Local Farmland Preservation Leaders Earn Recognition

The Working Lands Alliance, a project of American Farmland Trust, has recognized two individuals and a dairy cooperative of six family farms in Connecticut with Farmland Preservation Pathfinder Awards, and noted the work of two Connecticut legislators in advocating for farmland preservation in the state.

The Alliance is a statewide coalition dedicated to preserving Connecticut’s productive farmland and presents the Pathfinder Awards to recognize individuals and groups who have significantly advanced farmland preservation through leadership, advocacy, planning and education.

“Each of these award winners is an outstanding example of what can happen when a group of dedicated people work together to achieve what many may think is an impossible goal,” said Terry Jones, chair of the Working Lands Alliance. “Their success shows what imagination and hard work can do and provide a wonderful example for others to follow.”

“About 1,800 acres of agricultural land has been lost in Connecticut every year for the last 25 years, nearly 62 square miles in all,” said Andrew McElwaine, President and CEO of AFT. “The leaders we recognize with Pathfinder Awards are part of an enthusiastic and diverse group of individuals and organizations working to reverse that trend.”

The winners of the annual awards for 2013, were:

Tom Crider, President, Southbury Land Trust - Outstanding Individual: Under Crider’s leadership over nearly two decades, the Southbury-based Trust has preserved seven family farms and thousands of acres of habitat, including 825 acres of prime farmland at the Southbury Training School.  Working closely with the Southbury delegation, Town officials and his Board, Crider was a critical part of the team advocating for the successful passage of legislation that permanently protects 825 acres of prime state-owned farmland at the Southbury Training School.

The Farmer’s Cow, Mansfield Center - Outstanding Group: The Farmer’s Cow is a group of six family-owned dairy farms that market their products under a single brand. The Farmer’s Cow has done extraordinary work educating their consumers about the importance of farmland preservation. During the past year, they launched an ice cream flavor appropriately named Farmland Crunch to draw attention to the development pressures on Connecticut’s rich farmland. Proceeds from the sale of each pint are donated to Connecticut Farmland Trust, to support their important work of preserving working farmlands. They also sponsored this year’s Corn Maze adventure at Fort Hill Farm in Thompson with the theme of Saving Farmland, again to educate the public on the importance of farmland preservation. Their member farms have collectively preserved nearly 4,000 acres of active farmland through the state’s Farmland Preservation Program.

George Hall, George Hall Farm, Simsbury - Education Leader: Throughout his long farming career, Hall has been an outstanding mentor and teacher to countless interns and apprentices who come to learn about the importance of farming, the meaning of hard work, and the love of the land.  Using a unique approach to preservation, Hall will also sell the development rights on 12 highly developable acres of farmland in exchange for the rights to 40 acres of farmland he has been leasing; a transaction that will, in the end, provide him little financial gain. Through this example, Hall is demonstrating that securing lands for the future outweigh monetary considerations.

The Working Lands Alliance also presented State Representatives Linda Gentile and Arthur O’Neill its Legislative Leadership Award for farmland preservation efforts.

“We are very pleased this year to recognize two legislators for the role they played in passing legislation to permanently preserve 825 acres of prime farmland at the Southbury Training School and their ongoing interest in farmland preservation,” said Jones.

Rep. O’Neill represents the 69th Assembly District, including the towns of Southbury, Bridgewater, Roxbury and Washington. Rep. Gentile represents the 104th Assembly District, including Ansonia and Derby.

“While the Alliance has successfully advocated for robust investments in the Farmland Preservation Program and the permanent protection of state-owned farmland, much more needs to be done,” said Lisa Bassani, Working Lands Alliance Project Director, American Farmland Trust. “The importance of our work in farmland preservation can be summarized in four words-- No Farms, No Food.”

The Working Lands Alliance was formed in 1999 with the sole purpose of preserving Connecticut’s most precious natural resource – its farmland.  WLA is a coalition whose supporters include more than 600 individuals and 200 businesses and organizations that include farmers, conservationists, anti-hunger groups, planners and local food enthusiasts. WLA is a project of American Farmland Trust. The American Farmland Trust is the nation’s leading conservation organization dedicated to protecting farmland, promoting sound farming practices and keeping farmers on the land.

Boehringer Ingelheim Backs AFib Education Initiative

Recognizing the need for increased education and awareness of atrial fibrillation, or AFib,  and AFib-related stroke, global pharmaceutical leader Boehringer Ingelheim – with United States headquarters in Ridgefield -  became founding sponsor of Team AFib, a national coalition offering an array of initiatives that include educational materials, an informational website, and appearances at major events across the country.

