Great Falls Tribune from Great Falls, Montana • Page 26

GREAT FALLS TRIBUNE WWW.GREATFALLSTRIBUNE.COM GREAT FALLS TRIBUNE WWW.GREATFALLSTRIBUNE.COM Tuesday September 24, 2002 Business KJ 1 M-JKJ Contact: Business Editor Beth Britton 6S Tuesday, September 24, 2002 at 79-1463 or (80o) 438-6600 For story ideas, tips or corrections: Call Associate Editor Tom Kotynski at 791-1477; fax: 791-1431 or (800) e-mail tribfeaturessofast.net Alternative Medicine page 3 Bulletin Board 2H Fitness 3H Seniors' health 4H Minding your Meds 4H KTGF launches newscast Touch America holds annual meeting today Business briefs- By BETH BRITTON Tribune Business Editor Touch America executives and members of its board of directors are meeting today in Minneapolis with company shareholders. Company Chairman Bob Gannon will speak at the annual meeting, which is slated to begin at 1:30 p.m. CDT at the Minneapolis Airport Marriott. Touch America also plans to broadcast its annual shareholders' meeting over the Internet. In addition to Gannon's remarks, the agenda includes time for questions, answers and comments from those shareholders in attendance.

Shareholders are being asked to elect two directors to three-year terms and to approve the Touch America Holdings Inc. long-term incentive compensation plan for executives and the board of directors. The annual meeting for the Butte-based telecom comes at a time when the company's stock languishes below $1. Traded under the symbol TAA on the New York Stock Exchange, Touch America closed at 63 cents Monday, up a penny. At the time of last year's annual meeting at the Mother Lode Theater in Butte, the stock traded at $5.71 per share.

Two years ago, it was $38. Sprint to sell yellow pages By BETH BRITTON Tribune Business Editor Starting Monday, television viewers in the Great Falls area will have one more choice for television news: Montana's Own Big Sky News. After almost a decade-long absence from the news business, KTGF Channel 16, the local NBC affiliate, is gearing up to offer local news. Viewers can tune in at 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.

starting Sept. 30, General Manager Jack May said. "It will give viewers another choice, and it will be a product they will enjoy watching," May said. "They'll get current, local stories that are produced professionally." KTGF Channel 16 (cable 12) is one of five stations purchased last year by Virginia-based Max Media LLC and operated by Missoula-based Max Media Montana. The company's Kalispell, Bozeman, Butte and Missoula stations are ABC affiliates.

Those four stations also will begin newscasts next week. KTGF went on the air in September 1986 and provided local news until 1993, when it decided to offer viewers an alternative to news in the 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. time slots. Since buying the station, however, Max Media officials have been intent on bringing the news back, May said.

"They thought it was the missing piece, and there is a huge demand from viewers for the news," he said. "The company's goal is to be the premier TV group in the area," and offering the news is a big part of that. When discussions for bringing news back originally surfaced last year, May said at that time that the station's staff would expand by up to nine full-time employees once the reporting and production people were hired. But the news game has changed, May said, and the requirement for an expensive conversion to digital format has resulted in the need to cut costs. "If we went ahead and produced (the news) here, we'd need a staff of 15 to 17 people to do it," he said.

That cost would be multiplied by five since the company's other four stations are adding news at the same time. So, the news product offered by KTGF and the four ABC affiliates throughout the state will be different than anything currently seen on the air. Max Media has contracted with Iowa-based Independent News Networks, or INN, to produce the local news. Great Falls will have its own set of anchors and a meteorologist based in Iowa. Although the news anchors will not be in Great Falls, viewers will see one familiar face on NBC.

Dave Ketelhohn, the former news director at KFBB Television Channel 5, Tribune photo by Wayne Arnst KTGF-TV news reporter Dave Ketelhohn shows a new camera in front of the station's offices, 1 1 8 6th St. on Thursday. KTGF will broadcast local news at 5 and 10 p.m. beginning Sept. 30.

