What Does a Patient Advocate / Nurse Navigator Do?
Our Patient Advocate intercedes on behalf of the patient, working as a liaison with the family, physicians, physical therapy, and many other health care agencies and insurance companies, improving communication, accessing information, addressing concerns and assisting in resolving difficulties. Our Patient Advocate works directly for you so we have your best interest at heart providing support, encouragement and assistance. Our Patient Advocate can help coordinate the patient’s health care team for the optimal benefit of the patient. Our Patient Advocate can help create a patient care plan, so that all care givers are working together with the same information towards the same goal. Our Patient Advocate can help empower the patient with organized medical records. Our Patient Advocate may accompany a patient to appointments, and may monitor the patient at the bedside in a hospital
Do you feel you have way too much on your plate related to your medical issues, or dealing with elderly parents? Our Patient Advocate can help you sort through your medical issues. Some patients and family members just can not deal with a day at a time, but they can deal with maybe an hour at a time, or if that is too much, most of us can get through the next five minuets. Our Patient Advocate realizes that every moment counts in quality of life.
Who Needs a Patient Advocate / Nurse Navigator?
- Healthy Patients need to get their Medical Records in order so that they can be proactive in their medical care.
- A Patient that has just been newly diagnosed with a disease needs to know potential options and solutions to set treatment goals.
- A Patient going to surgery needs to know what to expect pre op and post op.
- A Patient facing chemotherapy or radiation therapy needs to be proactive in the decision process.
- Hospice Patients, Family Members and Friends helping to care for the Patient need help to find solutions that will give the patient the best quality of life for every moment they are on the planet.
Our Nurse Navigators primary responsibilities are to EASE the Burden on patients and their families and to help coordinate the efforts of the medical team.
- Help the patient get their medical records organized
- Understand and Review the patient's diagnosis and available treatment options
- Review Medical Records and test reports
- Voice any questions or concerns with your doctors and other health care team members
- Make referrals and/or schedule appointments
- Understand your medications
- Connect community resources for family support
- Discuss financial concerns you may have and connect you to appropriate resources
Gardnerella Vaginalis
Bacterial vaginosis is a common condition, and studies have shown that approximately 29% of women in the US are affected
It is anaerobic gram-variable rod which can cause bacterial vaginosis in some women as a result of a disruption in the normal vaginal microflora which results in an overgrowth of normal bacteria in the vagina.
Gardnerella vaginalis
SOURCE: Wikipedia
Click here for more info from Wikipedia
The resident anaerobic lactobacillus population in the vagina are responsible for the acidic environment. Once the anaerobes have supplanted the normal vaginal bacteria, prescription antibiotics with anaerobic coverage may have to be given to eliminate the Gardnerella vaginalis and allow the balance to be restored.
What causes bacterial vaginosis?
Researchers have had difficulty determining exactly what causes bacterial vaginosis. At present, it seems to be that a combination of multiple bacteria must be present together for the problem to develop. Bacterial vaginosis typically features a reduction in the number of the normal hydrogen peroxide-producing lactobacilli in the vagina. Simultaneously, there is an increase in concentration of other types of bacteria, especially anaerobic bacteria (bacteria that grow in the absence of oxygen). As a result, the diagnosis and treatment are not as simple as identifying and eradicating a single type of bacteria. Why the bacteria combine to cause the infection is unknown.
A few antibiotic remedies are routinely used. Metronidazole (Flagyl) taken by either oral (pill) form or by vaginal metronidazole gel (Metrogel) is an effective cure.
Tame a nighttime cough with buckwheat honey, not cough syrup.
Syrup on a spoon from Getty Images
This type of honey has been shown to help ease children’s symptoms, affording better sleep. But it shouldn’t be given to children younger than 12 months old because it carries the risk of botulism, a rare but paralyzing bacterial illness.
Lifestyle and home remedies for Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
By Mayo Clinic staff
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a condition in which a blood clot (thrombus) forms in one or more of the deep veins in your body, usually in your legs. Deep vein thrombosis can cause leg pain, but often occurs without any symptoms.
Deep vein thrombosis can develop if you’re sitting still for a long time, such as when traveling by plane or car, or if you have certain medical conditions that affect how your blood clots.
The primary goal of your self-care plan should be preventing deep vein thrombosis from occurring.
To prevent deep vein thrombosis from worsening or happening again:
* Check in with your doctor regularly to see if your medication or treatments need to be modified.
* Watch how much vitamin K you’re eating if you take blood thinners. Vitamin K can affect how drugs such as warfarin work. Foods high in vitamin K include green leafy vegetables and canola and soybean oils.
* Exercise your lower calf muscles if you’ll be sitting a long time. Whenever possible, get up and walk around. If you can’t get up to walk around, try raising and lowering your heels while keeping your toes on the floor, then raising your toes while your heels are on the floor.
* Move. If you’ve been on bed rest, because of surgery or other factors, the sooner you get moving, the less likely blood clots will develop.
* Make lifestyle changes. Lose weight, quit smoking and control your blood pressure. Obesity, smoking and high blood pressure all increase your risk of deep vein thrombosis.
* Wear compression stockings to help prevent blood clots in the legs if your doctor recommends them.
* Be on the lookout for excessive bleeding, which can be a side effect of taking medications such as blood thinners. Talk to your doctor about activities that could cause you to bruise or get cut, as even a minor injury could become serious if you’re taking blood thinners.
Stroke is a type of cardiovascular disease. It affects the arteries leading to and within the brain. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood (and oxygen) it needs, so it starts to die.
What Are the Types of Stroke?