The Team AFib alliance, launched in 2011, continues to grow.  Inaugural members include StopAFib.org, National Blood Clot Alliance, National Stroke Association, Mended Hearts, VFW and Womenheart.

The Men’s Health Network joined the coalition this year, and included the TeamAFib Insight tour in coordinated health screening events at targeted NFL venues, including the Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns, Washington Redskins, and Philadelphia Eagles.

Atrial fibrillation is an irregular heartbeat and a common, serious form of heart arrhythmia.

Nearly 350,000 hospitalizations every year are attributed to AFib, which can contribute to congestive heart failure and other serious heart conditions. 

The most serious complication of AFib is stroke, and  people with AFib are nearly five times more likely to suffer a stroke than those without the condition. AFib-related strokes are nearly twice as fatal and twice as disabling as non-AFib related strokes.

Why did the company get involved?  Officials point to the firm’s dedication to patient education and improving the quality of life for patients and their families. The Team AFib effort aims to  educate patients about AFib, stroke risk and to provide tips and tools to help patients talk to their doctors.

Among the key initiatives:

Team AFib Insight tours: These live events provide an opportunity for patients to participate in a virtual 3D journey through the body to understand how AFib can lead to stroke. This experience puts AFib “in sight” to help people understand how AFib can lead to the formation of a clot that can break loose and travel to the brain where it has the potential to cause a stroke.

Podcasts and Webinars: A webinar and podcast series centered on areas of importance to the coalition, including how to recognize and respond quickly to stroke signs and symptoms, gaps in knowledge among patients and their healthcare providers about AFib and stroke risk and supporting loved ones with AFib.

In addition to information about AFib, diagnosing AFib and understanding stroke risk, the website provides insights from experts in Q&A form and via webcasts/podcasts, a stroke assessment tool, and the Insight Tour schedule. 

The podcasts and webinars are available at https://www.teamafib.com/hear-from-experts/webinars-and-podcasts/  The Insight tour made stops during 2013 in Washington DC at a local health fair, at the VFW National Convention in Reno, and at AARP conventions in Las Vegas and Atlanta.  The 2014 schedule is being finalized, and updates to the website are in the works.

Boehringer Ingelheim is a research-driven company dedicated to researching and developing, manufacturing and marketing pharmaceuticals that improve health and quality of life. The company has more than 44,094 employees in 145 affiliated companies worldwide, research and development (R&D) facilities at 12 sites in seven countries and production plants in 15 countries.

Health Risks of Flame-Retardant Chemicals Require Policy Changes in CT, Nation, Report Says

The 2014 session of the Connecticut General Assembly is expected to include consideration of legislation designed to protect the public from potential health risks of flame retardant chemicals that are present in many consumer products.  Such a proposal, currently being developed, comes following a report from North Haven-based Environment and Human Health Inc. (EHHI), an organization of physicians and public health professionals, that calls on state and federal governments to institute new policies to protect the public from flame-retardant exposures that the researchers say “pose health risks to fetuses, infants, children and the human population as a whole.”

The comprehensive 107-page report, “Flame Retardants: The Case for Policy Change,” closely examines the health risks that flame-retardants pose to the general population and recommends sweeping policy changes to protect the public.

"It has become clear that flame-retardants are proving to be a health risk to both the human population and the environment,” said Nancy Alderman, president of Environment and Human health, Inc. “It is time for flame-retardants to be removed from all low fire-risk situations and products. As well, a certification program should be established where manufacturers certify the absence of flame-retardants, just as organic food programs certify the absence of pesticides.”

The report examines the history of flame-retardants and demonstrates the enormous scope of the problem, noting that flame-retardants “are now ubiquitous in our environment.”  The history of flame-retardant use in the United States is a story of substituting one dangerous flame-retardant for another, the report outlines. The country lived through decades when asbestos was used as a fire-retardant. Then when asbestos was proven too dangerous to be used, the country moved over to PCBs, and five decades later, when PCBs were deemed too dangerous for use, the country moved on to chlorinated and brominated flame-retardants.

The report points out that “the labeling of flame-retardant chemicals in consumer products is NOT required by Congress, EPA, FDA or the Consumer Product Safety Commission.  It is therefore impossible for consumers to avoid flame-retardants in their purchases.”  Sources of exposure cited in the report include carpets, mattresses, children’s and baby products, furniture, and electronics. 

