All Hallows Even

On October 31st,  we find the celebration of Halloween (at one time All Hallows Even). On Halloween, people dress up in costume and go door to door asking for treats in lieu of them performing tricks! They carve faces into Jack O' Lanterns and light them using candles. With all of these customs that are celebrated on this night, have you ever stoped to ask yourself why we celebrate the way we do? Well, let me show you! Enjoy the show!

One Little Lie Forms One Large Consequence

When it comes to human nature, there is one glaring flaw that seems to become even the best of us. When we are in the presence of authority, we lie. For example, in a doctor/patient setting we may, in some twisted way, end up signing our death wish by not tracking and talking about our health and habits to our doctors because we fear judgement and feel ashamed. We give medical care providers either too little information or the wrong information and this can be deadly. Not knowing or withholding any medical history, eating and social habits and overall feeling of health could very well cut lifespan years shorter.

In 2004, there was a poll taken at WebMD collecting data about patient lies. The results were as follows:

 Of 1,500 responders to a 2004 online survey by WebMD, 45% admitted they hadn't always told it exactly like it was -- with 13% saying they had "lied," and 32% saying they had "stretched the truth."

Not included in those figures would be patients who "lie" without knowing they do so by withholding information because it slips their mind or they have no idea it could be useful. (Maybe Aunt Agnes would gladly tell about the time she snored so loud she woke the neighbors if she knew that a diagnosis of sleep apnea could depend on it.)[1]

One of the most notable, unquantified numbers in there: the 'lies' in which past medical history was forgotten or withheld. Chances are, the forgotten truth could be the most pertinent truth. This is why it is very important to spend the time backtracking medical history and collecting the data into a Personal Health Record. Even things such as slight color changes on features of the body, when ignored or not tracked for further developments could be fatal.

The truth be told, we as humans are complex and susceptable to breakdown in more ways than we can imagine. The practice of self-monitoring and reporting to medical care providers is one of the easiest and most proven ways to live a long happy life - even in spite of daily habits. Lastly, there's no need to fear judgement and persecution from care providers because if they did judge their patients, they would not be able to save the lives that they do.

A complete Personal Health Record could very well be your cheapest and safest route route through the healthcare system.Visit https://www.thesmartmedcard.com to begin tracking your health today.


Sources:
[1]"Do Patients Tell The Truth | Body of Lies: Patients Aren't 100% Honest with Doctors - Los Angeles Times." Featured Articles From The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 08 June 2009. Web. 28 Oct. 2011. <http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jun/08/health/he-lying8>.

It Will Just Take a Minute

A big part of the upcoming changes to healthcare is understanding and practicing preventative health measures; where we take a good look at ourselves and determine if we are destined to become a heavy user of the healthcare system based on lifestyle patterns. The problem at hand in implementing this, though, is that a majority of us are unwilling to take action because of A) I'm not unhealthy, how dare you judge me, and B)I can't afford the tests to determine if I have any problems. The truth is, if you have the Internet or access to a library - you have some of the greatest prevention tools at your disposal and you've already been paying for them. It's time to get using them! Here is a  small kick in the pants to get you researching what (potential) ailments you may be experiencing. This will all just take a minute!

One key component in self-analysis comes from how big you are via the amount of fat. This first component, Body Mass Index (BMI) can be calculated here: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/ What did you come up with? Well, the higher the number the more likely you may be experiencing or will  experience: (from http://win.niddk.nih.gov/publications/health_risks.htm)

• type 2 diabetes
• coronary heart disease and stroke
• metabolic syndrome
• certain types of cancer
• sleep apnea
• osteoarthritis
• gallbladder disease
• fatty liver disease
• pregnancy complications

Cutting down on body fat alone can greatly reduce the chances of developing, while also 'curing' a number of very common and preventable issues; ones that are highly responsible for the constant increase in healthcare costs.

