Estate Planning in Five Easy Steps: Financial Advisor Bradley Bofford Explains Why Even Average Folks Need to Plan Now

Estate Planning in Five Easy Steps: Financial Advisor Bradley Bofford Explains Why Even Average Folks Need to Plan Now

It's been estimated that seven of 10 Americans have no estate plan. Recent stories reported by the media have shed light on the tragedies that can befall a person who dies without an estate plan. While most people's estate value falls considerably short of Anna Nicole Smith's mind-boggling $500 million, it's a mistake to assume that estate planning is not warranted based on the value of your assets alone. According to Fairfield-based Chartered Financial Consultant Bradley Bofford, even people of modest means should develop an estate plan - and they should do it as soon as possible. "Time waits for no one," Bofford says.

Fairfield, NJ (PRWEB) June 6, 2007 -

It's been estimated that seven of 10 Americans have no estate plan. Recent stories reported by the media have shed light on the tragedies that can befall a person who dies without an estate plan. While most people's estate value falls considerably short of Anna Nicole Smith's mind-boggling $500 million, it's a mistake to assume that estate planning is not warranted based on the value of your assets alone. According to Fairfield-based Chartered Financial Consultant Bradley Bofford, even people of modest means should develop an estate plan - and they should do it as soon as possible. "Time waits for no one," Bofford says.

"It's easy to feel that because you have a modest amount of assets that there is no need to develop an estate plan," said Bofford. "But you couldn't be more wrong. If you own anything with value, from money, stocks and property to jewelry and collectibles, you have an estate that needs to be properly planned. The problem is, too many people put off doing even basic estate planning work. That's a recipe for disaster."

According to Bofford, there are five easy steps involved in creating an estate plan.

Step 1: Where There's A Will, There's A Way
"A will is the cornerstone of any estate plan," says Bofford. "If you have a will, you have done a large part of what needs to be done to properly plan for your heirs." Among other things, having a legally prepared will ensures that your wishes regarding property are honored as well as the ability to specify how estate taxes and other expenses will be paid.

Step 2: Law and Order
While a will is a very important part of an estate plan, there are other documents that help to ensure your wishes are carried out. A Durable Power of Attorney is a document that designates a person to act on your behalf during times of incapacitation. "A Durable Power of Attorney is important for everyone, but especially for unmarried couples and singles," says Bofford. "Without it, all powers will secede to your next of kin, no matter how close or distant the relationship. Additionally, a Health Care Proxy and a Living Will or Heath Care Directive are important documents. It wasn't long ago that we witnessed the very public battle between Terry Schiavo's husband and family over when to remove life support. Had these documents been in place, it would have been very clear who had the right to make heath care decisions for her and who was able to make the decision to remove life support."

Step 3: Make Your Wishes Known
Creating the necessary documents for an estate plan is half the battle. "Once you've developed and signed your estate planning documents, make sure that the people who need to have them, receive them," advises Bofford. "Your doctor, hospital and the person who has been given power over making health care decisions should have the appropriate documents granting that power. Additionally, your executor should have a copy of your will as well as the knowledge of where you keep other important information that will be needed upon your death."

Step 4: Side-Step Unnecessary Taxes and Delays
Many people are surprised by high taxes and needless delays when a loved one dies. "This is not the time to add any additional stress," Bofford says. "There are a variety of strategies - ranging from making sure one has the right beneficiary designations on IRA accounts and 401(k) plans to creating a "stretch IRA" to gifting directly from an IRA to a charity to buying enough life insurance to cover any inevitable taxes and lifestyle needs - that can be beneficial if put into place before death occurs. Without proper planning and fore-thought, a family could lose a good portion of the intended inheritance. IRD (income with respect to a decedent) and estate taxes can eat up a big portion of the estate; the government could end up confiscating 35-60% of the wealth they hoped to pass on to their heirs."

Step 5: Review It
Once an estate plan is developed, it should not be a static document. "Like you, your estate plan is a living, breathing document that needs to be reviewed and changed as your life changes," advises Bofford. "When there is a change in family situation, insurance coverage, or the death of a trustee, executor or guardian, you need to ensure that your estate plan reflects those changes." There is no hard and fast rule that determines how often the plan should be reviewed, but based on the value of your estate, a professional financial planner, such as a CFP, ChFC, or Registered Investment Advisor, can help to determine appropriate intervals for review. "While attorneys are the professionals who draw up the estate planning documents, it is the primary financial advisor who's most likely to see when plan documents and the overall strategy should be updated," Bofford says.

About Financial Principles, LLC
Financial Principles understands the importance of planning - whether it's for retirement, saving for college or even charitable giving. As representatives of Securities America, Inc. they are able to provide comprehensive services and advice in all areas of personal finance, such as estate planning, retirement planning and tax reduction strategies. Two senior partners, Brad Bofford, CLU, ChFC, and Mike Flower, bring a combined 30+ years of financial services experience to their clientele. Both are recognized as qualifying life members of the prestigious Million Dollar Round Table, a premier association for successful financial professionals.

Bofford and Flower believe that a well-informed client is essential for success. They love taking clients from fear to confidence regarding finances, by placing a strong emphasis on educating people about how to prepare for and enjoy a comfortable retirement.

Visit www. financialprinciples. com to learn more about the advisors at Financial Principles.

Note:
When you need a knowledgeable professional to speak on complicated financial topics in an easy-to-understand and comprehensive manner, please call the advisors at Financial Principles.

Securities offered through Securities America, Inc. Member NASD/SIPC. Bradley H. Bofford, CLU, ChFC and Michael A. Flower are Registered Representatives. Advisory services offered through Securities America Advisors, Inc. Bradley H. Bofford and Michael A. Flower are Investment Advisor Representatives. Financial Principles, LLC and Securities America, Inc are not affiliated.

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Today, Bulgaria and Romania rank among the poorest in Europe but their economies—and their pharmaceutical markets—are growing fast

Today, Bulgaria and Romania rank among the poorest in Europe but their economies—and their pharmaceutical markets—are growing fast.

Research and Markets has announced the addition of Overview of the Bulgarian and Romanian Pharmaceutical Markets to their offering.

Dublin (PRWEB) January 31, 2006

Research and Markets (http://www. researchandmarkets. com/reports/c31698 (http://www. researchandmarkets. com/reports/c31698)) has announced the addition of Overview of the Bulgarian and Romanian Pharmaceutical Markets to their offering.

In 2007, Bulgaria and Romania are scheduled to join 25 other countries as member states of the European Union (EU). Before doing so, however, Bulgaria and Romania must implement wide-ranging political, economic, and legal reforms, including modernization of their health care and pharmaceutical industries. Eight other Eastern and Central European nations underwent the same process before their accession to the EU in 2004, but both Bulgaria and Romania face their own specific challenges.

In this report, we provide an overview of the health care system, pharmaceutical market, intellectual property protection, drug registration, pricing and reimbursement and other cost-containment methods, and pharmaceutical distribution in both Bulgaria and Romania. We conclude with a brief assessment of the implications for the pharmaceutical industry.

Business Implications

In January 2007, Bulgaria and Romania are scheduled to become the newest members of the European Union (EU). The two nations rank among the poorest in Europe, but their economies—and their pharmaceutical markets—are growing fast. In both countries, foreign drugs account for less than one-third of prescriptions but have a market share of at least two-thirds in monetary terms. Consumers reportedly have a high opinion of imported medicines and frequently favor these products if they can afford them. Sales of imported medicines have grown steadily in recent years, and this trend is likely to accelerate as the Bulgarian and Romanian economies continue to grow. Strong intellectual property protection is a relatively recent innovation in Bulgaria and Romania, and further progress will be needed to meet EU standards. In 2003, the Bulgarian government introduced a Roche-Bolar provision to enable generics manufacturers to begin developing generic versions of a drug two years before its patent expires. The Romanian government did not introduce data exclusivity for regulatory dossiers until April 2004. The research-based industry has criticized the fact that data exclusivity in Romania begins when a drug gains its first marketing authorization in any EU member state, not when it is approved in Romania. Furthermore, the Romanian government curtails data exclusivity when a product’s patent expires. Fears that EU enlargement will open the floodgates to parallel trade appear to be unfounded. Like the eight Central and Eastern European countries that joined the EU in 2004, Bulgaria and Romania will be subject to the "specific mechanism" that severely restricts parallel exportation to established member states. This mechanism will operate on a case-by-case basis as long as differences in intellectual property protection remain between these accession countries and older EU member states. A further obstacle to parallel trade is the fact that some international pharmaceutical brands are more expensive in Bulgaria and Romania than in Western European countries. In December 2003, the Bulgarian government introduced a new positive list—a catalogue of drugs that may be eligible for reimbursement but are not automatically covered. Research-based companies complain that this measure creates additional bureaucracy, requires the submission of a huge amount of largely unnecessary data, seriously delays market access, is subjective (even to the extent that it had a pro-generics bias), and offers no right of appeal. Foreign companies may lose sales of BGN 50 million ($31.7 million) per year from the exclusion of their products from the positive list. The Romanian government has angered the research-based pharmaceutical industry by introducing different reimbursement rates for patent-protected branded medicines and generics (50% and 65%, respectively). The recent imposition of reference pricing has intensified manufacturers’ criticisms and reinforced the belief that the government discriminates against imported medicines.

