Elko Daily Free Press from Elko, Nevada • 7

Thursday, February 4, 1993 ELKO DAILY FREE PRESS, Elko, Nevada amies sav coming home from Somalia 'no big deal' ft and shorter than Vietnam or even stress disorder," he said. CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (AP) IT." 1 it i Staff Sgt Vidaurri Higgins returned from a month of ducking sniper fire in Somalia, stowed his M-16 rifle, then went home and helped his 10-year-old daughter do her math homework. Higgins, 33, said it's been a smooth transition from platoon sergeant leading patrols in famine-wracked Somalia to daddy watching TV with his wife and three children: "Now I just want to mow yards, help do the homework, and carry on with my life." Returning Marines consistently say that coming home after a month amid the chaos and starvation of Somalia is "no big deal," said Dr. Michael Johanek, chief psychiatrist for the 1st Marine Division.

But he isn't convinced. "At this point I can't buy that," Johanek said. "We heard similar stories coming back from Operation Desert Storm, but then the cases surfaced." Johanek believes that posttraumatic stress disorder, what once was called combat fatigue, will affect some of the more than 24,000 U.S. troops sent to Somalia. He admits, however, that psychiatrists don't know exactly how troops will react to mission, a cross between combat and charity that for most has been less violent the Gulf War.

"There really isn't in my view an experience that parallels this," said Dr. Brett Litz, deputy director for education and training at the Veterans Affairs' National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Boston. "We're learning as we go along." Johanek is working with the agency to survey returning Marines to assess how they are handling stress. He hopes to do follow-up studies for several years. Camp Pendleton also is gearing up for voluntary "debriefings" to encourage the 2,000 Marines who have returned to base to talk about stress and to seek counseling if problems arise.

Information gathered from those sessions will be used to tailor counseling to the needs of others as they return, Johanek said. Some 10,000 Marines, most based on the West Coast, remain in Somalia or on ships off the coast The VA has estimated that 11 percent of Persian Gulf veterans were affected by post-traumatic stress. Litz said that percentage was much higher than psychiatrists expected. "Even though it was short and there was less of the classic war zone exposure, such as firefights and participating in killings, there was a surprising degree of post-traumatic A 1990 VA study found that 15 percent of Vietnam veterans were suffering from post traumatic stress at that time. The number who suffered symptoms during their lifetime is probably closer to 30 percent Litz said.

The disorder sometimes emerges weeks, months or even years after the trigger event psychiatrists say. It can cause depression, nightmares, flashbacks, aggressiveness and violent behavior. Psychiatrists speculate that veterans of the humanitarian mission in Somalia may suffer other unique problems eating disorders that reflect exposure to starving children, overwhelming guilt feelings stemming from a need to do more, or pent up anger because some Somalis seemed ungrateful. "The dual nature of the mission making sure they look out for themselves, preparing for military conflict if necessary, and at the same time giving help to skin-and-bone children with pot bellies and bug eyes creates a tremendous conflict," said Calvin J. Frederick, head of psychological services at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center.

But Capt Michael Belcher, who led a company of combat Marines in Mogadishu, doesn't expect his troops to suffer the sleepless nights and family crises some experienced after the Gulf War. "I don't think it's been as traumatic as you might expect" Belcher said after returning from Somalia. "It wasn't as prolonged or intense as Panama or Saudi Arabia. "And the humanitarian purpose may have taken the post-traumatic edge off of it" he said. Litz said the experience of helping starving people actually may prove healing for some veterans of bloodier missions, including the Gulf War and Vietnam.

Students in the Elko High School guidance office aide program are: back row from left, Rosa Bravo, Desiree Mann, Chana Sabala, Jess Boucher, Audrey Dunning, Stephanie Honeycutt, Chris Hundley and Krista Davis; front row from left, Bill Pierce, Kris Connow, Katy Schwarz (winner of the first office aide of the month award, given Tuesday), Erica Pinedo, Melody Staley and Jennifer Carson. The students' participation in the office aide program is a result of an effort by the guidance office to recruit some of the school's most responsible students, counselor Steven Hundley said. Aides staff 'front line9 of EHS guidance office THAT SCRAMBLED WORD GAME by Henri Arnold i Unscramble these four Jumbles, one letter to each square, to form four ordinary words. GLIEB i CUTOS i 3 YARFIL WHAT THE HLL-3ILLYARTI5T SPECIALIZED? IN. Jan.