Secondly, we  must consider that if you do fall within a normal range, the worries haven't ended. You may be skinny but fat on the inside! The question is, how often do you tend to eat the 'fun food' that we Americans cherish? If it's even a few times a week, you may be heading down a slippery slope. So, that above list now gets dumped right into your lap. The prevention step towards you? It's easy, just like your larger counterpart, it's about diet! What everyone needs to know can be found at http://maddieruud.hubpages.com/hub/Healthy_Diet.

Now, what about exercise? Well, we should all be shooting for at least a half-hour to 45 minutes of cardio and some weight training a day, but in reality, the best body that is the epitome of health is built from diet first!

The key to a long, happy, pain-free life ultimately comes down to your initiative to make it happen. Now that you have an introduction and basic knowledge to start further research and self practice in prevention, what will you do with it?  

Be sure to visit The Smart Med Card to learn about tracking your health and the benefits of  doing so.

What If

Contrary to popular belief, there are a lot of factors that dictate the direction of our day - the answers to our 'what ifs' - that we are in direct control over. How we form our 'what if' answers, though, are becoming increasingly biased from, as stated - popular belief. More and more of our culture is forgoing the power of self-knowledge and keen-awareness and putting in its place opinion and unstable facts - taken as truth.

One of the largest practices of answering our 'what ifs' using popular opinion rather than self-education is in healthcare. We follow popular opinion like children to the Pied Piper and (as macabre as it may sound) often end our story the same way; our healthcare 'what ifs', if answered incorrectly could be just as deadly as any other result. In order to introduce a new way of thinking, I bring to you

When Doing Nothing Is the Best Medicine

Be sure to visit The Smart Med Card and take the initiative to track your health and well-being!

Visit The Smart Med Card

Happy Monday everybody! Today, we would like you to visit us at The Smart Med Card for a few changes we've implemented.

Firstly, if you're not too sure about getting the full version of our USB emergency medical ID card and all of its amazing features just yet - how about you give us a try?

Go to https://www.thesmartmedcard.com/free-tri-fold-card.php and sign-up for your free Tri-Fold Wallet Card. Once you have successfully signed up, click on the link titled 'Self-Printing Access'  right above where you entered your username and password. You can also access the printing area from 'My Tri-Fold Wallet Card' at the top right of your screen in the member login area. Please read the instructions carefully and print your free Tri-Fold Card! The first time you use it, you will immediately see how powerful the full-featured USB devices will be!

For those who have received your Free Tri-Fold Wallet Card before October 20, 2011 you may print your Free Tri-Fold Card's data  using the 'My Tri-Fold Wallet Card' link at the top right of your screen in the members area. Follow the instructions carefully to get access to and print your data!

Lastly, take action and spread the word. The Smart Med Card is in the works of developing their newsletter! At The Smart Med Card's site, click the Mail icon at the top of the screen where the Facebook and the other social medial icons are at. All you need to do is enter your email!

Big things are coming, so don't miss out! See you all at The Smart Med Card!

War (What is it Good For?) Absolutely....One Thing

If you haven't heard the recent news, Obama has pledged to have the troops home for the years end. What a nine years it's been and boy are we not done yet - but that's another story. Instead, I want to share with you a contribution of war that we often take for granted every day; that if it were not for war, our Emergency Medical Services (EMS) System could very well have been entirely different if even existent (it probably would have found its way eventually) if wars were never fought.

You see, to sum up the title, the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) System and the standard of care Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) provide are all bi-products of war. In all honesty, there's no better place to research and develop emergency care techniques then in a setting where there is a large population of continuous wounded. To gain an understanding of how the battlefield gave us our system today, I present to you a brief history of the ambulance.

The history of the EMS is quite old. Have you ever seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail; the scene were Eric Idol is yelling 'Bring out yer dead!' whilst pushing a cart full of dead bodies? Welcome to the 1400s version of the ambulance system! No more than a cart meant to take away incurable patients from the home and streets.

As time marches on, we find ourselves in more and more wars. The 1790s, during Napoleon's reign, comes the development of horse-drawn carriage (called 'Flying Ambulances') transferring fallen soldiers from the battlefield after receiving treatment on the spot! Replace horse with Copter and Jeep (Flying Ambulances!) and we've got the modern day war-zones.

