INBC hosts bone marrow drive

Tue., May 8, 2007

By JoNel Aleccia jonela@spokesman.com

Inland Northwest Blood Center officials are hoping to register 1,500 area donors as part of a national bone marrow drive scheduled through May 21.

Donor registration will be free for those who sign up at any of the agency’s fixed sites. The drives are among hundreds of similar efforts in the “Thanks Mom” campaign aimed at increasing the number of people included in a national registry to 20,000.

The area’s biggest drives will be held on Saturday. The Northview Bible Church in Spokane will hold a drive in honor of former Spokane resident Leigh Buckley, who recently found a matching donor in Europe. Buckley’s parents, Sharon and Al Robinson, will host the drive from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 13521 N. Mill Road.

To learn more about Buckley’s story, visit www.myspace.com/Leighdrive.

Another drive will be held Saturday to benefit Ethan Powell, an infant in need of donated marrow. Bonnie McElhinny of Spokane Valley read about the baby’s plight at www.ethanpowell.com and organized the drive. It will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Opportunity Presbyterian Church, 202 N. Pines Road, Spokane Valley.

For more information about marrow donation, visit www.inbc2.org.

EEG lab at KMC receives accreditation

Kootenai Medical Center’s electroencephalogram – EEG – laboratory is the 22nd in the nation to be certified by a national accreditation board.

The lab in the Coeur d’Alene hospital’s Neurodiagnostics Department met strict standards set by ABRET, the American Board of Registration of Electroencephalographic and Evoked Potential Technologists.

ABRET’s process evaluates technical standards, the quality of the lab’s output and lab management protocols.

For more information about the accreditation, visit www.abret.org.

Smokers a click away from quitting

Smokers can get help ending their habit more quickly, thanks to a new feature on the Washington Department of Health Quit Line Web site.

The “Click to Call” option lets users who visit www.quitline.com request a return call for information about stopping smoking.

The new service can be used 24 hours a day, although an immediate call from a “quit coach” will be offered only between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. After hours, a recorded message will log a phone number and a coach will call back the next day.

People using the service can call for any reason, whether they’re coping with a craving or want to talk about the best ways to quit. For more information, log onto the Web site or call (800) QUIT-NOW or (800) 784-8669.

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