January 22, 2025 • 40 mins
We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!
Candace Lightner, founder and president of We Save Lives with ending the ‘Back Seat Driver’ Stigma—Speaking Up Saves Lives! U.S. Marks National Passenger Safety Week—Jan. 20-27.
January marks National Poverty in America Awareness Month. Alison Carter Marlow – Boston Executive Director of the Jeremiah Program joined Dan to discuss Supporting Single Moms During Poverty Awareness Month.
Michael Kiernan, MD, MBA, Tufts Medicine discusses Tufts Medical Center Completes 70 Adult Heart Transplants in 2024 to Break Own New England Record for the Second Straight Year.
Oliver Barker, Director of the Cape Ann Museum brings us “Gloucester’s So Salty” Fourth Annual Festival Brings Together Cultural Institutions and Businesses to Provide Free Activities to Community! Saturday, Jan. 25 and Sunday, Jan. 26 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Ask Alexa to play WBZ NewsRadio on #iHeartRadio and listen to NightSide with Dan Rea Weeknights From 8PM-12AM!
Candace Lightner, founder and president of We Save Lives with ending the ‘Back Seat Driver’ Stigma—Speaking Up Saves Lives! U.S. Marks National Passenger Safety Week—Jan. 20-27.
January marks National Poverty in America Awareness Month. Alison Carter Marlow – Boston Executive Director of the Jeremiah Program joined Dan to discuss Supporting Single Moms During Poverty Awareness Month.
Michael Kiernan, MD, MBA, Tufts Medicine discusses Tufts Medical Center Completes 70 Adult Heart Transplants in 2024 to Break Own New England Record for the Second Straight Year.
Oliver Barker, Director of the Cape Ann Museum brings us “Gloucester’s So Salty” Fourth Annual Festival Brings Together Cultural Institutions and Businesses to Provide Free Activities to Community! Saturday, Jan. 25 and Sunday, Jan. 26 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Ask Alexa to play WBZ NewsRadio on #iHeartRadio and listen to NightSide with Dan Rea Weeknights From 8PM-12AM!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
It's Night Side with Dan Ray on w BZY, Boston's
news radio.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Thanks very much, Nicole. Nice to be back off for
a few days around the holiday weekend. I want to
thank Gary Tangway in Morgan White for sitting in and
allowing me to spend a little bit of time away
from the microphone. But I am back. We'll be back tonight,
Tomorrow night, and on Friday night and then all of
next week. So a you're gonna get me for the
next week and a half, that is for sure. Buckle up.
(00:30):
We have a lot coming up tonight. By the way,
my name is Dan Ray and the host of the show,
for whom the show is aptly named Knight's Side with
Dan Ray. Just to give you a little bit of
a sense of what we're going to be doing later
on tonight, I'm going to talk about it looks like
a mayoral race here in Boston, and it looks as
if Josh Kraft, son of the New England Patriots owner
(00:51):
Robert Craft may very soon preps even as early as February,
announced that he will be a candidate for mayor here
in Boston against Mayor Michelle wo So that gives us
something to talk about for the balance of twenty twenty five,
or at least too early November, and then later on tonight,
beginning I'm guessing around ten o'clock, we're going to talk
about the executive orders issued by President Trump in the
(01:17):
last couple of days. As I kind of mention it,
the good, the bad, and the questionable. So there are
some which I think will long overdue and some which
I think we're a little bit of an overreach. But
we'll get to all of that during the nine o'clock,
ten o'clock at eleven o'clock hours. This hour, we have
four guests here on the night Side News Update, and
we're going to start off with Candace Lightner. She's the
(01:40):
founder and president of an organization called We Save Lives,
and there's sort of a subtitle here ending the backseat
driver stigma. Welcome Candace Lightner to Night's Eide. How are
you this evening.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
I'm fine, and thank you for having me very well.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Now, first of all, I'm a bit of a back
seat driver, but I don't think that's the back seat
driver you're talking about. If I'm sitting on the passenger side,
I like to help the driver. I like to when
we're at an intersection, I like to check the ride
and tell my wife or whomever I'm driving with, you're
(02:20):
all clear, Oh there's two cars coming or whatever. So
I mean, but that's really not what you're talking about here.
You're talking about speaking up to save lives. Tell us
about your program We Save Lives.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
We launched National Passenger Safety Week several years ago as
a result of my giving up my car and becoming
a passenger. And when I did, I realized that, oh
my gosh, I have to start setting boundaries for drivers
so that people know not to use their cell phones Bluetooth.
(02:55):
I had to do this with friends, taxi drivers, and
it occurred to me after doing this for a while, see,
I wonder how many other people think to do this too,
because in reality, it could save your life. And so
I just became so interested and passionate I still am
about the issue of passenger safety that I was able
(03:17):
to put together a great group of organizations, more than
sixty and we launched this which is now recognized by
the National Highway Traffic Safety Association and it's called National
Passenger Safety Week. You're right, we want passengers, Yeah, you.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Said, I just want to go catch something here. You
said that you gave up your right to drive. Did
you have some sort of you sound quite young. Did
you have some sort of a medical issue that or
did you do this voluntarily? Or did you get tired
of driving?
Speaker 3 (03:54):
What was it that's recorded?
Speaker 4 (03:56):
I know?
Speaker 3 (03:57):
I actually was in a crash before this with a
distracted driver totaled both of our cars and broke back.
And so as a result of that, I decided to
give up my car for a period of time. Actually
I gave it up for about three years, and I
actually just bought another one about a year ago. But
during that three years I became a passenger. And you
(04:21):
really don't think about what the driver is doing until
you become a passenger as often and as long as
I did. And I'll tell you, though, the thing that
really got to me is I electure at Columbia and
I would talk to posts NBA students and I would
ask them how many of you had written in the
(04:41):
car with somebody who's drunk, and so hardly anybody would
raise their hands. And then I'd say what about if
they're drugged? And they'd say, well, legal or illegal drugs?
I'd say both, doesn't matter, and they more of them
would raise their hands, and then I would say, well,
how many of you you have written in a car
with someone who's distracted? And everybody rose their raised their hands,
(05:03):
and I looked at them and I said, why would
you do that? Why would you risk your life to
ride with somebody who's driving dangerously? And I was absolutely
amazed at how many intelligent people would do that. I mean,
have you ever, oh.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
Have I driven with people who are distracted? Sure? Yeah, yeah,
But generally I'm like, I'm ninety nine percent of the
time driving, and I think I'm a pretty good driver,
and I think I pay attention. And if you looked
at my, oh what is it now, my eleven year
(05:46):
old Vovo, you'd say this must be a pretty good driver,
because it's in pretty good shape. That's that doesn't mean
I couldn't get into an accident tomorrow, obviously, you know
all of us have at different point in our life.
I guess got into some sort of you know, fender benders.
But it sounds to me like you had a horrific event,
(06:07):
a life changing event, and and and good good for you.
Now let me ask you, you obviously deal with people
whether it's a you said, a cab driver or whomever. Uh,
and if they're doing something which is clearly dangerous, which
includes obviously looking at their phone talking on their phone.
(06:30):
When you drive, when you drive with someone else, do
you try to help that person who's driving or do
you feel that when Like I'm I will always when
we come into an intersection, I'm looking because if the
car's coming from the right, I'm going to take the
brunt of the crash. And I've always whether whoever I'm with,
(06:51):
I'll always try to say, well, you're clearing the right,
nothing coming, or you got about five seconds here and
if you if you can't go real quickly, we got
to you gotta wait, do you or do you sit
there and oblivious to what's going on outside and you're
really focusing on the behavior of the driver of your car.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Well, I tend to be helpful. I tend to be
a helpful driver. Back to one of the things that
I do. I don't like it when drivers to get
directions will upload their maps and look at the map
on their tiny little iPhone or on their dashboard and
think that's being safe. So what I do is I
(07:31):
offer to give them directions. I ask them not to
look at their maps, but I will give them directions
and myself when I drive, are you Siri and Sory
gives me verbal directions And I don't even have my
phone where I can see it. I mean, it's just down.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
I agree with you. I agree with you on that.
You sound like the sort of person that I'd be
willing to get in the car with. Let me ask
you canvas give us the website so people can get
more information about We Save Lives. I think it's very important.
