‘Mayor of NE Portland’ Honored With Affordable Housing Building
The Paul & Geneva Knauls Building will provide wraparound services for military veterans.
On Steps of US Supreme Court, AG Rosenblum Rallies Abortion Rights Supporters
Speaking at an ACLU-organized rally on the steps of the United States Supreme Court this morning, Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum made an impassioned defense of abortion as essential healthcare, and of medication abortion as a key part of those healthcare rights. The rally coincided with arguments being presented inside the Supreme Court in the AHM (Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine) v. FDA (Food & Drug Administration) case.
Should College Essays Touch on Race? Some Feel the Affirmative Action Ruling Leaves Them No Choice
When the Supreme Court ended affirmative action, it left the college essay as one of few places where race can play a role in admissions decisions. Yet the added weight of the college essay has fallen unevenly on students of color, who often feel pressure to exploit their hardships as they compete for a spot on campus.
Bird Flu, Weather and Inflation Conspire to Keep Egg Prices Near Historic Highs for Easter
The cost of filling a basket or completing a Seder plate reflect a market scrambled by disease, high demand and growing costs for farmers. While global prices are lower than they were at this time last year, they remain elevated.
The Portland Art Museum presents Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks
Exhibition on view March 30 - August 11, 2024. Programs to include sneaker-focused Summer Camps and in-gallery activities ...
Portland Street Response Hosts Town Hall
PCCEP is seeking community input to help shape their recommendation in support of Portland Street Response. ...
Joint Center Responds to the U.S. House Office of Diversity and Inclusion Disbandment
This decision jeopardizes the establishment of policies to support diverse communities and threatens the pursuit of inclusivity for...
Bonamici, Kaine Praise Billion Dollar Increase for Child Care, Early Childhood Learning
Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) —members of the House Committee on Education and Workforce and the...
Portland Rose Festival 2024 Court Member from Benson Polytechnic High School Announced
The Rose Festival Princess from Benson Polytechnic High School, Laedyn Romero, was selected March 22. ...
California's commercial Dungeness crab season will end April 8 to protect whales
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The commercial Dungeness crab season in California will be curtailed to protect humpback whales from becoming entangled in trap and buoy lines, officials announced Thursday. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife said commercial crabbing will end April 8 for...
Oregon city can't limit church's homeless meal services, federal judge rules
BROOKINGS, Ore. (AP) — A federal judge has ruled that a southern Oregon city can't limit a local church's homeless meal services. U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Clarke found that an ordinance passed by the small city of Brookings, on the southern Oregon coast, violated the religious...
Georgia ends game on 12-0 run to beat Missouri 64-59 in first round of SEC tourney
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Blue Cain had 19 points, Justin Hill scored 17 off the bench and 11th-seeded Georgia finished the game on a 12-0 run to beat No. 14 seed Missouri 64-59 on Wednesday night in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Cain hit 6 of 12 shots,...
Georgia faces Missouri in SEC Tournament
Missouri Tigers (8-23, 0-18 SEC) vs. Georgia Bulldogs (16-15, 6-12 SEC) Nashville, Tennessee; Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. EDT FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Bulldogs -3; over/under is 147 BOTTOM LINE: Georgia plays in the SEC Tournament against Missouri. ...
COMMENTARY: Is a Cultural Shift on the Horizon?
As with all traditions in all cultures, it is up to the elders to pass down the rituals, food, language, and customs that identify a group. So, if your auntie, uncle, mom, and so on didn’t teach you how to play Spades, well, that’s a recipe lost. But...
A Full Court Press to Get the Lead Out
With a “goal of identifying and remediating lead hazards in at least 2,800 Lancaster County homes,” LG Health is setting an example for the private sector. And the Biden-Harris administration’s focus on environmental justice and access to clean and safe...
OP-ED: Congress Is Right: Federal Reserve’s Reg II Will Hurt Minority Communities in America
The Fed is taking every effort to promote income equality and workplace diversity and inclusion, but Regulation II would undercut its great work in this respect and cause potential harm to millions of minority families. Now that a congressional coalition has...
OP-ED: A Silent Killer No More
Data from Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City shows that more than 13 percent of African American men between the ages 45 and 79 will develop prostate cancer in their lifetimes. And Black men have a 70 percent higher rate of developing...
What to stream this weekend: Beyoncé, Steve Martin, J-Hope, Mike Birbiglia, Bill Nighy and 'Madu'
Beyoncé's country album and a documentary about a Nigerian boy who dreams of being a professional ballet dancer are some of the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you. Also among the streaming offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated...
Chicago plans to move migrants to other shelters and reopen park buildings for the summer
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago plans to close five shelters for migrants in the coming weeks and move nearly 800 people, including families, in order to reopen park district buildings hosting popular summer camps, athletic contests and other community events in time for summer. The shift is...
Key findings from AP's investigation into police force that isn't supposed to be lethal
Every day, police in the U.S. rely on common use-of-force tactics that, unlike guns, are meant to stop people without killing them. But when misused, these tactics can still end in death. Over a decade, more than 1,000 people died after police subdued them through physical holds, stun...
