In Good Health

in good RGH’S NEW PRESIDENT One of the tasks of Rochester General Hospital’s new president is to prepare the hospital for an expected influx of patients

Ontario ARC to Open Autism Center

Girls on The Run

New program making a difference Many in the region are believed to be vitamin D deficient

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Rochester–Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper

March 2011 • Issue 67

Why Married Men Are Happier Page 18

Is President Obama Quitting for Good?

Page 5

Diet soda linked to heart attack, strokes Drinking diet soda every day was associated with 48 percent increase in risk of heart attack or stroke compared with same-aged people who didn’t drink diet soda Page 12

Men’s Health March 2011 •

• DOMESTIC VIOLENCE A new group — Stand Up, You Guys — enlists men to fight against domestic violence • HEARING LOSS Experts explain why men have more trouble hearing before than

women do • TESTICULAR CANCER It strikes young adult, middleaged men • HAPPY DUDES Why married men are happier. Several local experts weigh in

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper

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Page 1

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IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

March Madness: Too Drunk to Drive After games, 40 percent of sports fans have booze on board

E

ight percent of fans who agreed to be tested after attending professional football and baseball games were too drunk to legally drive, a new study finds, and 40 percent had booze in their bodies.

The study does not disclose where the games took place, it excludes fans not old enough to legally drink and it was limited to those who agreed to participate.

But the findings do suggest that there’s a wider problem that could put plenty of people at risk after sporting events, said study lead author Darin Erickson, assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Minnesota. Drunken people, after all, get into car accidents and cause many other problems when they are let loose from a party or bar. “It may not seem like a lot when you say 8 percent leaving a game were above the legal limit, when you look at a big stadium that has 5,000 attendees,� he said, but over time, “if you look at the hundreds to thousands of games, this is a lot of intoxicated individuals.�

The study appears online and in the April 2011 issue of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. The study authors wanted to know if it would be feasible to ask fans to take Breathalyzer tests and respond to surveys as they leave a stadium.

Researchers approached fans as they left 13 Major League Baseball games and three National Football League games in 2006. Guidelines from university lawyers and a review board prevented the researchers from testing or surveying people under age 21, who cannot drink legally, or from approaching people who obviously were drunk, although researchers said that they did not see anybody in that category.

Despite the restrictions, the researchers recruited 382 people to participate: 264 after baseball games and 118 after football games. Almost 60 percent of the participants were men and 55 percent were ages 21 to 35. Only 14 percent were 51 and older.

Forty percent of the participants had alcohol in their systems at concentrations ranging from 0.005 (a tiny amount) to a whopping 0.22. Eight percent were at 0.08 or higher. Those who had been tailgating before the game were much more likely to have been legally drunk, as were those under age 35.

It was not clear how many of those who had been drinking planned to drive home.

The numbers provide insight into how many people leave sporting events with booze on board, Erickson said. In turn, the data could help policymakers figure out how to limit the

problem, he said.

Ruth Engs, a professor at Indiana University who has studied college drinking, questioned the motives of the study. “Although the article does not come out and advocate eliminating alcohol from games, reading between the lines this appears to be the researchers’ possible future agenda,� she said.

Engs supports “responsible drinking� and suggests lowering the drinking age can be a way to promote it more effectively. As for the idea of banning booze at sporting events, she said, “Most adults in the United States do drink responsibly. Preventing adults from drinking a beer with their brats

and hotdogs before a football game is not likely to succeed.�

Erickson denied that the study has a political agenda. “I don’t think there’s anything here that inherently leads toward prohibition.�

Another researcher who has studied alcohol use questioned whether the study adds anything new to existing findings. “It corroborates other research demonstrating that tailgating is associated with heavier drinking.

However, I don’t think that any more corroboration is needed,� said David Hanson, professor emeritus of sociology at the State University of New York at Potsdam.

Plastic surgery on the rise with rebounding economy More than 13 million people elect surgery in 2010

A

s the U.S. economy slowly rebounds, the number of Americans freeing up their wallets to go under the knife is on the rise.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 13.1 million plastic surgery procedures were performed in 2010, up 5 percent compared to 2009.

Also, more than 5.3 million reconstructive plastic surgery operations were performed last year, up 2 percent from the year before.

The ASPS report showed a trend toward more invasive procedures.

Facelifts, for example, rose 9 percent in 2010. The operations have not experienced any significant growth since

2007.

Breast augmentations increased 2 percent, with silicone implants being used in 60 percent of the procedures.

The report stated that all surgical contouring procedures, including breast lifts, lower body lifts and thigh lifts, experienced growth in 2010. “There’s some pent up demand for cosmetic surgical procedures. People have waited a couple of years or more to have procedures, until their finances were at least somewhat back in order.

But, all indications are, more consumers are again willing to spend more to look better,� ASPS President Dr. Phillip Haeck said in a statement.

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IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper

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Page 3

CALENDAR of

HEALTH EVENTS

March 2

Canandaigua VA to host veteran’s art show Artwork by local veterans will be on display to the public at the Canandaigua VA Medical Center from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 2, in the Building No. 5 auditorium. It is estimated that more than 60 pieces of art from among 25 different categories will be exhibited. Categories consist of fine art such as painting, drawing, sculpture and photography; applied art that includes ceramics, woodcarving, needlework and leatherwork; and craft kits such as string art, poster art and fabric art. Local artists will judge the artwork earlier in the day. The first place winning pieces will advance on to the national level where they will compete with entries submitted by veterans from other VA facilities. For more information, contact Hank Riegel at (585) 393-7371.

The Canandaigua VA Medical Center is located at 400 Fort Hill Ave.

March 3

The Alzheimer’s Assn. to honor ‘inspirational women’ The Alzheimer’s Association is sponsoring its first “Celebrating Women and Successful Aging: The Little Purple Dress Luncheon” to be held March 3 at the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester. The event will celebrate inspirational women in the Rochester/ Finger Lakes region who have contributed to overall healthy living and successful aging. Contact Judith Lemoncelli at 760-5404 or judy.lemoncelli@alz. org for more information.

March 7, 14, 21, 28

Program to help kids dealing with loss, illnesses The Kids Adjusting Through Support (KATS), a program provided by

Camp Good Days and Special Times, will offer the coping support groups this spring, for children and families who are dealing with serious illness or loss. The KATS coping support groups provide peer support for children and their parents / caregivers, who have been dealing with a serious illness or death in the family, within the last four years. These free sessions are available to families with children, aged 5-18, and are offered twice per year. In order to be able to provide the most valuable and beneficial program for those who need it, participants are welcome to attend two consecutive, coping support groups, which typically include eight weekly sessions. The first meeting occurred Feb. 28 but new ones are scheduled for March 7, 14, 21, 28, and April 4. All sessions are held from 6:30 – 8 p.m. on Monday evenings, at the School of the Holy Childhood, 110 Groton Parkway.

March 15

Celiac support group to welcome book author The Rochester Celiac Support group will meet at 7 p.m. March 15 at St. Anne Church social hall, l600 Mount Hope Ave. Rochester. The meeting is open to the public. Guest speaker will be Dr. Stephen Wangen, author of the book “Healthier Without Wheat.” Wangen, founder and chief medical officer of the Irritable Bowel Treatment Center, has extensive experience in treating digestive disorders. Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which the immune system reacts to gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. The autoimmune response causes damage to the lining of the small intestine resulting in the body’s inability to absorb needed nutrients. Untreated, celiac disease results in a variety of debilitating symptoms including osteoporosis and an increased chance of intestinal lymphoma. Newcomers come at 6:30 for informational orientation. For more information, visit www.rochesterceliacs.org 861-4065.

Some of our patients have described walking into Finger Lakes Radiation Oncology Center like walking into their own family’s home. It’s true, the atmosphere here is unique. Every day we strive to create a warm, compassionate and friendly atmosphere to help guide you through your cancer journey.

• • • •

March 19

Golf tournament to benefit Mental Health Association The Mental Health Association is sponsoring its Skyway Open, a 18-hole miniature golf tournament, to raise funds for the organization. The event will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 19 at Eastview Mall. More than 500 golfers are expected to play a round—individuals, families, golfing buddies, business associates, and many foursomes have already registered for tee times. A silent auction will offer trips, hotel packages in Atlanta, Boston, Nashville, Charleston, Toronto and more, wine tours, dinners out at fine restaurants, artwork, evenings at GEVA, the RPO, Garth Fagan Dance & Downstairs Cabaret, a weekend package in Florida and a weekend package overlooking one of the Finger Lakes. A special half hour Skyway Open program will be hosted by 13-WHAM’s Mike Catalana at noon. For more information contact Mary Lewis Consler at mconsler@mharochester.org or (585) 325-3145, ext. 152.

March 20

Vegan cooking discussed at Vegetarian Society Nick Bovenzi, chef at The Natural Oasis Restaurant, is scheduled to talk about gourmet vegan cooking at the March meeting of the Rochester Area Vegetarian Society. The meeting will take place from 5:30 –7 p.m. Sunday, March 20, at Brighton Town Park Lodge, 777 Westfall Rd. Vegan means no animal products — no meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy products or honey.

Bring a dish (with enough to serve a crowd) and a serving utensil; also bring a place setting for your own dinner.

Organizers will help non-vegetarians uncertain about how to make or bring a vegan dish. Free for members of the society; others pay a $3 guest fee. For more information, call 234-8750.

March 22

Fibromyalgia support group to meet at the YMCA The New Fibromyalgia Support Group will hold a meeting from 6:50 – 8:30 p.m. March 22 at the Westside YMCA. Dr. Nancy Cooper will address the group and will discuss “Everyday Living With Chronic Ill-

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IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

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ness.” There will be social support, networking, friendship, and education about fibromyalgia. To reserve a seat, please send an e-mail to Jacolyn_ fibrosupport@hotmail.com or call the YMCA at 341-3290 and ask for Brenda.

March 22

Program to help parents to create safe environment The ACT Parents Raising Safe Kids program is sponsoring a series of classes to help parent create safe, healthy environments that protect children and youth from violence. The program is a national research-based initiative designed to help families and caregivers from all types of backgrounds raise children without violence by learning basic information on child development, risk factors for violence and its effect on developmental stages, protective factors and skills for effective parenting.

The eight –week series of classes will take place March 22, 29; April 5, 12, 19, 26; and May 3, 10. It will take place at Mental Health Association/Better Days Ahead, located at 320 North Goodman St. in Rochester. For more information and to register, call: (585) 325-3145, ext.137

March 22

Association urges people to get tested for diabetes’ risk The American Diabetes Association is urging Rochester area residents to get tested for diabetes risk on March 22. The date celebrates American Diabetes Association Alert Day, which is held every fourth Tuesday in March.

The event is a one-day “wake-up” call asking the American public to take the diabetes risk test to find out if they are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes.

The association is asking the public to “Join the Million Challenge” by rallying one million people to take the test.

The event will continue through April 22. Diabetes strikes nearly 26 million children and adults in the United States. An additional 79 million, or one in five Americans have prediabetes, which puts them at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes. For many, diagnosis may come seven to 10 years after the onset of the disease. Therefore, early diagnosis is critical to successful treatment and delaying or preventing some of its complications such as heart disease, blindness, kidney disease, stroke, amputation and death. To take the test or for additional information, visit stopdiabetes.diabetes.org

Former Smoker-in-Chief?

Reports say President Obama hasn’t smoked for nearly a year U.S. President Barack Obama has not lit a cigarette for almost one year, according to First Lady Michelle Obama.

The first lady’s statement in February confirmed what White House then-spokesman Robert Gibbs said in December that he had not seen the president smoke in nine months.

Obama started smoking in his teens, but vowed to Michelle that he would stop if she permitted him to run for the presidency. However, even after he won, he admitted lighting up occasionally but never smoked in front of daughters Malia and Sasha.

Despite Obama failing to keep his promise to kick the habit, the president’s physician, Jeffrey Kuhlman, encouraged him to continue attempting to quit smoking during the president’s 2010 medical exam. Mrs. Obama said the president wants to go on battling the habit in order to be truthful in his

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To help Obama quit smoking, the president’s golfing companion and trip director Marvin Nicholson also kicked the habit, according to Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. The president also uses nicotine gums.

