UMPC Tablet helps individuals with Disabilities

This is a great page on showing how a tablet pc can help individuals with disabilities..the keyboard was ok, but when you read this article you can clearly see how the EO UMPC from Tablet Kiosk has transitioned his experience.  Good page to bookmark.  The docking station that comes with this model is a real key here as well.  He is also using the built in web cam...BD

Dave drives an eo

Previously I have reviewed and offered my thoughts on Tablet PCs, one being a slate [Sahara Slate] and the other [Acer C200] having a keyboard with touch screen.

While the tablet experience really highlighted some advantages for myself and the way I could interact with them, the issue for me with these previous devices was primarily that they were physically too large.

[Dave driving the eo]

If you’re new to Lifekludger, you’ll not be aware that I have a disability and use a mouth-stick to operate computers, well, just about everything. For that reason, the size and physical layout of a machine is paramount over issues like speed, weight, ports, brand.

Source: lifekludger » Lifekludging a UMPC

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Windows Home Server CTP

 I haven't had time yet to post my own screenshots, but found this blogger who has done some nice work with adding a few screenshots of the new and upcoming Windows Home Server, now out in public beta...BD

You instantly notice that setup is a bit different this time around. When installing on the same PC you are given the choice of install type which is either a new install or a server re-installation. This completely wipes all settings etc. but preserves backups and all shared folder contents, cool!

Source: Windows Home Server CTP. - Randomelements :: Blog

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Robotic surgeon to team up with doctors, astronauts on NASA mission

 

Raven, the mobile surgical robot developed in the UW's BioRobotics Lab, weighs about 50 pounds. Its nimble appendages can suture wounds and perform minimally invasive surgeries. Credit: David Clugston

This week Raven, the mobile surgical robot developed by the University of Washington, leaves for the depths of the Atlantic Ocean. The UW will participate in NASA's mission to submerge a surgeon and robotic gear in a simulated spaceship. For 12 days the surgical robotic system will be put through its paces in an underwater capsule that mimics conditions in a space shuttle. Surgeons back in Seattle will guide its movements.

The 12th NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations test will take place May 7 to 18 off the coast of Florida. The robot leaves Seattle on Friday. During the mission, Raven will operate in the Aquarius Undersea Laboratory, a submarine-like research pod about 60 feet underwater. This mission will test current technology for sending remote-controlled surgical robotic systems into space.

Source: Robotic surgeon to team up with doctors, astronauts on NASA mission

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BiCOM Reports Better-Than-Expected Results Due to Unique Tonometer Diaton Launch – Tonometry Through Eyelid / Glaucoma Detection Device

 Now this is very interesting...much less evasive than dialating pupils in the eyes...BD

BiCOM Inc. at a recent conference call, reported better than expected results due to a successful launch and unexpected increase in sales of its recently introduced transpalpebral (through the eyelid) tonometer Diaton, a device used for Glaucoma detection. Diaton to be revealed in over 30 countries. The company has increased its outlook for 2007

New York, NY, April 19, 2007 --(PR.com)-- BiCOM Inc. has obtained the FDA approval for Diaton tonometer back in April of 2006. This unique hand-held tonometer allows to measure intraocular pressure (IOP) through the eyelid, with no contact with cornea, no sterilization and without the use of anesthesia drops. Transpalpebral (Diaton) approach is ideal for patients with corneal concerns like conjunctivitis, edema, erosion, cornea pathology, high degree of ametropy or astigmatism, or acquiring IOPs following laser refractive and other corneal surgeries.

Source: BiCOM Reports Better-Than-Expected Results Due to Unique Tonometer Diaton Launch – Tonometry Through Eyelid / Glaucoma Detection Device - PR.com

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Doctors Try New Surgery for Gallbladder Removal

 

Doctors in New York have removed a woman’s gallbladder with instruments passed through her vagina, a technique they hope will cause less pain and scarring than the usual operation, and allow a quicker recovery. The technique can eliminate the need to cut through abdominal muscles, a major source of pain after surgery.

The operation was experimental, part of a study that is being done to find out whether people will fare better if abdominal surgery is performed through natural openings in the body rather than cuts in the belly. The surgery still requires cutting, through the wall of the vagina, stomach or colon, but doctors say it should hurt less because those tissues are far less sensitive than the abdominal muscles.

Source: Doctors Try New Surgery for Gallbladder Removal - New York Times

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Watch out for EHR audit pitfalls - Coding consultants explain where the risks are and how to avoid them

Be aware of the pre-formatted templates to a degree...they can be useful but maybe it is best to customized and adapt your own... 

Overdocumentation can also be related to how a physician uses an EHR, Martin points out. If a physician implements the system without customizing the EHR templates to his practice style, "the templates may contain more information than what he's used to documenting. So it appears that the history and the exam are more complex, but the medical decision-making level is low."

It's long been known that physicians tend to code higher for office visits after they get EHRs. But now Medicare and private payers are taking an active interest in this trend, and audits of computerized practices are becoming more frequent. So if you have an EHR, be very careful how you code, say coding consultants.

Source: Watch out for EHR audit pitfalls - Coding consultants explain where the risks are and how to avoid them. - Medical Economics

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Physical Therapists Have Top Occupation

 We must all have a lot of pain these days...BD

Physical therapists have come out ahead as a top career choice for US college graduates and as second only to clergy in job satisfaction in two different news articles this week that highlighted the nation's top occupations.

The April 17 issue of the Chicago Tribune reported findings of a poll from the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago that place physical therapists second among five top occupations in job satisfaction, and the only health care professionals listed. The worker satisfaction study was based on data collected since 1988 on more than 27,500 randomly selected people. More than three-quarters of the participating physical therapists reported being "very satisfied," and the study suggests intrinsic rewards seem to be the key to satisfaction.

: Physical Therapists Have Top Occupation - Increased Demand And High Job Satisfaction Place PTs Among Nation's Top Occupations

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Robotics Institute: HeartLander

The HeartLander is a miniature mobile robot to facilitate minimally invasive beating-heart intrapericardial therapies.

 The robot:

• enters the chest through an incision below the sternum,
• adheres to the epicardial surface of the heart,
• navigates to any location on the epicardium, and
• administers the therapy under control of the physician.

As compared to current minimally invasive cardiac robotics, this concept obviates cardiac stabilization, lung deflation, and access limitations. These advantages will result in greater efficiency and reduced trauma, as well as opening the possibility for ambulatory outpatient cardiac surgery. The current HeartLander prototype uses suction to maintain prehension of the epicardial surface, and wire-actuation from offboard motors for locomotion. Magnetic tracking and fluoroscopy provide feedback to the physician, who controls the device through a joystick interface. A working channel provides access for various therapeutic tools. This prototype has demonstrated successful prehension and locomotion on all surfaces of a beating pig heart through a 20-mm percutaneous incision. Additionally, epicardial lead placement and myocardial dye injection have been accomplished.

Source: Robotics Institute: HeartLander

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Coding IV Therapy from Medical Economics

 

CPT 2006 replaces the universal infusion codes—90780 and 90781—with six new codes that follow the G code structure that CMS introduced for 2005. "The new CPT codes distinguish between hydration and treatment—the reasons why physicians give fluids," says Patricia Davis, a certified coder and business office supervisor at MHS Primary Care in Middletown, CT.

CPT now breaks intravenous therapy into two groups:

• 90760-90761: for hydration purposes.
• 90765-90768: for therapy, prophylactic, and diagnostic injections and infusions.

Source: Coding Consult - IV Infusions - Medical Economics

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Hospitals are hiring again - New market forces mean job openings for physicians. But do your homework before you sign that contract

 

Why doctors and hospitals are hooking up again

The upswing in hospital employment partly reflects the desire of many younger doctors to avoid running their own practice—and running themselves into the ground. "There's a shift in mindset," says Gee. "Doctors coming out of medical school are more interested in reasonable hours."

