Accessibility solutions for businesses

BANGOR – Husson College occupational therapy students will hold an accessibility workshop 4:30-6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 24, at the Husson College Dyke Center for Family Business.

Participants will be introduced to information regarding disability etiquette and how to properly communicate with a person with a disability.

Students will demonstrate various environmental barriers that businesses may unknowingly present to clients, along with low-cost solutions to accommodate areas that are not accessible.

Representatives from VSA Arts of Maine and Alpha One will provide specific solutions to meet a business’ unique needs. Certificates of attendance will be awarded.

For reservations, call Lynn Gitlow at 941-1074 or e-mail Gitlowl@Husson.edu. For special accommodations, call Gitlow no later than Monday, April 14.

Workshops on ‘Living Well with Chronic Disease’

BREWER – Rosscare of Bangor will offer a six-week workshop, “Living Well: Chronic Disease Self Management,” noon-2:30 p.m. Mondays, April 14-May 19, at Calvary Baptist Church in Brewer.

The workshop is offered for those learning to cope with chronic conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, asthma, emphysema, obesity, depression and other long-term health conditions.

By taking part in the weekly Living Well workshops, participants learn ways to cope and manage health by setting achievable goals, finding support and solutions for problems, making daily tasks easier, learning relaxation and stress management techniques, and learning how to work in partnership with a healthcare team.

The workshop series is for those age 18 and older who have a chronic health condition. A family member, friend or caregiver also may participate.

Lunch will be provided at each session. The registration fee is $25, and scholarships and transportation are available. Advance registration is required. To register or to obtain information, call Cynthia Smith at Rosscare, 973-7094, or e-mail csmith@emh.org.

Healthcare Decisions Day

BANGOR – Rosscare, Eastern Maine Homecare and Eastern Agency on Aging are teaming up to be the hosts for National Healthcare Decisions Day on April 16. The event will be held at 4 p.m. Wednesday at Ross Manor, 758 Broadway.

Attorney Jeremiah Rancourt of Legal Services for the Elderly will present information and tools that will help people execute written advance directives, healthcare powers of attorney and living wills in accordance with Maine law.

The free community event will focus on the importance of advance healthcare and decision-making. Despite the importance of advance planning, very few Americans have executed an advance directive stipulating their healthcare wishes.

Staff from Rosscare, Eastern Maine Homecare and Eastern Agency on Aging will be available to answer questions.

The event is free and registration is not required. Interested participants, or those requiring more information about Healthcare Decision Day, should contact Cynthia Smith at 973-7094.

AIDS Walk in Bangor, Brewer

BANGOR – Eastern Maine AIDS Network – EMAN – will sponsor the area route of AIDS Walk Northern New England 2008 on Saturday, May 3.

Organized by Maine Community AIDS Partnership, walks will take place across Maine and in Portsmouth, N.H., May 3-4. Funds raised will be matched by the National AIDS Fund and go to local HIV-AIDS service organizations.

The 5k walk will begin and end in front of the Eastern Maine AIDS Network office, 370 Harlow St.

Walkers will proceed across the State Street bridge to Main Street, to Brewer, back across the Joshua Chamberlain Bridge, and through downtown Bangor.

Registration begins at 10 a.m. with the walk at 11 a.m.

Volunteers are needed to help set up, direct participants to parking areas and act as crossing guards at various intersections along the route. Donations are accepted.

Participants should visit www.aidswalk2008.shorturl.com which will direct them to the Kintera Web site, where they may register online and create their own fundraising page.

Participants also may register by picking up a form at the EMAN office, 370 Harlow St., or at 10 a.m. the day of the walk.

There is no fee to participate and pledges are optional, but highly encouraged.

For information about the AIDS Walk, visit www.aidswalk2008.shorturl.com or call Suze Howe at 990-3626 or e-mail showeeman@gwi.net.

Matter of Balance course

BANGOR – Eastern Area Agency on Aging will offer the Matter of Balance course, intended to help seniors reduce their risk of falling, 10 a.m.-noon, April 15 through June 3, at Hammond Street Congregational Church, 28 High St. The fee is $15 to cover the cost of books and materials. Scholarships are available.

Many older adults have concerns about falling and consequently restrict their activities, which can lead to isolation and depression. Matter of Balance is an award-winning program designed to manage falls and increase activity levels.

Participants will learn to view falls as controllable, set goals for increasing activity, make changes to reduce fall risks at home, and exercise to increase strength and balance.

The course is geared toward those who are interested in improving balance, flexibility and strength, or have fallen in the past. Those who have restricted activities because of falling concerns also should attend.

For information, call 941-2865.

Autism Awareness Month

The Autism Society of Maine has announced that April is Autism Awareness Month. This year’s theme, “Early Detection Improves Lives,” will emphasize awareness as the key to individuals with autism reaching their full potential.

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life. The result of a neurological disorder that affects functioning of the brain, autism and its associated behaviors occur in approximately 1 of every 150 individuals. Autism is four times as prevalent in boys as girls and knows no racial, ethnic or social boundaries.