Tribune photo by John W. Llston From left, Cyril Jacobson, Lucille Corr, Luella Lee and Wayne Kelly consider prescription drugs at the Great Falls Senior Citizens Center. "I think prices are a big problem," Corr says. Paying the high price of that it had obtained a $1 billion loan commitment and hired investment firms for advice on what its directory publishing business may be worth in a sale. The company first attached a possible price to the phone directory publishing business in July, days after rumors about its creditworthiness pummeled the company's stocks.

Sprint has more than $20 billion in long-term debts. "Sprint is very pleased with our agreement with R.H. Donnelley. Donnelley has a heritage of expertise in the directories business and is a proven leader in the yellow pages industry," Sprint's chairman and chief executive, William Esrey, said in a release. Under the deal, R.H.

Donnelley has been designated as the exclusive directory publisher for Sprint in the markets where Sprint currently provides local telecommunications service. OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) Sprint Corp. is selling its yellow pages publishing business as part of an effort to relieve heavy debt, the telecommunications company said Sunday. The $2.23 billion cash sale to R.H.

Donnelley, expected to close early next year, is the latest in a string of phone directory sales by debt-laden telecoms seeking some financial breathing room. In August, Denver-based Qwest Communications sold its Qwest-Dex directory unit for $7.05 billion to reduce some of its $26.6 billion in debt. Five months earlier, telecom McLeodUSA Inc. closed a deal to sell its directory to the British Yell Group, which already owned Yellow Book USA. Sprint Publishing Advertising is the nation's sixth-largest directory publisher, with more than 260 white and yellow page books in 18 states.

The unit has annual revenue of about $560 million and 1,033 employees, including about 400 in the Kansas City area. R.H. Donnelley, which markets Yellow Pages, will continue operating the directory business from Sprint's suburban Kansas City, Mo. headquarters. Sprint had announced in March newscast.

"People here really won't know if we're doing it in our own back room," May said. Viewers will get to know the news anchors, they will receive a complete weather report for northcentral Montana and they will view the news in a polished, professional format, May added. Both May and Ketelhohn admit that there is one area that won't be covered as completely as in the past sports. Although some sporting events will be covered as news, May said no separate sports-cast will be produced. As Max Media acquires additional stations, more news staff and coverage will be added, May said.

"I don't think we'll be missing anything." he said. "We'd be fools if we weren't apprehensive, but it's very exciting." For information, call 761-8816 or e-mail ktgfktgf.com. We'd be fools if we weren't apprehensive, but it's very exciting. Jack May, KTGF general manager joined KTGF as the Great Falls correspondent. The 39-year-old Ketelhohn will cover the local news, and Max Media's four other state correspondents will provide Montana coverage.

A Capitol correspondent will cover the Montana Legislature. "It's an economy of scale; it saves us money," Ketelhohn said of the unique format. News is expensive; the move to INN will allow the station to compete and survive in a small market like Great Falls, he said. It is the system of choice for a growing number of stations nationwide, he added. Ketelhohn, who says he is happy to be back reporting the news, and the other Montana correspondents will send the Montana and local news to Iowa, where the news professionals there will put together a By RICHARD ECKE Tribune Staff Writer gUfcPOTTeffj, New Pottery OA Is coffee culprit behind heart palpitations, pain? 91 am a well-conditioned middle-aged man who drinks about four cups of coffee per day.

Lately I've been get heart palpitations and some mild chest pain, with some occasional difficulty getting enough gulps of breath. When I quit the coffee these symptoms stopped and I'm back to normal. Should I have been more concerned? Just how bad is coffee for you? A Your first question is an excellent and important question. However, it leads to several preemptive questions in order to answer it adequately. The second question is not as relevant but has some bearing on the answers to the first question.

Who indicated you were a well-conditioned middle-aged man? Was it a physician or is this an assumption on your part because you otherwise "feel well?" If this health status was stated to you by a physician, was it based on a thorough history and physical, and was the physician made aware of the symptoms you mention here? If that is the case, it might exclude the most serious diagnostic consideration that has to be entertained. The most serious problem could be ischemic heart disease (impending heart attack). This would have to be excluded by some laboratory studies. In today's society, we are seeing more problems with symptoms of the nature you describe associated with our lifestyles, including nutrition, tobacco use and exercise, as well as family genetics. These are in the realm of silent unnoticeable problems, including high blood pressure (under stress, with caffeine intake, tobacco use) or secondary to other disease processes (affecting our endocrine gland system or kidneys), and with Type II diabetes and dyslipidemia (cholesterol and blood fat disorders).