When it comes to civilian pre-hospital care, the system we are familiar with on the home-front, we can grasp that development by understanding that the military cared for the sick, wounded and dead by transporting them to medical stations. Soon, we have the evolution of normal civilians taking any and all forms of vehicles that developed through time and sticking to those vehicles a basic motto of 'You call. We haul. That's all.' The operators of these ambulances did not provide medical care to the patients they were bringing to the hospital. As larger accidents with high casualties began occurring (on our home-front war-zone, the highway), the realization that these ambulances needed to provide care at the scene came to fruition. Lastly, thanks to President Kennedy and his attack on motor-vehicle deaths being one of the biggest diseases in America, the Department of Transportation (DOT) was charged with creating, maintaining and furthering the development of the EMS System.

How's that for a trip through time! Remember to stop by The Smart Med Card to check out our evolution! Be sure to sign up for our newsletter service too!

Slim Down With the Fat Tax

The new line of obesity-targeted health measures has been in effect for about 20 days in Denmark and the news is sweeping the world. It is called the fat tax. The fat tax places food items into particular tax-brackets based on the amount of fat that it takes to make that product. So, such items as butters, higher-fat milks, meats and so on will now see an increase in prices. The purpose of such large measures are to target the issue of the lower life-span in Denmark.

Now, it's not just the fat tax that is in effect and it's not just fat that's being taxed. There has been other itemized measures put in place to deter obesity related illnesses and preventable deaths. Denmark also has the sin tax, taxes on high-sugar delights. Other taxes such as the familiar tobacco/cigarette related taxes have been in effect for some time now. With the frontal attack on obesity and preventable death from poor diet and nutrition in full swing, we can only wait to see what country is the next to join the battle and what the trending results will say.

Lastly, what's with the roll-out of such heavy taxes? It's because we're addicted. From Radio New Zealand International[1]

Dr Kelly Brownell [Yale University] says there are two problems with unhealthy food.

“It tastes really good and it acts on the brain in such a way that it keeps us wanting more of it. Plus the foods are the ones most heavily marketed by the industry because these are foods that people over-consume. So something needs to be done to change that incentive structure and changing the price could be one thing that could do that.”

So, readers - for such a hard-headed nation as America, do you feel this could ever hold any water?

[1] http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=63839

Child Development 2.0

During my morning romp through the internet for preventative health news, topics about the effects of technology on child development popped up a few times and reminded me of a report I wrote a few years back. Today, I want to share that report with you to introduce studies of technology and its effect on the development of children's cognitive and social skills. Enjoy!

Child Development 2.0

A Social Checkup

To The Smart Med Card's friends and followers: we need you! We make it our best effort to keep you informed and entertained, but in order to do this effectively: it's ultimately up to you, the readers. Therefore, today's blog is a call to action - and it's very important to the directions we plan to take in the upcoming months.The topics we can talk about are numerous, so, with that subtle hint we politely but sternly request of you topics within:

• Healthcare Reform
• Politics and Healthcare
• Personal Care
• Diseases
• Medical Facts
• Social Issues
• What comes to your mind

The Smart Med Card wants everything we do to be about you and for you. When it comes to your health and well-being, everything is clearly affected by your environment; the fun, the sad, the bad and the WOOHOO! So, please tell us what articles and topics have caught your attention in our past presentations and how we can continue to catch your attention in the future.

No matter what your role is within The Smart Med Card's bubble, everyone's voice is invaluable - let us know how we can better serve you. Leave a comment below or send an email to: Jim@thesmartmedcard.com!

The World I Know

Whether we like it or not, pieces of our lives are out there for everyone to see. With the mass-uprising of Social Media and information-sharing, we see three very distinct social-influences of our world. For one, the lines separating generations is more clear then ever before. Every new generation that reaches what I call 'computer age', the age in which parents start trusting their children to use the computer, the lifetime-amount of random personal information (that probably should remain personal) that gets shared online rises compared to the life-time amount of the generation previous, as does the level of detail . The second aspect of our world influenced by Social Media is the fact that new generations' lives are greatly influenced by the information they share. Any types of noticeable libel, risky behaviors and 'boss-bashing' could affect their chances of receiving any qualifiable jobs in the future or even keeping their current jobs. On the flip-side, any and all greatness and success one may have achieved could also greatly shape their life for the better. Social Media in all reality is a standard in reputation management, building and decline. Finally, the third influence Social Media has gained on our lives - the ability to save it.

