Health news

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Hospice volunteers

BANGOR – Hospice of Eastern Maine is looking for compassionate men and women in the Greater Bangor area willing to share time and friendship with terminally ill people and their families.

A volunteer training course will be held 5:30-9:30 p.m. Tuesdays, March 16-April 20, at the Eastern Maine Healthcare Mall, 885 Union St., Suite 220. The course will prepare trainees to provide emotional support, respite care, bereavement support and other comfort services to hospice patients and their families. To learn more about the course, call Wayne Melanson, 973-8269.

Digital Mammography II

BANGOR – Eastern Maine Medical Center’s Breast and Osteoporosis Center has added a new generation of technology – digital mammography II and computer-aided detector, which will complement other digital imaging services offered at EMMC. The computer-aided detector can find cancers that the human eye can miss on a mammogram.

Dialysis program

BANGOR – This month marks the 30th anniversary of Eastern Maine Medical Center’s dialysis program. Dr. Richard Patch, who helped found the program, retired in January after many years as the dialysis program medical director. It was a sad farewell for patients and staff.

The Lincoln Lakes Region Dialysis Center is currently under construction and is scheduled to open this spring thanks to generous donations from community members. When it is operational, it will house six dialysis stations and have the capacity to provide treatment for 22 stable, chronic hemodialysis patients.

Spinal cord injury

BANGOR – The Spinal Cord Injury Support Group will meet 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 3, in the conference room at Alpha One, 1048 Union St. Family and friends are welcome also. For information, contact Wes Smith, (800) 300-6016 (TTY); or Gaelen, 942-6720.

Telemedicine grant

BANGOR – A $500,000 grant from the Rural Utility Service will help Eastern Maine Medical Center expand the regional Picture Archiving Communication System as part of efforts to improve access to care through telemedicine.

Maine is a rural state and it is often difficult for hospitals to recruit and retain specialists, such as radiologists, and orthopedic and neurosurgeons, officials said. With the help of a high-speed telephone line and a nurse, telemedicine networks allow patients to consult physicians in other towns without having to travel long distances to the physicians’ offices.

First aid training

BANGOR – Eastern Maine Medical Center’s Community Wellness Service offers a first aid training course developed and taught according to the guidelines of the American Heart Association. It meets and exceeds OSHA requirements for first aid training. Call 973-7088 to learn more about the course.

Move and Improve

BANGOR – Eastern Maine Medical Center encourages employees and community members to join the Move and Improve program. Participants report that they have more energy, reduce stress and even lose a few pounds. The deadline for registration is Sunday March 14.

MS teleconference

The Maine Chapter, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, will present a free teleconference, “To Work or Not to Work: Positive Decision Making in the Workplace,” 7-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26.

Attorney David Green, a managing partner of Green and Greenberg in Rhode Island, and Anne Dobson, a certified rehabilitation counselor who has worked at the Maine Division of Vocational Rehabilitation for 34 years, will be the presenters.

The teleconference will explore options available so that those with MS may remain employed as long as possible. It will also explain the application process if a person feels unable to work and wants to pursue SSDI disability benefits.

To register for the program or to learn more about multiple sclerosis, call (800) FIGHT-MS, or visit www.msmaine.org.

Great American Weigh-in

The American Cancer Society’s Great American Weigh-in will be conducted 11 a.m-4 p.m. Wednesday, March 3, at the Brewer Wilson Street, and Bangor Airport Mall, Hannaford stores. Free private weigh-ins and body mass index information will be available to participants. Call (800) 651-6000 for more information.

WalkAmerica kickoff

BREWER – The March of Dimes will hold its annual Bangor-Brewer WalkAmerica kickoff breakfast Thursday, Feb. 26.

The WalkAmerica campaign is a nationally recognized fundraiser, and the largest fundraiser for the March of Dimes. In 2003, Maine residents raised more than $600,000, with the participation of more than 4,000 people.

This year, the walk takes place on April 25. The March of Dimes encourages community participation in whatever form possible. Business sponsorship, through mile markers along the walk route, team leaders and walkers are welcome to join the campaign.

The Kickoff Breakfast will feature several guest speakers, including Dr. John Haggerty, a neonatologist at Eastern Maine Medical Center; Alma Fornier, the top state walker of 2003; Baylee Smith, the Ambassador Child of the Bangor-Brewer area – a success story of a child born prematurely; and Sharon Pelletier, emcee.

Those interested in joining the March of Dimes for the kickoff breakfast, or in getting involved with the March of Dimes, should call 989-3376.

Program on alcoholism

BANGOR – James Stone, national field representative of the Spirit of Freedom Ministries in New Orleans, La., will present a program on family alcoholism and drugs at 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 29, at the Apostolic Lighthouse Church, 517 Hammond St. He will introduce a new approach to dealing with addiction. A video tape, “Raised From the Ruins,” will be available at the meeting.

There is no admission charge. For additional information, call Pastor Charles Hurst, 942-2517.

Dryer safety

BANGOR – Cleaning out a lint trap and the duct that exhausts the hot air from a clothes dryer to the outside may not seem like a big deal, but experts say doing that one simple task may reduce the chances of a fire.

Recently, the Bangor Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau was contacted by a Greater Bangor area resident who neighbor narrowly averted a tragedy when his clothes dryer caught on fire from the lint in the exhaust duct.

In addition to keeping the lint trap and exhaust duct clean, the Bangor Fire Department encourages people to turn the dryer off before leaving home, keep combustibles such as boxes or clothing away from the dryer and to have professional service technicians check the dryer when problems arise.

Each year clothes dryers account for the largest number of appliance fires. In 1998 alone, there were 14,300 dryer fires in U.S. homes that led to 19 deaths, 312 injuries and $67.7 million in damages. The leading cause of the dryer fires, 30 percent, was lack of maintenance, followed by mechanical failures at 21 percent.