Hospice or palliative care? Many people think they are one and the same, but that is not exactly accurate. Each type of care helps patients at specific times and may have different insurance coverage options. What is hospice? According to the National Institute on Aging, a division of the U.S. Department of Health & Human… Continue reading Hospice vs. Palliative Care: What’s Better for Your Loved One?
Tag: patient
Sex after A Stroke
Stroke survivors often have difficulty with sex, and it can affect their lives beyond the bedroom. A new study offers fresh insight on the barriers – and how health care providers might help. Researchers interviewed 150 stroke patients at a medical center in Lima, Peru. According to a news release from the American Heart Association… Continue reading Sex after A Stroke
Heart Disease Patients and COVID-19
Deaths from ischemic heart disease and hypertensive diseases in the United States increased during the COVID-19 pandemic over the prior year, while globally, COVID-19 was associated with significant disruptions in cardiovascular disease testing. These findings are from two papers publishing in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that examined the indirect effects of… Continue reading Heart Disease Patients and COVID-19
Spirituality Eases Depression for Some Stroke Patients
Having a higher level of spirituality helps lessen depression in stroke survivors and their caregivers and boosts their quality of life, according to new research. The study included data from 223 caregiver-stroke survivor pairs in Italy who completed questionnaires measuring spirituality, depression and quality of life between 2016 and 2018. Survivors who scored above average… Continue reading Spirituality Eases Depression for Some Stroke Patients
A New COVID-19 Research Tool
The federal National Institutes of Health (NIH) has launched a centralized, secure “enclave” to store and study vast amounts of medical record data from people diagnosed with COVID-19 across the country. It is part of an effort, called the National COVID Cohort Collaborative (N3C), to help scientists analyze these data to understand the disease and… Continue reading A New COVID-19 Research Tool
A Doctor’s Belief May Influence A Patient’s Response
How your health care provider interacts with you is important. Their style can shape how you feel about your treatment. A new study found that people experienced less pain when the treatment provider expected a pain reliever to work. This may have been due, in part, to the provider’s facial expressions. The findings were published… Continue reading A Doctor’s Belief May Influence A Patient’s Response
Study: Having More than One Outpatient Orthopedic Procedure in A Day Is Safe
Having more than one outpatient orthopedic procedure on the same day is safe for patients, according to a new study. The findings were reported in the December 19,2018 issue of the The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. “Our data suggest that briefly overlapping surgery is a safe practice in the ambulatory orthopedic surgery center,”… Continue reading Study: Having More than One Outpatient Orthopedic Procedure in A Day Is Safe
A New Weapon in The Fight against Sepsis
A type of molecule known as a “nanocarrier” may someday help to protect against sepsis, a life-threatening infection that kills one in three patients in the U.S. Sepsis is one of the leading causes of death in intensive care units and, with an estimated price tag of $20 billion in 2011, the most expensive condition… Continue reading A New Weapon in The Fight against Sepsis
New Guidelines for Treating Melanoma
Melanoma may seem less scary than other cancers (breast, ovarian) that we read about, but this deadliest form of skin cancer kills one person every hour. The good news is that melanoma is highly treatable. As with any illness, guidelines for treatment can change as researchers learn more about the disease. The American Academy of… Continue reading New Guidelines for Treating Melanoma
Safety of Hospital Patients Still Falls Short
Although it’s long been a goal to increase patient safety in hospitals, there hasn’t been nearly as much progress as there should be. The commitment to increase patient safety came after a landmark 1999 study by the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) highlighted the prevalence of medical errors and made clear the need to decrease… Continue reading Safety of Hospital Patients Still Falls Short
The Truth About Genetic Testing and Medications
Wouldn’t it be great if you could find a link between your genetic makeup and which medicine is good for you? In some cases, you can; in other cases, it’s best not to take a test at all if the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hasn’t looked at it. There’s no doubt that genetic… Continue reading The Truth About Genetic Testing and Medications
Would You Record Your Doctor Visit?
Most people have never recorded a visit with their doctor, while 28 percent of doctors have done so for their patients, according to a new study. Healthcare researchers have speculated that with more than 75 percent of Americans owning a smartphone, the practice of recording a doctor visit is increasing. The study, from The Dartmouth… Continue reading Would You Record Your Doctor Visit?
Free Guidance from Cancer Experts
A diagnosis of cancer comes not only with fear but uncertainty – what tests should be scheduled, what are the best treatment options and how to talk with friends and family members. That’s why the National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) provides a Cancer Patient Navigation Hotline, where a patient can talk to “navigators” to… Continue reading Free Guidance from Cancer Experts
Caregivers Face Strain When Heart Patients Get Assistive Device
When heart failure patients receive a heart pumping device known as a left ventricular assist device (LVAD), their caregivers seem to suffer, too – at least initially, according to research in Journal of the American Heart Association (JAHA), the Open Access Journal of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. In a study of 50… Continue reading Caregivers Face Strain When Heart Patients Get Assistive Device
Family Involvement in Patient Care Reduces Hospital Readmission Rates
A program that allows family members of hospitalized patients to assist in their care improved healing and reduced readmission rates, according to researchers from a Utah health-care system. The voluntary program, Partners in Healing, provides chances for family members to learn about, and help, with basic care for their loved ones – and that, in… Continue reading Family Involvement in Patient Care Reduces Hospital Readmission Rates
The Truths about Your Doctor You’ll Never See on TV
What makes a drug-addicted people-hating doctor with zero regard for laws so popular that millions of people chose to spend time with him every week? Who am I talking about? Gregory House, MD. For eight years, we loved every episode. One year, House was the most watched television show on the entire planet. The newest… Continue reading The Truths about Your Doctor You’ll Never See on TV
The Patient/Doctor Relationship Is Improving
Patients report an increased partnership with their physicians in making medical decisions, new research shows. The pattern represents a departure the previous pattern of all-knowing doctor and dutiful patient. Shared decision-making between patients and their clinicians increased 14 percent from 2002 to 2014, according to the study, done by Northwestern Medicine and Harvard University. The… Continue reading The Patient/Doctor Relationship Is Improving
Older Cancer Patients Say Their Physical Abilities Are Better Than Their Caregiver Thinks
Older cancer patients and their caregivers often differ in their evaluation of the patient’s physical abilities, research shows. Caregivers generally rate the patient’s physical function as poorer than the patient does, according to a new study published in The Oncologist. The study also found that the differences were linked to a greater burden on the… Continue reading Older Cancer Patients Say Their Physical Abilities Are Better Than Their Caregiver Thinks