The Healthcare System

In September, the CDC came out with statistics about ADHD and learning disabilities. I kept this in my email inbox for months because I thought it was very interesting and wanted to write about it someday. I thought it was really interesting of how low the preveance of learning disabilites and ADHD is in this the US.

I'm sorry that I haven't been writing that much lately. I've been writing in my private blog pretty regularly for the past year. This semester I haven't been writing that much because I've been really busy with everything. It seems like that the older I get, the busier I get. I'm going to be really busy for the whole year of 2011 because I'm planing on increasing my school work load so that I can graduate next December. Then, I'll be off at chiropractic school.

I'm really thankful for my public health major. Why?? Because it's shaping my view of the health care system. When I first came to BYU, I was really against vaccines and doctors in general. However, that never sat well with me though being against doctors. I was talking to a chiropractor who practices in Heber, UT on Tuesday night. He says that the health care system is going down the drain. Everyone is really fed up with them. From my public health point of view, I really disagree with him. I know that the health care system can be really improved on. I think that just disregarding the whole health care system as a whole is really brash and irresponsible especially for a doctor. The more I learn about public health, the more I really appreciate the health care system. We really do have a wonderful system. I know that there is a whole bunch of flaws, but I know that there are people out there who are actively trying to fix them. I know that we need to contact our congressmen about the issues that we are facing. It's just a matter whether they will listen to us or not. Only by laws, we can really fix the health care system.

I know vaccines are really important. I know that I'm not up to date with my tetanus shot and probably won't receive the flu vaccine this year. That's because I'm a poor college student and don't have health care insurance. That's going to change though because the amount of credits I want to take, BYU will require me to have health insurance. That's OK with me. I really need to get my teeth cleaned. I haven't had them cleaned in a few years now which is really bad. I've been forgetting about it. The chiropractor was saying that the infectious diseases were going down when the vaccines took place. I say that's untrue. Many of the infectious diseases decreased because of vaccines. It's just sad because many people haven't seen these diseases. "If they aren't around, why would they get my child sick??", they ask. Well, they are still there. Some of them at least that can be carried through other means than humans. That's how we got rid of small pox. Again, I'm totally thankful for my public health major. I've only taken two classes so far. I have a lot more to take which will further my understanding.

I want to truly help the patient instead of harming them. I need to look at the sources that I'm reading. The newspapers are an OK source. I like when they talk about journal articles. My last newspaper article that I turned into class was about Vitamin D and calcium. The Institute of Medicine said that most people make and get enough Vitamin D and calcium from their bodies and diets. It was interesting that my teacher disagreed with some sub-populations like pregnant ladies and teenagers. These experts looked at 1,000 published studies and the testimonies from scientists and stakeholders. I don't know what are stakeholders.

I know that Dr. Mercola is all about Vitamin D. I still get his emails about his website once a week. I hardly read them because it's a bunch of crap. I used to read a whole bunch of his stuff. I know what the alternative health world is saying about things. Now, I've been slowly changing my opinions because of my public health major. What really gets me is when they say that the swine flu was a big hoax because there wasn't that many deaths. However, we can only know about the prevalence and how quick it will spread after it spreads. We have no way of knowing. It's better to be safe than sorry. We know that the flu can really mutate and cause lots of deaths. That happened in 1918; however many people don't know about that. That's the thing about health in general. Many people don't know how to take care of themselves and make good, healthy decisions.

The public health class that I'm taking this semester is called health promotion. I learned about the importance of prevention. It's best to prevent than allow the people to get diseases. I learned the importance of really good marketing. Raising awareness of some health issue is really important. That's how people can see what's going on. For example, DARE and red ribbon week raise awareness of the dangers that drugs present. I know that the chiropractic community really, really need to make the public aware of what services they provide. Many, many people don't know what chiropractors do and treat. Some chiropractors treat only backs, some treat things like injuries to the muscles and joints along with the back. There are a whole bunch of techniques out there. I want to learn the techniques that will have a lasting impact on the patient so that they won't have to keep coming back all the time. I know that it does take time for the body to health though.

This is why I'm so excited to go to chiropractor school. I really want to start learning and forming my own opinions about chiropractic. I just need to get done with BYU first. I'm thankful for my education here though because my knowledge that I obtain in schooling, I will have forever. I know that I will and have forgotten much of it throughout the years. Probably much of it can come back if I re-learn it again depending on how long I've taken the classes. I think the basic premises and the things which I thought were really interesting will remain with me forever. I know when I die and get up into spirit world, I'll remember everything which I did and learned in life. With this life, one needs to learn how to discern what's truth and what's garbage. This is why I'm so thankful I have the Holy Ghost. I need to be worthy of his presence though.

Another thing that the chiropractor said to me that medical mistakes are the leading cause of death in the Untied States. I looked at accurate sources and knew that was untrue. The CDC reported 616,067 people died of heart disease in 2009. Heart disease is the leading disease of that causes the most deaths in the United States. The Institute of Medicine said, "At least 44,000 people, and perhaps as many as 98,000 people, die in hospitals each year as a result of medical errors that could have been prevented, according to estimates from two major studies."