In the 1970s, a flame-retardant called "Tris" was added to children's sleepwear. Tris was later found not only to be carcinogenic but also capable of being absorbed through the skin. Tris was finally banned in children's sleepwear in 1977, according to the report.  Tris is still used in many other infant products, such as crib mattresses, changing tables, nap mats, and infant car seats, the report indicated.

"Tris was, and remains, carcinogenic," said Dr. D. Barry Boyd, oncologist at Greenwich Hospital and Affiliate Member of the Yale Cancer Center.  There is ample evidence concerning the health risks from Tris to conclude that it should be removed from all infant products."

John Wargo, Ph.D., first author of the report and the Tweedy-Ordway Professor of Environmental Health and Political Science at Yale University, said, "Flame-retardants are not required to undergo health and environmental testing, and they are not required to be labeled on the products that contain them. Because exposures to flame-retardants carry health risks, they should only be used when the risk of fire outweighs the risk from flame-retardant exposures. When risk from fire is high, such as in airplanes, then the use of flame-retardants is warranted; when the risk from fire is low, flame-retardants should not be used."

Recent toxicological studies demonstrate that flame-retardants pose the greatest risk to the normal growth and development of fetuses, infants and children. "Manufacturers should start labeling their products so that consumers can understand when flame-retardants have been added," said Dr. Andrea Asnes, associate professor of pediatrics at the Yale School of Medicine.

Environment and Human Health, Inc. (EHHI) is a non-profit organization composed of physicians, public health professionals and policy experts, dedicated to protecting human health from environmental harms. EHHI does not receive any funds from businesses or corporations.   The organization’s mission is “to conduct research to identify environmental harms affecting human populations, promote public education concerning the relationships between the environment and human health, and promote policies in all sectors that ensure the protection of human and environmental health with fairness and timeliness.

By promoting effective communication of environmental health risks to those exposed and to responsible public and private officials, EHHI hopes to empower individuals and groups to take control over the quality of their environment and be more protective of themselves and their families.  The report was issued in November 2013.  Among the recommendations :

• States should pass laws that protect their citizens from flame-retardant exposures.  Industry will always work to pre-empt states’ legal authority to set safety standards that are more stringent than those adopted by the federal government. States should have the right to protect their citizens when the federal government fails to do so.
• States should restrict flame-retardants in infant and toddler products.  Recent toxicological studies show that flame-retardants pose the greatest risk to the normal growth and development of fetuses, infants and children. Infants and small children’s body weight is so low that their exposures to flame retardants, in relation to their body weight, is simply too great. The health risks that all infants and children are experiencing, due to the federal law mandating that flame retardants be in many of their products, far outweigh the risk of fire.
• States should require that products containing flame-retardants be labeled.  Any product containing a flame-retardant should be labeled as such. Labels should include which flame-retardant has been used.
• States should promote fire-prevention programs.  States should invigorate their fire prevention programs. Promotion of fire prevention is the most effective, least expensive, least environmentally damaging priority our nation could pursue to reduce loss of health, life and property from fires. States should promote low-cost and highly effective early warning technologies. Smoke alarms save lives. They should be available to all, regardless of income status.
• States should offer opportunities to recycle electronic products.  Foam that contains flame-retardants remains a problem for landfills. State and local governments have primary responsibility for managing the disposal of solid and hazardous wastes. Most solid wastes in Connecticut are disposed of via incineration, but some are still placed in landfills. The broad failure to effectively recycle electronics, building materials, auto plastics and foam means that most products containing flame-retardants are released to the environment at the end of their life-cycle.

State Mental Health Budgets, Cut During Recession, Increase After Newtown Tragedy, Report Finds

State mental health budgets were gutted during the recession, according to a report issued by the National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI), and are only now beginning to return to previous levels in most states, even as mental health needs are becoming better known and growing.

“With reductions totaling $4.35 billion from FY2009 to FY2012, public mental health systems struggled to meet rising demand with diminishing resources,” the report indicated. Then, the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown on December 14, 2012 provided “a major impetus for lawmakers to propose legislation which would impact children and adults living with mental illness,” the 63-page report indicated.

Nearly 60 million Americans experience a mental health condition every year, according to the organization. Regardless of race, age, religion or economic status, mental illness impacts the lives of at least one in four adults and one in 10 children across the United States.

NAMI is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization.  NAMI advocates for access to services, treatment, supports and research and is steadfast in its commitment to raise awareness and build a community for hope for all of those in need.

“Realizing the risks of failure to provide adequate public mental health services, governors and legislatures in many states began the process of restoring state mental health budgets,” according to the report, “Trends, Themes & Best Practices in State Mental Health Legislation.”

