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      You Can Negotiate for Cheaper Medical Care

      August 11, 2011 /

      Barter with your doctor
      Before bringing it up, think about what your doctor might value. Boxer Wachler, for example, is a car enthusiast and has young children, so car services and photos worked well for him, but when a patient who is an artist offered free paintings in exchange for care, he declined.
      “If you can’t afford care, just go for it,” Boxer Wachler says. “It can’t hurt to ask. The worst thing that will happen is the doctor says thanks for offering, but no thanks.”

      Pay on credit
      About half of Boxer Wachler’s patients pay on credit — often over 24 months with no interest. Ask your doctor if he or she has arrangements with credit companies and if not, ask if they would be willing to make them.

      Negotiate with your doctor
      When Christina McMenemy’s husband lost his job and health insurance, she negotiated a $40 fee for an office visit with her children’s pediatrician.
      “You’d be surprised how many doctors, especially primary care physicians such as internists and pediatricians, will do this for their patients,” says Dr. Gail Gazelle, a patient advocate and assistant clinical professor at Harvard Medical School.
      The book “My Healthcare is Killing Me” teaches you how to negotiate prices with hospitals, too.

      Get financial assistance
      The “Healthcare Survival Guide” has a state-by-state listing of resources that offer financial help for medical care.

      Get discounted dental care, contact lenses and drugs

      Read more here.

      Doctors, Health Insurance, Quality Control, Resources

      Tattoo Infections Linked to New Bacteria

      August 11, 2011 /

      An investigation into skin lesions developed by two individuals after getting tattoos has concluded that both were infected with a bacteria not previously linked to the business.

      The infections involved Mycobacterium haemophilum, which usually only strikes individuals with compromised immune systems.

      In this instance, however, the patients, both from Seattle, developed rashes despite the fact that both had normal immune systems, a report on the investigation found.

      The authors pointed out that tattooing is not considered a sterile procedure, is not regulated at the federal level and can be risky. And while the specific inks and colorings (pigments) commonly used to apply tattoos are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the rules usually apply only when cosmetics or color additives are involved.

      Quality Control, Research, Wellness

      Blood Test for Expecting Mothers Reveals Baby’s Sex

      August 11, 2011 /

      A new test can now determine a baby’s sex in utero as early as seven weeks into gestation.

      Is determining a baby’s sex crucial?

      Or does this simply leave opportunity for unnecessary consideration?

      “What you have to consider is the ethics of this,” said Dr. Mary Rosser, an obstetrician and gynecologist at the Montefiore Medical Center in New York.

      “If parents are using it to determine gender and then terminate the pregnancy based on that, that could be a problem,” she told Reuters Health. “Remember, gender is not a disease.”

      Research, Resources

      New Drug Shows Promise in Relieving Constipation

      August 11, 2011 /

      Patients suffering with constipation may be able to find relief.

      Although the experimental drug linaclotide can relieve only some cases of chronic constipation, for those who do find relief it can be a life changing event.

      Up to one in five people suffers from chronic constipation, according to the authors of the study, which means they have fewer than three bowel movements per week, often with pain, excessive straining, a feeling of blockage, or very hard stools. Doctors usually recommend adding fluid, dietary fiber and exercise before turning to laxatives.

      “Chronic constipation can dramatically negatively affect one’s quality of life,” said Dr. David Schwartz, director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, who was not involved in the study.

      “If these results hold up in future longer-term trials, linaclotide potentially offers an effective and safe option for patients with chronic constipation, especially those individuals that do not respond to laxatives,” Schwartz told Reuters Health.

      Research, Wellness

      Can God Help You to Lose Weight?

      August 9, 2011 /

      Obesity is a huge problem in the U.S. especially in the South.

      Church leaders recognize that their constituents often head the word of God over the word of their doctors.

      This may be a great opportunity for the church community to step in and have an impact on the health of the population.

      Weekly access to members offers churches an effective means of both dispensing information and discerning needs, said Elizabeth Williams, an assistant professor of public health at Tennessee State University and an associate pastor.

      A growing awareness of those assets has prompted churches to use weekly bulletins to address a host of medical issues, develop health ministries and connect members with primary health care services.

      Those who prepare the meals offered after services at Williams’ church in Nashville have eliminated fried foods, cut back on salt and opted for turkey-based products over pork

      .

      Nutrition, Resources, Wellness

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