HEALTH NOTES

Senior fitness studio opens

Touchmark at Coffee Creek will open a studio with fitness classes later this month. The studio will offer group exercise classes designed for people 50 and older at 2801 Shortgrass Road in Edmond. It will be open to the public for memberships or to pay by the class starting March 26. For more information, call Touchmark, 340-1975, or go to Touchmark.com.

Storm season looms

The state Health Department urged residents to create a disaster plan ahead of the spring storm season. A plan should include how to get to a safe place, how to contact each other and what to do in different situations. People who have extensive medical needs should plan for how to transport their supplies. Families also should put together a 72-hour emergency kit, including water, snacks, a firstaid kit, a flashlight, batteries, prescription medications, important papers, baby supplies, a few toys or books for children, wipes and plastic bags for soiled items.

Director studies ethics

Beth Condley, clinical director of the children’s program at Integris Baptist Medical Center, was accepted into the pediatric bioethics certificate program at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri. The program discusses end-of-life decisions and medical research, among other topics. She also was accepted into a nursing leadership program, which only takes two applicants annually.

OUHSC doctor gets grant

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which funds pediatric cancer research, awarded a $97,500 fellowship to Dr. Arpan Sinha, of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Sinha is looking for genes that contribute to acute myeloid leukemia, the second-most common blood cancer in children. About 60 percent of children with that type of leukemia survive.