Carla Gomez, PAMF Healthy Breast Program Coordinator, reaching out to community at Safeway stores in Santa Cruz
Carla Gomez, PAMF’s Healthy Breast Campaign coordinator in Santa Cruz, is working at a table set up at various Safeway store locations throughout Santa Cruz this month (October) to let people know about our Healthy Breast Program and resources.
This PAMF Healthy Breast Program reaches out to uninsured women to educate them on the importance of breast cancer screenings, and to connect them to resources that are available. Since its inception this past February, we have reached out to more than 3,400 individuals and have provided follow up treatment for 32 women, 5 of whom had surgical removal including 1 breast cancer diagnosis.
Did you know that South Asians are more susceptible to heart attack, stroke and diabetes? Compared to other ethnicities, South Asians are at a heightened risk to develop these chronic illnesses up to a decade earlier. Consider these facts:
The World Health Organization (WHO) projects that most of the world’s heart patients will be South Asians in the next few years.
One-third of diabetics worldwide are Indian.
50 percent of heart attacks in South Asians occur before the age of 55.
Nearly one half of Indians have Metabolic Syndrome, a precursor to diabetes and heart disease.
Paul Tang, M.D., PAMF's chief innovation and technology officer
As baby boomers age, America has to find better ways to ensure that everyone has access to excellent health care – whenever and wherever they need it, says Paul Tang, M.D., the Palo Alto Medical Foundation’s (PAMF) chief innovation and technology officer.
He is heading up an exciting new project that looks at how relationships can be forged in communities to improve the quality of life and health of Americans. The focus goes beyond treating injury or illness at the doctor’s office or hospital. It includes keeping people healthy, happy and independent at home as they age.
“To reform America’s health care system, we must rethink everything,” he says. “That includes reinventing our role in sustaining the health of our communities. We’re out to create a partnership with our communities around health, not just health care.”
Capitola resident Vincent P. Barabba made a career out of providing smart, reliable information using the latest technology. When it comes to his health, he wants the same service. That is why Barabba uses My Health Online to communicate with his PAMF doctors, request appointments, view test results, renew prescriptions, and stay on top of recommended screening tests and vaccinations. [Read more...]
This is a question that I often receive. A person will have seen an advertisement in the newspaper for someone offering laser vision correction for $1,000 or less per eye. As the saying goes “Buyer beware.”
The first thing that a person should be aware of is that the advertised price will usually have a small asterisk next to it. At the bottom of the advertisement there will be a statement that the price only applies for a prescription of less than a low number such as -1.50 . Often there also will be a restriction on the presence of astigmatism.
Pictured from left to right are: Deanna Ciano, Tamara Vargas-Maionchi, Wendy Valdovinos, Hope Herring and Helen Benavidez. Not pictured: Belen Salazar.
Congratulations to the six outstanding nurses who received this year’s PAMF Palo Alto Division Clinical Excellence Awards! Each year since 2005, exemplary nurses are chosen by their peers to receive this award. The winners are picked because of the excellent and compassionate care they provide for our patients and also to recognize that they are outstanding colleagues and leaders. This year’s winners, honored at a luncheon in September, are: [Read more...]
In a perfect world, people wouldn’t want to exert power or control over one another. Unfortunately, the reality is that power dynamics exist in every aspect of our lives. These power structures are based on gender, ethnicity, class, age, immigration status, and many other factors.
Because these power structures pervade our society, some people feel as if they cannot have as much control over their own lives as they wish. For example, in a patriarchal society, women may not feel as if they can independently make all of the life decisions that they want. This gender-based dynamic is made even more complex when a woman’s immigration status, educational background, income level and marital status are added to the mix.
Behavioral and lifestyle factors have been implicated in poor health quality and the development of chronic diseases. Palo Alto Medical Foundation researchers are introducing an opportunity to participate in the Lifestyle Influences on Fitness and Energy (LIFE) study, where they hope to learn about how diet, physical activity, and sleep influence health.
This study will involve answering some questions about diet, physical activity and sleep habits. Participants in this study will also be asked to wear a small, lightweight activity monitor for one week. Participants will receive valuable information on their dietary, physical activity, and sleep habits.
