Eating Disorders Awareness

BANGOR – Husson College will be the host for the 20th annual National Eating Disorders Awareness Week activities Feb. 25 through March 3.

The week is sponsored by the National Eating Disorders Association, and organizers hope to persuade the public to think twice about trying to change their bodies to fit fashion and the pressures of society’s unattainable standards of beauty.

The signature event during the week is the Great Jeans Giveaway as a reminder to “Get Real: Don’t fight your genes, just change your jeans!”

The event asks participants to bring in old pairs of jeans in recognition that, too often, individuals struggle against their natural, genetically influenced size just to fit into that pair of “skinny jeans.”

“Our goal for this week is to get people to think about the seriousness of eating disorders and to examine their own concepts about body size and shape,” said Dr. Rene Collins, director of the Husson Counseling Center. “I, along with our student coordinator Christine Caron, also hope to give people the resources they need to learn more about this issue and make them aware of the fact that there are people on campus and in the surrounding community who can help them think about and deal with these issues.”

There will be a full week of activities, including a panel discussion. All events are free and open to the public. For information about the Husson events, call Dr. Rene Collins at 941-7981. For general information, visit www.nationaleatingdisorders.org.

Dorothea Dix Award

The 2005 Maine Legislature provided for a biennial award to recognize an individual or group with longstanding ties to Maine who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in promoting recovery or improving the quality of life of those living with mental illness or mental disabilities.

The Dorothea Dix Award was named in honor of the woman who championed the rights of the mentally ill in the mid-1800s. Nomination packets have been mailed to a broad cross-section of the state’s mental health care community. Additional forms and award criteria are also available at www.maine.gov/dhhs/DDPC/award/home.html.

Gov. John Baldacci will present the award at 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 3, at Dorothea Dix Psychiatric Center in Bangor.

Daffodil Days

BANGOR – Spring is coming early to Penobscot County this year through the American Cancer Society’s Daffodil Days program. The 34-year-old fundraising campaign celebrates the society’s mission to eliminate cancer as a life-threatening disease.

The daffodil is the flower of hope for cancer patients and their families. By purchasing bouquets of these first flowers of spring, people in Penobscot County give hope and help to those who need it most. The flowers are a therapeutic boost for body, mind and soul.

“I encourage everyone to help paint our community yellow with daffodils this spring to show our support for the American Cancer Society’s Daffodil Days and to help prevent cancer, save lives and diminish suffering from the disease,” said Dawn Emery-Gray, community executive for the American Cancer Society.

“Everyone from school children to corporate CEOs has the power to make a difference for cancer patients and their families,” she said. “By giving daffodils, we also have the power to give hope.”

Fresh-cut daffodil bouquets are available for a donation of $7. For a donation of $20, people can also order The Gift of Hope – a bouquet of 10 daffodils given as an anonymous gift to cancer patients or others in need.

This year also marks the addition of Hugh R. Hope, the second in a series of special Boyd’s Bears designed exclusively for the American Cancer Society’s Daffodil Days.

The Bear and a Bunch includes a 12-inch tall, plush, rust-colored, bean-filled bear with brown eyes and a denim cap, along with a bouquet of 10 daffodils that can be ordered for a donation of $25. The last day to place an advance order is March 8.

Daffodil bouquets, Gift of Hope bouquets, and Bear and a Bunch orders will be delivered in Penobscot County the week of March 19.

Dollars raised through the Daffodil Days campaign will help the American Cancer Society fund groundbreaking cancer research, provide up-to-date cancer information and education, advocate for public health policies that benefit the community, and provide services that improve the quality of life for patients, their families and caregivers.

As the first month of spring, March is also National Colon Cancer Awareness Month. Colon cancer is the third most common cause of cancer and cancer death in both men and women, and is the rare case in which testing can actually prevent the disease.

In 2007, it is estimated that some 800 Maine people will be diagnosed with colon cancer and about 300 will die from the disease. Sending a bouquet of daffodils to someone 50 or older is a great way to remind them to talk to their health care provider about colon cancer screenings to help stop colon cancer before it starts.

To obtain more information about the Daffodil Days program or to place an order, call Dawn Emery-Gray at 373-3727 or the American Cancer Society at (800) ACS-2345, anytime, day or night.

Teleconference on grief: ‘Before and After the Death’

BANGOR – Each year the Hospice Foundation of America presents a nationally recognized distance learning program live via satellite and Webcast, to more than 125,000 people in 2,000 communities. This year the foundation’s 14th annual National Bereavement Teleconference focuses on “Before and After the Death.”

The program provides an opportunity for a wide variety of professionals, including doctors, nurses, funeral directors, psychologists, educators, social workers and bereavement counselors, to share and exchange ideas and obtain continuing education credits.

Local panelists include: Candace Powell, Maine Hospice Council; Beverly Wilson, Hospice of Eastern Maine; Brenda Rogerson, CHCS; Pat Eye, New Hope Hospice; and Jane Folsom, Hospice of St. Joseph.

The teleconference will be broadcast locally at the Brandow Conference Room at Eastern Maine Medical Center 1:30-4:30 p.m. Thursday, March 22. Those interested in attending are asked to RSVP by March 16 to Hospice of Eastern Maine’s receptionist at 973-8269.

“We are pleased once again to host this annual teleconference,” said Helen Genco on behalf of Hospice of Eastern Maine. “We are looking forward to providing this educational opportunity to our local grief counselors, hospice personnel and others who help people through grief and loss. Unfortunately grief and loss are part of everyone’s life at some point and the more we understand the better we can help.”

This year’s teleconference will explore the most current theoretical perspectives on loss and grief as experienced by persons throughout a life-limiting illness and by survivors after the death. The panel will focus on areas where understanding of grief have been challenged. Frank Sesno, professor of media and public affairs at The George Washington University and special correspondent with CNN, will serve as moderator.

Sesno will lead a panel of noted authorities that includes: Scott W. Bradley from the Center for Life Transition and Bradley and Son Funeral Homes, LLC. Dr. Kenneth J. Doka from The College of New Rochelle, Lorraine Hedtke, from VITAS Innovative Hospice Care, Dr. Patricia Murphy from UMDNJ-University Hospital, Dr. Robert A. Neimeyer from the University of Memphis and Dr. Robert Washington from Montgomery Hospice.

The teleconference is produced by Hospice Foundation of America, a not-for-profit organization, which acts as an advocate for the hospice concept of care through ongoing programs of professional education, public information and research on issues relating to illness, loss, grief and bereavement. For more than a decade, this annual educational program has been instrumental in educating health care professionals and families on issues affecting end-of-life care.

Flu pandemic program

With the real possibility of a worldwide flu pandemic looming on the horizon, are there things one can do to prepare for such an eventuality?

Dr. John G. Clark will addressing this question in his three-part series, “Bird Flu: An Ounce of Prevention.”

Clark will look at all aspects of the flu to help attendees better understand the threat and what can be done to prepare for such a catastrophic pandemic. He will answer the question on everyone’s mind: What can I do to make sure my loved ones and I are survivors?

Clark will speak at 6 p.m. Monday, March 5; and Thursday, March 8; at Bangor Public Library.

There will be a follow-up meeting at 3 p.m. Sunday, March 11, at the Greater Bangor Seventh-day Adventist Church on Route 2 in Hermon. For more information, call 941-1146. There is no charge for admission.