The strangest thing is happening in our society because of the popularity and strength of Social Media and its fist mentioned social-influence. Our acquired ability to release our privacy to the world has actually turned into an amazing diagnostic tool as well as an intervention instigator. The reason the online community is turning into a successful diagnostic tool comes from the fact that when we feel/are ill, our instinct is to now research AND inquire about our symptoms. Those of us who have chronic symptoms that seem to get pushed aside or 'seemingly misdiagnosed' by our doctors and care providers tend to post symptoms to various Social Media tools (Facebook, Ask.Yahoo, Forums..etc) asking if anyone can correlate said symptoms to a particular disease/condition, or at the very least, a manageable list. The amazing aspect of this process is, lives are actually being saved. Not only are people with similar conditions who have been diagnosed posting answers but so are doctors and other care providers. Now we have a highly knowledgeable (for the most part) community banding together for the better cause!

Finally, about the intervention instigator - tools (mainly Facebook and similar) which allow status updates and photos to be posted are creating a window into people's afflictions. Alcoholism, depression, anorexia to name a few of the big diseases are fairly easy to diagnose by trending (watching a person change over time). For instance, people who post often that they have a hangover could very well be heading down the path towards alcoholism. People posting stories and stats over weight loss who are already very small for the height and age and continue to show frustration may be heading towards anorexia. The power of Social Media and sharing is undeniably powerful.

For one last thought in today's blog post - for those we care about - don't be afraid or ashamed at reading into and questioning the daily antics you may see on Facebook (or any other Social Network). Whenever bad things happen to someone we know and care about we always say the same thing - they seemed fine; they seemed happy. Is that what you are seeing or is that what you wanted to see?

A SAMPLE of the Smart Med Card

Today, I thought it would be fun to teach you how The Smart Med Card works when an EMT is called to a medical patient's house. We'll keep things simple, as though the patient is coherent, breathing normally and complaining of nothing more than a stomach ache.
When the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) System is activated for the medical patient with the upset stomach, the EMTs who arrive will generate, from the moment they first see the patient, a Primary Assessment in which they will make decisions of what kind of transport priority the patient is (immediate/non-immediate) and what kind of life-saving interventions (oxygen, bleeding control, airway corrections...etc) will be needed at this moment. Since the EMT was called out due to a stomach ache and no other outward signs point to any-other complications, the EMTs will then handle a focused exam. By remembering their mnemonic SAMPLE, the EMT will begin the assessment. Now would be the time to present the EMTs with The Smart Med Card. What SAMPLE relates to is:

• Signs and Symptoms
• Allergies
• Medications
• Past Patient Histroy
• Last Oral Intake
• Events Leading to Present Illness

From here, the EMT will handle vital-signs, reassess transport priority and continue an ongoing assessment. And that's a simple scenario of an EMS call!

By having this information handy you make the EMT's ability to handle the focused exam much easier and could perhaps, based on your past, present trends and possible related complications that could be more serious than just a stomach ache.

The Smart Med Card is an indispensable tool for both you and EMTs. Illnesses don't discriminate between age, sex and race. We are all susceptible to, at some-point in our lives, a reason to activate the EMS sytem. Be sure to have what you need - your life could depend on the ability of your care providers to properly connect the dots. That's what they're trained for!

Take a trip over to The Smart Med Card and start preparing your medical history today. Remember, if you take any medication - you do have a medical history!