For newly minted doctors and veterans alike, the high cost of malpractice coverage can tip the scales away from self-employment. Hospitals are often willing to pay malpractice premiums for the physicians they hire, especially in smaller communities that can't afford to lose surgical specialists, says Mark Smith, executive vice president of Merritt, Hawkins.

Shortages of surgical specialists add force to the new wave of hiring. It's hard to operate a hospital if there's no orthopedic surgeon on staff. In particular, hospitals feel hard-pressed to provide specialty coverage for their emergency departments. Lawsuit-wary—and just plain weary—physicians are becoming so loathe to pull this duty that they have to be paid handsomely to sign on. Hospitals can make ED call part of the job description of an employed physician.

Source: Hospitals are hiring again - New market forces mean job openings for physicians. But do your homework before you sign that contract. - Medical Economics

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Physician, hospital groups join lawsuit against Blue Cross

 

The largest organizations representing California physicians and hospitals joined a lawsuit against Blue Cross of California on Thursday, accusing the state's largest health plan of illegally and routinely refusing to pay them millions of dollars for medical care provided to enrollees whose policies were later canceled.
The move puts the doctors and hospitals on the side of patients, regulators and consumer advocates who have criticized Blue Cross and its competitors for canceling individuals' policies after they incur costly treatment. Such cancellations have left some patients with significant financial or medical hardships.
Blue Cross, owned by Indianapolis-based WellPoint Inc., defends the practice, saying it cancels policies only after determining that individuals submitted incomplete or inaccurate applications for coverage. In such cases, the insurer contends, the patients are responsible for paying the doctors and hospitals.

Source: Physician, hospital groups join lawsuit against Blue Cross - Los Angeles Times

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More about Google as a health services tool

 

In my office, where all documents are either PDF or rich text format, or RTF, we use Google's desktop search for anything from a patient's or a doctor's phone number to retrieving a document based on its unique words or peculiar contents. This cuts down a lot of "hunting" for information in my office.

Narayanachar Murali, M.D.
Gastroenterology Associates of Orangeburg
Digestive Endoscopy Center
Orangeburg, S.C.

Source: Modern Healthcare Online

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Med school in Valley? UC Merced gets grant

 

MERCED - Creating a University of California medical school in the San Joaquin Valley got a jumpstart recently with a $225,000 grant to establish a telemedicine network providing access to specialists for residents of the underserved region.

The funding came in the form of a seed grant from the California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley earmarked for the university's newest campus in Merced. UC Merced first announced plans to develop health sciences and medical education programs in the Valley in March 2006.

Source: Recordnet.com: Med school in Valley? UC Merced gets grant

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Schwarzenegger Touts Health IT as Part of Health Care Overhaul

 

Schwarzenegger in the past year has signed executive orders to:

• Develop a statewide broadband policy;
• Accelerate health IT adoption; and
• Establish a goal of complete health information exchange between consumers, insurers, providers, researchers and government agencies within the decade.

Source: Schwarzenegger Touts Health IT as Part of Health Care Overhaul - California Healthline

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Tablets in Action

 

I don't know much about the context in which in this picture was taken, but it does demonstrate that Tablets are more welcome at a dinner table than regular laptops.

 

http://franksworld.com/blog/archive/2007/04/18/4564.aspx

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NeuroArm - University of Calgary

 

World’s first image-guided surgical robot to enhance accuracy and safety of brain surgery

Surgery is about to change with the introduction of a new surgical robotic system at the University of Calgary/Calgary Health Region. NeuroArm aims to revolutionize neurosurgery and other branches of operative medicine by liberating them from the constraints of the human hand.

The world’s first MRI-compatible surgical robot, unveiled today, is the creation of neurosurgeon Dr. Garnette Sutherland and his team. Dr. Sutherland has spent the last six years leading a team of Canadian scientists, in cooperation with MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA), to design a machine “that represents a milestone in medical technology.”