29 thru Thu, Feb. 4 Saturday Matinee at 4:30 p.m. Thursday Discount and Saturday Matinee $3 we are a very busy operation. There is a constant flow of kids through here. It would be tough to function without these aides." The aides are expected to have good attendance and be representatives and role models for the student body in grooming, dress code and conduct, Hundley said.

They also have to "know the various services we offer and be able to direct students to the right resource," he said. Part of that role is knowing how to operate the department's career information computer and refer students to resources in the career information library. In addition, aides deliver important documents and messages to teachers, bring students from classes to the guidance office, handle filing, copying and record-keeping and are in charge of keeping the conference room clean and neat. "Our expectations for them are very high, but with guidance and training they meet those expectations. They do an outstanding job," Hundley concluded.

The Elko High School counseling and guidance department has four counselors: Hundley, Linda Trontel, Deb Smith and Ken Harriman. When Elko High School students visit their counselor's office, very often the first person they see will be a peer, a guidance office aide. Because of the nature of student counseling, a student office aide must be a special person, able to sense when a student is in crisis and able to maintain the student's confidentiality. Knowing the importance of this "front line" position, the guidance and counseling department at the high school has initiated a program to attract and train some of the schools' most responsible students. Senior student Katy Schwarz Tuesday was named the department's first office aide of the month as part of the department's incentive program.

She received a gift certificate for dinner for two at Misty's, courtesy of the Red Lion Inn and Casino. The most demanding part of being a counselor office aide is "working with different people" some of whom are "really difficult to deal with," according to six of the aides in an interview. "If you're having a bad day, you have to pretend you're enjoying your job," one aide said. When students arrive, they may be troubled, crying, "edgy or shaky," and the aides must know when the students need to talk to someone. "Their welfare depends on how you act," another student said.

"Because we all basically go through the same things, we can sense or know when something is wrong," a third student added. In addition to having certain innate empathy, the students are trained in recognizing crisis situations and getting the troubled students to counselors, counselor Steven Hundley said. The aides also are trained in confidentiality issues and must sign an agreement with the guidance office to abide by procedures outlined in an office aide manual. The aides said although it was tempting sometimes to "take a peek" at someone's files, they had no problem abiding by confidentiality procedures. "I'm trusting someone else with my records and believe they will respect my privacy, just as I respect theirs," one student said.

Hundley said he has 1,200 student contacts per year "and a couple of hundred parent contacts. If you multiply that times four you see that 71 Forever Young pg), 104 I Starring Mel Gibson LAYGEL I I I A A 1 Shows 7:00 8 9:00 m. Thursday Discounts Now arrange the circled letters to form the surprise answer, as suggested by the above cartoon. Disney Aladdin (G). (87 i Answer here: "I Show 7:00 p.m.

Only Thursday Discounts The Bodyguard iR) Kevin Costner, Whitney Houston Show 9:00 p.m. Only Thursday Discounts (Answers tomorrow) BANDIT FALLOW LUSTY BRAVE Yesterday's Jumbles: Answer: Sniper Premier (R), (97 How the sad horse looked as he ate his Shows 7:00 9:00 p.m. Thursday Discounts Resolution deletes loophole letting Senate close meetings CLOSING THE HONOR CAMPS IN ELKO COUNTY GOVERNOR MILLER, HOW DOES THAT SAVE MONEY? It costs the rural communities primary jobs, millions in lost wages, uproots families and fractures the frail economy even more. Who is going to supply trained fire fighters for the numerous range and forest fires Nevada has yearly? 9 Where is the cost savings? debate. While executive sessions are rare, they have occurred.

In one case, the Senate met behind closed doors years ago to talk about organized crime involvement in the casino industry. SJR7 is the latest version of repeated efforts to wipe out the executive session clause. One version was rejected by Nevada voters in 1984 after winning legislative approval in the two preceding sessions, and another measure was rejected by lawmakers in 1985. In other business, the Legislative Affairs Committee heard testimony on a measure that would allow constitutional officers to submit proposed bill drafts directly to legislative counsel. Currently elected officials submit their requests through the state budget office.