Information from this study may inform future research and clinical guidelines to improve patient health.
Frank delaRama, R.N., M.S., AOCSN, Oncology Nurse Specialist and Prostate Cancer Nurse Navigator
Recent buzz on PSA screening is up again, thanks to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) draft recommendations to be published soon, which plan to downgrade PSA screening from “I – inconclusive” to “D – no benefit” for men younger than 75.
My first gut-level feeling as a health care provider is fear that men will flat out avoid PSA screening based upon this recommendation. On the other hand, perhaps this news will uncover an opportune teaching moment, for men to have a thorough discussion with their physician about the actual pros and cons of PSA screening, as well as prostate cancer screening in general.
What’s the best way to manage your family’s many health care needs when you are a busy mom with three young children under six?
PAMF patient, Ming-May Wu says it’s simple – just use My Health Online.
“Much of how we run our daily lives is through the Internet,” says Wu. “It’s just as critical to be able to manage something as important as my health care online, too. It’s simply the best way to do it.”
Wu has been using My Health Online, PAMF’s online patient service since 2009 for herself, her husband Andrew, Ina, 5, Aidan, 3, and Hannah, 3 months.
Whether it’s messaging with her doctors, making and canceling appointments, viewing her children’s health records or checking any test results, Wu makes full use of My Health Online’s convenient features.
As an experienced mother of two children, she thought she knew everything to expect during pregnancy. Not so. When she was expecting Hannah, she developed a thyroid condition and gestational diabetes.
“Both these health problems were new to me, and I had a lot of questions and concerns,” says Wu. “It was so reassuring to be able to use My Health Online’s messaging service to communicate with my doctors, get quick responses and my many questions answered.”
“As a busy mom with two small, active children, it was so convenient to be able to check my test results from the comfort of my home, when I had the time.”
Through My Health Online, Wu was also able to view any upcoming required prenatal tests or doctor’s visits and coordinate these to make the most efficient use of her time – and make sure her husband could take care of their children while she was at the doctor’s office or at the lab.
Now she loves being able to manage her children’s health care through My Health Online’s child proxy feature that provides instant access to her children’s medical records.
“I feel so much more in control of their health,” says Wu. “I can quickly see what issues each of my children has had in the past, what treatments and medications they received, and I can anticipate any upcoming health issues. I don’t have to try and remember and keep track of this myself.”
This is particularly important and helpful in regards to her middle child, Aidan, who has asthma.
“By being able to review his medical record, it’s much easier to remain in control of his asthma. We can quickly renew his medication and make sure we always have it on hand.”
Wu also feels My Health Online’s messaging feature has helped strengthen her and her husband’s relationship with their children’s pediatrician, Kenneth Vereshagin, M.D., at PAMF’s Santa Clara Center.
“Through My Health Online messaging we can stay in close contact with Dr. Vereschagin,” says Wu. “He always gets back to us quickly with answers to our questions, providing just the reassurance we need. He knows everyone in our family. As well as being our children’s trusted doctor he has become a family friend.”
Additional Information from the Wu’s on how they use My Health Online:
All my historical test results that occurred before the advent of MHO were fully integrated into my account when I signed up back in 2009. This allowed me to compare my thyroid values from the second pregnancy, to the third pregnancy, when I started to have a thyroid condition for the first time.
Similarly, I am using my husband’s historical results to track his lipid profile (cholesterol, triglycerides, cardiac risk, etc.) over the years and to make more targeted dietary goals to lower his risk.
Welcome! This blog is designed as a forum for engaging patients, their families and the community in conversations about health care, and to help promote health education and wellness with articles and tips from our doctors and staff from different departments. We welcome your comments and insight, however, please remember that this blog does not address specific patient medical issues or provide personalized medical advice. If you have a specific medical question, please contact your doctor directly.Thank you for visiting our blog.
Did you know that South Asians are more susceptible to heart attack, stroke and diabetes? Compared to other ethnicities, South Asians are at a heightened risk to develop these chronic illnesses up to a decade earlier. Consider these facts:
“Why are LASIK costs so different?”
