Look around. The person sitting next to you on the bus, the person walking down the street, the person pushing a baby stroller, your family member, your friend, your neighbor: Any of them could be the uninsured. They are people in desparate need of health care coverage. According to the American Medical Association, 1 out of 7 Americans–or 45 million people–have no health insurance. But with everyone taking a stand, with everyone speaking up for…
Read More...To Take Charge of Your Health, Partner with Your Doctor
Prepare yourself for your next health check-up by partnering with your doctor or your nurse practitioner Research shows that patients who are more involved in their health care get better results. Here are some simple tips to help make your next visit a little less stressful. Bring a notebook with any questions you have, and write down any specific instructions from your doctor or healthcare professional. If medications are prescribed, write down the name of…
Read More...Navigating the Hospital Experience
Being admitted to the hospital as a patient can be a frightening overhwhelming experience for you and your family. Here are some Simple tips to help navigate you through your hospital experience. First, always be proactive and take charge of your health; it’s important to communicate with your doctors and nurses. You must be completely honest about your health history. Let your doctors and nurses know if you have any allergies, if you take any…
Read More...Leaving the Emergency Room – It’s Great to be Discharged, but be Sure to Follow Instructions!
By Barbara Ficarra Have you ever been a patient in an emergency department? If your visit to the ED didn’t require an admission, that’s good news. After being told by the ED doctor that you could go home and armed you with discharge instructions, you most likely want to high tail it out of there as fast as you can. Wait! Not so fast. It’s really vital that you do not leave the ED until…
Read More...Home-Centered Health Care
Congressional Testimony: Home-Centered Health Care by Mike Magee, MD As a health policy professional and weekly media commentator on health care issues, I am often asked for my opinion on where our health care system is headed. I have the advantage of being able to share perspectives with a wide range of thinkers in the health care arena, and their opinions on what needs to be done about our health care system cover the entire…
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