Celebrity birthdays for the week of March 31-April 6
Celebrity birthdays for the week of March 31-April 6: March 31: Actor William Daniels (“St. Elsewhere,” ″Boy Meets World”) is 97. Actor Richard Chamberlain is 90. Actor Shirley Jones is 90. Musician Herb Alpert is 89. Actor Christopher Walken is 81. Comedian Gabe Kaplan...
How to make an Easter ham last all week
The beauty of making a baked ham for Easter (or any holiday or large gathering) is that there's bound to be leftovers. Leftover ham, which will last for up to five days in the fridge, can be a springboard for other meals during the week. Of course you’ll want a sandwich or two, but...
Book Review: 'Glorious Exploits' turns classical history into an endearing comedy about tragedy
Best friends Lampo and Gelon are potters by trade, but their souls are filled with poetry. It’s 412 B.C. and the city of Syracuse doesn’t know what hit it when these two hatch up the best worst idea: They’ll put on a play using the Athenian prisoners of war who are starving to death down in...
Black pastors see popular Easter services as an opportunity to rebuild in-person worship attendance
WASHINGTON (AP) — At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many churches moved their services online, the...
Obama, Clinton and big-name entertainers help Biden raise a record million for his reelection
NEW YORK (AP) — Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and some big names from the entertainment world teamed up Thursday...
Trump attends wake of slain New York officer, calls for 'law and order,' to show contrast with Biden
MASSAPEQUA PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Donald Trump attended Thursday's wake of a New York City police officer gunned down...
France's lower house passes a bill banning hair discrimination. It now goes to the Senate
PARIS (AP) — Lawmakers in France's lower house of parliament on Thursday approved a bill that would ban...
Activists sue US National Park Service over plan to remove Puerto Rico's famous stray cats
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A nonprofit organization said Thursday that it sued the U.S. National Park Service...
As America grapples with prescription opioid addiction, an epidemic shattering communities across our nation, healthcare providers face a challenging question: How can we help patients treat and manage their pain while reducing the risk of addiction?
Pain management is a serious health issue, as chronic cases of pain now affect more Americans than diabetes, heart disease and cancer combined. Not only does persistent pain afflict the emotional and financial well-being of people and their families, it also exacts a significant strain on our country — in the form of healthcare costs, long-term disability and lost worker productivity.
Pain does not discriminate based on background or health status, yet research points to substantial disparities in the prevalence, treatment and outcomes of pain. For many African-Americans and other minorities, understanding why these disparities exist is paramount to achieving pain care equity and improving quality of life.
Minorities are not at a higher risk for pain-related conditions than their White counterparts, but African-Americans consistently receive less-adequate treatment for acute and chronic pain — even after controlling for age, gender and pain intensity. What’s more, research also shows that minorities are more likely to be prescribed less-effective, non-opioid medications — or opioids at a lower prescription dosage — than Whites, even when pain severity levels are comparable.
That is not to say opioids are always the preferred tool for treating pain. Indeed, when appropriately administered, opioids can help patients relieve or manage their pain. However, the prescription of less-effective medications or lower dosages does signal a troubling gap in instances when opioids can be an effective, pragmatic solution for African American patients.
Many factors are at play in understanding why African American patients are more likely to receive inadequate pain treatment, but physician bias is perhaps the biggest factor. While most physicians are strong advocates for health equity, negative preconceptions can creep into how pain is addressed in the clinical setting. Eliminating these biases is one key way we can achieve better outcomes for African-Americans experiencing pain, and that starts by understanding a patient’s heritage and belief system. With greater cultural competence, physicians can better manage pain in a manner that’s compatible with and respectful of patients’ backgrounds.
Access is another instrumental lever in erasing the pain care gap. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) helped to increase access to healthcare considerably for African-Americans, but too many individuals remain uninsured or unable to access basic medical services, including pain relief. Encouraging loved ones to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the ACA can help them access the care and treatment they need to live comfortably.
But access alone is not enough. Equally important is building trust with the healthcare community — so that pain-related conditions can be treated, managed and prevented. We know some African-Americans continue to be skeptical of the healthcare system, and that lack of trust can lead African American patients to underreport their pain levels, only furthering inadequate pain management. African American patients must take charge of their health and feel empowered to honestly communicate and set expectations with healthcare providers in order to receive the right care at the right time.
At Ascension, we’re working to achieve equitable pain management across all minority groups. We know our field is at a tipping point, and a failure to treat pain is not only poor medicine, it’s denying our brothers and sisters a basic human right. That’s why we are working in concert with our patients to develop national, comprehensive guidelines to pain management — standards that embed healthcare equity with our understanding of patient history and cultural sensitivity.
Guided by this understanding and deepened by our relationships with our patients, we are committed to the highest standard of pain management along the care continuum. This work also requires we actively engage African American patients and explore all pathways to care — including non-medicine, integrated forms of therapy.
There is still much more work to do to truly and fully eradicate disparities in pain management, and every member of our community has a role to play. Too many of our family members, friends and neighbors are hurting — often in silence — from pain in many different forms. Together, healthcare providers and the communities we serve can empower and support vulnerable patients along their pathway to relief.
Patricia A. Maryland, Dr.PH, is the President of Healthcare Operations and Chief Operating Officer for Ascension Health, the healthcare delivery subsidiary of Ascension, the nation’s largest non-profit and largest Catholic health system.