wellness Archives - Page 2 of 3

Buffalo-Area Pharmacists Say No to Tobacco Sales in Pharmacies

October 29, 2012 by BNMCin Member Institution(s), News1 Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 29, 2012
Contact: Annie Deck-Miller, Senior Media Relations Manager
716-845-8593; annie.deck-miller@roswellpark.org

Buffalo-Area Pharmacists Say No to Tobacco Sales in Pharmacies

BUFFALO — More than 75 percent of Western New York pharmacists say tobacco sales in pharmacies should be legally banned, according to research conducted by Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) and the University at Buffalo (UB), published in BMC Research Notes. The study found that more than 86% of pharmacists surveyed would prefer to work in a pharmacy that does not sell tobacco products.

The research, led by James Marshall, PhD, Senior Vice President for Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences at RPCI, evaluated the opinions of Western New York pharmacists about the sale of tobacco products in pharmacies and about their role in helping their patients to stop smoking.

“The sale of tobacco products in pharmacies in any locality sends conflicting messages to consumers who visit pharmacies for medication or health products,” said Dr. Marshall. “Pharmacists, dedicated to protecting the health of their customers, recognize tobacco sales as contrary to their professional ethics. They would, in overwhelming numbers, prefer not to be selling cigarettes. This research will inform policymakers and elected officials as they consider regulations of tobacco sales in pharmacies.”

The 2010 survey evaluated opinions of 148 pharmacy mentors from the UB School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (UBSoPPS) and 345 local supervising pharmacists. Participants were contacted by mail and email. The combined response rate for both surveys was 31%.

The pharmacist’s role in assisting patients to stop smoking also was evaluated. The survey found that more than 75% of pharmacists say they “sometimes” or “rarely/never” ask about tobacco use. The majority of pharmacists also indicate that they are not required to document tobacco use among patients or to enter such information into patient records.

“A striking finding is that pharmacy mentors were more likely than supervising pharmacists to be familiar with patients’ tobacco use and take steps to offer advice and information about how to quit smoking,” said Peter Brody Jr., PharmD, Director of Experiential Education at UBSoPPS. “It was also surprising that area pharmacists seemed not to take full advantage of the opportunity to educate and counsel patients regarding tobacco use. We need to better understand why and do what we can to help correct this issue.”

“This research presents several interesting findings, including that the overwhelming majority of pharmacists would support legislation banning the sale of tobacco in pharmacies,” added Edward Bednarczyk, PharmD, Chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice at UB. “Importantly, this study also shows a considerable gap between theory and practice, with a substantial majority of pharmacists finding the sale of tobacco in pharmacies inwp-contentropriate, but doing little to prevent the sale or engage patients regarding tobacco use and smoking cessation.”

The study, Tobacco sales in pharmacies: a survey of attitudes, knowledge and beliefs of pharmacists employed in student experiential and other worksites in Western New York,” can be accessed at http://www.biomedcentral.com/1756-0500/5/413/abstract.

The mission of Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) is to understand, prevent and cure cancer. RPCI, founded in 1898, was one of the first cancer centers in the country to be named a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center and remains the only facility with this designation in Upstate New York. The Institute is a member of the prestigious National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of the nation’s leading cancer centers; maintains affiliate sites; and is a partner in national and international collaborative programs. For more information, visit RPCI’s website at http://www.roswellpark.org, call 1-877-ASK-RPCI (1-877-275-7724) or email askrpci@roswellpark.org.

BMG is the 1st Physician's Group Outside of Northeast Ohio to Join Quality Alliance

October 19, 2012 by BNMCin Homepage, Member Institution(s), News2 Comments

As one of the oldest and largest multi-specialty physician groups in the state of New York, Buffalo Medical Group, P.C. is the first organization to join the Cleveland Clinic Community Physician Partnership’s Quality Alliance that is outside of northeast Ohio.
Improving the quality of care, the Quality Alliance program couples independent physicians with Cleveland Clinic physicians, aiming to implement thorough and reviewed best practices and evidence-based clinical protocols in order that the best possible care can be given to patients. Cleveland Clinic is an academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education.

The Cleveland Clinic Community Physician Partnership designed the network to bring about the improvement of the quality and consistency of clinical care; reduce costs and increase efficiency; and provide access to expertise, data and experience. The alliance meets these goals through physician-led review of patient care, physician-developed clinical protocols, mechanisms assuring adherence to those protocols, and common data collection and reports. With over 900 independent physician members, the Alliance is one of the third largest networks in the nation of its kind striving to standardize and improve the quality of care.

“Partnering with the Cleveland Clinic Community Physician Partnership and Quality Alliance is a logical extension of BMG’s commitment to providing exemplary care for our patients” said Irene S. Snow. M.D., Medical Director of the BMG.

Chief Medical Officer of Cleveland Clinic’s Community Physician Partnership & Quality Alliance, Tarek Elsawy, M.D., stated that “The Buffalo Medical Group is the right type of partner, as it has demonstrated through its highly engaged culture of quality and commitment to process improvement.”

BMG is committed to providing the best comprehensive care for patients, having achieved the highest level of recognition by the National Committee for Quality Assurance for Patient Centered Medical Home – the first health care provider in WNY to do so. BMG has also been recognized for its care for diabetes patients by the same committee. BMG adds more than 100 primary care, specialty care and sub-specialty physicians to the program.

'Know Your Stats' Promotes Prostate Cancer Screening for 2nd Year

October 15, 2012 by BNMCin Community, Event, Member Institution(s), WellnessLeave a Comment

Roswell Park, Buffalo Bills Team up on ‘Know Your Stats’ Awareness Campaign for Second YearAmerica’s first cancer center, Bills partner to host prostate cancer screening clinic at Ralph Wilson Stadium

One in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, but with early detection, about 90 percent of these cancers will be cured. Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) and the Buffalo Bills are encouraging men over 50, or those 40 and over with risk factors such as a family history of the disease, to get informed about prostate cancer and talk with their doctor about whether early detection is right for them.

For the second consecutive year, RPCI and the Bills are hosting the Prostate Cancer Early Diagnosis Outreach Clinic, a free prostate cancer education and screening event, in connection with the American Urological Association Foundation’s Know Your Stats about Prostate Cancer® campaign. RPCI doctors will be performing free screenings that will include prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood tests and digital rectal exams (DRE) for eligible men at the event on Tuesday, October 23rd from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Ralph Wilson Stadium located at 1 Bills Drive in Orchard Park.

Special wp-contentearances will be made throughout the event by the Buffalo Jills, Buffalo Bills alumni and Buffalo Bills Wide Receiver David Nelson. Tours of Ralph Wilson Stadium will be offered for attendees, who will also be eligible to win raffle prizes.

