OPINION
SUNDAY AUGUST 17, 2014
HERALD/REVIEW
A5
Cartoon presented dangerous generalization REV. MARK E. PERRY extremists” or “ISIS” rather than just the word “Islam.” But, as it is, it is a questionable message at best and inflammatory and dangerous at worst. I say “dangerous” because if this interpretation is shared by most people, as it appears to be, then it directly feeds into and fuels a general fear and hatred of Islam and Islamic people that is building up in our country. I am saddened by the number of emails and articles I read that do not differentiate between the philosophy and actions of violent extremist groups within Islam and the Islamic people and religion as a whole. The lines between the two are getting more and more blurred in people’s minds. Yet such blurring is equivalent to condemning the whole religion of Christianity because of the hateful actions and beliefs of self-proclaimed “Christian” groups like the Ku Klux Klan, Westboro Baptist Church, or our shameful actions in Christian history like the Inquisition, the Crusades, or the killing of Native Americans who didn’t convert. The mere fact that Kurdish Muslims from both Iraq and Syria are fighting to protect and rescue tens of thousands of non-Muslim Yazidi peoples from the persecution of Islamic State militants is itself a testament to the fact that one cannot make such negative generalizations. We have seen many
A new wave of primary care
hat a scarcity of primary care physicians exists is no secret. Rural areas in particular have had challenges in meeting the needs of their citizens in terms of providing access to care because of this shortage. There also has been a reluctance to fund Graduate Medical Education by the government in order to provide adequate residency opportunities for future physicians. So American entrepreneurship is beginning to move forward to take up the slack. Walmart has announced that it will be opening primary care clinics in several of its South Carolina and Texas stores. CVS, Target, and Walgreens also are offering primary care services at selected locations throughout the United States. For example, Walgreens has six locations in Tucson and 10 in Phoenix while CVS has 24 throughout the state, six of which are in Tucson. These corporations apparently are seeing a market opportunity in providing primary care services which is being unmet by conventional means. I think they may be spot on. These companies are geared to provide convenient and continuous service in primary care services. For example, CVS’s MinuteClinics advertise they are open 7-days-a-week, including evenings and weekends, no appointment is necessary, the cost is $40 a visit, and they accept most insurance plans. A collateral market opportunity for these companies is the enhancement of their pharmacies which are in the proximity of the care center. Often times we will endure minor, but uncomfortable conditions, such as sinus
problems, rashes, colds, or upset stomachs because we can’t get in to see a doctor. And by the time we do get an appointment, the condition has abated. OMMENTARY In terms LANNY A. KOPE, EDD of what treatments the MinuteClinics provide, they list several health care needs which they can meet including: allergies, bronchitis, earaches, flu-like symptoms, sinus infections, urinary tract and bladder infections, or bug bites and stings. In addition to providing treatment, these centers also provide immunizations, physicals, and other wellness/ prevention services. The centers are staffed by physician assistants or nurse practitioners who are under the supervision of a licensed physician. Normally a physician will supervise several locations. Often the question is asked “What is a PA or a NP?” First of all PAs are nationally certified and state licensed. They can perform many health care services such as conducting physicals, writing prescriptions, diagnosing illness, or developing treatment plans. They are normally covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or Tricare. In terms of training, PAs complete a 3-year graduate program which has the same prerequisites as medical school and complete over 2,000 hours in clinical rotations. These rotations are in the standard medical fields such as internal medicine, pediatrics, OB/GYN, or emergency medicine. NPs have a similar scope
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of practice and qualifications except they have their RN first and then go beyond that level of clinical education to obtain a graduate degree in medical areas. They can provide services in the same clinical fields as a PA, including the writing of prescriptions. And like the PA, they are licensed by the state. The use of physician extenders such as PAs or NPs is not new to those of us who served in the military. Navy and Coast Guard Corpsman along with Air Force and Army medics have for years treated the men and women in our armed forces. I’m sure many us who served can still remember their skill with an inoculation needle! One factor about primary care centers is that they can be the entry into the health care system for illnesses above the skill level of the PAs or NPs. In essence patients will be triaged if higher level care is indicated. And, most of the patients who utilize the services of a primary care center do not have a family physician so the center often helps the patient become affiliated with a physician if continual treatment is necessary. We are a creative society that takes a challenge and turns it into an opportunity. It will be interesting to see if the retail centers become the new wave of primary care or just another good idea whose time has not yet come.
LANNY A. KOPE, EDD has been a hospital trustee for more than 30 years, serving on urban and rural hospital boards. He is the immediate past Board Chair of Sierra Vista Regional Health Center and has had a national responsibility as Chair of the American Hospital Association’s Committee on Governance. Dr. Kope is also an University of Phoenix faculty member in health care.
