Get Your Knowledge On..Get It Out !: Death Panels Should Have Been Named Moral and Ethi...

Get Your Knowledge On..Get It Out !: Death Panels Should Have Been Named Moral and Ethi...: What Broke My Father’s Heart James Wise Class: HCA300 Introdu...

We Truly Are What We Eat

An Exercise in Good Diet

 

James Wise

Class: HCA300

 
Abstract

             Our assignment this week had me do an exercise in tracking my food intake.  An impressive government website allows entering your food intake for the day and tracking your choleric intake, nutritional values, and gives recommendations in all major food categories.  I will reveal the results of my exercise and compare it to “MyPyramid” recommendation.  I will begin with sharing my personal story in fighting my diabetes in regards to food intake.  I will conclude with whether I am doing well here or if I need improvement in my diet. 

My Personal Story

In attempting to control, diabetes through diet and exercise requires good knowledge and focus.  This is an area of my personal focus for 5 years now and has yielded amazing results.  When first diagnosed with diabetes I was eighty pounds overweight and a heavy drinker.  My medication prescription ballooned into ten pills per day and eighty units of insulin.  Truly, I had no focus on my health in general and I fault the structure of insurance companies’ policies as a contributing factor.  In the beginning, I had the best of Blue Cross and Blue Shield with nearly unlimited resource to health care services and prescribed medications. These types of policies can blind the patient to personal responsibilities.  It was not until I lost my insurance that reality came into focus that I had to take responsibility of my health issues if I were to stay well.  After much research and discovery of my disease, I began to apply what I learned.  In the beginning it was a two edged sword; when you are overweight fasting raises blood sugars from converting fat into energy.  Unfortunate for diabetics, eating any type of food spikes sugar levels, so I must only eat small meals throughout the day.  I also must stay away from empty calories found in most sugar type products; like soda or alcoholic drinks.  To end my personal story I am now at my ideal weight only 12% body fat and on now medications what so ever.  Therefore, when I had to do this exercise I was poised to do very well; let us look at my results.

Nutrient Intake

These results reflect the calculation of three days of the intake of the food I ate.  I will show the results in six main areas starting with protein.  My protein was double the recommendation at 119 vs. 56.  My Carbohydrates was also over twice recommendation at 285 vs. 130.  My total fiber was under the recommendation of 38 with my score being 22.  My total fat score was 75.1, which was in the range of the recommended amount.  My saturated fat score was below recommend amount, with a score of 19.8 vs. < 25.4.  The last category is my sodium intake at 4001 vs. no more than 2300.  I was surprised at this result considering I do not put extra salt on any of my foods and yet I scored so high.  I was not surprised on my protein intake, Generally lean meats do not produce sugar spikes when they are broken down in contrast to say rice, bread, pasta to name a few.  I was also surprised to see my carbohydrates so high, although this is not a true reflection when exercise is considered.  I was not the least surprise that both my total fat and saturated fat was under recommendations since this has been my focus in fighting my diabetes.  Finely I was shown that I am need of more fiber in my diet, which can be easily corrected.   Let us now look at my pyramid recommendations.

My Pyramid Recommendations

These recommendations are calculated in five main areas starting with milk.  I consume 3.8 in the milk category with the recommended amount of 3.0.   In the category of Meat and Been intake was not surprising given my protein intake which resulted in a score of 11.4 oz. vs. 6.0 oz.  My vegetable intake results were a little under recommendations at 2.1 vs. 3 cups.  My fruit intake was expected resulting in .8 cup above recommendation, considering I usually snake on apples between meals.  My grain intake was below recommendations at 7.0 oz vs. my score of 5.9, which is in line with needing more fiber in my diet. 

Conclusions

One statistical result worth noting was my total energy/choleric intake resulting in only 71 point above recommendations without taking in account my exercise program. In life and in all things there is always room for improvement.  With that said, I believe I am doing very well over all in my diet plan.  This online tool is exceptional and will be used by me often now that I am aware of its existence.  Which leads to my conclusion, society so disparately needs to know such government sites as this one exist; it truly brings into focus dietary concerns and helps empower people to make changes. Ultimately, the individual that takes responsibility of their health that yields the best results.  Websites like this one should be nationally promoted, as I will do my part to promote this new finding on my websites and social networks.

  

Reference:

Mypyramidtracker.gov  First accessed on November 5^th 2010 with results retrieved on November 7, 2010.  

