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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
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Erica Curless

This individual is no longer an employee with The Spokesman-Review.

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News >  Spokane

True aim of Initiative 1501 tangled in political brawl

There is great debate about whether Initiative 1501 on Washington’s Nov. 8 ballot actually protects seniors or is just another spat in the ongoing fight between a caregivers union and a conservative think tank that dislikes unions.
News >  Features

Boomer authors release second novel

Two Spokane boomers and 1962 Holy Names Academy classmates who write to stay young have co-written their second novel about the post World War II era. Rita Gard Seedorf and Margaret Albi Verhoef recently released “Letters from a Wary Watcher: A Moira Edwards Mystery,” which is published by by Cozy Cat Press. The book is in local bookstores and the authors are booking local readings.
News >  Features

Life expectancy trends hit home

A new life expectancy map – released last month by Virginia Commonwealth University Center on Society and Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation – shows the health discrepancy between the Palouse and the northeastern counties of Washington, confirming what is already well documented.
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CDC: Idaho leads nation in melanoma death rate

Idaho had the highest melanoma death rate nationally between 2001 and 2005, 26 percent higher than the national average with about 40 Idahoans dying of melanoma every year, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s skin cancer state statistics. The latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (www.cdc.gov/cancer/ skin/statistics/state.htm) show that in 2012, Idahoans developed melanoma at a rate of 26.9 per 100,000 each year.
News >  Features

Young essayists put favorite elders on a pedestal

Students from across Eastern Washington recently wrote essays about elders they know who “Blaze a Trail,” a theme that gave youngsters a way to honor – and brag a little – about the special older people in their lives.
News >  Features

Family caregivers, aging receive help from Washington lawmakers

When Leslie Woodfill’s mom started showing signs of dementia, the family felt confused and lost. They couldn’t get a solid diagnosis, and her father had to sell his business to become a full-time caregiver. The frustration was stressful for everyone and her mother didn’t want anyone to know about their struggles.
News >  Features

Workshop promotes care for aging LGBT community

A local nonprofit is having a workshop Friday on how aging-services providers – specially social workers and caregivers – can offer better care and understanding to Spokane’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender aging adults, a high-risk population that is often poor and has a higher percentage of health problems.
News >  Features

Newport woman, 89, going to Malawi for three-month mission

Ruth Calkins is traveling to Malawi in May to start a craft program for teenage girls with AIDS and their mothers and caregivers. She’s bringing her dachshund Max and bags of craft supplies – paper, cloth, batting for quilts, hardware for earrings and necklaces – because many of these items are unavailable in one of Africa’s poorest nations.
News >  Features

Retired teachers help peers navigate retirement

The reality of retirement is far from paradise, so says a group of retired teachers who want to school area educators and support staff, everyone from janitors and cooks to bus drivers, by having a free retirement conference with state and local experts next month.
News >  Features

Seniors, disabled reach out to new hotline number

Community-Minded Enterprises launched the new SpokaneHelpline number – (509) 960-7281 – last month. The hotline is designed to help guardians, advocates, caregivers, family members, neighbors, health care providers, community partners and law enforcement find resources. That includes everything from housing, transportation, Medicaid and mental health services to caregiver support and meals.
News >  Features

Hospitals fear rise in readmissions

A federal pilot program that’s helped keep local high-risk Medicare patients at home and healthy while reducing hospital readmission rates ended this week, but not the community resolve to help patients from returning to the hospital in the first 30 days after release.
News >  Features

New website helps with end-of-life planning

A new Washington-based website is a one-stop place for people to get information and resources for end-of-life decisions, everything from state-specific medical documents to funeral planning and financial tips.
News >  Features

Sexual health important part of general health

Grandma and grandpa are having sex. So are the great grandparents and likely even people in their 90s and beyond, regardless if they have a partner. And sexual health experts say that’s a good thing. A very good thing.
News >  Features

Spokane scientist leading researcher on aphasia

Spokane scientist Richard Steele had career angst, a feeling that he could do more. So 30 years ago he custom-made a job that launched him as a world expert in helping people with aphasia improve their speech and communication after strokes and brain injuries.
News >  Features

Canadian filmmaker aims to decrease depression, anxiety among seniors

Canadian filmmaker Leah Iwaniuk of 3Scape Systems, recently spent a week at Brookdale South Regal living on campus with the 160 residents, gathering ideas for new therapy films and getting feedback on the initial film – she also played bingo, did Sit and Fit exercises and got her butt kicked at Wii bowling.