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We have two healthcare calamities unfolding before us – one visible, the other not yet.

The first you at least know something about - Covid-19.  On January 14, one in 15 Americans (24 million) have been diagnosed with Covid-19.[1]  Of these, around four million survived, but are suffering after-effects ranging from brain fog, lung issues, and sexual disfunction.[2],[3]  Another 380,000 Americans have already died from it.[4] 

Experts predict that the number of dead will grow to over half-a-million by April 2021,[5] even with an aggressive vaccination campaign, because around one-third of Americans say they will not take the vaccination at all.[6]

This is only the visible part of our national tragedy.

The second (still invisible) crisis is caused by the fact that out of every ten Americans, six have what is called a “chronic disease” – things like heart disease, diabetes, and kidney disease.  These do not heal. They do get worse over time and must be carefully managed for as long as you live. [7],[8]   

In normal times, chronic disease is managed by regular doctors’ office visits.  However, the Centers for Disease Control has reported that due to the Covid-19 epidemic around 40% of American adults have either delayed or avoided routine and chronic disease-related medical care.[9]  This includes visits to doctors’ offices by patients with chronic heart, lung and brain issues which have dropped considerably.[10]  So have emergency room visits – for example, Seattle area hospitals reported half the normal rate of emergency room visits by patients concerned they were having a heart attack.[11]  Some portion of those who did not go to the emergency room did in fact have a heart attack and survived and need to be carefully medically supervised or they will suffer early death.

We need to figure out how to help more than half of all Americans that have chronic diseases but are afraid to go to a medical facility due to fear of Covid-19 infection.

One solution may be the use of telemedicine, also called “Virtual Office Visits”.  At a scheduled time the healthcare worker calls the patient via computer or cell phone and a face-to-face visit is held which can result in steps being taken to control the chronic disease.  This is not suitable for a patient whose circumstance is changing rapidly – they need a face-to-face office visit.

There is one specific population that video visits could make a big difference for – older men.  In America, life expectancy for men is about 5 years less than for women.[12]  At age 65, for every 100 surviving American women, there are only 77 men still alive – and most of those have a chronic illness.[13] The challenge is that one in four of all Americans (and more men than women) over 65 are not on-line.[14] So the people most in need of careful medical attention for chronic diseases but are not going to the doctor are millions of mostly older, mostly male, not technically savvy, and/or don’t have the needed electronic equipment.

So what can you as an individual do to help your older loved ones get the medical attention they need safely?

First, you help the patient who has not been to the doctor in a long time locate someone to set up the technology for a video connection.  This technical helper (your grandchild?) does not need to be in the room during the visit, but they do need to be able to make the connection happen using the doctor’s software.  (Things like Facetime and Skype cannot be used because they do not have enough medical privacy.)[15],[16]

Then you lovingly nag, nag, nag until a video call appointment is scheduled.

During the visit, you can also use the same tools the nurse used during your last in-patient visit, like a blood pressure cuff or blood sugar monitor, which you can order from Amazon, Walmart, or Target. The doctor can get real-time data to use during the call to help them guide the patient.

You have the resources in your family or neighborhood to protect your older friends and relatives from increasing harm caused by a disease you already know about and know how to fight.   All you have to do is make two phone calls.   First, get an appointment for a video visit, and second, get your grandkids or neighbors to help you set up the technology.

It will benefit both the young and old – and you.

 

Authored by Francis Koster Ed. D.
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Note to readers: We have received strong positive feedback about the value of the content of these emails. We would like to increase the number of screens they appear on. Not our strength, so if you have any thoughts about how to do that, please reach out to us at Futurisfran@aol.com. Also, please check out our second project, which loans pollution detection equipment to people interested in indoor environments in schools. We “Make the Invisible Visible”. We had to suspend that project due to the Covid-19 virus shutting schools down, but the intent does restart it someplace down the road. Please check out the information we gained in that effort thus far by clicking here: www.thepollutiondetectives.org

 

[1] https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/us-map

[2] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-problem-of-long-haul-covid/

[3] https://health.clevelandclinic.org/yes-covid-19-can-cause-erectile-dysfunction-in-men/

[4] https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/us-map

[5] https://covid19.healthdata.org/united-states-of-america?view=total-deaths&tab=trend

[6] https://www.webmd.com/vaccines/covid-19-vaccine/news/20201207/americans-increasinglyi-say-theyll-get-covid-vaccine

[7] https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/infographic/chronic-diseases.htm

[8] https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/about/index.htm

[9] https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6936a4.htm

[10] https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/2020/oct/impact-covid-19-pandemic-outpatient-care-visits-return-prepandemic-levels

[11] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/14/doctors-worry-the-coronavirus-is-keeping-patients-away-from-us-hospitals-as-er-visits-drop-heart-attacks-dont-stop.html

[12] U.S. Census Bureau, 2017 National Population Projections, 2015–2060, and National Center for Health Statistics Life Tables, 1960–2014, <www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_07-508.pdf

[13] https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/mars-vs-venus-the-gender-gap-in-halth

[14] https://slate.com/technology/2020/07/seniors-technology-illiteracy-misconception-pandemic.html

[15] https://www.hipaajournal.com/facetime-hipaa-compliant/

[16] https://www.hipaajournal.com/skype-hipaa-compliant/

My books containing other success stories

Written in 2015, this was my first attempt at celebrating successful actions taken by K-12 schools. Although the data is now outdated, the 22 concepts in this book are still valid, and worth a read. The website above will continue to add to that library - look on the right side for more recent role model stories.

We are living in an era when many Americans feel things are out of their control, which causes them frustration, anger, and depression. This book explains the theory and practice of how to influence the direction and growth of your local economy, and regain your power to protect your community and family. First published in 2016, the lessons remain accurate and powerful.

As a country, we are not without solutions. This collection, first published in 2013, takes a country-wide locally solvable view of significant issues which still exist, and in may ways have gotten worse since I first wrote about them. You, can solve these problems by imitating the behavior of the pioneer efforts cited here.

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Francis P. Koster Ed.D.

Proven local solutions to national problems.

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info@thepollutiondetectives.org

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