Source: NeuroArm | University of Calgary

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Making medical fact-finding easy

 

Faced with a minor illness or major health-care crisis, many people turn to the Internet for information. But with the misinformation that absolutely anyone can post on the Web, and the medical jargon, the task can be daunting. Physicians provide basic information, but they don't have time to answer every question.

 

Becky Hughes and her daughter Hannah (left), who was born with spina bifida, have done research on the birth defect with the assistance of Mary Anne Fernandez (right), a medical librarian at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children.

Medical librarians have master's degrees or doctorates, often with special certification in health care. They are trained to distinguish good information from bad. Major hospitals have offered medical library services to physicians on staff for years. A new trend is the development of libraries that offer medical information to consumers.

Source: Making medical fact-finding easy | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Life/Travel: Health

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New York City To Provide No-Cost Electronic Health Record Technology To 'High-Volume' Providers Of Care For Medicaid And Uninsured Patients

New York City officials today will announce a $19.8 million contract with eClinicalWorks for electronic health records software systems, which will be given to city health care providers who treat low-income residents, the Boston Globe reports. The purchase is part of a plan introduced by Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) to improve information systems used for Medicaid beneficiaries, prisoners and other outpatient populations, including patients treated at community health centers (Rowland, Boston Globe, 4/16). Farzad Mostashari, an assistant city health commissioner who is overseeing the project, said, "We will cover half of all the high-volume Medicaid providers in the city, those where over 30% of their patient encounters are Medicaid or the uninsured."

Source: New York City To Provide No-Cost Electronic Health Record Technology To 'High-Volume' Providers Of Care For Medicaid And Uninsured Patients

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Tablet Man

Watch the short video with some simple math with a tablet..hope we see more of him in action...BD


http://www.ustream.tv/LorenHeiny/videos/mAuHD7e9MW0AASyJTbm0ew

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Arkansas school to trial iPod, WiFi-equipped school bus

 

If you thought taking a ride on the GamerBUS was a thrill, this one will really make you long to be a youngster in Arkansas again. Reportedly, the Sheridan school district is launching the Aspirnaut Initiative to bring laptops, iPods, and wireless internet right onto Bus 46, and amazingly, they expect kids to actually glean knowledge rather than hit up a round or two of Counter-Strike. The project hopes to make the unbelievably long (three hours, to be exact) commute that some rural students face a bit less boring and a tad more educational, as students will have access to informational podcasts and web-based learning modules whilst cruising on home. Interestingly, the three-year pilot project will not give students class credit for their extra effort initially, but for brainiacs who stick with the program, they'll purportedly be keeping the goods for themselves once the trial run concludes.

Source: Arkansas school to trial iPod, WiFi-equipped school bus - Engadget

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Hand Sanitizing Spray Moves Clorox Into Personal Care Category

 

For decades, The Clorox Company has helped consumers and industry professionals keep their homes and businesses cleaner and healthier through laundry sanitizing and surface disinfecting. Today, Clorox's Professional Products Division extends the Clorox brand's health and wellness efforts beyond surfaces to hand hygiene with the launch of Clorox Anywhere Hand Sanitizing Spray, representing the company's first entry into the personal care category.

The new hand sanitizer will be available for sale to:
• Healthcare professionals (hospitals; acute and long-term care facilities; medical, dental and veterinary offices)
• Travel/food industry professionals (restaurants, cruise ships, hotels, airlines)
• Education professionals (child care centers and schools) • Fitness professionals (gyms and health clubs)

Source: Hand Sanitizing Spray Moves Clorox Into Personal Care Category

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Cervarix® Offers 100% Protection Against Precancerous Lesions Caused By Cancer-Causing Human Papillomavirus Types 16 And 18 For Over 5 Years

 

The GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) cervical cancer candidate vaccine, CERVARIX®, demonstrated 100 percent efficacy in preventing precancerous lesions due to cancer-causing human papillomavirus types 16 and 18 for up to 5.5 years in an extended follow-up trial, according to data presented today at the American Association for Cancer Research. The trial results demonstrate the longest duration of protection seen in any cervical cancer vaccine trial reported to date.