Men planning to attend the clinic should call 1-877-ASK-RPCI (1-877-275-7724) or complete the online registration form at http://www.roswellpark.org/knowyourstats. From that site, visitors can also access ads featuring Bills wide receiver David Nelson, whose father is a prostate cancer survivor.

On-the-Spot Mammograms and Breast Cancer Education at Patient Voices Network Event

October 8, 2012 by BNMCin Campus-wide, Community, Event, Health care, Healthy Communities, Outreach, WellnessLeave a Comment

Free wellness event and walk are sponsored by Patient Voices Network, a network of patient action teams, established by UB Family Medicine and Jericho Road Ministries
A free breast cancer awareness walk and wellness event will be held Saturday, October 13 at 10 a.m. in Masten Park by the Patient Voices Network. The network is a patient empowerment partnership between the University at Buffalo Department of Family Medicine, and patients from UBMD Family Medicine at Jefferson and Jericho Road Family Practice.

The 1.6 mile walk will start at 10 a.m. at the Best Street entrance to Masten Park, with registration starting at 8:30 a.m. The wellness event begins at 11 a.m. in Masten Park. Health care providers will be available to talk to participants and there will also be information on breast health, breast cancer and screening. Healthy snacks and free T-shirts will be distributed.

On-site screening mammograms will be available for women who have a prescription and who pre-register by calling WNY Breast Health at 1-855-464-7465, prior to the event. Free services through the Cancer Services Program are available for the uninsured. Those who are unable to get screened on Oct. 13 will be provided with an wp-contentointment for another day.

The idea for the event originated with members of the Patient Voices Network, which was formed by the UB Primary Care Research Institute of the Department of Family Medicine and Jericho Road Ministries. In the network, patients living with chronic illness work together to improve primary care and to boost the rate of cancer screenings at the network’s practice partners, Jericho Road Family Practice and UBMD Family Medicine at Jefferson, which is operated by the UB Department of Family Medicine.

“We were talking about how everyone knows what the pink ribbon means, but to really reach people on Buffalo’s East Side, we would need to put on an event right in the community,” says Laurene Tumiel-Berhalter, PhD, associate professor of family medicine and director of community translational research at the Primary Care Research Institute in UB’s School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. “We started talking about walking right down Jefferson Avenue, bringing people out of their homes to join us and to get screened for breast cancer.”

According to Tumiel-Berhalter, patients and providers were committed to making sure that both the walk and the event be free in order to ensure the highest possible participation rate. Those who want to donate to breast cancer research will be able to do so; gift bags for participants will include information on how to donate.

“This is not a fundraiser,” she stresses. “This is an event we are holding to educate people on the East Side about breast cancer and to screen them for it.”

The free walk and event are being made possible by grants to the Patient Voices Network from the Western New York Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and from the New York State Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR).

During the event, women who have pre-registered will be screened at the WNY Breast Health’s Mobile Mammography Unit, which will be stationed in Masten Park. Additional screenings will take place on Oct. 18, when the unit will be stationed in front of UBMD Family Medicine at Jefferson and UBMD Gynecology Obstetrics, 1315 Jefferson Ave. in Buffalo.

Throughout the rest of the fall, women will have additional opportunities to receive mammograms. The unit will be stationed at Jericho Road Family Practice, 184 Barton St., Buffalo, on the fourth Tuesday of every month and at Jericho Road Family Practice, 1609 Genesee St. on the third Tuesday of every month. To pre-register, call 1-855-464-7465.

“By stationing the mammography machines in such convenient and visible locations, we hope that as many people as possible in the community will get screened,” says Tumiel-Berhalter.

If a screening indicates that further tests are necessary, patients will be referred to an wp-contentropriate health care provider if they do not already have one.

The need for breast cancer education in minority communities is urgent, says Tumiel-Berhalter, because:

–Among African-American women, breast cancer is the most common cancer and the second most common cause of death;

–African-American women have a higher incidence rate of breast cancer before age 40 and are more likely to die from it at every age than are non-Hispanic, white women;

–While mortality rates decreased for white breast cancer patients from 1975 to 2003, they actually increased for African-American women.

The Patient Voices Network began with a grant Tumiel-Berhalter received from the National Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities, part of the National Institutes of Health. She used the grant to develop an organization in which patients could promote ways to improve primary care in their community by helping one another. The response from patients was so enthusiastic that the group, which began meeting monthly, now meets on a weekly basis. The network provides education and assistance in the community for patients with diabetes and, with Roswell Park Cancer Institute, has promoted colorectal cancer events and screenings. More information on the network is here: http://www.fammed.buffalo.edu/patientvoices.

Ellen Goldbaum (UB); goldbaum@buffalo.edu; 716.645.4605; @egoldbaum

GO BNMC Rewards Your Smart Commuting Choices

September 21, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Campus-wide, Environment, Healthy Communities, Homepage, Member Institution(s), Outreach, Parking, Transportation, WellnessLeave a Comment

GO BNMC offers employees on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus incentives for choosing to save money, improve their health, and help the environment by utilizing alternative transportation options. Now BNMC employees can get rewarded for choosing greener and healthier ways to commute to and from work.
A plethora of incentives including the monthly Smart Commuting Raffle, subsidized Metro Bus and Rail monthly and weekly passes, free GO Bike Buffalo memberships, discounted and free trial Buffalo CarShare memberships, and more are available. Sign up today at www.gobnmc-old.local.

Did you know that other than walking, biking is the greenest way to get around? There are bike racks throughout the Medical Campus. Coming soon will be the walk-in secure bike stations that can be accessed by GO BNMC members, allowing bikes to be stored in a dry location. Bike shelters that will be added to the University and LaSalle Stations in the near future, and a walk-in storage facilities will be added on the BNMC for those who want to store their bike out of the elements.

Signing up to become a GO BNMC member is quick and easy. Employees simply create a profile, begin logging commutes and voilà! Once the profile is created, members can enter into the monthly raffles.

RPCI Scientists Publish Findings About Novel Anticancer Agent

September 20, 2012 by BNMCin Member Institution(s), News, ResearchLeave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 20, 2012
Contact: Annie Deck-Miller, Senior Media Relations Manager
716-845-8593; annie.deck-miller@roswellpark.org

RPCI Scientists Publish Findings About Novel Anticancer Agent
Camptothecin analog FL118 shown to inhibit production of key cancer survival genes

BUFFALO — Some 500,000 people die of cancer in the United States each year, often because their cancers have become resistant to wp-contentroved therapies. Scientists at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) have made headway in the effort to overcome resistance to treatment, publishing findings about a novel cancer drug that has been shown to inhibit several genes associated with the ability of cancer cells to survive and reproduce.

