Oklahoma Briefs

Doctor urges pain measure

A doctor specializing in treating those with chronic pain told a House panel Thursday that patient safety is compromised when others besides specially licensed professionals administer spinal injections to manage pain.

Dr. Jeff Meyer of Oklahoma City urged members of the House Public Health Committee to take up Senate Bill 1233 next year. The measure, which would limit who could inject pain-killing medication into a patient’s spinal area, failed to advance during this year’s legislative session. It would put limits on certified registered nurse anesthetists who now administer spinal injections to manage pain. An injection in the wrong spot could cause paralysis or not effectively treat the pain, Meyer said. Victor Long of Norman, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, said passage of the bill would cause a hardship on patients, mostly those in rural areas. About 80 percent of the spinal injections for pain are administered by certified registered nurse anesthetists, Long said.

MICHAEL MCNUTT, Capitol Bureau

A judge Thursday refused to dissolve a temporary order that keeps a new abortion law from going into effect. Oklahoma County District Judge Twyla Mason Gray on Oct. 19 imposed the ban until she can rule on a legal challenge to the abortion law in question. A hearing is set for Dec. 4.

The law bars a doctor from doing an abortion if he knows the woman’s sole reason is that she is unhappy about the unborn child’s sex. It also requires doctors to report detailed information about abortions to the state Health Department, including age, marital status and education level of patients.

FROM STAFF REPORTS

BARTLESVILLE

A Bartlesville man has been sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to nursing home patient abuse. A Washington County judge Wednesday sentenced 31-year-old Jason Lynn Pearl, 31, after Pearl pleaded guilty earlier this month in a plea deal. Pearl was arrested in March on allegations of abusing patients while he was a certified nursing assistant at Silver Lake Care Center in Bartlesville.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

MUSKOGEE

A Muskogee man on trial in the stabbing death of his child’s mother said he did not recall stabbing her. Shelleigh PoorBear, 18, was found stabbed to death in a Muskogee motel in August 2007. Enrique Pacheco, 20, said, "I didn’t even recall grabbing a knife — I just kind of blanked out.”

MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE

KREMLIN

Kremlin-Hillsdale Academic Enrichment Foundation on Wednesdaypresented $13,584 in grants for projects and classroom activities throughout the Kremlin-Hillsdale School District. The foundation has been giving teacher grants since 2002, and this is the second year the foundation was able to fund every grant requested, said Connie Bittle, foundation board reporter.

MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE

WILBURTON

A Latimer County mother was convicted Thursday in the death of her 7-month-old daughter. Michelle Barry, 28, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. A medical examiner testified Andrea Ann Heath’s head was "crushed to pieces — it looked like eggshell,” said Jeff Smith, district attorney. An autopsy showed the child had multiple skull fractures.

SHEILA STOGSDILL, STATE CORRESPONDENT

Norman

Due to Norman’s recommended trick-or-treating tonight, the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History’s Family Night Out program,

"Falling for Leaves,” has been rescheduled for 6 to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 6. Participating families will start with a walk around the museum grounds to collect colorful leaves and learn more about how and why the leaves change colors in the fall. After a pizza dinner, each participant will use their leaves to create some wearable artwork of their own. The cost is $10 per person for museum members, $12 for non-members, and free for children ages 4 and under. To register, call 325-4712.

OKLAHOMA CITY

Children are invited to a fall festival from 6 to 8:30 p.m. today at the Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club, 2808 SE 44. Admission is free, and door prizes will be given out. Tickets for games will be sold, five for $1. Children may jump on an inflatable structure and participate in a costume party. The cost of concessions at the festival will be less than $2. For more information, call 677-4781.

FROM STAFF REPORTS

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