Omaha area women are invited to attend the second annual Omaha Womens
Health and Wellness Conference: Empowering Women for Healthy Living, on
Saturday, Oct. 30, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The conference will be held
at the University of Nebraska at Omaha Milo Bail Student Center, at 60th
and Dodge Streets.
The conference will offer 25 educational health and wellness presentations
and exhibits, as well as health screenings for women. The conference is
sponsored by the University of Nebraska at Omaha, the University of Nebraska
Medical Center, the UNMC Olson Center for Womens Health and the Wellness
Council of the Midlands. Contributors include First Data Corporation and
Therapeutic Recreation–Total Integrated Programming Services, Inc. and
KEFM Mix 96 radio station.
The cost of the conference is $30 for the day with meals. Scholarships
are available for those on limited incomes. Health screenings for cholesterol,
vision, bone density, heart disease and cardiac risk will be available
for a nominal cost. Flu shots will be available for $7.
I think we have something of interest for every woman at this conference,
said JoAnn Eickhoff-Shemek, co-chair of the conference committee and UNO
associate professor of health, physical education and recreation. Often,
as women, we find ourselves so busy taking care of others that we forget
about taking care of ourselves. This is a day women can give something
to themselves, for their health.
A presentation on womens health issues focusing on Hispanics will be
presented in English then Spanish. Another goal of the conference is to
interest women of color in attending the conference. Several women health
care professionals of color will be making presentations.
Women of color are more vulnerable to some health conditions and need
to be aware of the conditions and how to manage them, Dr. Eickhoff-Shemek
said.
Breakfast keynote speaker is Margaret Bumann, KETV television reporter,
wife and mother. Her speech, titled, Making Choices from a Global Perspective:
A Womans Point of View, will focus on how women use intuitive power to
make difficult choices and how they can use this power to adapt to difficult
circumstances. Bumann will tell stories about women that have inspired
her and share resources on how women can make their intuitive power work
for them.
Ruth Bailey, speaker and humorist, will speak at the luncheon. Her talk,
You Cant Give Away What Your Dont Have, will focus on how women can
learn to balance their needs with the needs of others.
Women participating in the conference will be able to choose one of
the six morning sessions listed below: Aging Well: Taking Charge of Your
Health, Susan Noble Walker, Ed.D. and Carol Pullen, Ed.D., UNMC College
of Nursing; Depression, Jeannette Seaberry, Ph.D., UNO College of Education;
Women & Heart Disease, Rose Morford, UNMC Department of Surgery; Thriving:
Living a Healthy Life in an Environment of Chaos, Kathryn Fiandt, D.N.S.,
UNMC College of Nursing; Coping with Change and Loss, Judy Dierkhising,
Ph.D., UNMC Community Partnership; and Taking Control of Your Health: A
Womans Guide to Better Health Care, Valda Boyd Ford, M.P.H., M.S., RN.,
Creighton University School of Nursing.
Women will choose from two of the following afternoon sessions: Menopause:
A New Beginning, Karen Olson, M.D., UNMC Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology;
Making Healthy Bones, Ellen Davis-Hall, Ph.D., UNMC physician assistant
program; The Mind-Body Connection: Making the Most of Your Health, Natalie
Dowty, M.S., M.P.T., Methodist Health Care System and University of Nebraska
at Omaha Health, Physical Education and Recreation; Womens Health Issues
Focusing on Hispanics, Margarita Rodriguez-Escobar, M.D; Herbal Therapy:
Advice for Women, Teri Gabel, Pharm.D., UNMC College of Pharmacy; and Its
Soy Good, Shelly Oestmann, R.D., Alegent Health Medical Center.
Deadline for conference registration is Oct. 20. To register, call 554-2670.