Today's topic: Medical Billing: Keeping you and your pocketbook healthy. Often, the bills you get from your doctor or insurance company aren't what you really have to pay. Our guest: Harvey Matoren, president and CEO of Claims Security of America, a Jacksonville-based health insurance claim-filing consultant. HEALTH CARING PODCAST
Health

Today's topic: Critics are concerned about Florida's 38 percent C-section rate. Florida's obstetric and gynecologic professional group is trying to tackle the issue. Our guest: Andrew Kaunitz, the newly installed president of the Florida Obstetric and Gynecologic Society. He's also a professor and associate chair for the obstetrics and gynecology department at the University of Florida College of Medicine's campus based at Shands Jacksonville.   HEALTH CARING PODCAST
Health Caring: C-sections

Stand up paddle boarding, a trend in Hawaii and California, is now becoming popular in Northeast Florida. It's a way to ride waves and to cruise flat water --- riders stand on big, buoyant boards and use a paddle to propel themselves.
The exercise benefits are considerable too.

Reservations are being taken through Sunday, Aug. 22, for an Aug. 28 "listening workshop" sponsored by the Buckman Bridge Unitarian Universalist Society. "Being Present -- The Art of Silence and Active Listening" will be led by Pat Ray, an interfaith minister and Reiki Master, according to a news release.  The workshop will be held 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Orange Park Library, 2054 Plainfield Ave. Sign up by calling Tara Crisp at 264-1545.    

Be the first on your block to listen to the very first Health Caring podcast, wherein we discuss getting well and staying well on the First Coast. Today's topic: How rotator cuff injuries can be treated and how young baseball pitchers can avoid hurting theirs in the first place. Our guest: Kevin Kaplan, Jacksonville orthopedic surgeon and one of the team physicians for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Look for Health Caring podcasts Wednesday mornings on jacksonville.com. HEALTH CARING PODCAST
Health Caring: Rotator cuffs

An Orange Park stylist was named first runner-up in a national hairstylist competition sponsored by a professional hair product manufacturer. Lee Goodnight, 62, is a retired Naval Officer who has more than 40 years of experience as a stylist. Sexy Hair Concepts received more than 600 nominations from across the country. The contest was for stylists "who go out of their way to improve the physical and emotional lives of their clients while remaining active in their communities," according to a news release. Goodnight was selected as a finalist because of his volunteer workas a patient session facilitator and area trainer for "Look Good.Feel Better," a national public service program helping patients struggling with the appearance-related challenges of cancer treatment. Also, he is a long-time volunteer Locks of Love, which helps people with medical hair loss, and as a canoe and kayak volunteer instructor with the Girl Scouts, according to the release. He is one of only five board-certified haircolorists in Northeast Florida. Nominated by long-time friend and customer, Diane Lewis of Orange Park , Goodnight has submitted a 3-minute video for the final competition. The winner was based on the total number of votes and selection by two committees, one from Sexy Hair Concepts and one from Look Good.Feel Better. For each stylist nominated, Sexy Hair donated $1 to Look Good.Feel Better. For information about complimentary pre- and post-chemo haircuts and wig shaping for cancer patients, contact Goodnight at 264-2244 or hairbylee@comcast.net.  

