The following is a guest post by Saralyn Mark, MD. Dr. Mark is the President of SolaMed Solutions, LLC, a world renowned leader in women’s health, an endocrinologist, geriatrician and women’s health specialist, was the first Senior Medical Advisor to the Office on Women’s Health within the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).  She designed the first women’s health fellowship in the Nation, helped create the National Centers of Leadership in Academic Medicine, the National Centers of Excellence in Women’s Health in academic and community health centers across the country and landmark educational campaigns on critical health issues.

By Saralyn Mark. Have you ever been asked a question that makes you smile? Sometimes, the best questions come from the mouth of a child. Sheer innocence and curiosity propelling the boundaries of inquisitiveness. Now imagine being asked that question in a classroom in the upper northeast part of England in a small town blanketed by verdant hills and rolling rivers.

A few weeks ago, I was invited to talk to 90 students near Durham, England about the importance of science and space. Soon after I entered the classroom with walls covered by drawings of planets and stars, 7 year old students obediently marched into the room and stood in rows until their teachers told them to sit down. Some had chairs, others had the floor. With military precision they quickly took their places. I immediately bonded to my new audience. Their wide smiles and eyes filled with wonder warmed my heart.

I was in England to give a lecture on medicine and exploration for a space technology conference sponsored by NETPark -an incubator for technology and innovation in Durham. It was also the launch of my new book, Stellar Medicine: A Journey Through the Universe of Women’s Health (Brick Tower Press). The day before, I gave a book reading nearby for a lovely group of women who were on the other end of the age spectrum from this classroom. Following my reading, I entertained questions and found them be provocative and personal.

My new book is a part memoir/part guidebook on controversial health issues. I explore the political and social environment which shapes these decisions while weaving in many of my experiences on all the continents and with the space program to illustrate my points. I know that many of the topics would generate heated discussions. I believe that we may have different views on issues, but there is generally some common ground if we take the time to find it. (more…)

Sadly February is drawing to a close which means so is Disruptive Women’s series on leadership, but we cannot end the month without naming our Man of the Month.

As much as we here at Disruptive Women would like to think women are where they are in leadership positions solely because of women, that is not the case. There have been and continue to be men who stand up for women, often against societal norms and values. We couldn’t just point to one, so in true Disruptive Women fashion, we are going to have several February Men of the Month. These men in the ways described below all believed that women deserved a place in leadership roles. In turn we are thanking them by recognizing them as Disruptive Men of the Month.

• Franklin Delano Roosevelt appointed the first female cabinet member Frances Perkins
• Teddy Roosevelt was a huge proponent of woman’s suffrage
• Senator Aaron Sargent of California introduced the first amendment in Congress that would give women the right to vote
• John Kennedy created the President’s Commission on the Status of Women to review, and make recommendations for improving, the status of women

In honor of these men and their efforts, we urge both men and women to continue to challenge the status quo because as we pointed to in previous posts this month, women still aren’t where they should be in leadership.

By Carrie Winans. At Disruptive Women, we examine many issues that are troubling in today’s world.  However, we occasionally will come across an issue that shakes enough to really create some disruption.  Jennifer Newsom’s film Miss Representation demonstrated that the current status quo for women is not acceptable in today’s society.

As Disruptive Women in Health Care founder and creator Robin Strongin explained introducing the film, “My daughter sent this to me and said ‘I’m okay, but you’re not about to be.’ That’s how I knew this was going to be big.”

What makes a woman want to change the status quo? First, a woman has to find a problem that shakes her enough to make her disruptive. Jennifer Newsom, a filmmaker, actress, women’s advocate and mother realized she wanted to change an issue that had always disturbed her. When pregnant with her daughter, Nielson knew it was her time to change the world for the benefit of her daughter, and women everywhere.

Panelists Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the film's creator/producer, and Janice Kovach, mayor of Clinton, NJ, discuss the film and the way that the media's portrayal on women has affected them personally as well as professionally.

As an actress, Newsom is no stranger to the portrayal of women in the media. Through personal experiences and by watching reality television and advertisements, she quickly concluded that the media spent a large majority of time focusing on women’s youth, beauty and sexuality rather than intelligence, talents and gifts.