A team led by Fengzhi Li, PhD, Associate Professor of Oncology in RPCI’s Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, assessed the antitumor effects of FL118, a camptothecin analog that is structurally similar to irinotecan and topotecan, in preclinical studies.

The ability of cancers to resist treatment with chemotherapy or radiation is rooted in the tendency of tumor cells to overproduce key genes that enable cancer cells to survive, such as survivin, Mcl-1, XIAP and cIAP2. Dr. Li and his colleagues found that FL118 inhibits expression of these genes in cancer cells and ultimately causes those tumor cells to die.

They also found that cancer cells die in the presence of FL118 even when the cells contained no p53, a key tumor-suppressing gene product. Because this protein is functionally eliminated in many cancers, it is important that cancer cells are sensitive to FL118 regardless of their p53 function. Preclinical studies showed a complete loss of detectable tumor mass in animal models following treatment with FL118, even for tumors that did not express “wild-type” p53 — a level of efficacy rarely seen with standard cancer therapies.

Importantly, FL118 was equally effective against tumor cells that are not normally considered to be resistant to therapy, and showed no wp-contentarent toxicity at these therapeutic levels.

“Our studies show that FL118 may become a superior option for effective control of both early and late-stage cancer, with or without metastasis,” said Dr. Li. “We still need to identify the exact biochemical targets as well as the pharmacokinetic and toxicological profile for FL118 before it goes into clinical studies, but we are encouraged by the implications of these compelling preclinical findings.”

The paper, “A Novel Small Molecule FL118 That Selectively Inhibits Survivin, Mcl-1, XIAP and cIAP2 in a p53-Independent Manner, Shows Superior Antitumor Activity,” published September 19 in PLOS ONE, is available at http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0045571.

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RIA Takes the Challenge on Reducing College Student Substance Use

September 20, 2012 by BNMCin Campus-wide, Community, Member Institution(s), News, Research, WellnessLeave a Comment

For release: September 20, 2012Contact: Sara R. Saldi, saldi@buffalo.edu
University at Buffalo
716-645-4593

RIA Takes the Challenge on Reducing College Student Substance Use

BUFFALO, N.Y. — No longer considered an innocent rite of passage, binge drinking among college students contributes to wp-contentroximately 1,800 deaths and nearly 600,000 injuries each year.

And that’s just alcohol.

The University at Buffalo’s Research Institute on Addictions (RIA), an internationally recognized leader on the subject of substance use and abuse since 1970, is tackling this problem head on.

This fall RIA will offer a three-pronged wp-contentroach to educating students, health care and mental health workers, and college administrators about the dangers, new trends and treatments for reducing substance use and excessive drinking in college kids.

RIA Director, Kenneth Leonard, PhD “Despite strong efforts, excessive alcohol and substance use among college students have not substantially diminished in the past decade. While many colleges have educational programs or referral services, many college administrators are not aware of or have not implemented services that have been shown to be the most effective.

“Therefore, there is a pressing need for a more active and ongoing dialogue among researchers, practitioners and administrators regarding the current state of knowledge about college student drinking and substance use—a dialog that will also benefit parents and their children in college.”

A photo of Leonard is available at: http://www.buffalo.edu/news/13681.

First, the RIA is releasing the fifth in its series of expert summaries, “RIA Reaching Others: College Student Drinking,” a fact sheet describing the dangers of college student drinking, especially binge drinking—the scope of the problem, specific points for parents and the value of prevention.

The fact sheet is available at: http://www.ria.buffalo.edu/ExpertSummaries/ES5.html.

Second, as part of RIA’s Fall 2012 Seminar Series, Mark Wood, PhD, a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Rhode Island (URI) and an expert on substance use among college students, will speak on “Individual and Environmental Preventive Intervention to Reduce Collegiate Alcohol Abuse: A Full-Cycle Approach.”

His presentation will be at 10 a.m. Oct. 26 in Room 132 of the RIA building, 1021 Main St. on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. It will be free and open to the public.

For more information on the Wood presentation, visit: http://www.ria.buffalo.edu/events/index.html

Third, RIA is hosting a two-day conference, titled “The Challenge of Reducing College Student Substance Use: A Conversation in the Disciplines,” to take place Nov. 8 and 9 in the Ramada Hotel and Conference Center, 2402 North Forest Road near the Audubon Parkway in Getzville, adjacent to the UB North Campus.

The two-day event will feature alcohol and substance use experts from UB and from across the state. It is sponsored by the Conversations in the Disciplines Program of the State University of New York.

The conference will bring together front-line staff from throughout the SUNY system who grwp-contentle with the real problems of college students’ alcohol and substance use and abuse, and the researchers who seek to develop and evaluate substance-use prevention and intervention strategies. It also will provide an opportunity for participants to present information about their programs and to discuss issues regarding the startup and operation of effective programs.

Even more importantly, however, the conference will explore the potential for developing a multi-campus network of researchers and practitioners across New York State to address excessive college student substance use.

“This will facilitate the development and evaluation of innovative and comprehensive wp-contentroaches to reducing substance use, and provide a communications network that will enhance the efforts of practitioners to offer the most effective strategies for their campuses,” Leonard said.

Information about the conference and how to register are available at http://www.ria.buffalo.edu/CID2012/index.htm

Division within WCHOB Department of Pediatrics Receives $1.1 M Grant

September 17, 2012 by BNMCin Health care, Homepage, Member Institution(s), News, WellnessLeave a Comment

The Women & Children’s Hospital of Buffalo’s (WCHOB) Division of Neonatology received a grant for $1.1 M from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. A published SUPPORT report trial revealed that there is a lack of knowledge regarding oxygen supplementation, delivery and toxicity in newborn infants. The Optimal Oxygenation in Neonatal Lung Injury grant will be used to propel the research focusing on infant oxygen supplementation.
Neonatal resuscitation is necessary when an infant is asphyxiated. When an infant is born, its pulmonary circulation shifts in order to adjust to the environment outside of the womb. When that adjustment is not flawless and is met with immediate complications, the result can be a condition called Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) which can be fatal.

Dr. Satyan Lakshminrusimha, the Chief of the Division of Neonatology and Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University at Buffalo, is the grant’s principal investigator. His research focuses on the pathophysiology of the cardio-pulmonary transition – how fetal lungs change at birth in order to breathe air – and disorders of this transition such as birth asphyxia, PPHN, retained lung liquid and respiratory distress syndrome.

The Division’s research goals are to deliver the best critical care to infants with respiratory depression at birth and reduce oxygen toxicity; to discover the optimum management of newborns with PPHN; and to further the treatment of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a gastrointestinal disease that disproportionately affects pre-term infants.

