Schedule for 2015 WV Black Lung Clinics Conference in Pipestem, WV

By Evan B. Smith, April 17, 2015

The brochure for the 2015 “Pipestem” conference from June 2 to 5, 2015 has been released (and is embedded and downloadable below).

This year’s conference is called “In the Mountain State and Beyond:  Specialized Care for Miners.”  The conference is sponsored by West Virginia Association of Black Lung Clinics and the West Virginia Black Lung Clinics Program and is held each year at the beautiful Pipestem Resort State Park in Pipestem, WV.

This conference and the National Coalition of Black Lung and Respiratory Disease Clinic’s annual conference (which is scheduled for Bristol, VA from September 9 to 11, 2015) are the two major conferences for black lung practitioners.

The brochure describes the Pipestem conference as follows:

For active and former miners, NIOSH Mobile Unit will be present on June 4th from 7 am to 5 pm to provide free black lung screenings.

The schedule is below.

Registration (which is free for unemployed or retired miners) is $175 + an optional $30 for a meal ticket.  Registration is requested by May 1, 2015.

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Tuesday. June 2, 2015
11 :00 am – 3:00 pm REGISTRATION
1:00 pm – 1:15 pm Welcome/Opening Remarks
1:15 pm- 2:05 pm Current Trends in WV OP Claims
Robert Williams, Esq.
Maroney, Williams, Weaver & Pancake. PLLC
Deborah Wills
Valley Health Systems
Delissa Legg
Rainelle Medical Center
2:05 pm – 2:55 pm OP Board-What to Expect
Robert Williams. Esq.
Maroney, Williams, Weaver & Pancake, PLLC
2:55 pm – 3:10 pm Break/Exhibits
3:10 pm – 4:00 pm Outreach Strategies
Dennis Robertson
Bluestone Health Center
George Williams
Tug River Health Association
4:00 pm – 4:50 pm Rural Rehab: Breathing New Life Into Your Pulmonary Patients
Susie Criss, RBA. CMA
Amanda Jones, RRT, CPFT
New River Breathing Center
Chaffee Tommarello. RRT, CPFT. AE-C
Cabin Creek Health System
6:00 pm RECEPTION w/Bluegrass Music
Sponsored by Maroney, Williams, Weaver & Pancake, PLLC

Wednesday. June 3. 2015
8:00 am – 9:00 am REGISTRATION/CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST
9:00 am – 9:15 am Welcome/Announcements
9:15 am – 10:05 am Black Lung Clinics Program
Nadia Ibrahim, MA, LGSW, Public Health Analyst
Office of Rural Health Policy, DHHS, HRSA
10:05 am -10:20 am Break/Exhibits
10:20 am – 11 :10 am NIOSH Research Updates
Anita Wolfe. Public Health Analyst, Scott Laney. MD. MPH
David Blackley, PhD and Eileen Storey, MD, MPH
NIOSH/DRDS
11:10 am – 12:00 pm Clarifying Distribution, Trends and Determinants of Adverse Health In US Miners-Update on Alpha Foundation Funded Research
Robert Cohen, MD, FCCP
University of Illinois School of Public Health
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm Lunch (On Your Own)

2:00 pm – 3:40 pm Historical Perspective and Update on Treatment of Pneumoconiosis
Cecile Rose. MD. MPH
National Jewish Health
Cardiopulmonary Relationships
Donald Rasmussen, MD
Rheumatology & Pulmonary Clinic
3:40 pm – 4:00 pm Break/Exhibits
4:00 pm – 4:50 pm Pathology of Black Lung Updates
Francis H.Y. Green, Professor
University of Calgary
6:00 pm NCBLRDC Board Meeting

Thursday. June 4. 2015
8:00 am – 9:00 am CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST
9:00 am – 9:15 am Welcome/Announcements
9:15 am – 10:05 am End Black Lung
Joe Main, Assistant Secretary of Labor
MSHA, USDOL
10:05 am – 10:55 am Black Lung Program Updates
Michael Chance, Director
Carolyn King, District Director
OWCP, DCMWC, USDOL
10:55 am-11:10 am Break/Exhibits
11:10 am – 12:00 pm Compensation Counseling
Sandy Fogel, Esq.
Culley & Wissore
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm MINERS’ LUNCH
Daniel J. Kane, International Secretary-Treasurer
UMWA
2:00 pm – 2:50 pm The Most Important Function of the Union: Safety
Dennis O’Dell, Administrator of Occupational Health & Safety
UMWA
2:50 pm – 3:40 pm Retiree Health Care and Pension Issues
Grant Crandall, General Counsel
UMWA
3:40 pm – 4:00 pm Break/Exhibits
4:00 pm – 4:50 pm Reflections from a Management Perspective
Willie Charles. US Steel Supervisor Retired
Dennis Robertson
Bluestone Health Center

Friday. June 5. 2015
8:00 am -9:00 am CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST
9:00 am – 9:15 am Welcome/Announcements
9:15 am – 10:15 am Evaluation of Gas Exchange: DLCO and Oxygenation in Exercise
William Clapp, MD
John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County
10:15 am – 10:30 am Break/Exhibits
10:30 am -11:30 am Engaging Miners In the Federal BL Claims Process
John Cline, Esq.

2015 Pipestem Black Lung Conference Brochure