Women's health fair set for Wednesday

The Helena Indian Alliance in collaboration with the Lewis and Clark City-County Health Department Breast and Cervical Health Program, is holding Wisdom of Wellness Health Fair on Wednesday from 1-4 p.m. with Breast Health Bingo at 4-5 p.m.

Women of all ages are invited to the Big Sky Room of the Helena Indian Alliance, 436 N. Jackson, to learn about various health topics including prevention and nutrition.

Eligible women can sign up for free Pap tests and mammograms.

This free health fair will include exhibitors from local health care programs. Videos will be shown in a private room throughout the event on breast and cervical health topics. Women will also have the opportunity to decorate their own coffee mugs, listen to music, and win door prizes. Snacks and Indian Tacos will be provided for all those attending the health fair.

"This health fair will be a lot of fun as well as providing women with a lot of information on health issues and programs that are available to help them achieve better health," said Melissa Baker, Breast and Cervical Health Program Coordinator. "We want to give women the knowledge they need to make wise health choices while also providing an afternoon of camaraderie and fun."

The health fair is sponsored by: Susan B. Komen for the Cure, Lewis and Clark Health Department Breast and Cervical Health Program, United Way, and the Montana Breast and Cervical Health Program. For more information, call the Helena Indian Alliance at 449-5796.

The Lewis & Clark City-County Health Department's mission is to improve and protect the health of all Lewis & Clark County residents.

OB/GN to discuss caesarean section policy at hospital

Dr. Jack McMahon, a Helena OB/GYN, will discuss St Peter's Hospital's policy on vaginal birth after caesarean section at the International Cesarean Action Network of Helena meeting Thursday.

ICAN of Helena is a group that offers support for women who: have had a caesarean section, may be pursuing a vaginal birth after cesarean), or pregnant women looking to avoid a cesarean.

ICAN meets on the first Thursday of every month 7:30-9 p.m. at the Evangelical Covenant Church, Room 205, 800 N Hoback, on the corner of Butte and Hoback.

For more information contact Karin at icanofhelena@gmail.com.

Parkinson's support group to hear talk on disease reasearch

Dr. Eliad Culcea, Great Falls Clinic neurologist and Parkinson's disease specialist, will be in Helena on Friday, May 8, as guest speaker with the Helena Parkinson's Disease Support Group.

Dave Taylor, spokesperson for the group, said the session will be a unique opportunity for conversation about living with Parkinson's and ongoing research to finding the cause and the cures of this degenerative neurological disorder.

Members of the community are welcome to attend the meeting, from 6-8 p.m. Friday evening, May 8, in the large meeting room upstairs at the Waterford, 915 Saddle Drive.

For details, call Dave at 431-9774.

Skin-conditions talk tonight at hospital

Family physician Dr. Cheryl Cavalli will give a talk on identifying skin conditions today as part of the St. Peter's Hospital and The Waterford's Better Living Lecture Series.

The free presentation is from 6-7 p.m., in the hospital's Education Center.

Cavalli will discuss how to distinguish between a minor skin ailment and one that is potentially life threatening. Topics will include: how to tell if a mole may be cancerous; recognizing a rash that may be a sign of a serious infection; protecting skin from the sun while still getting enough vitamin D; what sunscreen products are safe; skin issues like heat rash, eczema, irritation from radiation and more. Cavalli will answer individual questions at the end of her talk.

A full schedule of lectures and other community events at St. Peter's Hospital is available at www.st.petes.org.

Panel talk on energy, climate is Thursday

There will be a panel discussion on clean energy and climate solutions Thursday at 7 p.m. at the University of Montana n Helena College of Technology.

The town-hall-style event aims to connect the dots between energy, climate, and the economy. It will also cover how we can take advantage of a low carbon economy and how federal solutions to climate change are likely to impact our state, helping us move toward a more sustainable, prosperous, and fair economy -- one that creates jobs and rewards clean energy investments.

Speakers include Gregg Small with Climate Solutions, Eric de Place of the Sightline Institute, and Gloria Flora with Sustainable Obtainable Solutions.

The event is sponsored by Montana Audubon, Montana Conservation Voters Education Fund, Sierra Club, Climate Solutions, and Montanans for a Healthy Climate, UM-Helena College of Technology.

The event is at the college's Donaldson campus, 1115 N Roberts, Room 002. It is free and open to the public.

For further information call 465-1141

Exhibit, health fair on breast cancer slated

Every Woman Matters, a multimedia exhibit highlighting Montana women and their compelling stories about the importance of overcoming challenges to breast cancer screening will be on exhibit in Helena, May 12-16, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Carroll College in The Scola (located in Simperman Hall/Fortin Center Building).

A Health/Wellness Fair will be held in conjunction with the Every Woman Matters exhibit and Montana's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on Friday, May 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Every Woman Matters: Portraits of Montana Women Living with Disabilities features black-and-white portraits of 12 women living with disabilities from across the Big Sky Country -- some of them breast cancer survivors -- all of them role models and advocates. The portraits, taken by internationally acclaimed portrait photographer Steven Begleiter, are augmented by a multimedia video project produced by University of Montana journalism students and School of Journalism Assistant Professor Jeremy Lurgio.

The Montana Disability and Health Program produced Every Woman Matters with community partners to launch the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Right To Know campaign in Montana. Right to Know is a social marketing campaign designed to increase awareness of the importance of breast cancer screening among women with physical disabilities.

The American Cancer Society recommends women age 40 and older -- or those with certain risk factors -- get a mammogram every year. However, in 2007, 30 percent of all Montana women living with disabilities failed to get a mammogram in the previous two years. Women living with disabilities are also less likely to have ongoing breast cancer screening because of a combination or variety of physical, psychological or accessibility barriers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Right to Know campaign, the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services and its Disability and Health Program (MTDH) are all working to change this.

The first Every Woman Matters multimedia exhibit was held in Missoula last March at Begleiter Photography Studio. The exhibit will be displayed at other studios and art galleries throughout the state, as well as at public health, medical, professional and disability community events and conferences. When not on the road, exhibit portraits will be permanently displayed in the Disability Rights Montana Community Meeting Room.

Most portrait production costs were covered by a grant from the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Montana Affiliate. The women's hair styling and makeup were done by volunteers Elly Burton and Randi Pilgrim of Burton's Classics. Carroll College is sponsoring the Helena exhibit.

For more information contact Montana Independent Living Project in Helena at 442-5755.