The report concludes that “Dramatic changes in American healthcare finance and delivery systems combine with an improving economy and a growing array of best practices to provide a window of opportunity in the next few years to transform the mental health system and integrate care across systems.”

In addition, NAMI recommends that “advocates and policy makers should continue the work of building the mental health system of the future, one in which mental illness is identified as it emerges and an array of proven, cost-effective services are available as needed to provide children, youth and adults with the mental health care they need to stabilize, recover and live healthy lives.”

Looking ahead to the 2014 state legislative sessions, NAMI issued a series of recommendations including:

• Actively engage in outreach and enrollment
• Increase integrated care
• Increase the mental health workforce capacity
• Identify mental illness and intervene early
• Build the bridge from Medicaid to private health coverage
• Increase access to supported employment services
• Increase housing with supportive services
• Increase justice system diversion strategies
• Comply with mental health parity
• Expand Medicaid

Most states either increased or maintained state mental health authority budgets at current levels during 2013 legislative sessions. Of special note, the report indicated, is Texas which allocated a $259 million increase over the previous biennial budget, the largest mental health budget improvement in the state’s history. South Carolina reversed previous cuts to its mental health budget while Illinois restored $32 million that had been cut in 2011 due to an administrative error. In California, an additional $143 million was allocated to create crisis and triage positions throughout the state.

The report stated that “A tipping point on the heels of several recent mass shootings, the Newtown tragedy shaped the debate about the lack of access to mental health services and the barriers that many families and individuals face in light of the nation’s fragmented and grossly inadequate mental health system.”

After the Newtown tragedy NAMI advocated for policies supporting early identification and intervention, training for school personnel, families and the public, mental health services in schools and increased access to care.

The report highlights actions by states in 2013 in areas including mental health system monitoring, early identification and mental health screening, services for transitional youth, school mental health training and services, mental health facilities and suicide prevention.  Also included are elements of state legislation in law enforcement areas such as juvenile justice, incarceration and the courts.  A final section looks at stigma reduction efforts in the states.

Mental illnesses are medical conditions that disrupt a person's thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning. Mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life.  Serious mental illnesses include major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and borderline personality disorder.

Connecticut resident Marilyn Ricci, a past president of NAMI Connecticut, serves on the national NAMI Board of Directors, and is on the board of NAMI Farmington Valley in Connecticut, which she helped found in 2004.  Kevin Sullivan, a former Connecticut Lieutenant Governor currently serving as Commissioner of Revenue Services, is a past Board member of the organization. The state legislative report was issued on October 28, 2013.

CT Spending on Tobacco Prevention Goes Up in Smoke; E-Cigarettes Raise New Public Concerns

Fifteen years after the landmark state tobacco settlement in which Connecticut played a key role, the state now ranks 34th in the nation – down from 23rd a year ago - in funding programs to prevent youth from smoking and help smokers quit, according to a national report by a coalition of public health organizations.

In the current fiscal year, Connecticut is spending s $3 million on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 6.8 percent of the $43.9 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Other key findings for Connecticut include:

• Connecticut this year will collect $466.1 million in revenue from the 1998 tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend just 0.6 percent of it on tobacco prevention programs. This means Connecticut is spending less than a penny of every dollar in tobacco revenue to fight tobacco use.
• Connecticut has cut funding for tobacco prevention programs in half, from $6 million last year to the current $3 million; from 13.7 percent of the CDC recommended spending level down to 6.8 percent.
• The tobacco companies spend $78.1 million a year to market their products in Connecticut. This is 26 times what the state spends on tobacco prevention.

The annual report on states' funding of tobacco prevention programs, titled "A Broken Promise to Our Children: The 1998 State Tobacco Settlement 15 Years Later," was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Lung Association, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights.

The report comes as evidence increases that tobacco prevention and cessation programs work to reduce smoking, save lives and save money. Florida, which has a well-funded, sustained tobacco prevention program, reduced its high school smoking rate to just 8.6 percent in 2013, far below the national rate.  One study found that during the first 10 years of its tobacco prevention program, Washington state saved more than $5 in tobacco-related hospitalization costs for every $1 spent on the program.

In Connecticut, 15.9 percent of high school students smoke, and 2,900 more kids become regular smokers each year, the organizations in the coalition pointed out. Tobacco annually claims 4,700 lives and costs the state $1.6 billion in health care bills, officials said.

"Connecticut once again is one of the most disappointing states when it comes to protecting kids from tobacco and needs to increase its investment in tobacco prevention," said Matthew L. Myers, President of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. "Tobacco prevention is a smart investment that saves lives and saves money by reducing tobacco-related health care costs. States are being truly penny-wise and pound-foolish when they shortchange tobacco prevention programs."