Stroke can be caused either by a clot obstructing the flow of blood to the brain (ischemic strokes) or by a blood vessel rupturing and preventing blood flow to the brain (Hemorrhagic or bleeding strokes). More information on ASA website
Diagnosis of Stroke
When someone has shown symptoms of a stroke or a TIA (transient ischemic attack), a doctor will gather information and make a diagnosis. A doctor may use many different tests. The ones listed here are just some of the more
common options. More information on ASA website
Warning Signs Prior to a Stroke
Prior to a stroke, many people experience a TIA (transient ischemic attack). This is a “mini-stroke” or “warning stroke.” TIAs can occur days, weeks or even months before a major stroke. TIAs occur when a blood clot temporarily clogs an artery, and part of the brain doesn’t get the blood it needs. The warning signs are the same as for stroke; but they occur and disappear relatively quickly, usually in less than five minutes.
Unlike a stroke, when a TIA occurs, the blood clot resolves itself and there’s no permanent injury. When a stroke occurs and part of your brain dies from lack of blood flow, the part of the body it controls is affected. Strokes can cause paralysis, affect language and vision, and cause other problems.
John La Puma, M.D. is cofounder of ChefMD® and a board-certified specialist in internal medicine.
He has pioneered the idea of food-as-medicine that’s tasty, including delicious eating plans for osteoarthritis pain relief, weight loss, cholesterol-lowering, anti-aging and childhood obesity. He hosts the weekly TV segment “What’s Cooking With ChefMD®?” every Sunday morning on the cable network Lifetime Television and Lifetime Real Women in the national TV series “Health Corner.”
Dr. La Puma is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the College of Creative Studies and the University of California, Santa Barbara, and graduate of the Baylor College of Medicine. He performed his residency in internal medicine at West Los Angeles Veterans Administration Medical Center and UCLA, and completed the first postgraduate fellowship in general internal medicine and clinical medical ethics in the U.S., at the University of Chicago. Dr. La Puma is the author or co-author of over 50 peer-reviewed scientific papers, 150 other contributions to the medical literature and 3 medical books, including a CME book.
Dr. La Puma still practices internal medicine, using the ChefMD concept to motivate his patients. Repeatedly named “One of America’s Top Physicians” by the Consumers’ Research Council, and called a “Secret Weapon” by The Wall Street Journal, Dr. La Puma was honored with the National Association of Medical Communicators 2007 “Award of Excellence”. He is based in Santa Barbara, California.
Example of what Dr. La Puma suggests for
Medical Condition: Alzheimer’s
Toasted Oatmeal with Double Mango and Toasted Walnuts
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
Calories: 475 per serving
Percent from Fat: 33%
Ingredients
3 cups old-fashioned oats, uncooked
One-half cup coarsely chopped walnuts
4 cups skim milk or fat-free soy milk
One-half cup diced dried mango
One-quarter teaspoon salt
One-eighth teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 large ripe fresh mango, diced (2 cups)
Preparation
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spread oats in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan. Place nuts on a small baking sheet. Bake oats and nuts 6 to 7 minutes or until lightly toasted. Set nuts and oats aside separately. Combine milk, dried mango, salt, and nutmeg in a medium saucepan; bring just to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to low; add toasted oats. Simmer 5 to 8 minutes or until thickened, stirring only once or twice. Transfer to four serving bowls; top with fresh mango and toasted nuts. Serve with additional milk, if desired.
Substitutions
Dried strawberries or golden raisins may replace dried mango; 2 cups sliced strawberries may replace fresh mango. Brazil nuts may replace walnuts. One-half teaspoon cinnamon may replace nutmeg. For a lighter, less aggressive flavor, use true cinnamon, sometimes called Ceylonese cinnamon, if you can find it.
Culinary Taste Tip
Toasting rolled oats is one way to boost flavor without adding calories or unhealthy fats. Over-stirring the oatmeal changes the texture from smooth to too smooth and a little pasty. Just let the simmering milk do its job.
Culinary Technique Tip
To quickly dice a mango, place the fruit firmly on a cutting board, point side down. Then cut away from you, and slice down until you reach the pit. Then, make quick cross hatches, and scoop out perfect cubes of mango!
This infection is a rare but very severe type of bacterial infection that can destroy the muscles, skin, and underlying tissue. Necrotizing refers to something that causes tissue death.
Many different types of bacteria can cause this type of infection. A very severe and usually deadly form of necrotizing soft tissue infection is due to Streptococcus pyogenes, which is sometimes called “flesh-eating bacteria.”
How do you say It?
The pronunciation is neck-row-tize-ing fash-e-i-tis, it means decaying infection of the fascia.
What Is It?
It is a bacterial infection caused commonly by group A Strep bacteria, which is the same bacteria that causes common Strep throat. Usually easily killed by antibiotics, sometimes a very strong variety of Strep occurs. This is the one that causes the life-threatening cases and is known as the “flesh-eating” bacteria. NF can also be caused by other bacteria, or a mixture of bacteria. The bacteria destroys soft tissue at the subcutaneous level, and often is coupled with toxic shock syndrome, both are deadly alone, together they are even more so. If muscle is destroyed, it is necrotizing myositis.
How do you get it?
Most often the bacteria enter the body through an opening in the skin, quite often a very minor opening, even as small as a paper cut, a staple puncture, or a pin prick. It can also enter through weakened skin, like a bruise, blister, or abrasion. It can also happen following a major trauma or surgery, and in some cases there appears to be no identifiable point of entry.
Toasted Oatmeal with Double Mango and Toasted Walnuts