List of Tables

Table 1. Evolution of the Bulgarian Pharmaceutical Market at Ex-Manufacturer Prices, 2000-2003

Table 2. Evolution of the Bulgarian Pharmaceutical Market in Volume Terms, 2000-2003

Table 3. Evolution of the Bulgarian Over-the-Counter Drugs Market at Ex-Manufacturer Prices, 2000-2003

Table 4. Composition of Ceiling Retail Prices for Prescription Drugs in Bulgaria

Table 5. Number of Registered Price Changes in Bulgaria for Imported and Domestic Drugs, 2000-2003

Table 6. Wholesaler and Pharmacy Markups in Romania

For more information visit http://www. researchandmarkets. com/reports/c31698 (http://www. researchandmarkets. com/reports/c31698) Decision Resources

Laura Wood

Senior Manager

Research and Markets

Press@researchandmarkets. com

Fax: +353 1 4100 980

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Summertime, and the Tourin' is Easy at Melpomene's Garden Tour

Summertime, and the Tourin' is Easy at Melpomene's Garden Tour

(PRWEB) June 3, 2000

Contact: Jenna Zark, Public Relations FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Phone: (651) 642-1951 Fax: (651) 642-1871

E-mail: health@melpomene. org Website: www. melpomene. org

MELPOMENE TEAMS UP WITH GARDENERS

TO DELIGHT THE EYES AND SOUL

  The fun starts on Sunday, July 23rd at 1 o'clock and continues until 5 in the afternoon. Busy gardeners can complete the tour in an hour and a half; others may want to spend the entire 4 hours. Wander through 10 of St. Paul's most beautiful gardens (or just sit and enjoy them.) You can also talk to each garden's creator about the how's, when's, and where's of planting and tending.

  Whether you like your gardens in rocks, rooftops, or Japanese designs, you'll find something in all the yards to delight the eye and soothe the soul. Each garden shows a different take on how people in this city view their flowers, landscapes, and the outdoors. Refreshments from Great Harvest Bakery will also be available en route. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 the day of the tour; call Melpomene at (651) 642-1951 to register.

  One of the gardeners you'll meet is Patty Ridley, who signed on as chair of the garden tour because she applauds Melpomene's mission to help women and girls link health and physical activity. Because gardening is a great way to exercise and enjoy the summer, Patty found many willing to share their gardens with the rest of us.

  Patty's garden boasts a large wooden sculpture created in an unexpected way. When a large maple tree died in her backyard last year, Patty and her daughters decided to turn it into a work of art. They enlisted the help of sculptor Kevin Showell, whose sculpture of a pioneer family planting seeds can be seen at Highland Nursery in St. Paul.

Melpomene Institute was founded in 1982, and helps girls and women

Link health and physical activity through research, education and publication.

--more-

  Patty's teenage daughters designed an image of St. Francis accompanied by a young girl and several animals, including birds, a chipmunk, and a deer. The figures are popular with many of the garden's visitors.

  You'll also see a sloping paradise of perennials and lilies along with a hydrangea and lilac tree in the Ridley garden. Some old flagstone steps were discovered a few years back, and Patty thinks they were part of an older landscape dating back 40 years. The steps are now part of the new garden, along with a walking path and nearby rock garden that doubles as a retaining wall.

Visitors to Maureen Adelman's garden will find a multi-level Japanese-style garden with a dry stream-bed bordered by Siberian iris. You'll also see several trees cut in the bonsai tradition, along with white cypress, weeping Norway spruce, and a Japanese maple with feathery red leaves. In addition, the Adelman garden contains an unusual collection of hostas, sculptures, a fern garden, and a section devoted to ornamental prairie grasses with variegated colors.

Maureen chose to participate in Melpomene's Tour because she loves peeking at other people's gardens. "Every garden tour I go on, I get a new idea," Maureen says. "But most of us don't usually have the opportunity to go into other people's yards." Maureen hopes you'll take the opportunity to visit hers, and enjoy the other offerings in the Tour. She looks forward to sharing her garden with you, and hopes you'll support Melpomene. "It's a great organization," Maureen adds.

It's also a great tour. Hope you'll join us.

The fun starts on Sunday, July 23rd at 1 o'clock and continues until 5 in the afternoon. Busy gardeners can complete the tour in an hour and a half; others may want to spend the entire 4 hours. Wander through 10 of St. Paul's most beautiful gardens (or just sit and enjoy them.) You can also talk to each garden's creator about the how's when's and where's of planting and tending.

Whether you like your gardens in rocks, rooftops, or Japanese designs, you'll find something in all the yards to delight the eye and soothe the soul. Each garden shows a different take on how people view their flowers, landscapes, and the outdoors. Refreshments from Great Harvest Bakery will also be available en route. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 the day of the tour. Call Melpomene at (651) 642-1951 to register.

Melpomene Institute was founded in 1982, and helps women and girls link health and physical activity through research, education, and publication. Your dollars will benefit our programs and research.

--End--

ACDIS announces first group of Certified Clinical Documentation Specialists

ACDIS announces first group of Certified Clinical Documentation Specialists

The Association of Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialists (ACDIS) announces that the first group of more than 100 clinical documentation improvement (CDI) specialists has earned the Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist (CCDS) certification, developed and sponsored by ACDIS. Clinical documentation improvement (CDI) is a rapidly growing profession in healthcare with more than half of hospitals reporting that they have a CDI program in place.

Marblehead, MA (PRWEB) July 14, 2009

The Association of Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialists (ACDIS) announces that the first group of more than 100 clinical documentation improvement (CDI) specialists has earned the Certified Clinical Documentation Specialist (CCDS) certification, developed and sponsored by ACDIS. Clinical documentation improvement (CDI) is a rapidly growing profession in healthcare with more than half of hospitals reporting that they have a CDI program in place.

The CCDS credential was more than a year in the making. ACDIS conducted a membership survey, created a panel of 12 experts with diverse backgrounds (including nursing, HIM/coding, and quality) to develop prerequisites and core content, and spent a year developing a rigorous exam. The exam was administered for the first time at the ACDIS 2nd annual conference in Las Vegas, NV on May 16.

Las Vegas test-takers took the exam via paper-and-pencil. Subsequent test-takers may take the exam at any of 170 assessment centers located nationwide beginning June 29, 2009. The exam is administered via computer and scoring results are provided immediately after the test.

CDI specialists possess knowledge of a wide range of specialized disciplines, including education in anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, and pharmacology; knowledge of official medical coding guidelines, CMS, and private payer regulations; an ability to analyze and interpret medical record documentation and formulate appropriate physician queries; and an ability to benchmark and analyze clinical documentation program performance. The CCDS exam tests candidates on all of these core content areas.

"The CCDS is a mark of distinction and professionalism for CDI specialists," says Brian Murphy, ACDIS Director. "This first group to pass the exam has demonstrated that they possess the diverse skills and knowledge required to be a competent CDI specialist. As the CCDS continues to take hold, we are confident that hospitals, healthcare systems, and other employers will view the new certification as the standard of excellence in this field."

Please go to www. cdiassociation. com/certification (http://www. cdiassociation. com/certification) for more details or to apply.

About ACDIS:
The Association of Clinical Documentation Improvement Specialists (ACDIS) is a community in which CDI professionals share the latest tested tips, tools, and strategies to implement successful CDI programs and achieve professional growth. ACDIS members believe in the inherent benefit of appropriate and complete medical record documentation on the quality of healthcare. The ACDIS mission is to serve as the premier healthcare community for clinical documentation specialists, providing a medium for education, professional growth, program recognition, and networking.

Since its inception ACDIS has grown to more than 1,500 members with local chapters in more than 20 states. ACDIS is sponsored by HCPro, Inc., a portfolio company of Halyard Investments, providing information, advice, consulting, and research on healthcare regulation and revenue cycle management.

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Selligent Interactive Marketing version 3 optimizes the cross-channel customer experience and avoids marketing fatigue

Selligent Interactive Marketing version 3 optimizes the cross-channel customer experience and avoids marketing fatigue

Europe-based leader in conversion marketing and interactive CRM solutions, Selligent, has launched a major release of its interactive marketing suite that enables marketing departments to further personalize, analyze and optimize their interactive marketing programmes for improved cross-channel customer experience. The introduction of a marketing pressure management tool, a fully-fledged eForm module and many customer-centric innovations reinforce the relevance of interactions and enable a global view of the customer journey for better conversion and customer engagement.

(PRWEB) August 27, 2010

Selligent Interactive Marketing (http://www. selligent. com/Solutions/InteractiveMarketing. aspx) is an online trigger-based and scenario-driven cross-channel marketing tool that consolidates all interactive touch points with customers and prospects, analyzes the data resulting from these interactions and enables improved, automated and intelligent future digital communications. These are not only based on contact history but also on predefined scenarios, based on customer data and behaviour, whereby each scenario triggers a series of cross-channel dialogues.

Scenarios can include demographic triggers, such as the birthday of the customer, and behavioural triggers such as the interaction with an e-mail, filling in an online form, carrying out a process or purchasing a product.

Since all the interactions are measured and can be integrated with CRM solutions (and in particular with Selligent Relationship Management (http://www. selligent. com/Solutions/ClosedLoopCRM. aspx)), marketers dispose of data-driven ways to improve the conversion of every aspect of their customer interactions and calculate the ROI of each individual contact moment and marketing programme.

With Selligent Interactive Marketing, Selligent introduces a wide range of new and enhanced features like the one enabling to fine-tune the relevance of interactions with customers and prospects according to their needs, interests and preferences. This way, marketers can manage marketing fatigue and information overload and improve the interaction experience of their segments and recipients individually.

Optimize the Efficiency, Coordination and Frequency of your Marketing Messages and Avoid Marketing Fatigue

One of the main novelties answering the request of Selligent’s customers is the introduction of a marketing pressure management tool.

Managing marketing fatigue has become a real challenge in businesses that have frequent interactions with their consumers or customers across online and offline channels (especially those businesses with a strong focus on e-mail marketing activities). It is also true when several departments or marketing divisions regularly communicate with overlapping target groups (think of regular e-mailings, product-related promotions, event invitations, etc.)

Communicating too much and interacting via various channels or for different marketing purposes can lead to disgruntled customers, unsubscriptions and spam complaints: to keep it short, it can lead to marketing fatigue. Consequently, businesses can lose both their reputation and negatively influence interaction with customers, consumers or prospects.

To help marketers avoid marketing fatigue and fine-tune their interactions automatically and in real time, Selligent introduces a unique marketing pressure management tool that offers an easy-to-use solution to this complicated challenge. The Marketing Pressure feature enables marketers to set a wide variety of rules on different levels regarding outbound communication: frequency, timeframe, channels, target group and priority.

