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EDITOR'S
NOTE: Note to readers: Beginning today, GwinnettForum
will suspend Tuesday publication for the next two weeks. Editions
will be published on Fridays on June 2 and 9. We will resume Tuesday
publication on June 12. Thank you for your understanding.--eeb
TODAY'S
ISSUE
Gwinnett Medical Center's
Kid's Clinic picked for study
By Kyle Brogdon
Special to GwinnettForum
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. May 26, 2006 -- The Kids' Clinic, an affiliate
of Gwinnett Medical Center, has been selected as one of 17 pediatric
practices in the nation to participate in an American Academy of
Pediatrics (AAP) study called "Development Surveillance and
Screening Policy Implementation Project" (D-PIP).
The Clinic's involvement in this study was led by medical director
Dr. Pat Tyagi practice manager Diana Hall and lead nurse Joanna
Carrega, RN. In June, this team will also represent the Kids' Clinic
at a training workshop about D-PIP.
Dr. Tyagi says: "This study is important to the advancement
of pediatric practice as it relates to identifying developmental
delays in our younger patients. We are so proud to be a part of
this national initiative."
The D-PIP study, funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention,
is focused on determining if the American Academy of Pediatrics'
policy statement, "Identifying Infants and Young Children with
Developmental Disorders in the Medical Home: An Algorithm for Developmental
Surveillance and Screening" can be efficiently and effectively
implemented into pediatric practice. The study will also look at
the outcomes of that implementation and strategies used by practices
to implement the policy statement algorithm. A broad range of practice
types, settings and diverse patient population are included.
Hall adds: "What we learn by participating in this study will
directly benefit the underinsured and uninsured children of Gwinnett
County that we serve. To be involved in such a groundbreaking and
prestigious national study is both an honor and privilege for the
Kids' Clinic and for Gwinnett Medical Center."
The Kids' Clinic will benefit from this 14-month study by improving
the way they look for and find developmental issues in patients
under three-years-old. The Clinic will also receive a $1,500 grant
and national acknowledgment when the study is published. For more
information about this award or the Development Surveillance and
Screening Policy Implementation Policy, please call 770-822-6360.
* * * * *
Gwinnett Hospital System, anchored by flagship
Gwinnett Medical Center, is a not-for-profit healthcare network
providing high quality facilities and services to Gwinnett and the
surrounding community. With over 4,000 employees and 750 physicians,
the System provided care in 2005 to almost 400,000 patients. In
2006, Gwinnett Hospital System received the HealthGrades® Distinguished
Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence*, ranking among the top 5%
of all hospitals in the nation for overall clinical performance.
To learn more, visit www.gwinnettmedicalcenter.org.
ELLIOTT
BRACK
Egads! Paying off your home mortgage over
50 years!
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
GwinnettForum.com
MAY 26, 2006 -- Retirement has never been a goal of mine, though
officially I am retired, and try to live off what my retirement
and Social Security now produce. And yes, I putter around with this
Forum and other activities.
Brack |
For some people, from the very day they begin work, they seem to
focus on the first day of their retirement, even though it may be
30 years away. That's good for them, as they look forward to retirement.
We say all this prior to letting you know some of the forward thinking
of the day. You see, this professor out at Stanford University has
advanced a new theory. He says that the age of retirement should
be raised to 85 by 2050 because of trends in life expectancy.
Nice thought, eh? Even for me, who never concentrated on retirement,
continuing to work to 85 seems a horrible idea. After all, just
the mere fact of not having to be somewhere bright and early each
day has its own appeal. But to think to delay retirement from 65
to 85 sends shudders up my spine. And think of all the aches and
pains these older workers would utter around the water cooler! It
would be depressing!
The professor, Shripad Tuljapurkar of Stanford, says anti-aging
advances could raise life expectancy by a year each year over the
next two decades. And as a result, this will, he says, put a strain
on economies around the world if current retirement ages are maintained.
He also told a science meeting in St. Louis that 50-year or 75-year
mortgages may not be unusual in the future.
Moving a retirement age to 85 is one thing. Taking out a 50-year
mortgage is another breed of cat. Think of the interest charges
over 50 years! Even after paying for 30 years on conventional mortgages,
what with interest, you would not even be halfway through your mortgage!
Shudders! After 30 years, you still would be paying more interest
than principal each month
For a $200,000 home, over 50 years you would end up having to pay
$476,200 in interest alone, or a total of $676,200! Compared to
a conventional 30 year loan (both figured at 6.5 per cent), your
total payout would be $455,040, a savings of $221,000 over the price
of a 50-year loan.
Mercy!
The Stanford researcher has been looking at relationships between
historical trends in ageing, population growth and economic activity.
