Raymond Rendleman

Dr. Martin Donohoe’s New Book Cites Major Advances in Public Health

November 23, 2012 -- When you Google “public health and social justice,” the first thing that comes up is Portland Dr. Martin Donohoe’s expansive website. Now Donohoe, 49, is turning his go-to resource into a book that also compiles the major advances in the public health field, but in a handy best-of format of a mere 656 pages for $85.

Nov 23, 2012

Naturopaths Given Reprieve by Oregon Health Authority

November 16, 2012 -- Naturopathic doctors are “cautiously optimistic” that they will have a place within Oregon’s coordinated care organizations (CCOs) after officials threatened to cut them out of the primary-care system and seemingly ignore non-discrimination language in Senate Bill 1509.

Nov 15, 2012

Lincoln City Physician Forced to Transfer 95 Miles, Then Fired

October 23, 2012 -- A Lincoln City physician’s abrupt transfer and firing highlights a statewide issue of unilateral authority that health plan administrators have when reassigning or laying off physicians. Samaritan Health Services initially reassigned Dr. Robert Oksenholt, one of Lincoln City’s most popular and long-serving physicians, to Lebanon, which is more than a two-and-a-half-hour drive to the southeast.

Oct 23, 2012

Naturopaths Left Behind in New Coordinated Care Organizations

September 19, 2012 -- Naturopathic medicine advocates worry that one of the many casualties of Oregon’s new coordinated care system will be Eugene resident Penelope Jones-Vaughn, who adopted a severely abused infant son with fetal alcohol syndrome from his birth mother. His symptoms included an inability to feel pain, weeklong bouts of constipation and waking up constantly with nightmares.

Sep 19, 2012

Study Targets ‘Opiate-Use Epidemic’ Risks for Women

August 23, 2012 -- Common sense says don’t prescribe the same pain medication, known as opiates, to 70-year-old man as a 24-year-old woman, but until now physicians haven’t had a firm basis for making such distinctions.

Aug 23, 2012

Tribal Health Advocates Worry About New CCO System

July 25, 2012 -- Healthcare advocates are concerned that American Indians who choose not to participate in a coordinated care organization (CCO) will have difficulty getting access to specialty care. On August 1, CCOs begin integrating physical, dental and mental healthcare for about 650,000 people who qualify for Medicaid.

Jul 25, 2012

Immigrants Barred from Healthcare Coverage

June 13, 2012 -- Immigration status puts another layer of complexity on an already overly complex system for medical insurance coverage in Oregon and across the U.S.Oregon’s rate of uninsured children is lower than the nation’s average after the Healthy Kids program expanded coverage to virtually all minors, but there are still residency requirements attached to the program, so undocumented kids are relegated to emergencymedical coverage only.

Jun 12, 2012

Unlicensed Home Births in Reform Spotlight

May 21, 2012 -- Health safety advocates and members of the midwifery profession are trying to come together to build momentum for a series of regulatory and cultural changes to address increased concern about home births.Oregon’s unique rules regarding out-of-hospital delivery have come under the spotlight following high-profile court cases involving infant death and permanent crippling.

May 21, 2012

Volunteer Physicians Line up Support for Uninsured in the Columbia Gorge

May 14, 2012 -- The idea behind Project Access NOW, a network of 2,800 volunteer physicians providing care to low-income patients in the Portland metro area, is spreading up the Columbia Gorge.Hood River County officials have been meeting with Project Access organizers to replicate the program’s success and keep people who are uninsured out of hospital emergency rooms.Trish Elliott, nursing supervisor for the county health department, hopes the fledgling program can serve 1,000 people starting June 1.

May 14, 2012