Pamela D. Wilson - The Care Navigator

A report from Emory University, called America’s Health Rankings, reports that obesity will cost the United Stated $344 billion in medical related expenses by 2018.  These calculations are based on a prediction that in 10 years, 43% of American adults may be 30 or more pounds overweight.  Extra weight increases the likelihood of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and many other diseases.  Are you currently at your ideal weight?  Are you overweight?  If so what are you doing about it?  Your life or the quality of your life depends on how well you care for your body — it’s the only one you have. 

Did you ever consider that diseases have an emotional cause?  That you can cure whatever ails you, be it a terminal illness, cancer or a chronic disease?  Consider the benefits of alternative medicine after traditional medicine fails to solve the problem.  I visited with Dr. Jaffe, www.http://www.drjaffemd.com this past weekend on The Caring Generation www.http://tinyurl.com/ylhffty to talk about emotional and spiritual healing.  He works with individuals who want to heal the true cause of their disease and who have tried traditional methods that haven’t worked.  If you’re interested in a new way of healing, where love solves disease, listen to the 3/28 program or contact Dr. Jaffe through is website.  You never know, this may be the solution to your health issue.  What have you got to lose?

It’s the time of year that the cold – flu thing is going around. I always claim to be super healthy, which I usually am, but once every other year or so I get it. It is usually a nasty head cold that begins with a sore throat, moves into my ears and then had my head running like a faucet. I tried to go to bed early the other night and decided I was not going to be able to sleep because I simply couldn’t breathe and waiting to go to the doctor until the next day wasn’t a good idea nor was I really sick enough to spend time in the emergency room. So, at 7:30 pm in the evening I drove myself to Rocky Mountain Urgent Care. What a pleasant surprise. I was greeted quickly, got in to see a doctor within the hour and was sent home with several prescriptions that I filled at Walgreen’s late night pharmacy. While I have no idea how my health insurance will reimburse for this, I’m sure it has to be less than an emergency room visit where I would have likely sat for hours only to arrive home sometime in the middle of the night. In this case, I was home and in bed by 10pm with my inhaler, nasal spray and cough medicine and on the way to a better night’s sleep. I realize that everyone’s experience may differ, but check out www.rockymountainurgentcare.com if you have a medical issue that happens after hours and isn’t serious enough to warrant a trip to the emergency room or a call to 911.

I know I’ve talked about support groups before but I’ve recently come across a new group as I was searching for a PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) group. The group is called Meetup and to explain, I’ll copy a few words from their website: “Meetup’s about using the Internet to get off the Internet. With Meetup, you’ll find and join Meetup Groups about any topic you can imagine. But unlike regular online social networks, you’ll actually meet with members of those groups in the real world. Meetup’s mission is to revitalize local community and help people around the world self-organize. We believe people can change their personal world and even the whole world by organizing themselves into groups that share a common interest or goal. Whatever that interest or goal may be, Meetup knows that when people meet face to face in the real world great things happen!” These groups are not just support groups; they are skiing groups, knitting groups, groups of people with common interests. For more information go to www.meetup.com or email support@meetup.com

It seems that the holidays always bring on more stress. Perhaps it’s because this is when family members get together most. Whether it’s for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah or the host of other holidays occurring this time of year, it can be difficult from a variety of perspectives. Sometimes difficult because of a recent loss of a parent, brother, sister, grandmother, that special individual is conspicuously absent. Other times difficult because we see how our parents have declined and we’re concerned. However we hear the typical “we’re just fine, we don’t need any help.” I can’t tell you how often I hear this, see it in person and know that within a relatively short matter of time this person or couple is going to need a significant amount of assistance, and how often when this occurs that they and their family are unprepared for care needs and the changes that must occur. However difficult it may be planning is 90% of the battle so that when an event does occur it falls within the plan and does not occur in crises mode. Talk to your parents or family member about the future and about making a plan. Make this a gift you give yourself or to others.

Many individuals see numerous physicians. I have a client who has her primary care physician, a cardiologist, nephrologists, psychologist and pain management physician. There are times when one physician may see their issue taking precedence over the bigger picture. For example, a pain management physician seeks to manage pain while a caregiver may also be experiencing severe mood swings or sleeplessness of the person they are providing care for. The pain management physician sees his issue as a priority because he does not have a clear picture of the experience of the caregiver who is about to have a physical and mental breakdown. Many times the caregiver can’t communicate this information to a physician clearly in the presence of the person for whom they are providing care, which complicates the situation. The bottom line is that the caregiver knows what I’ll call the breaking point. In this case a solution was needed for the severe mood swings and sleeplessness before solving the pain management problem which was important but not the number one issue at the particular point in time. There are times when individuals need to prioritize needs between physicians competing for a solution. This can be intimidating especially because physicians can be touchy when told by a caregiver or family member how they want to proceed and in what priority. However sometimes it’s necessary to preserve the sanity and ability of the caregiver.

A recent news report stated that the United States will soon be experiencing a shortage in general practitioners. Issues with insurance companies, long hours and stressful positions were cited as reasons that physicians were either cutting back hours or closing their practices. I can see both sides of the story. Insurance companies with all of the regulations require an inordinate amount of paperwork for reimbursement. This requires an exceptional office staff or an outsourced billing department. In my opinion the stress a physician experiences is more directly related to the stress of running the office not seeing patients. Most individuals become physicians because they want to help people not because the want to be an office manager and manage paperwork yet this is often the result. It’s no wonder we soon will be experiencing a shortage in physicians. What’s the lesson for you? Request copies of all of your medical records now and each time you attend an appointment until we’re at a point where there is a nationwide electronic medical records system. This way if your medical office or practice closes you will be the keeper of your personal medical information not a closed practice.

The recent presidential election seemed to ignite the country regardless of which party a person supported. There are so many issues, the state of the country, healthcare education etc. One way that you can continue to participate is to learn more about your state and government officials. Most, if not all, governments have a website that lists the name of state and national senators and representatives. These in turn link to the individual government representative’s personal website where there is usually a contact me link with a mailing address, telephone number or email address. Utilizing the email address is usually the most effective way of voicing an opinion. As shown in the last election one person can gather others to make a difference. Begin by participating yourself and then share the information with others. Together we can make a change.

We all read stories in the newspaper or see them on the news, but when they become personal they become real. Last week I gained exceptional clarity about the difference between “hearing” a name and talking about a situation versus actually “meeting” a person and learning about the situation. Admittedly I do a significant amount of both in working with my clients, however for some reason this particular case became especially relevant. Perhaps it’s because the individual involved is 25 years old and demonstrated exceptional grace, humor and humility in the midst of an exceptionally difficult situation. The level of involvement and empathy is so much greater when one directly experiences the situation of another. This is how we become advocates for whatever cause we choose to support. What interests you, what are you willing to advocate for?

We can never be too educated. Admittedly it’s difficult to be educated on every subject. That’s why there are experts for certain issues: physicians, attorneys, financial planners, dentists etc. Even at this level of education, questions still arise. It’s always good to ask questions even of the experts. How else to become better educated by someone with a high level of education? Look at this relationship as an opportunity to learn more. As I’ve mentioned previously I recently became the State Policy Liaison for the Patient Advocate Foundation. I’m an expert in aging and healthcare but not in politics. One of my role as SPL is to contact government officials to advocate on behalf of the foundation. I called a colleague I know who knows someone else who spends time working with lobbyists in Washington D.C. We’re having lunch in a couple of weeks so that I can learn from an expert and utilize my expertise in navigating health care to support health care issues in the scope of the larger community.