Based on this, he came up with a scenario in which anti-aging technologies
will increase the most common age of death by one year per year
between 2010 and 2030.
And he came up with another scary scenario: "The possibility
of a 75-year mortgage!"
This is too much. We'll take the anti-aging technologies. But we
don't like the rest of this projection.
The only saving grace of his proposal: in the United States, the
cost of Social Security and medical care would almost double if
people retired at 65 under Tuljapurkar's scenario. But an increase
in the retirement age to 85 would bring costs down to today's levels,
and possibly keep Social Security financially sounds. It ought to;
everyone would be contributing for 20 more years.
Say what you want, a 50-year mortgage sounds anti-Biblical. Remember
"three score and 10" years? Most banks would say that
a 50- or 75-year mortgage doesn't give off a fiscally-sound aura,
either.
We guess we will never know whether this theory works. And we're
glad we won't be around to find out!
ABOUT
OUR SPONSORS
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public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com
to you at no cost to readers. Among our sponsors is Jim Cowart
Companies, which has been developing outstanding neighborhoods
throughout Atlanta for over 45 years. Today, Jim Cowart Residential
communities continue to stand for the very best in the metro Atlanta
area. Homebuyers can expect to find new, award-winning, custom and
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communities offer prestigious locations, near excellent shopping,
fun community recreation and entertainment, and great schools. For
more information, go to www.jimcowart.com.
For a list of other sponsors of this forum, go to: http://www.gwinnettforum.com/about/sponsors.htm
McLEMORE'S
WORLD
5/26: Gas guilt
Another great cartoon from Bill McLemore:
FEEDBACK
5/26: Bringing basic questions to production
of DaVinci Code
Editor, the Forum:
"In my beginning is my end."---- T.S. Eliot
Is it easier to believe in the historical divinity of Mary Magdalene
than the historical Jesus Christ? Does it matter?
After all, Tom Hanks says "the only thing that really matters
is what you believe yourself."
What kind of paradox is this? Who would ever have heard of Magdalene
if she had not been the follower of Christ?
More to the point, if Magdalene was a goddess, and Christ was not
god, how could Magdalene find that Christ had left his tomb, and
why would she proclaim he had risen? Was the goddess Magdalene defrauding
humanity? Was she starting a false religion? Brown is asking us
to believe and not to believe at the same time.
The end of King Arthur's grail quest, and all other grail quests
from Indiana Jones to T.S. Eliot was the womb of Magdalene? Tosh.
[The] DaVinci Code is a wonderful piece of fiction. But
it is time for the billions of readers and devotees of the book
and movie to understand the self-contradiction.
Surely, if we cannot prove the historical existence of Christ,
we cannot prove the historical existence of Magdalene, nor of their
offspring, nor of the Merovingian dynasty or any of the rest of
it..
The true meaning of Mona Lisa's smile may be that things cannot
be true and not true at the same time.
Perhaps logic is the ultimate Holy Grail for humankind.
-- James J, Murtagh, Atlanta
UPCOMING
City of Duluth to honor veterans on Saturday, May 27
Saturday, May 27 at 6 p.m. the City of Duluth and the American
Legion Post 251 will recognize Vietnam veterans by presenting them
with commemorative coins and pins in appreciation for the service
to the United States.
Another feature of the observance will be Georgia Vietnam Memorial
Wall on display along West Lawrenceville Street. The Legion Riders,
a sanctioned organization of veterans on motorcycles, will perform
a "Fallen Heroes Salute" to honor veterans. The service
will be highlighted by a performance by The Albany Marine Band from
the Marine Corps Logistics Command.
For more information contact Mayor Shirley Fanning Lasseter at
770-318-4111, Thom Mash with the American Legion at 678-386-2126
or Alisa Williams at 678-475-3512.
Health group selects
May 31 as World No Tobacco Day
The Gwinnett County Health Department is urging Gwinnett residents
to celebrate World No Tobacco Day, because a day without smoke becomes
a day with clean air. On May 31, the World Health Organization is
holding the 18th annual World No Tobacco Day, the only event observed
on a global scale to reduce tobacco-dependence. Each year WNTD encourages
people to kick the habit and save the health of non-smokers.
The World Health Organization is the United Nations‚ specialized
agency for health and strives for the attainment of the highest
possible level of health for all people physically, mentally and
socially. World No Tobacco Day activities vary from country to country.
Locally, the Gwinnett County Health Department is encouraging residents
to call the toll-free Georgia Tobacco Quit Line at 1-877-270-STOP/1-877-2NO-FUME
to stop tobacco use on World No Tobacco Day.
Steve Coldiron, Chairman of Smoke-Free Gwinnett, says: "World
No Tobacco Day provides a chance for all Gwinnett County residents
to kick their tobacco habit and start on a path toward healthy living.