Give people a chance to check out your website. Go
right ahead. What's the easiest way people can either get
(08:08):
in touch with you or reach out that we Save Lives.
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Well, you can just go to we Save Lives dot org,
which is our website. We also have another one, National
Passenger Safety Week, also dot org and get and link
onto that. And there's two things that I really want
to mention here. One is the Courage to Intervene promise.
And this is one of the things we ask people
(08:33):
to download and sign. And unlike most promises and pledges,
this does not say I will not drive drunk, et cetera. Instead,
it will say it says things like I will stop
my friends and loved ones from driving buzz, drunk or drug.
I will not ride with them if they are under
any kind of influence. And it goes on like that.
(08:55):
But the second thing I want to mention, mainly because
I work Similarch so much to his victims of car
crashes motor vehicle crashes, is the parent checklist. And I
don't know if you have children and how old they are,
but I do wonder. And I've had so many parents
say to me, especially mothers, after telling me about their
(09:18):
child's death as a result of a passenger in the car,
if only I had known, If only I had known,
they were driving with someone who was unlifensed, who wasn't
a safe driver.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
So we have a parent Not to cut you off here, Candace,
but I'm stealing time from my next guest. How can
how can parents get to that information quickly most effectively?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
Again, National Passenger Safety dot or go to tool kids.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
It was fair.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
Oh that's great. That's great. Again, we went a little longer,
but it's well worth it. Uh, Candace Lightner, the group
we Save Lives dot org or National Passenger Safe. Thanks
very much, Candice, best of luck. We'll have you back?
Speaker 3 (10:03):
Okay, thank you, bye bye, very welcome.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Coming up, we're going to talk about supporting single moms
during Poverty Awareness Month. Back on Nightside. My name's Dan Ray.
Back in the big chair here, the host of Nightside,
coming to you every Monday through Friday night from eight
until midnight. Got a great show for the balance throughout
the evening. As a matter of fact, we just did
a very interesting guest mortcom Coming up on Nightside.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Now, back to Dan Ray live from the Window World
Nightside Studios on WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
Our next guest is Alison Carter Marlow. She's the executive
director the Boston executive director of the Jeremiah Program. Allison,
whereas we're talking about supporting single moms during Poverty Awareness Month,
tell us about the Jeremiah Program. How long has it
been active? And it is also a Boston based program
(10:55):
as I understand it.
Speaker 6 (10:56):
Sure, Thank you.
Speaker 4 (10:57):
So much for having me. It is a pleasure the
Jeremy sort of what sort.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Of microphone do you want here? Allison? I'm getting all
sorts of Are you on some sort of a headset happened?
Speaker 5 (11:09):
No, I'm not, but I did have a heater plugged
in is that any better?
Speaker 2 (11:13):
I don't know. Why don't you just Rob will work
you with worth your fifteen seconds again, it's a better
audio version. Okay. We're talking with the executive director, the
Boston executive director of a group called the Jeremiah Program.
And this is a program that mark's January National Poverty
in American Awareness Month, and the focus is on supporting
(11:36):
single moms during Poverty Awareness Month. And certainly, if we
are ever to break the poverty cycle in this country,
I think we're going to have to focus on single
moms who are trying to care for themselves as well
as their children. Alison, I think we have you back.
Let's hope that the audio is a little better. Go
right ahead, Allison, tell us about the German.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
Program so much.
Speaker 5 (11:57):
Thank you. I hope this is better and stronger.
Speaker 4 (12:01):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (12:01):
The Jeremiah Program was founded in the early nineties by
a priest in Minnesota who was seeing a number of
young single moms who didn't have stable, affordable quality housing,
who didn't have childcare, and who didn't seem to be
on a path towards economic mobility. Most of us would
define that as college access or what I like to
(12:23):
call mortgage paying jobs, and so this father founded a
location in Minneapolis that housed a number of women, provided
quality childcare on site, and allowed moms to go to
school and to work. Since nineteen ninety three, there are
now nine campuses across the country, three in Minnesota, one
(12:45):
in Nevada, one in Maryland, one in New York, one
in Texas, one in North Dakota, and one here in Boston.
The Boston campus has been around since about twenty fifteen.
Twenty sixteen, we started with a partnership of doctor Richard
Wiley and the then president and CEO of Jeremiah, Gloria Perez.
(13:07):
Moms were housed on campus in Beverly, and yet as
the program evolved, it was clear that moms wanted choices.
They wanted to be able to go to different colleges,
access different majors. For some of those moms, Beverly was
just too far, and so the Jeremiah Boston program now
(13:27):
encourages moms to go to whatever college makes sense for them.
Indicot is still a very strong, wonderful partner to the
Jeremiah program, as his Urban College of Boston Laborarey College
of Healthcare. Our moms attend sixteen local colleges in Boston.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
There is probably we mentioned Antegoch College. Was that the
then president Richard Wiley, who worked with you, that.
Speaker 5 (13:53):
Was he was a great friend, a.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Great friend of mine. Commencement beach at Endercart College in
two thousand and nine. I can't tell you how impressed
I am with that facility. So during this period of
time from twenty fourteen to today, you're getting close to
celebrating ten years here in the greater Boston area, how
(14:20):
many moms have participated in the program and how many
different schools have they either attended or matriculated from.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
Sure, so we in twenty twenty four we reached a
peak and we're serving seventy two moms. Moms graduate or
may opt out of the program, and so anywhere between
sixty and seventy moms are served in our program a year.
Those sixty to seventy moms in twenty twenty four had
(14:50):
one hundred and twelve children. And our investments are in
both moms and their children. As I mentioned, our moms
attend sixteen area local colleges. They choose which college works
for them. But it's a credit to doctor Wiley Endicott
understand some of the unique challenges facing parent scholars and
(15:13):
have just a number of supports that allow a mom
who chooses that college to do very well.
Speaker 4 (15:20):
I do want to.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
Say that while we invest in moms, provide them coaching,
provide backup childcare, try to partner with employers who are
interested in hiring our moms and our graduates, we also
invest in private tutoring. We subsidize summer camp, and we
make investments into the children of our mom's five to
(15:43):
twenty nine accounts. We are a two generational program, and
we believe that once mom earns that credential, she is
going to be the most influential in ensuring her children
do that. They go from first generation college grads to
second college grads and beyond. We graduate anywhere between four
(16:05):
to seven moms a year. Moms finish either the Associates degree,
they may choose to continue on with Jeremiah as they
pursue their bachelors, or they may in their journey with us.
Most of our moms are interested in bachelor's degrees.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
So do any of the moms ever come back and
find themselves actually tutoring others or themselves helping with the program,
or when they leave the nest, do they leave the
nest and fly away? No?
Speaker 4 (16:39):
No, no, no, no no.
Speaker 5 (16:40):
And to this point of you know, poverty awareness, the
reality is a marathon and not a sprint. Just because
our moms are earning that college degree, that doesn't always
magically translate into that mortgage paying job. We have a
very strong alumni network among Jeremiah moms. We have close
(17:01):
to thirty women who have graduated in the eight and
a half years we have been on the scene. Our
moms have four to six years that they're allowed to
be in the Jeremiah program and pursue that associates or
bachelor's degree. Those alum are very interested in some of
the things most college grads are interested in. That is
(17:24):
building their social capital, networking, being introduced to folks who
might have a job opportunity or an internship opportunity. I
think the thing that distinguishes Jeremiah program from so many
other programs that support parents scholars. Our moms will speak
to the sense of community and sisterhood they get to experience.
(17:46):
We think that's a driver for college persistence in this population,
and our alum are definitely close and still connected long
after they graduate from college. There's still Jeremiah alum and
they do reach back and offer to tutor and mentor
our current moms.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
That sounds like a great program. How could folks get
more information on the program or maybe even be a
little supportive of it in some form of fashion. What's
the easiest way folks can can find.
