Red Cross to offer a variety of training

Red Cross to offera variety of training
YOUNGSTOWN -- The American Red Cross Mahoning Chapter is offering lifeguard, basic first aid, and CPR training Jan. 2-6, 2006, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center, 505 Gypsy Lane.
Participants must be 15 on or before the final scheduled session of the course, and must successfully complete a number of swimming prerequisites. For more information, call (330) 746-3251 or (330) 726-6063.
Mercy College nursing
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mercy College of Northwest Ohio, St. Elizabeth Campus, will review applications in January for its fall class. People wanting to know more about the two-year associate degree in nursing program should call (330) 480-2379.
Each fall, 48 new students are admitted to the program. Students who graduate are eligible to take state licensing examinations to work as registered nurses.
Gero-psychiatric unit
AKRON -- Summa Health System has established a new gero-psychiatric unit, which will begin seeing patients Monday.
The unit offers an interdisciplinary team approach to providing patient assessment and care to older adults. The team consists of psychiatrists, a licensed independent social worker, a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist, a recreation therapist, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and behavioral health associates.
ACS donation
CANFIELD -- The staff at the American Cancer Society is making a donation to the Joseph S. and Jeannette M. Silber Hope Lodge facility in Cleveland, a facility that offers free, temporary housing facilities for cancer patients who are undergoing treatment, and their families.
Baby-sitting classes
WARREN - The Trumbull County Chapter of the American Red Cross will hold baby-sitting classes at the chapter, 661 Mahoning Ave., from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Dec. 22 and 23.
The cost is $40 to learn about basic children care, safe play and how to help a choking child. To register, (330) 392-2551.
Stressed by school
NEW YORK -- While adults are worrying about the effects of peer pressure, bullies and violence in entertainment on their children, kids themselves are more concerned about homework, grades and school, according to a KidsHealth KidsPoll of 9- to 13-year-olds.
Thirty-six percent of the 875 kids surveyed named academics when asked what made them feel stressed; 32 percent said their family and 21 percent said friends or peers.
How do they cope?
More than half of children (52 percent) said that they mostly play or do something active to get their minds off of their woes. Many also listen to music, watch TV or play a video game. Thirty percent said they talk to a friend and 29 percent try not to think about the stressors. Only 22 percent said talking to a parent is something they do "a lot."
One of the more troubling facts from this poll, conducted on behalf of the National Association of Health Education Centers, the Neuours Center for Children's Health Media and Southern Illinois University Carbondale's Department of Health Education and Recreation earlier this year, is that 25 percent of the children said they'd hurt themselves on purpose when they were stressed or upset, most commonly by banging their head or body on an object.
"Stress, frustration, helplessness, hurt or anger can be overwhelming emotions for some children," says D'Arcy Lyness, a child and adolescent psychologist and medical editor for KidsHealth.
For a list of tips for parents to help children develop more positive coping skills -- and for tips aimed directly at kids, visit the KidsHealth Web site, www.kidshealth.org.