National Disability Employment Awareness Month

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By Terry Orr

Held each October, National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) is a national campaign that raises awareness about disability employment issues and celebrates the many and varied contributions of America's workers with disabilities. This year's theme is "A Strong Workforce is an Inclusive Workforce: What Can YOU Do?"

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During nearly five plus decades of working, I have worked with many people disabilities and to the person – they all excelled in the workplace. 

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The AbilityOne Program is the largest single source of employment for people who are blind or have significant disabilities in the United States, providing employment opportunities to more than 50,000 people. More than 600 participating, community-based nonprofit agencies (NPAs) train and employ these individuals with disabilities nationwide. But there are hundreds of thousands of Americans who are blind or have other significant disabilities that are still waiting for their chance to work. That’s why building awareness of the Program during NDEAM and throughout the year is so crucial to its success.

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References and Links:

http://www.dol.gov/odep/

http://www.consultspringboard.com/2012/ndeam-what-can-you-do/

http://www.nablement.com/2012/08/national-disability-employment-awareness-month-moving-beyond-the-tagline/

http://blog.capabilitiesinc.biz/?p=863

http://www.abilityone.gov/media_room/ndeam.html

Long Term Care Planning Month

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By Nurse Diane

Cruise Ship VS Nursing Home

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About 2 years ago my wife and I were on a cruise through the western Mediterranean aboard a Princess liner. At dinner we noticed an elderly lady sitting alone along the rail of the grand stairway in the main dining room. I also noticed that all the staff, ships officers, waiters, busboys, etc., all seemed very familiar with this lady.

I asked our waiter who the lady was, expecting to be told that she owned the line, but he said he only knew that she had been on board for the last four cruises, back to back.

As we left the dining room one evening I caught her eye and stopped to say hello. We chatted and I said, "I understand you've been on this ship for the last four cruises".

She replied, "Yes, that's true."

I stated, "I don't understand" and she replied, without a pause, “It’s cheaper than a nursing home".

So, there will be no nursing home in my future. When I get old and feeble, I am going to get on a Princess Cruise Ship. The average cost for a nursing home is $200 per day. I have checked on reservations at Princess and I can get a long term discount and senior discount price of $135 per day. That leaves $65 a day for:

• Gratuities which will only be $10 per day.
• I will have as many as 10 meals a day if I can waddle to the restaurant, or I can have room service (which means I can have breakfast in bed every day of the week).
• Princess has as many as three swimming pools, a workout room, free washers and dryers, and shows every night.
• They have free toothpaste and razors, and free soap and shampoo.
• They will even treat you like a customer, not a patient.
• An extra $5 worth of tips will have the entire staff scrambling to help you.
• I will get to meet new people every 7 or 14 days.
• TV broken? Light bulb needs changing? Need to have the mattress replaced? No Problem! They will fix everything and apologize for your inconvenience.
• Clean sheets and towels every day, and you don't even have to ask for them.
• If you fall in the nursing home and break a hip you are on Medicare; if you fall and break a hip on the Princess ship they will upgrade you to a suite for the rest of your life.

Now hold on for the best!

• Do you want to see South America, the Panama Canal, Tahiti, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, or name where you want to go?
• Princess will have a ship ready to go.
• So don't look for me in a nursing home, just call shore to ship.
• PS. And don't forget, when you die, they just dump you over the side at no charge.

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 October is Long Term Care Planning Month. Planning for long term care is one of the most important things you or your loved one can do. Statistics show that six out of ten people will need long term care, and often times when a crisis happens, it’s too late to plan for it. Loved ones can be left wondering what kinds of options are available, how they will finance it, and what the person receiving care would prefer.  This type of insurance is sometimes provided through your employers or can be purchased through your insurance agent.  You don't want to wait until there is an illness or accident that will require care sooner than you are ready.

Last year my son's father-in-law was in a small fender bender.  He was 70 years old and had been in excellent health.  This accident cause injury to his shoulder, and he was hospitalized for a brief time.  During this time it was discovered that he had Parkinson's disease as well as early stages of Alzheimer’s.  His family was looking at a long time of long term care, however unfortunately he passed away after suffering heart problems.  