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More Americans turn to complementary medicine

T

he use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies experienced a significant growth in the United States in the last decade, and a new analysis finds that CAM use becomes more likely when access to conventional care has been restricted.

“In both 2002 and 2007, having unmet needs in medical care, or delayed care due to cost, was associated with a higher chance of CAM use,” said lead author Dejun Su. “Importantly, for Americans without health insurance, who cannot afford medical care, CAM might be their last and only resort.”

Su is director of the South Texas Border Health Disparities Center at the University of Texas-Pan American. He and his colleagues analyzed data from the 2007 National Health Interview Survey. Based on interviews with more than 23,000 adults, the NHIS showed more pronounced growth in CAM use among whites than among racial and ethnic minorities. This increased an

already existing white-minority gap in CAM use, Su said.

Without counting prayer for health purposes, 33 percent of whites report using at least one CAM therapy, while 31.8 percent of Asian Americans, 20.1 percent of African-Americans and 16.9 percent of Hispanics report using these therapies.

The use of CAM rose across all these populations between 2002 and 2007, but at different rates.

The increase was highest among whites and Asian Americans, at 18.1 percent and 17.2 percent, respectively.

Use among African-Americans increased only 6.6 percent. Use among Hispanics increased only 1.01 percent.

“So far, we know little about how the difference in CAM use has influenced racial and ethnic disparities in health and mortality,” Su said. “Research is urgently needed to understand the effectiveness, side effects and interactions of CAM therapies with conventional medicine.”

SERVING MONROE, ONTARIO AND WAYNE COUNTIES in good A monthly newspaper published by

Health Rochester–GV Healthcare Newspaper

Local News, Inc. Distribution: 30,000 copies. To request home delivery ($15 per year), call (585) 421-8109.

In Good Health is published 12 times a year by Local News, Inc. © 2011 by Local News, Inc. All rights reserved.

106 Cobblestone Court Dr., Suite 121 – P.O. Box 525, Victor NY 14564.

• Phone:(585) 421-8109 • E-mail: Editor@GVhealthnews.com Editor & Publisher: Wagner Dotto Associate Editor: Lou Sorendo Writer: Mike Costanza Contributing Writers: Dr. Eva Briggs, Jim Miller, Deborah J. Sergeant, Gwenn Voelckers, Anne Palumbo, Karen Boughton Siegelman, Dean Lichterman Advertising: Marsha K. Preston, Laura Vannah Layout & Design: Chris Crocker Officer Manager: Laura Beckwith No material may be reproduced in whole or in part from this publication without the express written permission of the publisher. The information in this publication is intended to complement—not to take the place of—the recommendations of your health provider. Consult your physician before making major changes in your lifestyle or health care regimen.

March 2011 •

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Hospital & Clinic

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Page 5

Meet

Your Doctor

By Lou Sorendo

Dr. Lewis C. Zulick For Clifton Springs general surgeon, playing the piano works as a stress relief Q.: Why did you choose the specialty of general surgery? What motivated you to go in that direction?

A.: I thought surgery in general would allow me to have a special skill.

I enjoy surgery itself and like the fact that it really allows you do something not everyone can do. I picked general surgery because I wanted to do a variety of things. I spent a fair amount of time in the Navy and at that point had an opportunity to sub-specialize in surgery with another couple years of training. My wife, however, said no and that it was time to settle down.

Q.: What prompted you to get into private practice after serving in the U.S. Navy?

A.: I never really considered anything other than private practice in a small town. At that time, there was no option of working as a general surgeon unless it was in an academic center. Since I had chosen a small town setting, private practice was the only thing available, which was fine with me. In private practice, you are your own boss.

Q.: Why did you choose the Clifton Springs area to practice in?

A.: I grew up in a small town but went to school and did some of my training in Rochester, and was looking for a small town setting. I’m originally from eastern Pennsylvania and my wife is from the Dunkirk-Fredonia area.

She also had worked in Rochester and was anxious to come back to the area.

We compromised by living in a small town near Rochester. It seemed like a nice blend of both. It is easy to get into Rochester and do things but still have small-town living.

one person at a time. In administration, you have the opportunity to create programs and ways of doing things that benefit a lot of patients.

What I like is trying to come up with a way that improves patient care while at the same time makes the medical staff’s job easier.

A change that the medical staff sees as positive also may improve patient care. A lot of times, the medical and nursing staffs are called upon to do more and more. They are willing to do that to improve patient care, but a lot of times you are asking them to do things that involve more effort and work.

What is really fun is doing something that makes their lives easier and better and at the same time makes patient care better.

Q.: We understand you are a jazz musician. Are you presently in a band?

A.: That’s a stretch. I’m definitely an amateur but have always loved playing piano and singing. I’m not in a band, but play a little bit with a friend of mine who is in a band. We do holiday parties and that kind of stuff.

That’s really the extent of it. Some day, I would love to do that. For now, it’s mostly for my own enjoyment.

Q.: What do you enjoy the most about being a jazz musician?

A.: It’s a tension reliever.

Ev-

erybody likes to sing. A lot of people won’t admit it, but all you have to do is go to a karaoke bar and realize that. It’s fun and something to do that is mindless. There is a little bit of dexterity involved, which probably helps me a bit as a physician.

Q.: What is the most challenging aspect of your profession?

A.: I think the toughest thing is that you can’t help everybody. People come to you with problems, and sometimes you can’t help them. That’s difficult as a surgeon. You are inevitably putting people through discomfort and hopefully it’s worth it, but it’s still discomfort. You try to minimize that the best you can, and we are a lot better than we used to be at that.

The biggest challenge is when you try to help someone and you end up not helping them and they experience complications as a direct result of what you tried to do. It’s probably the most difficult thing for me because I feel a personal responsibility for that. It’s not a nice feeling. You have to remind yourself that the patient feels a lot worse than you do.

Q.: What is the most gratifying aspect of your profession?

A.: Without a doubt, it’s when someone tells you they feel better because of what you did. That’s really great. Everything you do, especially as a surgeon, depends on a lot of other people, such as nurses and anesthesiologists. It’s really nice when you get a sense that everybody has contributed and they felt like they were a part of what happened and what went well with the patient.

I enjoy working together, especially when you do it over a long period of time with the same people.

Q.: What have been some of the major medical breakthroughs over the last five to 10 years that have made general surgery a much easier process for surgeons and patients?

A.: Minimally invasive surgery has happened over the last 20 years and it’s been refined more over the last five years.

There’s still a lot of controversy.

Some of the more cutting edge things are difficult because they are trying to do more through

Q.: Can you briefly describe your duties as vice president for medical affairs at Clifton Springs Hospital and Clinic?

A.: Essentially, I have an administrative post that serves as a liaison for the medical staff. I’m the person who is responsible for interaction between the administration and medical staff.

It has to do with recruiting so we have a full spectrum of medical staff and making sure the medical staff has all the equipment and support it needs.

It also involves maintaining quality of patient care, which of course has a lot to do with how physicians do their jobs. It has everything to do with how the medical staff interacts with the staff and administration at the hospital.

Q.: What part of the administrative process do you enjoy? What challenges does it present?

A.: What I enjoy the most is trying to improve patient care more than one person at a time. When you are in practice, you obviously are working with Page 6

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IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

smaller holes. Now they are using natural orifices, like the mouth, vagina and rectum to try to take things out from the abdomen. That’s somewhat controversial because it hasn’t hit prime time yet. There are some folks doing it, though a lot of people are asking, “OK, is it really worth it? How small does the incision have to be?”

There have been a lot of improvements in anesthesiology that make surgery a lot safer than it was before.

Another big thing is dealing with the aging of the population. We’re having to consider surgery on older people who have more medical problems. We’re better than we were before in treating things like heart and lung disease, but in the past, either people would have passed away from those or been too severe to consider surgery. We are operating on people who have a lot more medical problems going on. So definitely that’s been an advance, but also a big challenge.

Lifelines: Lewis C. Zulick is in private practice as a general surgeon and is an attending surgeon at Clifton Springs Hospital and Clinic and F.F. Thompson Hospital. He is also vice president for medical affairs at Clifton Springs Hospital and Clinic.

Birth date: May 26, 1958 Birthplace: Port Jervis Current residence: Canandaigua Education: BS, chemistry, Allegheny College; magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa; MD, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry; 2004-2005, Masters in Medical Management, Carnegie Mellon University Affiliations: Fellow, American College of Surgeons; Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons; American College of Physician Executives; Wound Healing Society Personal: Married with three children Hobbies: Athletics, particularly basketball, skiing and biking

Ontario ARC to open Autism Center in April

NEW PATIENTS $25 OFF

Nonprofit to dedicate part of its building to a new autism center

By Dean M. Lichterman

O

ntario ARC has noticed an increase in the need for service for individuals with autism — and to fill that need, the organization is developing an autism center at its facility in the Ontario County Complex.

‘We really started to see the need to promote the services that we do provide right now to persons with autism, and also really to draw attention to a diagnosis that is really growing in leaps and bounds,” said Noreen Quinn, the senior associate executive director of Ontario ARC. “Right now one in 110 children have a diagnosis of autism and some people say that very quickly, it will be one in 90 and some people are using that. We are sticking with the one in 110 for right now so we see a real growing need.

Quinn said the new center is not a Quinn new building within the organization. “We are taking space in [our] building and we are dedicating it to the autism center, so the autism center will be a part of what we refer to as our main facility,” she said.

According to Quinn, the ARC serves between 950 and 1,000 individuals with developmental disabilities per day, 15 percent of those are diagnosed with autism.

The Autism Center will be developed from one wing of the current facility.

Quinn and autism coordinator Maggi Sullivan made a presentation to suggest the center during the ARC board of directors meeting in the spring of 2010.

Sullivan “The board heard our presentation, saw the statistics and decided to support us, to develop an autism center,” said Quinn. “In our autism center will be an information and referral source for people in Ontario County and really in the region.

We would really like it to become well known throughout the area so that families have a place to get information.

“We are going to develop a resource library in the autism center and we will have some very experienced clinicians.”

ARC has three applied behavior specialists, all of whom work under a licensed psychologist.

“They have great experience in all areas of developmental disabilities and have been particularly well trained in the area of autism spectrum disorders,” said Sullivan.

Sullivan also notes that ARC has three licensed clinical social workers that have worked with people who have a diagnosis in the autism spectrum. Sullivan, Quinn, behavioral specialist Mike Kephart and Kathy Kanada, transition coordinator in the

school, have each received 18 weeks of training from Caroline Magyar, who is the director of the Rochester Regional Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Magyar is consulting with Ontario ARC to develop training for other employees.

Through the new center, the ARC will add training for law enforcement to better handle situations involving individuals with a diagnosis of autism, as well as a behavior support program for persons with autism who live in the community. Other new programs are a social skills group called NextStepPrep and a SibShop, which is a support group for siblings of individuals with autism.

Ontario ARC is located at 3071 County Complex Dr. in Canandaigua.

Funding for the program comes from the ARC’s gift wrapping booth in Eastview Mall, an annual fund raiser at Steamboat Landing in Canandaigua, a membership group, and Medicaid.

To help the autism center meet the needs of the community, the ARC has also formed an autism advisory board.

The board consists of an attorney, family members, community members and a law enforcement official.

Grand opening to feature nationally published psychologist

T

he grand opening for the Ontario ARC’s autism center is slated over three days, April 14, 15 and 16. The tentative schedule has a workshop for schools from 3:30 – 6:30 p.m. on the 14th. Animal assisted therapist Pam Kordy will give a half-hour presentation. The event is then slated to have 15-minute presentations on transition planning, social skills, nutrition, managing behavior, autism and mental health, recreation, respite and Sib Shop, Next Step Prep and play therapy. Each presentation will be made twice.

A question and answer session on service coordination, intake and vocational services closes the evening.

April 15 is designated for families and community members and has the same presentations as the previous day.

Robert Naseef, a nationally published psychologist and father of an individual with autism, is scheduled to give a fathers’ workshop from 7 – 9 p.m.