Source: Cervarix® Offers 100% Protection Against Precancerous Lesions Caused By Cancer-Causing Human Papillomavirus Types 16 And 18 For Over 5 Years

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Dear Patient: P4P is Here

As one MD states..... 

Dear Patient: P4P is Here

Dear Mr. and Ms. Patient,
I regret to inform you that I will be spending less time focusing on your heart problem because I have decided to focus on the heart and medical problems that Medicare deems important to assure I get paid. They call this initiative "Pay for Performance (P4P)."
You see they published a list of 74 criteria that will be measured to see if I give good care, so I will get paid appropriately. Fortunatelty for cardiologists, we only have to do four things:

Source: Dr. Wes: Dear Patient: P4P is Here

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AARP Says It Will Become Major Medicare Insurer While Remaining a Consumer Lobby

 

WASHINGTON, April 16 — AARP, the lobby for older Americans, announced Monday that it would become a major participant in the nation’s health insurance market, offering a health maintenance organization to Medicare recipients and several other products to people 50 to 64 years old.

The products for people under 65 include a managed care plan, known as a preferred provider organization, and a high-deductible insurance policy that could be used with a health savings account.

When the new coverage becomes available next year, AARP will be the largest provider of private insurance to Medicare recipients. In addition to the new H.M.O., AARP will continue providing prescription drug coverage and policies to supplement Medicare, known as Medigap coverage.

Source: AARP Says It Will Become Major Medicare Insurer While Remaining a Consumer Lobby - New York Times

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Exmocare - a Watch that monitors your well being

This sure seems like a good idea in some areas, but I have to give this some real thought..I'm not quite sure I would perhaps want folks to know if I am having a stressful day and give access to all my daily emotions, and on the other hand it could be a useful device. I guess this is all a matter of personal preference as to how much information you may need and how much information one cares to share. BD

 

The Exmocare Watch uses sophisticated sensors to monitor the current status of your loved one so you are always aware of their wellbeing.

The Exmocare Watch is uniquely designed to gather many physiological signals at once. Exmocare Home uses proven methods from contemporary psychophysiology to interpret these physiological signals to interpret emotions. With continuous access to physiological, emotional, and activity information, Exmocare Home is the most advanced overall personal wellness-monitoring system currently available.

At the core of Exmocare Home is the lightweight and durable Exmocare Watch. It is specially designed for your loved one with:

1. Built-in sensors.
2. A Bluetooth^TM transmitter.
3. Rechargeable batteries (charger and batteries are included).

Source: Exmocare: About the Watch

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Epocrates for Windows Mobile Phones

Here are a couple screenshots of how the information looks on a mobile PDA phone.  You can customize the formularies you need to research from an account page on the web.  Also, when an account is set up with a PDA, you also have access to the same information from a desktop PC.  There is spot for CME credit as well.  The screenshots here show all the "free" information that is available with setting up an account.  You can also purchase additional information to be downloaded to the device.  BD

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Update on United HealthCare’s Plan to Fine Physicians for Using Out-of-Network Labs

 

Apparently physicians in several states besides New Jersey are catching the attention of their insurance regulators over UnitedHealthcare’s effort to fine doctors who continue to use out-of-network laboratories. Now, state authorities in Texas, Connecticut, Iowa, Florida, and California have joined New Jersey state regulators by announcing plans to review the legality of the $50 fine announced by United Healthcare for doctor’s who refer their patients to out-of-network laboratories.

In March, the California Medical Association said that this new policy illegally interferes with PPO patients’ right to access out-of-network benefits and improperly obstructs the physician-patient relationship.

