Media Contact: Sandra Van Telephone: 1-800-396-1002 [email protected]
LOS ANGELES (June 2, 1999) -- Concern for children with cancer and a fascination with the cultural aspects of medical care will once again draw Cedars-Sinai Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute neurooncologist Paul Zeltzer, M.D., to The Barretstown Gang Camp in Ireland this summer. Founded by actor Paul Newman in 1994, the non-profit program for European children is modeled after his famous Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Connecticut. The mission of both facilities is to provide an enriching and therapeutic recreational experience for seriously ill children, many suffering from cancer and blood diseases.
"The children are precious and special and, without this setting, they would never be able to have a camp experience," explained Dr. Zeltzer, who will donate his services as the camp's treating oncologist to care for 90 children July 12 through 21. "I think the camp experience is important for the child's recovery as well as a diversion. Seeing the children gain so much independence and progress over such a short 12-day period is a great reward. They mature both physically and developmentally during this time."
This will be Dr. Zeltzer's fourth summer at the Barretstown Gang Camp, set in 500 acres embracing rolling hills, streams, a lake, fields and woodlands. According to camp literature, when Paul Newman rounded the bend approaching the "fairy tale" Barretstown Castle, he knew immediately that this was to be the location for his first European camp, located 40 miles outside Dublin. Barretstown offers its services, including travel, accommodations and medical care, free of charge to children ages 7 to 16. At full capacity, the camp will service up to 1,000 children each summer and 120 youngsters at a time during the year.
"The physical challenges of rafting, mountain climbing and camping coupled with such cultural experiences as learning songs of Ireland and other countries expose these children to great opportunities for understanding and learning," says Dr. Zeltzer, who will be teamed with his wife, pediatrician Lonnie Zeltzer, chief of the Pediatric Pain Program at the University of California-Los Angeles.
This summer, Barretstown will welcome children from such countries as Germany, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Austria, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Poland, Hungary, Spain and possibly Kosovo. Medical treatment-designed to be "friendly and unobtrusive"-is provided in a restored stone cottage staffed by physicians and nurses who maintain the young campers' medical care, as prescribed by their personal physicians.
"More than half of the children are receiving active therapy for leukemia, sarcomas, brain tumors, bone marrow transplantations and other cancer-related conditions," states Dr. Zeltzer, who will serve as the medical support for the four nurses who administer the prescribed medicines. "We care for seriously ill children, giving antibiotics too, as needed. Last year I cared for five children with thyroid cancer as a result of the Chernobyl disaster-their mothers were exposed to radiation during pregnancy 13 years before."
Barretstown is affiliated with Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Dublin, where Dr. Zeltzer has provided professional talks in the past and anticipates doing presentations again this summer. This interchange with other medical professionals is another intriguing component of his involvement with the camp.
"I love seeing how medicine is practiced throughout the world, and to discover both the similarities and differences, many of which are culturally based," he explains. "I speak Spanish, so I get to practice with the counselors as well as patients and nurses from Spanish-speaking countries."
Dr. Zeltzer also observes the cultural differences in how the children express themselves and interact with others. In addition to his medical duties, Dr. Zeltzer gets involved in the drama, crafts and storytelling activities and joins the children during meals.
"Children from Spain and Italy, for example, exhibit a lot more physical contact and touching, and express emotion through their behaviors and relationships, he explains. "Children from the Northern countries, particularly Byelorussia and Tzakistan, are more reserved and stoic, and engage in less hand-holding and touch."
Making the time of highest quality for those who eventually die of their disease is also an important aspect of his role at Barretstown. Beyond the care and comfort he supplies to campers, Dr. Zeltzer is quick to point out, "I get as much or more from the experience than I give."
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