. The result was a colorful display
of support for each activity. Lessen will tabulate the responses to
determine those with the strongest backing. Nachbar urged ATOD at
its next meeting to choose three of these activities and commit to
accomplishing them.
[to top of second column in
this article]
|
"It was a step in the
right direction," Lessen said of Monday's meeting. "Success is going
to depend on the commitment and following through. I believe that
with the people that were there (and others not able to attend but
committed to the task force), we can be successful."
In defining the
process for articulating goals and objectives, Nachbar
differentiated between individual and environmental approaches and
between supply and demand sides of a problem. For example, a
supply-side approach to drug abuse would identify providers and
means of access and try to eliminate them. Nachbar acknowledged that
most supply-side activities are a police problem and outside the
scope of the task force. A demand-side effort would attempt to
intervene in a person's decision to use drugs. An individual
approach would aim to change personal behavior, while an
environmental approach would try to influence community norms and
institutions. Using one each of their 14 dots, the majority of
participants indicated that they favor demand-side interventions,
especially focusing on the community environment.
While acknowledging
that supply and demand, individual and environmental issues interact
to create the drug and alcohol problem in Logan County, Nachbar
urged participants to narrow the focus of activities in order to
achieve success. You don't have to pick the most important thing to
do first, he told them, but you need to start with activities that
you can agree hold high potential effectiveness and are not apt to
meet with great resistance.
Lessen said she and
Montcalm first spoke with Nachbar two months ago. His appearance was
funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services and Prevention
First, Inc. Sharon Mast, regional representative of the state
department, said that because there are only two agencies in the
community with programs funded by the Department of Human Services
-- Logan-Mason Mental Health and the Logan County Health Department
-- it is important for their personnel to confer with others outside
the area. She said community readiness evidenced by the work of a
number of individuals and organizations was one reason Lincoln was
chosen to receive the funding.
The next ATOD meeting
is scheduled for noon on Friday, April 11, at the Logan County
Health Department. It will be followed by a meeting of Mothers
Against Drunk Driving at 1 p.m. Both sessions are open to the
public.
ATOD is one of five Healthy Communities
Partnership task forces. The others are Rural Health Partnership,
Healthy Families Task Force, Senior Issues Task Force, and Domestic
Abuse and Violence Task Force. In turn, Healthy Communities
Partnership is a subcommittee of the Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of
Commerce Healthcare Committee.
[Lynn
Spellman]
|
|
Health Matters
A monthly feature from
Logan County Health Department
|
A preventable cancer
[MARCH
4, 2003]
|
The facts
Colorectal cancer -- cancer of the
colon or rectum -- is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in
the United States. In 2002, there will be approximately 148,300
colorectal cancer diagnoses, and 56,600 people are expected to die
from the disease.
But you can take steps to protect
yourself from the disease:
More than 90 percent of colorectal cancer is preventable.
Colorectal cancers can develop in both
men and women. More than 90 percent of cases are found in people
over the age of 50.
Risk
factors
Since people are more likely to get
colorectal cancer as they get older, everyone age 50 or over should
undergo regular screening for the disease. Some people, however,
have a higher risk of colorectal cancer.
If you fall into one of the following
groups, you should talk to your health care provider about starting
colorectal cancer screening at an earlier age:
--Personal or family history of
colorectal cancer, polyps or inflammatory bowel disease.
--Personal or family history of
ovarian, endometrial or breast cancer.
African-Americans have higher
colorectal cancer incidence and death rates than other ethnic
groups, in part because they are less likely to be screened for the
disease.
Screening
for prevention
Following colorectal screening
recommendations can detect polyps -- grapelike growths on the lining
of the colon and rectum that can become cancerous. Removing these
polyps can prevent colorectal cancer from ever developing.
There are four common tests used to
screen for colorectal cancer. Your health care provider can help you
decide which test is best for you.
A fecal occult blood test is a
simple chemical test that finds blood present in stool samples. You
can perform an FOBT yourself at home with a kit that you can get
from your health care provider and send to a laboratory for results.
This testing is recommended every year.
While an FOBT tests for warning signs
in the stool, the three tests described below look inside the body
to find polyps.
Flexible sigmoidoscopy
is a visual examination of the rectum and lower portion of the
colon, performed in a health care provider's office or in a clinic
or hospital. A flexible tube about the thickness of your finger is
put into the anus and slowly moved into the rectum and lower part of
the colon. Your health care provider can view the area by looking
through the eyepiece of the tube. This testing is recommended every
five years.
Colonoscopy
is like a sigmoidoscopy, but it lets
your health care provider examine the lining of your entire colon
rather than just its lower portion. Removal of polyps can be
performed during colonoscopy to prevent cancer. This testing is
recommended every five to 10 years.
A double-contrast barium enema
uses an X-ray to look at the colon and is performed in a hospital or
clinic. The double-contrast technique involves injecting a liquid
called barium sulfate and air into the rectum in order to get a view
of the large intestine. This testing is recommended testing every
five to 10 years.
Symptoms
Although colorectal cancer can develop
without symptoms, there are some warning signs for the disease.
If you have any of these symptoms,
contact your health care provider for testing:
- Rectal bleeding
- Blood in or around your stool
- A change in the shape of your
stool
- Stomach discomfort, including
bloating, fullness or cramps
- Unexplained weight loss or
fatigue
[to top of second column in this
article]
|
Prevention tips
Since how you live affects your health,
you can take steps to help lower your risk for colorectal cancer.