There Really Is an App for That

If you think back to the title of my last post - The Smart Med Card - Inspiration University, Bob didn't invent something new; he made something better. I bet If you dug up all the innovations from the late 20th and 21st centuries thus far - I'd be hard-pressed to believe that a fair share of them were not also improvements rather than something full-blown new. Today, I want to show you, albeit briefly, how the world of medical diagnostics is taking some of the most irrelevant tools, your Smart Phones, and turning them into diagnostic tools that are just as effective as the actual devices the phones are mimicking

Smartphone Camera Detects Breathing Rate, Pulse and Blood Oxygen Saturation

by Wouter Stomp on Oct 11, 2011 • 10:39 am

Original Story

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Both the iPhone app store and the Android market have their fair share of heart rate monitors, which use either the microphone or in some cases the camera to detect your heart rate, with varying levels of accuracy. A researcher from Worcester Polytechnic Institute wanted to take this idea a little further and has developed a smartphone app that measures not only heart rate, but also heart rhythm, respiration rate and blood oxygen saturation using the phone’s built-in video camera.
The app analyzes video clips recorded while the patient’s fingertip is pressed against the lens of the camera. Just like a standard clinical pulse oximeter, it then captures small changes in light reflected by the pulsing blood in the capillaries, and translates these changes to the actual vital signs by using some of the same algorithms employed in professional devices.
For testing purposes, the researchers used the app on a Motorola Droid phone with a group of volunteers and compared the readings with those from standard clinical monitoring devices. According to these tests, the smart phone monitor was as accurate as the traditional devices. If this app indeed works as well as advertised, this could become a powerful diagnostic tool which is readily available to both doctors and patients anywhere they are.
The next challenge the researchers are working on is accurate detection of atrial fibrillation from the heart rhythm signal. They are working on an app for that, and have started a preliminary clinical study. Details of the current app are described in a paper published online in the journal IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering.

How's that for innovation? Even though technology has nothing to do but evolve in every aspect of our lives, it's nice to see that some of us still have our heads in the 'now' and realize the power current technology possesses. What do you think about Smart Phone Diagnostic Tools?

The Smart Med Card - Inspiration University

Hey hey - it's Monday! Ha ha, just the words you wanted to hear, right? Well, in order to try and curb a more ravenous case of the Monday's, let's get a little inspired today. Be sure to check out the video at the end!

I do believe I will be making a factual statement when I say: There comes a time in everyone's life when we say - "I could have made that - what the hell...too much time on Facebook." For me, I can certainly attest that there are at least a minimum of two times a day I come across someone's ideas and concepts that make me question my education and experiences; how sometimes 'being smart' has nothing to do with education and knowledge - but rather 'being smart' has to do with the ability to think in the moment. It is about being constrained to an environment where the brain has to piece together a process or event that is often either solace or rushed and chaotic. Both types of events cause chemical changes in the brain that really get the neurons firing. The funny thing about these moments is that the new pathways that have been created in the brain (the memories of the event) somehow, in some of us, create this missing link between a suppressed, good idea and the inspiration, reasoning and algorithm needed to implement the idea. Let's take Bob Hammill's The Smart Med Card as an example.

The Smart Med Card is nothing too new - it's a USB storage unit for Personal Health Records (PHR). The back-end of the device is a HIPAA compliant and secure website on which your medical history is stored and maintained. How the device was born so-to-speak happened exactly as stated in the above paragraph - an event (Bob's wife's COPD) caused him to develop a storage unit to help monitor her health and present it coherently to healthcare providers. Where Bob made the important decision to stand out and create a far more superior device came from two really simple yet powerful changes: no software and easy-to-access PDF health profiles (from the event, COPD, comes a bridge to the suppressed idea - highly portable, easy-to-use and maintainable PHR for use within the healthcare setting - where the steps of implementation [the bridge] were built from the memories of emergency trips to the ER). In this specific case, the invention was a 'twist' on existing technology - to make things simpler.

There is a caveat to inspiration, though. Often, in times if inspiration we get 'good ideas'. I'm afraid I'm going to have to be the bearer of bad news, but these ideas are probably not at all good ideas. Like I said, the best ideas come from an event - an immersion into an environment that is either relaxing or utterly chaotic - times when we certainly aren't trying to invent anything.

