Should sex education be taught in the nation's public schools, and if so, what kind of education should be provided? (Abstinence-only? Abstinence-plus?)
It should be required that an 'Abstinence-plus' sex education program be included in the curriculum of ALL public schools in the US. Abstinence should be encouraged on the forefront of this program amongst teenagers, while presenting the information regarding sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy. I think it is then important to address the reality that not all teenagers will choose to abstain from having sex. This would be a great time to present information on various methods of contraception and the need (especially for women) to receive regular check ups including testing for STD's and HIV. Such programs should also present the long term effects of STD's if left untreated, since most teens having sex are too embarrassed to seek medical attention for symptoms associated with STD's. These programs should also encourage open communication with parents and possibly have a supplemental parent "class" to explain what is being taught to the students, why and how they can address it at home.
Due to cultural and religious differences such programs are often very controversial. I think that in developing these programs these differences should be carefully taken into account and such programs should only address the facts. This leaves the religious/cultural beliefs on the topic up to the families to address at home.
I also think such programs should not be passing out condoms (those can be bought at any drug store or gas station) or providing birth control pills. The program should instill all of the facts on the teenagers but should not be providing such means that often times look like a "free pass" to start having sex. I think providing information on ways to get check ups/testing, birth control, abortions or pre-natal care without the consent of the parents should be carefully addressed. This information should carefully take into consideration the age group being taught and the long term effects that doing these things without the support of your family could cause. I think access to such information is more relevant to a college age population than high school. I find it kind of 'messed up' that a 14 years old girl could go to a clinic and receive HIV testing, a pap test including STD screenings,pregnancy testing and care, birth control pills, condoms or in a lot of cases an abortion, by herself without her parents knowing, yet that same girl would need her mom to go to the doctor with her were she to have a runny nose, since people under the age of 18 can't be treatment without the consent of a present parent.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Blog #3
How would you rate your "preventive practices?" What are some ways in which you can improve your health? What preventative practices do you already implement?
I found the preventive practice assessment to be very interesting. As a professional working in the health care field I try to implement all of these preventative practices. As a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant at a pediatric clinic I get a great deal of exercise daily at work, in addition to working out 3-5 days per week at home. My career is very rewarding and involves limited stress which is helpful in maintaining overall mental wellness. Because of the field I work in I am also a big advocate of practicing safe behaviors such as wearing seat belts and bike helmets.
At work I try to eat healthy lunches and snacks, as well as drinking plenty of water. I do this not only for my own health but also to set a positive example for co-workers and any impressionable patients that may be around during this time. At home I could do a better job making more balanced meals and not eating out a restaurants as much. As our lives get busier I think healthy eating is one of the first things that gets pushed to the side.
The two areas where I think I could improve my health the most are; getting enough sleep and receiving preventative care from a health care provider. Although I try to go to bed at a reasonable hour and get enough rest I often find myself staying up late or getting up early to complete school work, house work or wedding planning. I am very good about going in for preventative care but often put off doctors appointments when I am sick. I usually wait until I am so sick I can't function before going to the doctor. Although I know this is a bad habit to get into I have found it very hard to break because I really dislike going to the doctor when I am sick!
I found the preventive practice assessment to be very interesting. As a professional working in the health care field I try to implement all of these preventative practices. As a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant at a pediatric clinic I get a great deal of exercise daily at work, in addition to working out 3-5 days per week at home. My career is very rewarding and involves limited stress which is helpful in maintaining overall mental wellness. Because of the field I work in I am also a big advocate of practicing safe behaviors such as wearing seat belts and bike helmets.
At work I try to eat healthy lunches and snacks, as well as drinking plenty of water. I do this not only for my own health but also to set a positive example for co-workers and any impressionable patients that may be around during this time. At home I could do a better job making more balanced meals and not eating out a restaurants as much. As our lives get busier I think healthy eating is one of the first things that gets pushed to the side.
The two areas where I think I could improve my health the most are; getting enough sleep and receiving preventative care from a health care provider. Although I try to go to bed at a reasonable hour and get enough rest I often find myself staying up late or getting up early to complete school work, house work or wedding planning. I am very good about going in for preventative care but often put off doctors appointments when I am sick. I usually wait until I am so sick I can't function before going to the doctor. Although I know this is a bad habit to get into I have found it very hard to break because I really dislike going to the doctor when I am sick!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Blog # 2
What are your feelings about the present state of health care in the US?