In 1997, when the settlement was announced, then-Attorney General Richard Blumenthal - a key negotiator in the tobacco settlement talks – described the accord as “a sweeping public health initiative to protect children from the lure of tobacco, save lives, and reimburse states for billions of taxpayer dollars spent on tobacco-related illnesses.”

The national report assesses whether the states have kept their promise to use a significant portion of their settlement funds – estimated to total $246 billion over the first 25 years – to fight tobacco use.  The states also collect billions more each year from tobacco taxes. Tobacco use is the number one cause of preventable death in the U.S., killing more than 400,000 people and costing $96 billion in health care bills each year.  Nationally, about 18 percent of adults and 18.1 percent of high school students smoke.

The report reveals that most states are failing to adequately fund tobacco prevention and cessation programs. Key national findings of the report include:

The states this year will collect $25 billion from the tobacco settlement and tobacco taxes, but will spend just 1.9 percent of it – $481.2 million – on tobacco prevention programs. This means the states are spending less than two cents of every dollar in tobacco revenue to fight tobacco use.

States are falling woefully short of the CDC's recommended funding levels for tobacco prevention programs.  Altogether, the states have budgeted just 13 percent of the $3.7 billion the CDC recommends. Only two states – Alaska and North Dakota – currently fund tobacco prevention programs at the CDC-recommended level.

Public Expresses Concern Over E-Cigarettes

Within days of the report on tobacco prevention efforts, a national survey reflected public concerns about a new and increasingly popular alternative to traditional cigarettes, called e-cigarettes.  Adults nationwide are concerned about the use of e-cigarettes by children and teens, with 44 percent indicating worries that the devices will encourage kids to use tobacco products, according to a new poll from the University of Michigan.

According to the latest University of Michigan Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health, nearly half of parents are concerned their child will try e-cigarettes, which are battery-operated devices that look like cigarettes but don't burn tobacco.  E-cigarettes have replaceable cartridges of liquid containing nicotine, which is inhaled as a vapor along with flavors like chocolate, fruit, candy or even tobacco.

"This poll shows high levels of concern about e-cigarettes and the possibility that kids who try them could start smoking tobacco," says Matthew M. Davis, M.D., M.A.P.P., director of the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health.

In the poll, which was administered in November 2013 to 2,124 adults age 18 and over, arguments were presented both for and against e-cigarettes.  Then adults were asked for their opinions about the devices and possible regulations and laws.

Advocates of e-cigarettes say they are a healthier alternative to tobacco smoking and argue it may help smokers to quit.  Critics counter that e-cigarettes may have health risks and may encourage people and kids or teens to smoke tobacco. Currently, e-cigarettes are not regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Twenty-six states have regulations prohibiting sale to minors; Michigan's legislature currently has bills pending that prohibit those sales.

In the poll, 86% of adults said they have heard of e-cigarettes, while only 13% have ever tried one. Among parents, 48 percent said they are very or somewhat concerned that their children will try e-cigarettes.  Meanwhile, 65% of adults think e-cigarettes should have health warnings like tobacco cigarettes and nicotine products.

Adults also expressed widespread support for new laws regarding e-cigarettes: 88% think manufacturers should be required to test e-cigarettes for safety and 86% favor prohibiting the sale of e-cigarettes to minors. 71% of adults support restricting the marketing of e-cigarettes on social networking sites.

"E-cigarettes are a relatively new product, with little information about safety or long-term health effects. However, the public is clearly aware of the devices and concerned about their impact, according to this month's poll results," says Davis, who is professor of pediatrics and internal medicine at the U-M Medical School and professor of public policy at U-M's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. "In 2010, the poll also asked about e-cigarettes and at that time only one-third of adults had heard of the product. In this poll, that number jumped to 86 percent."

Earlier this year, CT by the Numbers reported that state Attorney General George Jepson and U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal were among those calling for regulation of e-cigarettes.

Task Force Report on State Response to Alzheimer’s Nears Completion

Thirty-one states have published a plan to respond to what advocates describe as the “escalating crisis” of Alzheimer’s Disease. Connecticut may be next, and is one of 13 states currently in the midst of developing plans.

The Connecticut Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association was among the leaders in crafting and shepherding legislation in the 2013 General Assembly session to create a task force to study the care provided to persons diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia in the state.  That Task Force has been up and running throughout the fall, and is poised to announce its recommendations next month, just ahead of the start of the 2014 legislative session in February.