Marketers dispose of a dashboard that shows possible clashes between different campaigns, allows to set priorities in launching marketing programs and eventually solves the marketing fatigue issue. Marketers can thus focus on creating relevant content and compelling interactions as well as testing, planning and optimizing their customer contact moments.

Have a Holistic View on the Customer Lifecycle and Maximize Conversion

A second important innovation that is introduced with the major release of Selligent Interactive Marketing is the eForm module. It is a fully-fledged online forms and page flow engine that contains advanced functionality to automatically manage subscription processes, gather customer data, set up surveys, automate the subscription process,... all this within a consistent and user-friendly interface.

EForm enables businesses to follow and track customers and prospects online through the whole sales funnel and lead management process. Doing this, marketers can adapt their interactions with customers and prospects in function of the phase of their buying journey and activate and engage leads that came to a stop in the conversion process.

EForm comes with a user-friendly interface, a rich set of question types, form components and controls, and a wide range of actions that can be predefined when people interact with forms, making it easy for non-technical users to integrate their online forms into their inbound marketing investments.

Combined with the existing features of Selligent Interactive Marketing and the marketing pressure management tool, eForm enables marketers to develop the most personal, valuable and relevant permission-based communication, by gathering data, closely tracking interactions and real-time engagement.

More features:

Besides marketing pressure management and eForm features, Selligent Interactive Marketing includes more novelties for marketers in need of an integrated and cross-channel marketing tool.

Among them are:
A taxonomy feature that enables businesses to generate behavioural profile data based on user interactions Integrated Google Analytics tracking More filtering possibilities, for instance to exclude specific target groups Enhancements for more advanced users on staging or pre-production environments

All these changes come on top of recent innovations in Selligent’s interactive marketing suite that included components for Split testing, viral campaigns, management of contests and print processing.

This makes Selligent Interactive Marketing (http://www. selligent. com/Solutions/InteractiveMarketing. aspx) the most feature-rich cross-channel marketing automation, lead management and communication tool that adapts to customer behaviour and communication changes, offering marketers even more possibilities to optimize their customer interactions in an easy way.

Businesses that use Selligent Interactive Marketing version 3 dispose of all possibilities to engage their customers in a personalized, valuable and thus customer-centric way.

About Selligent

Selligent (http://www. selligent. com) is a leader in conversion marketing and interactive CRM solutions. We offer practical and proven solutions for the challenges and opportunities that companies face in transforming themselves into customer-driven organizations. Our customer interaction solutions enable organizations to engage with customers as individuals, resulting in increased conversion rates, higher profitability, minimal churn and a superior customer experience over all channels.

Marketing departments rely on Selligent’s marketing solutions to establish cross-channel multi-step interactive marketing scenarios linked to the Selligent operational crm solution used in follow-up by sales and service departments. Based on a central 360° view of the customer, this integrated cross-departmental approach facilitates individual follow-up throughout all corporate levels. Selligent’s integrated infrastructure allows companies to effectively turn leads into customers and grow life-time relationships while ensuring maximal ROI and minimal churn. Selligent solutions simultaneously lower operational costs, thanks to optimization of staff member efficiency, automation and orchestration.

Selligent serves customers in all industry sectors, including financial services, insurance, telecommunication, travel, media & publishing, retail, automotive, healthcare, manufacturing and many others. Since its inception, it has demonstrated impressive growth thanks to its innovative solution offering, its customer-driven service culture and its pragmatic approach to delivering results fast.

More Information for Journalists:

You can obtain more information regarding this press release or request an interview by contacting:

Patricia Duponcheel
Marketing Co-ordinator
Selligent SA
Patricia. duponche(at)selligent(dot)com

Phone: +32 (0)71 25 80 97

Press release by communication agency Conversionation (http://www. conversionation. net) for Selligent (http://www. selligent. com).

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Latino On The Rise Actor Eric Martinez Picks Up Celebrity Trainer Rob Garcia

Latino On The Rise Actor Eric Martinez Picks Up Celebrity Trainer Rob Garcia

Rising Latino Eric Marinez Picks Oscar De La Hoya's Trainer Rob Garcia To Get In Shape

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) February 18, 2010

Actor Eric Martinez, out of Albuquerque, NM, announced today he has enlisted strength and conditioning trainer to the stars Rob Garcia to help get in shape for 2010. Martinez will begin strength and conditioning training in early March under the training and direction of celebrity trainer Rob Garcia.

Eric Martinez better known for his portrayal as a gang member in the actor Christian Slater’s hit movie ‘Love Lies Bleeding. Martinez step in the lime light shortly after a highly publicized canceled boxing match between two opponents, hip hop icon rapper DMX, and Grammy Award Winning rapper Coolio. Most recently he hosted Latino Fashion Week in Chicago, where he quickly became a favorite for red carpet photographers and paparazzi, while assuming the role as Tinsel town’s next rising Latino.

Martinez new trainer Robert Garcia, who also trained Oscar De La Hoya and several other World Champion Boxers, including MMA(Mixed Martial Arts) fighters. Mr. Garcia also trained reality mega star Kim Kardashian, and her family for a celebrity boxing match on this seasons “Keeping Up With The Kardashians.”

“I’ve always been physically fit and health cautious. My decision to work with a trainer who is known in the industry to get results, just made perfect sense. I also want to make my mark as an actor, but I am more than just a gangster or thug. I would like to read for something that shows my ability to transcend from character to character in any given role,” States Martinez.

With several movies and TV Shows being filmed in Albuquerque, NM and a clothing line in the works this year with business partner Sean Amalla. Eric Martinez has a full scheduled lined up for 2010 to include traveling to Atlanta, NY, LA and Miami for other roles as well. Eric is represented in New Mexico by The O' Agency and is now managed by Issaac Hawkins out of Denver, CO. Besides filming Eric will be guest speaking at several schools in and around New Mexico and making several club appearances around the country.

Contacting Eric Martinez:
Manager:
Big Hawk - bighawk(at)downmagazine(dot)com
720-323-3193

For media inquiries contact Pam Pinnock at Pam Pinnock, PR or email pampinnock(at)aol(dot)com or call 678-920-2582

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Leading Testing Products Distributor Testcountry. com Reveals Results of Affiliate Survey

Leading Testing Products Distributor Testcountry. com Reveals Results of Affiliate Survey

Affiliate partners find receiving tips, tools and suggestions through their affiliate programs extremely important. By comparison, receiving bonuses do not matter as much although still very much appreciated.

San Diego (Vocus) June 16, 2009 –

Affiliate partners find receiving tips, tools and suggestions through their affiliate programs extremely important. By comparison, receiving bonuses do not matter as much although still very much appreciated.

These are the findings that TestCountry. com, a leading distributor of testing products (http://www. testcountry. com/), got from its recent survey of the members of its affiliate program. According to the survey, 38% of the company’s affiliates highly value the tips, tools and suggestions that they get through the TestCountry. com affiliate program.

On the other hand, 54% of the respondents say that the bonuses they get from the program are only somewhat important when compared to these tools, tips and suggestions.

The poll also showed that 31% of the TestCountry. com (http://www. testcountry. com/) affiliates are very appreciative of the new creatives and data feed that they get through the affiliate program. In addition, 38% think that contests are not important.

“We are constantly striving to improve our affiliate program,” said Olga Stoyan, the affiliate manager for TestCountry. com.

“Our goal is to establish an open communication with our affiliates for better understanding and satisfying the needs of our partners,” she added.

The company has more than 2,000 affiliates within its network. It works with its affiliates through partnerships with ShareASale. com and the Google Affiliate Network.

ShareASale. com is one of the most respected and most reliable affiliate networks on the Internet today. A Chicago-based network that was founded on April 2000, ShareASale. com is known well for its easy-to-use and highly customizable affiliate manager applications.

The Google Affiliate Network, on the other hand, is search engine giant Google’s affiliate marketing arm. It is the product of the reorganization that Google made when it took over the management of DoubleClick Performics Affiliates in March 2008. DoubleClick Performics was the first company to offer full affiliate network services on the Internet in 1998.

Also included in the TestCountry. com survey are questions on what products the company should carry, as well as how the company can improve its affiliate program. When asked about it, Ms. Stoyan said that they “were a little surprised” to see the results of the poll.

Ms. Stoyan reports that TestCountry. com has received a number of interesting ideas from its survey respondents. The company is now seriously considering these products, especially new instant testing kits (http://www. testcountry. com/), ideas and suggestions. It has also given special gifts to the survey respondents as a special appreciation for the time they have given on the poll.

About TestCountry

TestCountry. com is an online home test kit superstore. The company offers home or work drug test kits (http://www. testcountry. com/categories. html? cat=256) for a variety of needs, including HIV / AIDS testing kits, pregnancy and fertility testing, paternity and DNA testing, substance use testing, health hazard detection, disease and cancer detection, and nutrition and wellness testing. TestCountry specializes in easy-to-use tests that can be individually administered in the security and privacy of a home or office. All shipments are packaged discreetly, thus respecting the privacy of clients. The company operates exclusively through their web site, found at http://www. testcountry. com/ (http://www. testcountry. com/), and features a question and answer section providing responses to many common concerns users may have related to the various types of home testing.

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Froogaloo, a New Online Community Created by Four Friends, Focused on Helping Consumers Save Money

Froogaloo, a New Online Community Created by Four Friends, Focused on Helping Consumers Save Money

Froogaloo is a new online community that provides you with the information, resources and opportunities for a fit wallet so you can live your lifestyle! Join, contribute, collaborate and find your strategy for saving money.

St. Louis, MO (PRWEB) April 5, 2010

Froogaloo. com is a new online community, created by four friends, Tara, Sam, Rachel and Michael, who are bringing their vision of saving money to the world. The site is targeted specifically at helping busy professionals, families and people between the ages of 23-40, who are saving for various stages in their lives.

According to a recent national survey, more than 96% Americans agreed that early monetary savings would help one achieve a fruitful and stable life. Saving is a way of insulating oneself from the many symptoms of health and natural adversity. There are various resources on the internet that try to provide advice for achieving this objective. However, these sites only cater to specific individuals, such as stay-at-home moms. Therefore, resources are lacking for busy professionals and families, various personalities and people who learn in different ways. Froogaloo. com fills these voids.

