Early Intervention Program

http://www.co.sullivan.ny.us/Departments/PublicHealthServices/ChildrenwithSpecialHealthCareNeeds/EarlyInterventionProgram/tabid/3347/Default.aspx

     The Early Intervention Program through the Sullivan County Public Health Services helps to screen for developmental delays in children ages newborn to 3 years old and get them early help. The program offers speech, physical therapy, occupational therapy, case management, and special education. The referrals can come from just about anyone familiar with the child, and physicians can play an important role in making sure these children get help early. I think this program is very important in making sure that children of Sullivan County are able to get the necessary help early so that when school comes around they are not lagging behind, a hole that could be difficult to get out of. Additionally, the wide range of services can help with many different developmental disorders that may be encountered.
     As a future practitioner, I believe my role is to help keep patients aware of the benefits of programs such as this one and the one in the paper in order to promote better health amongst them. The aim is to help prevent diseases and other ailments before they begin and a good way to do that is with good public health. Many of the ailments that are affecting the population today can help to be mitigated with more programs to stop them. The example in the paper of the program to lower heart disease is a good example. Simple things such as promoting a better diet and exercise can lower the incidence of heart disease.
     Additionally, as a future practitioner I feel I have some role in helping to create such programs if I perceive a deficit in public health. This can be through things such as jogging groups with patients or on a larger scale by talking to public health officials about creating programs. Proper education about program availability and programs to reduce risk factors for poor health outcomes will undoubtedly benefit patients.

Sullivan AIDS doctor is back in business

http://www.sc-democrat.com/news/12December/19/news.htm

This article is about an infectious disease specialist, Dr. Gary Good who is opening his new office in Monticello. Leaving his training in the 1990's, Good saw an overwhelming rate of diagnoses of HIV in Sullivan County and decided to help meet the need. He had originally worked with a medical center, and then a non-profit healthcare system, Hudson River Healthcare (HRH), but was removed from the services due to funding. His patients continued to contact him for help on how to deal with the complicated healthcare system and to receive treatment, and Good decided he couldn't abandon them and decided to set up his own practice in Monticello.
I believe that Dr. Good displays some valuable qualities that are important in the patient-doctor relationship. He must have earned their trust to have them follow him across two healthcare systems and then continue to contact him for advice after he was removed from HRH. Additonally, he is seeking to provide the latest in drug therapy and keep his knowledge of his specialty up to date by applying for funding for new drug trials. Moreover, he has respect for his patients and after developing a long relationship with many of them, he doesn't want to abandon them and considers them to be very close.
I think some of the values displayed by Dr. Good are very important in the doctor-patient relationship. I feel that another aspect not yet touched on is the importance of teaching patients to help them stay healthy. For patients to improve their own health, they have to be able to understand what they need to do, be that information on their medications, the harmful effects of drugs and cigarettes, or how to maintain a healthy diet to avoid heart disease and obesity. Additionally, having a respect for patients while still developing a healthy relationship is very important. If patients respect you and you show them respect then they are more likely to listen to what you have to say and advise them to do. Compliance will go up as will health outcomes. Strong patient-physician relationships lead to healthier patients.

Teen substance-abuse forum aims to help Ulster kids

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090513/NEWS/905130351&cid=sitesearch

This article tells about  a forum that was conducted to aim to help Ulster kids through increased utilization of substance abuse programs and increased awareness of the problem of increasing usage of drugs by adolescents. Preliminary results of studies performed at local schools show that 20% of sixth through twelfth graders had used a drug in the last 30 days. In response to these startling rates of abuse and lack of utilization of substance abuse prevention programs, the forum that was put together at SUNY Ulster had 150 parents, school and community leaders, and social workers come together to try and figure out how to get help for teens with substance abuse problems. One of the biggest shortfalls, according to Cheryl Qamar of Ulster County Mental Health is that referral to programs are dropping as are availability of prevention programs in local schools. The forum aimed to create collaboration among providers of substance abuse help and members of the community to help increase availability of substance abuse programs to those who need it.
I believe that the efforts being made by community leaders to confront the shortfalls in the county's substance abuse programs will help to greatly reduce substance abuse amongst teens. As future medical providers, I believe it is our duty to help to identify and treat the substance abuse amongst our community and to take an active role in forums such as this one to help curtail substance abuse through identification and prevention. By helping to stop substance abuse amongst adolescents, we are helping to ensure the future success of the youth of our area.

Therapy Dogs Helps Senior Feel Happy

This article was about a group of volunteers along with therapy dogs called K-Nine Bandaiders that started visiting nursing homes and medical centers to help promote happiness in patients. The group started 20 years ago and has 28 members with 38 dogs that make 10 visits each month. Therapy dogs seem to be able to do some good in promoting mental wellness amongst some seniors in my study county. The first part of the story tells the unbelievable story of a woman waking from a 3 month long coma from a visit from a therapy dog. I would imagine nursing homes can sometimes be lonely and visits from both dogs and the volunteers would help to lighten people's day. I am happy to see that the group K-Nine Bandaiders has had so much success in finding dogs and volunteers to help keep area seniors happy. I personally grew up with dogs and enjoy having them around and I am sure many others do as well. Programs such as these can help to alleviate depression in the elderly, which can be pretty common in the older population, particularly in nursing homes and hospices.

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120904/HEALTH/209040304/-1/HEALTH03