“The media is this huge pedagogical force of communication — it’s dictating our cultural values and our gender norms. And it’s doing it in such a way that it’s communicating to us that a woman’s value is limited,” Newsom told the Huffington Post.

“I witnessed the sexism that was directed at Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton in the 2008 presidential election and I made a connection between the misrepresentations of women in the media, which I’d already witnessed in Hollywood, and the underrepresentation of women in leadership,” she elaborated to Vogue Magazine.

With these ideas in mind, Newsom set forth to make a documentary that would raise awareness about the portrayal of women in the media and inequality between genders within the United States. The documentary, entitled Miss Representation, focuses in on the keys issue of gender portrayal through interviews with teenage girls, prominent male leaders and some very impressive female politicians and celebrities. Condoleezza Rice, Lisa Ling, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Rosario Dawson, Jackson Katz, Jean Kilbourne and Gloria Steinem, to name a few, are all featured in the film as examples of powerful women who have been disparaged, sexualized or otherwise misrepresented by the mainstream media. (more…)

By Tamar Abrams. Do you remember being forced to read the Aristophanes play Lysistrata in your high school Great Books class? I do. I wasn’t thrilled by yet another Greek drama but ended up captivated by the story of women who swore an oath to withhold sexual activity from men in an effort to end the Peloponnesian War. Why, you may wonder, am I bringing this up now? Because it seems that a grand gesture on that scale may be in order.

You can’t open a newspaper or eavesdrop on a conversation in a deli without hearing about how a bunch of men in Congress (and the Catholic or Mormon Church) are attempting to regulate women’s reproductive health choices. In the state of Virginia, where I have resided for 20 years, a bill just passed both houses of the legislature forcing doctors to perform medically-unnecessary and invasive trans-vaginal sonograms on women seeking abortions. What’s going on here? It’s as though we woke up in the 1950s with Lucy and Desi sleeping in separate beds and clearly delineated lines between “good” girls and “bad” ones. How did we come to this and how do we return to a world where lawmakers are not declaring war on women?

Despite the buzz on Twitter and Facebook, articles and blogs, we appear to be heading toward a day where sex is once again a dirty word. And oh, the irony! I can name at least a dozen male members of Congress, past and present, who have had affairs or slept with prostitutes.

And then there’s Rick Santorum, surging in the polls as he runs for the office of President of the United States. A few short months ago, he saidabout contraceptives,

It’s not okay because it’s a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be. They’re supposed to be within marriage, they are supposed to be for purposes that are, yes, conjugal, but also unitive, but also procreative. That’s the perfect way that a sexual union should happen.

(Any grammatical errors in his quote are from the man you may someday see in the Oval Office.) He has defined “perfect” sexual union as between a man and a woman, without the need for contraceptives, and I believe he was talking to Donna Reed at the time. (more…)

By Carrie Winans. During the month of February, the Disruptive Women team’s focus has been on leadership for women and in support of this we held a screening of the film Miss Representation. For those of you who were able to join us we hope that the film inspired you. You can show your support by taking the pledge. Look for a full recap of the event on Monday, but in the meantime we have put together the following resources that will hopefully inspire and help you to become the leader you have always wanted to be.

Miss Representation addresses many of these issues through some surprising statistics:  the United States is still 90th in the world for women in national legislatures and women hold only 3% of clout positions in mainstream media.  Just to show you how bad the United States is really doing, “Women hold 17% of the seats in the House of Representatives (the equivalent body in Rwanda is 56.3% female).”

Now that you’re awake, there is good news…we do not have to maintain the status quo.  At a time when the United States is rapidly changing and evolving, women have every opportunity to get into leadership positions.  This post will outline some great resources to get you inspired to be the leader you were born to be. 

The first resource is entitled 20 Ways to Become a Leader and was written by Dr. Ellen Ostrow, the owner of Lawyers Life Coach LLC.  The article examines 20 key attributes leaders should have and how to achieve them.