“We are really excited about him coming because he is nationally known,” said Noreen Quinn, the senior associate executive director of Ontario ARC. Registration for the April 16 session begins at 9 a.m. with Naseef giving the keynote address at 10 a.m. The official ribbon cutting is slated for 1 p.m.

The event will also have information booths on OARC services, service coordination, training and education and transition services. Scheduled activities include tours, finger painting and a raffle.

March 2011 •

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Page 7

Live Alone & Thrive

By Gwenn Voelckers

Practical tips, advice and hope for those who live alone

Living Alone: Moment by Moment

M

y life has become a little richer.

And more whole. I just completed a six-week workshop in mindfulness. I found it pleasantly, quietly transforming, and I want to share my experience with you. Perhaps you’ll be inspired to follow in my footsteps, which — by the way — are now more intentional and joyful, having practiced mindful walking As a “newbie” to mindfulness, I came to understand that it is all about enlightenment and the connection between our mind and our body. It’s the practice of living in the present moment and experiencing things without judgment. It’s about accepting things as they are.

I was drawn to the workshop because I was (and continue to be) interested in reducing my stress, managing some physical pain, and cultivating personal awareness.

The workshop leader Dr. Michael (“Mick”) Krasner, warmly welcomed the class of about 20 people and introduced a series of practices that encourage self-awareness and acceptance.

In a soulful, soothing voice, Mick expertly led us through guided meditation, breathing exercises, and other activities designed to help us be fully present in the moment.

Initially restless during the guided meditation and body awareness exercises, I came to appreciate the value of experiencing my thoughts, feelings, and body sensations free of all the “baggage” I typically carry with me.

I found the guided meditation

profoundly liberating, and with practice at home, I discovered a measure of inner peace and calmness that has eluded me these past few years.

Motivated by the workshop, I am trying my best to live day by day in the only moment I can ever really know or control: the moment of now.

Here’s how: Embracing stillness and quiet. Like many of my contemporaries, I am addicted to being busy, to being constantly connected via technology, and to being completely consumed with what’s next.

It’s easy for me to ignore or gloss over what really matters. It wasn’t until Mick encouraged us to “quiet the mind” during contemplative exercises that I found tranquil moments in which to really feel.

Among other feelings, I found myself overwhelmed with sadness over the loss of my cherished Springer spaniel Lillie this past summer. I was feeling the grief, at long last.

These days, I try to find time each day to slow down and meditate. I’m not always successful, but when I am, I feel rejuvenated and more centered.

Focusing on what’s right in front of me.

During the workshop, we thoroughly examined a raisin. That’s right, a raisin. We inspected it with all our might and noticed its color, texture, weight,

KIDS Corner Teen’s Best Friend: Young Dog Owners More Physically Active

T

hey’re furry, fun loving and could be the key to getting your sedentary teen off the couch, finds a new study on dog ownership and adolescent physical activity.

“You can think of your dog not only as your best friend, but also a social support tool for being active,” said John Sirard, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

In the study, which appears in the March issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Sirard and his colleagues surveyed 618 pairs of Minneapolis adolescents and their parents about the number of dogs in their home and how much time they spent Page 8

•

in physical activity. For a week, 318 of those teens also wore accelerometers — devices used to collect data on time spent moving.

It turns out that teens from dogowning families recorded greater amounts of movement on the accelerometer devices, even after researchers took into account demographic variables, like gender, race and socioeconomic status.

That might mean that teens with dogs could log about 15 additional minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week, according to the authors.

The association with adolescent physical activity took the research-

and flavor. The message was clear: “Stop to smell the roses,” or, in this case, the raisin. A raisin never looked or tasted so good!

This simple exercise reminded me to take the time to really see and enjoy what’s right in front of me. It could be what’s outside my window, what’s on my computer screen, or what’s in the eyes of someone I love. I’m determined to be more present in everything I do.

Why? Because a deeper understanding and appreciation of life, of love, and of myself is the gift of being fully present.

Listening with intention.

Mick also emphasized the value and importance of being fully in the moment when communicating with others — that is, being mindful and alert when talking with and listening to others.

Mindful communication involves paying close attention, and it asks us to focus on what’s happening in real time, rather than on past negative experiences, prejudices, or threats.

It means listening without judgment, which can lead to a beautiful thing: mutual understanding and respect.

While I pride myself on being a good listener, I want to become a great listener. Being truly present and empathic with those I’m with at home and at work is where I want to be.

I’ve discovered that taking just a few minutes each day to practice mindfulness, in all its manifestations, can help reduce my stress, while increas-

ers by surprise.

They expected that if anyone in the family were to walk the dog, it would be the parents. “If dog ownership has an effect, we hypothesized it would have an effect on adults, but we didn’t see that. We saw it in the kids,” Sirard said.

Finding ways to encourage teens’ physical activity levels is critical, since time spent exercising drops precipitously after the elementary school years, said Cheryl B. Anderson, Ph.D., a visiting assistant professor of pediatrics at the Children’s Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine.

Despite the link that researchers es-

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

ing my appreciation for my world and the people in it. When I take time to be still and reflect on the sounds, smells, and sensations of life, my life takes on greater dimension. It’s fuller and more satisfying.

I’m hopeful that, with practice, taking time out for pure contemplation will become second nature and a part of my daily routine.

If this column has inspired you to learn more about mindfulness, I encourage you to follow your heart and mind. The Mindfulness-Based Stress-Reduction workshops led by Dr. Krasner are offered through the University of Rochester’s Healthy Living Center. You can find out more by calling (585) 530-2050. Or you can explore other mindfulness opportunities on the Internet.

If workshops aren’t your thing, I recommend the book “Wherever You Go There You Are” by Jon Kabat-Zinn.

One of the country’s leading authorities on mindfulness stress-reduction techniques, his book outlines a method of fully living in the moment to reduce anxiety, achieve inner peace, and enrich the quality of your life. My wellthumbed copy rests peacefully on my bedside stand.

Among the many benefits of living alone is glorious time to ourselves — time to spend as we please, with or without company, in silence or not, active or still. We’re in an ideal space, both literally and figuratively, to be fully present and to practice new things.

Why not seize the moment?

Gwenn Voelckers is the founder and facilitator of Live Alone and Thrive, empowerment workshops for women held throughout the year in Mendon, New York.

For information about her workshops or to invite Gwenn to speak, call her at (585) 624-7887 or e-mail gvoelckers@rochester. rr.com.

tablished between dog ownership and teenagers’ physical activity, they said they could not be certain that getting a dog means people will be more active.

“It might be that more active people choose to get dogs because it fits their lifestyle already,” Sirard said.“You may walk it, you may not, but the fact that you have this animal in the house makes you get up off the chair more.

Every bit of activity is important,” Anderson said.

Story by Health Behavior News Service, part of the Center for Advancing Health.

Girls On the Run Teaching young ladies there is more to life than reaching the finish line

By Karen Boughton Siegelman

T

he late Jesse Owens, who won four Olympic gold medals in track and field, said he loved running because it was “something you can do by yourself and under your own power.”

“You could go in any direction,” he continued, “fast or slow as you wanted.”

Girls on the Run of Monroe County, (GOTR), is a new program that prepares young girls to run a 5K race for the reasons that Owens mentioned, and more.

It not only shows participants the positive impact running can have on their physical development. During a 10-week session, certified, trained coaches also incorporate training activities with an interactive curriculum that addresses the various aspects of girls’ emotional, social and Burgin intellectual development. Twice a week the participants get lessons on how to make positive decisions and avoid risky adolescent behaviors, while doing exercises that will prepare them to complete a 5K run at the end of the program.

This local initiative, which started last spring in Webster, is in the process of expanding to new sites in Penfield, Chili, Irondequoit and Greece. It is affiliated with Girls on the Run International, which has a network of over 170 locations across the United States and Canada. Since the program was first launched in 1996, more than 100,000 girls in 42 states have completed this

curriculum.

Paula Burgin, council director for GOTR of Monroe County, worked for two years to bring this program to the area. She first heard about it when she lived in Boise, Idaho.

“When I moved to Rochester five years ago I was disappointed to find out there was no such program here,” Burgin said. “I am excited about being a part of it. It is so rewarding to see these girls accomplish a physical goal of great magnitude, as well as acquire a stronger sense of identity, greater self confidence, a healthier body image and a better knowledge of what it means to be a member of a team and community.”

Last spring 85 third, fourth and fifth graders, mostly from Webster, completed the first GOTR session ever offered in this area. This past fall the first Girls on Track program, which is geared to sixth, seventh and eighth graders, took place with 15 participants.

“The proudest moment for me is seeing all of the girls finish a 5K,” Burgin said. “They are all smiling and so proud of their accomplishment.

We also have some parents who have never run before running right along with their daughters.”

Debbie Travis, of Webster, is one of those parents who ran for the first time at the GOTR 5K event. Her daughter, Mackenzie, who was in fifth grade at Klem North Elementary School at the time, took part in the program last spring.

“It was an amazing feeling to finish,” said Debbie Travis. “I met up with a woman on the course, and she and I were encouraging each other to finish.”

Travis added that she and Macken-

The Girls on the Run program, aimed at training 8- to 13-year-olds for a 5K race and boosting their self confidence and self esteem, held its first session last spring in Webster.

Pictured here are some of the participants in that session as they pose for a photo after completing their first race.

The next session

of GOTR will begin the week of March 21, and will be offered at 8 sites. Registrations will be accepted online from March 1 to 18 at www.gotrofmonroecounty.org Information on coaching, sponsorship and other volunteer opportunities is also available at this website.

zie now share a love of running.

“We practice running around our neighborhood,” Debbie Travis said, “and sometimes we even venture off a bit further.”

Mackenzie Travis added that the running skills she developed through GOTR have “paid off”.

“I play midfield for a competitive girls lacrosse team,” she said, “ and I am able to keep up the stamina because of my love of running and the willingness I have to push myself. Girls on the Run also boosted my self confidence in all areas.”

Burgin said the participants and their families also love that GOTR involves a community service component.

“The girls have made cards for veterans and friendship bracelets for children in the hospital,” Burgin said.

“They have conducted food drives and written children’s books to console kids who are undergoing surgery.”

Burgin added that GOTR is designed for 8 to 13-year-olds because “children of this age are still receptive to what adults have to say, yet they are beginning to feel the pull of peer pressure.”

“These formative years are the perfect time to address important issues and develop skills,” Burgin added.

The local GOTR has gained much momentum, but it needs much more support to enable it to expand into more areas of the county. It operates as

March 2011 •

an independent, nonprofit organization and therefore, it is funded by program fees, individual contributions, corporate support and grants. The program is fee-based, however financial assistance is available to ensure the program is accessible to all who are interested.

“Schools, communities and parents need to embrace this program,” Burgin said.

“We want them to realize that it can be done in their communities, and that we will provide them with all the support they need.”

GOTR is always on the lookout for more coaches too. Training for the spring session begins March 12.

“You do not have to be a runner to start a program or be a coach,” Burgin said. “You just need to be someone who wants to have an incredible impact on the lives of young girls.

You should have a sincere interest in leading a healthy life and in the issues facing young woman.”

As a coach herself, Burgin has enjoyed “the very enthusiastic and lively discussions that take place during the course of the program.”

Burgin said it is also fulfilling to observe the transformation in so many of the participants.

“Several of the girls start out the program insisting that they will never be able to finish a 5K,” said Burgin, “and then you join them in celebrating as they cross the finish line.”

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper

•

Page 9

My Turn

By Eva Briggs

Spinal Decompression

T

here’s spinal decompression and there’s spinal decompression.

Confused? You should be.

An established use of the term is to refer to surgical procedures, such as removal of protruding disc material, to decrease pressure on compressed (“pinched”) spinal nerves and alleviate pain. But the term is also used to refer to a glorified form of spinal traction purported to relieve pain by decreasing the pressure in the intervertebral discs.

Ordinary traction uses steady traction force. It hasn’t been proven effective for back pain. Spinal decompression—the traction sort—uses an expensive special table to provide intermittent cycles of traction and relaxation.

While it can help the pain of a bulging disc, it hasn’t been proven superior to far less expensive manual manipulation. Nor is their any proof that it can correct a herniated disc.

