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Family Caregiver Alliance (FCA) announces the release of its new
publication, "Handbook for Long-Distance Caregivers", a guide for
families and friends caring for ill or elderly loved ones. The booklet
serves as a roadmap for families new to the challenges of caring
from afar for those affected by chronic or disabling health conditions.
To receive a copy of the handbook by mail, send $5.00 to:
Family Caregiver Alliance
600 Market Street, Suite 600
San Francisco, CA 94104
You may also download it free at the FCA Web site:
www.caregiver.org
Listen to Jacqueline Marcell's Internet radio program, "Coping with
Caregiving", on www.wsradio.com/copingwithcaregiving.
As a guest of the program, Dante Tipiani, MSW, Project Director
of the Family Caregiver Program at Beth Israel Medical Center, New
York, discussed resources available for caregivers of the medically
ill on NetofCare.org.
Jacqueline Marcell is the author of "Elder
Rage, or Take My Father…Please! How to Survive Caring for Aging
Parents". To access this interview, click on "Recent Archives" and find Segment 2,
Show Date: 01/31/04. You will need the free
Windows Media Player plug-in to listen.
Are you so stressed that you forget about caring for yourself because you are so busy caring for someone else? Are you so stressed that your
relationships are strained and your health is suffering? The Brooklyn
Hospital Center Family Caregiver Program is providing a free
stress-reduction workshop that will provide you with information and
different ways to lower your stress levels.
The event will be held on
Saturday, February 14, 2004 at:
The Brooklyn Hospital Center Cafeteria (Dining Rooms A & B)
121 Dekalb Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11201
To reserve your seat, call Nereida Borrero, RN, and Project Coordinator at (718) 250-8394.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released two reports
on health care quality and disparities on December 22, 2003. These
reports represent the first national effort to measure the quality
of health care in America. HHS wants to ensure that all Americans
have access to the safest, highest-quality health care services
possible when they need them.
The reports can be found at: www.qualitytools.ahrq.gov
Print copies of the reports can also be requested by calling
1-800-358-9295 or by emailing ahrqpubs@ahrq.gov
According to a study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF),
residents are less physically active in communities where people
are more likely to drive than to walk. These less active residents
are overweight and in poor health. "Relationship Between Urban
Sprawl and Physical Activity, Obesity, and Morbidity", published
in the American Journal of Health Promotion, outlines these main
findings.
To learn how healthy your community is, visit:
www.rwjf.org/news/featureDetail.jsp?id=83&contentGroup=videos .
Judith Kurzer, C.S.W., an approved consultant for the American Society
of Clinical Hypnosis, and founder and faculty member of the Center
for Advancement of Training in Clinical Hypnosis, will conduct a
two-day workshop on the use of hypnotic techniques to provide relief
for people with cancer. The workshop will include using hypnosis
to reduce anxiety, fear, and pain, and diminish the side effects
of chemotherapy. To register, send an email to shareprograms@sharecancersupport.org
or call (212) 719-2943, voice mailbox 338. The Share main office
is located on 1501 Broadway, Suite 1720. Please bring photo ID.
To learn more about Share, visit their web site at: www.sharecancersupport.org
Long Island College Hospital Othmer Cancer Center with support from the Breast Health Luncheon Committee presents:
The Science Behind Meditation
Thursday, January 15, 2004 from 12-1pm in
Conference Room F
Healthful (and Easy!) Winter Soups
Wednesday, February 11, 2003 from 12-1pm in
Conference Room A
Introduction to Chinese Medicine
Thursday, February 25, 2003 from 12-1pm in
Conference Room G
Try a yoga class, learn to meditate, join a 'Writing for Healing' group, discover the history of Chinese Medicine. Please call (718) 780-1677 for more information. All events are open to the public and located at 339 Hicks Street in Brooklyn, NY 11201.
The Karpas Health Information Center is Beth Israel's walk-in resource center
staffed with health educators ready to help you. At Karpas, we believe that
we can take care of our community by helping individuals live longer, healthier
lives through health education. The center, a storefront located at 311
First Ave at 18th St. carries hundreds of brochures on a wide-range of health
topics available free of charge. If you need health information on a specific
illness, treatment option, or preventive measures such as nutrition, our health
educators will research the topic for you. Individuals can come in to learn
about the services that Beth Israel has to offer and obtain a physician referral.
One of the highlights of the storefront is the community computer that allows
individuals to come in and use the Internet for health information without any charge.
With a variety of health education events, screenings, support groups, and a wealth of
health resources to share, the Karpas Health Information Center is always working to
ensure that our community has what it needs to stay healthy.
The Karpas Health Information Center has flourished due to the pioneering spirit,
generosity, and leadership of Suzanne T. Karpas and Irving D. Karpas, Jr.
Hours of Operation: Mon.-Fri.: 9:30am-4:30pm
For additional information about our services,
please call 212-420-4247.
