BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

30/07/2005

Belarussian children get help with their health

Medical community pitches in

By MIKE JOHNSTON

Boys and girls from the former Soviet republic of Belarus come to Ellensburg each summer with the Children of Chernobyl group for more than a fun time: they receive free medical checkups related to exposure to radiation.

"The doctors and dentists have been just wonderful to provide this pro bono service to these young people," said Cec Calhoun, the Ellensburg and national program director of Children of Chernobyl. "Every year there has been a lot of dental care needed, but this year the big need has been vision, with five of them needing eyeglasses."

This summer the Belarussian group comprises six girls in their teens. Their stay is from July 8 to Aug. 12.

The kids are from the region of Belarus that's across the border from Chernobyl located in the Ukraine republic. In 1986, the world's worst nuclear power plant accident at Chernobyl spewed radiation throughout the region, affecting the health and environment of millions of people.

Ophthalmologist John Boys Smith and optometrist Robert Davis provided eye-care services this summer for the seven Belarussian children.

"Most of these children don't get regular care at home," said Boys Smith. "They are also still exposed to radiation, causing a lot of health problems, even for these children that were born after the explosion."

Boys Smith said childhood thyroid cancer in the Chernobyl zone is 200 times the world norm and the condition also increases vision problems that require monitoring.

Calhoun said in addition to medical care, the Belarussian children stay with local host families for five weeks and build friendships, get a respite from their radiation-tainted environment and learn about American free enterprise at Business Week at Central Washington University.

This year they also took part in a cultural enrichment program that examines aspects of U.S. lifestyles, government, business, religion and news media.

Hanna Shyrayeva, 16, from the city of Pinsk in Belarus, said she is having a good time in Ellensburg.

"For me it is a great experience so far," Shyrayeva said. "I have come to really love this country. I know more about American culture now. I've learned how people really live."

Calhoun said the community has been "so good" to the Children of Chernobyl program in its 11 years in Ellensburg. About 140 children have come to Ellensburg in those years.

She said businesses and community groups donate annually to Children of Chernobyl fund-raisers and help send the children home with over-the-counter medicines.

Source:

http://www.kvnews.com/articles/2005/07/30/news/news03.txt