It’s important to pause and point out that because the back is a compli-

cated structure with many bones, joints and ligaments, many cases of back pain are not due to disc problems in the first place. And not every bulging disc visible on MRI correlates with pain. In fact, by middle age, many adults would show some abnormality of the discs in the lower back on MRI, even in the absence of pain or other symptoms.

The devices used to deliver “spinal decompression” intermittent spinal traction began with the VAX-D. It was developed in Canada and first brought to the U.S. in 1989. The manufacturer claimed that the device was not significantly different than existing pelvic traction devices.

Based on company claims that the VAX-D could decompress spinal discs, which is significantly different than the intended use of standard traction

devices, in 1995 the company agreed to comply with several FDA recommendations. These included warning its providers not to state that research had demonstrated that VAX-D caused “decompression.” Providers may claim to relieve pain but not to relieve neurological deficits or damage to the nerves that control movement.

Since the VAX-D, numerous similar devices have entered the marketplace: DRS, Accu-Spina, and DRX-9000.

These tables can cost up to $150,000 purchased new!

How do they work? The patient lies face down and the pelvis is placed in a harness. The patient then grips overhead handles, and the halves of the table move apart, under computerized guidance, to apply periods of alternating traction and relaxation to the patient’s back. The patient can release the handles at any time, releasing the traction.

The treatment usually lasts about 25 minutes followed by a 30-minute rest period.

Providers of this therapy usually recommended a protocol of daily sessions for one month, followed by treatments two to three times per week for another month. So the price adds

up! The problem is, Medicare and most private insurers don’t cover the cost. So it turns out that it’s much pricier than therapies such as spinal manipulation that, while low tech, are equally effective, less expensive, and often covered by insurance.

But it’s not just patients who are at financial risk from “spinal decompression.” It turns out that third party contractors, working with vendors of these machines, sometimes give purchasers of these devices misleading advice on how to bill for these services.

The net result is that the provider buys a very expensive piece of equipment and, if he or she bills incorrectly based on the incorrect advice, can wind up in trouble for insurance fraud.

If you are able and willing to pay for this treatment, go ahead and spend your money. But you can probably get just as good results much more affordably from spinal manipulation by a physical therapist, osteopath, or chiropractor.

Eva Briggs, a board-certified physician, works on the staff at Cayuga Medical Center in Ithaca, in its two urgent care centers: one in Ithaca, and the other in Cortland.

Acupuncture Helpful for Lazy Eye

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

M

ost people think of acupuncture as a useful tool of complementary medicine for treating muscle strains and aches and pains.

But lazy eye, also known as amblyopia, responds as well in older adolescent patients as the traditional treatment of patching, as indicated in a Chinese study reported in the Archives of Ophthalmology.

The findings do not surprise Shannon Pinckney, licensed acupuncturist with Integrative Oriental Medicine in Rochester.

“I’ve treated adults with lazy eye,” she said. “I have found that three treatments will address it.”

Optometrist Network (www.lazyeye.

Pinckney org) estimates that 3 percent of children younger than age 6 have amblyopia to some degree. It is a neurologically-based vision loss because the brain does not recognize visual stimuli presented to the eye.

Sometimes, this is caused by a drooping lid, muscle weakness that results in poor eye position or other physical issue that prevents the eyes from working together.

Usually amblyopia affects only one eye.

Sometimes an issue that causes blurred vision to an eye, such as cataracts, can prevent the eyes from tracking properly. The condition tends to be genetic and occurs more frequently Page 10

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among children born prematurely.

The National Eye Institute states that untreated amblyopia can result in permanent loss of vision. It is the most widespread cause of single-eye vision loss in young and middle-aged adults.

It may seem peculiar to treat an eye issue with needle pokes unless one understands how acupuncture works. The acupuncturist uses thin, sterile needles to stimulate the body to heal itself by correcting blockages and imbalances.

Some Westerners shy away from some of the language typically associated with acupuncture such as chi, or energy, and meridians, the conduits through which chi flows.

The acupuncturist may stimulate one or several points on the body to treat lazy eye, depending upon the cause of the condition.

Rob Wasson, a Wasson licensed acupuncturist with Empire Acupuncture in Webster, explained that “muscle stress is muscle tension pulling the vision out of alignment.

Increasing blood flow to the area will help balance it out.”

Not strange for acupuncture, the “bright eye point” is nowhere near the eye, but is on the leg.

“It can stimulate the visual cortex,” Pinckney said. “It has no direct connection to the eye. We’re talking about chi channels. It stimulates microcirculation, hormonal peptides and several

mechanisms. That is how it works. Ultimately, it comes down to chi. Is it functioning properly or is there an energetic blockage somewhere? When I’m treating a person, I’m looking to see how their chi is moving.”

Jessica Conde, licensed acupuncturist with Eight Branches Acupuncture in Rochester, explained that treating eye disorders with acupuncture has to do with working with “the small nerves and muscles that surround the eye,” she said. “That’s what is being done from the Western point of view. In Eastern verbiage, chi is being stimulated to flow to help it come back to balance. You can discuss it in an Eastern or Western way.”

Sarah Mantell, licensed acupuncturist with AcuHealth of the Finger Lakes in Geneva, explained the procedure in more detail.

“As the study reveals, acupuncture increases blood flow to the cerebral and ocular vasculatures, stimulating nerve Mantell growth and promoting metabolic changes within the central nervous system to effectively treat amblyopia,” she said.

As an ancient modality, acupunc-

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

ture involves a holistic approach to wellness. Mantell indicated that although the acupuncture technique used in the study proved effective, typically, acupuncture is only part of an entire program of wellness that may include dietary changes, exercise and herbs.

The amblyopia patients Conde has treated usually need weekly treatments for two to three months to achieve lasting results, although improvement is usually observed within a few treatments.

“It depends so much upon the child and their age, constitutional makeup and reactivity to acupuncture treatment,” Conde said. “Lazy eye isn’t one of our more complex treatments.”

She advises parents seeking an acupuncturist to treat their child’s amblyopia to seek one with prior training for working with children.

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Diet Soda Linked to Heart Attacks and Stroke

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team of stroke researchers who studied dietary habits of more than 2,500 New York City residents say that drinking diet soda may increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Drinking diet soda — but not regular soda — was associated with a greater risk of stroke, heart attack or death from vascular causes in a study of older residents of neighborhoods in northern Manhattan.

Drinking diet soda every day was associated in 48 percent increase in risk of heart attack or stroke compared with same-aged people who didn’t drink diet sodas, said to Dr. Hannah Gardener of the University of Miami in Florida.

There was no such association for less-frequent consumption of diet soda or for any level of regular soda consumption.

Gardener reported the findings during the opening day of the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference in Febraury.

Gardener acknowledged some limitations of the study, including the use of self-reported dietary data at a single time point, and concluded that the findings are “too preliminary to suggest any dietary advice.”

“If and only if the results are confirmed can we suggest that diet soda may not be an optimal substitute for sugar-sweetened beverages, which have been shown to have various health consequences,” she said.

Doctors contacted to comment on the story were also hesitant to declare diet sodas the next great health risk, with many attributing the increased

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vascular risk to other dietary factors that were not measured in the study, such as the types of foods contributing to the total caloric intake.

“Unfortunately, it may be that individuals with poor dietary habits do resort [to] some kind of calorie balancing and continue to eat high-calorie sweet foods but reduce their ‘guilt’ by drinking diet soda,” Dr. Howard Weintraub, clinical director of the NYU Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, wrote in an e-mail.

The study “adds to the growing evidence of an association between diet sodas and cardiovascular disease,” according to Dr. Cam Patterson, a cardiologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

But, he added, that, although the association cannot be ignored, it is too early to interpret what it means.

“People need to know about this, but it is important for everyone to realize that no general guidelines should be derived from these types of observational studies,” Patterson wrote in an e-mail.

“I’ll continue to pack a diet soda with my lunch, but I’ll look more carefully at what else is in my lunch box and I’ll pay more attention to what I’m doing while I’m drinking my diet soda.”

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

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SmartBites

By Anne Palumbo

The skinny on healthy eating

Wowed by Wheat Berries

S

ome folks never forget their first kiss; I’ll never forget my first wheat berry.

Intrigued by a salad recipe that featured wheat berries, I scooped some up from the bulk section of my local grocery store, made the salad, ate the salad, raved about wheat berries for weeks, wouldn’t shut up about my new discovery, and, well, the rest is history. My family and I now eat wheat berries on a regular basis.

Why the big devotion to such a little kernel? Let’s begin with what a wheat berry is. Contrary to its name, there’s nothing fruity about wheat berries: they are the whole, unprocessed wheat kernel – the germ, bran and endosperm (minus the inedible hull). All wheat products are made from wheat berries.

Since the kernel is left intact, it’s no surprise that, like any whole grain, wheat berries are packed with a plethora of nutrients and health benefits. First and foremost on my list? Fiber!

Fiber, which slows down digestion, stabilizes blood-sugar levels and promotes regularity, can also help to lower cholesterol in two ways: by working with the liver to produce less and by

transporting it out of our bodies.

I’m also high on this whole grain because research has shown that substituting whole grains for their refined counterparts can help with weight control. Perhaps, because whole grains take longer to digest, we’re less apt to snack.

More kernels to savor: Eating wheat berries and other whole grains may lower our risk of developing heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Plus, because wheat berries are teaming with selenium — a powerful antioxidant that protects cells against the damaging effects of free radicals — they may ward off certain cancers.

Health benefits notwithstanding, I adore the taste and texture of these plump little grains. Possessing a chewy bite and subtle nutty flavor, wheat berries are scrumptious additions to just about everything.

Mediterranean Wheat Berry Salad I cup hard wheat berries 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced 2 tomatoes, cored, seeded and diced 1 red pepper, diced 1 carrot, diced 3 scallions, minced (white and light green parts) ¾ cup chopped walnuts, toasted ½ cup crumbled feta cheese 1 clove garlic, minced 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons lemon juice 2 teaspoons dried mint Salt and pepper to taste Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Add wheat berries, reduce heat, cover and simmer gently until tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour.

Drain. Place in large bowl.

In small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, mint, and salt and pepper. Add remaining ingredients to wheat berries in large bowl, including dressing mixture, and stir well.

(To toast walnuts: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange walnuts on a cookie sheet in a single layer; bake 8 minutes.)

Anne Palumbo is a lifestyle columnist, food guru, and seasoned cook, who has perfected the art of preparing nutritious, calorie-conscious dishes.

She is hungry for your questions and comments about SmartBites, so be in touch with Anne at avpalumbo@aol.com.

Helpful tips: Store wheat berries in a cool, dry place in an airtight container. To extend their shelf life, place them in the freezer. They last for years. Just ask the archeologists who found them in Egyptian pyramids!

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IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper

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Are we all vitamin D deficient?

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itamin D is often called the “sunshine vitamin” because the body generates it naturally when the skin is exposed to sunlight.

Vitamin D offers many important benefits to the body, yet it can be hard to get enough during the wintertime in the Rochester region.

“Virtually everyone in Upstate New York is D deficient because of our cloudy environment,” said Dr. William Hall, a faculty member at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Many people slather on sunscreen daily, fearing premature aging and skin cancer.

Carol Plotkin, registered dietitian and owner of On Nutrition in Rochester, takes a balanced approach to sun exposure. During the non-winter months, when it will be helpful, she advocates some healthful sun exposure.

Baring skin during the winter does not help much because the sunlight is too weak.

“For those who aren’t incredibly sensitive, go out for 15 to 20 minutes without sunscreen on the arms and legs during the height of the sun, from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for two to three times per week,” Plotkin said. “If you are going to the beach, use sunscreen. Or if you work outdoors as a roofer.”

Vitamin D is widely known as an aid to calcium absorption, which is why commercially-sold fluid milk is fortified with D. Although milk and other fortified foods contain D, it’s not found naturally in many foods, and D-rich foods are ones most people do not eat regularly such as salmon, tuna, cod liver oil, egg yolk, sardines, and shiitake and button mushrooms.

“The current American diet doesn’t supply adequate vitamin D,” Hall said.