The grant’s disbursement over a 5-year period, with $235, 523 given to the Division each year will go towards the collection of physiological data that will help to establish guidelines for optimal oxygen delivery to premature infants.

The WCHOB has the region’s only level 4 unit in its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, meaning it can provide immediate trauma care that can evaluate, diagnose, and stabilize patients, also offering a degree of surgery and critical care services. The hospital is Western New York’s center for state-of-the-art pediatric, neonatal, perinatal and obstetrical care.

National Study Recommends Smoke-Free Apartment Policies

September 10, 2012 by BNMCin Environment, Health care, Healthy Communities, Member Institution(s), News, WellnessLeave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESeptember 10, 2012
Contact: Annie Deck-Miller, Senior Media Relations Manager
716-845-8593; annie.deck-miller@roswellpark.org

National Study Recommends Smoke-Free Apartment Policies
Majority of those surveyed support policies prohibiting smoking anywhere in multi-tenant residential buildings

BUFFALO — A majority of Americans who live in multi-unit housing have adopted smoke-free rules in their private homes but millions remain involuntarily exposed to secondhand smoke in this environment, according to a study published in the most recent issue of the American Journal of Public Health. Researchers led by senior investigator Andrew Hyland, PhD, Chair of the Department of Health Behavior at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI), recommend smoke-free building policies to protect all multiunit residents from secondhand smoke exposure in their homes.

“A vast majority of multi-unit housing residents continue to be exposed to toxic compounds found in secondhand smoke in spite of the adoption of voluntary smoke-free rules for their private homes,” said Dr. Hyland. “This study demonstrates widespread support of the adoption of smoke-free building policies.”

The national study evaluated attitudes, experiences and acceptance of smoke-free policies among residents of multi-unit housing in the United States. Approximately 80 million Americans live in multi-unit housing. Using the results of this study, the researchers estimate that 30 million multi-unit housing residents with smoke-free rules in their homes may still be exposed to tobacco smoke that enters their residence from other areas of the building.

Hyland and colleagues conducted a nationally representative survey of multi-unit housing residents who live in apartments, duplexes, double/multifamily homes, condominiums or town houses was 2010. The study sample included both landline and cell-phone-only users. Overall, 29% reported living in smoke-free buildings. Among all respondents, 56% support the implementation of policies prohibiting smoking in all areas of their building, including living units and common areas.

The study also found that 79% of multiunit housing residents have implemented voluntary smoke-free home rules. Those who have reported having these rules were more likely to be non-smokers, have higher education and live with children. Forty-four percent of those with smoke-free rules at home reported being exposed to secondhand smoke in the past year that originated from smoking in other parts of their buildings.

“Residents of multi-unit housing are particularly susceptible to secondhand smoke exposure from nearby units and shared areas such as hallways,” said lead author Andrea Licht, MS, a doctoral student with the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine at the University at Buffalo. “These residents are trying to protect their families from the dangers of secondhand smoke by not allowing smoking in their homes and would welcome policies that support that goal.”

The publication, “Attitudes, Experiences, and Acceptance of Smoke-Free Polices Among U.S. Multi-unit Housing Residents” can be found at http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300717.

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Meet Rear Admiral Rebecca McCormick-Boyle During Buffalo Navy Week

September 4, 2012 by BNMCin Campus-wide, Community, Event, Health care, Member Institution(s), WellnessLeave a Comment

Community members will get the opportunity to meet Chief of Staff, U.S. Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Rear Admiral Rebecca McCormick-Boyle on Wednesday, September 12 from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. at the Swift Auditorium at Buffalo General Medical Center. The U.S. Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery is the headquarters of Navy and Marine Corps medicine. The event is free and open to the public.
Rear Admiral McCormick-Boyle will address Navy Medicine’s humanitarian assistance/disaster relief efforts, emergency medicine, research and development, and wounded warrior care to key medical personnel of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus during a presentation in honor of Buffalo Navy Week. McCormick-Boyle will also highlight the Navy’s global mission of being forward deployed to provide a power projection and deterrence role while also being ready to respond to humanitarian assistance and disaster response requirements.

“When the world dials 911, it’s not to make an wp-contentointment,” said McCormick-Boyle. “We are a global force for good. We build our Navy for war. But we operate our Navy for peace.”

Navy Medicine consists of 63,000 personnel that provide health care support to the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, their families and veterans in high operational tempo environments, at expeditionary medical facilities, medical treatment facilities, hospitals, clinics, hospital ships and research units around the world. Navy Medicine works closely with inter-agency, non-governmental organizations and community partners during humanitarian assistance/disaster relief missions and homeland security operations around the globe.

Safe Routes to School Program Launches at PS 74

August 27, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Community, Healthy Communities, Homepage, News, Outreach, Transportation, WellnessLeave a Comment

GO Bike Buffalo has launched the Buffalo Safe Routes to School Program (SRTS) at Hamlin Park School 74 . A part of a national program promoting the benefits of walking and biking to school for students, SRTS seeks to help students become more physically active. SRTS also aims to reduce vehicle congestion around schools, resulting in safer access and lower exhaust emissions.
Through a technology class at Hamilton Park, the Recycle-A-Bicycle (RAB) program will be incorporated into the curriculum. At Hamlin Park, students will learn how to build bicycles using salvaged parts and they will be taught how to make environmentally sound transportation choices which will undoubtedly have an impact on the health of the communities they live in. As they grow in their understanding of the importance of being physically active, the SRTS program will also teach them how to ride bicycles safely.

With the support of City Hall representative, Council Member Demone Smith, the program’s success will most likely be included into additional Buffalo Public Schools as a useful educational program. Smith stated that “Instituting healthy lifestyles and behaviors early in life are essential to developing healthy young people and communities. We will continue to work with GO Bike Buffalo to make improvements in the District as well as among our youngest residents.”

Media Alert: BNMC Hosts Summer Block Party for Employees (8-20-12)

August 20, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Campus-wide, Community, Environment, Event, Healthy Communities, Member Institution(s), Outreach, Transportation, WellnessLeave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, August 20, 2012

Contact

Kari Root Bonaro, BNMC

716.218.7157, kbonaro@bnmc-old.local

MEDIA ALERT

BNMC Hosts Summer Block Party for Employees

Hundreds of Employees Expected to Attend the “GO BNMC” Transportation-Themed Event Focusing on Smarter, Greener, Healthier Ways to Get Around

WHAT: GO BNMC Summer Block Party, a free event for employees on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC)

WHEN: Thursday, August 23^rd from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Rain or shine –party will be under a tent)

WHERE: 941 Washington Street Lot (behind the Allen/Medical Campus NFTA Station)

This free event will highlight innovative and economical ways in which GO BNMC, a new commuting and rewards initiative, will promote healthy lifestyles and active living for employees on the Medical Campus.