“Patients have the right to decide where to receive health care services, without having to worry that their physicians are being fined or otherwise penalized for their choices. This right is particularly acute for patients who pay premiums for nonexclusive PPO benefits,” wrote CMA chief legal counsel Catherine Hanson. “And physicians have the right to speak freely with their patients about their health care choices, without having to worry that they will be fined or otherwise penalized should their patients choose an out-of-network option.”

Source: Update on United HealthCare’s Plan to Fine Physicians for Using Out-of-Network Labs

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Is Pfizer Outsourcing Innovation?

 
According to reports in the Pharma Blogosphere^TM (see below), Pfizer has laid off a "large number of PhD scientists" in an effort to get more lower-level "associates" to shoulder the company's basic research, aka innovation.
Perhaps "PhD Phobia" is behind this rollback of qualified scientists at a time when the industry needs more, not less innovation.
You may recall that back in January, when a study of DTC advertising was published in The Annals of Family Medicine, a Pfizer spokesman said in a phone interview: "It was a bunch of Ph.D.'s sitting around, looking at ads" (see "TV DTC Educate Little, Increase Sales Less").

"I've heard from more than one source that Pfizer has laid off a large number of research staff this week in Groton. This seems to have taken people by surprise in many cases, since the expectation was just that everyone would find out where they were on the new organization charts. Well, in a way, they did." (See "Layoffs - Again").

The talk on Wall Street now revolves around the innovation that Pfizer must buy through mergers, not innovation! In other words, Wall Street investors have little patience for the "Today’s drugs finance tomorrow’s innovation" argument. This is bad news for Pfizer's PhD research scientists!

Source: Is Pfizer Outsourcing Innovation?

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CMS Proposes Payment Reforms For Inpatient Hospital Services In 2008

 

Payment to all hospitals would increase by an average of 3.3 percent for FY 2008 when all provisions of the rule are taken into account. Payments to specific hospitals may increase more or less than this amount depending on the patients they serve. For instance, urban hospitals generally treat more severely ill patients and are estimated to receive a 3.5 percent increase in payments.
In addition to the base payment for the DRGs, the law requires Medicare to make a supplemental payment to a hospital if its costs for treating a particular case exceed the usual Medicare payment for that case by a set threshold. Medicare sets the threshold for high cost cases at an amount that is projected to make total outlier payments equal to 5.1 percent of total inpatient payments. For FY 2008, CMS is also proposing to adopt a high cost outlier threshold of $23,015, down from $24,475 in FY 2007. By better recognizing severity of illness in the DRGs, fewer cases would be paid as outliers. However, CMS proposed to lower the outlier threshold to meet the legal requirement to continue paying between 5 and 6 percent of payments as outliers.

Source: CMS Proposes Payment Reforms For Inpatient Hospital Services In 2008

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Massachusetts Connector Likely To Approve Health Insurance Exemptions

Not sure how this could work...a law passed for all to have mandatory insurance and now a 20% exemption for low income categories...BD 

The Massachusetts Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector on Thursday likely will approve a proposal to exempt almost 20% of uninsured residents from a state law enacted last year that requires all residents to obtain health insurance, the Boston Globe reports. Under the law, state residents who do not obtain health insurance could face fines or tax penalties. However, the law requires that the state exempt residents who cannot afford health insurance, with the definition of affordability left to the Connector. The proposal that the Connector likely will approve would exempt from the law about 60,000 low- and moderate-income residents who do not qualify for state subsidies, or about 1% of the population (Dembner, Boston Globe, 4/12).

Source: Massachusetts Connector Likely To Approve Health Insurance Exemptions

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Feds say plans can soften deadline for doctors' universal ID numbers ...

Rumor has it that Medicare may not be fully prepared as well...BD

Medicare and some insurers might allow physicians to use either their new National Provider Identifiers or older IDs on claims after the May target date.

Washington -- The federal government has given the health care industry up to a year-long reprieve in adopting a new standard identification system for use on electronic claims. But that doesn't necessarily let doctors off the hook when it comes to obtaining and using the new ID numbers.