Froogaloo. com features blogs from our experts, a forum for visitors to ask questions and participate, podcasts and more. As the site grows, additional resources, such as podcasts, webinars, seminars, e-books and more will be developed.

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HealthLeaders Media Today Announced What's Coming in its August Issue of HealthLeaders Magazine

HealthLeaders Media Today Announced What's Coming in its August Issue of HealthLeaders Magazine

HealthLeaders Media today announced what's coming in its August issue of HealthLeaders magazine, the only publication created exclusively for healthcare executives.

Marblehead, MA (PRWEB) August 11, 2008

HealthLeaders Media today announced what's coming in its August issue of HealthLeaders magazine, the only publication created exclusively for healthcare executives.

Feature story:
Help the Uninsured (Without Going Broke)
The number of people without health insurance just keeps rising. Is there anything your hospital can do about it?

Also in the August issue:
Defensive Medicine? -- Some hospital leaders are concerned that CMS is moving too fast with never events.

So You Think You're Strategic? -- The healthcare C-suite talks a lot about strategy. But what constitutes true strategic thinking, and how can leaders be sure that it's taking place at their organizations?

Not-So-Easy Integration -- Eyeing the holy grail of the "integrated EMR," hospitals and medical groups make tough decisions when faced with hurdles to connectivity.

Prolific Payoff -- Some hospitals are discovering that investing in a revenue integrity team can yield tenfold gains.

HealthLeaders Media is a leading multi-platform media company dedicated to meeting the business information needs of healthcare executives and professionals, many of whom qualify for a free subscription. Visit us at http://www. healthleadersmedia. com (http://www. healthleadersmedia. com).

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Relationship Advice Website Adds New Blog

Relationship Advice Website Adds New Blog

Prelationship. com is an upstart relationship advice website that tackles everything within the interpersonal relationship realm. Recently, the site added a new blog to its many features. Site founder, Ken Brown, sat down to talk about the imperfections of perfect relationships.

Beltsville, MD (PRWEB) March 15, 2009

"Perfect relationships can be difficult to come by, but as relationship counselor Ken Brown says that while all unions may not be perfect, they can certainly be the start of a perfect (P) relationship.

Brown operates www. Prelationship. com, an advice website that specializes in the interpersonal workings between people, which includes both workplace and romantic interactions alike.

"The general relationship - such as that between boss and employee - is seldom addressed on the internet," said Brown. "We are not just romantics. "We tackle these exchanges also and not just the romantic ones."

It should be pointed out that Brown is not lacking any dating tips on his site. Prelationship offers everything from marriage advice to break up advice to tips on winning back a former flame. The site also features a host of resources that are equally diverse and will no doubt help break the ice when it comes to entering, or re-entering, the dating world in the Internet Age.

"In our society, Internet dating has become something of the norm," explained Brown. "I have no problem with people meeting on the Internet, but once you meet and get past the introduction…then what do you do?"

"People skip over the key principles that make relationships last and that's what Prelationship. com is for - to help people get prepared for being in a successful relationship and maintaining that success."

As an advice site, Prelationship. com addresses several issues, but Brown has recently added a new blog, www. PrelationshipInfo. com, which delves deeper into other topics that are referenced on the site.

For the blog, Brown continues on with specific advice for young lovers, heart-broken individuals and explores the family dynamic.

"I find that a lot of people are in relationships, but they are not healthy, open relationships," said Brown. "We're here to give advice and tips on discovering who the people are that they are dealing with. Everyone puts up a façade and these tips will help people find out who the real person is."

About the Company:
Prelationship. com is owned and operated by Ken Brown. Brown and his wife are also relationship counselors.

Contact Information:

Ken Brown
Www. Prelationship. com
(301) 931-8333

IePlexus, Inc.
Www. iePlexus. com

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Walk To Fight Arthritis: Sign-Up Now for the May 6 Event

Walk To Fight Arthritis: Sign-Up Now for the May 6 Event

The Arthritis Foundation is seeking walkers and teams to participate in the Arthritis Walk on Saturday, May 6 at Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg, VA.

Fredericksburg, VA (PRWEB) April 17, 2006

The Arthritis Foundation is calling for people to take action against arthritis by participating in the 2006 Arthritis Walk. The annual nationwide event kicks off in May during national Arthritis Month, raising funds and awareness to fight arthritis, the nation's leading cause of disability. The Fredericksburg Arthritis Walk will take place on Saturday, May 6, 2006 at Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg, Virginia. To get involved or form a walk team, visit http://www. arthritiswalkfredericksburg. kintera. org (http://www. arthritiswalkfredericksburg. kintera. org) or call 540-429-2239.

Arthritis or chronic joint symptoms are more widespread than imagined, affecting 66 million Americans, or one out of three adults and approximately 300,000 children. Here in Virginia, arthritis affects more than 2.1 million people.

"The Arthritis Foundation is here to help people with arthritis take a more active role in managing their disease. Participating in the Arthritis Walk can be a first step toward the healthy lifestyle that may help prevent or control arthritis," said John H. Klippel, M. D., president and CEO of the Arthritis Foundation.

The Arthritis Walk takes place in communities nationwide each May in conjunction with National Arthritis Month. There are more than 400 local Arthritis Walks, each featuring a three-mile and one-mile course. Participants can walk for a friend or a family member with arthritis, while people with arthritis wear blue hats to signify they are walking to take control of their arthritis.

Sam Lincoln is the 2006 Fredericksburg Arthritis Walk Junior Hero. Sam is five years old. He has been living with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis for four years now. Sam is an amazing child. This disease may have weakened his muscles and joints, but it has strengthened his determination and willpower. Sam is special and not just because he endures this "grown up" disease, but because he loves life and appreciates all aspects of it.

In 2005, more than 75,000 walkers participated and helped raise money to directly support critical arthritis research, health education and government advocacy efforts to help people take greater control of arthritis.

The national presenting sponsor for the Arthritis Foundation Arthritis Walk is Aleve®, marketed by Bayer Consumer Care. Other national sponsors include Nature Made® TripleFlex™, Pfizer Animal Health Rimadyl and Arthritis Today magazine.

The Arthritis Foundation is the only nationwide, not-for-profit health organization helping people take greater control of arthritis by leading efforts to prevent, control and cure arthritis and related diseases -- the nation's number one cause of disability. For more information on arthritis, to volunteer or to form an Arthritis Walk team, visit http://www. arthritis. org (http://www. arthritis. org) or call 540-429-2239.

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Womans-Health. Net Announces Launch of Unique Online Resource Focusing on Women's Health Issues few Other Sites Address

Womans-Health. Net Announces Launch of Unique Online Resource Focusing on Women's Health Issues few Other Sites Address

Womans-health. net, today, officially launches the Woman’s Health Network, a unique website which deals with women’s health issues few other sites address.

Pensacola, FL (PRWEB) January 25, 2006

After spending years suffering from a variety of female related disorders and experimenting with various remedies and therapies, Sandra Clair, a 38 year old researcher, started Womans-Health. Net to share her extensive research with other women.

“Women today know that they have difficult health challenges facing them that their predecessors didn’t have to deal with. I have made it my goal to address these challenges through this website,” Clair says.

Additionally, Clair says her objective is to offer informative holistic information that tackles difficult problems facing women’s health today.

“Too often, websites aimed at women focus exclusively on beauty, fitness and weight loss. And while these topics are important and we try to cover them as well, women today also want answers to serious questions about their sexual health, breast health, reproductive health and even about the health of men in their lives,” says Clair.

“This is what makes Womans-Health. Net unique – because we offer valuable advice on a full range of issues that matter most to women.”

Moreover, WHN offers an enormous amount of expert information on a range of topics including yoga, breast cancer, osteoporosis, and herbal remedies in its sizable network of sites.

Although a new site, WHN is growing rapidly with the addition of articles almost daily and the influx of web visitors anxious to acquire information on health topics which few sites deal with.

A woman’s health Blog (http://www. womans-health. net/wordpress/ (http://www. womans-health. net/wordpress/)) is updated regularly, where women are encouraged to share their health experiences, find support and give advice.

Furthermore, the site offers a weekly Woman’s Health Newsletter (http://www. womans-health. net/womans-health-newsletter. htm (http://www. womans-health. net/womans-health-newsletter. htm)) that visitors can sign up for, which Clair says is crammed with practical and proven health information on nutrition, weight management, herbal remedies, and physical fitness tips that are designed to improve the quality of life for women.

While a proficient writer herself, Clair pens a number of articles on the site but emphasizes that the articles at Woman’s-Health. Net are written by women for women, which she says is a part of her overall aim to make WHN a unique place on the web.

Clair encourages women to visit the site, read, submit articles and contribute to the health Blog, which she says would be a tremendous opportunity to connect with -- and share with -- other women.

For additional information about the site please visit: http://www. womans-health. net (http://www. womans-health. net).

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New Data on Healthcare Web Site Effectiveness Points to Challenges and Opportunities

New Data on Healthcare Web Site Effectiveness Points to Challenges and Opportunities

Research Shows People Have Trouble Using Sites, but Health Insurance Companies Have Edge

New York, NY (PRWEB) February 5, 2009

More and more people are turning to the Web seeking answers about their health or the care of someone they love. Arming themselves for doctor visits, trying to figure out why they are getting a bill for something or researching the right hospital for lower back surgery--people turn to search engines and specialized health sites.

Many health insurers are beginning to prefer that members turn to the insurer's own personalized, password protected site for help. The sites include articles on health topics vetted by physicians, tools to assist in finding the right hospital, and calculators to help people determine out-of-pocket-costs, along with other features intended to enhance user experience.

The idea is that a better informed healthcare consumer is more likely to be proactive in their own care, driving costs down, benefiting everyone. Two years ago, Web researchers at Change Sciences Group -- a consulting company that specializes in helping companies see web sites through the eyes of their users -- set out to understand how people experience health-related sites. This research has been documented in a series of detailed reports, the latest of which is now available to industry subscribers and interested members of the media.

