From On Air - Winter 2000

Soap Summit IV

Top Television Leaders and Health Experts Meet to Explore Matters of Birth and Death

PCI convened its fourth annual Soap Summit in New York City (October 1999), bringing together daytime television producers with nationally recognized health experts to discuss birth and death issues facing Americans. Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and bio-medical ethicists guided in-depth explorations of the complex issues surrounding assisted fertility, deadly chronic diseases, and the way death and care for the dying are treated in the U.S.

ABC’s Patricia Fili-Krushel, the first woman president of a major television network, delivered the keynote address to soap opera writers, producers, and network executives. “We all know there are no fans like soap fans,” she said. “They become deeply involved when one of their characters faces a life crisis, so soaps have a unique opportunity to influence people’s lives.”

Fili-Krushel relayed a General Hospital story line that dramatized the consequences of unsafe sex and HIV infection. “We received stacks and stacks of mail,” she said. “A father wrote, ‘Recently when I returned home from work, I noticed my 18 year-old daughter was extremely upset. I asked her what was the matter. She told me some guy named Stone died from AIDS, and that Stone’s girlfriend tested HIV positive. My heart sank…until I found out that they were characters in a soap opera. I was relieved. It wasn’t a real person, but it led to an excellent conversation with both of my daughters.’ ”

Dr. Jeffery Koplan, Director of the CDC, spoke of the public health challenges facing Americans in the 21st century and of the CDC’s role in educating the public. Koplan announced the CDC’s first annual Sentinel for Health Award for Daytime Drama. “This award will be our way of acknowledging the importance of the work you do,” Koplan told the TV executives. All 11 daytime television dramas are eligible for the award, and the winner will be announced at PCI’s Soap Summit V in October 2000.

Dr. Lynne Wilcox, Director of the Division of Reproductive Health at the CDC, and Dr. Maria Bustillo, Director of Assisted Reproductive Technology Services with the South Florida Institute for Reproductive Medicine, provided an in-depth review of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART). Dr. Wilcox spoke of the complexity, the odds of success, and the risk of multiple gestations and multiple births. In the U.S. about one out of 1,000 women have undergone ART. “Now you may think that one out of 1,000 doesn’t sound like a very large number. But keep in mind that there are about 60,000,000 women of reproductive age in the United States.”

Speaking of some of the ethical issues associated with ART, she mentioned a donor site where women who are models are auctioning their eggs on the Internet, beginning at $25,000.

Film, stage, and TV star, Beverly Sanders, performed an excerpt from her one-woman show called Yes Sir, That’s My Baby. The autobiographical play portrays Sanders’ struggle to conceive and give birth, and relates the emotional and physical toll involved.

Dr. James Marks, Director of the Center for Chronic Diseases, provided some perspective on the most deadly diseases affecting Americans. “Three out of four in this room will die of heart disease, cardiovascular disease or diabetes,” he said. “And while about 45,000 women die each year of breast cancer, over 500,000 die each year from cardiovascular disease, strokes, and heart disease.”

Dr. Robert Lyman Potter, Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Kansas School of Medicine, spoke of death and care for the dying. A clinical ethics scholar at the Midwest Bioethics Center, Dr. Potter said focus group research shows that “Folks want to have their pain and other symptoms dealt with, but they don’t want medical technology to intrude upon the naturalness of their dying. They want to die at home in the company of their family and loved ones—and they don’t want to be a burden.”

Charles Meyer, an Episcopal priest and Vice President of Operations for Saint David’s Medical Center in Austin, Texas, spoke of unrealistic expectations: “I get people making end-of-life treatment decisions based on what they see on Chicago Hope and ER. You know what the success rate is for CPR on Chicago Hope?” he asked. “96 percent. That’s pretty good, 96 percent. I want to go to Chicago Hope!” He urged the summit audience to reflect on the educational messages of TV’s hospital dramas, and to help viewers develop a wiser and a more loving acceptance of death and dying.

Fili-Krushel asked the Summit participants to “Talk to your kids, your neighbors, a taxi cab driver. Find out what matters to them. Then talk to the experts. Learn from organizations like PCI and the CDC. As members of the soap community, we have a special opportunity and an obligation to raise awareness. To not only entertain, but to enlighten. We’ve done a great job so far. So let’s work together to keep this moving forward.”
In closing the summit, Sonny Fox, PCI’s Senior Vice President, U.S. Programs said, “I hope that you come away understanding that as entertainers, you are also communicators. You have an incredible capacity for storytelling, which can be used for brilliant ends.”

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