The tests needed to evaluate these problems would include checking your blood pressure on frequent multiple occasions, fasting blood to evaluate your cholesterol, HDL, triglycerides in order to determine your LDL, which is the most important risk factor in dyslipidemia evaluation. A fasting blood sugar followed by a minimum of a two-hour post-prandial (100-gram carbohydrate meal) to check for your body's ability to handle a sugar load. A routine baseline EKG would be helpful and comparison with a previous EKG if one is available. If there are signs of changes in the EKG and if your blood studies mentioned above are not appropriate, then an exercise stress test would be important. If that test is in question, further studies with a cardiologist would likely be recommended.

The above is to exclude the most serious consideration associated with your symptoms. The next most likely cause of these symptoms could be esophageal reflux disease, commonly referred to now as GERD. If you have a tendency to reflux into the esophagus from the stomach, you may have irritation of the esophagus. Commonly this is associated with "heartburn," but not uncommonly, that symptom may not be present, and instead you may feel it as a mild pain or even have no symptom. However, since your esophagus receives enervation from the vagus nerve, it in turn has a potential to slow your heart rate through a reflex circuit (vagal reflex).

Normally a heart rate is about 72 beats per minute. However, in extremely well-conditioned individuals, it may be much slower. It is important to know that the heart has an intrinsic rhythm and rate, which is controlled both by a normal pacemaker as well as heart muscle cells themselves. If the heart rate becomes too slow, the heart muscles will sense that it is time for a heartbeat, and they will fire an electric impulse to cause the heart to beat. These are usually out of sync with the heart rhythm and are known as premature ventricular contractions (PVCs).

They may be felt as a palpitation or a "flipping sensation" in the chest. If these occur with some degree of frequency, they may cause a symptom of air hunger (as though you can't get enough breath). Finally, some individuals are highly sensitive to caffeine in any form and they may develop palpitations and breathlessness due to rapid firing of the normal pacemaker, either due to premature atrial contractions or in association with paroxysmal atrial tachycardia. In the case of the latter, the heart rate is not uncommonly in the range of 150 to 200 beats per minute. Palpitation and counting of the pulse rate will usually quickly identify this situation, and if it doesn't quit spontaneously within an hour, you should see a doctor.

Chest pain or pressure is not commonly associated with this problem. Robert E. Wynia, M.D.. Internal Medicine, 1420 9th St. S.

The City-County Hearth Department helps prepare this column. If you have a question, send ft to Your Health, P.O. Box 5468, Great Falls, MT 59403. Call 791-1460 or (800) 438-6600; fax: 791-1431; e-mail: trlbfeaturessofast.net. LOCAL McMann promoted at Pet Resort BUI McMann has been promoted to Pet Care Technician III at Pet Resort in Great Falls.

McMann received the promotion after completing an American Boarding Kennel Associations Kennel Technician course. Herman's Floral giving away flowers Herman's Floral in Great Falls, a member of the Montana Florist Association, is giving away flowers this week to targeted groups of working professionals. The distribution is part of the association's Montana Flower Week, honoring the contributions of teachers, doctors, local businesses and others. Wednesday workshop on worker's comp A workshop on filing workers' compensation claims is set from 8 to 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Best Western Heritage Inn, 1700 Fox Farm Road.

The workshop is sponsored by Liberty Northwest Insurance Corp. Instructors will include claim case managers and Dr. Ron Peterson, a Great Falls occupational medicine specialist. Attendees will learn the basics of filing workers' compensation claims and implementing an early return to work program that can help reduce costs. The impact of recent court decisions will also be discussed.

Space is limited so registration is recommended. Call 655-8760. The conference is free for Liberty Northwest Insurance Corp. customers. The fee for others is $50.