To jump to details about the reports visit: http://www. changesciences. com/healthcare (http://www. changesciences. com/healthcare).

The data that has emerged from the studies has not always been good news for health insurance providers, or other companies trying to reach healthcare consumers online. For example, the latest report shows that users are having a hard time making sense of treatment cost calculator results. People gave an incorrect answer only half the time when asked to study the results of treatment cost calculator pages, even though the pages showed the answer. "Data like this suggests that in many cases healthcare web sites aren't working the way we expect them to, and that there is a lot of work to do to ensure that people can use healthcare sites successfully," said Steve Ellis, a Change Sciences partner.

On the other hand, insurers have the advantage when it comes to financial information about care. "One finding we have been surprised by is the extent to which consumers trust their health insurance company with financial information about their healthcare and electronic personal health records. They do so by a wide margin, preferring their health insurance company over banks, government agencies, large software companies like Google and Microsoft, and even non-profits," said Steve Ellis.

The research now consists of five reports with over 250 pages and 2500 data points on how people experience healthcare online. The reports cover how people experience the web sites of the following companies: Aetna, Anthem, Assurant Health, The Bancorp Bank, Bank of America, California Health Care Foundation, Chase, CIGNA, ConnectYourCare, Department of Health and Human Services, Exante Bank, Fidelity, Fifth Third Bank, First Horizon, Harris Bank, Health Equity, HSA Bank, The Leapfrog Group, M&I Bank, Mayo Clinic, Principal, Sterling HSA, United Healthcare, US Bank, Wachovia, Web MD, and Wells Fargo. For more about the research, including sample data and findings highlights visit: http://www. changesciences. com/healthcare (http://www. changesciences. com/healthcare).

About Change Sciences Group
Change Sciences was founded in January 2000 to help companies optimize online business by basing decisions on how people use technology while they live, work, and play.

CONTACT
Rhonda Mills
Change Sciences Group, Inc.
888-864-1160 ext 731
Rhonda (at) changesciences (dot) com
Www. ChangeSciences. com

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Sierra Tucson Appoints Nancy Jarrell as Clinical Director of Internationally Renowned Treatment Center

Sierra Tucson Appoints Nancy Jarrell as Clinical Director of Internationally Renowned Treatment Center

Nancy Jarrell becomes the new Clinical Director at Sierra Tucson, a leader in the treatment of addictions, behavioral disorders, and chronic pain.

Tucson, AZ (PRWEB) May 9, 2009

Sierra Tucson, a distinguished leader in the treatment of addictions, behavioral disorders, and chronic pain, has announced the appointment of new Clinical Director, Nancy Jarrell, M. A., LPC, EAP.

Nancy Jarrell, who joined Sierra Tucson in 1996, has served as Assistant Clinical Director since September 2006 and, most recently, as Interim Clinical Director. "It is a privilege to work with such caring staff as Sierra Tucson continues its long history of healing and changing lives," says Jarrell.

Christi Cessna, Sierra Tucson's Marketing Director, applauds Nancy's promotion, stating, "Nancy has long been the unsung hero, as she has worked behind the scenes for the past 12 years creating, developing, and consistently refining many of Sierra Tucson's compelling programs and therapies, including Equine-Assisted Therapy, the Program for Sexual and Trauma Recovery, the Family Program, and Progressions, a program aimed at teaching advanced recovery skills."

Sierra Tucson's Executive Director, Patricia Ryding, Ph. D., affirms Nancy's clinical influence and adds, "Nancy's tenure at Sierra Tucson has contributed greatly to our reputation for compassionate care and clinical excellence. Her passion, integrity, and clinical skill will serve her well in this role."

Nancy is a Licensed Professional Counselor, with a master's degree in Counseling/Psychology, and also a trained Equine-Assisted Psychotherapist. Nancy began providing Equine-Assisted Therapy for patients in 2000 and is considered a national expert in this powerful experiential modality. She developed a couple's equine therapy component, incorporating Imago theory into the equine process. Sierra Tucson's alumni have benefited from her couple's therapy workshops and equine-assisted therapy workshops at the annual alumni reunions.

Serving previously as Family Therapist, she developed, implemented, and facilitated the family component for the Program for Sexual and Trauma Recovery. Nancy has also facilitated a wide variety of therapy groups in the Program Department, created content and facilitated the Extended Family Program, and also facilitated family programs including the Children's Program in both English and Spanish. She has managed the Therapeutic & Recreational Activities Program, and served as Program Manager, as well as Assistant Clinical Director and Interim Clinical Director.

Nancy has written and published articles, presents at national conferences, and has co-facilitated workshops for Sierra Tucson and the Association of Experiential Education. Nancy continues to supervise staff, contribute to program development, and provide facilitation, education, and training in the area of Equine-Assisted Therapy. Her versatility and leadership have made her an integral part of Sierra Tucson's Clinical Program management team.

About Sierra Tucson
Sierra Tucson is celebrating 25 years of compassionate care and clinical excellence. Located on 160 acres at the foot of the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, Arizona, this exceptional facility offers a beautiful natural healing environment and the highest level of confidentiality. For more information about Sierra Tucson and its programs, please call (800) 842-4487 or visit www. SierraTucson. com.

Sierra Tucson is a member of CRC Health Group, the most comprehensive network of specialized behavioral care services in the nation. CRC offers the largest array of personalized treatment options, allowing individuals, families, and professionals to choose the most appropriate treatment setting for their behavioral, addiction, weight management and therapeutic education needs. CRC is committed to making its services widely and easily available, while maintaining a passion for delivering advanced treatment. For over two decades, CRC programs have helped individuals and families reclaim and enrich their lives. For more information, visit www. crchealth. com.

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Is it Forgetfulness or Alzheimer's Disease?

Is it Forgetfulness or Alzheimer's Disease?

Johns Hopkins Health Alerts releases new free special report: "The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging" to answer the many questions readers have regarding whether or not their memory loss is a sign of Alzheimer's Disease

New York (PRWEB) February 7, 2008

Johns Hopkins Health Alerts has just released a new free special report on memory loss and aging to help answer two common concerns as we live longer than ever before:
Does memory loss signal the onset of Alzheimer's disease, or another form of dementia?. How can you protect your memory well into your later years?

Forgetfulness is one of the most common complaints of middle age and beyond. You're in the middle of a conversation about a book when you realize that you can't remember the title or the author's name. You start to introduce your best friend to an acquaintance and suddenly can't remember either name. You find yourself standing in front of the refrigerator wondering exactly why you opened the door.

The difference between normal memory loss that increases with age--known clinically as age-associated memory impairment--and serious dementia such as Alzheimer's disease is that the former is frustrating, but NOT disabling.

In "The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging," The Johns Hopkins Memory Bulletin editors explain the complex science behind human memory, and how age-related memory loss occurs, in clear, plain English.

The good news is that most memory loss has nothing to do with Alzheimer's disease. Nearly all of us take more time to learn and recall information as we age. This occurs because as we get older, the transmission of nerve impulses across cell membranes (synapses) in the brain inevitably slows down.

The decline in our memory progresses slowly, almost imperceptibly, over several decades--until by midlife most of us have found ourselves staring blankly into that refrigerator.

But there are other causes of memory loss or cognitive impairment, which MIGHT be a sign of something more serious. In some cases, it could be related to Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia. Memory loss could also be related to the medications a person takes, or even to depression.

As the editors state in "The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging," depression is common in the over-50 population, especially in a person suffering from poor physical health, but is frequently under-diagnosed. Depression is often due to a serious chemical imbalance in the brain, and so can mimic symptoms of dementia. Untreated depression can lead to other serious health concerns.

"The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging" outlines the most common symptoms of depression, and how to distinguish it from memory loss, Alzheimer's disease, or dementia.

The final section of "The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging"--"Eight Ways to Protect Your Memory"--distills what we currently know about protecting our memories, with a view towards preventing stroke, Alzheimer's, and other memory-robbing conditions.

To download your free copy of "The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging," please visit:

Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss and Aging (http://www. johnshopkinshealthalerts. com/special_reports/memory/index. html)

The Johns Hopkins Guide to Memory Loss
Table of Contents

*Introduction: Age-Related Memory Loss
Is It Alzheimer's Disease? *Not So Total Recall As We Age
*Training Your Memory?
*The Results Of Memory Training
*New "Memory Habits"
*Is It Age-Related Memory Loss, or Depression?
*Depression Is Often UnderDiagnosed Over Age 50
*What Is Depression?
*The Signs And Symptoms Of Depression
*Events That Can Trigger Depression
*Treatment Options for Depression
*How to Recognize Depression
*Maintaining Your Mental Health
*Eight Ways to Protect Your Memory
*Conclusion

ABOUT JOHNS HOPKINS HEALTH ALERTS
Johns Hopkins Health Alerts is a free public service of Johns Hopkins Medicine that provides information and products for healthy living after 50. We launched our highly-acclaimed monthly print newsletter, The Johns Hopkins Medical Letter: Health After 50 in 1988.

About The Johns Hopkins Memory Bulletin
Medical Editor: Peter V. Rabins, M. D.
Peter V. Rabins, M. D., M. P.H., the medical editor of The Johns Hopkins Memory Bulletin, is Co-Director of the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neuropsychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, as well as a professor of psychiatry with joint appointments in the Department of Internal Medicine and the Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Dr. Rabins has spent his career studying psychiatric disorders in the elderly. He is the co-author of The 36-Hour Day: A Family Guide to Caring for Persons With Alzheimer's Disease, Related Dementing Illnesses, and Memory Loss in Later Life (Warner Books, 2001).
His current research includes the development of scales to measure impairment in people with severe dementia and the study of visual hallucinations in a variety of psychiatric and neurological conditions.
Dr. Rabins and his distinguished advisory board bring you the latest news on Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia in the quarterly Johns Hopkins Memory Bulletin.