The 23-member task force of key agencies and community stakeholders convened in September, under the auspices of the Legislative Commission on Aging, to prepare findings and recommendations on ways to improve early detection, better coordinate health care services, set training requirements for health care providers and other professionals, services for early-stage and younger onset, and support to family caregivers.

The Task Force was co-chaired by State Commissioner on Aging Edith Prague and Rep. Joseph Serra of Middletown.  Members included Laurie Julian of the Alzheimer’s Association in Connecticut and other diverse community stakeholders appointed by legislative leadership and representatives from state agencies including the Department of Public Health, Department of Emergency Services, Department of Banking, Department of Labor and Department of Social Services, as well as six current legislators.

Over 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, and as many as 16 million will have the disease in 2050. Nearly one in every three seniors who dies each year has Alzheimer’s or another dementia. The cost of caring for those with Alzheimer’s and other dementias is estimated to total $203 billion in 2013, increasing to $1.2 trillion (in today’s dollars) by mid-century. Between 2000 and 2010, nationally, the number of people who died as a result of breast cancer, prostate cancer, heart disease, stroke and HIV all declined, while the number of people who died with Alzheimer’s increased by 68 percent.

In Connecticut, there were 820 deaths due to Alzheimer’s Disease in 2010, there are more than 63,000 individuals with Alzheimer’s in nursing homes in the state and it is estimated that 68% of nursing home residents have a cognitive impairment. As of 2010, there were an estimated 2,800 people between age 65-74 with Alzheimer’s in Connecticut, 30,000 between 75 and 84, and 37,000 age 85 or older.

The task force, in accordance with the legislation, will make recommendations in areas including:

• services provided to persons diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia; including persons with early-state and early-onset of Alzheimer's disease, and such persons' family members and caregivers
• legislative policy changes to better serve such persons, family members and caregivers;
• coordination between state agencies and private community-based health care providers to serve such persons, family members and caregivers;
• case management services for such persons, family members and caregivers;
• the transition of such persons from one health care facility to another; and
• the placement of such persons in community-based settings or health care facilities other than nursing home facilities, when feasible.

The state legislature acknowledged the growing numbers of residents impacted by the disease, passing the bill unanimously earlier this year, with 67 co-sponsors. It was signed into law in June by Gov. Malloy.  The Alzheimer’s Association has been actively involved in the effort. The organization’s   Connecticut chapter is based in Rocky Hill, with regional offices in Hamden, Norwalk, Norwich and New Milford.

In accordance with the legislation, the task force report is due to be published early next month, according to officials at the State Legislative Commission on Aging.

Hartford Hospital Will Devote Annual Fundraiser to Mental Health

The call to action regarding mental health awareness and treatment, which intensified in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School murders a year ago, now has a strong local voice for the New Year.  Hartford Hospital is kicking off a campaign to end the stigma of mental illness at the annual Black & Red Gala on January 25, 2014 at The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford. The goal is to obtain 5,000 pledges, spreading the message that changing attitudes can begin to change minds.

Proceeds raised at this year’s Black &Red will benefit the Institute of Living (IOL) at Hartford Hospital. The IOL will be better able to respond to this national call to action with improved access to mental health care for adolescents and young adults –a critical need not only in Connecticut, but throughout the nation. Support will help carry out critically needed research, offer increased services and treatments, and provide much needed education to those impacted by mental illness.

An estimated 26.2 percent of Americans ages 18 and older — about one in four adults — suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year. In addition, mental disorders are the leading cause of disability in the U.S. and Canada. Many people suffer from more than one mental disorder at a given time.

Mental health stigma can be divided into two distinct types, according to the Hartford Hospital website:

• social stigma is characterized by prejudicial attitudes and discriminating behavior directed towards individuals with mental health problems as a result of the psychiatric label they have been given.
• perceived stigma or self-stigma, is the internalizing by the mental health sufferer of their perceptions of discrimination and perceived stigma can significantly affect feelings of shame and lead to poorer treatment outcomes.

The annual gala – Hartford Hospital's lead fundraising event - will feature entertainment by Barenaked Ladies, winner of two American Billboard Music Awards and two Grammy nominations.

Individuals attending the event will be asked to sign a “pledge” to...

• Show compassion by reaching out to those in need of help. I will not let anyone suffer in silence.
• Have the courage to speak up and challenge stereotypes and attitudes. I will not tolerate or perpetuate stigma.
• Teach by sharing my own experiences with mental illness and encouraging others to share their stories with me. I will learn in order to change.
• Demand a change in how we view and address mental illness. I will help lead the way.