“As we get older, we don’t absorb it as well. It affects about every cell in the body.”

Vitamin D supports the health of muscles and the endocrine system. It reduces inflammation and possibly helps in cancer prevention.

“We cannot say how much for sure it helps with preventing cancer, particularly colon cancer,” said Ritu Malik, a physician who specializes in diabetes and endocrinology at Rochester General Medical Group Endocrine Diabetes Care and Resource Center in Rochester.

“Some reports say it may help with

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diabetes. But we don’t recommend it for the other reasons except for bone health.”

Plotkin noted that vitamin D is important for proper fetal development.

Most prenatal vitamin formulations contain 100 percent of the daily recommended allowance of vitamin D for pregnant and lactating women.

Vitamin D helps boost the immune system, too.

“So many of my clients come to me in the winter months complaining about catching every bug that comes their way,” said Laura Pieters, owner of Harmony, Health and Healing in Fairport. “What most people don’t realize is that without the sunshine, most of us are vitamin D deficient.”

Marusia Marrapese, wellness consultant at Lori’s Natural Foods Center in Rochester, agrees that “if you’re low in D, you’re so much more susceptible to viruses.”

She recommends a hydroxy vitamin D blood test, one of the most accurate ways to measure how much vitamin D is in your body.

So how much D is enough and can we get too much?

A study released in November 2010 from the Institute of Medicine indicates that people may not need as much vitamin D as previously thought and that supplementing too much can be harmful since D is a fat-soluble vitamin. Storing up too much D in the body may raise it to unsafe levels, the IOM researchers fear.

Plotkin is not convinced that lowering the previously recommended levels is a good idea.

“I don’t think we’ve figured out an appropriate level for vitamin D,” she said. “Pretty much every cell in the body has a receptor for vitamin D. [IOM researchers] looked mostly at bone development. They weren’t looking at the myriad of diseases that the deficiency of D is linked to.

“We want to have our blood values that are comparable to those who are on the equator. I think we’ll see a lot more coming out about this.”

She recommends 1,000 to 2,000 international units as a safe maximum level, as does Pieters and Malik.

For a more detailed look at your vitamin D needs, ask your doctor for guidance.

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Are You a Winner at Losing?

Competitions to lose weight grows in popularity

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

S

ince the advent of NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” program, many health and fitness organizations have launched similar weight loss competitions and have received impressive interest.

The University of Rochester Medical Center’s fitness center has previously hosted weight loss challenges such as The Amazing Weight Loss Race that finished right before Christmas.

“We had 117 people participate,” said Heather Van Orden, manager of the fitness center. “I thought after the first one it would be smaller, but that was about the same number we had before.”

Christine Pilaroscia, co-owner of Bounce Aerobics in Rochester, has also experienced brisk participation in the third Slim Down Challenge, as had Mary Bakogiannis, program director at Geneva YMCA, which hosts Project Pounds Away.

The prize for these competitions is more than becoming healthier and dropping sizes. At Bounce, the top winner — make that “loser” — walks away with a gift bag with $100 worth of fitness gear and supplies, including T-shirts, items from the Bounce store, meal replacement shakes and more.

At URMC, $400 is the top prize with nine smaller cash prizes available for the runners-up.

The winner of Project Pounds Away at the YMCA in Geneva wins a

year-long family membership valued at $703.

“They’re really competitive about getting the gift bag but it’s in good fun,” Pilaroscia said.

In addition, a little pride is at stake.

“The element of competition is a motivator for some people to get out there and go for it,” Bakogiannis said.

“When they feel they’re part of something bigger than themselves, trying to make personal changes is easier. I’ve paid for this and I’m in it. I’m going to do it. I don’t think they have their eye on the prize. It’s another reason to come.”

The three programs run similarly to the popular television program, although for copyright reasons, they can’t share the same name. The local competitions last eight to 10 weeks. Initial weigh-ins and measurements help set a benchmark and staff periodically weigh contestants.

“People want to see if what they’re doing is working,” Pilaroscia said. “[Measuring body fat] is the easiest way. I don’t make them weight themselves. A lot of times the scale can lie since they’re doing weight training.

I do body fat percentage of the midsection. They feel like they’re seeing results.”

Guest speakers or staff instruct on nutrition and fitness to help participants learn how to improve their health. For example, at the YMCA’s

competition, representatives of Wegmans demonstrate healthful cooking techniques and professors from local colleges discuss stress and eating. The YMCA also sends weekly e-mail to participants “to keep them trying,” Bakogiannis said.

The programs also direct participants to outside resources such as health sites and handouts that can help teach them about better eating habits and fitness.

Although some fitness challenges spur participants to work harder or try something new, the facility managers aren’t as hardnosed as the television program’s trainers and no one is eliminated from the competition.

“We don’t want people to get discouraged,” Van Orden said.

Some offer prizes along the way for achieving fitness milestones to keep the motivation high.

Participants are encouraged to workout at home as well.

“I tell them that just coming for the Tuesday class isn’t enough,” Pilaroscia said. “They need to work out three to five times per week to really see a change in their bodies.”

Bounce’s Slim Down Challenge lasts costs $8 per week or, for members, is included in a Bounce membership.

Available to URMC students, alumni or employees, participation in the

Medical Center fitness center weight loss competitions costs $39 for nonmembers and $30 for members.

Project Pounds Away is $40 for YMCA members and $175 for nonmembers, which includes a 10-week membership to the Geneva Family YMCA. “People need motivation to lose weight and get in shape,” Van Orden said. “The TV program’s popularity doesn’t hurt us at all.”

Healthy Heros Helping kids on and off the court

E

lyette Clyburn sees the painted lines on a basketball court as a place to set the stage for healthy lifestyles and choices. In this setting, working with other volunteers, Clyburn has successfully recruited and trained hundreds of kids aged 7-14 to the ICC Truth basketball program. This effort has earned him a Healthy Hero Award from Greater Rochester Health Foundation (GRHF).

“Clyburn and Lawrence Lewis [co-founders] use basketball to promote integrity, discipline, character, commitment, teamwork and healthy lifestyles in the boys who practice several times a week,” said John Urban, president of GRHF. “By keeping tabs on his players on and off the court, including their school performance, he is a role model and champion for his players,” According to Clyburn, “As a part of ICC Truth it is expected that our young men volunteer as a way to reach the communities we live in. To date we have volunteered in Rochester Clean Sweep, Jordan Health Center’s lead testing week, the Salvation Army, and the Rochester Public Market to help support our local farmers and vendors.”

The kids and their volunteer coaches hold rigorous practice sessions several times a week and travel to local tournaments on weekends. The summer camp, which has serves more than 100 kids, includes presentations on nutrition and trips to the public market to reinforce the need for healthy choices and inspire children to reach their full potential in body, mind, and spirit.

GRHF recognizes people who go above and beyond their job duties or volunteer to help kids aged 2-10 in Monroe County stay healthy through improved nutrition and/or increased physical activity. People interested in nominating Healthy Heroes may visit www.BeAHealthyHero.org. Healthy Heroes are awarded $250 to be donated to the not-for-profit organization of their choice.

Helping Students with disabilities

T

eresa Zappia, a physical therapist for Spencerport Central School District, has earned a Healthy Hero Award from Greater Rochester Health Foundation (GRHF), for her efforts to make sure children of all abilities live healthy lifestyles.

She uses the 5-2-1-0 motto as a framework to discuss and promote healthy choices in students.

Her current efforts include The Canal View Elementary Adapted Playground Project, which will add wheelchair accessible and adapted equipment to the existing playground structure.

John Urban, president of GRHF says, “Zappia teaches exercise and gross motor skills to students with developmental or physical disabilities so they can fully participate in the school environment. But she goes well beyond her classroom duties to promote nutrition and physical activity. She creates specialized newsletters that show parents ways to keep their kids active and introduce new fruits and vegetables. She also volunteers each summer in the Lose the Training Wheels program, sponsored by Upstate New York Families for Effective Autism Treatment (UNYFEAT) and Rotary Camp Onseyawa for children with disabilities.”

Zappia says: “My goal is to show all kids that exercise can be fun and is a necessary component of their lives regardless of physical ability whether it is through direct contact with children and their parents, or through our school’s health and wellness committee. I am very excited about the adapted playground project which will allow all kids of all abilities to play together,” says Zappia.

March 2011 •

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper

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Page 15

Men’sHealth Stand Up, You Guys!

Group enlists men to fight against domestic violence

By Mike Costanza

F

or Peter Navratil, co-founder of Stand Up Guys, domestic violence is not just a women’s issue.

“It’s a men’s issue, as well,” says Navratil, who is also vice president of behavioral health for Catholic Family Center and an alcoholism and substance abuse counselor and licensed social worker.

Stand Up Guys enlists men to actively speak out and take action against the assault, physical or emotional abuse, or other mistreatment of women, and to help eradicate domestic violence, Navratil says.

Since it was founded in 2005, the organization has taken its message to judges, college classrooms, and men on the street, and thousands have pledged to treat all women with dignity and respect. The group is affiliated with the Delphi Drug & Alcohol Council, Peter Navratil is Inc., but has apthe co-founder of plied for non-profit Stand Up Guys, a status, he says. group that’s trying to U.S. women raise awareness to suffer violence domestic violence. at the hands of their domestic or intimate partners every day, according to statistics from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Studies have found that one in four women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime, and an estimated 1.3 million women suffer physical assaults at the hands of their intimate partners each year. Of those battered by their spouses or intimate partners, as much as 45 percent are also subjected to sexual assault or rape, the NADV states.

These numbers tend to rise in difficult economic times, as batterers are faced with job losses, pay cuts, rising costs, or other changes that they find threatening.

“Batterers like to have control over things,” says Catherine Mazzotta, director of Alternatives for Battered Women.

Batterers tend to respond to that loss of control by using abusive behaviors or violence to gain greater control of their spouses or intimate partners, Mazzotta says. In response, local women have turned to ABW’s non-residential programs in greater numbers, raising the usage of some programs by as much as 20 percent between 2009 and 2010. Men form the vast majority of those who abuse or batter women, Mazzotta says.

Most of the efforts to attack the problem focus upon those who engage in domestic violence.

“We do a lot of talking with the ‘bad guys’ about this,” Navratil says.

Page 16

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That focus may result in part from the lack of interest many men may show about the issue of domestic violence.

“Men don’t really talk about domestic violence or sexual assault,” says Annie Lane, program director for Stand Up Guys. “If the topic comes up, they usually say, ‘Yeah, talk to my wife about that.’”

Stand Up Guys aims to change that by reaching out to the vast majority of men who are not offenders, and asking them to stand up and speak out against domestic violence in public and within their personal relationships.

Since Stand Up Guys held its first meeting in 2005, it has gained 25 active members, 10 of them women, Navratil says.

Members of the organization have presented its message to jurists on the Monroe County Family Court, local Rotary clubs, and college students, as well as to individuals that they encounter in

Stand Up Guys To learn more about Stand Up Guys or take its pledge, go to: www.standupguys.org. their daily lives.

According to its website, more than 3,800 had signed Stand Up Guy’s pledge as of the end of January. By doing so, they agreed to treat women with dignity and respect and as equals, speak out against sexist values and attitudes, never commit or condone violence against women, and take other steps in keeping with these themes.

The pledge’s aims and sentiments have personal meanings for Navratil and Lane, both of whom suffered domestic abuse in the past.

Navratil lived in an abusive household until his mother took him and his brother and started a new life,

he says. He began working with men who engage in domestic violence while a social worker and an alcoholism and substance abuse counselor, and eventually grew interested in attacking the problem from another direction.

Though Stand Up Guys focuses on the issues as they pertain to women, Navratil says that its efforts are also intended to help the children living in homes where domestic violence takes place.

“Kids get vicariously exposed to the behaviors and the role models of adults,” he says.

Lane still feels some of the effects of 10 years of emotional abuse at the hands of her ex-husband, she says.

She came to Stand Up Guys around the time of its founding, and quit her marketing job in order to devote more time to it. Nowadays, she works parttime while giving as many as 20 hours a week to helping convey its message to others.

“The more people we’re talking to, the more we’re educating, and the more, hopefully, lives we’re saving,” she says.

