Words, music, images and more from Jim Barnes
“‘If only these walls could talk!’
The thought occurs to me as I’m led down the long, gloomy corridors of the building known as the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, which housed thousands of patients over its 130-year history as a hospital for people with mental illnesses and disabilities.”
Josette Zahinda says that a brochure saved her life.
The Ashburn resident said her doctor had noticed, over the course of several visits, that she didn’t look well. The physician suspected Zahinda was a victim of domestic violence and, when she wasn’t looking, slipped a brochure into her purse. She found it later, at home.
The Washington Post, March 12, 2017
Turf battles between the Loudoun Board of Supervisors and the county school board are nothing new, but now the boards are tussling over the turf itself, as they debate whether artificial and natural turf athletic fields at high schools should be tested for potentially harmful chemicals.
The supervisors have expressed interest in testing three synthetic turf fields, but the school board has insisted that an equal number of natural turf fields also be examined so as to make a comparison. Supervisors have responded that testing the natural fields is unnecessary and that the additional requirement was concocted by the school board to kill the initiative altogether.
Washington Post, October 2, 2016
Inova Loudoun Hospital officials announced this month that they will alter procedures and enhance the emergency room at the Lansdowne campus in an attempt to attain designation from the Virginia Department of Health as a Level III trauma center.
If the effort is successful, it would be the first trauma center in Loudoun County.
Washington Post, Sept. 25, 2016
Two Fairfax County organizations have united on a program that provides immediate help to young adults who have recently experienced their first psychotic episode.
The Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board and PRS, a nonprofit mental health service provider, launched Turning Point last year to help stabilize young people 16 to 25 who have recently had a psychotic break, officials said. The outpatient program aims to improve clients’ chances of long-term recovery by helping them during the onset of their illness.
Washington Post, January 13, 2016
When Anthony Felice meets with his patients, most of whom have cancer or blood disorders, he often uses a tool seldom found in medical textbooks or offices: a deck of cards.
A specialist in oncology and hematology, Felice is a skilled magician who has found a way to work his hobby into his medical practice. Since opening his office in Reston in 1995, he has discovered that entertaining his patients with card tricks is an effective way to relieve tension and take their minds off their medical problems.
Washington Post, November 5, 2015
A two-year push to prevent concussions and other injuries in Fairfax County high school sports is showing encouraging results, according to data released by the school system.
Statistics collected by Fairfax County public schools indicated that the number of injuries sustained by football players declined by 16 percent over the past year, and the number of concussions by 28 percent. There were similar declines in the incidence of concussions and other injuries among lacrosse players.
Washington Post, October 15, 2015
HealthWorks for Northern Virginia, a Leesburg-based community health center, has returned to stable financial condition after a year of uncertainty, the organization’s top officials announced this month at a meeting of the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors’ finance committee.
Washington Post, February 22, 2015
As Wednesday dawned, bright and sunny, it was a perfect fall day to walk to school. And that’s exactly what hundreds of Prince William County children did — joined by some special escorts.
Students from about 30 schools across the county participated in International Walk to School Day as part of an effort to promote physical fitness and safe routes to school.
Washington Post, October 12, 2014
HealthWorks for Northern Virginia, the financially troubled nonprofit health service provider charged by the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors with improving its productivity before it could receive additional county funding, is making progress toward its goals.
Washington Post, August 11, 2014