For more information on the Memory Bulletin, please visit:
Johns Hopkins Memory Bulletin (http://www. johnshopkinshealthalerts. com/bulletins/memory_bulletin/main08_landing. html)

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Robotics and Minimally Invasive Surgery in Women: A Second Set of Hands (Topic of Health Chat at Lifestages)

Robotics and Minimally Invasive Surgery in Women: A Second Set of Hands (Topic of Health Chat at Lifestages)

Topic of Health Chat at Lifestages - Samaritan Centers For Women

Dayton, OH (PRWEB) July 10, 2009

Lifestages - Samaritan Centers For Women will offer a Health Chat at their Huber Heights Location (Good Samaritan Health Center, 6251 Good Samaritan Way, Huber Heights, OH 45424) on Wed., July 22, 2009 from 7-8 pm. Bruce Bernie, MD, will discuss why robotics and minimally invasive surgery in women is a breakthrough in healthcare and what benefits patients can expect.

Join us to learn more about the da Vinci robot -- a new, less invasive surgical procedure. For most women, da Vinci offers potential benefits over traditional surgical approaches including reduced trauma to the body, shorter hospital stay, less risk of infection, less post-operative pain and discomfort, faster recovery and quicker return to normal activities.

"After a da Vinci hysterectomy many patients can resume most normal activities two weeks after surgery, versus six weeks to begin activity with traditional surgical approaches," says Dr. Bernie, a member of the Lifestages healthcare team. Dr. Bernie's presentation will include time for questions and answers. Women (and men) of all ages are invited to this informative presentation free of charge.

Pre-registration is necessary, call CareFinders toll free at 1-866-608-FIND (3463).

Where: Lifestages - Huber Heights Center
When: Wednesday, July 22 - 7 to 8 pm

To make an appointment or to get additional information about Lifestages, patients can call the office at (937)277-8988 or 1-888-808-1016.

Lifestages - Samaritan Centers For Women
Lifestages - Samaritan Centers For Women is a nationally recognized medical practice focused on clinical excellence, technological innovation and a comprehensive approach to health care for women of all ages. With a group of 8 physicians, 3 midwives and 3 nurse practitioners they provide obstetric, gynecological and health promotion services, that focus on giving patients the quality care they need and deserve. Lifestages - Samaritan Centers For Women has four convenient locations in Dayton, Englewood, Huber Heights and Trotwood. To learn more, visit www. lifestagescenters. com

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Universal CRT Replacement Gives New Life to Medical Equipment with Analog Video

Universal CRT Replacement Gives New Life to Medical Equipment with Analog Video

A complete line of universal CRT replacements for MRI, CT, US, NM, X-ray, RIS, PACS, Angiography, Surgery and other medical devices is now available from Medical Displays for Less. Hospitals, clinics and imaging centers can now extend equipment ROI and lower replacement costs with new proprietary technology that allows these medical grade displays to adapt and display the signals from GE, Philips, Siemens, Toshiba, Hitachi, Shimadzu, Picker, and many more medical systems.

Minneapolis, MN (PRWEB) May 19, 2009

Monitors Inc. through their website, MedicalDisplaysforLess. com (http://medicaldisplaysforless. com/index. cfm), released a complete line of universal CRT replacements (http://medicaldisplaysforless. com/category. cfm? pk_category=50) for medical devices today. These medical grade, plug and play LCDs substitute for older analog and digital monitors. Both monochrome and color LCDs, in 1MP and 2MP versions, are available for shipment today. This line of monitors will work with MRI, CT, Endoscopy, Radiographic, DR, CR, Cath Lab, RF, Mobile C-Arm, Portable X-Ray DR/CR, PET, Ultrasound, Nuclear Medicine, X-ray, Angiography, Surgery, RIS, PACS, and other medical devices that unique synchronization in the display. With new proprietary technology, these medical grade displays adapt and display the signals from GE, Philips, Siemens, Toshiba, Hitachi, Shimadzu, Picker, and many more manufacturers. Valuable medical equipment can now extended have life cycles.

The 1 megapixel color and grayscale 19-inch displays, the SCD 19102 (http://medicaldisplaysforless. com/product_detail. cfm? pk_product=556) and SMD 19102 (http://medicaldisplaysforless. com/product_detail. cfm? pk_product=554), feature the latest viewing angle technology and high luminance of up to 280 cd/m2 (candelas per square meter) for the color display and 1000 cd/m2 for the grayscale display. A wide range of signal inputs as well as EIZO's special "Force Mode" function (adapts the display to specific video signals) permits tailoring the display to even the most specialized application requirement. A multifunctional stand permits fully adjusting the display in height, tilt, swivel and landscape/portrait rotation.

Like all displays from EIZO, the new devices are pre-calibrated in the factory. The five integrated look-up tables (LUTs) loaded with practice-oriented settings of high image quality are stored in the display enabling the use of standard graphics boards. The displays can be set and re-calibrated in the field in accordance with the CIE or DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) standard, for example, using calibration tools such as SMfit Total Care, which is supplied with each display.

The 2 megapixel Modalixx line of displays comes in 20.1 inch and 21.3 inch sizes, color and grayscale, and offers higher resolution and contrast specifications. The color monitors come equipped with the special ability to toggle between dedicated color or gray scale display function through the intuitive OSD. These monitors allow for the use of remote control by either an RS232 port or optional footswitch. The ability to accept any signal from 525 to 1600 lines and convert them into a 2MP image makes this line of monitors unique and very cost effective CRT replacements.

"With the continuing need to reduce medical equipment costs, this complete line of CRT replacements allows the healthcare industry to extend the life of useful diagnostic equipment with state of the art medical displays", said Kevin Sundquist, CEO of Monitors Inc., "without the need for special video cards or expensive adaptors".

There is a substantial amount of interest among the bio-medical community in this universal replacement for older medical equipment due to its versatility and low cost to performance ratio.

About Medical Displays for Less:
Monitors Inc., DBA as Medical Displays for Less, is headquartered in health science and technology prominent Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is an ecommerce-based business selling medical imaging display solutions, workstations, and related technologies for use in the medical imaging and PACS community. Its principles are scientists, imaging system developers and administrators with lengthy operating and modality development experience in the industry.

Contact:
Charlie Minter
Medical Displays for Less
866-369-1902

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Doucette and Roberts Win Prize Packages in ArcaMax Publishing Parenting Tips Promotion

Doucette and Roberts Win Prize Packages in ArcaMax Publishing Parenting Tips Promotion

Parents Lynne Doucette and Teresa Roberts are the first two winners of ArcaMax PublishingÂ’s (www. arcamax. com) parenting tips contest drawing and will receive prizes that include family games, walkie talkies and desktop calculators. There are two drawings remaining in the contest (Sept. 8 and 15), which offers parents the opportunity to have their Back to School tips published (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/channel/1044#tips).

Newport News, VA (PRWEB) September 9, 2005

Parents Lynne Doucette and Teresa Roberts are the first two winners of ArcaMax PublishingÂ’s (www. arcamax. com) parenting tips contest drawing and will receive prizes that include family games, walkie talkies and desktop calculators. There are two drawings remaining in the contest (Sept. 8 and 15), which offers parents the opportunity to have their Back to School tips published (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/channel/1044#tips (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/channel/1044#tips)).

DoucetteÂ’s tip encouraged waking children with a song while Roberts shared advice on how to effectively communicate with children.

“I used to wake my kids up with the song ‘Good Morning’ from the movie ‘Singing in the Rain.’ Mind you, my adult children cringe every time they hear the song now, but when they were kids, they loved it.” Doucette wrote in her tip, which was published on the ArcaMax Publishing Web site and in the 24,000-reader Parents ezine. “Singing is not only a pleasant wake up call, but songs can become a part of your family tradition.”

Doucette, who resides in Oshawa, Ontario was the drawing winner for a Survivor board game, walkie-talkie set, and desktop calculator. Roberts, who resides Richmond, Virginia, won the drawing for a Type Cast trivia game, a travel edition Urban Myth trivia game, and a desktop calculator.

RobertsÂ’s tip suggested parents should not raise their voices at younger children.

“When my husband and I needed our daughter to listen, we whispered instead of raising our voices and it worked great!”

Beginning in mid-August, readers have been encouraged to submit their parenting tips to ArcaMax Publishing for the chance to win one of four prize packages and the opportunity to be published on the Web site. Other tips that have already been published include packing healthy snacks and lunches, meeting your childrenÂ’s teachers, and transitioning from playtime to homework time.

“We are very impressed with not just the quantity of responses, but also the quality of the tips we’ve received,” said ArcaMax CEO Scott Wolf. “We are thrilled to have such a useful archive on our site.”

Although not all submissions will be published, every reader who submits an entry is entered into the prize drawings for their participation. There are still two prize drawings (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/page/1044/promo#prize (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/page/1044/promo#prize)) left for the opportunity to win a prize package. The remaining prize drawing dates are September 8 and September 15, 2005.

“The prizes are definitely fun, but we think the biggest appeal about the Back-to School promotion is the opportunity for parents to share tips with each other,” said Hugh Spain, ArcaMax Publishing Managing Editor. “I think readers will find it is pretty cool that they can show their family and friends something they wrote on the Internet.”

Visit ArcaMax PublishingÂ’s contest page (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/page/1044/promo (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/news/page/1044/promo)) for complete rules and more information on how to get published.

ArcaMax Publishing is home to the Parents ezine and 24 other family friendly newsletters. Visit the subscribe page (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/reg (http://www. arcamax. com/cgi-bin/reg)) to view a complete list of free ArcaMax ezines.

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We Can Take Away Your Pain

We Can Take Away Your Pain

FREE - three deep relaxation CDs (Migraine, Chronic Pain and Sleep to health and medical professionals in the United States.

Hemet, CA (PRWEB) August 30, 2004

Who needs pills? Who wants a medicine-free way to take away stress? Stress = pain. Simply put, here at www. RelaxTRAX. com we have 3 CDs (Chronic Pain, Migraine and Insomnia) that weÂ’re GIVING AWAY. All we ask is $3.00 for shipping and handling.

The way they work: the theta and beta ways create endorphins (a morphine-like substance) in your body – but all you hear is the soothing nature sounds in the foreground (ocean, stream and rain – recorded on Oahu, Hawaii).