Autism interferes with the normal development of the brain in areas that control verbal and non-verbal communication, social interaction and sensory development. It is often referred to as a spectrum disorder – symptoms and characteristics can present themselves in a variety of combinations, from mild to severe.

More than 1.5 million people in the United States have some form of autism. It is considered the third most common developmental disability – more common than Down syndrome. But the majority of the public is unaware of how autism affects people and how to effectively work with those with autism.

National Autism Awareness Month is a time to highlight the achievements that have been made as well as the challenges ahead.

The public is invited to join the Walk for Autism fundraising event on Sunday, April 27, at University of New England in Biddeford,and 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, June 28, at University College of Bangor.

For information, call 800-273-5200 or visit asm@asmonline.org.

Helping the chronically ill

OLD TOWN – As the world’s population ages, there are more and more chronically ill people. Nearly everyone has a friend or family member who is chronically ill, yet few know how to communicate in ways that make things better. The need for guidelines is a desperate one.

“Solace,” by Dr. Walter St. John of Old Town, and a professor at the University of Maine, provides specific, practical and helpful guidelines for healthcare professionals and lay caregivers for virtually all situations.

The content is based largely on extensive consultations with ministers, priests, hospital chaplains, hospice professionals and volunteers, medical doctors, nurses, physical therapists, social workers, nursing home staffs and lay caregivers.

Hospice of Eastern Maine director of volunteer services Wayne Melanson is credited in St. John’s acknowledgements.

“I was honored to help Dr. St. John with this book,” Melanson said. “A book offering practical advice on approaching the chronically ill with compassion and sensitivity is a gift to caregivers. I’m pleased to have had a small part in its creation.”

St. John has 75 publications to his credit. The author is a seasoned presenter for groups of all sizes, including radio and television audiences.

“Solace” is sold online at orders@trafford.com and will be available on amazon.com in May.

Dermatologist at PCHC

BANGOR – Penobscot Community Health Care announced that Dr. William Gallagher, a local dermatologist and practitioner, will join the agency in its specialty services clinic at 1012 Union St.

Gallagher graduated from Harvard Medical School and completed a dermatology residency at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. After a 15-year term as an instructor at Harvard Medical School, he served as chief of dermatology at Al Hadda Hospital in Saudia Arabia. He then relocated to Bangor, where he has been in private practice since 1985.

“I’m looking forward to working with Penobscot Community Health Care and continuing to take care of my patients,” Gallagher said. Clinic hours will be 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of each week.

“PCHC is pleased to have such an outstanding, distinguished and experienced physician join its staff,” said Dr. Robert P. Allen, PCHC’s executive medical director. “We are now able to provide our patients of all ages excellent dermatological services.”

MS: Manpower Maine Walk

BREWER – The Maine Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society will hold its annual walk, MS: Manpower Maine Walk 2008, at 12 locations in Maine. The Brewer-Bangor walk will take place at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 12, at Brewer Auditorium, 318 Wilson St.

To date, more than 2,300 participants in Maine have registered to walk.

Nearly 4,000 walkers are expected to help raise $460,000, the fundraising goal. Funds will support direct services for the estimated 3,000 people with MS and their families in Maine and national MS research to find a cure for the chronic disease of the central nervous system.

There’s still time to register by phone or on the Web. Participate in Walk MS individually or as a team. Volunteers are also needed.

For information, visit www.msmaine.org, call 800 344-4867 or e-mail walkinfo@msmaine.org.

Research on chemotherapy

ORONO – People undergoing chemotherapy for cancer may feel as if they are living in a mental fog that causes forgetfulness and hampers their ability to learn new skills and concentrate on everyday tasks.

And while the condition is often temporary, some cancer survivors continue to experience the frustrating symptoms years after treatments have ended.

Research over the last several years has shown that cancer patients can indeed suffer a mild cognitive impairment following chemotherapy. But studies have yet to pinpoint what causes the baffling condition, commonly known as chemo-brain or chemo-fog and why some people suffer from it and others do not.

Studies have typically been complicated by such confounding factors as age, life history, anxiety, depression and fatigue. Could the foggy thinking be caused by the stress and worry people feel when they’re told they have cancer, as some studies have suggested, or might it be the physiological damage wrought by the cancer itself that triggers it? Recognizing that chemotherapy induces menopause, researchers are left to wonder what role, if any, hormones play in cognitive decline.

Thane Fremouw, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Maine, along with Robert Ferguson, a clinical psychologist at Eastern Maine Medical Center, are doing research they hope will help answer those questions. Unlike other researchers who have studied chemo-brain in humans, however, the team will explore the condition in mice and use genetic manipulation to identify risk factors.

The mouse model will allow researchers to better and more quickly control for factors such as stress and depression, Fremouw said. The team, which includes a UM graduate student and three undergraduates, will examine the cognitive consequences of different combinations of chemotherapy drugs commonly prescribed in cancer therapy.

“Regardless of where this leads,” Fremouw said, “it’s important that we publicize this problem so that people can understand that whatever is happening to them is real and not imaginary.”