What I want everyone to do today is reflect on your experiences; reflect on some of the best and worst moments and walk through them. Is there any part of those experiences that give you insight into how something could be made better or could benefit others in some way?

Finally, for those of us who are tinkerers and love the challenge of inventing for the sake of inventing - your probability of developing dementia-related illnesses will be highly mitigated due to continuous use and 'sharpening' of the brain. Preventative health at its finest!

Oh - for one last bit of inspiration...

(Not endorsed by The Smart Med Card)

What's Your Story?

Those of us who have been following The Smart Med Card since the beginning know that we are about preventative health and self-monitoring. The reason we push these practices onto you is because they are in fact a few of the biggest saving-graces of our healthcare system. These practices will reduce healthcare costs - they will allow the reallocation of resources and increase availability of financial help to those who can't get even the most basic care. These practices will also greatly reduce the costs onto you - no more duplicate and unnecessary tests (yes they are costly - no you do not want another one!). So, to further push our message to the public, I am going to show you a way to begin your Personal Health Record with The Smart Med Card while simultaneously beginning a Personal Health Record for each member of your family. So, readers - what better time then now to build your Family Tree? Welcome to A Family Tree for a Healthier Me!

Be Learned
One of the most rewarding and perhaps biggest mysteries to unravel is you. You may live a simple life now, but, could you imagine the life of your blood-line? Think of the major events in history the World over - could it have been your relatives at the forefront? Could it have been your family that helped shape the World we live in today? Certainly some of us will have to say yes to this - so see if it was you! It's like winning the lottery - only, instead of becoming Mr./Mrs. MoneyStacksAndStacks you rightly become rich in smugness and pride when you tell everyone your great, great grandaddy is the reason we do this, this and this! OK, let's get this part out there too - of course I have an ulterior motive to this project.

You see, when you research your family's past - you will, without a doubt uncover their health history. With each person you research, you will learn their lifestyle (even by looking only at the time-period they lived in) and you will learn their approximate time of death and the reason. These factors all have a hand in determining where you and your upcoming generations are heading. With each of these factors you uncover in research - there is a storage sector of The Smart Med Card just waiting to be written to with this new-found data! This information in a doctor's possession could very well be the dividing line between diagnosis and treatment or misdiagnosis and chronic complications.

Your Doc's Arsenal
Projects like the Family Tree are concepts that you should be familiar with already. Remember going to the doctor and being asked about your parents and their parents? It's for good reason. Who they were health wise - you are now a potent cock-tail of everything they were; with each member passing at least one overpowering factor that is nothing more than a time-bomb of 'something uh-oh this way comes'. By doing your own investigative work, uncovering patterns and learning about courses of action in prevention and treatment, you are doing, for the cost of time what modern medicine is doing for the costs of millions of $$. You are empowering yourself to live longer, happier lives without the intervention of modern medicine.

Motive: Moral
Finally, there is one more motive I have behind this project and that is: the stress of the day, hardships, jerky people and bossy bosses - they all contribute to our health (in a very, very adverse manner), but can be easily counteracted by a nice block of family time. Be with your spouse, kids, parents - whomever you may wish to see this project through with. Make this a team effort. Bring back laughter, memories and stories from your past as something to share and to cherish. Stop the consumption of precious time by material 'items' and enjoy the one thing in life we are guaranteed - a family.

It's never to late to practice preventative health measures. Visit The Smart Med Card and start your Personal Health Record today!

It's a Mutual Failure

Today, I will begin our blog bluntly (it's how we learn) - we're paranoid of lawsuits. Everywhere we go and everything we do we have to cover our hind-sides from someone looking to sue. Unfortunately, this mentality is creating a snow-ball effect in some of our critical industries - healthcare for starters.

We are low on doctors and because of the high-chances of a financial back-hand to the noggin during their job-duties, there is no stopping this shortage. Becoming a doctor is expensive, time-consuming and no longer contains the financial incentives that we believe a doctor to receive. But you know something? We contribute to the fault of a doctor's troubles and the fears of med-students. Perhaps we should consider suing ourselves, sometimes?

