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Nothing I can do if the Paywall Police are on patrol, but I find this Times article to be of interest - especially to anyone "in the cube 9 to 5" and think of "those lucky jetsetters out there on the company dime":
Their lives may be portrayed as glamorous. In fact, they’re often the opposite. Pity frequent business travelers.
Doctors at organizations including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the International Society of Travel Medicine say they are hearing of a range of health problems in frequent travelers, from insomnia and weight gain to viruses. And they said they see a need for more comprehensive research into the health compromises made by business travelers, both short haul and long haul.
“The whole noncommunicable disease side of travel health is something that’s been under-researched,” said Dr. Martin Cetron, director of the division of global migration and quarantine at the C.D.C.
Lin Chen, the incoming president of the International Society of Travel Medicine and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, said that jet lag, combined with a lack of access to exercise and fresh food while on the road and sporadic engagement at home, needs rigorous study. “Right now, it’s hard to know the impact because not enough research has been done,” she said. “But certainly it’s significant.”
yukon11 Member # 2997
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I'm worried that the growing occurrence of hospital and clinic acquired super bugs will start to be a big factor with public transportation carriers, such as planes and trains.
They say hospital acquired super bugs account for around 648,000 infections per year They also say 75,000 patients die from such infections.
It's getting so that hospital exposure to bugs could be more a concern than the medical problem which required hospitalization, in the first place.
One of several reasons I never ride coach in an Amtrak train. The only exception would be business class on the Cascades.
Richard
George Harris Member # 2077
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quote:Originally posted by yukon11: They say hospital acquired super bugs account for around 648,000 infections per year They also say 75,000 patients die from such infections.
It's getting so that hospital exposure to bugs could be more a concern than the medical problem which required hospitalization, in the first place.
Suddenly we are back to the 19th century.
When my grandparents were children, at least where they were in Middle and West Tennessee, the thought was you only went to the hospital if you thought you were dying, as there was a good possibility that whyever you went, you stood a good chance of dying while you were there. This is also why for many of those of us that are looking at 65 to 70 in the rearview mirror, we were the first generation in the family born in a hospital. In the past you stood a good chance of dying from "childbed fever" in a hospital due to unsanitary conditions and transmission of disease among patients, visitors, and staff, so the proportion of childbirth deaths were probably worse in hospitals than at home.
yukon11 Member # 2997
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I think you are right, George. Both my parents were born in farmhouses in the early 1900's. We may be the first generation where the majority of births were in hospitals.
I did read where midwifery and home births are making a comeback. Especially now with all the dangerous bugs floating around hospitals. I assume a midwife must be licensed (like most everyone; government likes license fees) and undergo significant training. Also, I assume the midwife is able to administer morphine and fentanyl.
Richard
George Harris Member # 2077
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Richard, I am reasonably sure that home births are making a comeback. My youngest grandchild was one of them, mainly because of a fairly bad hospital experience my DIL had with her first child. I was a little uncomfortable about it, but all went well. (Her bad experience was in California, by the way.) Don't know about what the constraints are on the midwife administering drugs, but suspect that can vary wildly between states.
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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To return this discussion somewhat to topic, the fear of having to seek medical attention overseas is fearsome in itself. The thought of the providers addressing you either in their second language or through a "terp" is scary.
I had a "too close for comfort" shave while in Salzburg during '15. On a 90dg F (26C), I hiked up to the Festung, which is a good 300m above ground level. It was "too much" for this then 74yo. I never went down from lightheadedness, but I was grabbing on to railings. Someone offered me some water and without even asking me, someone calls the "Rotes Kreuz" (the Red Cross handles emergency services over there).
By the time they got there, I was walking around on my own. But this "#10 Blonde" nurse who spoke perfect English at least wanted to "look at me" and take vitals. I agreed she said they were "good enough" (BP low). I refused transport (who knows what tests they would have dreamed up for this insured - through Allianz trip insurance - but I didn't want to find out), but still she understandably wanted ID. Gave her my Passport and Driver's License then I said "I suppose I'm going to get a bill for some €500 for this". "Not at all, Mr. Norman. Here in Austria, healthcare is a right. (loved her "dig" at the USA)".
All I can think is what if I were somewhere being treated by someone less competent? What if English wasn't spoken by the provider?
Meanwhile, amongst my Nieces and Nephews, midwifery, and for that matter having kids after age 40, seems to be endemic. My Niece had two via midwifery, but at least my Nephews' and their 40+ first time childbirth wives went to hospitals. Those kids emerged (Healthy? who knows. Lest we forget it takes at least a year for autism to be detected) and were given names like Eila, Sing-Chee (Mother is Asian), Helena, and Isabelle. Hey guys, you branded those kids with those out of date names for life.
George Harris Member # 2077
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Can't say anything first hand, but my general understand is that medical care in Western Europe is generally good. For most of the rest of the world, I would be guessing.
To what I do know, Taiwan because we lived there for 17 years, it is good, and I have/had no hesitation about anything medically there. My wife had double knee replacements there in 1992, and after 25 years they are still going strong. We had the usual run of medical issues that you have with a family with 5 kids over that time, youngest 9 when we went, all dealt with there. I do know that what city you were in could make a difference. They have a national health system that seems to function more like a health insurance than what I hear of the various national programs of Europe. What is nice is there, that when you go out of the hospital you have one bill with everything on it, and I mean everything, room charges, doctors, all of them involved, medicines, surgery charges, the works, much unlike here where you end up with a blizzard of bills, with each one involved sending their own. You do have to get used to the different in the expection of privacy there, very little that is. Also, not always, on one occasion while in the surgery waiting room I saw the doctor (I assume it was) bring out the removed part in a pan and discuss things with the patient's family.
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