Speaker 5 (18:15):
The program www dot Jeremiah program dot org. You can
look up the Boston campus. We have volunteer opportunities. A
lot of our donors and supporters like to get involved
around career panels where we're exposing moms to the different
fields they might leverage their college degrees and enter. You
(18:38):
can give and donate. All that information is on our
website and we certainly accept any ideas people might have
for sponsoring our events and our programming.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
All right, Jeremiah Program dot org, Allison, sounds like a
great program. Thanks for joining us tonight, and sorry about
that a little bit of an audio glitch at the
audio does much better as a result of taking a
few seconds to get it squared away. Thank you so much,
appreciate it. We get back. We're going to talk about
heart transplants. Adult heart transplants. It is amazing to realize
(19:15):
how many adult heart transplants have been done nationwide. Here
in New England and most specifically the Tufts Medical Center.
They completed seventy doult heart transplant last year twenty twenty four,
broke their own record for the second straight year. We'll
be talking with doctor Michael Kiernan, who's the Associate Chief
of Cardiology and medical director of the Ventricular assist Device
(19:39):
Program at Toff's Medical Center. Coming back right after the
news at the bottom of the Urts Nightside with Dan Ray.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
Stay with us, It's Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
Oh truck Day. I remember doing live shots at Fenway
Park when I was at Chern for doing Truck Day
Fenway Park. It is like the end, the unofficial end
of winter. It was so much fun, something to look
forward to. I want to now introduce you all of
you to doctor Michael Kiernan, who is the Associate Chief
(20:17):
of Cardiology medical director of the Ventricular assist Device Program
at Tuft's Medical Center. Doctor Kierenan, Welcome to Night Side, sir.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
How are you hi, Dan? Thanks so much for having
me you in the show. I'm doing great. I appreciate
the opportunity to speak a little bit about the great
work that's hippening here at Tough's Medical Center and discuss
heart failure. So thank you again for having me.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
Well it's going great. And I never realized that, what
was it about five thousand heart transplants nationwide last year,
and you guys had a pretty good sized trunk of that.
But I didn't realize that heart trans transplants were becoming
I don't want to say common, but so frequent. It's
(21:02):
been a long way from those first heart transplants back
in the sixties and seventies.
Speaker 4 (21:08):
Yeah, I know, that's right. The transplant program here at
Tufts began in nineteen eighty five, you know, and since
that time we've done eight hundred transplants, and of course,
you know, I think we wish we didn't have to
do heart transplants, but you know, heart failure remains a
leading cause of unfortunately death and disability, and so transplants
really the final solution for patients who are no longer
(21:30):
responding to medications. But yeah, you're absolutely right, Transplant medicine
has come a long way, and it's even in recent
years there's been a number of new innovations that have
allowed us to dramatically increase the volume of hearts that
we'll be able to provide to people that could unfortunately
otherwise be you know, die waiting on the waiting list
(21:50):
for an organ to become available.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
So before we talk about toughts, and I do want
to talk about toughs. Because you did seventy adult heart
transplants last year twenty twenty five, or you broke your
y it's a new England record for the second straight year.
As I understand it a lot to be proud of there.
But I thought that I saw the figure somewhere on
forty eight hundred nationwide. Was that the figure that that
(22:15):
I was or did I misread that?
Speaker 4 (22:18):
No, No, that sounds that sounds that sounds right.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Yeah, approximately, So it's amazing to think, Uh, this is
a long way from the days of debate and the
and the the heart transplant pioneers. Let me just ask
you a really dumb question, because I get paid to
ask questions dumb or other ways. It has to be
extraordinarily difficult to perform a heart transplant. I mean, I
(22:42):
just can't imagine what it is like. I have trouble
changing the battery in a flashlight. I mean, how give
us a sense of what it's like in that room
when you're doing a heart transplant. You have to have
a team of I'm guessing twelve to fifteen people. They're
all knowing what they have to do and in what sequence.
(23:04):
Give us a sense of it, if you.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
Would, well, it does. So Number one, I don't want
to I don't want to disappoint you, but I'm actually
not the surgeon, so I'm on the medical side. So
the cardiologists provide all the care you know, before the
heart transplant, when the patient's waiting in the intensive care unit,
and the care once they're out of the operating room.
But yes, I mean there's the choreography of coordinating the transplants,
(23:27):
and it takes multiple surgeons because you need a surgeon
on the donor end, which could be a patient somewhere
else in the US, retrieving that gift of life, that organ,
and then of course a team of surgeons on the
receiving end getting our patient ready to receive that heart.
And it has to be you know, intimately timed so
(23:48):
that that heart that's in transport coming to us is
ready to enter you know, the patient's body to restore again.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
It's a short period of time. Generally it's someone who
has died. As I understand that if I'm wrong, please
help me out. In a motiv a crash or something
like that, where their organs are donated and the heart,
what's it about twelve hours that the heart can remain
viable because I know sometimes you'll see the transplant of
(24:17):
course here and the person who donated the heart was
in an accident in Ohio or something like that. Am
I correct on that?
Speaker 4 (24:25):
Yeah? Well, so that's one of the new innovations, to
be honest. So you know, historically we were actually in
a four up until you know, the recent last five
years or so, we had about a five hour window
or four you know, four to five hour window at
most where we needed to be able to get a
heart that wasn't beating out of the donor back into
our recipient. But there's new tools that have allowed us
(24:46):
to extend that where we have an organ that's now
beating outside of the body and what we call our
perfusion system that can allow us to travel. We've actually
our surgical team has retrieved an organ from Alaska and
not on you know, from the West coast is now
kind of a frequent occurrence for our patients to get
(25:07):
donations from again from the west coast, where five ten
years ago that was impossible. So that is one of
the innovations that allowed this.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
So what's the window The window has expanded from four
to five hours, it's still a very limited window.
Speaker 4 (25:21):
I mean, well it's still yeah, I mean usually, well,
the I would say, certainly, it's usually within twelve hours
or so. It is a fair number. I wouldn't say
there's not you know, there's not a tail end of it,
to be honest, once heart is on this profusion system,
but in general these are done within about twelve hours.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
Wow. Just amazing. And then if I could ask has
the life expectancy of the dony us, I assume it's
substantially increasing over time. I mean, you know, depending on
the age of the recipient in their own physical condition.
What's the lifespan that we're talking about when someone is
(26:05):
successfully transplanted.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Yeah, well let me start with the So let me
in terms of framing it in terms of what is
really gained. So in people with really end stage disease,
it's generally a coin toss whether or not, they're going
to be alive a year from now, and so that's
why you're you know, you take the risk of doing
a heart transplant, but when you know things go well,
which they most commonly do. We're talking about on average,
(26:32):
close to fourteen to fifteen years of additional life, and
that means on average, so half of patients do better
than that, but of course half are on the on
the shorter side of that as well.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
Okay, but still the idea of fourteen of fifteen years.
Speaker 7 (26:45):
You said on average, that's an average, correct, So yeah,
we're you know, we're restoring a decade and half of
life to people that otherwise would have, you know, probably
a year or less, and of course that year or
less is incredibly limited because of the disability and symptoms
these patients have.
Speaker 2 (27:02):
Wow, it is just incredible what you folks can do.
And I never imagined it would be fourteen to fifteen
years on average. Is this is so difficult to talk
to you about because I'm not even sure the best
questions to ask. Obviously, we celebrate what you've been able
(27:25):
to do at TOFFS, and we realize that you're rising
to just I think an incredible I mean, I know
little about medicine, believe me, and I'm overwhelmed and honored
to talk to someone like yourself who's been involved in
all of this. Where do you think is where do
(27:48):
you think will be five and ten years from now?
At some point I assume the advance the advance advances
are going to have to taper off, do you know.
I mean, you've made tremendous strides in the last fifty years,
ken is there's still room to grow and lengthen the
time that people's lives might be extended.
Speaker 4 (28:11):
I think certainly there's ways to continue to improve utilization
of organs that are are that may be discarded for
a number of reasons, and so by doing that that
allows greater access to patients that wouldn't have access to
this therapy. So there's lots of room for improvement there.
I mean, there's a whole ton of innovations that are
(28:33):
occurring in transplant and heart filiar medicine that are incredibly
exciting that you hear about in the news in terms
of zeno transplantation, which is genetically modified organs, but that
is still I mean, that's more than a decade I
would say into the horizon. So that's far from being available,
but there's a lot of enthusiasm and excitement about thinking
(28:54):
towards that direction.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
And let me just ask you a question as a cardiologist,
what is the one thing or the one or two
or three things that people can do, irrespective of their age,
that that advice you would give my audience to stop
doing or to begin to do that will lengthen the
time that their own hearts will work well for them,
(29:17):
you know.