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If you haven't considered long term care planning for your life, now is a good time to discuss your options with your insurance agent or check in with the cruise ship lines. (Joking about the ship…well…maybe)

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Head Start Program – Is it Worth the Cost?

Head Start Awareness Month

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By Terry Orr

Overview

Like most of us, we have heard many things about the Head Start Program (HSP) – the good, the bad and of course the ugly.  The concept and overall purpose of HSP is excellent – the implementation however, seems to be the problem. What follows is a summary of HSP today and recommendations on what may need to be done.

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What is Head Start Program?

The Head Start Program is a program of the United States Department of Health and Human Services that provides comprehensive education, health, nutrition, and parent involvement services to low-income children and their families. (Wikipedia - also for more details)

Mission

Head Start promotes school readiness by enhancing the social and cognitive development of children through the provisions of education, health, nutrition, social and other services. [Source]

Other Services

Head Start and Early Head Start programs offer comprehensive, interdisciplinary services in the areas of physical and dental health, mental health, nutrition, education, and parent involvement.

Purpose

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According to the Nevada Early Childhood Advisory Council:

President Ronald Reagan proclaimed October as Head Start Awareness Month in October of 1982. After 29 years, Head Start is proud to have served millions of low-income preschool children and their families.

Head Start strives to improve the prevention, detection and treatment of children’s medical, nutritional and educational problems. 

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Budget and Funding

This is a tough one to decipher – from the Federal budget for 2012; about $8 billion was set aside for this program.  Other funding comes for states, corporation and personal donations.  Those numbers seemed reasonable for about one million children for the year.  Overall cost per child is around $8,000 per year (Multiple sources).  As of this writing, I have yet to uncover what is the total Head Start Program budget.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated last year that the automatic cuts would slice $590 million from federal spending on Head Start, which will be more than $7.9 billion in 2012. The National Education Association said the cuts would eliminate 80,000 of the 962,000 slots for children and more than 30,000 jobs of teachers, aides and administrators in the program. [Head Start Fears Impact of Potential Budget Cuts - By ADESHINA EMMANUEL – New York Times, Published: July 26, 2012].

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Critical Studies and Statements

The Head Start Impact Study Final Report, Executive Summary dated January 2010 provides this final assessment.

In sum, this report finds that providing access to Head Start has benefits for both 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds in the cognitive, health, and parenting domains, and for 3-year-olds in the social-emotional domain. However, the benefits of access to Head Start at age four are largely absent by 1st grade for the program population as a whole. For 3-year-olds, there are few sustained benefits, although access to the program may lead to improved parent-child relationships through 1st grade, a potentially important finding for children’s longer term development.

Mr. McCluskey of the Cato Institute said, however: “The question shouldn’t ultimately be are some people helped. The question is, is the program doing the thing it’s supposed to do and doing it in a way that justifies the expense.  He continued: “If the goal is to give low-income students a head start, and it’s not providing that, then it’s not doing the job it exists to do. As a practical matter, there’s no evidence it’s working and it costs billions?” [Head Start Fears Impact of Potential Budget Cuts - By ADESHINA EMMANUEL – New York Times, Published: July 26, 2012].

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My take on Head Start Program

First and foremost, I am not a subject matter expert on this topic.  From my layman’s perspective, this is another example of a well-meaning program that has grown significantly, whose purpose, goals and charter were expanded in the good fiscal times and now there are serious shortfalls in funding and HSP cannot meet existing obligations.

As a parent, grandparent and American citizen – doing what we can to help every American kid, especially education – is a high priority.  I stress the American kids here and not those who are in the country without proper documentation (illegal immigrants) – that in and of itself continues to strain our overall economy.

Final note – If Head Start Programs are to continue – a thorough review needs to be conducted – updating the mission and purpose of HSP.  Establish realistic budget and priorities for austere times.  Budget submission linked directly to federally mandated charter and HSPs strategic and business plans.

