HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2001-09-05, Page 22The War Rays
PLAYSFIFE
"I am ASTAR,
robot. I can
arm back on.
a
put my
You
can '•t. So PLAYSAFE!"
Child amputees
know that
accidents
COM happen
arwOhere.
Many of them
have lost limbs in
accidents.
See ASTAR and the
Champs in The War
Amps safety video,
Spot the Danger!
To order a Spot the Danger! video,
visit our Web site at
www.waramps.ca
or call 1-800-250-3030.
Charitable Retystralion Number. 13198 9628 RF10001
HEALTH NEWS: ORGAN DONATION Q & As
How do I become an organ donor?
(NC)—In some provinces you must
register with an Organ Donor Registry,
in others you can indicate consent on
your Health Card or Driver's License.
For details on the province or
territory in which you live, visit
www.organandtissue.ca/how_to/registe
r.html on the Internet.
Does my signature on a donor
registration card or consent form
guarantee that my organs will be
used for transplantation?
No, your signature symbolises your
willingness to donate. However, except
in British Columbia, the ultimate decision
rests with your family. Without the
consent of yourloved ones, doctors will
not use your organ or tissue donation.
So, make sure your family is aware of
your intention to be an organ donor so
that they can support your decision.
Is there an age limit for organ
donation?
No, there is no age limit for organ
donation. In fact, everyone, regardless
of age, should consider being a potential
donor. The oldest liver donor on record
was 92. Corneas from a 102 year-old
woman gave sight to someone else. The
quality of the organ rather than its
chronological age determines whether
it can be transplanted.
Can I designate specific organs for
donation?
Yes. In most provinces you have
the choice of donating all organs and
tissues or only specific ones. Again,
it is important that you share the details
of your decision with your family.
Can I designate who should
receive my organs?
No, not unless you have a close blood
relative in immediate need. Normally,
your gift of organs and tissues is equally
available to all potential recipients,
based on various predetermined criteria.
For more information on organ and
tissue donation and how you can
donate, visit www.organandtissue.ca/
on the Internet.
- News Canada
If the newspaper
you are reading
was purchased at
a newsstand...
we have a deal
for you!
SAVE
up to
$950
a year
Off the newsstand price
Having a subscription to
The Citizen
saves you money
Newsstand price - 750/week
Subscription price - 560/week
Yes - I want to save money.
Enclosed is $28.00 for a 1-year subscription.
Postal Code:
Mail cheque & coupon to:
P.O. Box 429, P.O. Box 152
Blyth, ON or Brussels, ON
NOM 1H0 NOG 1H0
r ($1t
Name:
I Address
I Town:
PAGE 22. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2001.
Teen summers in Panamanian jungle
Panamanian adventure
Amanda Wood is fit and happy after her two-week trip to
Panama, which included a seven-day stay in the jungle at
a remote Indian village. (Photo by David Blaney)
By David Blaney
Citizen staff
For most of us spending a week in
the Panamanian jungle would not be
a preferred holiday. But Amanda
Wood did exactly that with part of
her summer vacation.
Wood participated in a program
run by Teen Mania Ministries of
Texas. She joined 160 other teens
from Canada, U.S. and Mexico for
the trip to Panama City, Panama.
During her first week, Wood per-
formed a modified passion play in
numerous locations around the city.
The teens would mime the play to
the accompaniment of a pre-record-
ed narration in Spanish. They would
perform in different locations three
or four times each day.
(NC)-The pain of a heart attack can
feel as harmless as the discomfort of
bad heartburn or as intense as a
crushing pain in the chest, sometimes
with sweating, nausea or vomiting.
In some cases, symptoms are mild
enough to be discounted as merely
indigestion. AlsO, people often deny
that they are experiencing chest pain
and delay seeking help.
You should never ignore the pain
or discomfort in your chest. If you
think you are having a heart attack, it
is crucial to get help immediately.
Every year, an estimated 300,000
to 500,000 Canadians go to hospital
emergency departments complaining
of chest pain. But Dr. James
Christenson and his team at St.
Paul's Hospital in Vancouver believe
at least two per cent of these people
are mistakenly sent home when they
are actually suffering a heart attack,
while more than 50 per cent spend at
least three hours in hospital when
At the beginning of the second
week the team took a three hour bus
ride into the interior and then loaded
their luggage into dugout
canoes.This was followed by a
seven-hour trip up river to the isolat-
ed village of Chicula Chicula.
The village was the home of the
Kuna Indians and was composed of
35 huts that were home to 42 people
of all ages.
For the first three-days the visitors
held a Bible school in the morning,
then worked and played with the
children in the afternbon. They
would often swim in the nearby river
which was very clear and clean.
The remaining four days consisted
of helping with chores and teaching
Spanish and English to the villagers.
"They are very interested in learning
they are not suffering.a heart attack.
By studying 1,900 patients at two
large Vancouver hospitals, the team
hopes to develop criteria to help doc-
tors safely and efficiently determine
which patients are having a heart
attack.
Dr. Christenson's research is being
funded by the Canadian Institutes of
Health Research (CIHR). CIHR is .
Canada's preeminent health research
catalyst and is funded by the govern-
ment of Canada. An exciting new
concept, CIHR is modernizing .and
transforming the health research
enterprise in Canada.
To learn more about CIHR please
visit: - www.cihr.ca,
info@cihr.ca or write to: CIHR, 410
Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa ON
K1A 0W9.
For more information on Dr.
Christenson's research, please e-
mail: jimchris@interchange.ubc.ca
- News Canada
English," Wood said, "It helps get a
job in the city."
For the girls in the group the
chores consisted of grinding corn for
flour, sweeping the huts, laundry and
trying to help with the weaving and
sewing of handicrafts that the vil-
lagers sold to tourists in the larger
towns. Wood said that the teens'
skills in the last area were not up to
the Kuna's standards and they were
usually relegated to simpler tasks.
,When her turn came to grind corn
for flour, Wood was surprised at how
difficult it was. "My arms ached
after a few minutes," she said. She
was also surprised at the monotony
of the meals. " Every meal had rice,
sardines and plantain, a local plant
something like a banana:" They had
to eat everything because it would
have been impolite to leave any-
thing.
While in the jungle Wood saw a
number of animals, including a black
panther one evening on her way to
the washroom. The villagers kept
spider monkeys as pets along with a
baby ocelot. She did see crocodiles,
but apparently not where they went
swimming.
After returning to Panama City the
group took a side trip to Isla Grande
for a day of swimming and relaxing
at the beach.
The contrasts in Panama made a
strong impression on her. "In the city
they have internet cafes all over,
even McDonalds does it," she com-
mented. "In the (Kuna) village the
nearest store was a long way away."
Despite having to eat monotonous
food, sleep under mosquito netting,
and wear the same clothes for sever-
al days, Wood says without hesita-
tion, " I want to go back full-time."
This year however, Wood will
head to Walkerton to complete her
OAC's, then plans to attend, the
University of . Ottawa where she
wants to take English-as-a-second
language training.
" Now I have a goal," she said. I
want to go back to Panama and
teach.' •
The participants in this type of
mission each pay their- own way.
Since Wood did not decide to go
until May, the $2,000 and the plane
ticket to Texas were a bit of a stretch
for her. The Auburn Missionary
Church, which she attends, rallied
around with generous support, she
said and Wood also had some of her
own money saved.
Wood said she felt different after
the trip. " We have so much com-
pared to them. They don't have
much available at all."
How to spot heart attacks