Labor relations topic of annual conference The annual Arbitration and Labor Relations Conference will be held Thursday and Friday at the Best Western Heritage Inn. Conference topics will include the American with Disabilities Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, arbitration and mediation processes and Montana employment law developments. In addition, representatives from Saturn Motors will sit on a panel forum to discuss their labormanagement relations. The conference is sponsored by the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, Board of Personnel Appeals, Montana Arbitration Association, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and the National Labor Relations Board. The entire agenda is available at the Web site http:erd.dli.state.mt.usLabor-StandardsConferenceConfer-ence Home.

htm. For more information, call Vic-ki Knudsen at 444-0038. New casino opens Saturday in Ulm Lucky Last Jump Casino is open for business in Ulm and is playing host for a grand opening pig roast Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. Everyone is welcome. Manager Erica Ayala said the casino features 15 machines and a full liquor license.

The business employs four. Owner Chuck Niswanger also owns the adjoining Quigley's Quickstop in Ulm. Casino hours are 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily.

For information, call (406) 866-9967. in stock Tues-Sat 10:30 1005 MhSt No. '452-9155 44 It costs you an awful lot of money to get old. The golden years are golden for the doctors and the medical people. Jim Morrison, Sapphire Village near Utica Patients with swallowing disorders need support Sometimes life hands us situations that are hard to swallow.

But for as many as 15 million Americans, just swallowing is difficult. Most of us take for granted eating an apple, drinking a glass of water or just swallowing saliva. We don't think about the 50 pairs of muscles, countless nerves and complex timing involved in swallowing hundreds of times a day. Lori Clifton, a speech pathologist at the Great Falls Clinic, gave me a new perspective on swallowing disorders known as dysphagia. Speaking and swallowing use similar nerves and muscles.

Swallowing is a complex process. First we produce saliva at the sight, smell and taste of something appetizing. Saliva moistens the food while the teeth chew it to a passable consistency. The tongue places it at the back of the throat triggering a swallowing reflex. The soft palate rises to seal off the nasal passages, the larynx closes the windpipe and we stop breathing.

The canal from the mouth to esophagus shortens, the opening to the esophagus relaxes and the food enters the esophagus. The larynx moves back and breathing resumes. The esophagus moves the food toward the stomach through a sequence of muscular contractions and releases. Another sphincter opens, the food is propelled into the stomach and the sphincter closes. All this in approximately three seconds! Dysphagia is a problem with any part of this process.

Symptoms may include coughing, choking andor a gurgly voice during or immediately after eating or drinking, prolonged chewing, drooling, chest congestion, heartburn or reflux. Children might arch or stiffen while eating, be irritable, refuse different textures of food, prolong feedings and spit up. Dysphagia may cause malnutrition, weight loss, dehydration and recurring pneumonia from food or liquid entering the lungs. Lab tests check for underlying health conditions. The teeth, gums, palate and throat are examined.

Barium videos study swallow patterns, esophageal shape and muscular activity from throat to stomach. An endoscopy helps doctors view the inside of the esophagus. Physicians may prescribe medications to reduce stomach acid and relax muscles. Altering the texture and density of foods and adding nutritional supplements may be recommended. Clifton teaches special exercises that coordinate and strengthen muscles used for swallowing.

Therapy may include posture and position changes that facilitate swallowing. Surgery may be considered if tumors are found or muscles need dilating. Swallowing disorders dramatically alter life. Support is critical for relieving the stress and isolation patients experience. Kristlna Davis writes this column with the help of Great Falls Clinic health care professionals.

She Is the former coordinator of Benefis Healthcare Women's Care. love and hate prescription drugs. Drugs ease pain, cut cholesterol, soothe the beating heart and restore the body's blood-sugar levels. What's not to love about that? i tion drug coverage through the Medicare program. So, unless they buy supplemental coverage from private insurers, many pay full price for prescription drugs.

Great Northern Railway retiree Cyril Jacobson of Great Falls doesn't take many pills, but his wife does, paying more than $300 a month for prescriptions, including a cholesterol-lowering drug that costs more than $100 a month. That places some seniors in a tight spot. Even middle-income seniors can find drug costs burdensome. "It eats up everything," Morrison said. "It's a burden no matter who you are." But Morrison isn't interested in getting cheaper drugs from Canada.