If counting to 20 seems like a lot at the moment, here are Nine Principles for Effective Leadership.  I love the article based off of this singular quote:  “If women would realize what an influence they have, they would be filled with pride. If men recognized how influential women are, they would be scared to death.” 

If you’re looking for a bit more, there is a great book called Through the Labyrinth  by Alice Eagly and Linda Carli.  This book answers critical questions such as:   How far have women actually come as leaders? Do stereotypes and prejudices still limit women’s opportunities? Do people resist women’s leadership more than men’s? And, do organizations create obstacles to women who would be leaders? 

The same awesome women that wrote Through the Labyrinth also has an article that is circulating through the psychology department at Wellesley:  The Female Leadership Advantage: An Evaluation of the Evidence. This article examines effective leadership practices within healthcare.  It examines three core values being:  change, choice, and principles.  If you don’t feel that your health care practice is living up to its potential,  maybe it’s time to approach things from a new angle. 

Make sure you are realistic about your dreams though.  Men and women ARE different!  Can you imagine if we were exactly the same?  It is important to be aware of the obstacles we will have to overcome:  http://www.clevelandconsultinginc.com/articles/myths.pdf

To the nay sayers, this website has documented women in power for thousands of years!  Not only are women effective leaders, they have often been the best leaders! 

Lead On!

By Ufuoma Lamikanra. In Nigeria, many politicians turn out to be poor leaders. This is mainly because most political office holders never prepare for governance. They were either pressurized to run for office or had pecuniary gain as a goal. Consequently, the political manifestos of such politicians are usually drawn to deceive or to cajole the electorate into voting them into office. Once elected, they pursue their personal agenda while making little or no effort to deliver on their electoral promises.

One of the exceptions to the scenario described above is the case of Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, Governor of Ondo State, Nigeria. He has clearly fulfilled a very important pre-election campaign promise that has positively impacted the lives of women in Ondo state. When he assumed office in 2009, he introduced the Abiye Safe Motherhood pilot scheme in a local government area in the State. The scheme was intended “to bring qualitative and accessible health care to women and children to reduce maternal and infant mortality.” The success recorded, referred to by the World Bank as one of the success stories coming out of Africa, led to the recent implementation of the programme in the other 17 local government areas. An interesting feature of the Scheme is the establishment of Health Rangers, specially trained community health extension workers, who effectively monitor the pregnant women and provide them with mobile phones linked to a toll free closed user group.

Another state leader in Nigeria also made strides in women’s health and gender equality in 2009. When Dr. Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, Nigeria assumed office, he had an eight point agenda with which he asked that his performance be assessed which included participatory governance, infrastructural development, modernizing agriculture, education and capital development, industrial development, tourism, gender equality and empowerment and health care services. The last item, health care services is of great importance, since Nigeria has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the world. Fayemi introduced a free health programme which takes care of physically challenged, pregnant women, children under the age of five years and adults over the age of 65 years.

Political will and redirection of resources, as evidenced by the success stories above, have led to marked improvement in the health status of vulnerable members of both states, including women. We believe that very soon, the life expectancy of women in Ekiti and Ondo States will rise above the national average of 54 years. Similar programmes implemented by the other 33 state governors (Lagos also has good health programmes for its citizens), will swing Nigeria back on track to achieving the Millennium Development women’s health goals.

The following post ran on The Kaiser Family Foundation’s Notes on Health Insurance and Reform on February 21st.  It was authored by Alina Salganicoff and Usha Ranji.

The last several weeks have been a roller coaster ride for those interested in insurance coverage of contraceptives. In this post, we answer some of the key questions about the new contraceptive coverage policy generally, and more specifically, how it will be applied to religious organizations.

Why is contraceptive coverage part of health reform?

When the Affordable Care Act was passed, it included considerable attention to preventive care, for the first time stipulating that new private plans cover a wide range of recommended clinical preventive services to plan holders without cost-sharing. Specifically, this section of the law (2713) requires that private plans cover services that receive a strong recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF); vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP); preventive services for children recommended by Bright Futures guidelines for pediatric preventive care; and “with respect to women,” new services that will be identified by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). In 2010, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) requested that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) convene a committee of experts in women’s health and prevention to identify gaps for women in the current preventive recommendations.

The IOM committee identified eight new preventive services for women, including screening for intimate partner violence, well woman visits, breastfeeding supports as well as the inclusion of contraceptive services and supplies, including all methods approved by the Food and Drug Administration. These recommendations were adopted by HHS in August 2011. Contraception is also recommended as a part of health care for women by the nation’s leading health care professional associations, including the American Medical Association, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Public Health Association.

This new provision has significant implications for access to contraception and affordability for millions of women. It is estimated that half of pregnancies in the U.S. are unintended, among the highest rate among developed nations. The vast majority of women in the U.S. have used a contraceptive at some point in their lives to prevent unintended pregnancy, plan future pregnancies, or space childbearing. Cost-sharing requirements, such as co-payments and co-insurance, have been shown to curtail utilization of preventive services. (more…)

The following is a post by Annekathryn Goodman, MD who  is an Assistant Director, Vincent Gynecologic Oncology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Associate Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, Harvard Medical School and a resident of Boston.

By Annekathryn Goodman, MD. The loss of one loved soul punches a hole in the fabric of our universe. We experienced sadness and tragedy this past week when journalist Anthony Shadid died while reporting on the horrors of Syria’s war against its people.

Shadid was known to those of us who work at Massachusetts General Hospital in a small way – through his daughter, Laila. We know her through MGH’s own Marcela, ex-partner of Anthony’s first wife, Julie. Marcela is one of my work partners in the gynecological oncology department here. She and Julie broke up last year but Marcela has been an important part of Laila’s life since she was a baby, and remains so.

I am struck with how I can grieve for a man I have never met because I grieve for the people who love him. His death will now be a part of Laila’s identity. Growing up fatherless starting at the age of 10 will be part of the lens through which she views the world. We cannot protect her from that reality. But we can support her and the others who are impacted by this new hole in the universe. There is a circle of grief and meaning that radiates out from each death. In my imagination, I see this whole cloud of connection and meaning, sympathy and love that vibrates with each loss.

Of course as oncologists, we are all too familiar with that cloud. Now, one could imagine that these clouds of loss, familiar and sometimes daily, could bring us down. Maybe we should all be on anti-depressants. But, paradoxically, most of us are empowered by the work we do. The losses are unavoidable when dealing with cancer, but our reactions to it are completely in our control.

Reacting with love and support empowers us all. When Marcela called to tell us of Anthony’s death, John — the division chief of our department — immediately signed out her beeper so he could answer all of her calls. Whit, another doctor in our division, took on all her surgeries so she could be with Laila. Dr. Schiff, the chief of obstetrics and gynecology who no longer performs surgeries, donned scrubs and came down to the OR to ensure we were all okay. Texts and emails with words of support flew. We are a big village. Acknowledging this terrible pain honors the meaning of the life lost and how that life affected everyone else.

There was another, more personal, loss on Friday – my dog, SammyBear. I put him to sleep that evening after a two month illness with renal failure. Again, John helped me finish my last surgery so I could have time with SammyBear. I felt surrounded by love. (more…)

By Archelle Georgiou. According to Levin and Associates, mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare industry totaled over $227 billion, an 11% increase over 2010 and the fourth-largest year of the past decade. Even more interesting, is that the value of healthcare services deals increased 43% while technology decreased 2%.  Hospital systems are moving into new communities, integrated health systems are acquiring additional delivery system assets, managed care networks are growing, and specialty care service businesses are expanding their footprint—to be well-positioned for survival in a post-reform world.

This is the type of data we shared with TripleTree’s Health Executive Roundtable–the investment bank’s “think tank” comprised of a diverse group of health industry executives with backgrounds ranging from banking, medical device, education and life sciences; to food services, technology, human capital management, and compliance. 

We asked each Roundtable member: “What are the key trends that will emerge from this consolidation?” Their independent and unique perspectives are published in:  Viewpoint: A Kaleidoscope of Insights Regarding Growth Opportunities amid Consolidation in the Healthcare Industry.  You can view and download the report here.

