By Susan Johnson, President Elect, Bronxville New York Rotary Club
Nov. 6, 2024: Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a paralyzing and potentially deadly infectious disease that most commonly affects children under the age of 5. The virus spreads from person to person, typically through contaminated water. It can attack the nervous system and may result in paralysis.
While only two countries – Afghanistan and Pakistan – remain endemic with wild polio virus, this could result in a global resurgence of the disease.
Although there is no cure, there is a safe and effective vaccine, one which Rotary and its partners use to immunize over 2.5 billion children worldwide.
To learn more about polio, please join the Bronxville Rotary Club on Thursday, November 7th at the Bronxville Library at 7 PM for a talk by Mike McGovern, chair of the Rotary International PolioPlus Committee which leads the volunteer efforts of Rotary worldwide to conquer polio. The event is free and all are welcome.
Goal to Eradicate Polio
For more than 35 years, the eradication of polio has continued to be one of Rotary’s longest standing and most significant efforts. Achieving the goal to rid the world of this disease is within our reach.
As a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, which includes Rotary, UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and international governments, as well as with the support of many individuals throughout the world, Rotary has helped reduce polio cases by 99.9 percent since the first project to vaccinate children in the Philippines in 1979.
Rotary members have contributed more than $2.1 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect nearly 3 billion children in 122 countries from this paralyzing disease.
Looking at the numbers
-$3 is the average cost to fully protect a child against polio
-430 million children were vaccinated in 39 countries in 2017
-cost to conduct polio surveillance worldwide is $ 100 million
Every dollar Rotary commits to end polio is tripled, thanks to a matching agreement with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “The world’s progress in fighting polio might be one of the best kept secrets in global health,” said Bill Gates, co-founder and co-chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
It’s crucial to continue working to keep all countries polio-free. If we learned anything from the COVID epidemic, it is that viral diseases have little regard for international borders.
If all eradication efforts stopped today, within 10 years polio could paralyze as many as 200,000 children each year.
The Bereavement Center of Westchester
670 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, New York 10707
(914) 787-6158
Sunrise Senior Living
500 North Columbus Avenue
Mount Vernon, New York 10552
914-667-5660
www.sunriseseniorliving.com
The Osborn
101 Theall Road
Rye, New York 10580
914-921-2200
The Maxwell Institute
The Maxwell Institute of St. Vincent's Westchester offers outpatient chemical dependency treatment and education services for adults, adolescents and their families. Treatment includes individual and group psychotherapy, couples counseling, and psychiatric evaluation and medication management when indicated. The Institute welcomes individuals and family members who are experiencing marital and/or work-related distress as a result of alcoholism and other forms of chemical dependency.
The Maxwell Institute also offers community education services through its programs in drug and alcohol prevention in the schools. For persons wishing to become credentialed alcoholism and substance abuse counselors (CASACS) in New York State, the "Maxtrain" program provides the 350 classroom education hours that are an important part of the credentialing requirements.
The Maxwell Institute is grateful for the support of The Community Fund of Bronxville-Eastchester-Tuckahoe.
92 Yonkers Ave
Tuckahoe, NY 10707
(914) 337-6033
Counseling Center
Founded in 1971, the mission of the Counseling Center “is to provide a wide range of psychotherapeutic and counseling services to individuals, couples and families by a staff of highly trained, experience and dedicated psychotherapists.
Director: Virgil Roberson
The Counseling Center
180 Pondfield Road Bronxville,
New York 10708
914-793-3388
10 Studio Arcade
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-1157
Bronxville Dental Care
Jenny A. Kanganis, D.D.S.
Guy N. Minoli, D.D.S.
Since 1994, Dr. Kanganis and Dr. Minoli of Bronxville Dental Care have been leaders in the dental community, providing exceptional dentistry to generations of Bronxville families. They have a long history of excellence and have earned a reputation built on trust, compassion, and dedication. Drs. Kanganis and Minoli believe in a conservative, holistic, and minimally invasive approach to dentistry. Bronxville Dental Care welcomes patients of all ages and offers a comprehensive range of services, including cosmetic and restorative dentistry, implants, and pediatric dentistry. Dr. Kanganis especially loves treating children. As a mother herself of two recent Bronxville High School grads, she understands the importance of helping children to feel comfortable during their visits, while earning their trust and teaching them to become active participants in their oral health.
20 Studio Arcade
Bronxville, New York 10708
(914) 337-6536
www.bronxvilledentalcare.com
Dr. Anthony Fiore
44 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-3863
Dr. Quentin M. Murphy
77 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-1004
Scarsdale Pediatric Dental
777 Post Rd.
Scarsdale, NY 10583-5000
Phone: 914. 472. 9090
http://www.scarsdalepediatricdental.com/
Dr. Michael J. Vitale
1 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-8430
Dr. Lesa Kelly
77 Quaker Ridge Road
New Rochelle, New York
914-637-2663
Dr. Neil Goldberg
77 Pondfield Road Ste 2
Bronxville, New York 10708
Dr. Mark Fox
ENT and Allergy Associates
1 Elm Street
Tuckahoe, New York 10707
Lawrence Home Care of Westchester
670 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, NY 10707
(914) 787-6158
www.lawrencehomecare.org
Jansen Hospice and Pallative Care
670 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, New York 10583
(914) 787-6158
NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester
NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester provides access to primary care physicians and specialists from ColumbiaDoctors, the faculty practice Columbia University Irving Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Medical Group Westchester.
The hospital includes a cancer center, maternity center, breast health center, two cardiac catheterization labs, and a state-designated Stroke Center.
55 Palmer Avenue in Bronxville
914-787-1000 Main
Dr. Anne Galloway
77 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-4986
Dr. Kerrianne Page
14 Studio Arcade
914-779-9066
Dr. Raymond Chow
700 White Plains Road
Scarsdale, New York
Dr. Polly Kanganis
4 Studio Arcade, Bronxville, NY 10708
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-771-9441
Dr. Thomas J. Rubeo Jr. MD
Bronxville Women's Care, Pllc
One Pondfield Road, Suite 302
Bronxville, NY 10708
Dr. Patricia Halloran
55 Park Avenue
Bronxville, New York 10708
914-337-1239
Dr. Joseph Ciccio
1 Pondfield Road
Bronxville, New York 10708
Dr. Peter Rizzo
77 Pondfield Road
914-337-1118
Dr. Michael Elia
1 Stone Place
Bronxville, New York 10708
Westchester Health Pediatrics (formerly Children’s Medical Practice of Bronxville)
1 Elm Street
Tuckahoe, New York 10707
914-337-7474
Scarsdale Pediatric Associates
2 Overhill Road Suite 220
Scarsdale, New York 10580
914-725-0800
Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine
495 Central Avenue
Scarsdale, New York