Taking Charge of your Fertility
The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health
This new edition for the twentieth anniversary of the groundbreaking national bestseller provides all the information you need to monitor your menstrual cycle–along with updated information on the latest reproductive technologies.Are you unhappy with your current method of birth control? Or demoralized by your quest to have a baby? Do you experience confusing signs and symptoms at various times in your cycle? This invaluable resource provides the answers to your questions while giving you amazing insights into your body.Taking Charge of Your Fertility has helped literally hundreds of thousands of women avoid pregnancy naturally, maximize their chances of getting pregnant, or simply gain better control of their gynecological and sexual health.This edition includes: A fully revised and intuitive charting system A selection of personalized master charts for birth control, pregnancy achievement, breastfeeding, and menopause An expanded sixteen-page color insert that reflects the book’s most important concepts Six brand-new chapters on topics including balancing hormones naturally, preserving your future fertility, and three medical conditions all women should be aware of. (Amazon promotional information)(Please be aware these are affiliate links, a purchase here will support this blog’s mission with a commission. )
Common Sense Pregnancy
Navigating A Healthy Pregnancy & Birth for Mother & Baby
“JEANNE FAULKNER has worked in women’s health for 30 years, first in doctor’s offices, free clinics, and classrooms and then as a registered nurse, specializing in obstetrics, labor and delivery, and neonatal care. She began her career as a journalist in 2002 and currently writes the weekly column Ask the Labor Nurse for FitPregnancy.com.She contributes articles about health, medicine, food, parenting, travel, and lifestyle issues to such publications as Fit Pregnancy, Pregnancy, Shape, Better Homes & Gardens, and the Huffington Post and Oregonian newspapers. She’s also the senior writer/editor for Every Mother Counts, a global maternal health advocacy organization founded by Christy Turlington Burns”(Amazon promo)
Stopping medical malpractice- how patients can help – Part 2
(previously posted under the title 6 reasons to sue your doctor-and how not to-part 2)
In the article, “YOU’VE BEEN SUED FOR MALPRACTICE-NOW WHAT?” (Medical Economics, March 10, 2015) attorney Richard Baker offers 6 common reasons for malpractice lawsuits, and what physicians can do to prevent them. In this series I look at them from the patient viewpoint- what you can do to avoid getting care that makes you want to sue .
4.INADEQUATE FOLLOW-UP OF DIAGNOSTIC TESTS AND SPECIALIST REFERRALS
Physicians must report results of lab tests, x-rays, and other diagnostic studies directly to patients, without exception.
Make sure your doctor’s office has your current contact information-address, phone, and email.
Ask the office staff how results will be reported-by mail, phone, or through a patient portal.
Access your medical records using a secure patient online portal if available.
Don’t assume that “everything must be normal” just because you haven’t heard or read otherwise.
Reports from specialists may be handled differently, depending on whether your doctor refers you for a consultation or refers you for ongoing care. Find out what you should expect from both doctors’ offices.
5. IRREGULAR POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
No matter how careful hiring policies are , incompetent, unscrupulous and dishonest employees get into the healthcare system undetected. This is bad for any industry, but in healthcare is dangerous and even deadly.
One day I was seeing patients when a pharmacist called saying she took a phoned in prescription for a narcotic pain medicine earlier that day and wanted to confirm . But no one from my office had called her. A former employee had been using my name and my DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) registration number to call narcotic prescriptions for herself and an accomplice to multiple pharmacies for several weeks. I recently read an article in a major magazine about an x-ray tech who worked at multiple hospitals where he stole IV narcotic pain medication for himself, and infected multiple patients with hepatitis C from his used syringes. He is now serving life in prison.
If you notice something out of line in a medical office or hospital, or if the care is not as expected, don’t hesitate to report it to someone in authority. You can do this anonymously, although the more specific information you provide, the more likely the situation can be corrected .Even if nothing proves to be wrong, it will give them helpful feedback about their service.
watercress words by Dr Aletha 