_ Mental & Emotional Health Childhood Bullying Still Hurts at 50+ By article Were you bullied as a child? You may still be feeling the negative social, physical and mental health effects. A studydone at King's College London and published in April 2014 in the American Journal of Psychiatry is the first to look at the effects of bullying beyond early adulthood. The findings come from the British National Child Development Study that includes data on all children born in England, Scotland, and Wales during one week in 1958. The 7,771participants were then followed up until the age of 50.
Aging Well Resilient Older Women Show Compassion By Sondra Forsyth article If you’re 50+ and you’ve recently been through a tough time but you’ve bounced back, chances are you would score high on a compassion test given by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. The study, published in the April 2014 issue of the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, reported that resilient older women who have suffered a recent major loss are more likely to be compassionate toward those they don’t even know than are other older adults.
Spirituality, Health Care And Not Feeling Alone By blog “You’re a what?” The patient raises an eyebrow and looks at me suspiciously. “I’m a chaplain. I’m part of the hospital team, to focus on your spiritual and emotional needs.” “But I’m not religious.” “That’s ok. Neither am I!” My retort brings relaxed laughter and then conversation flows.
Pain Management Alternative Healing for Chronic Pain and Fatigue By article By Janet Komanchuk The numbers involved in America’s problem with chronic pain are staggering and probably larger than most realize. More than 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, costing nearly $600 billion annually in medical treatments and lost productivity, according to the Institute of Medicine, which adds that the total surpasses that of all people affected by heart disease, diabetes, and cancer combined.
_ Heart Health Irrational Health Beliefs & Skipped Cardiac Rehab By article Heart patients with beliefs about health that aren’t based on medical evidence are more likely to skip sessions of cardiac rehabilitation, according to a study done at Ohio State Univeristy and available online in April 2014 in the journal Health Psychology and slated to be published in a future print edition. Among the irrational beliefs assessed were the following: *Doubting the preventive power of the flu vaccine
_ Specialist Docs Up Feeding Tube Use in Dementia Patients By article When elderly patients with advanced dementia are hospitalized, the specialties of the doctors at their bedside have a lot to do with whether the patients will end up with a gastric feeding tube -- a practice that some medical organizations recommend against for frail, terminal patients. That is the finding of a study done at Brown University and published in the April 2014 edition of the journal Health Affairs,
_ How You Can Help a Spouse With Cancer By article By Nurse Practitioner Jamie Kabat, BSN, MSN, CNP and Clinical Nurse Specialist Josette Snyder, RN, MSN, AOCN One of the most frequent – and touching – questions we get on the Cleveland Clinic’s Cancer Answer Line is from people whose spouses or partners have been newly diagnosed with cancer. They want to know how they can help and support their spouses through this life-changing diagnosis and the ensuing treatment.
Modified Medical Devices Should Be Re-Evaluated By article The U.S. Food and Drug Administration should require that clinical data be submitted as part of a more rigorous re-evaluation of medical devices that are modified after approval, according to University of San Francisco physicians in a commentary published online March 24th 2014 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
_ Surgical Residents And Patients Benefit From 24-Hour Shifts By Jane Farrell article Limiting the number of working hours for surgical residents hasn’t improved patient outcomes and may actually have increased patient complications. Additionally, shorter hours seem to lead to higher failure rates on certification exams. The finding, by researchers from St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, was published in the journal Annals of Surgery.
Pain Management Natural Migraine Prevention Tips By article By Romie Mushtaq M.D. Headaches are fifth-leading cause of emergency room visits among all Americans, according to a 2013 National Institutes of Health report that calls headaches a major public health problem. The key to preventing headaches is, of course, to figure out what’s triggering them. While migraine and stress headaches can both be triggered by stress, migraines have many other possible triggers and they vary from one individual to the next.
Mentally Challenging Job = Sharp Mind After Retirement By article A mentally demanding job may seem stressful but data from the University of Michigan Health and Retirement Study show that you’re probably doing you brain a favor in the long run.
_ Aging Well Helping Us Use Age-Friendly Technologies By article Both public and private entities must consider the needs of older adults in order to help them optimize the use of new technologies from smart phones to smart cars, according to the latest issue of Public Policy & Aging Report (PP&AR), entitled “Aging and Technology: The Promise and the Paradox.” A total of eight articles, all from authors affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab, are featured.
_ Too Many Unnecessary Brain Scans By Jane Farrell article The cost of brain scans for headache patients has reached $1 billion annually, a study has found. But many of the scans are unnecessary. Research from the University of Michigan Medical School found that 12 percent of doctor visits in the U.S. for headache resulted in a brain scan. Several national guidelines for physician advise against scanning the brains of patients who complain of headache and migraine. Still, the rate of brain scans is rising, not falling, since the guidelines were issued.
_ Tx Guidelines for MRSA Skin Infections By article Cases of skin infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have increased greatly since the early 2000s. Skin abscesses such pus-filled boils or pimples with discharge characterize these infections, according to a March 12th 2014 release from the University of California, Los Angeles written by Rachel Champeau. She reports the more virulent form of the infection can result in potentially lethal conditions including necrotizing pneumonia, fasciitis, and sepsis.
_ Reducing Falls Among the Elderly By article A low-cost program reduced falls in the elderly by 17 percent statewide in Pennsylvania, according to a study done at University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health available online in March 2014 and slated to be published in the May 2014 issue of the American Journal of Public Health The researchers demonstrated the value and effectiveness of using existing aging services such as senior centers in preventing falls.
Lessons From Managing Geriatric Patients By article A large team of experts led by a Johns Hopkins geriatrician reports that efforts to improve the care of older adults and others with complex medical needs will fall short unless public policymakers focus not only on preventing hospital readmission rates, but also on better coordination of community-based "care transitions." Lessons learned from managing such transitions for older patients, they say, may offer a framework for overall improvement.
_ 10 Things Docs & Older Patients Should Question By article “Choosing Wisely”, and initiative of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Foundation, has released a 2014 update from the American Geriatrics Society listing 10 procedures and tests that should not be routinely performed or prescribed for older patients:
_ FDA Wants to Update Nutrition Labels By article The Food and Drug Administration wants to update the look and content of the Nutrition Facts Label to help consumers make better food choices and follow healthy dietary practices. The proposed changes include: