Western Pennsylvania Healthcare News

Covering healthcare news in the Pittsburgh region and beyond.

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Top Tips to Make Home Health Care Affordable for You

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Worrying is commonplace when you have an elderly aunt or parent who’s living alone, and you’re not able to manage their care by yourself. You may have considered solutions like nursing homes or assisted living, only to be discouraged by your elderly relative. It’s no surprise that elders prefer spending their retirement years at home, to which they have deep, emotional connections. In that case, you’re likely to consider home healthcare, but after figuring out how to finance it, how to pay for home health care. 

What’s the cost associated with home health care for elders? 

The cost of home health care varies by location. On a general note, home health care costs higher on the east and west coasts and in urban areas as compared to what it costs in the central USA and rural areas. The cost is also influenced by what services you’re hoping to avail. “Homemaker” services such as management of nutrition, household errands, and general companionship typically add to the basic amount charged by home healthcare aides. 

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Dentists: How to Attribute Inbound Marketing Response from ’New Year, New You’ Type Leads

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From teeth whitening to implants, the demand for cosmetic dentistry has skyrocketed in recent years. Now, the typical dental patient is more aware and educated on the aesthetic options available in modern practices than ever before.

In fact, a report by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry discovered the dental industry has seen a 46% increase in cosmetic patients compared to general patients (18%) and with 2019 fast approaching, this number is certainly set to rise through the ’new year, new you’ buzz.

Naturally, upping your marketing spend is the natural reaction to meet this increased demand and out-perform your competition. But simply throwing money at your campaigns isn’t enough without multi-channel marketing attribution. Otherwise, how can you tell if your increased budgets have been worthwhile?

Whether you’re using offline print, social media or pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, utilizing multi-channel marketing attribution is exactly how cosmetic dentist businesses can determine their precise return on investment (ROI) for each marketing avenue. [Read more…]

Neuropathy Treatment Group Complaints: Is the Company Reputable?

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Some customers have experienced issues while paying for products from the Neuropathy Treatment Group. Shipping was a problem for some of them as well. These complaints have brought this company into sharp focus and many people are asking whether this company is reputable.

Answering that is only possible by examining the company’s history, online reviews, and manufacturing process. Examining its customer support services and its products is also important.

Here is an overview of Neuropathy Treatment Group complaints. Is the company reputable?

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Is There a Place for Telemedicine in Your Medical or Counseling Practice?

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By Daniel Casciato

While virtual medicine, or telemedicine, has been around for many years, its current revival is based on the lower cost of technology and increase sophistication of its user base, both at the provider level and at the patient level.

“The reason telemedicine is so important is that it allows individuals who are not in an environment where better physicians and service capabilities are to gain access to these capabilities and increase professional experience on the part of the physician,” says Steve Nitenson, adjunct professor of Healthcare IT at Golden Gate University.

Telemedicine today can be viewed as computer-to-computer, physician-to-patient, counselor-to-patient, or physician-to-physician interaction about a patient’s care. Nitenson notes that physicians have very much bought into the technology of telemedicine and are beginning to use such technologies as iPads, smart phones, or web portals to exploit this on a user basis.

“It is also noted, that the increased utilization and embracing of this technology with those physicians and healthcare providers that have awareness of and have increased comfort level in the use of technology,” he says. “For older physicians who are unwilling or unable to take advantage of this technology there’s not much to can be done to improve their potential use of telemedicine technology.” [Read more…]

Therapists Helping Patients in Allegheny County Thrive

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A mental illness can affect a person of any age, race, religion, or income. Mental illnesses are treatable.  According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), about 70-90 percent of individuals diagnosed with a serious mental illness experience relief from their symptoms by actively participating in a treatment plan. 

Mental illnesses vary in terms of severity. About 6 percent, or 1 in 17 Americans, suffer from a serious mental illness. NAMI estimates that mental illness affects 1 in 5 families.

The first step that a person should take is to get help immediately.  Whether it is the individuals themselves or the family members, there are plenty of places to turn for help in Allegheny County. 