What Can You Do?
This largely depends on your perspective and support of Head Start.  If you support the programs - then getting involved, volunteering, donating money and or goods, and being proactive are good starting points.  In addition, I would think getting involved by encouraging others to participate and to contact their local, state and national elected people.

Questions

• How and where does Head Start Programs fit into the overall Education big picture?
• Does HSP really belong under the Welfare umbrella?
• Where does education fit on your priority list?

Summary

• Education of our children MUST take priority over many programs/expenses
• Education today is failing to prepare our children for today's and tomorrows environment
• Our Children need to be engaged in learning well before their 5^th or 6^th birthdays
• We need world-class education from the ground up

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References and Links:

• http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ohs/about/head-start
• http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/hs/about
• http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/health/Health/Health%20and%20Wellness/Health%20and%20Wellness%20Program%20Staff/health_art_00580_090105.html
• http://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/opre/executive_summary_final.pdf
• http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/27/us/head-start-fears-impact-of-potential-budget-cuts.html?pagewanted=all
• http://www.nhsa.org/Head_Start_Awareness_Month
• http://www.nevadaecac.com/?p=146
• http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2081778,00.html 

Mental Illness Awareness Week

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By Nurse Diane

I saw a tee shirt that said one in four people are crazy.  Check three of your friends, if they are ok, then it’s you.  While it may be true that one in four suffer from some kind of mental illness, it may not be obvious to the untrained person.

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There are many types of Mental Illness.  Katie Couric, a famous news reporter has recently started her own television show.  One of her recent confessions included the fact that she had an eating disorder.  Another topic she discussed was Depression.  Following the death of her husband she experienced many sleepless nights, the inability to concentrate, and the need to isolate herself from others.  These are normal coping mechanisms when experiencing a huge loss.  To look at Katie, one would never imagine that she experiences the same problems as others in her situation; she appears to be on top of things, so that shows you that you can't always recognize a mental illness. There have been 19 million who have been diagnosed with Depression alone, and 56% are receiving treatment.  To see her story, click here: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/katies-take-abc-news/am-depressed-102624278.html

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There are other forms of Mental illness such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  This is a condition normally seen with military personnel returning from deployment, or those involved in a traumatic experience such as the theater shooting in Colorado. 

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There is also OCD, Obsessive Compulsive disorder, bipolar disorders and schizophrenia to name a few.  I spent a month living on the grounds of a mental institution while doing my psychology rotation.  I was able to view first-hand the expressions and actions of the patients there.  That is why when I was standing in line at the post office one day and a woman beside me starting just talking out of the blue, I was concerned for her well-being.  I was not aware at the time that she had one of those new blue tooth devices for her cell phone that attached to her ear, and she was simply having a conversation with someone on the other end. 

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This is Mental Illness Awareness Week.  Mental illness no longer carries the stigma it did years ago.  The primary goal is to recognize there is a problem and seek help.  If you, or someone close to you is suffering from any type of mental illness, encourage them to seek help from their physician and begin treatment as soon as possible.  Several types can be controlled with medication. 

For more information and ways you can help become more aware about mental illness, click on this site: http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/go/may

Positive Attitude - Can Do!

Positive Attitudes lead to ...
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By Terry Orr

“Your attitude is an expression of your values, beliefs and expectations.” ~ Samuel Johnson

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Eons ago at my first duty station in Jacksonville, Florida my coffee cup with the following expression written “No Job is too big or small – Can Do.” As a naive young sailor that I was – truly believed it then – as I do today.

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“Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” ~ Stephen Levine

Bill Bayesian, author of “Developing The Mind of a Leader” and his blog site Bill Boyajian Associates is spot on within his assessment - Attitude isn't everything, but it sure means a lot.  Your attitude is crucial to your leadership because it demonstrates who you are and what you're like on the inside. Our outer expressions are always a result of our inner feelings. Leaders put aside their personal preferences to get the job done.

Abraham Lincoln said it this way: "I have noticed that folks are generally about as happy as they make up their minds to be."  

The link to Bill blog site is listed below and I encourage you to read this entire article – very insightful and interesting read.