Speaker 4 (29:18):
And I think it's what people know. It's to get
up and move, you know, it's to lead a healthy life.
It's it's it's a thing we all hear about regular
it's exercise, it's it's diet. Food, food is medicine. You
are what you eat, but you need to be exercising,
moving and eating well. And then of course, you know, uh,
not smoking. We've made a lot of strides as a
(29:39):
community in terms of awareness of the ills of tobacco
and avoidance of alcohol as well. Well.
Speaker 2 (29:46):
I just want to say thank you very much for
what you do. Thank you so much for being with
us tonight. Hopefully a lot of people now realize that
that the Tofts and and all the great hospitals we
were fortunate enough to have in our area just doing
what most of us would think of this miracles every
day of the week. So thanks very much for your
time and your information tonight. I really do appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (30:08):
Yeah, Dan, thank you for helping to bring awareness to this.
I appreciate it. It's great speaking with you.
Speaker 2 (30:13):
That's the least I can do, my friend. Let me
tell you, Doctor Michael Caernan, Associate Chief of Cardiology, Medical
Director of the Ventricular assist Device Program at Tufts Medical Center.
Thanks again, doctor m Doctor Kernan, I appreciate it very much.
Speaker 4 (30:28):
You're very welcome, Take care, goodbye bye.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
When we get back, we'll talk about something a little lighter,
and that is Glocester's Soul Salty fourth annual Festival, UH
coming up this weekend, believe it or not. And we
got all the information from you from Oliver Barcer, who's
the director of the Cape Inn Museum. Coming back on
Nightside right after the break.
Speaker 1 (30:50):
Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World,
Nice Side Studios. I'm do WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 2 (30:58):
All right, it's been cold couple of days or a
few days here in New England, and I'm hoping that
the weather's going to warm up a little bit as
we get towards this coming weekend. And I tell you this,
we can get you some great activity if you want
to go north to Gloucester with us. As Oliver Barker,
(31:19):
he's the director of the Cape Ian Museum, and Oliver,
I believe we talked about this a year ago, and
I hope that the publicity helped a little bit. This
is the fourth annual Gloucesters So Salty Festival coming up.
I guess this weekend. How are you tonight?
Speaker 3 (31:37):
Dan?
Speaker 6 (31:38):
It is great to speak to you, And yes, the
publicity was wonderful last year. We actually had eighteen hundred
visitors who braved the cold weather and joined us last
year to enjoy some of the fish cities recognizably salty character.
So we follow this again. We've got ten ice sculptures
(31:59):
that will be on view.
Speaker 2 (32:01):
And they're gonna be They're gonna be a good shape. Oliver.
I think the ice sculptors are going to last.
Speaker 6 (32:06):
I think so, but we want people to come and
see them this Saturday and Sunday if possible. I'm told
that it's gonna get marginally warmer this weekend, so I'm
hoping that listeners can rug up and join us for
what should be a lot of fun this weekend in Gloucesgow.
Speaker 2 (32:21):
Well, you know, I was out today and I gotta
tell you, when the wind it didn't blow, it wasn't
that bad. So if we can get you a weekend
up there without a lot of wind. You have indoor activities,
you have outdoor activities. Let's let's pick some of the activities.
It's Saturday and Sunday. Okay, that's the first thing they
have to know. And both days it goes from ten
(32:44):
in the morning until five in the afternoon, so the
sun is up at ten o'clock. Put it's gonna gonna
the best part of the day. Give us an example
of what you can do on Saturday, and let's talk
about some of the things on Sunday.
Speaker 6 (32:59):
Fantastic. So on Saturday, one of the great highlights, something
that was so popular last year was a sing along
sea shanty presentation. This is being offered by a group
called Three Ship, Three Sheets to the Wind, and that's
going to be taking place between two and four at
the Unitarian Universalist Church in downtown Gloucester. That's just a
(33:23):
wonderful way of hearing people sitting and actually joining in
many of the choruses. So I think that would be
a great indoor activity once you've come and seen all
the sculptures outside, and then moving to Sunday.
Speaker 2 (33:37):
We've got before before Well I'm not going to rush
you here before you moved to Sunday. Okay, wait a second,
I'm talking about you can get breakfast, lunch, or dinner,
or you can get a or a sweet and salty
cocktail in an igloo. Is that an actual igloo at
(33:57):
mile mark or one on Route one point three?
Speaker 6 (34:01):
It's an actual igloo.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
Yes, we're talking.
Speaker 6 (34:06):
We've got. There are all sorts of salty and sweet
treats that many of our sister businesses along Main Street
are offering. We've got there's a bakery that's offering cookies
with special mold and salt on top. And and if
you want, if you're shopping, have shopping in mind. I
(34:27):
know one of our local vendors will be selling specially
warm socks to keep everyone cozy as they as they
walk around the downtown.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
Well, I get this one. You buy one, you get
one free chocolate chip cookie. I would be stopping there
because that's pretty good to me cookie guy. Right, absolutely,
So then let's move that's that's all weekend. But so
on Saturday you mentioned the sea shanties buy three Sheets
(34:56):
to the Wind. Yes, that that should be a lot
of fun. That's from two to four at the Unitarian
Universalist Church. You got some open mic poetry readings you
got on Sunday. Let's let's talk about some of the
things on Sunday. What's paint salt water dough fish? What's
that mean?
Speaker 6 (35:16):
So that's one of our local businesses called Local Colors
that has fish that are made out of dough that
people will be able to paint. Speaking of kids activities,
a sister institution, Maritime Gloucester on Gloucesters Waterfront is offering
(35:37):
a kid's activity between ten and four as well. So
there are lots of things for people to get there,
get involved in and bring their families, and lots of
family friendly activities that are off of this weekend.
Speaker 2 (35:56):
Yeah, so there's there's again when you talk about the
ice sculptures and a looking at some of the ones
from last year, they're just beautiful. When are they already
created or are in the process of being created? You know,
today and tomorrow and Friday.
Speaker 6 (36:13):
So the sculptures are all actually being made by local
artists by the name of Don Chappelle. He's creating them
as we speak in his studio in North Andover and
he'll be delivering them on Saturday morning. And for anyone
who's there early, it's fascinating to see him actually assemble
the sculptures in situ who he comes with a chainsaw
(36:36):
and he makes certain sort of touch ups as his
positioning the pieces and making sure that they're stable. So
they're being created as we speak and will be installed
on Saturday. And we have ten sculptures this year, with
subjects ranging from fancy fish and lobsters all the way through.
(36:59):
Many of your listens listeners might be familiar with a
great author and a great book by Virginia Lee Burton
called Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel. It's a book
that many kids grew up with a wonderful story, and
Virginia Lee Burton is a or was a local in Gloucester.
(37:21):
And so we're actually having Don Chappelle make an image
of the Steam Shovel for younger audiences this weekend as well.
Speaker 2 (37:33):
That's great, well, Oliver it's great. It looks as if
there's a lot of activity up there. People conduct in
and out of the shops and stay warm. A lot
of it is all a kid friendly and family friend friendly,
as they say, poetry readings, free stickers, you know, food fun.
(37:54):
It sounds like a great weekend, and it's a great
weekend to get us through Jeduary. And it's a real
tradition in Gloucester. This is the fourth annual one, so
they can get up there. Where can they get information
if they want to get all the information that I'm
looking at right now? What's your website?
Speaker 6 (38:11):
So the website for the museum is Capeandmuseum dot org.
And if people on Saturday or Sunday head straight to
the museum, which is a twenty seven pleasant street in Gloucester.
I'll be there with a group of volunteers. We're going
to be handing out guides so that people can find
the sculptures and also access all the great other offerings
(38:34):
that are taking a place around the downtown this weekend.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
That's great, well, Oliver Barker, I hope that you have
much success. Is even more success than a year ago.
Speaker 4 (38:46):
It is.
Speaker 2 (38:47):
Gloucester is so salty and it's the end of January.
It's the last full weekend in January, so take advantage
of it all, particularly if you're here within the New
England area. It would be a great day either Saturday
Sunday from ten to five. Oliver, thanks for coming back
and joining us again. We'll talk to you next year.