"I hate to get involved in that," he said. Others are not so reluctant. Canadian connection In the 1990s, a number of Americans bought prescription drugs in Canada. Montana seniors took highly publicized bus rides to Alberta, filling prescriptions in Lethbridge or Calgary pharmacies. Soil conditions fall slightly companies spent $30.3 billion on new drug research and development," said Richard I.

Smith, the group's vice president of policy and research. Developing drugs is costly, and profits are needed to continue ground-breaking research, the group contends. But the chief drug consumers, senior citizens, aren't accepting those reassurances sitting down. Thousands of elderly prescription drug users get their pills from Canada, while still more seniors want their representatives in Congress to put the brakes on high drug prices. The issue is expected to play a role in the Nov.

5 general elections. Paying full price In the convoluted American health-care system, senior citizens have virtually no prescrip lives west of Lewistown. "We're always helping those drug companies with government money," complained Lucille Corr of Great Falls. Long pillars of profitability, drug companies have hit rocky times themselves in the 2000s, beset by reduced profits, a dearth of spectacular new drugs and a volatile political climate. Still, it's hard to find anyone willing to shed a tear for the drug companies.

"There is a lot of research and development costs," conceded Wayne Kelly of Belt, at the Great Falls Senior Citizens Center recently. But, he said, "I don't want to come out in defense of the drug companies." Pharmaceutical companies defend themselves through their industry group, the Pharmaceutical and Research Manufacturers Association. "Last year, PhRMA member Now the hate part. Most can't stand the price tag. "1 personally think that they want too much for 'em," said 72-year-old James Herron of Kalispell.

Americans spent $154.5 billion on retail prescription drugs in 2001, up 17 percent from the year before and nearly double the $78.9 billion spent in 1997, according to the American Institutes for Research. Last year's $22.5 billion increase was mostly caused by increases in the number of prescriptions and higher prices. Drug companies remain popular whipping boys in the debate over spending on medicine. "Their profits are way above everything else," said Jim Morrison, a retired policeman who HELENA (AP) Soil conditions fell slightly in the past week, as movement of livestock from summer ranges continues, state agriculture officials said. Most of the state's topsoil was rated very short or short, with about 42 percent adequate, the Montana Agricultural Statistics Service said.

Subsoil also fell, with 37 percent judged very short, and 39 percent short, the service said. Winter wheat seeding is over halfway finished, while spring wheat harvest has reached 86 percent. Oats harvest is nearly complete, and dry bean harvest is almost halfway finished, the service said. Almost half of the corn crop is rated good, a quarter is fair and 15 percent is excellent. Potatoes have improved slightly, with nearly 60 percent good and almost a third rated excellent, officials said.

Sugar beets are also doing well, with most of the crop rated good or excellent, the service said. Over 90 percent of the second cutting of alfalfa is harvested. All other hay is at 87 percent harvested for the second cutting, the service said. Pasture and range feed conditions are mostly very poor or poor. Livestock are continuing to move from summer ranges, with nearly a third of cattle and calves moved, and a similar percentage of sheep and lambs moved, the service said.

Bi jKf" Hi, ism 1 feHifl fSjjdjjfc PACK JP See PRICE, 2H INGS! Life expectancy rising since 1980 in the Americas Sterling Financial acquires more banks in Montana OPEN A CHECKING ACCOUNT TODAY RECEIVE A FREE COOLER! You'll be a cool customer with your FREE First Interstate collapsible cooler. Our 12-pack cooler is perfect for golfing, picnics, road trips and more! JT And, you can fill up your new cooler with the money you save on account fees. Get yours Da the hemisphere, as it has been in the United States for much of the last 50 years. Infectious diseases continue to be the major threat to poor people, while non-communicable diseases such as heart attack, stroke, cancer and emphysema are the overwhelming killers of the more affluent. Adult-onset diabetes is expected to grow to near-epidemic proportions.