The pledge, and additional information about mental illness and the Hartford Hospital initiative, is now available on a new webpage on the Hospital’s website, at www.stopthestigma.org   Individuals do not need to attend the event in order to sign the pledge – that can be accomplished directly on the website.

 “We will be looking to our employees of Hartford Hospital and across the Hartford HealthCare system to take the pledge. As a healthcare leader in the community and the state, it is our duty to set the example and stop the stigma associated with mental illness. Together, we can do it,” said Stuart Markowitz, M.D., President Hartford Hospital and Hartford Region, Senior Vice President Hartford HealthCare.

Harold (Hank) Schwartz, M.D., Hartford HealthCare Regional Vice President, Psychiatrist in Chief, Institute of Living at Hartford Hospital, says for some people, a mental illness may be a lifelong condition, like diabetes. “However, as with diabetes, proper treatment enables many people with a mental illness to lead fulfilling and productive lives. By helping combat the stigma associated with mental illness, we can help increase the number of people that seek treatment.”

Examples of common mental illnesses include bipolar disorder, depression, PTSD, schizophrenia, OCD, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, ADD/ADHD, autism and Asperger’s.  CT by the Numbers has previously reported on research underway at the Institute of Living.

A year ago, over $1,000,000 in net proceeds was raised at the Black & Red gala for Hartford Hospital’s transplant services.

New Haven Is Among Most Walkable Cities in America, Ranks #8 Nationwide

New Haven is one of America’s most walkable cities, with 11.2 percent of commuters walking to work, the 8th highest percentage in the nation, among cities with populations of at least 100,000.  The top 10 list of Most Walkable Cities, published by GOVERNING magazine, notes that many of top communities are in the Northeast, and that communities across the country are stepping up efforts to enhance alternative ways of commuting from home to work. The top cities were Cambridge, MA (24.5%), Columbia , SC (20.7%), Berkeley, CA (18.1%), Ann Arbor, MI (15.5%), Boston, MA (15.5%), Provo, UT (12.2%), Washington, DC (11.9%), New Haven, CT (11.2%), Syracuse, NY (11%) and Providence, RI (10.8%).

Overall, 67 percent of New Haven commuters use their car, 11.2 percent walk, 4.8 percent bike or use other modes of transportation, and 1.7 percent work from home., according to the data developed from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Communities Survey, which included 300 metropolitan areas.

Nationally, only 2.8 percent of workers primarily commuted by walking last year, a figure that remains mostly unchanged from recent annual estimates, GOVERNING reported.

Among the New Haven walkers, 36 percent are age 16-24, 52 percent are age 25-44, 9 percent are age 45-64 and 2 percent are age 65 or older.  The median age of walk commuters is 27.8, according to the date.  In categorizing individuals, a person’s longest distance traveled is used, so those walking tp transit stations are designated as public transportation commuters, even though a portion of their daily commute involves walking.

Among Connecticut’s most populous cities, in Bridgeport 4.3 percent of commuters walk to work; in Stamford the figure is 4.7 percent, in  Hartford 7.9 percent, and in Waterbury 2.6 percent.

Newtown High School Students Win International Public Health Education Contest

Each year, about 3.5 million children die before their 5th birthday due to preventable diseases, mainly diarrhea and acute respiratory diseases.   According to survey data from the Global School-based Student Health Survey, over 15 percent of schoolchildren in some countries say they rarely or never wash their hands before eating.

Those facts spurred a group of Newtown High School student to action.  They participated in the World Health Organization’s Touching Lives School Talent International Contest.  The one-minute educational video they produced was selected by a jury of international experts as the winning entry in the middle/high school age category (age 10-16) and was the only United States-based entry to win its category.

The Newtown Public Health class submitted the video at the start of the school year, and it was selected this fall among the winners in various age categories.  Their video now appears on the website of the Pan American Health Organization, and has begun to appear on other public health websites, including the Connecticut Public Health Association.  It was designed, written and produced in the opening weeks of school, just prior to  the mid-September entry deadline.

Experts point out that “just rinsing your hands is not washing.” In order for hands to be clean, soap and water must be used, for at least 20 seconds. Handwashing with soap is the most effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrheal and acute respiratory infections. Together, they are responsible for the majority of all child deaths, officials report.

Turning handwashing with soap before eating and after using the toilet into an ingrained habit could save more lives than any single vaccine or medical intervention, cutting deaths from diarrhea by almost half and deaths from acute respiratory infections by one-quarter, experts predict.  They also point out that a vast change in handwashing behavior is critical to meeting the Millennium Development Goal of reducing deaths among children under the age of five by two-thirds by 2015.