Employees will learn about the different transportation options available on the BNMC that can help them save money, get fit, and create a more sustainable environment, with the overall goal to improve employee’s abilities to get around in healthier, greener, and more economical ways.

Features educational videos and materials, demonstrations, and hands-on activities, including:

– Bicycle obstacle course sponsored by GO Bike

– Pedi-cab pick-ups (at Kaminski Park & the corner of high & Ellicott)

– Buffalo CarShare and BikeShare, including a sneak peak at the new bikes

– Segway tours

– Test drive an electric vehicle

– Public safety information

– The Fender Blender from the Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo

– Lunch from Whole Hog Food Truck

This event is sponsored by NYSERDA and the NYSDOT.

ABOUT THE BNMC

The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus is dedicated to the cultivation of a world-class medical campus for clinical care, research, education, and entrepreneurship on 120 acres in downtown Buffalo. It is home to the region’s top clinical, research, and medical education institutions, including: the University at Buffalo, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Olmsted Center for Sight, Kaleida Health, Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute, Buffalo Medical Group, Buffalo Hearing & Speech Center, Unyts, and the Center for Hospice and Palliative Care. There are over 40 public and private companies on the BNMC. More than 12,000 people come to work at the Medical Campus every day, and BNMC institutions see over one million patients and visitors annually. The Campus has an annual economic impact of $1.5 billion on the region. The Medical Campus consists of more than 6 million square feet of research, clinical, and support space. bnmc-old.local

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Medications Can Help with Smoking Cessation

August 14, 2012 by BNMCin Environment, Healthy Communities, Homepage, Member Institution(s), WellnessLeave a Comment

A new study conducted by researchers at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) shows that FDA-wp-contentroved stop-smoking medications can help smokers who desire to quit. By using the stop-smoking medications, the chances of quitting successfully increase.
The study was published online in the British journal Addiction. Clinical trials have shown that medications such as nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), bupropion and varenicline have been effective even though population-based studies have produced mixed results on effectiveness when medications are used outside the confines of a research study.

The International Tobacco Control (ITC) research collaboration has administered one of the largest real-world evaluations of medication effectiveness conducted to-date. They are also the first to comprehensively control biases in participants’ recall of quit attempts. The study tracked the smoking behaviors of more than 2,500 adult smokers in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and the United States who reported making a quit attempt between 2006 and 2009. The participants were asked how recently they had attempted to quit and whether they used any type of stop-smoking medication. Six-month continuous abstinence among those who recalled making a very recent quit attempt was assessed at the next follow-up interview. The results showed that those who used varenicline, bupropion or the nicotine patch had much higher quit success at six months compared to those who tried to quit without using medication.

“By restricting our analyses to those who made very recent quit attempts, we reduced the extent to which differences in quit-attempt recall could bias the estimates of medication effectiveness. Consistent with the strong evidence from clinical trials, our findings show that medications are indeed effective in increasing smokers’ chances of quitting when used in the real world,” said Karin Kasza, MA, statistician in the Division of Cancer Prevention & Population Sciences at RPCI and lead author of the study.

Ron Borland, PhD, Nigel Gray Distinguished Fellow in Cancer Prevention at the Cancer Council Victoria in Melbourne, Australia and a co-author of the study, added, “The major advance of this study is that we have been able to show that greater forgetting of unassisted failed attempts is the most likely reason other studies have not found a benefit for medication in population-based settings. This finding should reassure clinicians and public health workers to continue to encourage the widespread use of medications.”

“Despite the benefit of using medications, many smokers still try to quit without help. And even when medications are used, quitting smoking is hard, and relapses are common. Continued efforts are needed to develop and deliver more effective treatments to help smokers who want to quit,” said Andrew Hyland, PhD, Chair of the Department of Health Behavior at RPCI.

The study, “Effectiveness of Stop-Smoking Medications: Findings from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Four Country Survey,” can be accessed at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.04009.x/abstract

BNMC Summer Block Party 2012

July 31, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Campus-wide, Community, Event, Healthy Communities, Outreach, Transportation, WellnessLeave a Comment

Hundreds of employees on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) are expected to attend this year’s BNMC Summer Block Party, a BNMC Fit spinoff themed GO BNMC: Smarter, Greener, Healthier Ways to get Around.
The event’s theme will focus on active living and alternative transportation this year to promote healthy and sustainable options that are best for individuals and the environment. The event aligns with the launching of the new BNMC transportation campaign called GO BNMC.

From 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Thursday, August 23 at the 941 Washington Street Lot, GO BNMC: Smarter, Greener, Healthier Ways to get Around will motivate, inform, and empower employees throughout the Medical Campus to enhance their quality of life by making practical commuting choices.

GO BNMC aims to create an innovative and sustainable transportation system for Medical Campus employees. The initiative is a part of the GO Buffalo campaign, a greater project exploring and promoting better ways for Buffalonians to get around, in addition to creating safe streets for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit riders. Through GO BNMC, employees are offered a menu of options to choose from to determine how they will get to and from work. This initiative will help expose employees on the campus to commuting alternatives available such as walking, bicycling, Metro Bus and Rail, carpooling and vanpooling.

The event will feature displays and demonstrations related to the GO BNMC campaign, including bike and pedestrian safety and education, and car-sharing demos. The new Social Bicycles called SoBi will also be unveiled and employees will be able to test drive electric vehicles. There will be transportation related raffles and giveaways, including raffles for free monthly passes.

Organizations attending the event include: GO Buffalo, NYSERDA, NYSDOT, NFTA, Buffalo CarShare, GO Bike Buffalo, the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo with the Fender Blender, R&R Pedicabs, and more. R&R Pedicabs will be giving employees free rides from Kaminski Park and a stop on the corner of High and Ellicott Streets. Information tables and booths will be set-up for employees to view the services available.

GO BNMC offers employees smarter, greener, and healthier options to get around and incentivizes these options through its member rewards program.

To become a member of GO BNMC and get rewarded for smart commuting choices, click here to create a profile.

The popular campus event, BNMC Fit, will adopt an active living and alternative transportation theme this year to promote healthy and sustainable options that are best for individuals and the environment.