Mazzotta applauds Stand Up Guys and its mission to end domestic violence.“It’s great to see that men are finally making the decision to finally get involved and address the issue,” Mazzotta says, adding that organizations similar to Stand Up Guys are emerging around the country.

Navratil says that Stand Up Guys operates on a “shoestring” budget of under $1,000, all of which comes from donations. The organization is applying for a $25,000 grant to be used to finance the training of 25 young men as peer educators, and other projects, he says.

Testicular cancer strikes young adult and middle-aged men

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

T

esticular cancer may be the last thing on the mind of a man in the prime of his life; however, the American Cancer Society (www.cancer. org) states that nine out of 10 testicular cancers occur between aged 20 and 54.

These rapidly growing cancers are rare before adolescence and in older adulthood. That’s basically because the sperm count of preadolescent and older adult men would be lower than that of men between 20 and 54.

Usually detected by a patient who finds a painless lump, testicular cancer can be easily overlooked because of the commonality of benign blood vessel abnormalities, cysts and other scrotal masses.

“Oftentimes, patients are unaware of it until they experience some form of trauma,” said Jan Dombrowski, medical director and radiation oncologist at Pluta Cancer Center in Rochester.

“Alternatively, some patients present with what appears to be an infection of the collecting system of the testis which does not respond to a course of antibiotics.”

Upon finding any unusual lump, men need to see their primary care physicians who will likely recommend a visit to an urologist.

“An ultrasound of the testicle can help determine what the mass is,” said Dr. Ed Messing, chair of the department of urology at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

After an ultrasound, a blood test

may also help determine if a lump is testicular cancer.

In addition to age, other risk factors include race (whites are more prone than blacks, for example) and testing HIV-positive. A non-descended testicle is also more prone, and places the descended testicle at slightly higher risk.

Klinefelter’s syndrome, a genetic disorder, represents another risk factor.

A normal male chromosome is XY. A man with Klinefelter’s has a chromosome pattern of XXY. Some researchers also implicate hormonal exposure before birth and through hormonally treated foods such as poultry as contributing to incidences of testicular cancer.

“Some thought that kind of exposure may have an effect although the proof of that isn’t clear,” Messing said.

If the cancer is not treated right away, it metastasizes rapidly.

“These cells are programmed to divide like crazy,” Messing said.

“These cancers have the ability to grow fast, but they’re not entirely recognized by our immune system so some of the antigens and chemicals they have on their surface are recognized as foreign.

The immune system isn’t up to the task of killing them unless they’re slowed down.”

If caught early, testicular cancer patients can expect a good outcome.

Messing estimated that 90 percent of testicular patients are cured.

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

“These cells are very effectively killed by chemotherapy,” Messing said.

“This is one of the few malignancies that when it’s wildly metastatic has a very high chance of being cured with aggressive chemo and surgery.”

Even men with more advanced testicular cancer or a “poor prognosis disease can have long-term responses in approximately 60 percent of all cases,” Dombrowski said.

Nearly everyone with testicular cancer will need the affected testicle removed, but some will need surgery without chemotherapy or radiation.

It depends upon the patient’s age and how far the cancer has spread in the body.

“A very young person can receive these big gun therapies and recover,” Messing said.

Chemotherapy can affect the patient with long-term side effects such as hearing problems and peripheral nerve damage. Most patients with testicular cancer treated with surgery and radiation are still able to father children afterward.

About 1 to 2 percent of testicular cancer patients eventually have cancer in the remaining testicle and need testosterone therapy.

“Those who do succumb to the disease present very late, their tumor is very aggressive or they know about something for 6 to 10 months and don’t do anything about it,” Messing said.

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Men and Hearing Loss Local experts: Men usually have more trouble hearing than women, and at younger age

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

I

f your wife complains that you turn up the television too loud, you’re not alone. The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery revealed that 13 percent of men aged 20 to 69 suffer from noise-induced hearing loss.

These preventable injuries may not manifest themselves for years after they are inflicted, which means looking at historic opportunities for exposure can reveal what factors have made men more prone to hearing injuries.

“Men have been more in careers with significant more noise exposure, such as in the military front lines,” said Benjamin Crane, otolaryngologist with University of Rochester Medical Center. “A lot of soldiers don’t like to wear hearing protection because they want to hear when the enemy is approaching so I think we’ll be seeing veterans with hearing loss for years to come.”

Workers may flout the rules and not wear the earplugs provided for Crane them as outlined in OSHA regulations instated in recent decades.

“With a lot of factory type of work in the past, hearing protection wasn’t used. That tended to be more men in those types of professions. Mining is still predominately men. They’re the ones more exposed,” said Crane.

Men tend be more interested in loud hobbies than women, such as motor sports, shooting and woodworking with power tools.

Men typically are less likely to use hearing protection because it can interfere with their activity, such as a hunter who wants to hear the deer approaching.

“There are plugs designed for hunters called shooter’s plugs but only a small percentage tend to purchase them,” said Andrea Segmond, audiologist with Ontario Hearing Instruments in Rochester.

Shooter’s plugs help muffle the loud sounds of gunfire while allowing hunters to hear game movement.

They may not realize that the loud noises damage their hearing, or they do not want to bother with the nuisance of wearing ear plugs.

Although there is no anatomical difference that makes men more prone than women to hearing loss, because men experience a disproportionate amount of noise, their hearing loss usually presents earlier in life.

“The men we tend to see are younger, in their 60s,” said Frank Salamone, division chief of otolaryngology at Rochester General Hospital.

“Women have more trouble in their 80s than their 60s.”

Loud sounds damage hearing by causing a temporary and, later, permanent shift in hearing. A temporary shift may affect hearing for a prolonged period of time, but the hearing eventually returns to or close to the baseline before the injury occurred.

“With prolonged exposure, you have a permanent shift in hearing,” Segmond said.

The person with permanent hearing loss may also experience tinnitus or ringing in the ears.

“People can develop tinnitus in a way to make up for the lack of sound range they can hear,” Crane said. “The brain realizes that they aren’t hearing and fills in those sounds with ringing.

Patients often come in because of the ringing, not realizing they’ve lost some hearing.”

In other cases, Salamone has noticed that it’s the wife bringing in her husband to seek help for his hearing loss.

“I wind up doing a lot of marital counseling,” he said. “She’s bringing him in because he’s not hearing her and it causes disharmony.”

Sometimes, these husbands may not think the television or radio is so loud because they don’t realize the extent of their hearing loss.

“Many times when a person gradually loses their hearing they are unaware of the loss because they don’t know what they are missing,” said Dawn R. D’Agostino, senior clinical audiSalamone ologist at Rochester Hearing and Speech Center. “Family or friends notice [the person with the hearing loss] is answering inappropriately or asking for repetition.”

But that’s not always the case.

Some men seek help for their hearing loss if it impacts their quality of life in an important way.

“It becomes difficult to pursue their careers with hearing loss,” Crane said. “If they’re retired or their hearing isn’t as required, they don’t want hearing aids.”

Because most manufacturers allow purchasers of hearing aids a monthlong trial period (except for any applicable fitting fee), Salamone encourages people with hearing loss to try hearing aids.

“I feel bad when people are hesitant and avoid [getting fitted for hearing aids] when there’s a free trial,” he said.

For people who don’t want a cumbersome hearing aid or who believe that a hearing aid detracts from their appearance, today’s hearing aids are much less noticeable than those their grandparents wore. Many hearing

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aid brands and models are small and unobtrusive, fitting almost entirely in the ear canal.

“It takes a while to get used to hearing aids and it is important to talk with an audiologist who they feel comfortable with because a lot of it is the fitting,” Salamone said.

Unfortunately, many hearing aids cost hundreds of dollars and may be out of reach for people without insurance.

Non-fitted hearing amplifiers are more like non-prescription drugstore reading glasses.

“They will amplify everything that makes noise making it difficult for a person with a moderate hearing loss to hear speech unless there is absolutely no noise around them,” D’Agostino said.

They aren’t custom fitted or specific to the user’s level of hearing loss but for some, they can provide an affordable means to hear better during times when they need extra help such as during a church service. Some are even made to look like a wireless phone headset and cost around $40.

Listening systems such as TV Ears uses a transmitter hard-wired into the television and a wireless headset for the hard-of-hearing person so turning up the television won’t bother anyone else in the room.

Hearing aids fitted by an audiologist can help amplify desired sounds without amplifying background noise; however, unlike vision correction with contact lenses or glasses, hearing aids can never restore the auditory sense to its previous acuity.

“Prevent the noise exposure as much as possible,” Crane said. “Avoid noisy situations. It’s not a great option for many people. The younger generation hasn’t thought about hearing loss.

Use ear plugs when mowing the lawn or running a chain saw.”

Unfortunately, the signs of hearing loss do not manifest until years later, long after the damage has already been done.

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Page 17

Men’sHealth Why Married Men Are Happier Single life might be more adventurous but experts say men find happiness in stable relationships, having children and enjoying home life

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

C

opious bodies of research indicate married men are happier than single men, despite the persistent jokes about the “ball and chain” and that a man’s good times are over once he marries. Considering the increased responsibility and restrictions inherent to marriage, why are married men happier?

Ann Altoonian, a licensed psychologist operating self-named practice in Rochester, offered a few answers.

“Being responsible with marital goals is meaningful,” she said. “The more you have meaningful things in your life, the happier you’ll be.”

Maintaining a home, having children, entertaining together, and enjoyAltoonian ing home life are all examples of how the responsibilities of marriage add meaning to a man’s life.

The freedom of dating around, coming and going when one pleases and indulging in irregular or spontaneous habits of daily living (such as eating at odd hours or staying out late) may be fun for the short term, but “it doesn’t pay off long-term,” Altoonian said.

“I’ve come across research that says a single person who is depressed gets more psychological benefit from being married than if they were to remain single,” said Altoonian.

Researchers were surprised to find that adding another layer of complexity to the depressed person’s life in the form of a spouse did not make his life’s problems more overwhelming, but it had just the opposite effect.

“Men also tend to pursue women and ‘get’ the one they want,” said Dan Rosen, a licensed clinical social worker who operates a self-named therapy Rosen practice in Rochester.

“This leaves men in a position of having accomplished a big life task. They feel successful and competent.”

Women aren’t the only ones with emotional needs. For many men, marriage meets their deepest emotional needs.

“It’s a human need for people to have closeness and intimacy in their lives,” said Grace Klein with the Center for Human Encouragement in Rochester. “It’s as true for men as with women. When there’s as satisfying relationship that supplies emotional intimacy, that’s what men want as much Page 18

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as women want.”

Stereotypically, men are more interested in physical intimacy than emotional; however, Klein believes it’s not as cut-and-dried as that.

“There’s a whole range of what men want,” she said. “A lot want emotional intimacy. There’s a whole continuum of sexual and emotional intimacy and you can find men anywhere along that continuum.”

For many men, marriage provides a validation of their manliness and a means of expressing it, not a limitation on their manliness.

“Men do have those needs although they’re not quick to show it, especially if they were part of a family where they don’t express their emotions,” said Laurie Burns, a licensed clinical social worker and psychotherapist operating a self-named private practice in Rochester. “Many of the men I see say they’re sad and lonely.

They want to feel like they’re needed and wanted.”

Having someone else rely upon them such as a wife helps men feel needed and wanted.

Taking part in daily, weekly, and monthly routines with another person adds more of a sense of stability and comfort.

“There are always things you can count on in your relationship with the other person, even in an unhappy person,” Altoonian Klein said. “Even if there are things you don’t like, they provide stability.”

In unhappy marriages, partners typically do nothing about it for an average of seven years, partially because they are hesitant to rock the boat and because the busyness of married life keeps them distracted from analyzing their relationship.

Being married, as opposed to a couple living together without being married, adds another dimension of meaning and responsibility.

“It has to do with being committed to something in a way that other people will know about,” Altoonian said. “You’re responsible to everyone else when you’re married. When you’re not married, you have the same level of commitment but because society wouldn’t know about it, it’s a different level of responsibility.”

Altoonian said that men who want to make their marriages happier should speak with their wives in the same way in which they’d speak with a guest in their homes and also give 51 percent— or more—to their marriages.

