Health Education

As Carroll County General Hospital's community education coordinator, Fran Miller's goal is to keep people out of the hospital.Mrs. Miller coordinates the hospital's public health education programs, organizes an annual countywide health fair and offers one-on-one instruction to diabetic patients on how to manage their illness at home.The 33-year hospital employee was honored for her work last week by the Maryland Nurses Association, which named her one of the three outstanding nurses of 1994 in the Baltimore metropolitan area.

Athena Kan, a sophomore at River Hill High School, did not have to look very far to learn the values of volunteering. Her parents, Kenny and Henrietta, are largely responsible for Athena's volunteering spirit. The family has participated in American Heart Association walks in Howard County and Baltimore for years. "When life gets hectic, we find that volunteering as a family is a powerful way to strengthen family life with a beneficial purpose," Kenny said. Athena, 14, was named the Howard County Youth Volunteer of the Year last month for her involvement with a number of charities, including a foundation she and her sister, Tiffany, started last year - Coalition Halting Obesity in Children Everywhere.

For years, Baltimore's Health Education Resource Organization, known as HERO, was one of the most active, best-funded clinical support groups for people with HIV/AIDS in the country. It provided counseling, medical care, a place to gather and a sympathetic ear to patients who often had nowhere else to turn at a time when AIDS was poorly understood and its victims often stigmatized as unworthy of help. That's why past and present HERO clients are shocked and saddened by news that the group is preparing to end its 25-year mission of mercy in a city with at least 16,000 cases.

The surgery on Don Hayden's son was successful. The only lingering complication: a bill for $23,000. The Gaithersburg family, surprised that insurance didn't cover the cost, spent about a year fighting the charge from the medical clinic — even after it was reduced to $16,000. The clinic turned the bill over to a collection agency, and the Haydens prepared to hire a lawyer. That's when an administrative worker at the clinic advised the family in a whisper to contact Maryland's Health Education and Advocacy Unit, which mediates such disputes on behalf of consumers.

The bookshelf in Kristine Holmes' office reflects her career path. Healing Prayer and To Forgive Is Human share space with Trauma and Recovery and The Nursing Drug Reference. After 25 years as an emergency and trauma nurse, Holmes entered the burgeoning field of parish nursing, which seeks to integrate the role of faith in health and healing. Since she became a full-time parish nurse in 1999 at First Presbyterian Church of Howard County in Columbia, Holmes has worked to introduce the concept to other faith communities in the county.

The 50+ Expo Friday drew more than 140 exhibitors. It also offered educa tional seminars, entertainment and a live auction to benefit needy seniors in Howard County. A health fair offered screenings and health education, and an alternative care fair explored other treatment methods.

Baltimore BCCC Liberty campus Dental clinic offers free care Baltimore City Community Colleges dental clinic is offering free preventive care this week as part of National Dental Hygiene Month. Those ages 62 and older, regardless of income, can receive free oral exams, X-rays, cleaning, fluoride treatments and health education. Morning and afternoon appointments are available at the colleges Liberty Campus. Information or appointments: 410-462-7712.

Robert B. Mancke, a senior health educator with the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, died Tuesday of pneumonia at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was 47 and lived on Eutaw Place.A memorial service for Mr. Mancke was being held today at Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church, 1316 Park Ave.He had worked for the state since last year after serving since 1975 as director of the Bureau of Health Education and Promotion for the Baltimore Health Department.Before coming to the city, he held a similar post in Prince George's County for three years after starting in health education work with the state in 1967.

For six months, Beth Hodge has been trying to involve Howard County schools with the Whitney Project, which pairs HIV-infected children in other states with local 8- to 13-year-old pen pals.The Elkridge resident's Cub Scout den is participating. And some teachers at Elkridge Elementary and Centennial High schools in Ellicott City say they are interested in the New Mexico-based program.But the program has yet to be offered in local classrooms. Teachers say they like the concept and just haven't worked out the scheduling and other details.

Pointing to stubbornly high teen birth rates, Baltimore officials, youth advocacy organizations and sex-education groups gathered Friday to announce a new strategy aimed at coordinating disjointed prevention efforts and filling geographic gaps in services to city teens. About 66 of every 1,000 babies born in Baltimore in 2007 were to teen mothers, almost double the statewide rate, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The rates were even higher for the city's African-American and Hispanic mothers.

