Vol. LXXXIV No. 30 Omaha, NE
Celebrating 84 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa
Working Side by Side, Israeli, Palestinian Doctors Save Lives
21 Adar II, 5765 April 1, 2005
Purim Around the Heartland
by DINA KRAFT ment from the West Bank JERUSALEM (JTA)--The city of Bethlehem. For her, pair of surgeons--one the surgeons’ nationalities Israeli, one Palestinian-don’t matter. examine the maze of tubes “It makes no difference to taped to 10-year-old me if they are Israeli or Mohammed Salemeh’s Palestinian. I’m just thankful chest. They methodically to them for all their help,” check his heart rate, oxygen she said, wearing a long levels and breathing. embroidered gown, her The young patient’s mothhead covered in a beige er, Mariam, stands behind headscarf. them, next to the heart monMarzouqa, a Palestinian itor. Her eyes grow wide as from Bethlehem, and Dr. Eli she watches her son’s chest Milgalter, an Israeli from slowly rise and fall. Jerusalem, have operated Mohammed is unconon 110 Palestinian children scious after some six hours Ten-year-old Mohammed Salemeh of Bethlehem lies in the from the West Bank and of surgery at Hadassah children’s intensive care unit of Hadassah Hospital in Gaza Strip who need heart Hospital in Ein Kerem, but Jerusalem, after an operation on his aortic valve, as heart surgery. Their work is fundhe is in “excellent condi- surgeons Dr. Bisher Marzouqa, left, a Palestinian, and Dr. Eli ed by a Peres Center for tion,” the doctors assure Milgalter, an Israeli, check on their patient. Hadassah was Peace program that is suprecently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, in part ported by Italian donors. Mariam. The doctors operated because of the cooperation and coexistence by a staff that During surgery, the pair Credit: Brian Hendler/JTA work together in studied together on Mohammed, is both Jewish and Arab. fixing the damaged aortic valve with which he was concentration and partnership. Outside the operating born. A narrowing of the aortic valve opening made it room, they joke and tease each other like old friends. difficult for blood to flow from the left ventricle to the Hadassah recently was nominated for the Nobel aorta, which supplies the body with oxygenated blood. Peace Prize, in part because of the cooperation and On a piece of notebook paper, Dr. Bisher Marzouqa coexistence demonstrated by a staff that is both Jewish sketches out a diagram of the procedure for Mariam, a and Arab. Palestinian Muslim who has brought her son for treat- Continued on page 15
Purim festivities at Beth Israel Synagogue included a noisy Megillah reading, dairy dinner, purim spiel, and costume parade. More than 125 people enjoyed using a wide variety of noisemakers and wearing some wild costumes. Above: Amanda, Leah, and Josh Gurock arrived as “The Three Blind Mice”; Leah won in the category of Best Find more photos on pages 8-9 Child’s Costume.
Speech Therapy Has Outgrown Room at the Home by RITA SHELLEY A hip fracture put “John” in the hospital. Aided by rehabilitation, his hip is healing. But another complication is interfering with his health. Seemingly out of the blue, the simple acts of chewing and swallowing have become mysteriously difficult. “Lena” has a progressive memory disorder. Difficulty recalling words that used to be familiar to her, words like “ice cream,” is one of the effects of her illness. A generation ago, when John’s father had a similar difficulty with swallowing, his caregivers knew that if he couldn't eat, he wouldn't get better. But they didn't know what to do. And the effects of a memory disorder like Lena's also was seen as a problem without a solution. Today, speech-language pathologists offer numerous strategies to counter the effects of aging on the ability to communicate. At the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home, Speech Pathologist Jennifer Flanagan works with people like “John” to strengthen the muscles of his throat so he can swallow food safely. The muscles that aid in his swallowing probably have been deteriorating for some time as a course of normal aging, but he didn’t notice the gradual changes that were occurring long before the hip fracture. Now, with his body working to heal the fractured hip, he is no longer able to compensate for the reduced muscle strength. Flanagan also teaches people like “Lena” to gesture or draw pictures to express her needs and wants, even when she can’t find the right words. This
Inside Opinion Page see page 12
is only one s t r a t e g y Flanagan t e a c h e s Residents with neurological and memory disorders, to help them avoid the isolation and frustration that accompany difficulty communicating. Therapies such as those offered by speech and language pro- Jennifer Flanagan, a speech/language pathologist at the Rose Blumkin f e s s i o n a l s Jewish Home, looks over results of evaluations of a resident before making were misun- recommendations for therapy. derstood and underutilized when the activity and background noise from a current Home was built. busy occupational and physical therapy Certainly no one could anticipate how program. valuable these services would become, Thanks to the field of speech-language or the need for sufficient space to be pathology and professionals like allocated in which to provide them in a Flanagan, a swallowing or communicacomfortable and dignified way. tion disorder is often a temporary setCurrently, speech, swallowing and com- back, not the foretelling of a downward munication therapies are shoe-horned spiraling quality of life. And while neuinto a corner of the crowded Physical rological and memory disorders aren't and Occupational Therapy room. reversible, today we know more about While re-learning communication skills lowering the frustration levels of the ideally would take place in a quiet, pri- people experiencing them, while assistvate space, the current arrangement is ing them to compensate for their deficits. anything but quiet and private. Instead “Many people think that speech-lanthere are the distractions of constant guage pathologists work only on com-
munication, but it’s much more than that,” Flanagan said. “Frequently, we also work with residents who are experiencing difficulty with swallowing and eating, so they can continue to get their most basic needs met--nutrition and hydration.” “We also work with residents’ ability to reason, solve problems, to recall information, and to express basic wants and needs,” she said. “We help people perform at their best.” For example, when you want ice cream, but can't find the words, one of your choices is to pretend to lick an ice cream cone. It’s just ice cream, but the process fills one of your basic needs-to communicate with other humans and have them understand what you want. In a “new” Jewish Home, these services will operate in space designed especially for them. “When we first started offering speech therapy, it was virtually impossible to determine the demand in the years to come,” said Mike Silverman, Executive Director of Jewish Senior Services and the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home. “But this is another of many instances in which the services we offer have outgrown what even the most creative staff can reasonably accommodate in a 25year-old building. “We are looking forward to the future,” he added, “when these services will be provided in a private, dedicated space-and where residents will work one-onone with therapists to regain their independence.”
This Week: Teen Age Features AZA: Page 11 Passover Issue Coming April 15: “Jewish Omaha: A Global Village” Omaha’s Partnership with Israel Features Acco: Page 4
Primary Election Guide: Page 7
Photos from Purim Around the Heartland: Pages 8-9
Nominations Due for Jewish Athletes’ Awards: Page 10