Www. RelaxTRAX. com sells these CDs with a money-back guarantee. We’re NOT SELLING them, we’re giving them away. But we would like to extend that guarantee so that you know that we believe in the product and use it ourselves. We’ll give you back the $3.00 shipping and handling if it does NOT work for you. Now, that’s incentive – lose the pain or gain the $$$ back. Either way, you can’t lose.

These CDs normally sell for $19.99 plus shipping and handling, but health and medical professionals can get them FREE by sending their name, profession (doctor, dentist, nurse, etc.), address, phone, fax, email address, and $3.00 per CD (*to help cover shipping and handling) to: David Strattford, 45055 E. Florida Ave., Suite 120, Hemet, CA 92544.

For more information you can find us on the web at:

Http://www. RelaxTRAX. com (http://www. RelaxTRAX. com)

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Loraine Strattford, CEO

TRAX Music Publishing and Recording (1983) Inc.

45055 E. Florida Ave., Suite 120,

Hemet, California 92544

Phone: (951) 927-6132

E-mail: lstrat@verizon. net

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Are you Moving from a Gypsy Moth Quarantined Area? What You Need to Know Before You Move

Are you Moving from a Gypsy Moth Quarantined Area? What You Need to Know Before You Move

The laws that surround a relocation from a gypsy moth quarantined area may not be public knowledge. American Van Lines is spreading awareness about how to prevent the spread of gypsy moth and the lawful ways to relocate from a gypsy moth quarantined area.

Fort Lauderdale, FL (PRWEB) June 9, 2010

If you live in a quarantined area (http://www. americanvanlines. com/gypsy-moth-quarantine. pdf) and you intend to move to another state that is not infested with gypsy moth, there is vital information that you need to know.

Not only are there agricultural consequences to the spread of gypsy moth, but there are also legal ramifications if you do not adhere to the regulations set forth by The U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

American Van Lines moving company feels obligated to help spread awareness about the growing gypsy moth epidemic. As national movers we are equally responsible for aiding the USDA-APHIS in their efforts to contain this insect.

You must obtain an inspection certification when moving from a quarantined area to a non-infested area. Failure to comply with these regulations may result in penalties assessed up to $250,000.00 per occurrence.

An inspection certification is easy to get. You can either do a Self Inspection or pay a State-licensed inspector to do it for you.

Moving companies (http://www. americanvanlines. com) will not move your outdoor items unless you can provide proof of inspection that your outdoor articles are free of all gypsy moth life stages.

Both Self Inspections and hiring a USDA-trained Inspector are acceptable forms of inspection by the USDA - APHIS. With a certificate of inspection obtained after performing one of the two methods listed below, you will be free of liability if stopped by officials when traveling.

1) Self Inspection

Using the Self Inspection Checklist located on the last page of the "Don’t Move Gypsy Moth" Program Aid, inspect anything exposed to gypsy moth including by not limited to: patio sets, grills, children’s toys, garden equipment, campers, tents, trailers etc.

Carefully look over each article, remove any life stages of gypsy moth found, and then destroy them. Removing gypsy moth by hand is an effective way of disposing of the insect. Some people are allergic to gypsy moth hairs. To avoid direct contact, wear gloves, protective clothing and a dust mask.

Note: Inspections must not take place more than 5 days prior to traveling to avoid re-infestation.

1. Scrap egg masses from their locations with a putty knife, stiff brush, or similar hand tool.
2. Dispose of egg masses and other life stages in a container of hot, soapy water, or place them in a plastic bag, seal it, and set it in the sun.
3. You can choose to get rid of articles if they are heavily infested and have little value to you.
4. Keep the checklist as an official certificate. Be sure to enter the date and place inspected, and then sign at the bottom.

Give this document to the driver to be presented to officials if stopped. Without this document you will be in violation of the quarantine if found moving outdoor household items.

2) USDA-trained Certified Pesticide Inspector

Participating State-licensed pesticide inspectors are trained to inspect for and remove gypsy moth life stages. You should be issued a certificate stating that your items are free of gypsy moth. Give this certificate to the driver.

A certificate must accompany your outdoor household items while in transit. If you are stopped by officials during transit and your items are found to have gypsy moth, this official document will relieve you of liability.

Contact the USDA – APHIS Cargo Inspection Policy Department at 301-734-8295 for a list of State-licensed pesticide inspectors.

What is Gypsy Moth?

The gypsy moth is a particular kind of moth that feeds on hardwood trees, leaves and shrubs at an alarming rate. The Gypsy Moth defoliates plants from their base, completely killing trees, which have damaging affects on the ecosystem. At its most dangerous stage of life (caterpillar), gypsy moth has been known to defoliate up to 13 million acres of trees in 1 season.

This insect can gestate on outdoor household items. The spread of gypsy moth is attributed to movers who were either unaware or failed to properly inspect and clear their items before moving to unaffected areas.

Refer to the Don’t Move Gypsy Moth Program Aid (http://www. americanvanlines. com/blogs-news/moving-from-a-gypsy-moth-quarantined-area. html) for information on gypsy moth and its life cycles.

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Strategic Initiatives in Healthcare (SIH) Announces Innovative Service for Hospitals & Expense Management Professionals

Strategic Initiatives in Healthcare (SIH) Announces Innovative Service for Hospitals & Expense Management Professionals

SIH announces Resource Matching, the only service of it's kind in healthcare, matching expense management professionals to the true needs of individual providers. This unique service is unheard of in the industry and will transform traditional search & recruitment to an optimal level.

Seattle, WA (PRWEB) June 14, 2004

"Because hospital expenses and dramatic increases in health insurance are causing a crisis of cost in healthcare, providers need to reconsider the traditional methods of controlling expenses", says Joe Colonna, CEO of SIH, a Seattle-based firm specializing in expense management.

SIH's service will help to address a pressing need in the industry, the need to strengthen the supply chain and materials management functions in healthcare. According to a 2002 research study by one of the nationÂ’s largest volume purchasing companies for hospitals, some healthcare systems could realize 8-14 percent in supply cost savings. Since supplies represent 20-25 percent of all hospital expenditures, better management of these expenses could produce astronomical savings for hospitals. To assist providers with these efforts, SIH has developed a service which will recruit supply chain and materials management professionals for providers with the specific characteristics, skills set, and knowledge to match current and future needs of the organization.

SIH believes that the inefficiencies in hospital expense management are NOT attributable to incompetence on the part of hospital materials management professionals. According to Colonna, "These individuals have rarely received the specialized education and training to enable them to expand their role to keep pace with the rapid increases in non-labor expenses. At the same time, their ability to assume a leadership role in expense management has been limited by several critical factors; time, adequate staffing levels, and resistance from department managers who control large portions of hospital budgets. Our services will help providers to address all of these issues."

According to Colonna, SIH is not the first to identify this need. In his book, The Health Care Value Chain Dr. Lawton R. Burns, (Professor of Health Care Systems in the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and Director of the Wharton Center for Health Management and Economics) points out that the role of hospital materials managers may be invisible and undervalued. Dr. Burns states, "Hospitals must realize they are missing the opportunity to control and manage their non-labor expenses by not enhancing their supply chain and materials management efforts."

Colonna added, "This service is not contracted management for supply chain and materials management. To paraphrase Jim Collins comments in his book, Good To Great, it is about getting the right people on the bus, a process which can be assured by using our team of true experts."

Despite the current crisis of cost in healthcare, unlike other industries, hospitals have failed to adequately transform their expense management efforts from a disjointed approach to a coordinated one using organization-wide processes. SIH plans to change that with services such as Resource Matching.

Strategic Initiatives In Healthcare is a consulting firm devoted exclusively to all aspects of expense control and management for healthcare providers. For more information on expense management in healthcare or to arrange an interview with Mr. Colonna, contact Matt Gyulay at mgyulay@sihealthcare. com 1-877-717-7444.

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Chemistdirect. Co. Uk, The Uk's Leading Online Chemist Announces Eye Watering Savings For Hayfever Sufferers

Chemistdirect. Co. Uk, The Uk's Leading Online Chemist Announces Eye Watering Savings For Hayfever Sufferers

As a leading expert warned today that the number of Britons suffering from hay fever could almost treble in the next 50 years, Chemistdirect. co. uk, the UK's leading online Chemist, has announced some great savings for Hayfever suffers.

Birmingham, London (PRWEB) June 24, 2009

As a leading expert warned today that the number of Britons suffering from hay fever could almost treble in the next 50 years, Chemistdirect. co. uk, the UK's leading online Chemist, has announced some great savings for Hayfever suffers.

They include boxes of 30 One A Day Hayfever & Allergy Relief Tablets priced at just 69p, compared to the RRP price of £10.85 and the Medisana Medinose Plus Nasal Allergy Treatment, priced at £48.99, a saving of more than £31.00.

An award winning entrepreneur, Mitesh Soma launched Chemistdirect. co. uk 18 months ago with his pharmacist wife Krishna, to provide customers with low cost chemist products. It was recently awarded the number one online Chemist by Hitwise, the internet specialists. It is regulated by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.

Mitesh Soma said: "This time of year is a miserable one for many Hayfever sufferers and we're hoping to cheer them up a little with these spectacular savings."

About Chemist Direct:

Chemist Direct is an online chemist founded in December 2007 by entrepreneur Mitesh Soma. The concept of Chemist Direct is simple - it offers thousands of health and beauty products and prescription medicines without high street markups, meaning shoppers save up to 90% on items ranging from painkillers and allergy tablets, to shower gels, hairdryers and razors. Its headquarters is based in Birmingham, from where it distributes items around the UK and worldwide.

Chemist Direct Online Pharmacy UK

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Freedom Smokeless Electronic Cigarette Sales Are Smoke ‘N

Freedom Smokeless Electronic Cigarette Sales Are Smoke ‘N

Freedom Smokeless announced today that they are now selling their premium brand electronic cigarettes via the internet.