My feelings on the present state of health care in the US is that we are very blessed and very fortunate to live in a country that provides such great health care. Health Care in this country is very good, it is the coverage of health care services and health insurance that is the issue. I am in total agreement that there is a huge need for reform. We must come up with a way to hold insurance companies responsible when they deny claims that should be covered or refuse insurance coverage because of pre-existing conditions. There defiantly needs to be legislation that can stop insurance companies from providing Erisa plans that are not governed by the department of insurance or any governing body. Erisa plans look like health care coverage and often cost the same as health care coverage, but much to the surprise of those that they cover, they are NOT health care coverage. Erisa plans are the majority of the problem when denials for services occur and because of the wording in these contracts there is no room for negotiation once a claim is denied. Most people are completely unaware of this type of plan that a lot of employers provide to decrease costs. I do not agree that we adopt universal health care and trust our health, the MOST important thing, to the government.
For those of you that have health insurance I would like for you to think about your last doctors visit. Did you have to wait 30 minutes or longer just to make an appointment to be seen? When you got to your appointment did you have to wait 30 minutes or longer to be seen? Did you have confidence in the physician that was seeing you? Did you trust their opinion? Did you leave feeling more knowledgeable about the current state of your health?
These questions were probably pretty easy to answer because for most of us that have insurance we can make an appointment in 5 minutes or less. Although we have all had times in which we have had to wait a long time to be seen by the doctor, that is not the case EVERY time we see a doctor. If it was, most of us would choose a different doctor to go to. Most of us do have confidence in the physicians we see, if we don't once again we would have the freedom to choose a different doctor to see.
These examples come from Government run health care. Surprised??? You haven't even heard the best part of it yet. Not only is this what happens when government controls aspects of health care, this is the coverage we provide for those who fight to make this country free. Yes, this is the Veterans Administration. Did I read this in some study or an article? Not quite, I have seen it first hand from the man I live with and soon will be married to. After serving 8 years in the Army, 1 1/2 of those years spent at War in Iraq. He gets treated as a number when going to the VA hospitals and doctors offices. Although there is documented proof of his back injury, related to events that happened during his service in Iraq, no VA doctor will recommend surgery because the government would have to pay for it and cost control is #1. We have gotten 3 other opinions from doctors outside of the VA, all have recommend surgery and physical therapy within 6 months. The VA writes a prescription for Advil.
I have no doubt that trusting our health care to the government will decrease the quality of care we receive as consumers. For those of you that work in the health care field as I do, do you really want the government dictating to you what services you can provide to your patients. I know I sure don't. I encourage all of you to get all of the facts on the reality of universal health care before promoting it. I think you will be surprised by what you find out about the regulations of the government run Medicare, Medicaid and VA programs we already have. I think you will also be surprised that countries, such as Germany, that offer these programs tax pay checks close to 50% to provide health care and retirement.
Let's work to make a change in a way that still allows us the freedom and high quality health care we deserve.
My feelings on the present state of health care in the US is that we are very blessed and very fortunate to live in a country that provides such great health care. Health Care in this country is very good, it is the coverage of health care services and health insurance that is the issue. I am in total agreement that there is a huge need for reform. We must come up with a way to hold insurance companies responsible when they deny claims that should be covered or refuse insurance coverage because of pre-existing conditions. There defiantly needs to be legislation that can stop insurance companies from providing Erisa plans that are not governed by the department of insurance or any governing body. Erisa plans look like health care coverage and often cost the same as health care coverage, but much to the surprise of those that they cover, they are NOT health care coverage. Erisa plans are the majority of the problem when denials for services occur and because of the wording in these contracts there is no room for negotiation once a claim is denied. Most people are completely unaware of this type of plan that a lot of employers provide to decrease costs. I do not agree that we adopt universal health care and trust our health, the MOST important thing, to the government.
For those of you that have health insurance I would like for you to think about your last doctors visit. Did you have to wait 30 minutes or longer just to make an appointment to be seen? When you got to your appointment did you have to wait 30 minutes or longer to be seen? Did you have confidence in the physician that was seeing you? Did you trust their opinion? Did you leave feeling more knowledgeable about the current state of your health?
These questions were probably pretty easy to answer because for most of us that have insurance we can make an appointment in 5 minutes or less. Although we have all had times in which we have had to wait a long time to be seen by the doctor, that is not the case EVERY time we see a doctor. If it was, most of us would choose a different doctor to go to. Most of us do have confidence in the physicians we see, if we don't once again we would have the freedom to choose a different doctor to see.