In the photograph, the newborn infant is wrapped in a white blanket, her delicate, doll-like features mirroring those of her dark-haired mother, in whose arms she's cradled: the rosebud mouth, the soft etching of brows, reminiscent of her mom's arched, darker ones. It is a strikingly lovely photo, one that appears to capture perfectly that joyous moment when a mother holds her child the first time. That the moment is far from joyous does not mean mother Lindsay Murphy treasures the image any less; if anything, she treasures it even more. On July 6 of last year , Murphy went into labor. Her parents, Kathy and Clyde Murphy, who, like their daughter, live in Jacksonville, were over the moon, ecstatic about the impending birth of their first grandchild. Lindsay's best friend, Loren Braunohler, flew into town, eager to be there for the big moment. Once Lindsay's labor pains began, the happy group, now accompanied by Lindsay's sister, Shannan Critzer, and Shannan's husband, Jeff, headed to the hospital. Though she was in considerable pain, Lindsay was, like her loved ones, cheerful and upbeat, laughing and taking bets on how much the baby would weigh and what time it would be born. At 2:48 the next morning, Sydney Caroline Murphy took her first breath. At 3:54 a.m., she died, having survived just more than an hour. A normal-weight, full-term infant, Sydney Caroline died as a result of complications late in Lindsay's pregnancy. Though the pain of losing Sydney still blindsides her at unexpected moments, a little more than a year later, Lindsay's wounds are beginning to heal. Part of her healing derives from a support system of family and friends who love her dearly. But there is another reason, too. During those first bleak, terrible hours after Sydney's passing, when Lindsay was still struggling through a fog of shock and disbelief, her parents were approached by a pair of nurses who had gotten to know and like the family. They wanted to tell the couple about a group of amateur and professional photographers who volunteer to go to hospitals and photograph children who are dying or have died. Compiled into a slide show or album, the photos are intended to provide the families with a measure of solace in the form of a lasting, tangible tribute to the child they've lost. Launched five years ago in Colorado by a photographer whose own baby died, the organization, Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, boasts more than 4,000 photographers nationwide. Within a 50-mile radius of Jacksonville, some 13 photographers are involved. Area coordinator Donna Campiz, a professional photographer, lives in Mandarin with her husband, Ramfis, who also is involved in the program. Together they've worked with more than 30 bereaved couples this year alone. Linda Rosengren, chaplain and bereavement coordinator at Wolfson Children's Hospital, works with parents whose babies have died during labor or delivery. "Initially, [the parents] may resist having the photos taken because they think they can't deal with it, or that they'll heal faster if they don't have something around to remind them," she said. "But I find that far more want [it] than don't." Not everyone in Murphy's family was on board at first. "The nurses were telling my parents about how wonderful it is and what precious memories they provide," Lindsay Murphy said. "My mom and dad's first reaction was: 'We don't want photos. We don't even want to remember the last few hours. We just want our precious Sydney.' " But then the nurses showed them a few of the photos, and the couple was awed. The images were not only beautiful, but reflected sensitivity. "My parents just said [yes], and told me she [the photographer] was coming," Lindsay said. Arriving at Beaches Baptist Hospital, Donna Campiz said she came to Lindsay's room, where she quietly introduced herself and offered her sympathy to the family. She led Lindsay's parents into another area of the hospital. There, she took a series of photographs of Sydney with her grandparents, as well as some of the baby alone. Lindsay was impressed with Campiz. "At a time when no one else was feeling any peace at all, [Campiz] was just incredibly peaceful and respectful." She remembers the photographer asking her father if the family had any toys or momentos they'd like included in the photos. "I have a necklace that I've worn for years, and my dad came in and got that necklace. In one of the photos, Sydney's hand is wrapped around my necklace. Anyone who's close to me knows that I have never taken that necklace off. Now, I definitely won't." Once she finished taking the first set of photos, Campiz came back to Lindsay's room and placed the baby in her mother's arms. "She knew exactly how to position us to make the picture look completely natural, as if I was [just] holding my newborn baby," Lindsay said. Donna Campiz learned about Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep four years ago, when one of the participating photographers gave a talk about doing a pilot project at the Professional Photographers Association of Jacksonville, of which she is a member. Having lost her own sister at a young age, Campiz was no stranger to family tragedy. Intrigued, she contacted officials at Baptist Hospital to see if they were interested. They embraced the idea. This year alone, Donna and her husband, Ramfis, have put together albums or slide shows for about 35 families. "There was a time when infants that had died were taken away from their parents, even before they had a chance to hold them. ... Even though they're sometimes not even alive when they're born, these babies are very much loved and very much part of the family ... They were born; they did exist. And that needs to be acknowledged," she said. Operating under the umbrella of the hospitals' social services departments, the photographers are required by HIPAA laws to go in as guests of the parents rather than of the hospital. As part of the training process, the new photographers shadow the veterans to get a feel not only for what is involved in the photo shoot itself, but for how to interact with grieving family members. "The fact that most of the babies are firstborns makes their loss especially traumatic," Campiz said. "For the most part the mother is in shock, so the most important thing is to enter the room quietly and speak softly." Campiz would like to see more funding made available so hospitals could purchase their own photographic equipment. "There are always going to be situations where, for whatever reasons, [the photographers] are not able to get there ... If the hospitals had equipment of their own, we could go in and train the nurses and other staff members so that, if need be, they could take the photos themselves." As the babies' skin color changes after death, the photographs are taken in black and white. A veteran photographer, Donna Campiz is the first to acknowledge that many of the stories she encounters are heart-wrenching. "There was one mom who knew her baby would be born brain-damaged, but she didn't want to give birth because she couldn't stand the thought of being separated ... I hold it together because I have to get the job done. It's when I put the slide shows together that I choke up." She is moved by how grateful the parents often are upon seeing their baby's album or slide show for the first time. "I've had the biggest, brawniest truck driver - this guy just covered in tattoos and piercings - lift me off the ground in a huge bear hug. Their gratitude is truly amazing to see."

The Jacksonville Rollergirls league started in 2006 and has grown to include about 70 women skaters who make up four teams. The travel team, the Jax City Rollers expect to go pro in October.