Reno, NV (PRWEB) April 19, 2010

Freedom Smokeless (http://www. freedomsmokeless. com) announced today that they are now selling their premium brand electronic cigarettes via the internet. Previously, Freedom was sold exclusively through retail outlets. Glenn Kassel, Freedom’s President and Co-founder said, “The response that we have received from our retail customers has been overwhelming and selling on the internet was a natural progression for our Company to make.” Freedom put over a year into the research, design and development of their product. Their two-piece electronic cigarettes (http://www. freedomsmokeless. com) are tobacco-free, ash and smoke-free and do not produce second hand smoke. Mike Lewis, Freedom’s CEO said, “As a smoker myself, I am very sensitive to the needs of our customers. We have a custom designed, technologically advanced delivery system that inhales and exhales a “smoke like” water vapor exactly like a tobacco cigarette without flame, smell or all of the carcinogens contained found in tobacco.”

Freedom has partnered with Digital Brand Group (DBG) to launch and sustain this campaign. Jeremiah Jacks, CEO of DBG said, “I am pleased to partner with Freedom. Their emphasis on quality and unparalleled customer support mirrors that of DBG. We look forward to dominating the market together!” The campaign will include aggressive affiliate marketing, both domestically and internationally.

Freedom has a starter kit that consists of a lithium ion battery, USB charger, AC wall adapter and a 4-pack of atomizers. Customers have the option to upgrade to either a deluxe kit that includes a second battery (either in white, black or chrome) or the platinum kit that also adds a carry case and extra pack of atomizers. To help the launch, all customers that order will receive a free car charger. The battery, carry case and chargers all carry the distinct Freedom logo. The atomizers are available in two flavors (tobacco and menthol) and four nicotine strengths-high, medium, low and zero.

About Freedom Smokeless

Founded in 2008, Freedom proudly assembles their electronic cigarette (http://www. freedomsmokeless. com) products in the United States. Striving for technological excellence, Freedom has invested heavily into R & D and has produced an electronic cigarette that has proven to be the most reliable and satisfying experience in the market today. The products are designed to provide a fresh alternative to traditional tobacco for the smoker.

About Digital Brand Group

Digital Brand Group (http://www. digitalbrandgroup. com) is one of the leading digital business companies for emerging small and middle-market companies. DBG's proven business and technology integration expertise spans across multiple industries that include (but is not limited to): manufacturing, real-estate, apparel, food & beverage, health & beauty care, transportation, automotive, government, educational institutions and non-profit organizations. DBG's International team also offers a specialized competency in culturally-oriented / family-owned businesses.

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DuPont Selected Among Top Companies for Female Leaders

DuPont Selected Among Top Companies for Female Leaders

Significant Progress in Appointing Women to Senior Positions Cited by Magazine.

Wilmington, DE (Vocus) March 23, 2009

DuPont has been selected as one of the top 50 companies for executive women by the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE) magazine. DuPont was recognized for increasing the number of women in leadership positions, including the appointment of Ellen J. Kullman to chief executive officer.

“We are pleased to be recognized for ensuring that women get the leadership opportunities they deserve,” said DuPont Vice President of Human Resources Maritza J. Poza-Grise. “This recognition exemplifies our core value of respect for people.”

Women represent 26 percent of the employee base at DuPont and hold 24 percent of key leadership positions.

“Companies that have women contributing their perspective and expertise to the actual running of the business not only are the ones that will survive our economic crisis, they will emerge from it as leaders in the global economy,” said Carol Evans, NAFE chief executive officer.

NAFE also noted that DuPont is active in programs to support women throughout their careers via leadership development training and employee networks.

In determining its top companies, NAFE places specific emphasis on the number of women running the business-of-the-business -- jobs with profit-and-loss responsibility -- and examines company strategies to boost progress.

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.

3/23/09
Link to NAFE 2009 Top 50 Companies: http://www. nafe. com/web? service=vpage/3846

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Hygiene Group Interrupts Bugs' Sex Lives

Hygiene Group Interrupts Bugs' Sex Lives

A leading food industry cleaning company is using science to disrupt moth mating cycles and prevent them contaminating chocolate bars.

(PRWEB) December 13, 2006

Hygiene Group is now using pheromone technology to confuse male tropical warehouse moths, whose larvae can chew through foil wrapping.

The biological solution - which uses insect pheromones in place of traditional pesticides - is part of a long-term trial in conjunction with Exosect Ltd, a research and development company which specialises in environmentally friendly insect pest control.

An electrostatically-charged food grade wax powder soaked in female moth pheromone is used to attract male moths, which become covered in female pheromone.

Other male moths then try to mate with the female pheromone-covered males, disrupting mating and egg-laying cycles.

Hygiene Group pest control division manager Dave Maxwell said: "It's called 'Auto-Confusion', and where we've introduced it we've seen tropical warehouse moth numbers decline."

"It's not a stand-alone solution, but is highly effective when used alongside regular cleaning processes, and without it there would have to be more cleaning done with pesticide sprays."

Hygiene Group has been using the process for three years, passing its findings and data back to Exosect, and expects to continue the trial for another year. It is the only hygiene management services provider using the process in the chocolate production environment.

The tropical warehouse moth - ephestia cautella - is now indigenous to the UK, having been introduced via imported cocoa beans used in chocolate-making. Females lay up to 350 eggs in their short - 18-day - lives.

About Exosect

Exosect Limited was formed in 2001 to commercialise innovative pest control technology developed at the Southampton University's School of Biological Sciences. Focusing primarily on R&D, Exosect has developed a range of delivery systems based on the concept of attractants and active ingredients formulated with patented powder carrier systems. Specialising in IPM based, environmentally acceptable pest control products, markets include crop protection (agriculture and horticulture), stored product, amenity landscape and public health. More on Exosect: www. exosect. com

Editor's Notes

Further information on Exosect - including interviews, demonstrations, users stories and site visits - is available from:

Lynsey Thorp / Spencer Butt

Exosect Press Office at MCC International Ltd

Tel: 01962 888 100 / Fax: 01962 888125

Email: exosectpr @ mccint. com

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Crafting Goodwill Across Central Florida Members of the Craft & Hobby Association Give Back

Crafting Goodwill Across Central Florida Members of the Craft & Hobby Association Give Back

Inspired by the warm Southern welcome extended to the Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) from Florida State Governor Crist and Mayor Crotty who issued a proclamation declaring July 27 - August 1, 2009 as Official Craft and Hobby Week across Florida in and a proclamation declaring July 31-August 1 as SuperCraft Weekend in Orange County, CHA is proud to announce that CHA members have collaborated with local and regional organizations to host and sponsor several public craft events in Florida between July 25 and August 1.

Elmwood Park, NJ (PRWEB) July 24, 2009

Inspired by the warm Southern welcome extended to the Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) from Florida State Governor Crist and Mayor Crotty who issued a proclamation declaring July 27 - August 1, 2009 as Official Craft and Hobby Week across Florida in and a proclamation declaring July 31-August 1 as SuperCraft Weekend in Orange County, CHA is proud to announce that CHA members have collaborated with local and regional organizations to host and sponsor several public craft events in Florida between July 25 and August 1. 

On July 25, 2009, CHA member Kathy Peterson will attend the 5th Annual Orange County Back-2-School, Back-2-Health Event with District 3's Commissioner Mildred Fernandez. The event includes free immunizations and health screenings, 2,500 FREE backpacks for local students pre-K through 12th grade. Kathy, a native of Southern Florida pulled her CraftForHealth. com team to host a kids' craft area and coordinated craft supply donations for the onsite craft activities including crafting a brick wall of health and creative wrist bands. CHA Member companies ILoveToCreate a Duncan Company, CreativeHands, Darrice, and GlueArts all contributed craft supplies. The FREE event that will be held at Amazon Village Shoppes at 111000 E. Colonial Drive in Orlando from 9 pm to 2 pm. For more information about the medicinal benefits of crafting go to http://www. craftforhealth. com (http://www. craftforhealth. com).

CHA Members also coordinated with the hard working folks at the Orange County Library to host a free one-hour kids crafting event on July 29, 2009 at the South Creek Library Branch. CHA, and its' members FloraCraft and GlueArts donated the supplies and the time necessary to put on this Kids' Crafting Event where children will be expressing their creativity and crafting Styrofoam animals.

July 28 - July 30, CHA members and members of the craft industry will be hosting a silent celebrity auction from the CHA Summer Trade Show in booth #1829 at the Orange County Convention Center. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Miami-based Leeza Gibbon's Memory Foundation a non-profit that helps caregivers impacted by memory disorders and other chronic illnesses.

On July 31, 2009 from 5 - 11 pm at the Orange County Convention Center, CHA and Scrapbook Royalties, with members of the community are invited to participate in a scrapbooking fundraiser called, "the World's Largest Crop Attempt" in efforts to raise money for the Leeza Gibbons Memory Foundation. For the novice, a crop is an event where scrapbookers get together to scrapbook using the hottest tools, and learn the latest techniques taught by celebrity scrapbookers. The crop will feature product giveaways, goodie bags for each participant worth more than $50, door prizes, a charity raffle, and will be attended by celebrity scrapbookers. This special event is open to the public and tickets can be purchased for $20 at http://www. craftsupershow. com (http://www. craftsupershow. com).

CHA members donating to the crop include: Art Institute Glitter, Inc., Beacon Adhesives, Blumenthal Lansing Co., Copic Markers, Canon USA, C&T Publishing, Clear Bags, Crafty Chica, Creative Impressions, Faber Castell, Fancy Pants Designs Inc., Fiskars, FloraCraft, Flowersoft, Glue Arts, Imaginisce Jesse James & Co. , Liberty Scrapbook Supply, Maya Road, Me and My Big Ideas, Petersen-Arne, ProvoCraft, Sizzix, Soft Flex, Stampington Publications, Quick Quotes, Ultra Pro, and Unity Stamp Company.

The Craft SuperShow is open to the public and is the place to buy the hottest craft products, experience the coolest make-n-take craft projects, attend professional-grade education from industry experts, meet craft celebrities and participate in product demonstrations in a family friendly, air conditioned environment. For more Craft SuperShow information please visit http://www. craftsupershow. com (http://www. craftsupershow. com).

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