WXXI’S NATIONAL HEALTH SERIES, SECOND OPINION, WINS TWO COMMUNICATOR AWARDS

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Contact: Kristin Tutino, WXXI, 585-258-0253 (office) 585-259-5884 (cell)

WXXI’S NATIONAL HEALTH SERIES, SECOND OPINION, WINS TWO COMMUNICATOR AWARDS

Rochester, New York (April 30, 2015) – The national health series Second Opinion, produced by WXXI, the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC), and West 175 Productions, has won Silver Communicator Awards for two of its episodes – Addiction to Pain Medications and Childhood Cancer in the Film/Video: Health and Wellness category. The Communicator Awards, presented by the International Academy of the Visual Arts, is the leading international awards program honoring creative excellence for communications professionals. 

Second Opinion’s award-winning episode, Addiction to Pain Medication, looks at how taking pain medication, appropriately prescribed by a doctor, can turn into a deadly addiction for some. Jennifer Matesa shares her story of the darkest days of her addition to her recovery. Experts include: Louis J. Papa, M.D., FACP, Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center and Louis E. Baxter, Sr., M.D., FASAM, Immediate Past President, American Society of Addiction Medicine.  The episode includes a Myth or Medicine segment with  Gloria Baciewicz, M.D. , Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, who answers “Do pain medications lead to addiction?” and a Second Opinion 5 segment, where John Markman, M.D., Director of Neuromedicine Pain Management Center, University of Rochester Medical Center, shares the five signs of opioid pain medication abuse.

In the second award winning episode, Childhood Cancer, viewers meet parent Christine Kelly Marquino, whose son Danny is in his third cancer protocol. While he battles each recurrence, his family truly lives as a “cancer family.” Experts include: Lisa Harris, M.D., Vice President of Medical Affairs, Chief Medical Officer, Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital and Kenneth J. Cohen, M.D., MBA, Director, Pediatric Neuro-Oncology, Johns Hopkins University SOM. The episode includes a Myth or Medicine segment with Jeffrey R. Andolina, M.D., MS, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, University of Rochester Medical Center, who answers “Are new cancer treatments safe for children?” and a Second Opinion 5 segment, where Laurie Napoleone, Co-founder/member, Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation, explains five things to do when a child is diagnosed with cancer.

Second Opinion is the only regularly scheduled health series on public television. Each week, Dr. Peter Salgo engages a panel of medical professionals and patients in honest, in-depth discussions about life-changing medical decisions. Using intriguing, real-life medical cases, the specialists grapple with diagnosis and treatment options to give viewers the most up-to-date, accurate medical information. 

 Second Opinion’s executive producers are Elissa Orlando, Elizabeth Brock, and Fiona Willis. The series is distributed by American Public Television and is made possible with support from the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA). 

Second Opinion airs Thursdays at 8:30 p.m., Saturdays at 3 p.m., and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. on WXXI-TV, Thursdays at 7:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD (DT21.2), and on more than 250 PBS stations across the country. To learn more, visit: secondopinion-tv.org.

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WXXI is the essential, life-long educational media resource for the Greater Rochester area. WXXI puts the community first with programming that stimulates and expands thought, inspires the spirit, opens cultural horizons and promotes understanding of diverse community issues. WXXI also has a long-term affiliation with Little Theatre, which helps enhance the cultural life of the community and strengthens two of Rochester's most vital arts institutions. Log on to wxxi.org for more information about our services and programs.