Death Panels Should Have Been Named Moral and Ethical Reasoning

  What Broke My Father’s Heart 

James Wise

Class: HCA300

 
                                                                       Introduction

            This week’s course study took us down the path of reading a true story written by Katy Butler, regarding the end of life experience of her Father who was put on a pacemaker.  The story was heart wrenching as may be expected considering the nature of our topic, death.  Her family was upper middle class, her father a retired professor.  They were known to be educated, even prepared for end of life experience with both having signed living wills.  Katy suggests that the healthcare system is profit focused and towards that end keeps a person alive as long as possible, disregarding value of life.  She explains that her father has dementia, and already he could not do all his ALD,s which was left up to her mother to perform on his behalf in changing diapers, giving baths and more.  Her research lead her to lobbyist from drug and medical equipment companies who that pay over 500 million to get policies that reward doctor as she terms it as overtreatment. 

She exclaimed that she is given more Government-mandated consumer information on a new car then medical procedure counseling, such is it a good idea to put a pacemaker in a man who barely has a mind.  Ironically, her father was not for it but because of his dementia it was left up to mom.  As well informed, as her mother was she was put in a life or death decision with the surgical team advising the pacemaker. Katy points out, that the new healthcare bill had a provision, called ”end of life counseling;” to determine value of life and if the procedure is worth the outcome of the patient.  However, this was to become known as “Death Panels” and removed from the bill, the very thing that would have stopped the pacemaker from being put in her father.  After years of grief, service in mom helping her estranged husband do to dementia, he passed away with the pacemaker still shooting electrical pulses to his now dead heart. 

All About The Money

   

         I am in complete agreement with Katy Butler concerning the money trail and underlining motivation.  She also point out that 30% of  elderly who are deathly ill wish for death or trade one good day then two more years of illness.  Comparably, she showed statistics that 30% of Medicaid/Medicare cost is from overtreatment.  Her rational is sound when she says, “if a patient says no to a procedure then there goes the money, no one is paid.”  In my support of Katy, I have, in many other courses shown that the worse disparities in health care are formed when profit is the motivating factor.    In her family’s case, it turned her joyful mother and their shared joy into a nightmare, resulting in thoughts that cause guilt because you want it all to end.

     

       We are called the sandwich generation because science has created longevity of life.  In today’s world many are raising their children and caring for their ageing mother or father as well.  The young parents are now sandwiched into taking care of two generations and often times the ailing parent is harder to care for. This puts so much more stress in life and strains family systems to point of even breaking.  Such was the case in my personal story when my mother in law moved in with our family.  She was both mentally ill and physically incapable and she stayed with us for three years.  Personally experiencing the downward spiral of my mother in law and the twenty so procedures to keep her going was the most depressing time of my life.  In the end, it was one of the factors that broke up my marriage; an experience I still shutter over to this day.   It was my first real glimpse in health care’s great machine, often playing on my ex-wife emotions they would get yet another procedure underway.  In my mother in laws case it was overtreatment with each procedure as she worsened from each and everyone. Not only were the doctors paid but also my family paid the price as well with heated discussions that our predicament created.      It was indeed a path into nightmarish madness watching a love one slowly and with no personal dignity left finely pass away. 

Common Sense or Policy

            I do not fault medical science, in fact I applaud each new breakthrough with much vigor.  Medical science continues to enhance life in many ways.  Policy drives market in the direction towards maximum profit and policy form from special interest groups or lobbyist.  Anytime a policy is not based in common sense thent I almost guarantee a lobbyist was behind its creation.  Who was behind the coinage of “Death Panels” when it was based in common sense not the automatic model that says maybe one more procedure will fix the problem.  Simply there must be transparency in our health system that does not compromise value of life when achieving longevity. 

   

         Concerning life-supporting equipment such as pacemakers they have great use and help people live, long lives that they would have been deprived of.  In contrast, I would highly question putting the device in a 81 year old man suffering from dementia in the story I summarized here.  In such decisions in life, perhaps the hardest concerning death, needs good counsel with all considerations on the table.  In my personal experience with my mother in law, it was always a hurried process when it came to a new procedure.  We should have called death panels’ moral and ethical reasoning.  In conclusion, I will order the Do Not Resuscitate bracelet and wear it from now on, because simply I do not want to trade quality of life for longevity. 

