KEEP IT CLEAN/KEEP IT CLEAR

As the Back Bay Association celebrates the New Year, we challenge our member businesses to sign on to a “New Year’s Resolution.”  Let’s make the Back Bay the cleanest neighborhood in the country.  As we traverse the charming and bucolic streets of Back Bay, while we appreciate the area’s vitality and success, we also see an area for improvement….the Back Bay Association strongly encourages every business with a street front and every property owner to play an important role in Back Bay’s beautification by cleaning the storefront out to the curb.

KEEP IT CLEAN
It is very important to note that City of Boston code REQUIRES businesses to clean the sidewalk to the curb (including the cutter area). The Code states, “business owners or employees should sweep sidewalk and gutters removing any garbage, trash and debris; failure to do so may result in a $25 fine.”  This includes cleaning the tree pits in front of your building.  One way to ensure sweeping gets done is to add this task to the job description of your businesses’ opening crew, to ensure that the sidewalk in front of your business is swept once per day.

KEEP IT CLEAR
The Back Bay Association also supports the swift and efficient removal of snow.  The Back Bay is home to the finest retail stores, restaurants and businesses, but one big snowstorm can grind access to businesses to a halt and impact sales.  The City of Boston suggests that businesses:

• Remove snow, slush and ice from sidewalks and curb ramps abutting your property within three hours of snowfall ending (or 3 hours from sunrise if snow falls overnight).
• Remove snow and slush from the full paved width of the sidewalk and curb ramp or minimum path of 42 includes wide (note from us:   it goes without saying that the paths should line to encourage pedestrian foot traffic in spite of inclement conditions).
• Remove ice to bare pavement or make as level as possible and treat with sand, sawdust or similar material.
• Please clear fire hydrants and catch basins in your area.
• Please don’t shovel snow, under any circumstances in to the street, as violators will be fined

As you traverse the City, the Mayor’s Office strongly encourages business leaders and residents alike to “see it, hear it, report it.”  If you see something that needs to be fixed or reported, please call the Mayor’s hotline at 617-635-4500 or add to report to the City of Boston’s “Citizen’s Connect” program at http://www.cityofboston.gov/doit/apps/citizensconnect.asp.

All businesses located in the Back Bay will benefit from a cleaner neighborhood that is swept, shoveled and ready for business.  Thank you for participating in the daily beautification of the Back Bay.

Best Wishes,

Meg Mainzer-Cohen
President
Back Bay Association

In honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Boston has partnered with the Ellie Fund in support of its ambitious “Do Good Campaign” to help local families in the fight against breast cancer. This October, book a 60 minute Oriental Essence massage at The Spa and a portion of the proceeds from each treatment will be donated to the Ellie Fund. Facilitating an array of different massage techniques, the Oriental Essence treatment has been designed relax those constantly on the go and relieve those experiencing neck and shoulder tension. Mandarin Oriental’s signature ‘Quintessence’ custom-blended essential oil with warming ginger, uplifting mandarin and sacred frankincense is used to help realign emotions and restore equilibrium. Feel good while doing good this fall at The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Boston.

Offer is available Mondays through Thursdays from October 1 through October 31, 2011

At The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Boston located on  776 Boylston Street

The cost is $175 per treatment where $35 of each treatment will be donated to the Ellie Fund

For more information, please visit www.mandarinoriental.com/boston/spa or www.elliefund.org

Or call us for reservations at +1 (617) 535 8820 or email mobos-spa@mohg.com

About the Ellie Fund:

The Ellie Fund is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit founded in 1995 by brothers Jeff and Eliot Popkin to honor their mother’s courageous nine year battle against breast cancer and the giving spirit she exhibited throughout her life. The money raised by the Ellie Fund is used to provide critical support services free of charge to more than 500 breast cancer patients and family members across Massachusetts each year. The “Do Good Campaign” features companies that have pledged a minimum $1,000 donation that will assist the Ellie Fund in providing critical support services free of charge to hundreds of families in Massachusetts, including transportation to medical appointments, childcare, housekeeping, groceries and prepared or delivered meals.





Lets face it – the system of primary care medicine in the United States is broken. Even in Boston, the mecca of medicine, patients struggle hard to find an accessible doctor. And when they finally land an appointment, their well-intentioned internist, pediatrician, or family physician often seems overworked, rushing from patient to patient, with little time to really listen to details. As a primary care family physician for 20 years, I hear my colleagues saying, “I went into medicine to put the whole clinical picture together. I really care and want to know my patient – but the system doesn’t give me the time to do it!”

The basic issue is time.  People really are beautifully complex, more than the sum of their organs.  So patients don’t have isolated problems but present to their family doctor with two or three (maybe as many as six!) problems that are often interconnected problems. They’ve stored up all these issues for their one 15-20 minute doctor’s appointment, which took a month to get. The patient feels rushed, the doctor feels rushed, and telling details are often missed.

When I was an island doctor in Maine for 10 years, I had more time with my patients. I had less technology at my fingertips and discovered something remarkable. Most diagnoses, even rare ones, can be made by asking open-ended questions and having the focus to listen very carefully to the finest details of the patient’s story. The subtle onset and timing of a wheeze, a fever, abdominal cramping –  as symptoms weave and change over time, they leave a trail of diagnostic clues. As most seasoned doctors know, the patient’s story can narrow the diagnosis. Then a precisely chosen test or targeted referral to the best specialist can cinch the diagnosis and point the way toward treatment options.

