New York Health Goes Digital

June 4, 2013

hospitalThe New York Digital Health Accelerator was developed as a way of helping health IT start-ups present their product to customers.  The problem that these companies often encounter is a reluctance of doctors to pay or a product that is not exactly what the hospital originally intended.   With this in mind, New York health is being digitized to some extent.  Now, the Accelerator is inaugurating a class of 8 start-ups (that were selected from an original 250 applicants).

One of the winners was Aidin.  This organization provides assistance for hospitals to enable them to refer patients to the correct care facility after they are discharged.  Its service will be piloted at four hospitals. The New York City Investment Fund and the New York eHealth Collaborative got together to set up the accelerator, raising $4.2m from a variety of investors.  The mission of the accelerator is to respond to the needs of the state and healthcare providers.  Start-ups need a product that focuses on care coordination, patient engagement, message alerts or analytics. Right now, New York health is moving toward improved patient outcome which requires coordinating care among health care providers to prevent the likelihood of hospitalization.

The Law: NYC Cigarette Purchase

May 2, 2013

cigarettesSince the fight to raise the age for the purchase of cigarettes from 18 to 21 started in New York City, lawmakers in other states may soon be following suit. This is particularly of interest now given Mayor Bloomberg’s other plan to make stores conceal cigarettes in their store as discussed in a recent post here.

Should this bill that was introduced last Friday become law, the state of New York would become a pioneer.  Other states have increased the age to 19, but not 21 (although a couple of towns have done that).

If passed, New York would become the first state to take this unprecedented move. Four states and some communities have increased the age to 19, and at least two towns have agreed to raise it to 21.  According to State Senator Diane Savino, “anything we can do to stop young people from starting is a step in the right direction.”  Given this, the proposal makes sense if the data assembled by City Council speaker Christine C. Quinn is anything to go by. She found that 80 percent of smokers begin the habit before they turn 21.  Thus if they intervene by adjusting the law, this could have a significant impact on the health of these youngsters.

The Center for Discovery’s Thanksgiving Farm

April 25, 2013

The Center for Discovery is a non-profit program working to provide disabled children and adults with education, health and residential services. Based in Harris, NY, the Center focuses on creative arts, recreational activities and healthy lifestyles to enrich the lives of its participants through personal accomplishment.

Patrick Dollard, Center for Discovery President and CEO, explains:

“The Center for Discovery is a unique place, and we brought together a lot of the human arts to care for people who are multiply disabled. We’re a place that we still imagine great possibilities for everybody. It’s really a connection to nature that is really essential, I think, for all our healing. Food became a really essential part of caring for folks, trying to create wellness and health, and not manage sickness.”

One of the Center’s projects is Thanksgiving Farm, an organic farm cared for by the Center’s residents. Here is a video that introduces the facility:

[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/43973092 w=500&h=281]

The Center for Discovery from The Center for Discovery on Vimeo.

Patients Medical and Daniel Amen Affiliation

April 13, 2013

 

A new affiliation has been reached between Patients Medical and Dr. Daniel Amen.  Patients Medical is a top integrative medical center in New York.  Dr. Daniel Amen is a brain imaging expert, psychiatrist and best-selling author.  The idea is that Dr. Amen will give advice to the Brain Wellness department at Patients Medical as well as lead programs that can diagnose and treat brain imbalances that result in poor health and reduced quality of life.

Dr. Amen boasts experience in overall wellness which is very suitable for the center’s holistic mission.  It will allow the center to expand its treatment scope to include brain health and hormone balancing.  This new affiliation is a natural next step from Vivian DeNise, an Integrative Physician and Certified Amen-Affiliated Education Doctor, who has already been working at the center, practicing Amen’s approach.  She has worked with patients who have a variety of disorders including ADHD, anxiety, depression, etc.  She thus believes that the new affiliation – together with the use of SPECT scans – will be a great way to more accurate diagnose patients and thereafter develop a customized treatment plan for them.

Bidding Farewell to the Fizz

March 18, 2013

sodasIt seems that Mayor Bloomberg’s ban on sodas might not have been necessary after all. Despite the fact that ultimately it was overturned, recent studies have shown that water is replacing the fizzy drink buzz in terms of popularity amongst Americans.

This has been a long time coming given that soda has been in the fast lane for the last two decades.  Per year, these days Americans down an average of 58 gallons of the pure stuff as compared with 44 gallons of soda. Some experts put this down to an increasing awareness in the role soda is playing in the nation’s obesity issue.  As well, there has been a greater marketing effort generated by the bottled water companies.

However, when one talks of an increased consumption of water over soda, within this statistic is the flavored waters which can carry as much sugar as soda.  For example, as Associate Professor of Health Policy at Johns Hopkins University, Sara Bleich points out, the Vitaminwater brand carries 125 calories and 32.5 grams of sugar per 20 ounce bottle.  Soda has around 140 calories and 39 grams of sugar.   This has been put down to the fact that consumers are letting themselves believe that the sugared water drinks are actually healthy.

Ultimately, the healthiest drink as most people know is plain water.  But it is very tempting to believe that the sugary version is likewise as healthy. In general, with the problem of late onset obesity in the States increasing, it is important for everyone to be aware of the overall sugar intake in their diet, and, removing it from their drinks is a good first step.

NY City Medical School Stands Out From The Pack

March 4, 2013

MSSMLogoEvery year it occurs that students who studied humanities want to go to medical school. When that happens, they often have to drown themselves in pre-requisites and play catch-up to the pre-med students.

This, however, is not always the case. There are a few nontraditional ways to get into medical school, including our own Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. It admits a quarter of its incoming students through a program that offers early admittance to humanities students. As Dr. Dennis Charney, the dean of the school, said, “It was designed to attract humanities majors to medicine who would bring a different perspective to education and medical practice.”

