Health briefs
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Health Writer
Premature birth topic of talk
A national expert will speak tomorrow on race as it relates to premature births in a free presentation sponsored by the March of Dimes Hawai'i Chapter, Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition of Hawai'i, and the Department of Health.
Dr. Michael C. Lu, of UCLA Schools of Medicine and Public Health, will talk about "Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Birth Outcomes: A New Perspective" from 2 to 4 p.m. at Tokai University auditorium. Lu is a leading authority on premature births, which are on the rise. Premature birth is a major health concern because of the impact on healthcare costs and the long-term health of the newborn.
Lu will share information about racial and ethnic differences in the frequency of premature births in Hawai'i and the rest of the nation.
Mental health hotlines merge
The Maui Mental Health Kokua crisis/help line, (808) 244-7407, will soon be merged into the Department of Health's access line, (800) 75-ENTRY (36879).
The transition is ongoing through May 29. Those who need mental-health crisis services can call the access line anytime to reach out for appropriate mental health and crisis services for adults.
Access line staff assess the caller's needs and link them to appropriate services, provide suicide and crisis intervention, schedule eligibility assessments, authorize admissions to Hawai'i State Hospital and provide further information and referral. The access line started on O'ahu Sept. 5, 2002. Since then, it has received more than 26,000 calls.
The move is part of the health department's shift of its financial support from the hotline at the Suicide and Crisis Center, which is privately run by a nonprofit organization, to the creation of its own mental-health access line.
Doctor to talk about hormones
The University of Hawai'i Outreach College presents two workshops with Dr. Julie Claire Holmes, a naturopathic physician, who will talk about research on the benefits and risks of hormone replacement theory.
Holmes, who has practiced on Maui for 19 years, will also discuss digital infrared breast imaging — thermography — a non-X-ray, noninvasive diagnostic method of detecting the beginning of breast cancer.
The workshops — "Wom-an to Woman: Options for Menopause and the 10 Years Prior" on May 17 and "Your Blood Sugar Balance: A Key to Slowing the Aging Process and Resisting Disease" on May 31 — will be from noon to 5:30 p.m. in the Krauss Hall Yukiyoshi Room on the Manoa campus. Fee for each is $60. To register, call 956-8400 or visit www.outreach.hawaii.edu.
Organic farming expert to speak
Organic farming expert Kimberly D. Clark will give a talk at the Vegetarian Society of Hawai'i meeting May 14 about genetically engineered food and explain how to avoid such products.
Clark is owner-operator of Just Add Water, a 6-year-old Community Supported Agriculture program growing and cooperatively marketing organic products for a dozen farms, including her own.
The meeting will be at 7 p.m. at the Ala Wai Golf Course clubhouse, 404 Kapahulu Ave. Admission is free and open to the public. Free food samples will be distributed. For more information, call 944-VEGI (8344).
Clark will also speak to the Maui Vegetarian Society at 7 p.m. May 15 at Seventh-Day Adventist Church on Maui.
Music seminar set for Saturday
"Music as Therapy" is the focus of a seminar to be conducted by Arthur Harvey, assistant professor of music at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa, and sponsored by Hawaii Medical Service Association. Public and health professionals are invited to sign up to learn how music can influence health and wellness as well as enhance learning and memory.
The session will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Hawaii Prince Hotel's Mauna Kea Ballroom. To register, call 948-6398.