These examples come from Government run health care. Surprised??? You haven't even heard the best part of it yet. Not only is this what happens when government controls aspects of health care, this is the coverage we provide for those who fight to make this country free. Yes, this is the Veterans Administration. Did I read this in some study or an article? Not quite, I have seen it first hand from the man I live with and soon will be married to. After serving 8 years in the Army, 1 1/2 of those years spent at War in Iraq. He gets treated as a number when going to the VA hospitals and doctors offices. Although there is documented proof of his back injury, related to events that happened during his service in Iraq, no VA doctor will recommend surgery because the government would have to pay for it and cost control is #1. We have gotten 3 other opinions from doctors outside of the VA, all have recommend surgery and physical therapy within 6 months. The VA writes a prescription for Advil.
I have no doubt that trusting our health care to the government will decrease the quality of care we receive as consumers. For those of you that work in the health care field as I do, do you really want the government dictating to you what services you can provide to your patients. I know I sure don't. I encourage all of you to get all of the facts on the reality of universal health care before promoting it. I think you will be surprised by what you find out about the regulations of the government run Medicare, Medicaid and VA programs we already have. I think you will also be surprised that countries, such as Germany, that offer these programs tax pay checks close to 50% to provide health care and retirement.
Let's work to make a change in a way that still allows us the freedom and high quality health care we deserve.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Blog #1
What health issues are you most concerned about? Why?
Interview 2-3 women (different ages, ethnicities and/or cultures if possible) and ask them the same question.
Are your concerns similar or different? Explain.
The health issue I am currently most concerned with is health care coverage. Although access to health care coverage is another major concern, I would rather focus on the coverage itself for the purposes of this blog. In my career I am often dealing with people who are fortunate enough to have healthcare coverage through a private insurance company or a government run program. Unfortunatly, I am often seeing that these individuals are not educated consumers and often end up disappointed with the coverage their plan provides for certain services. Although I agree insurance companies should not be able to deny claims so easily, it is also our responsibilty as consumers to know what we are "buying". Would you buy a home or car without reviewing the contract/loan very carefully?? Probably not, why should health coverage be any different?? I strongly urge all of you to review your health care plans when deciding between employers or individual plans. By asking questions and getting clarification on coverage up front, you decrease the risk that you will end up responsible for payments that could be several thousands of dollars were you to need treatment for something not covered by your plan.
I was able to interview 2 women and both expressed similar concerns with healthcare coverage. The woman in her 20's said she did a lot of research on healthcare coverage when looking for employment after college. She had a family member who became ill and went into high medical debt because most of the medications and specialists she was using were not covered by her insurance plan. The woman in her 40's expressed some uncertainty as to what she would do about healthcare upon retiring. She noted that she is very happy with the coverage her employer provides but she didn't really review or understand all of the details of the plan prior to starting her job.
Both of these women also made note of concerns regarding diseases such as heart disease and breast cancer that are common in their families.
Interview 2-3 women (different ages, ethnicities and/or cultures if possible) and ask them the same question.
Are your concerns similar or different? Explain.
The health issue I am currently most concerned with is health care coverage. Although access to health care coverage is another major concern, I would rather focus on the coverage itself for the purposes of this blog. In my career I am often dealing with people who are fortunate enough to have healthcare coverage through a private insurance company or a government run program. Unfortunatly, I am often seeing that these individuals are not educated consumers and often end up disappointed with the coverage their plan provides for certain services. Although I agree insurance companies should not be able to deny claims so easily, it is also our responsibilty as consumers to know what we are "buying". Would you buy a home or car without reviewing the contract/loan very carefully?? Probably not, why should health coverage be any different?? I strongly urge all of you to review your health care plans when deciding between employers or individual plans. By asking questions and getting clarification on coverage up front, you decrease the risk that you will end up responsible for payments that could be several thousands of dollars were you to need treatment for something not covered by your plan.
I was able to interview 2 women and both expressed similar concerns with healthcare coverage. The woman in her 20's said she did a lot of research on healthcare coverage when looking for employment after college. She had a family member who became ill and went into high medical debt because most of the medications and specialists she was using were not covered by her insurance plan. The woman in her 40's expressed some uncertainty as to what she would do about healthcare upon retiring. She noted that she is very happy with the coverage her employer provides but she didn't really review or understand all of the details of the plan prior to starting her job.
Both of these women also made note of concerns regarding diseases such as heart disease and breast cancer that are common in their families.
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