The educational video is preceded with the words “A Message from Newtown High School’s Public Health Class” filling the screen. It then begins with a male student gently singing over a strumming guitar, reminding viewers of the importance of hand-washing in rhyming lyrics, including urging viewers to “always think, 20 seconds at the sink.”  The video then features a variety of voices repeating “20 seconds” in nearly a dozen world languages.  It concludes by suggesting “don’t be part of the problem, be part of the solution.”

The video was edited by Amylee Anyoha.  Students in the Newtown High Public Health Class included Jess Amante, Maddie Erhardt, Enea Musaka, Sarah Craig, Kelly O’Connell, Chris Beaurline, Sydney Allen, Gabby Durkin, Tim Krapf, Amanda Paige, Taylor Strolli and Heather McKeown.

In the 2013 #TouchingLives School Talent International Contest, students could work individually or in a group, and all the countries in the Americas, were eligible and encouraged to develop songs, videos, illustrations, written compositions or any other expression of art promoting hand washing. The contest was, according to organizers, “about giving your personal touch to change the world.”

Pediatrician’s Invention to Stop Pain of Injections Could Improve Public Health

Many parents bring their infants and young children to the doctor for injections and leave muttering “there’s got to be a better way,” their child in tears or traumatized by the shot – or shots – administered to prevent illness and disease.  When Amy Baxter left the pediatrician’s office with her youngster, she resolved to find that better way.

Baxter, who attended Yale University as an undergraduate, Emory Medical School, and is now an emergency pediatrician, pain researcher and inventor in Atlanta, successfully developed  - with financial support from the National Institute of Health – a game-changing  device that combines high frequency, low amplitude vibration and a unique reusable ice pack a combination specifically designed to remove pain from the injection.

By stimulating competing sensations, nerve transmission of sharp pain, itching, or burning is blocked.  Simply put, the shots don’t hurt – and independently verified research indicates that it works.

As inventor of the unique needle pain blocking device - called Buzzy - Baxter founded a company that manufactures and distributes the product nationwide.  It is now in 1,200 children’s and adult hospitals across the country, including Yale-New Haven Hospital, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, and Lawrence & Memorial Hospital in New London,  and it is being used in Connecticut, with varying frequency, by about 100 physicians in medical practices all across the state, from Ashford to Westport.

Buzzy is a bee-shaped palm sized device (wings included) that appears as cute as a toy but has a more important mission – to alleviate pain, thus eliminating the onset of fear. Baxter’s company, Georgia-based MMJ Labs, produces the fast, effective solution– which has applications beyond children, and beyond injections, to other ailments and sources of quick, sharp pain.

Since its launch in 2009, Buzzy has amassed more than 36,000 users, $1 million in annual revenue, and rapidly increasing sales.  Baxter is one of Inc. Magazine’s Top Women in Tech to Watch, and is asked all over the world to educate physicians, nurses, Child Life specialists, and others about the importance of pain management.

“I invented Buzzy after experiencing first-hand the indifference of the healthcare system to the pain and suffering of children. As a pediatric emergency physician and pain researcher, I have learned that pain relief is not just a luxury; it actually improves the outcomes of procedures,” Baxter explains.

Data indicates that fear of needles is growing among children and the general population, and Baxter says that’s reason for concern.  Especially troubling is the long-term impact of a growing population of needle-averse adults will have on their own health and the health care system.

She cites statistics that reflect a dramatic increase in the number and frequency of shots children receive as youngsters – as much as four times higher than 50 years ago – and sometimes as many as four or five shots in a single doctor’s office visit.  And she stresses that pediatricians generally do little or nothing to try to diminish the pain that accompanies those injections.  That, Baxter says, has dramatic and long-lasting effects, on children as well as their parents.   The youngsters come to view the visits as more about pain than health, and the parents begin to have second thoughts about continuing to inflict the pain of needles on their children, often regardless of the potential benefits.

In a TEDx talk in Atlanta last month, Baxter discussed the public health repercussions of having populations whose fear of vaccinations could turn them away from the very remedies that can improve their individual health and the health of entire populations, warning that “by ignoring pain we’re endangering the future of health care.”

In the talk, titled “Pain, Empathy and Public Health,” Baxter warned that “the number and the way were giving shots is causing needle fear” which may lead to today’s children electing to stay away or delay visits to doctor’s offices as adults – at considerable potential health peril.

In the face of a potential “public health tsunami,” Baxter says “the solution is not to stop vaccinating, it’s to start making the shots better— vaccines shouldn't have to hurt.”