Palliative Care Program at Roswell Receives Advanced Certification

July 19, 2012 by BNMCin Health care, Homepage, Member Institution(s), Research, WellnessLeave a Comment

Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RCPI) has a strong, dedicated, and experienced team within its Supportive & Palliative Care Program. Most recently, the team received Advanced Certification in Palliative Care for a two-year period from The Joint Commission, an organization that accredits and certifies more than 19,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States.
Palliative Care provides care for individuals with progressive illnesses, helping patients experience relief from symptoms such as pain and the stresses that come with a serious illness. The goal of palliative care is to improve the quality of life for both the patient and the family as well as to work with the other doctors each patient has, providing an extra layer of support. At RPCI, the Supportive & Palliative Care team works with the attending physician and can join the care process at any time, including during curative treatment.

Led by Yashodhara Satchidanand, MD, and Amy Alvarez, MD, the certification makes RPCI the nation’s only dedicated cancer center. It is now also 1 of 15 national hospitals to receive advanced certification to date. “Our team was very excited about receiving the certification. This validates our work and acknowledges that RPCI is known not only for cutting-edge research, but also for compassionate care,” said Dr. Satchidanand, a staff physician and Assistant Professor with the program.

To receive this certification from The Joint Commission, palliative care programs must meet patient-oriented eligibility requirements. The care program must be provided within an accredited hospital, offering a full range of palliative care services to hospitalized patients 24 hours per day, seven days per week. The palliative care team must be easy to contact, readily available to come to the hospital to address patient and family needs when necessary, and must be able to constantly provide the same level of palliative care services around the clock, not just during business hours. Amongst having a minimum number of patients during an initial on-site review, programs must also administer a standardized method of clinical care based on clinical practice guidelines and/or evidence-based practice. To read about more of the eligibility requirements, click here.

“This certification allows us to enhance and help change the perception of palliative care as more than end-of-life care,” notes Dr. Alvarez, a physician with the Department of Supportive & Palliative Care. “It is care for the continuum of the cancer journey, focusing on the goals of the patients and their families.”

Palliative care is wp-contentropriate at any age, at any stage in a serious illness and is designed to meet the patient and family’s psychological, emotional, and physical curative needs.

Real-life Spider Men Using Protein Found in Venom to Develop Muscular Dystrophy Treatment

July 16, 2012 by BNMCin Member Institution(s), News, Research, WellnessLeave a Comment

News Release

Real-life Spider Men Using Protein Found in Venom to Develop Muscular Dystrophy Treatment

A grandfather is working with UB scientists in an attempt to save grandson’s life

JB, Jeff Harvey’s grandson. When Harvey discovered JB had Duchenne muscular dystrophy, the grandfather started a company with UB researchers to develop a treatment.

UB researchers Frederick Sachs, Tom Suchyna and Philip Gottlieb are working to develop a treatment for muscular dystrophy using a peptide found in tarantula venom.

UB researchers are developing a treatment for muscular dystrophy using a peptide found in the venom of a Chilean rose tarantula.

Contact

Charlotte Hsu

chsu22@buffalo.edu

716-645-4655

Release Date: July 16, 2012

BUFFALO, N.Y. — While Spider-Man is capturing the imagination of theatergoers, real-life spider men in Upstate New York are working intently to save a young boy’s life.

It all began in 2009, when Jeff Harvey, a stockbroker from the Buffalo suburbs, discovered that his grandson, JB, had Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The disease is fatal. It strikes only boys, causing their muscles to waste away.

Hoping to help his grandson, Harvey searched Google for promising muscular dystrophy treatments and, in a moment of serendipity, stumbled upon University at Buffalo scientist Frederick Sachs, PhD.

Sachs was a professor of physiology and biophysics who had been studying the medical benefits of venom. In the venom of the Chilean rose tarantula, he and his colleagues discovered a protein that held promise for keeping muscular dystrophy at bay. Specifically, the protein helped stop muscle cells from deteriorating.

Within months of getting in touch, Harvey and Sachs co-founded Tonus Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical company devoted to developing the protein as a drug. Though the treatment has yet to be tested in humans, it has helped dystrophic mice gain strength in preliminary experiments.

The therapy is not a cure. But if it works in humans, it could extend the lives of children like JB for years — maybe even decades.

Success can’t come quickly enough.

JB, now four, can’t walk down the stairs alone. When he runs, he waddles. He receives physical therapy and takes steroids as a treatment. While playing tee ball one recent day, he confided to his grandfather, “When I grow up, I want to be a baseball player.”

It was a heartbreaking moment.

“Oh, I would be thrilled if you could be a baseball player,” Harvey remembers replying. He’s doing everything he can to make sure that JB — and other boys like him — can live out their dreams.

For the complete story and multimedia, visit http://www.buffalo.edu/home/feature_story/good-venom.html.

Support for Bike Lanes Sought to Increase Safety for Riders

July 12, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Campus-wide, Community, Environment, Healthy Communities, Homepage, Outreach, Transportation, WellnessLeave a Comment

GO Bike Buffalo is helping to create a city where people of all ages can safely bike to work.
Through a push to create awareness of the need to establish safe streets for all users upon roadways, GO Bike is looking to increase safety on Buffalo’s streets through the Bicycle Lane Request Form. Unfortunately, most people choose not to ride their bicycles because they do not feel safe doing so. The initiative is a part of the Complete Streets campaign to promote health, safety, community, environmental sustainability, and quality of life for all, in every season.

GO Bike seeks to have parents in the City of Buffalo feel comfortable about allowing their children to bike to school and ensure fellow citizens have realistic alternatives to automobile transportation. By replacing drive-alone trips with alternative methods such as biking, individuals will not only improve their health, but the health of the environment and the health of the greater community will be improved as well.

Working with the City of Buffalo, Go Bike is looking to build safe and well-designed bicycle facilities throughout Buffalo. Join GO Bike by signing the Bicycle Lane Request Form in order for the demand and need for bike lane locations to be made known.

The goal is to reach 1,000 signatures by the end of July! For more information on how to increase safety on the streets for cyclists, visit the GO Bike Buffalo website, a GO Buffalo partner helping to increase alternative transportation options in Buffalo.

Help create a more bike-friendly city today!

Ride for Roswell Raises $3.7 Million

June 11, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Community, Healthy Communities, Homepage, WellnessLeave a Comment

In its 17th year, the 2012 Ride for Roswell annual fundraiser held on June 23rd raised $3.7 million, which is $500,000 more than the amount raised for 2011’s Ride. The event which began at the University at Buffalo’s North Campus had over 10,000 supporters. With more than 8,000 cyclists who took one of the ten route options, participants had a great time at the event. Pictures from The Ride show a range of cyclists showing their support.
Over time, millions of dollars have been raised to support cancer research and patient care at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI). This year’s funds will support 25 lifesaving cancer research studies and 30 patient care programs, bringing RPCI closer to its goal to fully fund a new building that will house a new breast center and chemotherapy clinic.