Speaker 4 (39:06):
I love that.
Speaker 6 (39:06):
Thanks again, Dan, take care, You're very welcome.
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Okay, when we get back, we're going to talk about
the Boston Mayor's race, which seems to be coalescing. It
appears that Josh Craft. We'll talking about Josh Craft and
talk about whether or not Mayor Michelle Wu will now
actually have a race to deal with this year. It's
(39:29):
twenty twenty five, it said mayor all election year in Boston.
We now have maybe a second candidate, maybe there'll be more,
who knows. We'll talk about it right after the nine
and then later on tonight we will talk about the
presidents and some of the executive orders. I'm calling it
the good, the bad, and the questionable. Back on Night's side,
right after the nine o'clock news.
Speaker 8 (39:50):
Countertops installed in one day. Yes, they do call Bill
Shay's and Quincy yep. That Bill Shay's Call. The company
so serious about countertops that they put it in in
their name, Bill Shay's Countertops. When you say cha's, you
make your new counter tops
It's Night Side with Dan Ray on w BZY, Boston's
news radio.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Thanks very much, Nicole. Nice to be back off for
a few days around the holiday weekend. I want to
thank Gary Tangway in Morgan White for sitting in and
allowing me to spend a little bit of time away
from the microphone. But I am back. We'll be back tonight,
Tomorrow night, and on Friday night and then all of
next week. So a you're gonna get me for the
next week and a half, that is for sure. Buckle up.
(00:30):
We have a lot coming up tonight. By the way,
my name is Dan Ray and the host of the show,
for whom the show is aptly named Knight's Side with
Dan Ray. Just to give you a little bit of
a sense of what we're going to be doing later
on tonight, I'm going to talk about it looks like
a mayoral race here in Boston, and it looks as
if Josh Kraft, son of the New England Patriots owner
(00:51):
Robert Craft may very soon preps even as early as February,
announced that he will be a candidate for mayor here
in Boston against Mayor Michelle wo So that gives us
something to talk about for the balance of twenty twenty five,
or at least too early November, and then later on tonight,
beginning I'm guessing around ten o'clock, we're going to talk
about the executive orders issued by President Trump in the
(01:17):
last couple of days. As I kind of mention it,
the good, the bad, and the questionable. So there are
some which I think will long overdue and some which
I think we're a little bit of an overreach. But
we'll get to all of that during the nine o'clock,
ten o'clock at eleven o'clock hours. This hour, we have
four guests here on the night Side News Update, and
we're going to start off with Candace Lightner. She's the
(01:40):
founder and president of an organization called We Save Lives,
and there's sort of a subtitle here ending the backseat
driver stigma. Welcome Candace Lightner to Night's Eide. How are
you this evening.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
I'm fine, and thank you for having me very well.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Now, first of all, I'm a bit of a back
seat driver, but I don't think that's the back seat
driver you're talking about. If I'm sitting on the passenger side,
I like to help the driver. I like to when
we're at an intersection, I like to check the ride
and tell my wife or whomever I'm driving with, you're
(02:20):
all clear, Oh there's two cars coming or whatever. So
I mean, but that's really not what you're talking about here.
You're talking about speaking up to save lives. Tell us
about your program We Save Lives.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
We launched National Passenger Safety Week several years ago as
a result of my giving up my car and becoming
a passenger. And when I did, I realized that, oh
my gosh, I have to start setting boundaries for drivers
so that people know not to use their cell phones Bluetooth.
(02:55):
I had to do this with friends, taxi drivers, and
it occurred to me after doing this for a while, see,
I wonder how many other people think to do this too,
because in reality, it could save your life. And so
I just became so interested and passionate I still am
about the issue of passenger safety that I was able
(03:17):
to put together a great group of organizations, more than
sixty and we launched this which is now recognized by
the National Highway Traffic Safety Association and it's called National
Passenger Safety Week. You're right, we want passengers, Yeah, you.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Said, I just want to go catch something here. You
said that you gave up your right to drive. Did
you have some sort of you sound quite young. Did
you have some sort of a medical issue that or
did you do this voluntarily? Or did you get tired
of driving?
Speaker 3 (03:54):
What was it that's recorded?
Speaker 4 (03:56):
I know?
Speaker 3 (03:57):
I actually was in a crash before this with a
distracted driver totaled both of our cars and broke back.
And so as a result of that, I decided to
give up my car for a period of time. Actually
I gave it up for about three years, and I
actually just bought another one about a year ago. But
during that three years I became a passenger. And you
(04:21):
really don't think about what the driver is doing until
you become a passenger as often and as long as
I did. And I'll tell you, though, the thing that
really got to me is I electure at Columbia and
I would talk to posts NBA students and I would
ask them how many of you had written in the
(04:41):
car with somebody who's drunk, and so hardly anybody would
raise their hands. And then I'd say what about if
they're drugged? And they'd say, well, legal or illegal drugs?
I'd say both, doesn't matter, and they more of them
would raise their hands, and then I would say, well,
how many of you you have written in a car
with someone who's distracted? And everybody rose their raised their hands,
(05:03):
and I looked at them and I said, why would
you do that? Why would you risk your life to
ride with somebody who's driving dangerously? And I was absolutely
amazed at how many intelligent people would do that. I mean,
have you ever, oh.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
Have I driven with people who are distracted? Sure? Yeah, yeah,
But generally I'm like, I'm ninety nine percent of the
time driving, and I think I'm a pretty good driver,
and I think I pay attention. And if you looked
at my, oh what is it now, my eleven year
(05:46):
old Vovo, you'd say this must be a pretty good driver,
because it's in pretty good shape. That's that doesn't mean
I couldn't get into an accident tomorrow, obviously, you know
all of us have at different point in our life.
I guess got into some sort of you know, fender benders.
But it sounds to me like you had a horrific event,
(06:07):
a life changing event, and and and good good for you.
Now let me ask you, you obviously deal with people
whether it's a you said, a cab driver or whomever. Uh,
and if they're doing something which is clearly dangerous, which
includes obviously looking at their phone talking on their phone.
(06:30):
When you drive, when you drive with someone else, do
you try to help that person who's driving or do
you feel that when Like I'm I will always when
we come into an intersection, I'm looking because if the
car's coming from the right, I'm going to take the
brunt of the crash. And I've always whether whoever I'm with,
(06:51):
I'll always try to say, well, you're clearing the right,
nothing coming, or you got about five seconds here and
if you if you can't go real quickly, we got
to you gotta wait, do you or do you sit
there and oblivious to what's going on outside and you're
really focusing on the behavior of the driver of your car.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Well, I tend to be helpful. I tend to be
a helpful driver. Back to one of the things that
I do. I don't like it when drivers to get
directions will upload their maps and look at the map
on their tiny little iPhone or on their dashboard and
think that's being safe. So what I do is I
(07:31):
offer to give them directions. I ask them not to
look at their maps, but I will give them directions
and myself when I drive, are you Siri and Sory
gives me verbal directions And I don't even have my
phone where I can see it. I mean, it's just down.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
I agree with you. I agree with you on that.
You sound like the sort of person that I'd be
willing to get in the car with. Let me ask
you canvas give us the website so people can get
more information about We Save Lives. I think it's very important.
Give people a chance to check out your website. Go
right ahead. What's the easiest way people can either get
(08:08):
in touch with you or reach out that we Save Lives.
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Well, you can just go to we Save Lives dot org,
which is our website. We also have another one, National
Passenger Safety Week, also dot org and get and link
onto that. And there's two things that I really want
to mention here. One is the Courage to Intervene promise.
And this is one of the things we ask people
(08:33):
to download and sign. And unlike most promises and pledges,
this does not say I will not drive drunk, et cetera. Instead,
it will say it says things like I will stop
my friends and loved ones from driving buzz, drunk or drug.
I will not ride with them if they are under
any kind of influence. And it goes on like that.
(08:55):
But the second thing I want to mention, mainly because
I work Similarch so much to his victims of car
crashes motor vehicle crashes, is the parent checklist. And I
don't know if you have children and how old they are,
but I do wonder. And I've had so many parents
say to me, especially mothers, after telling me about their
(09:18):
child's death as a result of a passenger in the car,
if only I had known, If only I had known,
they were driving with someone who was unlifensed, who wasn't
a safe driver.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
So we have a parent Not to cut you off here, Candace,
but I'm stealing time from my next guest. How can
how can parents get to that information quickly most effectively?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
Again, National Passenger Safety dot or go to tool kids.