In addition, you are invited to participate in a webcast on Wednesday, February 29, 2012 from 12-1 pm CST where we will discuss the highlights and key themes from the report.   You can register for the webcast at:  https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/771534410. After registering you will receive a confirmation email with information about joining the event.

As a preview, the following are the highlights and key themes from the report:

1. Healthcare costs will increase. It’s all about supply and demand. Market consolidation sets the stage for increasing healthcare costs as fewer, large, hospital and healthcare systems leverage their size and strength during unit cost contract negotiations with payors. (more…)

By Elita Wong. Painting for health care reform, using the McDonald’s business model eradicate needless blindness, and providing affordable maternity care to the poorest women in Kenya through a voucher system—what an unexpected showcase of innovation led by FastForward Health’s (FFH) Andre Blackman and David Haddad at the fourth annual Social Media Week in New York City. This year’s theme was “Empowering Change through Collaboration.”

In health care, storytelling can personalize the human experience and serves as a mechanism of communicating new solutions, advocating for the patient, and coping with grief. This week, FFH screened three documentaries in hopes of encouraging community members to join the global conversation, and to ultimately be inspired to take action. A live twitter feed was projected throughout the evening to capture the reaction of attendees in real time.

Sight is a beautiful gift. “Infinite Vision” is a skillfully crafted film by Pavithra Krishnan, who reports on an ambitious project by Dr. Venkataswamy, or “Dr. V”, to cure blindness on a massive scale. Remarkably, two-thirds of the services provided by Dr. V’s Aravind Eye Care System, which includes over 200,000 sight restorative surgeries per year, are offered free of charge.

In India, blindness is often fatal, leaving patients reliant on their families and subject to a higher mortality rate. According to the producers, 45 million people worldwide are blind, 12 million live in India and over 80% of blindness can be prevented or cured.

The film begins with several interviews with the blind from Madurai, whose cloudy eyes indicate the possibility of a reversible condition. One woman tries to live on water for weeks at a time to relieve the burden from her family. Another man has been blind for ten years and lives in his unfinished home, relying on his daughter to feed him. “If my eyes had light again, I’d be back in the fields,” he said. “…give [money] to my family, my daughter and granddaughters. Only if I earn, they can eat porridge too.”

Dr. V, with his own painful battle with rheumatoid arthritis, began to reach out to villages in South India, and was described as understanding “the core necessities of social marketing…before the term was invented.”

He cites a fast food chain as his initial inspiration, which is certainly unconventional in the public health realm:

See, McDonalds’ concept is simple. They feel they can train people all over the world…to produce a product in the same way and deliver it in the same manner to hundreds of places. Imagine if I could produce eye care, techniques, and methods the same way and make it available in every corner of the world. The problem of blindness is gone.

The audience is able to see the organization grow rapidly from a small, 11-bed eye clinic to the largest, most productive eye care facility in the world.

In Kenya, one in every 38 women dies as a result of pregnancy. “Kadi” is a film that captures the implementation of a new Reproductive Health Output-Based Aid (OBA) Program, which enables impoverished mothers to receive antenatal services and attended deliveries by qualified health workers. It follows community health workers to the rural villages and slums, and captures two complicated births that would have been dangerous to the mother and child if they took place in their homes.

A main obstacle for Kenyans is accessing the health structure since the poor assume that they cannot afford care. This film stands out as it focuses primarily on new health care delivery and financing while still shining the spotlight on individuals and the local communities. However, since transportation was mentioned multiple times as a growing concern, the viewer is left with the impression that this program was more of a safety net for those who already have physical access to an accredited facility, while meeting the low-income standards. Although program directors mentioned that accrediting more facilities would be one direction to go, there still needs to be a short-term solution for rural mothers who are not within walking distance and without a motor vehicle.
The director gives an adequate overview of the voucher system and incites viewers to think about its challenges. Themes of efficiency, cost-shifting, and quality can be seen from a global perspective.

Fellow Disruptive Women Blogger Regina Holliday also presented a mini-documentary “73 Cents” as part of this film festival on Monday.

Disruptive Women in Health Care and the
Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association (HBA)
invite you to:

Miss Representation

Watch the trailer to the film Entertaintment Weeklycalled “Inspring.” 