Healthy dietary choices, being active and regular screening can help
lower your risk.
While regular screening is your best
bet for lowering your risk, research suggests that being physically
active can help protect against the disease. In addition to exercise
and maintaining a healthy weight, eating a low-fat diet full of
fruits, vegetables and whole grains may help prevent colorectal
cancer.
Staying away from tobacco and alcohol
can also lower your risk. In 2002, 170,000 Americans are expected to
die from colorectal and other cancers caused by tobacco use. If you
don't smoke, don't start, and if you do smoke, quit. And if you
drink, do so in moderation; aim for one drink or less per day.
National
Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
March is National Colorectal Cancer
Awareness Month, founded by the Cancer Research and Prevention
Foundation in collaboration with many partner organizations. The
campaign to designate the special month was launched in March 2000.
The goal is to generate widespread awareness about colorectal cancer
prevention through screening and healthy lifestyle choices.
Colorectal cancer is preventable. It is
easy to treat and often curable when detected early. Talk with your
health care professional about colorectal cancer.
To learn more, visit
http://www.preventcancer.org/colorectal/.
Colorectal cancer myths and realities
Myth:
There is nothing I can do about getting
colorectal cancer.
Reality:
Colorectal cancer can be prevented.
Screening tests can detect polyps (grapelike growths on the lining
of the colon or rectum) that can turn into cancer. Removing these
polyps can prevent colorectal cancer from ever occurring. Starting
at age 50, men and women who are at average risk should be screened
regularly for colorectal cancer. Men and women who are at high risk
of the disease may need to be tested earlier and should talk to
their health care professional about when.
Myth:
Colorectal cancer is usually fatal.
Reality:
Colorectal cancer is usually curable
when detected early. More than 90 percent of patients with localized
colorectal cancer confined to the colon or rectum are alive five
years after diagnosis.
Myth:
Colorectal cancer is a disease of older
white men.
Reality:
An equal number of women and men get
colorectal cancer. An estimated 75,700 women and 72,600 men were
diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2002. African-Americans are more
likely to be diagnosed with colorectal cancer at later stages of the
disease.
Myth:
Screening tests are necessary only for
individuals who have symptoms.
Reality:
Since symptoms of colorectal
cancer are often silent, it is important to get screened regularly.
Screenings test for a disease even if the patient has no symptoms.
About 75 percent of all new cases of colorectal cancer occur in
individuals with no known risk factors for the disease, other than
being 50 or older. If you have a personal or family history of
colorectal cancer, polyps or inflammatory bowel disease, you may
need to be screened before age 50. Talk with your health care
professional.
[From the
Logan County Health
Department]
All information in this article was
provided by the Cancer Research Foundation of America, 1600 Duke
St., Suite 110, Alexandria, VA 22314;
(703) 836-4412;
www.preventcancer.org.
|
|
Red Cross
|
|
West Nile Virus
|
West Nile virus links
|
LDN articles
Federal websites
|
State websites
|
|
Honors & Awards
|
|
Announcements
|
CICBC
blood drives monthly at paramedics' building
Blood supplies across the
nation are critical. In some areas, there is less than a one-day
supply. Fortunately, thanks to the dedicated donors in central
Illinois, these tremendous shortages have not yet touched our
hospitals. However, the blood supply is a resource that must be
renewed. Every three seconds someone needs a blood transfusion of
some kind. To accommodate this constant usage, community members
must continually help replenish the supply. Since a donor can donate
whole blood only every eight weeks, Central Illinois Community Blood
Center needs community members to come forward and help with this
lifesaving effort.
|
Central Illinois Community Blood Center
provides all of the blood and blood products for 12 area hospitals,
including those in Lincoln, Hopedale and Springfield. No other
organization provides blood in these hospitals. 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.
When you donate blood through CICBC,
you help to keep a safe and adequate blood supply for your
community. You also help keep local medical costs under control.
|
Regularly scheduled blood drives are on
the first Monday of each month (except Labor Day) at the Logan
County Paramedic Association
building, 1300 N. Postville Road. (See
schedule.) Please help by donating blood.
CICBC also provides other services for
the communities served, such as therapeutic phlebotomy at no charge
for patients with hereditary hemochromatosis.
For more
information, call Terry Bell at 753-1530.
[CICBC press release]
|
|
CICBC blood drive schedule |
-
April 7,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
April 11,
at Lincoln Community High School
-
May 5,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
May 14,
hours and location to be announced
-
June 2,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
July 7,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
July 15,
hours and location to be announced
-
Aug. 4,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
[to top of second
column in this section]
|
-
Sept. 8,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
Sept. 24,
hours and location to be announced
-
Oct. 6,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
Nov. 3,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
-
Nov. 12,
hours and location to be announced
-
Dec. 1,
noon-6 p.m., at Logan County Paramedic Association building
|
|
|
Mobile health unit schedule
The
Rural Health Partnership has announced the schedule for its mobile
health unit for 2002.
|
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
732-3600 (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) |
Back to top |
News
| Sports
| Business
| Rural
Review |
Teaching
& Learning |
Home
and Family |
Tourism
| Obituaries
Community |
Perspectives |
Law
& Courts |
Leisure Time |
Spiritual
Life | Health
& Fitness | Teen
Scene
Calendar
|
Letters
to the Editor
|
|