Category: Other / Uncategorized

If we are honest about our current state, while we have made great strides in new discoveries and treatments for a great number of conditions, our system has never been more fragile.

The general public is increasingly distrustful of healthcare providers and the “system.” Part of this is directly related to the very poor handling of communication of the COVID pandemic. Other parts affecting this view include the many months-long wait for an appointment that many experience across the USA, the moral injury of not only providers like doctors and mid levels (NP’s and PA’s), but also that of nurses that has led to a shorter temperament and sometimes a less than ideal caring environment. We had a shortage of providers before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed, and after its passing there was an even larger deficit. Then not long afterward, we were met with a worldwide pandemic like we have never seen and lost many providers to both illness and resignation over frustrations of seeing patients die.

Those providers who have stayed the course, or joined in the effort of delivery of care are trying to steady the helm, but there is an ongoing stress related to long lines to be seen, lack of time to talk with patients or provide quality patient education, and patients who aren’t sure whom they can trust in many situations. It is a very scary feeling to be extremely ill and afraid if your provider is taking your symptoms seriously or if it feels they don’t have time for you. I hear this over and over again and have personally experienced this myself, and witnessed it with my own family members across many facilities and providers, and I have over 35 years of experience in healthcare.

While we are tending to patients to heal the sick, we are now tasked with simultaneously healing the system, and this task cannot be taken lightly. It will take some time to rebuild trust, and to equalize the number of providers that are needed for the populations across the country.

Hopefully, with more patient education, we can assist by helping people to help themselves through a better understanding of their various ailments and measures they can take themselves at home before running to the doctor for everything. This will then hopefully free up some of those coveted appointments for those who are in more immediate need and help to lessen some of the extreme stress placed on our healthcare system as a whole.

This health blog is designed with an idea of empowering people with trusted information about healthcare issues so that they may be able to not only better understand the healthcare system and challenges, but also how we can live healthier lives and try to avoid and/or reverse chronic illnesses where possible. Many believe that patients lack any self control or governance in how they live and eat, and this leads to an immediate move to prescribe something for every single issue, but I believe in the power of people to evolve, and learn, and to place more effort on living in a more healthful manner. It will not be easy as many company’s place addictive substances in their products because they want you to buy more, but strengthening willpower to become more independent and focusing on wellness will help in some way for every person, so do what you can to help yourself. This self help to wellness is the ultimate exercise of self love.

While our world has grown in technological and scientific accomplishments, many have become consumed with newly evolved living habits that may not offer the healthiest of choices. It sometimes seems that with our fast paced living, thoughts of wellness have been sidelined while we are constantly fed promises of pills and other pharmaceutical treatments that are often unnecessary if we adjusted our way of living.

Every living thing needs clean air, clean water, and clean food for consumption, yet we have many failing water systems, pollution filling our air, and foods that are not only fast, but also pumped full of chemicals and hormones that can be harmful to life itself. Shockingly, some of the very institutions that were formed to protect the public, allow for certain levels of chemicals and additives that are known to be harmful. The problem here is that no one can accurately estimate the volume of these substances that are consumed by each individual over time. Over time, these unnatural additives can contribute to, and/or cause disease or illnesses and sometimes hasten medical problems and even shorten the lifespan of people.

It is estimated that 80% of known chronic conditions can be avoided with diet and lifestyle modifications, thereby reducing the need for medical intervention. There are of course some conditions like genetic disorders and life accidents that cannot be avoided. Yet, there are a great number of opportunities to improve many chronic conditions through healthy living choices and diet modifications.

We are constantly advertised to for this drug or that one (always with the quick rundown of potential side effects, often including death) but every medication comes with strings attached. Many without medical knowledge have a false impression that medicine can cure almost anything. It cannot. There are many limitations to what can be fixed or remedied. In an ideal world, everyone should be able to focus on healthier living to avoid the need of medical intervention wherever possible. Finances and family schedules can interfere with this goal, but if we collectively concentrate on changing our living environment standards, to include our standards for clean healthy foods, then over time, we can change how we live and improve our quality of life with less disease and illness.

There are also many dietary choices, herbal remedies, and other supplements that can help the body to correct off balanced items and change the course of some chronic conditions, but its always important to discuss these things with your trusted healthcare provider. There are sometimes side effects, and some of these interventions can affect or interact with other medications.

It is absolutely unfair and incorrect that healthier options always cost more and the detrimental junk foods are cheaper. While the economy and personal finances certainly affect the choices that people make, if enough people become more educated and concerned for the utmost of health possibilities, then pressure from the marketplace can influence not only the products being offered in becoming more health conscious, but also help stabilize the prices of those items.

One of the goals of this blog is to educate on healthcare matters and providing new ideas to promote lifestyle changes is one of those goals. Within each chronic condition, we will attempt to provide tools and educational information specific to that condition, diagnosis or illness, that can assist you on your wellness journey.

You can use the search bar on this blog to look up various conditions and we will be updating information regularly on current topics as well as adding new ones for your consideration. All information is carefully crafted with the intent to provide accurate and ethical principles in a manner that can be easily understood, while also reliable as truthful because trust is a number one priority in healthcare. As always, we truly wish you well.