Here is what I am saying: If you don't track yourself well enough and then throughly and coherently present all information you can to a doctor during diagnosis - they will probably make mistakes. It's not entirely their fault, though; they don't live with us, track our medications or track complications; even if they only presented for a day or two and we chose to ignore them. Sure, doctors tend to run with a poor diagnosis because it looks like it's right or may even stereotype because of statistics with some medical complications, but, the bottom line is, we do our part to aid them in misdiagnosis. To give you a little something to chew on, here are a few numbers and facts from Reuters Health.

'Researchers found that about half of U.S. malpractice payments -- a proxy for medical errors -- from 2009 involved patients seen outside of the hospital.'[1]

More and more procedures that used to be kept solely to hospitals are now being performed in doctor's offices. The reasons for the malpractice suits are resultant from serious injury or death[1].

'In 2009, the last year of the study, there were 4,910 payments due to inpatient errors, 4,448 due to outpatient errors, and 966 involving both settings. Together, these payments were worth more than $3.3 billion.'[1]

If you think about it, over the years, that $3.3 billion (+/-) continually being spent in payments in which at least a substantial chunk could be mitigated is rather high. 4,448 outpatient errors (doctor's offices), a number that is basically the same as surgical error (inpatient) is astonishing. The lesson to learn - we need to communicate with our doctors. We need to take an active stance in our lives. Doctors can't do their part effectively unless we leave no door closed in patient-doctor communication. We all need to lite a little fire under our butts and hop to it!

So, next time you are with your doctor - consider starting your Personal Health Records with The Smart Med Card. Learn about yourself and create a personal profile that any doctor could use to make solid judgements in diagnoses and treatments. Your doctor would be more than happy to help you out, and in fact, most of them wish you would talk to them more, especially during the creation of a Personal Health Record. That is their job; to be there for you.

Learn more about The Smart Med Card and how you can take the initiative in starting your Personal Health Records today!

[1] http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43401235/ns/health/t/malpractice-claims-common-outside-hospital/

Give a Gift That Makes a Difference

Those of us who are parents want nothing more than to raise happy, healthy and productive members of society that get out there and make a difference. Who couldn't want that? A big part of achieving said goal ultimately comes down to the morals, work ethics and habits you instill in them as they continue to grow and experience. What if one of those habits was self-analysis; a habit that may greatly effect morals and work-ethic?

We often consider age-appropriate tools and toys as great gifts for our children/grandchildren because of the joyful and often educational nature said toys may create. What I think we greatly ignore though are the tools that will allow them to continue to grow after an emergency. We highly suppress the potential darkness and dangers that may consume our children for our own selfish reasons - those thoughts are difficult to face. The truth is, as kids grow, accidents happen; the body may become ill. Bad things can and do happen. Think about all the times that your children will be out of your care - sports, outings, clubs, trips; a myriad of other reasons your children may be out of your watch and even more - out of your home-town. What if something goes wrong and you can't be reached - because no one knows a name or a number? Allergies, medications - what if your child's mental status decreases and is unable to tell anyone what's wrong - and they need their medication?

The point is, your children depend on you to make so many decisions and to meet so many of their needs, even when you are not physically with them. Luckily, you do have the ability to monitor your children away from home and it comes down to how you teach them to respond to the inevitable and the tools you give them to carry.  So, what if you decide to change one gift you get them; instead of that new toy, you buy them The Smart Med Card.  What a perfect gift for the new parent, right? You sit with them and explain to them how to monitor their health and what the card will tell the doctors about them. You teach them how to keep it with them safely; how to never share it with anyone but medical care providers. If you're the parent - use this card when you need to. Don't let it get out of date. Think of how easy continued maintenance is over starting fresh with a large medical file later in life. If you are not the parent, then explain to the receiving family the benefits and the power of the card. With all the money that gets spent on toys and clothes that will fade with time - what if you get them one item that can last a lifetime and very well be the only item ever purchased for them that gives them a second chance at a lifetime. Think about how your money is spent on your family. Perhaps it's time we use that money a little more wisely?

Visit The Smart Med Card to learn more about what you can do to help protect your loved ones.