For the first time, an opening ceremony kicked off the event on June 22nd. The opening ceremony honored and celebrated cancer patients, survivors and those who have lost a battle with cancer. The event featured remarks by cancer research advocate and former Buffalo Bills linebacker Chris Spielman and a live concert by Grammy winner Rick Springfield.

Buffalo Green Code Open House Meetings

May 31, 2012 by BNMCin Community, Construction, Environment, Event, Healthy Communities, Homepage, Transportation, WellnessLeave a Comment

Buffalo Green Code open house meetings for the community will take place June 4 until June 9. Through the City of Buffalo’s new zoning ordinance, a land use plan that was created last year will be improved upon as specific and detailed laws will govern development that takes place throughout the city.
The open house meetings will offer community members the opportunity to learn more about how the zoning ordinance will work and benefit their neighborhoods. There will also be Youth and Family Sessions. The BNMC and Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities (HKHC) partners have organized and will lead the family sessions at the meetings. Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities Buffalo will help kids and parents provide input into the process and fully understand the zoning initiative.

HKHC Blog.

Visit the Buffalo G reen Code website for more information.

Community	Date	Time	Location	Address
West	Mon, 6/4	6-8:30 pm	Lafayette HS	370 Lafayette Ave.
Northwest	Tue, 6/5	6-8:30 pm	Riverside HS	51 Ontario St
South	Tue, 6/5	6-8:30 pm	South Park HS	150 Southside Pkwy.
Ellicott	Wed, 6/6	6-8:30 pm	Montessori School #32	342 Clinton St.
Northeast	Wed, 6/6	6-8:30 pm	Bennett HS	2885 Main St.
North	Thurs, 6/7	6-8:30 pm	North Park Academy	780 Parkside Ave.
Central Morning	Fri, 6/8	8-10:30 am	Central Library	1 Lafayette Square
Central Afternoon	Fri, 6/8	Noon-2:30pm	Central Library	1 Lafayette Square
E. Delavan-Masten	Sat, 6/9	9-11:30am	East HS	820 Northampton St.
East	Sat, 6/9	1-3:30pm	Matt Urban Center	1081 Broadway Pkwy.

Roswell Chair of the Department of Gynecologic Oncology to Speak at BUILD of Buffalo Convention

May 31, 2012 by BNMCin Community, Event, Healthy CommunitiesLeave a Comment

Dr. Kunle Odunsi will give the opening address at the BUILD (Build Unity, Independence, Liberty & Dignity) of Buffalo Convention. The convention will take place June 1-2. The theme for the event is “Closing the Gap: Healthcare is a Civil Right…Not a Privilege” which will explore access to health care, employment, education, economic development. He is the Chair of the Department of Gynecologic Oncology and Director of the Center for Immunotherapy at Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

Dr. Odunisi earned his medical degree from the University of Ife in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. He completed his postgraduate training in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. After completing a research fellowship in molecular oncology, he earned a doctoral degree at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund Laboratories overseas from the University of Oxford. He also completed a residency at the Yale University School of Medicine, and a clinical fellowship in gynecologic oncology at Roswell.

BUILD of Buffalo’s two-day event will mark its 18th annual convention. The address will take place at 9 a.m. Friday, June 1, at the Friends Inc. Center located at 118 East Utica Street. Dr. Odunsi will discuss his path toward a career as a physician and researcher working to develop vaccine therapies to treat cancer, and give perspectives on how to close the gap on healthcare disparities.

Having partnered with Roswell before to promote health and improve the quality of life for the region’s residents, BUILD now looks to tackle another joint initiative that supports responsible tobacco retailing by limiting the advertising of tobacco products in delis and convenience stores. BUILD has also partnered with Roswell Park’s Office of Cancer Health Disparities Research to bring awareness of cancer screening and treatment programs to the minority community.

Additional 2-day event speakers:

LaVonne Ansari, PhD, of the Community Health Center of Buffalo

Rev. George Franklin Nicholas of Lincoln Memorial United Methodist Church

Charley H. Fisher III, BUILD President.

For more information and to register, call 716-650-8889.

Registration (breakfast included): $20 for individual attendees, $50 for families (up to five people) and $100 for groups of six or more.

BNMC Becomes a Tobacco-Free Zone

May 31, 2012 by BNMCin Campus-wide, Healthy Communities, News, WellnessLeave a Comment

As the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus continues to promote healthy lifestyles and sustainable environments, on July 4 the Medical Campus will officially be declared a tobacco-free zone across its 120 acre footprint which spans from Goodell Street to North Street and east-west from Michigan Avenue to Main Street. The tobacco-free adoption wp-contentlies to all of the BNMC’s employees, visitors, patients, vendors, contractors and will not be permitted on any of the BNMC properties.
Many of the member institutions such as the Buffalo Medical Group, Kaleida Health, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, and the University at Buffalo have already declared that their sites are tobacco-free zones. Working with the Erie-Niagara Tobacco-Free Coalition, BNMC created a tobacco-free plan that included data from campus employees about their receptiveness for creating a tobacco-free campus. There was a great deal of support from many of the employees who took the survey since a major reason mentioned for choosing to work at one of the medical and research institutions was to help create healthier environments.

This adoption will affect more than 1 million patients and visitors, as well as the 12,000 employees and students. Secondhand smoke is a dangerous contributor to tobacco-related health issues. Residents that live near the BNMC will be influenced by this change as well, ceasing the litter that builds up on neighboring properties. To continue to show dedication to becoming a good neighbor promoting healthy communities, a detailed implementation strategy will be established in order to promote and enforce the initiative.

For information about tobacco cessation resources, please visit the NYS Department of Health Tobacco Control Program and the Erie-Niagara Tobacco-Free Coalition websites.

Read coverage about the adoption below:

City Hall Looks to Broaden New Tobacco Ban on Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus

Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus is Now Smoke Free

Medical Corridor Snuffs Out Smoking

Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Going Tobacco-free

Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus to Ban Smoking

Medical Campus Wants to Expand Smoking Ban

Smoking Banned at Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus

Reduce the Risk Factors as You Walk on Wednesdays

May 22, 2012 by BNMCin Campus-wide, Community, Healthy Communities, Homepage, WellnessLeave a Comment

Did you know that walking can help prevent many chronic and cardiovascular diseases? On the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus we are encouraging healthy lifestyles through our Healthy Communities, Wellness, and Transportation initiatives, all created with the goal of improving your quality of life in mind.

Begin your commitment to maintain a healthy lifestyle right where you live and/or work. Walking for 30-40 minutes each day can ultimately have a positive affect on your life expectancy. Join the Walking on Wednesdays group as they meet at Roswell Park Cancer Institute‘s Kaminski Park every Wednesday starting May 23 until September 26 from 12:10 – 12:50 p.m. Every week, there will be a different route and giveaways as the walks take place in rain or shine.

