New Mammogram Guidelines!?

In very little time, it was all over the news…..The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force,sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality under the Department of Health and Human Services, has released a new recommendation that women should not receive yearly mammograms under the age of 50, if they they have no family history of breast cancer or other specific indicators that make them high risk.
Just when all the middle-aged American women have been so well trained to feel it is our responsibility to ourselves and our families to be screened, we’re being told something different. That maybe all those screenings are creating too much anxiety and costing too much time and money compared to how many lives are saved. The study talks about all those false positives…. those times you get the written notice or the phone call that asks you to come back for a second look… hinting that maybe they missed something. Oh yes, those sleepless night and your pounding heart as you wait in the little cubicle while they look at those second films another time. (Not that the technician is going to tell you anything.)
I’m the queen of false negatives. For two years I was on a six month call back for screening. I’ve had numerous ultra sounds and ultimately the MRI. The good news is that although my mother had breast cancer and lived another 35 years beyond her cancer diagnosis, I have so far managed to dodge the bullet and I am thankful. So thankful that despite all the nail biting I don’t necessarily mind all the testing, when I have so many friends who are breast cancer survivors and another dear friend who never lived to celebrate her 4lst birthday.
So what does this all mean and how should it affect all women? We owe it to ourselves to ask more questions of our physicians and to remain ever vigilant. The study talks about using resources to develop new methods of detection. What is on the horizon? What do our local medical professionals think? Visit WhatsUpMag.com

Getting the HINI Flu Shot & Healthcare

It’s pretty frightening if you start thinking about what might happen if we had a bioterrorist attack and the entire population needed to be innoculated quickly.
It wouldn’t happen in a planned and orderly manner.
Those with power and connections would receive the immunization, and those without…well, it would depend on the county they live in.
We’re pretty lucky to live in Anne Arundel County with a Health Department that uses reasonable common sense.
Rather than making people stand in line, they advertise when innoculations are available and invite citizens to make appointments or limit the clinic to a specific target group. This week on Tuesday November 17th, the Health Department will be giving the shots to babies free of charge between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
In this instance it will be a walk-in clinic, a H1N1 flu shot clinic for babies and toddlers (6 months to 35 months old) in the Lower Level Conference Room of the Health Services Building, 3 Harry S. Truman Parkway in Annapolis. Appointments are not required for the Baby and Toddler H1N1 Flu Shot Clinic
No other age group will be vaccinated at the clinic. As the Department of Health receives more H1N1 flu vaccine, more clinics will be scheduled for targeted priority groups.
Last month I scheduled an appointment for my 16 year-old to receive the flu-mist innoculation which was available. I repeated dialed into the Health Department appointment phone line until I got through, while doing other work at my desk. I feel sad for all those people who stand in line for hours in other parts of the country, trying to get a a flu innoculation. It does, however, provide all of us who see those long lines waiting for shots as well as those waiting for free health check-ups that are being offered around the country with a sense of the turmoil our health provider system is currently experiencing. While many vocal individuals seem strongly opposed to some kind of national healthcare safety net for those of us under the age of 65, it is evident that our system is not working for many Americans.
What do you think? Comments….
Re: The H1N1 Flu Shot—
The priority groups, currently recommended by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for the H1N1 flu vaccine are: pregnant women; people who live with or provide care for infants less than 6 months old; health care and emergency medical services personnel; people 6 months through 24 years old; and people aged 25-64 who have chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.
Currently the H1N1 flu virus is considered to be widespread in Maryland, as well as in Anne Arundel County. More than 30 cases of H1N1 flu have been confirmed positive in Anne Arundel County. The actual number of reported cases does not reflect the extent of spread in the County because many people recover without needing medical care.

Democratic Victory in Annapolis

While Republicans may have succeeded in winning the states of New Jersey and Virginia in yesterday’s election, the Democratic party is alive and well in Annapolis. Despite citizen unrest with the large city budget and the series of difficulties that have ensued in the management of the downtown Market House (departing tenants, lawsuits, and a dysfunctional cooling system for the building) , the voters gave their support to the Democratic party contenders in the city of Annapolis. It appears that the liklihood that a certified City Manager form of government be considered by voters is soon to fade into a distant memory. And what about that proposed 4.5% tax cap? Well, that will become a distant memory as well, unless there is a grassroots successful petition drive that manages to put these questions on the ballot to enable voters to directly decide pro or con.
Josh Cohen will be getting right to work in the next week to select his transition team and choose some of the key managers to help run his new administration. It will be interesting to see if he selects any of the former candidates to help create diversity of viewpoints in the new administration. For a rundown on the election results go to WhatsUpMag.com