Under a mandate from Congress, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services established May 23 as the deadline for physicians and other medical professionals to apply for and start using a unique National Provider Identifier on all electronic claims. The 10-digit NPI, designed to replace all other identifiers, is required for anyone who files claims electronically with Medicare or any other payer. This applies even if the physician uses an outside firm that files electronically on his or her behalf.

CMS recently came to the conclusion that too few health plans, doctors and others would be ready to use the NPI in place of all existing IDs, known as "legacy" identifiers, by the May deadline. Small health plans already have until May 2008 to comply, but the agency decided that many other large payers and health professionals also would need more time to get up to speed. Numerous industry organizations, including the American Medical Association, lobbied the government to soften the deadline

Source: AMNews: April 23/30, 2007. Feds say plans can soften deadline for doctors' universal ID numbers ... American Medical News

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Massachusetts considers requiring all surgeries to be videotaped ... American Medical News

Doctors and plaintiff lawyers are the bill's biggest critics, saying the doctor-patient relationship would become a Hollywood production.

Massachusetts physicians are not smiling about the possibility of being on camera in the operating room.

Legislation introduced there in January would require licensed hospitals to make video and audio recordings of all surgeries. Failure to do so would result in a yet-to-be-determined fine.

http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/04/23/prsb0423.htm

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Cost vs. compliance: Physicians encouraged to discuss prescriptions ...

Check out the links on the site to the $4.00 prescriptions offered from Target and WalMart/Sams Club...this could be a real help and make the difference between whether or not someone follows the doctor's orders...BD 

A 45-year-old woman with type 2 diabetes was showing some control of her hemoglobin A1c under the supervision of Virag Y. Shah, MD, but not as much as the Whittier, Calif., family physician would have liked. He decided to add pioglitazone, a thiazolidinedione marketed as Actos, to the patient's armamentarium. The woman's blood sugar levels did not drop after three months, so he upped the dosage. Another three months passed, and still nothing. To the contrary, the woman's glucose levels rose slightly.

"Are you taking the medication?" Dr. Shah remembers asking his patient.

"Not all the time," the woman sheepishly answered.

"How often are you taking it?" he asked. "Once a week? Every other day?"

"Well, less than that," she said.

"You're not really taking it at all," Dr. Shah said.

"Well, that's right," the woman answered.

"Did you fill the prescription?"

"No," she said. "It was going to be $180 a month because it wasn't covered. And I can't afford that."

Source: AMNews: April 23/30, 2007. Cost vs. compliance: Physicians encouraged to discuss prescriptions ... American Medical News

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Medicare Provides Funding For Health Insurance Counseling In All 50 States

Medicare will provide funding for health insurance counseling in every state to help beneficiaries get the most from the health program for elderly and disabled persons, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced today.
Each state will receive a share of $30 million in grant funds so state agencies can bring personalized assistance to people with Medicare at the local level. Under the State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIPs), CMS provides funding to 54 SHIPs, including all 50 states, and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands.

Source: Medicare Provides Funding For Health Insurance Counseling In All 50 States

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New drugs promise two days without sleep and improved alertness and cognitive powers

 

March 5, 2007 Two years ago, we wrote about the “time-shifting” drug, Modafinil that enables you to stay awake for 40+ hours with close to full mental capacity and with few side effects. The drug is a eugeroic and offers improved memory, mood enhancement, improved alertness and cognitive powers, and has a much smoother feel than amphetamines because they work differently. Popular Science is now reporting that we’re just about to see new forms of super eugeroic called armodafinil .

 

(Modafinil’s creator Cephalon is awaiting FDA approval for the drug), and a drug code-named CX717 from Cortex.

Source: New drugs promise two days without sleep and improved alertness and cognitive powers - gizmag Article

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The Colo Rectal Surgeon

This is a funny video of a short song from a couple Canadian comics that was taken from a medical convention...BD

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