Legislative Counsel Lome Malkiewich said constitutional officers are concerned that not all of their bill drafts are making it to lawmakers. State Treasurer Bob Seale said AB48 would eliminate the middle man and allow elected officials to CARSON CITY (AP) A resolution that would delete a constitutional loophole allowing the Nevada Senate to close its meetings to the public has been endorsed by the Senate Legislative Affairs Committee. SJR7, sent Tuesday to the Senate floor, won approval two years ago and must be endorsed again this year by lawmakers before going to a public vote. The measure would require open meetings of the Legislature and its committees except to consider personnel matters. The measure's prime sponsor, Sen.

Ernest Adler, D-Carson City, said SJR7 guarantees public access to government. "I think this brings us into the twentieth century," he added. The Nevada Constitution now permits the Senate to hold closed-door executive meetings. Sen. Bill Raggio, R-Reno, said during his 20 years in the Legislature he's never seen a closed-door meeting held.

"I hate to see this pass finally. I hate to see an old friend leave," Raggio joked, noting that the loophole had given lawmakers something to communicate their intentions almost directly to lawmakers. Sen. Hal Smith, R-Henderson, said the bill allows constitutional officers to do their jobs efficiently. "It gives them the right to perform the duties they were elected to do," he said.

Las Vegas canopy plan is unveiled LAS VEGAS (AP) A $63 million plan to revitalize downtown's casino area by putting a lighted canopy over Fremont Street was formally unveiled last week to city officials. Representatives of the California-based Jerde Partnership and the Downtown Progress Association showed off the plan in a video played before the Las Vegas City Council. The video showed a lighted canopy that would cover three blocks of the glittering downtown street, and would feature a parade of illuminated floats suspended from a cable system high above the street Still to be resolved is the funding of the plan, after the DPA asked the council and the Las Vegas Convention Authority to pick up most of the tab. The DPA, which represents many downtown casinos, said the resorts would be willing to pay $18 million of the cost, with the rest to be made up by city redevelopment funds or money from the convention authority. "We think it's going to revitalize downtown," said Jeanne Hood of the Four Queens Hotel-Casino.

"It's truly a redevelopment project for downtown." Mayor Jan Laverty Jones said the downtown project is the most important single project the city has looked at in the last 15 years. She said the project known as the Fremont Street Experience is vital in attracting tourists downtown. The mayor said 80 percent of Las Vegas tourists went downtown 20 years ago, but less than 20 percent make the trip today. The 3'4 -acre canopy is the latest idea on how to make downtown casinos which have been losing business to their glittering Strip counterparts more attractive to tourists. Neither the city nor the convention authority has committed any funds so far to the project State officials discuss reorganization of SIIS getting some of these people back to CARSON CITY (AP) State offi NEVADA COYOZEIMIS We need your support to oppose the Governor's proposal.

PLEASE contact your State Legislators in protest. Write: Governor Robert Miller State of Nevada Nevada State Capitol Carson City, Nevada 89701 Or Call Toll Free: 1-800-367-5057 cials said today a major reorganization of the State Industrial Insurance System wouldn't impair efforts to get injured workers back to their jobs. The assurances were voiced during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on Gov. Bob Miller's recommended funding levels for SIIS, which he says is in a state of emergency. Finance members expressed concern about rehabilitation efforts, and also were confused by the complicated SIIS budget proposed by the governor, partly because it also includes Miller's government reorganization plan.

Miller is recommending a $153 million two-year spending plan for SIIS, an increase of about 20 percent over current funding levels. John Orr, deputy administrator of the state Rehabilitation Division, said about 7,700 injured workers received rehabilitation treatment in 1992, and the agency handles about 3,500 at any one time. "I can seen an increased workload, work, pain-free or not and I curious, is that going to happen?" asked Sen. Bob Coffin, D-Las Vegas. Rehabilitation Division chief Steve Shaw replied, "We can do it." Part of Miller's proposal calls for shifting 79 positions from SIIS to Rehabilitation, and eliminating 50 others.

Another 39 auditing positions also would be cut, under Miller's plan to have the Department of Taxation assume auditing functions. Miller has cautioned that without sweeping changes the system would run out of money by 1995 and leave taxpayers holding a $3 billion tab. SIIS's unfunded liability as of last June was estimated at $2.2 billion. The governor has proposed abolishing the SIIS board of directors, and implementing a managed care system to reduce medical costs. State Budget Director Judy Mat-teucci estimated the reorganization and a managed care system could save the SIIS trust fund about $100 million over the next two years, ifNAIfttx-tT- ft 1 Plll Paid for by Citizens to Save Rural Honor Camps.