A Symposium on Music Therapy at the End of Life presented by, The
Louis and Lucille Armstrong Music Therapy Program and Department
of Social Work and Home Care Services. This will be a two-day international
event for music therapists, nurses, doctors, social workers, chaplains,
health care, hospice providers, and caregivers. This event is co-sponsored
by Music Therapy Program, New York University, Hahnemann's Creative
Arts in Therapy Program, and Drexel University.
Space is limited.
Some on-site registration will occur.
To register and to see if
space is available call (212) 420-3484.
Five CEU's or CME's per
day.
This will take place on, March 1st & 2nd, 2004 at
Phillips Ambulatory Care Center (PACC)
10 Union Square East, E14th Street
The Division of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry at Beth Israel Medical Center provides comprehensive psychiatric evaluations and management to patients who are admitted to the hospital for a variety of medical and surgical conditions.
Psychological reactions to illness such as depression or anxiety are not uncommon, and the Consultation-Liaison division is available to help the patient's primary doctor address these problems. In addition, some illnesses can cause certain psychiatric symptoms that the Consultation-Liaison division can help diagnose. Finally, the division also can help manage patients with long-standing psychiatric conditions if they are admitted to the hospital for medical/surgical treatment.
The liaison aspect of the division's work often involves teaching non-psychiatric hospital staff how to better address the psychosocial needs of their patients, as well as educating them about different coping styles and how coping styles interact with medical illness. As part of the treatment team, members of the Consultation-Liaison Division become involved in many aspects of the patient's care and discharge planning. They also provide support for hospital staff, helping staff members cope with the intensity of inpatient hospital work.
For more information on Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry, please
call (212) 420-4230 or visit www.wehealny.org
The Asthma Center at Long Island College Hospital (LICH) provides
state-of-the-art clinical care, education and prevention strategies
for asthmatic patients and their families. The Asthma Center's board-certified
physicians are recognized experts in the areas of allergy and immunology,
pediatrics, and pulmonary medicine. They have a proven record of
success in the management of asthma, from the mildest to the most
severe cases. The Asthma Center at LICH offers one main point person
who will arrange all of your tests and appointments, an asthma registry
that identifies and tracks your medical history, and around-the-clock
access to an asthma specialist.
To read more about The Asthma Center, visit:
www.wehealny.org/directory/asthma.html
For the first time in U.S. medical history, surgeons at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City are using a robotic device to perform cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). CRT is a new pacemaker procedure designed to treat millions of Americans who suffer from severe heart failure and ventricular dysynchrony. The result is significant improvement of heart failure symptoms, including breathlessness, fatigue, and build-up of fluid that causes swelling, especially in the feet, ankles, or legs.
To learn more about this device and the surgeons who use it, visit:
www.wehealny.org/whatsnew/releases/resynch.html
According to the American Cancer Society (ACS) and a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (Vol. 95, No. 23:1792-1797), nearly 1.5 million American men over age 75 get PSA tests each year to screen for prostate cancer. Unfortunately, there is little proof that the screenings do them any good. Prostate cancer typically grows so slowly, elderly men are more likely to die from other causes (heart disease, for instance) before prostate cancer can even cause symptoms much less kill them. Furthermore, if prostate cancer is detected in these men, the treatment for it can cause serious side effects like incontinence and impotence that can lessen quality of life without necessarily increasing quantity of life.
To read more about the risks and benefits concerning prostate cancer, visit the ACS web site at,
www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_
Too_Many_Elderly_Men_Tested_for_Prostate_Cancer.asp
(Cancer.gov) A Canadian-led international clinical trial has found
that post-menopausal survivors of early-stage breast cancer who
took the drug letrozole after completing an initial five years of
tamoxifen therapy had a significantly reduced risk of cancer recurrence
compared to women taking a placebo. The results of the study appear
in today's advance on-line edition of the New England Journal of
Medicine. The clinical trial has been halted early because of the
positive results and researchers are notifying the 5,187 women worldwide
who have participated in the study. Women on letrozole will continue
taking the drug and those on the placebo can begin taking letrozole,
if they wish. "This very important advance in breast cancer treatment
will improve the outlook for many thousands of women," said Andrew
von Eschenbach, M.D., director of the National Cancer Institute,
which led the study in the United States. "This is one more example
of the ability to interrupt the progression of a cancer using a
drug that blocks a crucial metabolic pathway in the tumor cell."
For more information on the results of this clinical trial and what
it might mean for you, visit:
www.cancer.gov/newscenter/pressreleases/letrozoleQandA
In the United States, call the National Cancer Institute's Cancer
Information Service at 1-800-422-6237, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. or visit www.cancer.gov
Service is available in English and Spanish.
Misinformation and unfounded fears of addiction stop the millions
of Americans who suffer from acute and chronic pain from seeking
appropriate relief. Persistent pain is a complex medical problem.
Proper treatment requires a complete evaluation and may involve
different medical strategies, some which include medications and
others that do not. The statement provided by AAPM and the American
Pain Society reports that the appropriate use of opioids (sometimes
called narcotic analgesics) under medical supervision is a common
and effective method of treatment for persistent pain.
