Think Out Loud

The American Red Cross recently announced that blood donations are at a 20-year low. Along with the decline in donations, recent weather events disrupted planned donation drives. Angel Montes is the regional executive of donor services for the American Red Cross Cascades Region. He joins us to share more on what donations are looking like now and what this means in the Pacific Northwest. Claire Murphy is a pathologist and medical director of the Riverbend Hospital Laboratory Blood Bank. She also joins us to talk about what the shortage means at the hospital level.

For the past year, Portland neurosurgeon Darrell Brett hasn’t been charging his patients for his services, but only as a result of disciplinary action. In an in-depth investigation conducted by the Oregon Medical Board that began in 2017, Brett was found to have grossly overcharged his patients for surgical procedures, overprescribed painkillers and referred his patients to a specimen testing company he owned. Lucas Manfield is a reporter for Willamette Week. He joins us to share more about this specific case and how it reflects failures in the system of oversight and regulation by the state medical board and other agencies.  

Some U.S. cities are contending with the rollout of self-driving cars and other autonomous vehicles on their roads. Others are still considering how to approach AVs and whether they’re a good fit for the community. A new guide from the University of Oregon’s Urbanism Next Center aims to help leaders navigate these challenges.  Nico Larco is a professor of architecture and urban design at UO and the director of the center. He joins us with more details on what cities should be thinking about as autonomous vehicles continue to roll out.

When someone overdoses on opioids, they can sometimes be brought back to life with a dose of Narcan. Often it is a friend, family member or fellow addict who is administering the lifesaving overdose reversal drug. That means, the overdose itself may never be counted by medical officials, leading to an incomplete understanding of how many people are nearly dying because of drug use. The Malheur County Health Department is trying to get a handle on the number of nonfatal overdoses taking place by using a survey. Hannah Woods, the health and promotion prevention supervisor for Malheur County, joins us to talk about the effort.

A chauffeur couple are accused of stealing millions of dollars from their employer, Oregon-based publisher Win McCormack. Sergey Lebedenko and his wife, Galina Lebedenko, made up to $34 million in unauthorized charges to McCormack’s credit card, including several houses and a jet, according to a federal prosecutor. Maxine Bernstein wrote about the fraud for The Oregonian and joins us to talk about the case.

Ann Patchett’s latest novel is set during the pandemic, but it is also set in the past. The main character, a mother of three adult daughters, tells her children the story of her own youthful romance with a man who is now a famous movie star. The story is told over long days picking cherries on their family farm, where everyone has gathered together for the lockdown. Though the central story revolves around the mercurial movie star, the real focus of the book is the relationship between mothers and daughters, the lives that parents led before they were parents, and what the stories of our past tell us about ourselves. Ann Patchett joins us for a conversation about her new book, "Tom Lake," ahead of her event in Portland.

Jan. 26 marks the 324th anniversary of the last Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake. The 1700 quake caused the coastline to drop by several feet and sent a tsunami crashing into the Pacific Northwest coast. Pressure has been building in the Zone ever since, setting the region up for another potential magnitude-9.0 quake. Researchers estimate this kind of “megathrust” earthquake occurs roughly every 300-500 years. The Oregon Department of Emergency Management has been encouraging residents to prepare with initiatives like the Great Oregon Shakeout and Be 2 Weeks Ready.   Althea Rizzo is the geological hazards program coordinator at the Oregon Department of Emergency Management. Natasha Fox is the department’s inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA) coordinator. Susan Penrod is the superintendent of the Seaside School District, which covers the coastal communities of Seaside, Cannon Beach and Gearhart. Shawn Looney is a member of the Linnton Neighborhood Emergency Team. They all join us to offer four different perspectives on earthquake risks and preparedness. 

Author David Grann often writes about obsession. His stories feature people doing extraordinary, and often dangerous or morally questionable things, in pursuit of ambitious goals. He’s the author of the books “Lost City of Z,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” and his newest, “The Wager.” Grann is also obsessive about the research and details he puts into his books. We talk to Grann in front of a group of students at Nelson High School in Happy Valley.

For some downtown Portland business leaders, the new year is a time for optimism. Some say government attention on the area, like an emphasis on the region through the Central City Task Force convened by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, could mean positive changes for downtown. Jonathan Bach is a real estate and finance reporter for the Portland Business Journal. He recently wrote about the outlook for downtown business leaders and joins us to share what he’s been hearing from them.

When Sarah and Joel Bond moved into their first house, a home they’d bought in SW Portland Gabriel Park a few years ago, they noticed the two tall Douglas firs on the property - one several times taller than the house and leaning toward it.  Generally, to remove a tree of a certain size in Portland, it must be either dead, diseased or dangerous. The Bonds applied under the dangerous criteria, but their permit was denied. The tree leaning toward their house came down in the January storm, destroying much of it. Their family wasn’t hurt but they’re still assessing the damage and are frustrated by the outcome they say they’d done everything they could to avoid. They join us to talk about dealing the aftermath, and how they’re approaching removing the other tree that’s still standing but was visibility weakened by the storm.