Vice President Joe Biden and C3's Director of Policy Joe Arite

Vice President Joe Biden, and his White House Middle Class Task Force, made their way to Alexandria, VA on Thursday to discuss health care and issues affecting older members of the country’s middle class. Biden led a conversation with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, White House Office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann DeParle and Barry Rand, CEO of the AARP. Read the rest of this entry »

A swallowed capsule equipped with a video camera didn’t find as many polyps as conventional colonoscopy and missed 5 of 19 cancers. Sensitivity improved with a well-cleaned colon.

Doctors in Europe examined 328 patients who either had colon disease or were suspected of having it with both a capsule colonoscopy and traditional optical colonoscopy.  The capsule contained  tiny video cameras at both ends that transmitted images wirelessly from the upper GI tract and the colon. Read the rest of this entry »

Senators Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Chris Dodd (D-CT)

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed its portion of the health reform legislation and have now sent it to the Senate floor. The legislation hopes to expand insurance coverage to nearly every American. Read the rest of this entry »

When patients have a sense of mutual understanding, caring, and trust with their physicians they form a therapeutic alliance that makes a difference in care at the end of their life.

When the therapeutic alliance was strong, patients were less likely to spend time in an intensive care unit in the last week of life.  They also had better emotional acceptance of their terminal illness. Read the rest of this entry »

It is unbelievable how many patients in my practice suffer from insomnia and are taking sleeping medications. I thought I’d share with you some alternatives which may help you to get a restful sleep.

Many sleeping medications make you sleep but don’t allow you to really rest. They take away your dream/REM pattern which is necessary to get the feeling of rest. Those who fall asleep easily and sleep through the night are the lucky ones. Read the rest of this entry »