About 35 million people in the Americas now suffer from it, with 54 percent of them in Latin America and the Caribbean. By 2025, that number is expected to be 64 million, with 62 percent living in South America. proving health masks wide disparities among countries. The incidence of AIDS in Caribbean countries is second only to that seen in sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, rising incomes are leaving the diseases of affluence, notably heart disease, diabetes, and the complications of obesity, in their wake.

Nevertheless, PAHO chief George A. O. Alleyne said last week that "the health situation in the Americas is the best it's ever been." PAHO is the section of the World Health Organization devoted to North America, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Its "Health in the Americas" report is produced every four years. Life expectancy, the best indicator of overall population health, is now 73.2 years for the region, with women living an average of more than six years longer than men.

Canada had the highest life expectancy at 79 years, with the United States at 77.5 years. In Latin America, it is 70.4 years, although there were wide differences. Haiti had the lowest life expectancy at 53 years; Brazil's was below average at 68 and Mexico's was above average at 73. Infant mortality, the strongest indicator of a population's ill health, is about 25 deaths per 1,000 live births overall, down from 37 in 1980. Canada has the lowest at about 5 deaths per 1,000.

Deaths from infectious diseases, with the exception of AIDS, have fallen steadily. A major campaign against malaria has reduced mortality from that disease from 8 deaths per 100,000 population to 2 deaths per 100,000 since the mid-1990s. Last year there were about 550 cases of measles in the Americas, compared to about 30 million cases and 777,000 deaths elsewhere in the world. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in while supplies last! By DAVID BROWN The Washington Post Life expectancy in the Americas has risen by six years over the last two decades. Infant mortality has been cut by about one-third.

Measles, a major killer of children, is nearly gone. Deaths from malaria are one-quarter of what they were just five years ago. Those are among the promising trends detailed in a portrait of health in the Western Hemisphere released last week by the Pan American Health Organization. The total picture, however, is decidedly mixed. The region's overall im corridor where the majority of Montana's business takes place.

Gilkey said Sterling would use a Montana-area advisory board to direct its Montana activities. Spokane, Wash. -based Sterling has acquired 12 other banks since 1983, including Big Sky Bancorp in Missoula. Sterling said it intends to convert shares of Empire common stock to Sterling common stock at a price of $19.25 a share. Assuming the approval of Empire shareholders and regulators, the transaction should be finished by the first quarter of 2003.

MISSOULA (AP) Sterling Financial Corp. has announced a $29.8 million deal to acquire Empire Federal Bancorp which has outlets in Missoula, Gallatin, Park and Sweet Grass counties. The combination boosts the number of Sterling branches in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana to 82. Empire branches in Montana had concentrated on real estate and commercial loans. Sterling chairman and chief executive officer Harold Gilkey said the acquisition would increase the company's presence in Montana, particularly along the Interstate 90 id.mn.r.ii.i.i No minimum balance requirement Oil futures rise on war fears MM ftaissos a SMfa (fee? Send tips: Do you have news about your business new location, major remodeling or other changes? Fax us at (406) 791-1431; our address is Business Briefcase, Great Falls Tribune, PO.

Box 5468, Great Falls, MT 59403. No monthly maintenance fee No per check fees Unlimited check writing No charge tor ATM Card or VISA Check Card' No charge for ATM use at First Interstate Day Night Teller ATMs Free Day Night Telephone Banking access Free Internet Banking SuOieci to mwovai 0 Bank OSAKA, Japan (AP) Oil futures shot well above $30 per barrel on Monday because of Iraqi war fears, although analysts said the world's top crude producers helped set the stage for even higher prices by refusing last week to increase output in the near future. Crude to be delivered in November was up 87 cents at $30.71 on the New York Mercantile Exchange on concerns that President Bush could be getting closer to ordering an attack to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. The New York futures price is for a premium-grade oil worth about $2 more than the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' average barrel. ST, THOMAS We Put You First" Oraat Falls 425 1st Ave 454-6200 Markat Place 1401 Market Place Dr 454-6300 Wal-Mart 701 Smelter Ave NE 454-6330 Member FDIC Equal Housing Lender tal www.firstinter8tate.com lJcncc AfcUMghfln Qym Saturday to a-rrv 5 p-m.

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