Speaker 5 (09:47):
It was fair.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
Oh that's great. That's great. Again, we went a little longer,
but it's well worth it. Uh, Candace Lightner, the group
we Save Lives dot org or National Passenger Safe. Thanks
very much, Candice, best of luck. We'll have you back?
Speaker 3 (10:03):
Okay, thank you, bye bye, very welcome.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Coming up, we're going to talk about supporting single moms
during Poverty Awareness Month. Back on Nightside. My name's Dan Ray.
Back in the big chair here, the host of Nightside,
coming to you every Monday through Friday night from eight
until midnight. Got a great show for the balance throughout
the evening. As a matter of fact, we just did
a very interesting guest mortcom Coming up on Nightside.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Now, back to Dan Ray live from the Window World
Nightside Studios on WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
Our next guest is Alison Carter Marlow. She's the executive
director the Boston executive director of the Jeremiah Program. Allison,
whereas we're talking about supporting single moms during Poverty Awareness Month,
tell us about the Jeremiah Program. How long has it
been active? And it is also a Boston based program
(10:55):
as I understand it.
Speaker 6 (10:56):
Sure, Thank you.
Speaker 4 (10:57):
So much for having me. It is a pleasure the
Jeremy sort of what sort.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
Of microphone do you want here? Allison? I'm getting all
sorts of Are you on some sort of a headset happened?
Speaker 5 (11:09):
No, I'm not, but I did have a heater plugged
in is that any better?
Speaker 2 (11:13):
I don't know. Why don't you just Rob will work
you with worth your fifteen seconds again, it's a better
audio version. Okay. We're talking with the executive director, the
Boston executive director of a group called the Jeremiah Program.
And this is a program that mark's January National Poverty
in American Awareness Month, and the focus is on supporting
(11:36):
single moms during Poverty Awareness Month. And certainly, if we
are ever to break the poverty cycle in this country,
I think we're going to have to focus on single
moms who are trying to care for themselves as well
as their children. Alison, I think we have you back.
Let's hope that the audio is a little better. Go
right ahead, Allison, tell us about the German.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
Program so much.
Speaker 5 (11:57):
Thank you. I hope this is better and stronger.
Speaker 4 (12:01):
Okay.
Speaker 5 (12:01):
The Jeremiah Program was founded in the early nineties by
a priest in Minnesota who was seeing a number of
young single moms who didn't have stable, affordable quality housing,
who didn't have childcare, and who didn't seem to be
on a path towards economic mobility. Most of us would
define that as college access or what I like to
(12:23):
call mortgage paying jobs, and so this father founded a
location in Minneapolis that housed a number of women, provided
quality childcare on site, and allowed moms to go to
school and to work. Since nineteen ninety three, there are
now nine campuses across the country, three in Minnesota, one
(12:45):
in Nevada, one in Maryland, one in New York, one
in Texas, one in North Dakota, and one here in Boston.
The Boston campus has been around since about twenty fifteen.
Twenty sixteen, we started with a partnership of doctor Richard
Wiley and the then president and CEO of Jeremiah, Gloria Perez.
(13:07):
Moms were housed on campus in Beverly, and yet as
the program evolved, it was clear that moms wanted choices.
They wanted to be able to go to different colleges,
access different majors. For some of those moms, Beverly was
just too far, and so the Jeremiah Boston program now
(13:27):
encourages moms to go to whatever college makes sense for them.
Indicot is still a very strong, wonderful partner to the
Jeremiah program, as his Urban College of Boston Laborarey College
of Healthcare. Our moms attend sixteen local colleges in Boston.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
There is probably we mentioned Antegoch College. Was that the
then president Richard Wiley, who worked with you, that.
Speaker 5 (13:53):
Was he was a great friend, a.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Great friend of mine. Commencement beach at Endercart College in
two thousand and nine. I can't tell you how impressed
I am with that facility. So during this period of
time from twenty fourteen to today, you're getting close to
celebrating ten years here in the greater Boston area, how
(14:20):
many moms have participated in the program and how many
different schools have they either attended or matriculated from.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
Sure, so we in twenty twenty four we reached a
peak and we're serving seventy two moms. Moms graduate or
may opt out of the program, and so anywhere between
sixty and seventy moms are served in our program a year.
Those sixty to seventy moms in twenty twenty four had
(14:50):
one hundred and twelve children. And our investments are in
both moms and their children. As I mentioned, our moms
attend sixteen area local colleges. They choose which college works
for them. But it's a credit to doctor Wiley Endicott
understand some of the unique challenges facing parent scholars and
(15:13):
have just a number of supports that allow a mom
who chooses that college to do very well.
Speaker 4 (15:20):
I do want to.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
Say that while we invest in moms, provide them coaching,
provide backup childcare, try to partner with employers who are
interested in hiring our moms and our graduates, we also
invest in private tutoring. We subsidize summer camp, and we
make investments into the children of our mom's five to
(15:43):
twenty nine accounts. We are a two generational program, and
we believe that once mom earns that credential, she is
going to be the most influential in ensuring her children
do that. They go from first generation college grads to
second college grads and beyond. We graduate anywhere between four
(16:05):
to seven moms a year. Moms finish either the Associates degree,
they may choose to continue on with Jeremiah as they
pursue their bachelors, or they may in their journey with us.
Most of our moms are interested in bachelor's degrees.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
So do any of the moms ever come back and
find themselves actually tutoring others or themselves helping with the program,
or when they leave the nest, do they leave the
nest and fly away? No?
Speaker 4 (16:39):
No, no, no, no no.
Speaker 5 (16:40):
And to this point of you know, poverty awareness, the
reality is a marathon and not a sprint. Just because
our moms are earning that college degree, that doesn't always
magically translate into that mortgage paying job. We have a
very strong alumni network among Jeremiah moms. We have close
(17:01):
to thirty women who have graduated in the eight and
a half years we have been on the scene. Our
moms have four to six years that they're allowed to
be in the Jeremiah program and pursue that associates or
bachelor's degree. Those alum are very interested in some of
the things most college grads are interested in. That is
(17:24):
building their social capital, networking, being introduced to folks who
might have a job opportunity or an internship opportunity. I
think the thing that distinguishes Jeremiah program from so many
other programs that support parents scholars. Our moms will speak
to the sense of community and sisterhood they get to experience.
(17:46):
We think that's a driver for college persistence in this population,
and our alum are definitely close and still connected long
after they graduate from college. There's still Jeremiah alum and
they do reach back and offer to tutor and mentor
our current moms.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
That sounds like a great program. How could folks get
more information on the program or maybe even be a
little supportive of it in some form of fashion. What's
the easiest way folks can can find.
Speaker 5 (18:15):
The program www dot Jeremiah program dot org. You can
look up the Boston campus. We have volunteer opportunities. A
lot of our donors and supporters like to get involved
around career panels where we're exposing moms to the different
fields they might leverage their college degrees and enter. You
(18:38):
can give and donate. All that information is on our
website and we certainly accept any ideas people might have
for sponsoring our events and our programming.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
All right, Jeremiah Program dot org, Allison, sounds like a
great program. Thanks for joining us tonight, and sorry about
that a little bit of an audio glitch at the
audio does much better as a result of taking a
few seconds to get it squared away. Thank you so much,
appreciate it. We get back. We're going to talk about
heart transplants. Adult heart transplants. It is amazing to realize
(19:15):
how many adult heart transplants have been done nationwide. Here
in New England and most specifically the Tufts Medical Center.