The Bureau of Adult Mental Health of the Allegheny County Department of Human Services is one such place.  The organization, through about 40 community-based mental health agencies, provide, contract for, and monitor services designed to meet the mental health needs of Allegheny County residents. [Read more…]

Different Ways You Can Invest in Your Health & Wellness

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Your health affects your life in countless ways. As a result, you need to take the appropriate steps in taking care of it. Already, you have a general idea about what this means in your head.

You will have to start eating a healthy and well-balanced diet, exercise regularly, get enough sleep and so on. Of course, this isn’t everything that you must consider. It is only the tip of the iceberg, and all of these factors help influence your mental and physical wellbeing.

With that in mind, here are other ways that you can invest in your health and improve your life. 

Speaking to health care professionals

Your doctor, dentist, and other health care professionals are there for a reason. Regardless of whether you are currently healthy, it is essential to get regular check-ups to ensure that nothing is amiss. You never know what is happening in your intestinal tract, for instance, if you don’t do the necessary blood work and tests.

If you follow this step, you are helping keep future diseases at bay, and you will be able to treat any illness much faster as a result of catching them in its early stage. It is said that being healthy helps you succeed, and this only makes sense, as otherwise, you would spend all of your time worrying about your health issues. [Read more…]

World Health Organization Officially Recognizes Traditional Chinese Medicine

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By Bill Reddy, L.Ac., Dipl.Ac. and Nick Jacobs, FACHE

As incredible as it sounds, the Department of Veterans Affairs offers acupuncture services in 88% of their 1,920 facilities nationwide, and the top five hospitals in the United States, ranked by US News and World Report all offer acupuncture to their patients. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) updated their International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD) in June 2018 to include traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) diagnoses.  The ICD-11 will be implemented on January 1st, 2022.  Insurers base reimbursement on ICD codes. Public health organizations use the collected data for allocation of health resources. ICD codes also provide a common language for health professions to share health information globally. [Read more…]

Dementia & the Use of Chemical Restraints

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When a person has dementia, they are unable to do many of the things people would normally be able to. It is extremely difficult for them, and the disease progresses in such a way that they don’t even know what is going on, why they feel this way, or how to ask for help. Naturally, this confusion leads to outbursts and other disruptive behaviors. While these behaviors are an avoidable part of the condition, medical staff and caregivers have been responding in some pretty disturbing ways. The human rights group Human Rights Watch recently published a report with evidence that nurses and assistants have been using anti-psychotic drugs to sedate their patients, a practice that has become known as the use chemical restraints.

The Symptoms of Dementia

Dementia degrades the brain slowly, until motor skills, communication skills, and ability to perform basic tasks are debilitated. The confusion and inability to understand the hospital environment, they naturally become frightened. The loss of memory, confusion, frustration, and lack of self-reliance make the patient depressed. All of these symptoms make it difficult for the staff to handle the patient. [Read more…]

Seven Activities You Can Do in Order to be Smarter and Healthier

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It is perfectly normal to want to be healthier and smarter. It is also not surprising to find out that having a healthy body and a strong mind are closely linked to each other, since your mental processes can determine your physical state easily, as well as the reverse.

For you to achieve your goals, it is therefore essential to find ways of supporting and enhancing the health of your body and mind. It is additionally important to remember that the better they are, the more your overall feelings of wellbeing success and happiness increase. However, you cannot improve your body and mind in a short span of time, as it requires genuine commitment to the entire process.

Here are some tried and tested tips that will help you do your best and improve yourself. [Read more…]

Myth-Busting Addiction to Prescription Drugs

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In the last couple of years, some shocking statistics have revealed the level to which parts of society are addicted to prescription drugs, usually painkillers. It’s a silent kind of addiction, and not as well-known as some of the other addictions to substances like methadone or heroin. Still, it’s a huge problem, and in order to deal with it, we must consider ways of educating people as to the truth behind these statistics. With all public problems are their concurrent myths; this article aims to bust each and every one associated with prescription drug addiction.

  • It’s Not Indulgence

All addictions should be seen as a disease and not the hedonistic overindulgence of an individual on a drug, The same and more can be applied to those addicted to prescription drugs; the majority of these individuals were not seeking pleasure, they were seeking (and were granted by practitioners) relief from extreme pain. The word ‘addiction’ is dirty and taboo in our society. We have to accept that it’s a problem that isn’t going away. [Read more…]