REGION

REGION

Doctor named officer to state podiatric group

YOUNGSTOWN — Dr. Angelo Petrolla of Youngstown has been named secretary/treasurer of the Ohio Podiatric Medical Association for 2009. Also, Dr. Derrick Jackson of Youngstown has been named to the board of trustees to represent young physicians.

Oncologist seeing patients at center

HERMITAGE, Pa. — Dr. Marc Brozovich, a surgical oncologist and colorectal cancer specialist with the UPMC Cancer Center at UPMC Passavant, is seeing patients at the Womancare Center of UPMC Horizon in Hermitage. He is a graduate of Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., and earned his medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia.

NATION

Remember manners in disputes over the phone

NEW YORK — What? A charge of how much? Overdraft fees? Late fees? Are you kidding?

If you’ve got a complaint about a product or service, you’ll have more success arguing your case with the company if you mind your manners on the phone. Convergys Corp., a customer management services company, offers these tips:

UGet organized. Before you call, have your account number, credit card statements, check numbers, receipts and any other documentation ready. This will make it easier for the customer service representative to retrieve the data and shorten your time on hold.

UCalm down. Understandably, you may be frustrated, embarrassed or irate about your situation, but taking your emotions out on a service agent will not help resolve your problem — it can often delay a resolution.

UWrite it all down. Take notes during the conversation and get the representative’s name, the date of the call, confirmation numbers, phone numbers and what was discussed. This information is important and will save time in any follow-up calls.

UMake time for the call. If the issue is important enough for you to call customer service, make the time to do so. Don’t be in a rush; plan to spend a fair amount of time on the phone.

Feeling ill at work? It could be a sick building

NEW YORK — The sneezing, the coughing, the drowsiness — but only at the office. Could it be that you’re allergic to ... work?

It may sound like a stunt to wrangle some time off. But your ailments could be related to “sick building syndrome,” an illness caused by mold, inadequate ventilation, or chemicals from walls and carpet of both old and new buildings.

The causes of such symptoms can be difficult to pin down, said Susan Lessack, partner in Pepper Hamilton law firm in Berwyn, Pa.

“Often there is a tendency to doubt that the person is experiencing something related to the building, and these illnesses are met with suspicion even though they are quite valid,” Lessack said.

If you notice you’re feeling ill only while at work, ask your employer to test the building’s air quality. If possible, try to work from another location to see if the symptoms begin to fade. If a link is found between an illness and the building, an employee could seek compensation under workers’ compensation laws, Lessack said. That can be difficult to do.

Vindicator staff/wire reports