They completed seventy doult heart transplant last year twenty twenty four,
broke their own record for the second straight year. We'll
be talking with doctor Michael Kiernan, who's the Associate Chief
of Cardiology and medical director of the Ventricular assist Device
(19:39):
Program at Toff's Medical Center. Coming back right after the
news at the bottom of the Urts Nightside with Dan Ray.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
Stay with us, It's Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
Oh truck Day. I remember doing live shots at Fenway
Park when I was at Chern for doing Truck Day
Fenway Park. It is like the end, the unofficial end
of winter. It was so much fun, something to look
forward to. I want to now introduce you all of
you to doctor Michael Kiernan, who is the Associate Chief
(20:17):
of Cardiology medical director of the Ventricular assist Device Program
at Tuft's Medical Center. Doctor Kierenan, Welcome to Night Side, sir.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
How are you hi, Dan? Thanks so much for having
me you in the show. I'm doing great. I appreciate
the opportunity to speak a little bit about the great
work that's hippening here at Tough's Medical Center and discuss
heart failure. So thank you again for having me.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
Well it's going great. And I never realized that, what
was it about five thousand heart transplants nationwide last year,
and you guys had a pretty good sized trunk of that.
But I didn't realize that heart trans transplants were becoming
I don't want to say common, but so frequent. It's
(21:02):
been a long way from those first heart transplants back
in the sixties and seventies.
Speaker 4 (21:08):
Yeah, I know, that's right. The transplant program here at
Tufts began in nineteen eighty five, you know, and since
that time we've done eight hundred transplants, and of course,
you know, I think we wish we didn't have to
do heart transplants, but you know, heart failure remains a
leading cause of unfortunately death and disability, and so transplants
really the final solution for patients who are no longer
(21:30):
responding to medications. But yeah, you're absolutely right, Transplant medicine
has come a long way, and it's even in recent
years there's been a number of new innovations that have
allowed us to dramatically increase the volume of hearts that
we'll be able to provide to people that could unfortunately
otherwise be you know, die waiting on the waiting list
(21:50):
for an organ to become available.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
So before we talk about toughts, and I do want
to talk about toughs. Because you did seventy adult heart
transplants last year twenty twenty five, or you broke your
y it's a new England record for the second straight year.
As I understand it a lot to be proud of there.
But I thought that I saw the figure somewhere on
forty eight hundred nationwide. Was that the figure that that
(22:15):
I was or did I misread that?
Speaker 4 (22:18):
No, No, that sounds that sounds that sounds right.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Yeah, approximately, So it's amazing to think, Uh, this is
a long way from the days of debate and the
and the the heart transplant pioneers. Let me just ask
you a really dumb question, because I get paid to
ask questions dumb or other ways. It has to be
extraordinarily difficult to perform a heart transplant. I mean, I
(22:42):
just can't imagine what it is like. I have trouble
changing the battery in a flashlight. I mean, how give
us a sense of what it's like in that room
when you're doing a heart transplant. You have to have
a team of I'm guessing twelve to fifteen people. They're
all knowing what they have to do and in what sequence.
(23:04):
Give us a sense of it, if you.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
Would, well, it does. So Number one, I don't want
to I don't want to disappoint you, but I'm actually
not the surgeon, so I'm on the medical side. So
the cardiologists provide all the care you know, before the
heart transplant, when the patient's waiting in the intensive care unit,
and the care once they're out of the operating room.
But yes, I mean there's the choreography of coordinating the transplants,
(23:27):
and it takes multiple surgeons because you need a surgeon
on the donor end, which could be a patient somewhere
else in the US, retrieving that gift of life, that organ,
and then of course a team of surgeons on the
receiving end getting our patient ready to receive that heart.
And it has to be you know, intimately timed so
(23:48):
that that heart that's in transport coming to us is
ready to enter you know, the patient's body to restore again.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
It's a short period of time. Generally it's someone who
has died. As I understand that if I'm wrong, please
help me out. In a motiv a crash or something
like that, where their organs are donated and the heart,
what's it about twelve hours that the heart can remain
viable because I know sometimes you'll see the transplant of
(24:17):
course here and the person who donated the heart was
in an accident in Ohio or something like that. Am
I correct on that?
Speaker 4 (24:25):
Yeah? Well, so that's one of the new innovations, to
be honest. So you know, historically we were actually in
a four up until you know, the recent last five
years or so, we had about a five hour window
or four you know, four to five hour window at
most where we needed to be able to get a
heart that wasn't beating out of the donor back into
our recipient. But there's new tools that have allowed us
(24:46):
to extend that where we have an organ that's now
beating outside of the body and what we call our
perfusion system that can allow us to travel. We've actually
our surgical team has retrieved an organ from Alaska and
not on you know, from the West coast is now
kind of a frequent occurrence for our patients to get
(25:07):
donations from again from the west coast, where five ten
years ago that was impossible. So that is one of
the innovations that allowed this.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
So what's the window The window has expanded from four
to five hours, it's still a very limited window.
Speaker 4 (25:21):
I mean, well it's still yeah, I mean usually, well,
the I would say, certainly, it's usually within twelve hours
or so. It is a fair number. I wouldn't say
there's not you know, there's not a tail end of it,
to be honest, once heart is on this profusion system,
but in general these are done within about twelve hours.
Speaker 2 (25:42):
Wow. Just amazing. And then if I could ask has
the life expectancy of the dony us, I assume it's
substantially increasing over time. I mean, you know, depending on
the age of the recipient in their own physical condition.
What's the lifespan that we're talking about when someone is
(26:05):
successfully transplanted.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Yeah, well let me start with the So let me
in terms of framing it in terms of what is
really gained. So in people with really end stage disease,
it's generally a coin toss whether or not, they're going
to be alive a year from now, and so that's
why you're you know, you take the risk of doing
a heart transplant, but when you know things go well,
which they most commonly do. We're talking about on average,
(26:32):
close to fourteen to fifteen years of additional life, and
that means on average, so half of patients do better
than that, but of course half are on the on
the shorter side of that as well.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
Okay, but still the idea of fourteen of fifteen years.
Speaker 7 (26:45):
You said on average, that's an average, correct, So yeah,
we're you know, we're restoring a decade and half of
life to people that otherwise would have, you know, probably
a year or less, and of course that year or
less is incredibly limited because of the disability and symptoms
these patients have.
Speaker 2 (27:02):
Wow, it is just incredible what you folks can do.
And I never imagined it would be fourteen to fifteen
years on average. Is this is so difficult to talk
to you about because I'm not even sure the best
questions to ask. Obviously, we celebrate what you've been able
(27:25):
to do at TOFFS, and we realize that you're rising
to just I think an incredible I mean, I know
little about medicine, believe me, and I'm overwhelmed and honored
to talk to someone like yourself who's been involved in
all of this. Where do you think is where do
(27:48):
you think will be five and ten years from now?
At some point I assume the advance the advance advances
are going to have to taper off, do you know.
I mean, you've made tremendous strides in the last fifty years,
ken is there's still room to grow and lengthen the
time that people's lives might be extended.
Speaker 4 (28:11):
I think certainly there's ways to continue to improve utilization
of organs that are are that may be discarded for
a number of reasons, and so by doing that that
allows greater access to patients that wouldn't have access to
this therapy. So there's lots of room for improvement there.
I mean, there's a whole ton of innovations that are
(28:33):
occurring in transplant and heart filiar medicine that are incredibly
exciting that you hear about in the news in terms
of zeno transplantation, which is genetically modified organs, but that
is still I mean, that's more than a decade I
would say into the horizon. So that's far from being available,
but there's a lot of enthusiasm and excitement about thinking
(28:54):
towards that direction.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
And let me just ask you a question as a cardiologist,
what is the one thing or the one or two
or three things that people can do, irrespective of their age,
that that advice you would give my audience to stop
doing or to begin to do that will lengthen the
time that their own hearts will work well for them,
(29:17):
you know.
Speaker 4 (29:18):
And I think it's what people know. It's to get
up and move, you know, it's to lead a healthy life.
It's it's it's a thing we all hear about regular
it's exercise, it's it's diet. Food, food is medicine. You
are what you eat, but you need to be exercising,
moving and eating well. And then of course, you know, uh,
not smoking. We've made a lot of strides as a
(29:39):
community in terms of awareness of the ills of tobacco
and avoidance of alcohol as well. Well.
Speaker 2 (29:46):
I just want to say thank you very much for
what you do. Thank you so much for being with
us tonight. Hopefully a lot of people now realize that
that the Tofts and and all the great hospitals we
were fortunate enough to have in our area just doing
what most of us would think of this miracles every
day of the week. So thanks very much for your
time and your information tonight. I really do appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (30:08):
Yeah, Dan, thank you for helping to bring awareness to this.