Anniversary authors’ event celebrates quality
W
hen Cochise College began planning its 50th anniversary celebration, it didn’t have to look further than the Internet for ideas. Despite having reams of potential opportunities and quirky ways to draw attention to its golden anniversary, the college couldn’t have predicted the organic nature in which its plans would actually develop. A prime example of a small idea that’s turning into a fabulous addition to our plans is an authors’ signing planned for 4 p.m. Sept. 22 at the Sierra Vista Campus and Sept. 23 at the Douglas Campus. The signing, which is now likely to also include a reading, features published authors who are former or current faculty members, and Cochise College alumni. How many of those could there be? Well, we’ve been in touch with many, and there are probably more than we know of at this point. But the concept came from former faculty member Allan Meyer, who taught in the humanities for about 23 years, beginning in 1970. Now a resident of Oro Valley, Allan has recently published his second book, “A Dog’s Choice,” and has kept up with several “published” colleagues over the years. Among those who have been
invited are Dr. Joe Gilliland, a founding member of the faculty who is working on his memoirs; Howard DeWitt, who taught history and has penned many RESIDENT S books about pop culture; Leslie ORNER Clark, who reR tired from the English faculty OTTWEILER and continues to publish the online poetry journal “Voices on the Wind;” Dick Atkinson, former baseball coach and pro golfer, who recently published “Golf: Short Stories;” and alumni historians Annie Graeme Larkin (’03) and Cindy Hayostek (’72), who’ve authored books about the histories of Bisbee and Douglas, respectively. Current faculty who are expected to participate include Jay Treiber, who recently published “Spirit Walk,” a novel set in the Douglas area about a college professor’s return to the scene of an adolescent lapse in judgment that shaped his life, and Dr. Clyne Namuo, whose “Community College Strategy: The Innovative Leader’s Handbook” is based on doctoral research about how col-
P ’ C D .J.D. R
lege leaders facilitate innovation and strategic behavior despite reduced financial resources. Some say writing is a skill in decline, difficult to acquire and trying on one’s patience. But for every statement about its suffering, there is an article about the thriving, if changing, publishing industry. In the college environment, I can’t turn a corner without running into a bookworm (the person who so adroitly helps me with this column among them!). It’s nice to know that our published faculty aren’t people who just know grammar, but individuals who have the ability to shape a compelling story. Many an avid reader will be pleased to know that 1) you can meet these authors in September and stick around for special anniversary performances by Twist & Shout: The Definitive Beatles Experience, and 2) you can also support the success of students at Cochise College by making purchases — of books and other items — through the Amazon Smile program, now contributing a percentage of qualifying purchases to the Cochise College Foundation. How smart is that! J.D. ROTTWEILER is president of Cochise College. Contact him at jdr@ cochise.edu.
other examples of Islamic people speaking out against such violence and seeking to protect other religious groups, including Christians. I personally know American Muslims who abhor and speak out against such violent warping of their revered religious beliefs. Obviously Christians and Muslims significantly disagree on a number of doctrinal beliefs. But we also share a number of similar beliefs and moral teachings. The compassion of Jesus compels me and other Christians to treat all people as equally loved by God. This is a nation that, from its beginning, holds freedom- and respect-of religion as one of its most critical laws and values. If we allow ourselves to slip into hatred of a whole people and their religion because of the wholly abhorrent actions of groups within that religion, we are turning our back on these most revered national and religious values. Help clear up what is blurry. Make the lines clear. I ask the Herald/Review to make public what I trust you already support: State your opposition to anti-Muslim rhetoric, affirm your respect for religious people everywhere and offer an apology for printing such a questionable and ambiguous cartoon. Thank you for allowing me to express my opinion. I look forward to your response. REV. MARK E. PERRY is the pastor at Sierra Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sierra Vista, and can be contacted at pastormark@sierralutheran.org
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COMMENTARY
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I’
m writing to express my strong objection to the choice of including the editorial cartoon on the Wednesday, Aug. 13, opinion page. For those who may not have seen it, the first frame of the cartoon shows two men in protective gear peering into a microscope with one of them making comment about a “virulent new strain,” evoking an image of those dealing with the deadly Ebola virus. The second frame then shows the word “Islam” in the slide under the microscope. My immediate impression was that this was a message equating the entire Islamic religion with a deadly virus. I called Herald/Review editor, Eric Petermann, to share my concerns and check out my impression. We had a respectful and helpful conversation in which he explained that his interpretation for choosing this cartoon was it was condemning Islamic extremist groups, like ISIS, and not a slam against the whole religion in general. I appreciate that Mr. Petermann chose to run this cartoon out of that interpretation and not as a condemnation of one of the five great religions of the world. This letter is written at his invitation. I wanted to check out my perspective with others. So, on Thursday, at the Global Leadership Summit, hosted by Village Meadows Baptist Church, I randomly asked five clergy and three lay people what message they perceived in this cartoon, without first sharing my opinion. Only one lay person interpreted it as referring only to extremist groups. They all agreed that if the original intent of the cartoonist was to equate only such extremist groups with a deadly virus, it would have been much clearer had he/she used the word, “Islamic
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