“The greatest revolution of our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.” ~ Anonymous

Craig Jarrow – author of Time Management Ninja and Time Management Ninja blog site – wrote an interesting article in February of this year titled “21 Ways to Define a Positive Attitude.” Here are a few that really stuck home:

• It is looking adversity in the eye…and laughing;.
• Motivating those around you with a positive word;
• Being friendly to those you don’t know;
• It’s getting back up when you fall down. (No matter how many times you fall down.);
• Understanding that relationships are more important than material things;
• Paying a compliment, even to a total strange;
• Not letting other people’s negativity bring you down; and
• Being true to yourself… always.

“You cannot tailor make the situations in life, but you can tailor make the attitudes to fit those situations before they arise.” ~ Earl Nightingale

Jan Malloch of Power Positive Now blog writes in her article – “7 Benefits of Having a Positive Attitude” - they are:

1. Perhaps the most important benefit is better health;
2. Positive thinkers have less stress in their lives and have much more control over how they react to events;
3. It is probably fair to say that those with a positive attitude will have more friends and a better social life;
4. Positive people will be more confident. They look forward to meeting others and accepting daily challenges;
5. They will also have a greater belief in their own abilities;
6. Positive thinkers enjoy life more; and
7. Optimists look forward to the future.

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“Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, “This is the real me,” and when you have found that attitude, follow it.” ~ Helen Keller

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As mentioned frequently, I see the glass of life half-full with lots of opportunities, challenges to excel at solving and to learn something new – and long the way to help others during the process.

Today – the information available us has exponentially increase over the past two decades in particular.  Review these links provide just the tip of the ice burg and we hope you will take time to review them, learn from and enjoy them.

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References and Links:

http://billboyajianassociates.com/leverage-positive-attitude/

http://www.life123.com/health/self-improvement/attitude/positive-attitude.shtml

http://www.trainism.com/develop-positive-attitude.html

http://www.successconsciousness.com/positive_attitude.htm

http://timemanagementninja.com/2012/02/21-ways-to-define-a-positive-attitude/

http://www.positive-attitude-tips.com/benefits-of-a-positive-attitude.html

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

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By Nurse Diane

The other day I got a text from a friend of mine asking for prayers.  She had been to see her doctor, and they found a suspicious area on one of her breasts.  She was to visit a surgeon the following day.   The next day I got an updated text saying that the results were fine, it was a benign cyst.

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Early detection is essential for diagnosing breast cancer, and starting early treatment for curing it. You can start by performing a self-breast exam at home.  This should be done every month, the same day.  The procedure is simple.  Following a shower, lay down on your bed.  Bend your arm behind your head.  With the other hand begin using your fingers in a circular motion and press down starting at the nipple and rotating around the breast until you cover the entire area.  Make sure to press under your arm as well.  Repeat on the opposite side.  Don't forget to squeeze the nipple to see if there is any discharge. If you discover any lumps, contact your doctor immediately and schedule a mammogram.

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Breast cancer is the second highest cancer illness for women.  Skin cancer being the highest.  According to breastcancer.org, 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with some form of breast cancer sometime in her life.  Last year, there were 230,480 new cases.  A woman's risk of getting breast cancer is higher if there is a family member who has it; however, 85% of these people have no family history of breast cancer.

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Breast cancer also occurs in men as well.  While the rate is not as high as it is in women, self-examination is just as important. About 39,520 women in the U.S. were expected to die in 2011 from breast cancer, though death rates have been decreasing since 1990 — especially in women under 50. These decreases are thought to be the result of treatment advances, earlier detection through screening, and increased awareness.

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October is breast cancer awareness month.  I'm sure you have noticed pink everywhere.  The pink ribbons are to remind you to take care of your breasts, and your health.  This month, if you have not had a recent mammogram, or physical exam, consider making an appointment to be checked.  If you have a problem, it can be taken care of faster, and if you don't have a problem, you will be relieved that you have been checked. It is recommended that a mammogram be performed every year at the age of 40.  However if there is a family history, you may desire to be examined early.  Check with your physician to be sure when you should be checked.

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For more information visit this site:  http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/about-nbcf/nbcf-events