A dedicated primary care doctor is trained to diagnose and treat up to 90% of patient problems without needing a specialist. But in today’s health care environment, with no time to get a detailed history, the trend is to quickly refer patients on to a specialist, which often starts a cascade of specialty consults focused on one organ at a time. And how does that effect our clinical skills? By referring common health conditions too readily to specialists, both the general doctor and the specialist can diminish their skills — the generalist becomes less expert at caring for common problems, and the specialist, flooded by common issues that could have been addressed by a primary care physician, has less time to devote to the more complicated, rare conditions he/she are specifically trained to diagnose and treat. Ultimately, it costs the patient (and the health care system) more time and money.

From my experience, I believe that urging primary care doctors to spend more time with patients can not only provide better care across the board, but save patients’ time and the health care system money. The primary care doctor is uniquely positioned to put together a patient’s whole health picture by connecting the physical condition with the life stressors that often precipitate disease in the first place. Close follow-up, monitoring for changing symptoms, can make earlier diagnoses possible and help prevent treatment side effects. At your next appointment, help your doctor see your whole health picture and keep him/her informed of ongoing changes. This can (and should) lead to better treatment and prevention of future disease. The system may be broken, but it’s not beyond repair.

Celebrate with The Catered Affair at The Boston Public Library this holiday season

From small dinners to cocktail parties to large gatherings, we would love to entain with you

Visit The Courtyard Restaurant at The Boston Public Library

Receive a FREE Espresso with your luncheon order.

www.thecateredaffair.com/bpl

or “Like” us on FB to view our restaurant and maproom menus and view our events photo gallery

617-859-2282

Come October 22nd from 5-9 pm. Tickets are $45 in advance/$50 at the door and gets you an evening of hairstyling, manicures, make-up, massages, food and drinks. Viselli Santoro Salon will also be holding a silent auction and raffle with exciting prizes. They’ve received donations from The Liberty Hotel, Back Bay Hilton, Zipcar, Boloco, Bostone Pizza, Fluevog, Audrey’s, Kevin Murphy, Smoothie King, Max & Dylan’s, the Brass Heart Inn, Madewell, Moore Massage and more. Raffle tickets are on sale now, and participants do not have to be present to win. 100% of the proceeds will go to Susan G. Komen and Dana-Farber.





Exciting upcoming offers!

Buy One, Get One Free!

Between September 4, 2011 and October 31, 2011 buy any type of massage treatment at the regular price and receive a gift certificate for the same treatment!*

*Offer only good for regular, non-promotion treatments and connot be used with other deals. Please contact Beacon Massage for questions about the promotion.

Student Discount

Welcome to (or back) Boston for another exciting school year! We know the rigors of having to deal with life in school and want to help. For those with student ID’s, we offer the following rates:

- 30 Minute Relaxation Massage for $19.00

- 60 Minute Relaxation Massage for $35.00

- 90 Minute Relaxation Massage for $45.00

Stress from exams can be brutal. Massage can help. book one online today!

Returning Clinet Rewards

Attention Beacon Massage Regulars! We now have a reward program in place for our existing clients that can help save even more on already discounted prices.

In addition to the promotions offered, such as the buy one, get one free, we will also offer reward points for every massage you get, automatically! Simply come in for a treatment, and recieve one point for every minute you are massaged. One hour relaxation massage will yield 60 points. A ninty minute treatment will get you 90 points. 500 points will get you one gift certificate for a 60 Minute Relaxation Treatment. Save up to 750 and get a 90 Minute Relaxation Treatment. 1000 will not only fetch two 60 Minute Relaxation or clinical therapeutic treatments, but will give you a 30% discount on each treatment thereafter for up to one year!*

Whip your body into shape and save along the way!

*Reward points good for one 12 month period. 30% discount for for one 12 month period from date of earning 1000 reward points. Please contact Beacon Massage for details.

Beacon Massage

45 Newbury St  Suite 208

Boston, MA 02116

(617)735-5583

www.beacon-massage.com

The Lansdowne Pub is hosting an Oktoberfest event on Wednesday, September 28^th at 6pm. We are bringing in 6 types of Oktoberfest, in addition there will be other types to sample from these breweries:
• Sam Adams Octoberfest
• Long Trail Harvest Ale
• Paulaner Munchen
• Wolaver’s Pumpkin Ale
• Narragansett Fest Lager
• Otter Creek Oktoberfest

All beers will be available for purchase at the bar after the sample tickets are gone. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased atwww.lansdownepubboston.com .

With The Tent at Boston Fashion Week at Mandarin Oriental, Boston’s
doorstep, celebrate with our exclusive Boston Fashion Week package.
• One night luxurious accommodation
• Two VIP passes to an evening show at The Tent at Boston Fashion Week
• Access to the show’s VIP pre-party and/or after party
• A sweet fashion treat to enjoy upon arrival
• Two tasteful signature cocktails in chic M Bar & Lounge
• A luxurious manicure and pedicure at The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Boston
• A wash and blow-out at in-house MIZU Boston hair salon
For reservations, please contact +1 (617) 535 8880.
Terms and conditions apply and is based upon availability.
Valid from September 24 to 30, 2011, with the exception of
September 28, 2011. Rates f or the package start at $695.
Visit www.bostonmagazine.com/thetent
or follow us @theTENTatBFW
to learn more about the week!