Newsday (Nassau Edition) from Hempstead, New York • 154

G26 sv ssesssraaeaMfl: HEALTH NOTEBOOK Volunteers are needed at the American Red Cross The Nassau Chapter is looking for health professionals to work on the Disaster Health Services Team This job includes going on assignments including fires storms and man-made disasters and assisting victims with first-aid needs Training is free and standardized to meet American Red Cross requirements Volunteers are also needed in administrative clerical areas military services family court nursery friendly visitor program fundraising and public relations The American Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle Team (ERV) needs drivers Members of this team travel to assignments when and where a disaster occurs All expenses are paid when placed on this assignment Training is provided For more information call 747-3500 CARDIAC SCREENING St Francis Hospital The Heart Center will conduct free cardiac screening through its mobile outreach clinic at St Ignatius Parish 20 Cherry St Hicksville from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm on the following Wednesdays: March 25 April 22 May 6 and May 20 Screening consists of a health evaluation blood pressure and EKG testing by a medical team from St Francis Hospital Eligible are those 18 years of age or older without medical insurance who do not have Medicare or who have Medicaid only and who are not regularly seen by a physician Appointments are necessary call Nemday Photo Dick Kraui In addition to his practice in Hicksvflla Dean Hart holding lecture displays teaches ophthamology at Harlem Hospital and scientific research at Columbia University PROFILE NEWSDAY SUNDAY MARCH 22 1998 LI Life NH EVENTS EAST MEADOW Diabetes Awareness Day will be held 10:30 am to 1:30 pm March 25 at Nassau County Medical Center 2201 Hempstead Tpke in the auditorium Free blood pressure cholesterol glucose testing weight and neuropaLhy checks will be available For information call 572-6398 GROUPS MEETINGS BETHPAGE The Long Island Lyme Association has formed a Lyme Disease Support Education Group that meets 7:30 pm on the third Monday of each month at Mid-Island Hospital 4295 I lumps toad Tpke Call 893-5963 GREAT NECK FACE IT (Fast and Cost Effective Intervention Techniques) 310 Shore Rd offers a free wellness program workshop to educate families on everyday issues The program will be held am March 28 Call 466-2555 HICKSVILLE The Lupus Foundation of America Inc offers a support group for people whose family member! s) have lupus The group meets 7:30 pm on the second Tuesday of each month ut 120 Hcthpage Rd Suite 308 Call 742-5687 or 822-3131 MANHASSET Professionals of the Anxiety and Stress Treatment Program at North Shore University Hospital 400 Community Dr hold a workshop to help people who Ruffer from panic disorders The group meets pm Monday nights in Room 89 of the Community Health Center at the Hospital To reserve call 562-1331 or 562-3073 NEW HYDE PARK and the Pollen will be discussed at a meeting of the Support Group for Parents of Asthmatic Children pm April 2 at Schneider Children's Hospital of the North Shore- Long Island Jewish Health System 269-01 76th Ave room 301 To reserve call 470-3300 W00DMERE Elder Serve of Integrated Geriatric Management 1055 Broadway offers a new support group for senior citizens suffering from a longterm illness The group will meet during daytime hours and will be led by a clinical psychologist Call 374-9022 HELP MARCH IS RED CROSS MONTH Volunteers and staff of the American Red Cross in Nassau County will recognize March as American Red Cross Month by increasing awareness about the services it provides year-round The Red Cross in Nassau County has just released its Aquatic schedule through June 1998 The chapter offers programs for teens and adults interested in Lifeguard Training Waterfront Lifcguarding Water Safety Instructor and Instructor Candidate Training Blood Pressure Screenings are available through the American Red Cross in Nassau County at locations throughout the county NEXT DOOR MELVILLE Intergenerational Approach to Reducing Breast Cancer Risk Through Diet and Lifestyle is the topic of a forum sponsored by the Cornell Cooperative Extensions of Nassau and Suffolk Counties health nutrition professionals 9-11 am April 2 at the Sweet Hollow Hall West Hills County Park Sweet Hollow Road Fee is $5 To register call 454-0900 (Nassau) or 727-7850 (Suffolk) A Visionary Of Preventive Care for Eyes By Betty Ommerman STAFF WRITER AS AN ASSOCIATE research scientist at Columbia University and director of the low-vision clinic at Harlem Hospital Dean Hart has two concerns: eye problems caused by computers and eye problems caused by contact lenses He believes both problems can be prevented Hart spends Wednesdays teaching ophthamology to residents at Harlem Hospital and scientific research to students at Columbia University also the day he directs Harlem low-vision clinic for people legally blind or nearly so He spends the rest of the week at his private practice in Hicksville or writing research papers at his home in Jericho or apartment in Manhattan As a vision researcher he has presented papers to the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology He has found working at a computer can cause blurred vision eye strain and fatigue It also can cause burning itching and watery eyes working with a computer take a vision break every 20 Hart said 20 feet or more away for 20 seconds to relax eye focusing and stare I call it my He also suggests avoiding looking straight ahead at the screen downward gaze is a little more he said anti-glare screens made of glass are Prescription computer eyeglasses may also help relieve strain will blur distance viewing but are good for the distance from the eye to the he said A founder of the Contact Lens Research Foundation Hart is writing a research paper on dirty contact lenses and how wearers can prevent eye contamination The paper also will offer findings on keeping the eye comfortable and healthy with contact lenses lenses are available for a day week or a few he said prefer the ones you wear during the day take them out at night and throw them In a previous research he found the chances of infection are 10 times greater if contacts are left on during sleep than when removed before bedtime degrees cover many areas of science They include an associate degree in ophthalmic dispensing from Erie Community College in Buffalo a in general studies with minors in life science business and social science from New York Institute of Technology at Old Westbury and a in biology from Hofstra He also holds a Doctor of Optometry degree from SUNY College of Optometry in Manhattan has been a postgraduate researcher in optometries at the University of California at Berkeley and an educational researcher at Adelphi University UPCOMING MS WALK 98 The Long Island Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society needs walkers ana volunteers for its MS WALK 98 to be held April 19 The walk will be held at four sites: Long Beach Boardwalk Belmont Lake State Park Old Westbury Gardens and the Suffolk County Community College Selden Campus On May 3 a "Pooch Parade" will he held at Wantagh Park For details call 864-8337 WALK AMERICA The March of Dimes Walk America will be held April 26 at the following Long Island sites: Eisenhower Park East Meadow Sheraton Long Island Hotel Hauppauge Indian Island County Park Riverhead Long Reach City Hall Long Beach and Glen Cove High School Glen Cove Registration begins at 8:30 the walk starts at 9 am For registration forms call 800-244-9255 or 496-2100 COMPILED BY MAKC1E SAMAKTINO Send notices about health care to: Health Page Lang Island Desk Newsday 235 Pinelawn Rd Melville NY 11747-4250 Address ideas for Profile stories to Betty Ommerman (Nassau) or Bill Kaufman (Suffolk).