Need more motivation to begin walking while on the BNMC or walking in general? Check out all of the great benefits of walking every day as you add Walking on Wednesdays into your daily activity routines. Walking can:

Lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol)
Raise high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (the “good” cholesterol)
Lower your blood pressure
Reduce your risk of or manage type 2 diabetes
Manage your weight
Improve your mood
Help you stay strong and fit
Burn up at least 100 calories of energy if you walk one mile (1.6km). Walking two miles (3.2km) a day, three times a week, can help reduce weight by one pound (0.5kg) every three weeks.
Risk factors for cardiovascular disease are also often risk factors for other chronic diseases. Many risk factors are related.
Reduce the risk for cardiovascular diseases associated with physical inactivity. Risks for cardiovascular disease associated with physical inactivity are similar to that of cigarette smoking.

For more information on how walking can increase your health, take a short 10 minute break to watch the video below by the University of Toronto’s Dr. Mike Evans, who is a family physician at St. Michael’s Hospital and an Associate Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health for the university.

A Healthier Way to Travel

May 3, 2012 by BNMCin Biking, Community, News, TransportationLeave a Comment

National Bike Month May 2012

In an effort to promote and support commuting by bicycles, the League of American Bicyclists brings this month-long biking initiative to communities in states across the country with the support of SealLine as a sponsor. Just like with any group of people who share common interests, cyclists can take this nationally recognized month to build more of a community by organizing events that encourage biking to work and other destinations. Coming off of the heels of the Complete Streets Summit, cyclists can join together to emphasize the importance of streets that are safe for bike travel.

Bike to Work Week is May 14 – May 18. Bike to Work Day is that Friday, May 18.

GO Bike Buffalo and other sponsors will offer tune-ups for riders prior to the week of biking to work as well as Bicycle Breakfasts to greet riders on their way to work and a Bike Away from Work Hwp-contenty Hour amongst other events to support the riders below:

Friday, May 11 – Tune-up Night at GO Bike Community Workshop

From 7 – 10 p.m. GO Bike Buffalo staff will be assisting bicyclists, checking bikes and providing light tune-ups for riders getting ready for Bike to Work Week at the GO Bike Community Workshop, located at 98 Colvin Avenue (at the corner of Linden). The shop—which is normally only open to GO Bike members—will be open to the public for this event.

Saturday, May 12 – Commuter Workshop

From 1 – 4 p.m. GO Bike Buffalo staff will be hosting a workshop introducing people to commuting by bicycle. Topics include equipment and maintenance, cycling law and cyclists’ rights, wardrobe choices and roadside repair. In addition, workshop attendees will receive a commuter tool kit. This kit contains commuting essentials including but not limited to a helmet, patch kit, light set, adjustable wrench and bell.

For less than the cost of a tank of gas, our knowledgeable staff will put you on the path towards occupying your proper place in the street. Contact our shop manager-stacy@greenoptionsbuffalo.org.

Bicycle Breakfasts

Local businesses are helping motivate bicyclists to bike to work by hosting Bicycle Breakfasts at the start and end of Bike to Work Week. Come enjoy refreshments while you meet and greet fellow bicyclists on your way to work.

Monday, May 14

From 8 – 10 a.m. Sweetness 7 Café is providing a free cup of coffee and discount breakfast specials at both of their locations— Grant Street & Lafayette Avenue on the West Side and Parkside Avenue & Russell Street across from the Buffalo Zoo.

Friday, May 18

From 7 – 10 a.m. Café Taza will provide a free cup of coffee to bicycle riders with a special treat for early-birds provided by Five Points Bakery.

Friday, May 18

From 8:30 – 10 a.m. Employees on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus who bike to work are encouraged to come by the lobby of the Innovation Center to enjoy bagels, coffee and fruit, meet some of the GO Bike Buffalo staff and learn more about what they do.

Don’t forget to inquire about Bicycle Benefits discounts for bicyclists at all three locations!

Bike Away from Work Hwp-contenty Hour

Finish off the excitement of Bike to Work Week at Cantina Loco on the corner of Elmwood Avenue and Allen Street from 5 – 8 p.m. Bike valet will be provided and all bicyclists receive discounts on food and drinks.

GO Bike Launch Party

The organization has grown and changed yet again, so come celebrate the launch of our newest incarnation—GO Bike Buffalo. $20 gets you a discounted membership and admission to this exciting event with live music, DJs, bike fun and $1 drafts of Rusty Chain beer all night. Current members of Green Options Buffalo/GO Bike get in for FREE! This event takes place at the Essex Street Art Complex (Big Orbit Art Gallery) starting at 7 p.m.

Join GO Bike Buffalo!

GO Bike memberships support efforts to assist employees and clients who bicycle—however often they ride. This includes educational programs, community bicycle workshop, policies to promote bicycling and the addition of bike lanes and bike parking throughout the city. You will be helping to make Buffalo a more bicycle-friendly community.

GO Bike Buffalo works to create healthy, environmentally sustainable, community-friendly transportation in the greater Buffalo region. Through advocacy, infrastructure improvements and community programs, GO Bike strives to enhance Buffalo’s quality of life by making positive impacts in our environment, economy, community and personal health.

As the BNMC looks to create models for healthy communities on the Medical Campus and throughout the city and region, through alternative transportation initiatives the BNMC will continue to offer more ways to commute to work in healthier and more sustainable ways.

32nd Annual JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge

April 30, 2012 by BNMCin Community, Homepage, Member Institution(s), NewsLeave a Comment

Employees from various organizations will run and walk the 3.5-mile course in WNY’s largest annual race which will be held this year on Thursday, June 7, with the traditional 6:45 p.m. start at Delaware Park. In its 32nd year, the Buffalo JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge has averaged 12,000 registrants from nearly 400 companies. Teams are being put together and projected finish times are being thrown into the pool. With Kaleida‘s Spring into Fitness 5K orchestrated by the Kaleida Health Foundation and other races like it kicking off the spring push to encourage employees and the community to improve their health by promoting physical activity, the Corporate Challenge is bound to offer a healthy and fun time for those who attend.

After the race, participants will retreat to their company tents and enjoy the customary meal offered as they eat, drink and be merry. The JPMorgan Chase Foundation will make a donation on behalf of all participants to the American Red Cross, Greater Buffalo.

A new feature, a timing chip, will allow for times to be recorded based on when runners cross the start and finish lines. No more collecting and entering finish times after the race. Participants will have to go online to confirm their scoring teams.

Entry Fee: $32 until close-date Thursday, May 24, 2012.

REGISTER HERE