Reference:

Butler, Katy (2010)  What Broke My Father’s heart The New York Times

            Retrieved on November 27, 2010, from

                       

                        http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/20/magazine/20pacemaker-t.html?pagewanted=3&_r=1

Concerning Death & Free Choice

Death and Dying is indeed a controversial topic with opinions than span both sides of the spectrum.  So, let us look at both sides of the spectrum here, and try to determine what the answer is when it comes to how we handle death.

Highlighting Christopher Reeve mentioned in our discussion thread was in real life a Superman, which is ironic considering he played the role of superman in more than one Hollywood movie.   Having suffered complete paralysis from his fall from a horse he was not daunted but rather with incredible determination became the champion for further research in healing paralysis.  I recall one amazing thing he said that changed my life, “ Even though I am paralyzed from the neck down, I see others in this world that are more paralyzed from fear then I am concerning my own paralysis.”  Truly, this statement has empowered me to address my own fears even the fear of death, which is really, what this discussion is addressing.

 In contrast, let us look at Dr. Death or more respectfully Dr. Jack Kevorkian.  Having the unique experience of living only two blocks from his practice in Pontiac Michigan, I know his case intimately; in fact, I was present at his trial. His core belief is that a person should have freedom of choice, even concerning death a belief he was prosecuted for.  I ask why is it in life we have free choice throughout life, but then taken from us when we decide that death is better than living? Some say we are playing God I say there are times when the value of life has crossed the line that death is preferable.  If I am left with no value, having being reduced to diapers or no mind left and science is the only thing keeping me going I would rather cross to the other side.  Who are you the Government or Church to say otherwise? 

Many may disagree so let us look at another case that happened in Florida.  Does anyone remember Terri Schiavo who was on life support for 15 years after she had suffered from a cardiac arrest?  I will not go into full detail but provide a link to this story.  In the end after fifteen years her husband and family won the case and the state allowed her feeding tube to be removed resulting in her death by starvation.  I ask which is more humane Dr. Kevorkian with the consent of the patient and family to be put to death by injection that causes the patient to go into a deep sleep and then die, or the state’s decision to allow someone to starve to death, which took days.

Shame on Government laws and church indoctrinations that take away freedom of choice when it means the most concerning death.  We must understand that death is part of life and to put someone on life support for years when there is no value of life left is a waste of money and furthers the grief for the surviving family.  Simply it cost major amount of moneys to keep people on life support when no hope of value of life can be achieved, better use of this money should go towards say, homeless families who have the potential to providing a better future.   When I no longer can contribute to society and the greater good, when I become a burden to such means I want the decision to be able to say I am ready to meet my maker. 

Reference:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2003-10-22-comatose-woman_x.htm

Accidents effect health care cost! Parents and Safety

I look at what the discussion thread asks and I find myself very lucky in life when it comes to accidents. Not that I have never been in some sort of accident caused by risky behavior it just so happens I never had to be sent to the emergency room over the accident. Furthermore, none of my six children ever has hurt themselves to the degree of emergency services.

In contrast with my own life, I have heard many stories of children drowning in Florida, or gun accidents throughout the nation. It truly makes me question how attentive are parents today to be able to determine risk factors and practice safety in their own homes.

I honor my father and his mentoring that provided a safety net for his children, and by tradition, I passed this down to my own children. I grew up around guns, but was trained to respect how deadly they were and why it was not a plaything. I was taught how to clean a gun by first making sure there was no bullet in the chamber. At the age of nine, under my father’s supervision I fired my first 12-gage shotgun, which ended with me flat on my back. Believe me my respect for firearms grew that day! Never were the guns locked up, we always knew where to find the bullets, but we were taught respect of the deadly risk value they held. As children, we were content to playing with toy cap guns our rubber band guns remembering never to shoot at the face. I believe because of my father’s teaching the taboo was lifted from guns and answered to our curiosity and gave respect to leave them alone.

I grew up around pools and ponds as did my children, again following my father’s footsteps I took it a step further and had my 6 month olds knowing how to doggie paddle. I taught my older children to look after their younger siblings, creating a culture of safety and empathy. As I was enrolled in, Boy Scouts I did this as well with my children these organizations teach safety, with every merit badge pursued.

I always find it troublesome when laws are created because of parents neglect with the teaching of safety to their children. We are bound to have accidents but we can greatly curtail the severity by good nurturing, teaching, and respect of high-risk areas apparent in life. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of parents, not laws, that attempt to change behaviors that hold the greatest value. Whe need laws that promote family, considering the trend of single parent households. This raises the likely hood of accidents accruing when only two eyes are on the children verses four.