Newspapers / InterCom (Durham, N.C.) / July 1, 1977, edition 1 / Page 3
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Soft Water Not a Factor in Heart Problems A National Research Council report liiJdng "soft" water to an increased incidence of heart disease, hypertension and strokes is "a tremendous disservice to the American people/' a EHike scientist believes.- Dr. Siegfried Heyden, a professor of community health sciences, said his own research and studies conducted by numerous other scientists here and abroad show no correlation between water "softness" and heart disease and other vascular problems. Water is considered "hard" when it contains more than a certain level of calcium carbonate, composed of calcium and magnesium, the scientist explained. Water containing Task Force Studies Rights of Disabled A task force has been appointed by Chancellor A. Kenneth Pye to evaluate the university's compliance with federal regulations prohibiting discrimination on the basis of handicap. The task force will report its findings and recommendations for any remedial action needed in the university to the university's director of equal opportunity, IDolores L. Burke. The self-evaluation report will be submitted to the Department of Health, Education and Welfare for review. Task force members in the medical center are Dr. Ann Britt, director of the Department of Human Resource^ Development; Stanley B. Morse, assistant director of Duke's Area Health Education Center; and Robert G. Winfree, acting assistant vice president for health affairs (planning and analysis). Pye urged everyone "to cooperate in the evaluation and to continue to be sensitive to the need for improving opportunities for handicapped persons." Employee Relations Coordinator Named Special emphasis will be placed on employee relations within the medical center as a result of the appointment of Sam Andrews as employee relations coordinator for Duke. The appointment was announced by Richard L. Jackson, assistant vice president and director of jwrsonnel. Andrews, who joined the university's Personnel Office 10 years ago, graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1950. He was associated with the automobile business for 13 years and then worked with the Employment Security Commissions of Virginia and North Carolina for five years. He will be succeeded as employment coordinator by Jill Orvald, who will be responsible for the administration and supervision of the university's employment functions. Orvald has been staff employment representative since 1976. less than the specified level of calcium carbonate is considered "soft." Study in Stroke 'Belt' Heyden's resecirch was conducted as part of an ongoing U.S. Public Health Service study launched in rural Evans County, Ga., in 1960. The county lies in the middle of the southern cardiovascular disease and stroke "belt," where the rate of heart disease and related illnesses approaches three times the rate for the rest of the country. "In Evans County, they have only very hard water which supposedly protects people from heart attacks, hypertension and strokes," he said. A similar high heart attack and stroke belt in Newfoundland, Canada, has only very soft water, and the region around Birmingham, England, which also has very soft water, has a low cardiovascular death rate. Most Minerals from Food What this conflicting evidence indicates is that water seems to be a very unimportant contributor to cardiovascular mortality," Heyden said. "In our Evans Coimty study we found that 99.8 per cent of the calcium, sodium and other minerals come from food, while only .2 per cent comes from water," the scientist said. "As long as people disregard the amount of these minerals that come from food, speculation that hard water is better is ridiculous." Last year, in an effort to resolve the water controversy, Heyden published an article entitled "The Hard Facts Behind the Hard Water Theory and Ischemic Heart Disease" in the Journal of Chronic Diseases. The article, which was reprinted as an editorial in the British Medical journal, reviewed the most important research on the subject. It concluded that there was no reasonable evidence that hard or soft water affects heart attacks, hypertension or strokes. Heyden said the National Research Council report attracted wide media attention across the country last weekend, but added no new scientific data to the water question. Rather, he said, it only served to confuse the issue once again. MOVING EAST—Beginning today, Dr. Robert Brame is the new chairman ot the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the East Carolina University School of Medicine in Greenville. Brame had been at Duke since 1970, and prior to that he had had faculty apF>ointments at the schools of medicine at both the University of North Carolina in Chafiel Hill and Wake Forest (Bowman Gray School of Medicine) in Wmston-Salem. With his appointment at the new medical school, Brame will have been a faculty member at all of North Carolina's schools of medicine. Intercomments Medical Center Library Alveria Pugh has assumed the full-time duties of audio-visual assistant. She was formerly reserve assistant. Reporten Kathy Kruse Ambulatory Nursing Jane Sharpe, pediatric head nurse, is the proud grandmother of a baby girl. Shannon Bridad O'Rourke, 7 lbs. l5Vi oz. (3.61 kg). Repoiten Carolyn Bradley Highland Hospital Ben A. Pearsall has been niamed manager of Environmental Services by ServiceMaster, succeeding Andy Paik. Since October 1975 Pearsall has been associate coordinating manager for ServiceMaster at Gaston Memorial Hospital. Peggy Woodhall has been appointed social worker. She received her Master of Social Work degree at Rorida State University in 1976 and has been employed with the Catawba County Department of Social Services in Hickory. Reporter: Tom Muncy Full-term Nursery The Full-term Nursery welcomes Sandra Lebel, RN, from Long Ward. Jane Hannon, LPN, is engaged to marry James Shipman. The wedding will be July 17 in Roxboro. A going away party was given May 30 for E>r. Roberta Smith, former unit physician. Reporten Beveriy Craig Matas Ward We say goodbye regretfully to RNs Pam Britt, who is taking leave to obtain her B.S. degree; Kim Huss, Debbie Bruce and Betsey Lewis, who have taken new jobs; and Bobby Long, who's taking maternity leave. Reporten Virginia Barnette General and Thoracic Surgery New faces are Linda Fuller, senior research technician; Susan Larrick and Martha McLean, research technicians; and Julie Gelinas, work-study student. Senior research technician Timothy Denny has resigned and returned to graduate school. Paul "Chip" McGuirt, research technician, has taken another job. Steven Sullivan, senior research technician, will be leaving in July Reporten Pat Farrell Service Silhouette She LikeS Pcople, Work I WHAT WE DO—Betty Schlitz Goodfellow, senior medical technologist who has worked in the Department of Pathology for 27 years, shows Sam Andrews, employee relations coordinator, how she slices specimens for study. Employee Relations and Intercom are beginning a new feature "Service Silhouette" that will appear periodically to recognize the biweekly employee who has worked the longest in each department. (Photo bylna Fried) By Sam Andrews Employee Relations Coordinator She likes what she's doing, she likes the people with whom she works and she believes in them both. She's Betty Schlitz Goodfellow, senior medical technologist in the Department of Pathology. Goodfellow joined the department in 1950, giving her the distinction of being the biweekly employee who has worked the longest in pathology. She came to Duke right from high school, worked for a year as a ward clerk and then transferred to pathology as a trainee. After training with Phillip Pickett, associate in pathology, she obtained registration as a medical technologist. Goodfellow has witnessed many changes in her 27 years here, both in Duke and in lab techniques. All the changes have been good ones, she believes. She credits much of her enthusiasm to working closely with Pickett and observing first-hand his introductions of new equipment, modifications and laboratory methods. Widowed three years ago, she has three children. Don Schlitz Jr., 24, works with Computer Services at Vanderbilt University and applies his musical talents to composing and performing. Daughter Kathryn Langford, 22, is a radiology technologist with Croasdaile Clinic while Bradley Schlitz, 15, is still in school and living at home. Goodfellow foresees no immediate change in her relationship with Duke, a relationship which has been rewarding enough to bring Capt. John Goodfellow of the Public Safety Department into her life. They were married June 4. Will she stop working to be a housewife? "Heavens, no," she said. "I enjoy working here too much."
InterCom (Durham, N.C.)
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July 1, 1977, edition 1
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