“Do not take your partner for granted,” she added. “Don’t hesitate to

show appreciation. See what you can do for the other person. Like all things we learn that have to do with giving, the giver ends up being a receiver.”

Good communication skills can improve any relationship, and marriages are no exception.

“It’s about being in touch with one’s own feelings and what you want and being willing to talk about it openly and doing so before you make commitments,” Klein said. “People change and develop over a lot of years so that dialogue has to continue.”

Many women feel their husbands do not listen but that they are too quick to offer a solution when she has a problem.

“Men want to show they provide that role,” Burns said. “If you think of the word, a ‘husband’ is someone who cares for something, like animal husbandry.

A husband cares for someone.”

Most of the time when the wife airs a problem with her husband she’s not looking for him to Burns take action or even offer a solution.

“The thing she’s looking for most is for him to understand how she’s feeling about the problem and if a solution is offered right away, then she is missing out on feeling like he understood and connected which is what is really needed,” Altoonian said. “If she wanted a solution, she could ask any relative or friend.”

Improving communication is not just verbal. It can be “sharing, and being together during experiences in a non-verbal way,” Rosen said.

One way of staying connected is spending time together in a way that

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

is meaningful to both partners. When they first wed, career goals may keep them overly busy. As children arrive, the busyness of childrearing can make date night or hobbies together seem impossible. As a couple approaches the “empty nest” years, a man may feel apprehensive about spending so much time with someone he hardly knows anymore.

“If they don’t make time to go on dates, do things they enjoy together or have dinner together and then make it happen, the relationship suffers,” Klein said. “It takes effort and deliberate thought and being able to verbalize that.”

The roles and dynamics of the traditional husband/wife relationship alter when the husband stays at home with the children and helps more with household work. Whether spurred by the wife’s higher salary or career options or the husband’s layoff, Burns is seeing more of this trend.

“It’s very different from the traditional,” she said. “Hopefully, men and women in these reversed roles can appreciate what their partner does and doesn’t resent the other. There can be a disconnect and I see a lot of couples with that. Then there are couples who value their relationship and really want things to do a certain way.”

Instead of allowing resentment to build when roles shift, couples need to discuss their expectations, and feel comfortable talking about how they’re coping day by day.

Couples should also address issues around power,” Rosen said, “How do we make decisions, how much independence does each person get for example. Addressing issues around financial stability is important, too: how money is divided, spent, and saved.”

As with any relationship, a marital relationship requires work; however, the rewards of a happy marriage are worth the effort.

Profile: Brian Jepson, new president at Rochester General

New RGH Leader Ready to Take on Healthcare Challenges

By Mike Costanza

B

rian Jepson, the new president of Rochester General Hospital, relishes the idea of guiding a premier medical facility in the coming years.

“I’m a person who likes challenges,” he says.

Rochester General, the flagship of the Rochester General Health System, inhabits a large campus in Rochester and is affiliated with the more than 40 medical practices in the system.

The facility is home to nationally recognized programs in cardiac, cancer, vascular, orthopedic, and surgical and diabetes care, among others, and treated and discharged over 31,500 inpatients in 2008 alone.

About 5,000 of RGHS’s 7,000 employees work in the hospital.

Growing up around Warren, Ohio, Jepson learned first hand the value of caring for patients. His mother, sister and grandmother are nurses and his brother is a hospital administrator.

“I saw the satisfaction that my mother got from “Brian Jepson caring for people,” brings to the he says.

Jepson entered role at Rochester Howland High General a track School, where he record of success met his future and growing wife, Tammy. responsibilities in Upon graduating, his field,” he attended Ohio University, where he studied finance and health care administration.

“I gravitated toward a field where I could use my business skills and still make a difference in the community,” he says.

After graduating with a master’s degree in health care administration in 1994, Jepson took a succession of positions in his field, each reflecting a greater level of responsibility. Before coming to Rochester General early last September, Jepson was the executive vice president and chief operating officer of Metro Health Hospital, a 208bed independent osteopathic teaching hospital in Grand Rapids, Mich.

Perfect timing

Jepson says his move to Rochester General was personally and professionally well timed. To begin with, the family had already moved five times to meet the needs of his career, and he wanted to give some stability to his wife and four children, who range in age from 6 to 15.

“This summer was the time to relocate, if we were going to relocate, because I am really committed to being here for awhile and getting my kids through school,” he says.

Moreover, Rochester General presented attractive differences from the smaller and less complex hospital at which he was working.

“I came from a community hospital

that didn’t offer a full range of tertiary services, like open heart [surgery] and that sort of thing,” he says. “For me, this was a great move because of the complexity of the organization.”

Finally, Jepson found the attitudes of those he met at Rochester General Hospital matched his own in important ways, he says.

“There’s a real commitment to patient safety and [treatment] quality,” he says. “You can kind of see that in everything that we do.”

The Rochester General Health System searched for someone to head its main hospital for about a year before selecting Jepson, says Mark Clement, president and CEO of RGHS. “He brings to the role at Rochester General a track record of success and growing responsibilities in his field,” Clement says.

Jepson has also brought valuable experience to RGHS’s implemention of the Epic Electronic Medical Record system, Clement says.

Jepson helped implement the EMR system while at Metro Health, Clement says. In November, when RGHS finishes implementing its own version, “Care Connect,” at Rochester General, the hospital and all of its medical practices will be able to electronically exchange medical, financial and other patient records.

RGHS will phase the system throughout the rest of its organization during the next two to three years.

Clement called the installation of the $65 million EMR system “the largest single capital investment we’ve made in the history of our (health) system.”

sicians. He also takes a personal hand in the process by meeting with every physician that the hospital recruits.

“I want to see if they’re a good fit for Rochester General and the patients that we serve,” he says.

Rochester General’s efforts seem to be bearing fruit. Jepson says the hospital recruited about 80 new physicians last year.

Rochester General also plans to boost its general treatment capabilities through delegating more inpatient care to physician’s assistants, nurse practitioners, and hospitalists (hospital physicians who are dedicated to caring for other physicians’ inpatients), Jepson says. By doing so, the hospital hopes to free primary physicians who have placed their patients in Rochester General from having to spend as much time caring for them there as they do currently.

The measures should thereby allow those physicians to spend more time and energy on their outpatients.

While Rochester General readies itself for an influx of new patients, the hospital also needs to meet the new demands of the health care marketplace, Jepson

Tough challenges ahead

Rochester General Hospital will also face challenges in the future.

Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which President Obama signed in March of 2010, more than 30 million Americans who do not now have medical insurance will be extended coverage. Health care providers expect an influx of patients over the act’s four-year phase-in of benefits.

“That’s about 100,000 people in this area who are now going to have insurance,” Jepson says.

To prepare for the new patients, Rochester General actively recruits new primary care physicians, Jepson says. As part of that effort, Jepson chairs a task force that is developing plans for recruiting more phy-

Growing up around Warren, Ohio, Brian Jepson learned first hand the value of caring for patients. His mother, sister and grandmother are nurses and his brother is a hospital administrator. says. Insurers have begun to demand that hospitals reduce the rates at which inpatients who have been discharged are readmitted. In short, they want hospitals to cut the numbers of avoidable readmissions. Rochester General hopes to cut those numbers through educating its patients regarding their post-discharge treatment needs, and then encouraging them to follow those instructions, he says.

“After a patient is discharged, we call them to follow up on those things, and make sure they’re doing what they need to be doing so they don’t get readmitted,” Jepson says.

The hospital, along with the rest of New York’s health care providers, also faces the possibility of deep cuts in its revenue stream. Medicaid cuts proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo could come to as much $2.8 billion, Jepson says. Though the amount to be cut is still being negotiated, Jepson expected it to be “substantial,” and its effect to be felt.

“We care for a large percentage of Medicaid patients in this area,” he says.

Since coming to the Rochester area, Jepson and his family have found the time to experience the area’s charms.

Coming from Michigan, which is known for its snowy weather, they have been able to enjoy the outdoors year-round.

“We enjoy skiing, hiking, and we enjoy biking as a family,” he says.

Mark Clement, the new president of Rochester General Hospital.

March 2011 •

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The Social Ask Security Office

What They Want You to Know:

Audiologist

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

A

udiologists are physicians who specialize in and treat disorders of the ear, including balance and hearing loss. They also can help patients prevent hearing damage.

■ “Turn the volume down. If anyone next to you can hear your personal listening system, it is too loud. With prolonged exposure, damage can occur.

■ “When mowing the lawn, don’t use personal listening systems because you have to turn them up louder than the machine.

■ “Get your hearing tested at age 50 to establish a baseline or earlier if there’s a family history of hearing loss.”

Andrea Segmond, audiologist with Ontario Hearing Instruments, Rochester ■ “Years and years ago, younger adults were told they didn’t have enough hearing loss to be helped.

We’ve learned that even mild high pitched hearing loss can be disabling for word understanding. We have devices that are very small and sophisticated that can help people hear much better.

■ “People with hearing loss are more likely to experience depression and lack of satisfaction in life.

■ “The vast majority of patients we see have nerve or sensory hearing loss. Of the people who have hearing loss in the U.S., about 43 percent are 65 or older. About four out of five of those who could wear a hearing aid don’t.

■ “A lot of it is attributed to some stigma with wearing the device. But I see no difference between wearing a hearing aid and wearing eyeglasses or contacts or a special insert for your shoes. Its’ a device that can improve the quality of your life.

■ “It can go unnoticed because hearing loss almost always affects the high pitches first and that’s where the consonant sounds are. If you miss a consonant sound every once in a while you can get by. In a challenging environment, it is more noticeable.

■ “Some of the stigma is going away. A lot of the manufacturers are cognizant of that and are designing hearing aids that are not just ergonomically appealing but with style.

■ “Most of the hearing aids that are fitted by me are a miniature device that sits on top of the ear and a thin Page 20

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wire with a speaker in the ear. They are very small and perform very well.

They don’t plug up the patient’s ear canal, which is the problem with the completely in the ear canal hearing aids.

You don’t have that occlusion affect.

■ “Getting a hearing aid is not nearly as big a deal as people make it out to be. It’s a lot less ‘painful’ than people think. An audiologist can recommend what fits your lifestyle and budget the best.

■ “There’s no such thing as perfection but most get enough benefit that they keep using it. If you get past the first few weeks, the chance of being a successful patient is greater.

■ “Wear the thing every day. Getting the patient’s brain accustomed to receiving this new stimulation doesn’t happen overnight.

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

When the people around you are commenting on your inability to hear, there’s probably something to it. We tend to not be aware of it until there’s a significant disability. If a few people in your life tend to mumble, it’s probably them. If more than a few mumble, it’s probably not them.”

Matt MacDonald, audiologist with Hart Hearing Center in Rochester ■ “Hearing aid technology has improved greatly in the past several years. People who are considering hearing aids should visit a professional, an audiologist, to obtain information on the latest technology that is available to them instead of talking to their friends and relatives who may have had a negative experience with hearing aids in the past.”

Dawn R. D’Agostino, senior clinical audiologist with Rochester Hearing and Speech Center Deborah Jeanne Sergeant is a writer with In Good Health. “What Your Doctor Wants You to Know” is an ongoing column that appears monthly to give our area’s healthcare professionals an opportunity to share how patients can improve their care by helping their providers and by helping themselves.

Column provided by the local Social Security Office

Social Security’s Final Four

T

his time of year basketball fans are gearing up for March Madness — a time when the final four teams in the NCAA fight for the title of national champion. While basketball fans are excited about March Madness, Social Security already has a winning “final four” of online services to cheer about: the Retirement Estimator, Benefit Application, online Extra Help application, and Business Services Online.

1 — The Retirement Estimator is an easy way to get an instant, personalized estimate of your future Social Security benefits. Just key in some basic information and the estimator will use information on your Social Security record, along with what you input, to give you a benefit estimate on the spot.

You even can experiment with different scenarios, such as changing your future earnings and retirement date. Check it out in English at www.socialsecurity. gov/estimator or in Spanish at www. segurosocial.gov/calculador.

