Next BHCC
Meeting
WHAT:
The Community Resource Center's Family Task Force will report on
the development of Yellowstone County's legislative agenda for children.
We invite all participants to discuss and bring resource
materials related to their specific legislative priorities for
the upcoming session.
WHEN:
Thursday, October 7th, 3:30-5pm
WHERE:
Mansfield Health Education Center
Parenting Programs and
Professional Workshops
Sponsored by
Yellowstone County Safe & Drug-Free Schools
Consortium
Janice Gabe,
MSW, LCSW.
Janice is
nationally recognized as one of the country’s leading experts
in the needs and issues facing kids and families today.
She will hold the following four workshops at the Skyview High
Theater on October 21st and
22nd.
Thursday October
21st:
·
Rap, hip-hop,
goth and grunge: What is it all about?
Understanding youth cultures. This
workshop will discuss the current segments of the youth
cultures and the evolution of these
cultures.
8:00am-12:00pm
·
Creating
cultures of change. This presentation explores
the concept of resiliency factors in high risk
youths
1:00pm-4:00pm
·
Value based
parenting. A presentation giving
information on the importance of values when raising
children.
6:30pm-7:30pm
Friday October
22nd:
·
Cutting and
other self-harming behavior of adolescent females.
This workshop explores the
myths behind self-harming behavior and provides a step-by-step
process for effective intervention
8:00am-12:00pm
The cost of the
sessions for non-consortium participants is $25 per session or
$60 for all sessions. It is free to all school staff and
12 OPI recertification credits are available if all sessions
are attended.
Pre-registration
is required by calling Safe & Drug-Free Schools at
247-3727.
The 14 Most
Common Drugs on Billings
Streets
Tuesday, October
26th
7:00pm-8:00pm
Lincoln Center
Board Room
Detective Dave
Evans will present an overview of the most common drugs in our
area, including drug paraphernalia and the signs and symptoms
of use.
For more
information call the Safe and Drug-Free
Schools office at
247-3727.
Red
Ribbon Week
October
23rd - 31st is National Red Ribbon Week!
The Red Ribbon
campaign is in memory of a drug enforcement agent who
lost his life while in the line of duty. While his
family awaited news, they wore a red ribbon to offer hope for
his safe return. This _red ribbon_ reminds
everyone of his important mission.
Red Ribbon Week
promotes anti-drug messages. All adults in our community
are role models for our children and it is extremely
important that we all share in this message. While school children promote being
drug and alcohol free, adults can promote saying no to illegal
drugs, while using alcohol and tobacco safely, responsibly and
legally.
The Drug-Free
Schools program will again purchase red ribbons for all
elementary students in District #2. We would also like
to encourage the schools to participate in the following
Spirit Days:
Monday,
October 25th - Drugs Make
Us See Red, by wearing something red!
Tuesday,
October 26th - Life
Without Drugs, No Sweat by wearing sweats!
Wednesday,
October 27th - Run Away
From Drugs by wearing tennis shoes!
Thursday,
October 28th - Too Cool
For Drugs_ by wearing sun
glasses!
Friday,
October 29th - _United We
Stand For A Drug-Free Land_ by wearing
red, white and blue!
Remember it
takes a community effort to spread an anti-drug message.
Thanks for your support!
Kathy
Aders
Drug-Free
Schools
247-3727
Ethics 101 for
Busy People
Camille E. De
Blasi, M.A. will present Ethics 101 for Busy People at
Saint Vincent’s on
September 30th. De Blasi is the president and co-founder
of Healing the Culture which focuses on the vision of what is
means to be a human person. De Blasi has educated
hundreds of pro-life speakers, has spoken to thousands of
audiences, and has lobbied for pro-life legislation to
community and political leaders in Washington
State. She has
hosted radio programs on the life issues and has published
numerous articles on euthanasia, abortion, and
infanticide.
The public is
welcome to attend this event at the Merrilac Hall
auditorium. It is a free event beginning at 7am and
going until 8:15am. A continental style breakfast will
be served. For more information or to make reservations
call 652-8418.
Conference
on Disabilities
St. Vincent
Healthcare’s Center for Health and Healing
and REDOX of Montana, Inc. are sponsoring a conference on
disabilities at the Mansfield
Health
Education
Center. The
conference will be a two part session with the morning
targeting the general public and public servants (offering c/e
credits) to make the public more aware of issues related to
the disabled. This first session will run from 8am until
noon and there is a $15 registration fee. The afternoon
session is targeted to individuals who are marginally or
temporarily disabled (and care givers), providing information
on resources, support networks, stress reduction and coping
skills. This session begins at 1pm and will end at
5pm. The afternoon session is free of charge. The
event is scheduled for Wednesday October 6, 2004. For
more information or to register call the SVH
Center for Health
and Healing at 237-3680.
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Nitty Gritty Dirt
Band
Country and
bluegrass super stars, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band will
headline St. Vincent Healthcare’s 26th annual SAINTS benefit
on Saturday, October 2nd 2004. The annual gala event,
themed as, Paint the Town Red, will have guests arriving to
the flash of photographers as they enter a big city night club
scene. The dress for the event is Urban
Chic, coats for men and jazzy red for
women. The benefit kicks off with a social at 6pm,
followed by a gourmet dinner and auction. Proceeds from
this years’ benefit will support renovation
of the Emergency Department at St. Vincent Healthcare.