WESTMINSTER - State and local officials from Carroll, Frederick and Howard community colleges are scheduled to attend a ground breaking ceremony on Monday, July 25, for the new Mount Airy College Center for Health Care Education. The center is located at 1712 Back Acre Circle in Mount Airy. The three colleges are building on an existing academic agreement to provide additional student access to workforce education programs. The center, which is expected to open in the fall 2012, will provide health-care related programs.

National health care reform is on the minds of Americans, and whether one agrees with the new laws or not, the debate continues to stimulate discussion on how Americans can be healthier. The bottom line? Being sick costs money - not just for the individual but for employers as well. “Seventy percent of doctors visits are related to lifestyle behaviors,” says Cheryl Walker, program manager for Health Coaching and Wellness Coaching at Tai Sophia Institute in North Laurel. “If we get people to change behaviors, we reduce health care costs.” Everyone knows the old saying “habits are hard to break.” What the public health professionals are finally recognizing is that health education is not enough, and they are now looking at a relationship-centered approach to improving health.

Pointing to stubbornly high teen birth rates, Baltimore officials, youth advocacy organizations and sex-education groups gathered Friday to announce a new strategy aimed at coordinating disjointed prevention efforts and filling geographic gaps in services to city teens. About 66 of every 1,000 babies born in Baltimore in 2007 were to teen mothers, almost double the statewide rate, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The rates were even higher for the city's African-American and Hispanic mothers.

Sponsored by the Learn to Live program of the Anne Arundel County Department of Health, educators will answer questions on nutrition and distribute free low-fat recipes. Graul's, 607 Taylor Ave., Annapolis: noon to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m to 3 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 28.

As the daughter of a renowned state legislator and a member of the Baltimore City Council for nearly her entire adult life, Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake has seen the city transform in the hands of numerous leaders. On Feb. 4, when she is sworn in as the city's 49th mayor, she gets her own chance to shepherd the city into a new era. A falling homicide rate, rising public school enrollments and a flourishing arts scene bring hope for brighter times, but Rawlings-Blake inherits a city beset by a colossal budget crisis, vacancies at the top of key agencies and a murder rate still among the highest in the nation.

For years, Baltimore's Health Education Resource Organization, known as HERO, was one of the most active, best-funded clinical support groups for people with HIV/AIDS in the country. It provided counseling, medical care, a place to gather and a sympathetic ear to patients who often had nowhere else to turn at a time when AIDS was poorly understood and its victims often stigmatized as unworthy of help. That's why past and present HERO clients are shocked and saddened by news that the group is preparing to end its 25-year mission of mercy in a city with at least 16,000 cases.

The Carroll County school system will be one administrator short for at least the rest of this year, with two supervisors picking up the duties of David Miller, who left as head of vocational and technology education for a post in Frederick County.Superintendent R. Edward Shilling told the Board of Education yesterday that he decided not to replace Mr. Miller because of expected reductions of $2.5 million to $3.8 million in money coming from the state.Marjorie Lohnes, formerly supervisor of home economics and health education, will continue to supervise home economics and add most of Mr. Miller's duties to her work load.

In Carroll County, many are willing to help patients with HIV and AIDS, but the patients are few.Even so, a newly formed AIDS Alliance for Carroll County hopes to find those patients and eliminate any gaps in health care and meet other needs.There are AIDS patients in the county, but they often suffer and die in silence and alone, afraid that their neighbors and friends will discover that they are infected, health officials and others said.About 50 people, including residents and health workers, met in Westminster last week to organize the nonprofit alliance, identify patients and plan education programs.

Education can heal health disparities The Baltimore Sun's shocking front-page statistics on the life-span differences among Baltimore neighborhoods stunned even seasoned community health professionals like me and my staff ("20-year life gap separates city's poorest, wealthy," Oct. 16). But they shouldn't. This is just the latest study confirming what we see every day in our health centers: outrageous health disparities related to poverty, lifestyle, environmental exposure and other preventable causes.