We are encouraging folks to recognize this day and use the Quit
Line to help them or loved ones quit tobacco for good."
The Georgia Tobacco Quit Line is available to anyone in Georgia
13 years of age or older. Trained counselors staff the Quit Line
and offer individual programs tailored to the callers needs. Counseling
programs range from moderate (2 calls) to a more intensive program
consisting of 4 follow-up counseling sessions. Written self-help
materials are mailed to callers. Callers may also be referred to
resources in their local area, such as Fresh Start programs offered
through the hospital by the American Cancer Society. The Quit Line
is open from 8 a.m. to midnight (EST) daily.
For more information on Smoke-Free Gwinnett, visit www.smokefreegwinnett.com.
Snellville schedules
public hearing on passive park
The City of Snellville will hold a public input meeting to discuss
a future passive park to be located at 1925 Oak Road in Snellville.
The meeting will be held on Thursday, June 1 at 7 p.m. in the Betty
B. McMichael Room at the T.W. Briscoe Park Office. Interested parties
are encouraged to attend. Please contact the Snellville Parks and
Recreation Department for more information at 770-985-3535.
NOTABLE
Two local students win environmental scholarships
Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful has presented local students with
two Environmental Scholarships.
The winner $2,000 scholarship sponsored by Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful,
went to Jeffrey Freiberg of Norcross High School. Following his
undergraduate studies in Environmental Science at the University
of Virginia, Jeffrey plans to attend medical school and practice
in third-world countries, treating health issues and their relationship
to the environment.
The second scholarship, a $1,000 scholarship sponsored by the Gwinnett
Soil and Water Conservation District, was presented to Bonnie Greenwood
of Parkview High School.
After attending Colorado State University and majoring in wildlife
biology, Bonnie plans to become a physician's assistant and combine
her physician skills with a wildlife and conservation background
to ultimately become a member of a search and rescue team.
RECOMMENDED
Daughters of Hope
"I am currently reading Daughters of Hope, a very powerful
book filled with stories about persecuted Christians living out
their faith in daring and dangerous ways. Their commitment is truly
inspiring and every page and story makes me more grateful for the
religious freedoms we enjoy today in America and often take for
granted. My Sundays will never be the same! It is written by Kay
Marshall Strom and Michele Rickett (who is moving her organization,
Sisters In Service, her organization, www.sistersinservice.org,
this week to the Atlanta area, small world!) I plan on reading The
Cure for the Common Life by Max Lucado next."
-- Cindy Evans, Duluth
- An invitation: What
Web sites, books or restaurants have you enjoyed? Send us your
best recent visit to a restaurant or most recent book you have
read along with a short paragraph as to why you liked it, plus
what book you plan to read next. --eeb
GEORGIA
TIDBIT
Shrimping on Georgia coast produces top seafood
catch
Shrimp are a delicacy for seafood lovers-not only humans but also
fish and seabirds. Shrimp are Georgia's
most valuable seafood crop, and during most years they account
for more than 80 percent of seafood landings value (the total value
of caught seafood per year).
Shrimp boat
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In 2001, Georgia ranked 22nd in total value of landings in the
country. Two species of shrimp make up most of the catch: white
shrimp and brown shrimp. Between 4.5-9.5 million pounds of heads-on
shrimp are harvested annually by a fleet of more than 500 boats,
which are based all along the Georgia coast.
White shrimp, which account for more than two-thirds of Georgia's
harvest, spawn in the Atlantic Ocean from late March until September.
At depths of three to ten fathoms, females release 500,000 to 1
million eggs each into the ocean. Young shrimp feed on bottom algae,
small animals, and debris. Shrimp remain in the marshes and sounds
two to three months and mature before returning to the ocean. As
winter approaches, most white shrimp move out of sounds and travel
south. Those lucky enough to avoid the trawls, or nets, return to
become part of the next year's spawning stock. Some white shrimp
remain in the deep holes in coastal streams, and they emerge in
the spring and migrate offshore to spawn.
Brown shrimp have a similar life cycle but spawn in the late winter.
The postlarvae, ten to thirteen millimeters long, move into estuaries
in late March and April. By June the shrimp are adults and begin
to move offshore. They are an important harvest from June to August.
THOUGHT
OF THE DAY
Danger is from those
who forget principles of hard work
"Many new citizens are writing new chapters in the fulfillment
of the American Dream, but new blood, as usual, is greeted by shortsighted
people who see each wave of immigration as the end of civilization
as we know it. The 'clear and present danger' is not from legal
immigrants, but from those who forget the principles of hard work
and thrift that made our nation the bastion of free enterprise and
opportunity and are envied by the rest of the world."
-- Rogers Wade, in May issue of Georgia Policy Review.
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