I appreciate it. It's great speaking with you.
Speaker 2 (30:13):
That's the least I can do, my friend. Let me
tell you, Doctor Michael Caernan, Associate Chief of Cardiology, Medical
Director of the Ventricular assist Device Program at Tufts Medical Center.
Thanks again, doctor m Doctor Kernan, I appreciate it very much.
Speaker 4 (30:28):
You're very welcome, Take care, goodbye bye.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
When we get back, we'll talk about something a little lighter,
and that is Glocester's Soul Salty fourth annual Festival, UH
coming up this weekend, believe it or not. And we
got all the information from you from Oliver Barcer, who's
the director of the Cape Inn Museum. Coming back on
Nightside right after the break.
Speaker 1 (30:50):
Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World,
Nice Side Studios. I'm do WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 2 (30:58):
All right, it's been cold couple of days or a
few days here in New England, and I'm hoping that
the weather's going to warm up a little bit as
we get towards this coming weekend. And I tell you this,
we can get you some great activity if you want
to go north to Gloucester with us. As Oliver Barker,
(31:19):
he's the director of the Cape Ian Museum, and Oliver,
I believe we talked about this a year ago, and
I hope that the publicity helped a little bit. This
is the fourth annual Gloucesters So Salty Festival coming up.
I guess this weekend. How are you tonight?
Speaker 3 (31:37):
Dan?
Speaker 6 (31:38):
It is great to speak to you, And yes, the
publicity was wonderful last year. We actually had eighteen hundred
visitors who braved the cold weather and joined us last
year to enjoy some of the fish cities recognizably salty character.
So we follow this again. We've got ten ice sculptures
(31:59):
that will be on view.
Speaker 2 (32:01):
And they're gonna be They're gonna be a good shape. Oliver.
I think the ice sculptors are going to last.
Speaker 6 (32:06):
I think so, but we want people to come and
see them this Saturday and Sunday if possible. I'm told
that it's gonna get marginally warmer this weekend, so I'm
hoping that listeners can rug up and join us for
what should be a lot of fun this weekend in Gloucesgow.
Speaker 2 (32:21):
Well, you know, I was out today and I gotta
tell you, when the wind it didn't blow, it wasn't
that bad. So if we can get you a weekend
up there without a lot of wind. You have indoor activities,
you have outdoor activities. Let's let's pick some of the activities.
It's Saturday and Sunday. Okay, that's the first thing they
have to know. And both days it goes from ten
(32:44):
in the morning until five in the afternoon, so the
sun is up at ten o'clock. Put it's gonna gonna
the best part of the day. Give us an example
of what you can do on Saturday, and let's talk
about some of the things on Sunday.
Speaker 6 (32:59):
Fantastic. So on Saturday, one of the great highlights, something
that was so popular last year was a sing along
sea shanty presentation. This is being offered by a group
called Three Ship, Three Sheets to the Wind, and that's
going to be taking place between two and four at
the Unitarian Universalist Church in downtown Gloucester. That's just a
(33:23):
wonderful way of hearing people sitting and actually joining in
many of the choruses. So I think that would be
a great indoor activity once you've come and seen all
the sculptures outside, and then moving to Sunday.
Speaker 2 (33:37):
We've got before before Well I'm not going to rush
you here before you moved to Sunday. Okay, wait a second,
I'm talking about you can get breakfast, lunch, or dinner,
or you can get a or a sweet and salty
cocktail in an igloo. Is that an actual igloo at
(33:57):
mile mark or one on Route one point three?
Speaker 6 (34:01):
It's an actual igloo.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
Yes, we're talking.
Speaker 6 (34:06):
We've got. There are all sorts of salty and sweet
treats that many of our sister businesses along Main Street
are offering. We've got there's a bakery that's offering cookies
with special mold and salt on top. And and if
you want, if you're shopping, have shopping in mind. I
(34:27):
know one of our local vendors will be selling specially
warm socks to keep everyone cozy as they as they
walk around the downtown.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
Well, I get this one. You buy one, you get
one free chocolate chip cookie. I would be stopping there
because that's pretty good to me cookie guy. Right, absolutely,
So then let's move that's that's all weekend. But so
on Saturday you mentioned the sea shanties buy three Sheets
(34:56):
to the Wind. Yes, that that should be a lot
of fun. That's from two to four at the Unitarian
Universalist Church. You got some open mic poetry readings you
got on Sunday. Let's let's talk about some of the
things on Sunday. What's paint salt water dough fish? What's
that mean?
Speaker 6 (35:16):
So that's one of our local businesses called Local Colors
that has fish that are made out of dough that
people will be able to paint. Speaking of kids activities,
a sister institution, Maritime Gloucester on Gloucesters Waterfront is offering
(35:37):
a kid's activity between ten and four as well. So
there are lots of things for people to get there,
get involved in and bring their families, and lots of
family friendly activities that are off of this weekend.
Speaker 2 (35:56):
Yeah, so there's there's again when you talk about the
ice sculptures and a looking at some of the ones
from last year, they're just beautiful. When are they already
created or are in the process of being created? You know,
today and tomorrow and Friday.
Speaker 6 (36:13):
So the sculptures are all actually being made by local
artists by the name of Don Chappelle. He's creating them
as we speak in his studio in North Andover and
he'll be delivering them on Saturday morning. And for anyone
who's there early, it's fascinating to see him actually assemble
the sculptures in situ who he comes with a chainsaw
(36:36):
and he makes certain sort of touch ups as his
positioning the pieces and making sure that they're stable. So
they're being created as we speak and will be installed
on Saturday. And we have ten sculptures this year, with
subjects ranging from fancy fish and lobsters all the way through.
(36:59):
Many of your listens listeners might be familiar with a
great author and a great book by Virginia Lee Burton
called Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel. It's a book
that many kids grew up with a wonderful story, and
Virginia Lee Burton is a or was a local in Gloucester.
(37:21):
And so we're actually having Don Chappelle make an image
of the Steam Shovel for younger audiences this weekend as well.
Speaker 2 (37:33):
That's great, well, Oliver it's great. It looks as if
there's a lot of activity up there. People conduct in
and out of the shops and stay warm. A lot
of it is all a kid friendly and family friend friendly,
as they say, poetry readings, free stickers, you know, food fun.
(37:54):
It sounds like a great weekend, and it's a great
weekend to get us through Jeduary. And it's a real
tradition in Gloucester. This is the fourth annual one, so
they can get up there. Where can they get information
if they want to get all the information that I'm
looking at right now? What's your website?
Speaker 6 (38:11):
So the website for the museum is Capeandmuseum dot org.
And if people on Saturday or Sunday head straight to
the museum, which is a twenty seven pleasant street in Gloucester.
I'll be there with a group of volunteers. We're going
to be handing out guides so that people can find
the sculptures and also access all the great other offerings
(38:34):
that are taking a place around the downtown this weekend.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
That's great, well, Oliver Barker, I hope that you have
much success. Is even more success than a year ago.
Speaker 4 (38:46):
It is.
Speaker 2 (38:47):
Gloucester is so salty and it's the end of January.
It's the last full weekend in January, so take advantage
of it all, particularly if you're here within the New
England area. It would be a great day either Saturday
Sunday from ten to five. Oliver, thanks for coming back
and joining us again. We'll talk to you next year.
Speaker 4 (39:06):
I love that.
Speaker 6 (39:06):
Thanks again, Dan, take care, You're very welcome.
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Okay, when we get back, we're going to talk about
the Boston Mayor's race, which seems to be coalescing. It
appears that Josh Craft. We'll talking about Josh Craft and
talk about whether or not Mayor Michelle Wu will now
actually have a race to deal with this year. It's
(39:29):
twenty twenty five, it said mayor all election year in Boston.
We now have maybe a second candidate, maybe there'll be more,
who knows. We'll talk about it right after the nine
and then later on tonight we will talk about the
presidents and some of the executive orders. I'm calling it
the good, the bad, and the questionable. Back on Night's side,
right after the nine o'clock news.
Speaker 8 (39:50):
Countertops installed in one day. Yes, they do call Bill
Shay's and Quincy yep. That Bill Shay's Call. The company
so serious about countertops that they put it in in
their name, Bill Shay's Countertops. When you say cha's, you
make your new counter tops
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