Dear RDH:
Thank you for addressing the very important issue of occupational health in Mary Martha Stevens` timely article, "Harmony in Hygiene" (December 1996). Referenced at the end of the article is the Hygienists` Pain Network.
The correct address is: Carol D. Coady, RDH, Hygienists` Pain Network, P.O. Box 24, Paradise, CA 95967. We ask that your readers please enclose a SASE with their correspondence. E-mail can be submitted to: [email protected].
I would like to take this opportunity to tell your readers about this unique service. The Hygienists` Pain Network is an educational support forum which provides free and low-cost information to dental hygienists who are seeking assistance with cumulative trauma pain. Hundreds of hygienists have utilized this volunteer service to collaborate on chronic pain issues. As an adjunctive resource to professional medical care, the Hygienists` Pain Network offers peer support, information on innovative therapeutic strategies, and pertinent resource material.
Pain researchers recognize that a multidisciplinary approach to the treatment of complex pain problems is the most likely avenue toward generating long-term success. For many hygienists, this network plays an important role in their efforts to find their way back to better health. I appreciate the opportunity that you have provided through RDH for me to reach those hygienists who are in pain. I invite those readers who are seeking assistance with cumulative trauma problems to contact me. Dental hygiene educators and researchers are also invited to utilize this resource. Education is our most effective tool to combat these complex health problems.
Carol D. Coady, RDH
Paradise, California