The program has been such a hit that they are now expanding it. By 2015, almost half of their incoming class will come through the new FlexMed program, which will take students from any educational background. These students won’t be required to take the MCAT, but they will take a year of biology or chemistry before applying and a few more science and math classes before graduating. And they have to keep up a 3.5 GPA.

The school plans to track these students through medical school and into their careers to see if there is a difference in the fields that they choose, the research they conduct or the leadership roles they take on.

A 2009 report from the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute showed that medical schools could actually become more flexible by focusing less on specific courses and more on a broad range of scientific competency. Time will tell if Icahn will be leading the way in this regard.

Food Labels: Lacking in Potassium

March 3, 2013

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene recently carried out a study on the labeling of packaged foods. According to the findings of these NYC health workers, the amount of potassium is generally amiss from most packaged food-labels.  This is problematic for those needing to ensure adequate potassium levels are maintained or for those with impaired kidneys who need to restrict their intake.

The recommendation by the Institute of Medicine vis-à-vis this powerful mineral is an intake of 4.7 grams daily for those not on a potassium-restrictive diet, reducing their risk for cardiovascular disease and death.  Indeed, as one researcher, Dr. Susan Kansagra pointed out, “diets high in potassium help decrease the negative impact of sodium, and so having a high ratio of potassium versus sodium in your diet is really important [and in general] Americans are not consuming enough potassium and are not meeting their dietary requirements.”

The study comprised an analysis of the labeling on 6,560 packaged foods covering 60+ different food categories, using nutritional information from a salt-reduced program.  Out of those products, only 500 contained potassium on their labels.  However, there was potassium data in over 50% of the products in five of the 61 categories: vegetable juice, seasoned processed potatoes, instant hot cereal, French toast/pancakes/waffles and sauces.

This issue is likely more connected to FDA requirements which currently lists potassium labeling as optional, rather than the companies themselves being amiss in their responsibilities.

NY Health Insurance: Impressive

February 3, 2013

For those in the New York area concerned about their health insurance, they need just look at the rest of the nation and feel quite confident and pleased with their lost.  It seems that New Yorkers are faring even better than the federal government vis-à-vis establishing a health insurance exchange. 

Indeed, according to America’s Department of Labor, it will only be March of this year that the deadline will be for employers to tell their employees about exchanges.  Ultimately what this means is that the government is simply not prepared yet to figure out the language employers should use.  As regional president for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., David Bauer noted, “the Department of Health and Human Services is still promulgating regulations. It's very fluid, there are a lot of unanswered questions.”

Public Health Emergency Sunday

January 21, 2013

 

Andrew Cuomo recently declared a public health emergency Sunday.  With this, pharmacists were told they could administer the flu vaccination to additional people, most notably to patients between the ages of 6 months and 18-years-old.  (Ordinarily they are given only to those who are over 18 by pharmacists).  It has been declared the worst outbreak of flu in New York in a number of years, for sure at least since 2009.  Indeed, throughout the nation, the flu has been reported to have reached “epidemic proportions,” especially since it started so early this year.  According to a report put out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ninety percent of American regions reported an increase in the level of flu, with 20 childhood fatalities.

As a result of what has been happening, state officials have been instructed by the governor to “marshal all needed resources to address this public health emergency and remove all barriers to ensure that all New Yorkers – children and adults alike – have access to critically needed flu vaccines.”  In addition, people who have not yet gotten their flu shots are now being encouraged to do so as the cases of reported influenza in NYC are continuing to rise.

Mental Health Impacts of Hurricane Sandy

December 18, 2012

Apart from the physical destruction left by the impact of Hurricane Sandy, various psychological effects remain.  One individual in New York who was not physically affected himself, is still having nightmares of his brother trapped in a car with water rising to his neck.  Anthony Gatti wakes up screaming despite the fact that he managed to save his brother’s life, at the peak of Superstorm Sandy. While he knows logically he saved him, the image of him being trapped will not go away. “My mind tells me I couldn’t save him, he dies,” he explains.
The State of New York – having dealt with some of the physical rebuilding – now has to focus on the emotional and mental trauma of its victims.  It is hard to estimate just how extreme this is, as many of those suffering are too scared to even leave their homes now.  The government has responded by dispatching 1,000+ crisis counselors to the most badly affected areas of New York and New Jersey.

The counselors’ primary job has been to transmit the message that anxiety and insomnia are a completely natural consequence following such a trauma.  It is only when this begins to intervene with everyday life that one has to take the next step by getting additional help.  This was very much the case with Hurricane Katrina victims too, seven years ago.  As US Public Health Service commander Eric Hierholzer pointed out, “folks are starting to realize that they may be in this for the long haul. And things aren’t necessarily going to get better tomorrow or next week.”

These are a few of the figures to date: Far Rockaway’s St. John’s Episcopal Hospital has encountered a 20 percent increase in walk-in patients in its psychiatric department since the storm hit.  There has been an escalation of 25 percent in children being referred to the hospital’s outpatient mental health programs from the schools.   It has been a very traumatic time for the children.  Anything connected to water has become a source of difficulty, including even rain and swimming pools.

Thankfully, Project Hope has helped out a lot.  Funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency grant of $8.2m, counselors have been sent to local areas with the prospect of assisting 200,000+  individuals. This includes those who may have language barriers, such as immigrants. In addition the New Jersey Hope and Healing Program has been involved in providing response counselors to those in need. There is a tremendous amount of suffering, post-traumatic stress and psychological problems that have to be tackled.  Health is about so much more than just one’s physical being – a trauma such as Superstorm Sandy can endure for much longer than cuts and bruises but thankfully it seems that NYC is aware of this and is acting on it.