2 — The Benefit Application is the most convenient way to apply for Social Security retirement benefits. You can apply from the comfort of your home — it’s fast, easy, and secure. It’s so easy, in fact, that it can take you as little as 15 minutes to apply online. In most cases, once your application is submitted electronically, you’re done.

There are no forms to sign and usually

Q&A Q: How do I show proof of my Social Security benefit amount?

A: Here are four ways: You can use your SSA-1099 form as proof of your income if you receive Social Security benefits; You can use your annual notice that tells you your benefit amount for the year as verification of your current benefits; The fastest, easiest, and most convenient way is to go online and request a proof of income letter at www. socialsecurity.gov/bene; and You may call Social Security’s toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778), between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Q: I understand that by 2013 I will not be able to continue receiving my Social Security payments by paper check. What are the benefits of using direct deposit?

A: The benefits of using direct deposit are: It’s safe; secure; convenient; there are no checks to be lost; you are in control of your money; and you will get your benefits on time, even if you’re out of town, sick or unable to get to the bank.

You choose the account where your Social Security payment is deposited.

If you don’t have a bank account, you

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

no documentation is required. Social Security will process your application and contact you if any further information is needed. Try it out when you’re ready to retire at www.socialsecurity. gov/applyonline.

3 — The online Extra Help application is an easy way to save about $4,000 a year on your prescription drug costs.

To qualify for the Extra Help, you must be on Medicare, have limited income and resources, and live in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia.

Learn more about it at www.socialsecurity.gov/prescriptionhelp.

4 — Business Services Online is our one-stop shop for small businesses. The site allows organizations and authorized individuals to conduct business with and submit confidential information to Social Security. You even can use it to file your W-2s the fast, convenient, and paperless way — online. Visit Business Services Online at www.socialsecurity.gov/bso.

In the American Customer Satisfaction Index, Social Security received the highest ratings in both the public and private sectors.

To learn more about our winning services, visit www.socialsecurity.gov/ onlineservices. Or, read our publication What You Can Do Online at www. socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10121.html.

Get to know our final four, and all of our online services. When you do, you will be the winner.

can use the direct express prepaid debit card to receive Social Security, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and other federal benefit payments. Learn more about direct deposit and Direct Express at www.godirect.gov.

Q: Is Supplemental Security Income (SSI) taxable?

A: No. SSI payments are not subject to federal taxes so you will not receive an annual form SSA-1099. However, if you also receive Social Security retirement or disability benefits, those payments may be subject to income taxes.

Learn more about SSI by reading the publication “What You Need To Know When You Get Supplemental Security Income” (SSI) at www.socialsecurity. gov/pubs/11011.html.

Q: What is a disability trial work period?

A: The “trial work period” allows Social Security disability beneficiaries to test their ability to work for at least nine months without losing benefits.

During the trial work period, you can receive full benefits no matter how much you earn, as long as you remain disabled and you report your work activity. The trial work period continues until you have completed nine trial work months within a 60-month period. More about this at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10095.html.

Rochester School for the Deaf 1545 St. Paul Street, Rochester, NY 14621

Where families expect more... and find it.

By Jim Miller

Do You Need To File a Tax Return This Year?

More than half of all seniors aged 65 and older won’t have to file income tax returns this year Dear Savvy Senior What are the IRS filing requirements for seniors this year? I had to file income tax returns last year, but my income dropped a bit and I’m wondering if I may be off the hook this year. What can you tell me?

Tired of Taxes

• You are a qualifying widow(er) with a dependent child and your gross income was less than $15,050 ($16,150 if age 65 or older).

REQUIRED FILING You also need to be aware that there are some special financial situations that require you to file a tax return, even if your gross income falls below the IRS filing requirement. For example, if you had net earnings from self-employment in 2010 of $400 or more, or if you owe any special taxes to the IRS such as alternative minimum tax or IRA tax penalties, you’ll probably need to file.

Dear Tired, According to the Tax Policy Center, more than half of all seniors in the U.S., aged 65 and older won’t have to file income tax returns this year mainly because their incomes are under the IRS filing requirements. Here’s a breakdown of the 2010 filing requirements along with a few other tax tips you should know.

To figure this out, the IRS offers a page on their website called “Do You Need to File a Federal Income Tax Return?” that includes a list of financial situations and a series of questions that will help you determine if you’re required to file, or if you should file (if you’re due a refund). You can access this page at www.doyouneedtofile.info, or you can get help over the phone by calling the IRS helpline at 800-829-1040.

CHECK YOUR STATE Even if you’re not required to file a federal tax return this year, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re also excused from filing state income taxes. Check on that with your state tax agency before concluding you’re entirely in the clear. For links to state and local tax agencies see taxadmin.org — click on “Links.”

TAX PREP HELP If you do need to file a tax return, you can get help through the IRS sponsored Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE). This program provides free tax preparation and counseling to middle and low income taxpayers, aged 60 and older. Call 800-829-1040 to locate a service near you. Also check with AARP, a participant in the TCE program that provides free tax preparation at more than 7,000 sites nationwide. To locate an AARP Tax-Aide site call 888-2277669 or visit www.aarp.org/money/ taxaide.

FILING REQUIREMENTS

If your “gross income” is below the IRS filing limits, you probably don’t have to file a federal tax return. Gross income includes all the income you receive that is not exempt from tax, not including Social Security benefits, unless you are married and filing separately. You probably don’t have to file this year if: • You are single and your 2010 gross income was less than $9,350 ($10,750 if you’re 65 or older).

• You are married filing jointly and your gross income was under $18,700.

If you or your spouse is 65 or older, the limit increases to $19,800. And if you’re both over 65, your income must be under $20,900 to not file.

• You are head of household and your gross income was below $12,050 ($13,450 if age 65 or older).

• You are married filing separately and your income was less than $3,650.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit www.savvysenior. org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

March 2011 •

• Private, tuition-free school for deaf and hard of hearing children • New York State Regents-level education for all students • Safe and inclusive environment providing direct access to communication.

• Individual attention from skilled professionals For Early Childhood, K-12 School, and Outreach programs and services, Call: 585-544-1240 (Voice/TTY); Visit: www.RSDeaf.org; E-mail: Info@RSDeaf.org

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H ealth News Pluta Cancer Center names new CEO Pluta Cancer Center recently appointed Kelly McCormick-Sullivan as president and chief executive officer.

McCormick-Sullivan succeeds John Oberlies, who is retiring.

“We would like to thank John Oberlies for the tremendous job he has done in leading Pluta Cancer Center,” said Pluta Cancer Center board chairman Ronald Pluta. “We are very excited to welcome Kelly.

Her collaborative McCormickleadership style and Sullivan ability to develop and implement strategic plans will be of great benefit to Pluta Cancer Center as we move forward.”

A proven leader with more than 15 years of progressive leadership responsibility in healthcare, higher education, and energy services, McCormick-Sullivan comes to Pluta Cancer Center after serving as Carestream Health’s director of global internal communications. Prior to working at Carestream, McCormick-Sullivan was a professor at St. John Fisher College and director of organizational communications at Rochester Gas & Electric.

“I am thrilled that Pluta Cancer Center has asked me to serve as president and CEO,” McCormick-Sullivan said. “I am proud to join an organization that provides compassionate, leading-edge cancer care through a personalized, patient-centered approach that empowers patients and their families.”

McCormick-Sullivan has a master of science degree in health systems administration from the Rochester Institute of Technology and a master of arts in public communication from American University. She has a Bachelor of Arts in politics from The Catholic University of America.

McCormick-Sullivan lives in Pittsford.

Michael Stapleton named Thompson VP/COO Michael F. Stapleton Jr. of Macedon has been named the executive vice president of Thompson Health and the chief operating officer of F.F. Thompson Hospital.

Stapleton, who is presently serving as the CEO of Lakeside Health System in Brockport, will assume his responsibilities at Thompson Health March 28.

“Mike’s talent and energy will enhance our team and be an excellent addition to the Thompson family,” said Thompson Health President/CEO Linda Farchione.

Stapleton holds a Master’s of Science degree in leadership in health care sysStapleton

tems from the University of Rochester, a Bachelor’s of Science in nursing from St. John Fisher College and a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from SUNY Oswego.

Prior to being appointed Lakeside’s CEO, Stapleton served as interim CEO and vice president of patient care services at Lakeside. He has also held several management positions at Strong Memorial Hospital. Those positions included nurse manager of the Kessler Family Burn Trauma ICU and the Emergency Department.

At Thompson, Stapleton replaces Deborah Weymouth, who was recently named the executive director/CEO of New Milford Hospital in New Milford, Conn.

Unity Hospital welcomes Dr. Paul Maurer Unity Hospital welcomes Dr. Paul Maurer. He has served as Unity Hospital’s chief of neurosurgery since 1998 and also has been surgical director of the hospital’s spine center. He specializes in spine care and has more than 20 years of hospital and community-based neurosurgery experience.

Maurer’s neurosurgery practice has been renamed Unity Neurosurgery and relocated to Unity at Ridgeway, 2655 Ridgeway Ave., in the Town of Greece.

Maurer He is a graduate of the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, where he received his medical degree and completed post-doctoral training and residencies in neurosurgery and general surgery.

Maurer is certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery, is a fellow with the American College of Surgeons, and a member of the Joint Section for Spine (Congress/American Association of Neurosurgical Surgeons) and the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

Maurer has held a range of faculty appointments with the University of Rochester, most recently as clinical professor of neurosurgery.

He lives in the Town of Brighton.

Arc of Monroe County moves to Brighton The Arc of Monroe County recently held a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the organization’s new headquarters at 2060 Brighton-Henrietta Townline Road (Town of Brighton), beginning a new era for the agency. The Arc consolidated its administrative offices, service coordination and clinical staff to a single site after more than 40 years as a tenant of The Al Sigl Center.

“This new site offers several advantages,” said Barbara Wale, president and CEO of The Arc of Monroe County.

“Uniting our staff under one roof was not possible at our former location.

This move allows our clinical staff, service coordinators and administrative

IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011

team to operate in a single location, enhancing teamwork and communications. Additionally, we have evolved as an organization and see a clear need to establish our own identity. This was difficult at our old location.”

Nearly 120 staff members now work at The Arc’s new headquarters.

Clinical services are offered on the first floor, with administrative and service coordination on the second floor.

Currently, The Arc has 850 employees at 40 community-based locations that assist 3,500 individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.

RGH Breast Center receives special designation The Breast Center at Rochester General Hospital has been recognized as a Certified Quality Breast Center of Excellence by the National Consortium of Breast Centers, Inc. Only 10 other breast centers in the United States have received this prestigious designation, which represents our commitment to provide the highest level of quality breast health care to patients in our community.

“We are proud to be the only Breast Center in New York state to be designated as a Breast Center of Excellence by the National Consortium of Breast Centers. Our commitment to patients and their families is the number one priority and our collaborative team approach makes that extraordinary care possible,” said Lori Medeiros, medical director of the Rochester General Breast Center.

The designation as a Breast Center of Excellence is effective for one year, and is awarded after meeting 33 National Quality Indicators.

‘Cancer Mission 2020’ launched in Rochester Gary Mervis, chairman and founder of Camp Good Days and Special Times, along with a number of local community leaders and citizens, recently announced the launching of a new website and effort: Cancer Mission 2020…The End Of Cancer By The End Of The Decade!

The website address is www.cancermission2020.com This effort is the result of continued discussions, suggestions, and plans originally set forth in the Camp Good Days’ Cancer Summit, held in 2009.

As the name implies, the goal is to generate a grassroots movement, starting in Upstate New York, and branching out across the country and the world, to develop a comprehensive, cohesive, collaborative way in which we will finally find the answers that have been eluding us in the war on cancer.

According to organizers, Cancer Mission 2020 brings together doctors, researchers and other medical practitioners, legislators and government officials, representatives from support and service agencies, cancer patients, and community members, to move forward with a goal of having 1.5 million voices, leading the way with a new game plan, with the ultimate mission to end cancer by the end of this decade.

Tobacco Free NYS Separate File

March 2011 •

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Rochester General Hospital Separate File

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IN GOOD HEALTH – Rochester / Genesee Valley Healthcare Newspaper • March 2011