A film screening and panel discussion with women leaders:

Miss Representation, which premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival,
is a documentary film that explores women’s under-representation in
positions of power and influence in America and challenges
the limited portrayal of women in mainstream media. 

February 23, 2012
National Press Club

$45.00 discounted rate includes food, drinks, film, and panel discussion

Click HERE to RSVP

Use the Disruptive Women registration category when registering

By Carrie Winans. Hope your past week has been disruptive as usual!  In keeping with the spirit of Valentine’s Day, here’s hoping you love our weekly roundup as much as any piece of chocolate!  This is the week’s best of news from at home and abroad:

National

Worried about pollution in your local city?  Well if you’re a woman, you may need to worry twice as much!  Pollution has been decreasing women’s mental health via Healthcare Today. http://www.healthcare-today.co.uk/news/air-pollution-harms-womens-brains/21080/

Heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States.  This is disproportionately true for African-American women.  See what one initiative in Delaware is doing to raise awareness via Delaware Online:  http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20120214/HEALTH/120214057/New-health-initiative-focuses-black-teens-women-Del-?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CHome

The Roman Catholic Womenpriests and the US Bishops seem to be at odds about the issue of contraceptives in the Affordable Care Act.  This Letter to the Editor from Kathy Redig, Roman Catholic Womanpriest at All Are One Roman Catholic Church, shares another perspective: http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/opinion/letters/article_f13d109c-574e-11e1-b15c-001871e3ce6c.html

Feeling discouraged about US health care?  Here are some statistics from Market Watch that demonstrate physicians and specialists technological advancements in the field of medicine within the United States: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-among-leaders-in-healthcare-it-use-and-adoption-accenture-eight-country-study-reports-2012-02-15?reflink=MW_news_stmp

Thought football season was over?  In this Huffington Post opinion piece, women’s health care is described as the new “political football” of the game.  Would you call this a touchdown or a major fumble?  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/k-sujata/komen-planned-parenthood_b_1270505.html

Abroad

Indonesia.  A new clinic in Jakarta opened in hopes of improving maternal and reproductive health services across Indonesia.   This clinic hopes to help with specialized services such as in vitro fertilization via The Jakarta Globe:  http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/womens-health-gets-a-boost-with-new-clinic-in-jakarta/498088

World.  Wondering what the key issues with Electronic Health Records (EHRs) are?  Health Imaging explores 10 key rights and responsibilities for HER users:  http://www.healthimaging.com/index.php?option=com_articles&view=article&id=31914:cmaj-10-rights-responsibilities-for-ehr-users

By Santi Bhagat. On too many nights, my husband and I lie awake gripped by the same fear: Will our daughter Natasha be able to lead a healthy, fulfilling life? Ever since she developed a serious chronic condition at age 8, we’ve had to fight hard to get her the care she needs. Now Natasha is 24, and our worries have intensified. For we share a dilemma faced by one in five families in this country — an abrupt halt in treatment and services for our children with chronic conditions and disabilities once they reach young adulthood.

Natasha wants to experience so many things that the rest of us take for granted; she wants to live on her own, earn her college degree, get a rewarding job, have a social life. But without a healthcare team to manage her care, all this could be beyond her reach.

We are fortunate, and grateful, that she can now stay longer on my health insurance plan. Yet to those who want to declare victory because we expanded insurance coverage for young adults, I have this to say: Don’t mistake winning an important battle for winning the war. For an estimated 8 million young adults living with a wide range of conditions — from autism to epilepsy, from cerebral palsy to Down syndrome, from kidney disease to bipolar disorder — insurance coverage isn’t much of a help because the services they need don’t exist.

The struggle to secure their future continues, and families find themselves on the front lines. In our case, it was tough enough trying to secure quality care for Natasha when she was a minor. I had to quit my job as a physician to devote most of my waking hours to dealing with our broken healthcare system and a puzzling array of public programs. When Natasha turned 18, every bit of her coordinated care vanished overnight. Young adults age out of programs like Medicaid and lose the oversight of agency offices like the Maternal and Child Health Bureau within Health and Human Services. Meanwhile, it becomes nearly impossible to find primary care physicians and specialists who have the training to take over and coordinate the treatment of childhood onset diseases.

