Health advisory council hires new director
Citizens Health Advisory Council has selected Pattie Adler as its new executive director.
Adler began her new position in December 2013. She worked at San Juan Basin Health Department as the director of the Community Health Promotion (Prevention) Division for 16 years before joining the council.
Before coming to Durango in 1996, she worked in the HIV/STD Program of the state of Alaska Public Health Division, and as a hospital social worker/discharge planner in Fairbanks for 10 years. She has volunteered at the La Plata Community Clinic and Four Corners Health Center. Adler earned a master’s degree in public health from the University of Michigan.
After three years as executive director, Jaynee Fontecchio-Spradling will now serve as special projects manager for the Citizens Health Advisory Council.
Fontecchio-Spradling was a 2013 Nightingale Luminary Award recipient, and she was recognized by the Colorado Coalition for the Medically Underserved in 2013 as the Community Leader of the Year.
For more information, email pattie@chaclaplata.org or call 799-0218.
FDA: Aleve may be safer than rival drugs
WASHINGTON – Federal health experts say the pain reliever found in Aleve may be safer for the heart than other popular anti-inflammatory drugs taken by millions of Americans.
A Food and Drug Administration review posted online states that naproxen, the key ingredient in Aleve and other generic pain pills, may have a lower risk for heart attack and stroke than rival medications such as ibuprofen, sold as Advil and Motrin. FDA staff members recommend relabeling naproxen to emphasize its safety.
The agency will ask a panel of experts this month to discuss the latest evidence about the pain relievers and whether naproxen should be relabeled. The agency is not required to follow the group’s advice.
If finalized, the labeling changes could reshape the market for drugs used to treat headaches, muscle pain and arthritis.
Mercy is offering prediabetes education
Anyone identified as having prediabetes is invited to attend a free class by Sheena Carswell and Marge Morris from 9 to 11 a.m. Thursday in Suite 140 of the medical office building at Mercy Regional Medical Center.
Attendees will learn how to manage prediabetes and prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes.
People diagnosed with prediabetes are at a higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Studies have shown that the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes can be significantly reduced through weight loss and exercise, which have been shown to be more effective in managing prediabetes than medication alone.
To register, call Jan Wesley at 764-2720.
Herald Staff and Associated Press
