Kim Barker

Controversy isn't new to public health officer Dr. Kim Thorburn. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Frazier

People waiting for an organ transplant in the Inland Northwest would wait even longer under a plan proposed by the federal government, area transplant doctors say. The plan announced Thursday by the Department of Health and Human Services would eliminate the current organ-allocation system. That system divides the nation into regions and gives potential recipients priority for receiving organs donated in the same region.

Dr. Fred Shaw, who has studied hepatitis A since 1983, outlines the risk factors associated with reported cases of the virus in the United States during a meeting Wednesday at the Spokane Regional Health District. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

A nationally recognized expert in hepatitis A and the state's chief epidemiologist will talk about the virus today at the Spokane Regional Health District. "We're hoping we can put Spokane in the national perspective," Dr. Kim Thorburn, health officer for the district, said of the public meeting.

Nurses and management at Sacred Heart Medical Center reached a tentative contract agreement Thursday. Hours earlier, nurses overwhelmingly had voted to reject a prior contract offer and authorize a strike. If an agreement hadn't been reached Thursday, the nurses probably would have given the hospital a 10-day strike notice.

Tara Pool holds her 5-year-old son, Shea, while Spokane Regional Health District nurse Judy Miller delivers a shot of hepatitis A vaccine Thursday. Photo by Torsten Kjellstrand/The Spokesman-Review

For the first time, the Spokane health district is publicly urging all 410,000 county residents to be vaccinated against hepatitis A. The countywide "call to action" was issued Wednesday afternoon because of the virus outbreak, which began last year. More than 120 people have tested positive for hepatitis A so far this year, compared with 190 in all of 1997.

Barbra Frye, left, answers questions as nurses gather Wednesday near Sacred Heart Medical Center to vote on a contract offer. Photo by Roger Ames/The Spokesman-Review

Out of bounds to old folks. While the rest of the tour takes in the new pediatrics unit, Dr. Gary Lee and Gracia Anderson, a nurse, play in the "Ouchless Zone," a playroom where adults must have permission to enter. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

Contract talks between nurses and management at Sacred Heart Medical Center broke off Friday, and nurses will vote next week on what the hospital calls its final offer. The 1,100 hospital nurses also will vote on whether to authorize a strike. If they decide to strike, they must give the hospital 10 days' notice. Administrators and nurses said they were disappointed with the six-hour negotiating session Thursday night. Both sides said they'd made concessions. "We bargained in good faith," said administrator Carol Sheridan, vice president for nursing services. "We were just disappointed in the outcome."

Nurses and management at Sacred Heart Medical Center are scheduled to meet tonight to try to settle on a new contract. The more than 1,100 registered nurses at the hospital have been working without a contract since Dec. 31. Contract negotiations broke down Feb. 17 after nine bargaining sessions over almost three months. A federal mediator asked both sides to return to the bargaining table at 7 p.m., said administrator Carol Sheridan, vice president of nursing at Sacred Heart.

A well-known Spokane AIDS doctor has been placed on three-years probation by the state and must have a woman present while examining female patients. Dr. Daniel Coulston, 45, admitted having sexually explicit telephone conversations with a female patient in the fall of 1992. Three years later, he took the unusual step of reporting his behavior to the state Medical Quality Assurance Commission. The commission accused Coulston of unprofessional conduct last April. The sanctions were imposed in August but only recently were made public. "We think it's fair and reasonable and protects the public," said Mike Farrell, an attorney for the state Department of Health. Coulston will appear before the commission next week to show he's complying with the order. An employee at Coulston's office referred phone calls about the case to his lawyer, Dan Keefe. "He self-reported," Keefe said. "It was obviously a very singular set of circumstances. I happen to share the judgment of others in the community that he's an outstanding physician and an outstanding human being."

A former Spokane kidney doctor could face prison time and millions of dollars in fines if convicted of overbilling the federal government and private insurance companies. After hearing secret testimony, a federal grand jury returned a 14-count indictment against Dr. Mark Frazier and his former corporation, Northwest Nephrology Associates. Frazier and the corporation were charged Thursday with mail fraud, false statements and false claims. No other doctors in the group were indicted.

No new cases of E. coli have been traced to the downtown YMCA day-care center. Eight cases of the sometimes fatal bacteria have been linked to the center, but only one child has been hospitalized. The 23-month-old girl remained in fair condition Thursday at Deaconess Medical Center. Investigators from the Spokane Regional Health District again looked at food-handling at the day-care center Thursday.

The E. coli outbreak appears to be isolated to the downtown YMCA day-care center, health officials said Wednesday. Eight children linked to the center have been diagnosed with E. coli. Only one has been hospitalized, and her condition has been upgraded from serious to fair. More than 100 people will be tested for the bacteria. That includes all center staff members, all children with symptoms, family members with symptoms and all children cared for in the same three rooms as the sick children.

Signing on Sacred Heart nurses wave signs as they conduct informational picketing outside the hospital on Monday. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

The Spokane health district is asking the state for almost $1 million to help vaccinate schoolchildren and jail inmates against hepatitis A. Dr. Kim Thorburn, health officer for the Spokane Regional Health District, said the move could help stem the hepatitis A epidemic and prevent another one from occurring years from now. Thorburn also announced that the district has run out of immune globulin, the medicine that can prevent the onset of hepatitis A if given within 14 days of exposure.

Contract talks between nurses and management at Sacred Heart Medical Center have broken down. A federal mediator ended negotiations at midnight Tuesday after 15 hours of talks. No more bargaining sessions are scheduled. Nurses are preparing for a rally and informational picketing next week.

People who had drinks or doughnuts at a Spokane Valley supermarket in the past month might have been exposed to hepatitis A. A bakery worker at the U-City Rosauers store, 10920 E. Sprague, is the latest in a string of Spokane and North Idaho food-service workers to test positive for the virus during the hepatitis A epidemic.

The state has indefinitely suspended the medical license of a 53-year-old Spokane Valley psychiatrist who had sex with two patients. The Medical Quality Assurance Commission had suspended the license of Dr. Arthur Leritz even before holding a disciplinary hearing Dec. 23. On Friday, the commission announced that the suspension would continue indefinitely.

Nurses at Sacred Heart Medical Center will renew contract negotiations with management next Tuesday. The more than 1,100 hospital nurses have been working without a contract since Dec. 31. Last week, nurses overwhelmingly voted to reject what management had called its final offer. If management and nurses don't reach an agreement after next Tuesday's session, the nurses said they will stage informational pickets Feb. 23 and 24. They will continue to work their scheduled shifts.

This year's flu vaccine doesn't cover the major flu strain that's bugging the Inland Northwest and the rest of the country. The vaccine is made every year to protect against the three strains expected to cause the worst illness. This year, scientists chose the Type A Wuhan, Type A Bayern and Type B Beijing strains. At the time, they didn't know about the Type A Sydney bug, a cousin of the Wuhan strain discovered in Australia last June.