Individual tickets for SAINTS are $125. Corporate tables
are currently available from $2,000 to $5,000. For
tickets and more information call St. Vincent Healthcare
Foundation at 237-3600.
Vote and Vaccinate
2004
Not
only is November 2 a day to vote, it is also a day to get
vaccinated. At many polling sites in Yellowstone
County there will be a
place to get your flu shot. Nurses, nursing students,
the local hospitals and local volunteers will be helping
distribute this shot.
This
program is being sponsored by the Yellowstone City-County
Health Department, the Unified Health Command (UHC) and the
Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC). The UHC is a
group made up of representatives of the health department and
the hospitals. The LEPC is a group consisting of first
responders who work on bioterrorism, emergencies or hazardous
disasters. These are the same groups that ran the
_disaster emergency drills_ in Billings last
March.
The
purpose of the vote and vaccinate campaign is to help the UHC
and LEPC gather information in case there is an act of
bioterrorism or a natural disaster occurs. If there was
a type of emergency where mass people needed to be vaccinated
there would be information available on where to distribute
the vaccinations.
The polling
sites have not yet been decided. The only thing for sure
is that it will be sites all around Yellowstone
County. The
sites and other details will be worked out in a meeting held
September 28. Many volunteers are needed to help out with the
administrative work with this campaign. If you
have any questions or would like to volunteer please contact
Kim Bailey at (406) 651-6435.
The Center for
Health and Healing: A New Resource for the
Billings
Community
The connection
between mind and body is being recognized and accepted more
and more by health professionals and the public. People
have come to realize the importance of being healthy, and not
only physically, but mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and
socially. The St. Vincent‚s Center for Health and
Healing is one new health outlet that bases its program on the
idea of incorporating nontraditional therapies into
traditional health care practices. As of April 2004, the
Center has been in the business of helping others reach a
higher level of wellness through various approaches
collectively known as integrative medicine therapies.
Such types of
therapies
offered at the Center include acupuncture, yoga and Pilates
fitness classes, nutritional counseling and education, support
groups, biofeedback, massage therapy, and clinical
counseling.
Carol Engle, a
physical therapist and Pilates instructor at the Center tells
of the importance of having a strong core in order to promote
correct posture and alignment. She says that many people
who are suffering from injury or disability are often due to
an initial lack in core strength. With that in mind, one
can see that a strength-building class like Pilates can be
beneficial for living a higher quality of
life.
Medical
acupuncture is also available at the Center and is one of the
most well researched and proven methods of alternative
medicine. It has been shown to treat and prevent medical
problems such as neurological and muscular disorders,
digestive disorders, respiratory disorders, urinary,
menstrual, and reproductive problems, and even stress-related
issues. There are two well-respected medical doctors on
staff at the Center who are certified acupuncturists: Patricia
LaHaie, MD and Nicole Winbush, MD.
Another venue of
the Center‚s services is nutritional counseling performed by
Courtnie McGowen, a clinical dietician. She addresses
many aspects of nutrition including adult and child weight
management, cholesterol and hypertension management, eating
disorders, trend diets, vitamin and herbal supplements, and
nutrition for disease management.
Stress can be a
significant threat to all aspects of health, and unfortunately
it is often overlooked when professionals diagnose a health
problem. For purposes of reducing stress, biofeedback is
a research-supported technique that allows the patient to
learn about his or her response to stress and how to combat it
using relaxation techniques. It
can help with
problems such as insomnia, high blood pressure, chronic pain,
migraines and tension headaches, anxiety, and Raynaud’s
disease. Becky Davis, Ph.D. of the Center for Health and
Healing teaches patients how to manage stress through
biofeedback and stress reduction practices.
Various support
groups are additionally offered through the Center as a way to
better one‚s health. The groups are geared mostly
towards dealing with death and dying or chronic disease.
A new support group has been initiated for cancer patients
called the Healing Circle. Not
only does this group use mainstream support group techniques,
it incorporates relaxation therapy, massage, aromatherapy, and
gentle movement to help motivate and promote a positive
outlook in patients. Along with support groups, there is
also clinical counseling available as an option for people
seeking guidance in their personal life. Mike Nicholes,
LCSW and Mary Sarff, LCPC provide this service onsite at the
Center.
For more
information about the St. Vincent‚s Center for Health and
Healing, call 237-3680. The Center is located at
90 Poly Drive next to the
MSU-Billings College of Business.
Free Help with
Grant Writing
Health Promotion
students at MSU-Billings are learning about grant writing and
would like to assist local organizations in their applications
for funding. If your group has a project that could
benefit from student assistance please call Ernie Randolfi at
657-2123.
PARTNERS is published
once a month and distributed to members of the Billings
Healthy Community Coalition (BHCC) and others interested in
the health of our community. Contributing editors for
this issue were: Kori DeVries, Rhiann Falk, Holly Girard, Tara
McIlravy, Elsa Petersson, Bridget Sievers, Barbara Bessette,
Brenda Ellis, and Kristine Goddard all students at
MSU-Billings.
If you have
information you would like to see included in the newsletter,
please contact Ernie Randolfi at randolfi@msubillings.edu.
All items for the October edition should be submitted by
October 15th.
The mission of
BHCC is: to develop, maintain and strengthen collaborative
community networks committed to improving overall community
health status and quality of life. To learn more
about this group go to our Website at: www.HealthyBillings.org |