As a result, these young adults often aren’t getting the prescription medicines they need or the specialized care they require. Their conditions worsen and can lead to secondary mental illnesses, including debilitating anxiety and depression.. Rather than giving them a chance to succeed and contribute — a chance they desperately want — we wind up supporting them with public funds and paying for their treatment in emergency rooms. It’s an outcome nobody wants. (more…)

By Sally Greenberg. This has been a tumultuous week for the politics surrounding women and their reproductive choices. We support women’s right to reproductive health care as an overall good practice for women’s health. Providing women access to birth control should not be a political issue, though it seems to be. Contraception has proven health benefits both for women and their children. Controlling the frequency of pregnancies can prevent a range of complications that can endanger a woman’s health, including gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and placental problems, among others. Also, women who wait for a period of time after delivery to conceive again lower the risk of adverse perinatal outcomes, including low birth weight, pre-term birth, and small-for-size gestational age. Contraception means healthier mothers and families.

Ninety-eight percent of sexually active women in the United States, regardless of their religious beliefs, use contraception at some point in their lives. This includes Catholic women and women working in the Catholic institutions that are seeking an exemption from having to provide contraceptive services to employees. While we can respect that the Bishops and others who run these religious institutions have strong religious convictions, this shouldn’t be about the institution, it should be first and foremost focused on the health of the women they insure, who, by the way, pay a lot of out-of-pocket money for their own health care and deserve access to the same services everyone else receives. It seems the Obama Administration has arrived at a satisfactory compromise.

And since many women skip such preventive health care due to cost, it’s vital that we ensure that this contraceptive care be affordable. NCL supports women’s access to basic health care services, including access to birth control – and we support HHS’s determination that these services be available without a co-pay or deductible, regardless of where women work.

This post orignally ran NCL’s Consumer Savvy Blog on February 13th.

By Stephanie Mensh. Last Friday, Jeffrey Zaslow was killed in a car accident in Michigan.  He was a journalist who had worked for the Wall Street Journal, and co-author of the best seller “The Last Lecture,” among others.   But the reason I took note of Zaslow’s tragic passing at age 53 was that he had collaborated with astronaut Mark Kelly to write the story of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords’ amazing recovery from a gunshot wound to the head in January 2010.  Zaslow did a masterful job in telling the story from Kelly’s perspective, weaving together romance, adventure, heroics, and the personal struggles of an amazing husband and wife team, with just enough medical detail. 

The book, “Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope,” is one of the best books on recovery from brain injury or stroke that I have read in a long time.  And I have read dozens of such books, as a caregiver of a stroke survivor, and co-author of my husband’s story, “How to Conquer the World With One Hand…And an Attitude.”  The Giffords-Kelly-Zaslow book provides more than a great story to read on Valentine’s Day, it also gives intimate insights into how a male caregiver copes when his wife is the victim. 

Kelly regarded his new “caregiver” role as a mission, and attacked Giffords’ rehabilitation with a mission plan like any of his astronaut missions.  He assembled the best team—including therapists, family, friends, day and night nurses, and other helpers.   He stayed in close communication with his team and worked hard to communicate effectively with Giffords despite her loss of speech from the brain injury.   Most important, from my observation over the years, Kelly continued his work as an astronaut, and continued his role as spouse.  He did not try to be everything to Giffords, just the best husband he could be.

Of course, successful rehabilitation and recovery depends on the survivors to work as hard as they can—and Giffords is truly inspiring in her positive attitude, her stubborn determination, toughness, and sheer willpower.   As a caregiver, I appreciated the intimate details of how Giffords and Kelly were coping, and how they supported each other.  I was particularly touched that one of Giffords’ early rehab goals was to attend her husband’s space shuttle launch.

Kelly’s approach is a model that others should follow.  Caregivers should do what they do best, and enlist others to help.  Look for ways to recognize those special inner personality traits in each other.   Work together to communicate, to nurture the relationship, to support each other, and to always have hope that tomorrow will be a better day.