The statement can be found at www.theacpa.org/opiods.asp
"Talking About Your Choices", a booklet funded by The Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation introduces you and your loved ones to the issues
surrounding end-of-life decision-making. It is all about talking
- talking with your loved ones about health care preferences; talking
to your doctor about options so that you can make informed decisions.
Talking before a crisis can help you and your loved ones prepare
for any difficult decisions related to health care at the end of
life.
Exploring your thoughts and talking about your choices is an ongoing process that sometimes begins during a crisis. This booklet can help begin the process of developing a plan for end-of-life care. Below is a quick guide to the contents of this booklet:
- Advance care planning
- Talking about the issues
- Talking with family and friends
- Talking with your doctor
- Preparing the right advance directive
- Talking with your health care agent
- Acting as a health care agent
- Understanding life-support measures
- Learning about pain management
- Glossary
- Resources
Visit Partnership for Caring at:
www.partnershipforcaring.org/
Resources/talkingaboutyourchoices.html if you have any questions or wish to read the full online booklet. You may also contact Partnership for Caring at 1-800-989-9455 to find out more about this booklet.
What is hospice?
Hospice is not a specific place but a specialized program of care for patients with a limited life expectancy and for their families and friends. There are over 2,000 hospice programs in the United States today, and according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, there were about 390,000 hospice patients in the United States in 1995.
With its comprehensive array of medical and social services, hospice strives to meet each patient's unique physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs, as well as the special needs of the patient's family and close friends. The goals of hospice are to keep the patient as comfortable as possible by relieving pain and other discomforting symptoms; to prepare for a death that follows the wishes and needs of the patient; and to reassure both patient and family members by helping them to understand and manage what is happening. This support assists patients and families through the process of facing, understanding, and accepting death.
The first modern hospice, St. Christopher's Hospice outside of London, was founded in 1967 by Dame Cicely Saunders, a physician who believed that "Healing a person does not always mean curing a disease." America's first hospice was founded in 1974 in Branford, Connecticut. Through the years, hospice has become an accepted part of our healthcare system. Unfortunately, many people are still not aware of this important option of end-of-life care for patients and their families.
What services does hospice provide?
Since each patient's needs
are unique, hospice offers individualized plans of care for every
patient. Hospice uses an interdisciplinary team, which includes
physicians, nurses, social workers, counselors, special therapists,
clergy, and volunteers, to help the patients and their families
with their physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs. At
the Continuum
Hospice Care/Jacob Perlow Hospice, a member of this team is
always available by phone, on call 24 hours everyday.
Although the range of services vary from program to program, Medicare-certified hospices are required to provide nursing care, social services, physician services, medication, spiritual counseling, home care aides, homemaker services, nutritional counseling, short-term inpatient care, physical and occupation therapies, speech-language pathology services, trained volunteers, and bereavement services.
Pain control is one of the most important concerns and, for many patients, this means the use of medication. Hospice strives to relieve pain without impairing the patient's alertness. Hospice workers also help make patients more comfortable through a wide variety of therapies and treatment modalities.
In addition, hospice's knowledgeable, caring support system offers assistance -- but no pressure -- to patients who are dealing with troubling problems and issues, whether they be social, emotional, or spiritual. This service helps the patient to communicate needs with family and friends, put financial matters in order, find spiritual support from members of the clergy, or cope with the isolation or fear of dying.
What is palliative care?
Palliative care -- of which hospice is a part -- is the term used to describe the clinical approach to the patient with a progressive life-threatening disease, which is focused on preserving the quality of life and ensuring that death occurs with comfort and dignity, and in a manner consistent with the desires and values of the patient and family. Palliative care specialists try to encourage all healthcare professionals to see their roles as enhancing the quality of life of patients with serious progressive disease, by controlling pain and other distressing symptoms, providing psychosocial and spiritual support, and developing systems that can offer practical support to the patient and family.
How can I get more information on pain management?
For more information, or to
ask a question on pain management, please contact us at The Resource
Center for Pain Medicine and Palliative Care toll free at (877)
620-9999 or email stoppain@chpnet.org
What is sickle cell disease?
Sickle cell disease is the name given to a group of illnesses that result from misshapen red blood cells. The most common type of sickle cell disease is sickle cell anemia. In most people, red blood cells are round and smooth, which allows the cells to move easily through the blood vessels. People with sickle cell disease have abnormal hemoglobin, which is a protein found in the red blood cells. The sickle cell hemoglobin can cause the red blood cells to change from the normal round shape into a crescent (or sickle) shape. The sickle-shaped red blood cells are hard and sticky and do not pass well through blood vessels. Therefore, blood vessels can sometimes become clogged, preventing blood from flowing through them. A clogged blood vessel is called an "occlusion." Occlusions in blood vessels can lead to a painful sickle cell crisis.
To learn more about sickle cell disease, visit:
www.netofcare.org/content/specific_illnesses/sickle_cell.asp,
or www.StopPain.org/multimedia/index.html,
where you will find a short video about the disease (available in
English, and Spanish).
Have a question? Have caregiver news? Please contact
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