What Is Health Information Technology? (1)

What Is Health Information Technology? (1)

Health Information Technology is a term that is often used interchangeably with “electronic medical records”. It is a system where medical professionals store the information usually contained in a patient chart on a computer, rather than on paper.

How Can Health Information Technology Be Used?

Health Information Technology, or Health IT, can be used to improve the efficiency and quality of health care that patients receive. Many people have health conditions that require them to visit several different doctors. For example, I have a primary care physician, and also regularly visit an Ear, Nose & Throat specialist for my sinus and allergy concerns. With Health IT, both of my doctors would have access to my complete treatment chart, so each could see what the other was doing and would not duplicate their efforts. The chances of one doctor prescribing a drug that would interact unfavorably with a drug that the other prescribed would be virtually nil. And if I were to get in an accident and end up in an emergency room, the hospital would also be able to access my medical records, so they could treat me more rapidly and effectively.

Because Health IT would be a national database system that is interlinked and regularly backed up, patient records would be safe even in the face of natural disasters like Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Many crucial medical records were lost in these terrible storms because they were kept on paper that was destroyed in the flooding. Also, people who become ill while traveling would not have to suffer because the hospital in Honolulu cannot reach their primary care physician in Tuscaloosa. Their patient records would be available and instantly transmittable electronically.

Health insurance information could also be linked to Health IT records. Imagine walking into a doctor’s office and not having to fill out 17 gazillion insurance forms. With a swipe of a card, your medical records and health insurance information would be instantly transmitted to the provider. This would make your life easier, and it would help your doctor’s administrative staff – they would immediately know which procedures your insurance policy covers and what your copay would be.

Health IT also has great potential to reduce health care costs. A recent study by the Rand Institute estimates that if 90% of all health care providers adopted Health IT, potential savings could average over $77 billion per year. An effective Health IT system would cut costs by reducing the duration of hospital stays, the amount of time that nurses spend performing administrative tasks, and drug and radiology usage.

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Cosmetics Daily Tips

Cosmetics Daily Tips

If you want to find some great cosmetic tips, then check out our make-up section for just some of th etricks of the trade. If you want to look like you just stepped off the pages of a magazine, then the benefits of some cosmetic tips and tricks will leave you with beautiful subtle make-up.

It's not as difficult to achieve as you might think it is. Forget about the benefits of cosmetic surgery, the right products can work wonders with no pain at all. You are bound to know some of them - but bet there's some you don't!

The cosmetic tips and tricks that can help accentuate your features (without looking overly 'made up') are usually very quick and simple and backed up by professional makeup artists in all the hot fashion centres; from New York to Paris, to Milan to here at home in London. A little education in the tips and tricks of the professional makeup artists from salons to film sets can help you to look glamourous too! Read on for the benefits of cosmetic tips and tricks that can transform you!

• Use a light hand with foundation. The secret to foundation is to use it to even out your skin tone, which means adding it to cover up discolorations or uneven colouring. Your real skin should show through in several places, giving you an authentic glow. If you slather foundation indiscriminately all over your face and neck you'll get a 'flat' look where your face doesn't seem to reflect any light. Also, it will be very apparent that your 'flawless' complexion comes from a bottle.
• Choose your make up shades to flatter your skin tones, not simply because the colour is fashionable. Make up is meant to make you look beautiful. When choosing colours look at your own skin's under tones. Pinky complexions should steer clear of make up shades with yellow undertones. Yellow undertones look brilliant on olive skin, but tend to make pale skin with pink or blue undertones look sickly.
• The best make up application flatters the woman, not the make up. In applying your make up, use a light hand. Follow the natural contours of your face, and apply dark colours to deepen existing shadows and lighter colours to enhance natural highlights. Make it your goal to look like you barely wear any make up. It's a much bigger compliment if someone says "you've got lovely eyelashes" than "I like your mascara".
• After applying lipstick, a touch of gloss on your lower lip will make even thin lips seem full and kissable.
• Blusher should be applied across the cheekbone leading up into the hairline, not all over your cheeks or in a round circle.

Use these pointers to achieve a beautiful, natural look!

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8 Secrets for Staying Healthy on the Road

8 Secrets for Staying Healthy on the Road

There are plenty of reasons that traveling can sabotage your health. From being exposed to germ-infested airline seats to restaurant meals that are overloaded with calories, it can seem like there’s no escaping the on-the-road potholes that leave you run-down and that can make you fat. But turns out, with a few smart strategies, you can return from your trip feeling better than when you left. Whether you’re traveling for business or pleasure, here are eight ways to stay healthy and fit while you’re away from home.

1. Don’t catch someone else’s bug. Many surfaces in hotel rooms, including the phone, may be contaminated with the cold virus, according to a University of Virginia study. After 15 people with colds spent one night in a hotel, the researchers swabbed everything the congested guests had touched and found the rhinovirus residing on 35 percent of room surfaces. And although the germ count was conducted before housekeeping came knocking, the hot spots—light switches, the phone, and the TV remote—are often only dusted. That’s important, because “a person’s cold virus can linger on surfaces for at least another day,” says researcher Owen Hendley, M.D. Pack a travel can of Lysol spray and annihilate the virus when you arrive.

Extra tip: Watch out for these 10 surprising places (and people) bacteria clings to.
2. Take cover (with you). Chances are, seat selection won’t improve your odds of surviving a plane crash. (Although a seat near an exit could help in a fire.) You can, however, make your plane seat safer by using a personal cover. Plane Sheets, in both washable and disposable forms, block germs deposited on the headrest or cushions by the thousands of passengers who previously sat in 12A.

3. Check your fluids. A jet cabin’s air can be dry as the Sahara—as low as 5 percent humidity, according to aircraft manufacturer Boeing. This can lead to excessive nasal dryness, which can trigger tearing of mucous membranes and facilitate infection. For your nostrils, pack an over-the-counter saline gel, like Ayr. To keep your skin hydrated, drink 20 ounces of water while you’re in flight, says travel-medicine specialist Terri Rock, M.D.

Extra tip: It’s easy to feel bloated when you fly, so steer clear of these 20 sodium-packed foods to avoid in-flight discomfort.

4. Forget about the menu. At restaurants, determine your order before you even see the options. "Most people choose with their eyes and not with their heads," says Christopher Mohr, Ph.D., R.D., a personal nutrition consultant in Louisville, Kentucky. At dinner, for example, you should decide that you're ordering a salad as your appetizer, and steak, chicken, or fish with the vegetable of the day for your entrée.

Extra tip: Ditch the free bread, and anything on the list of America’s 10 worst appetizers, sides, and starters.

5. Manage temptation. When reserving a room at a major hotel, ask for your minifridge to be stocked for a diabetic. "This is a frequent request, and most hotels oblige by swapping out high-sugar junk foods for milk, cheese, vegetables, diet soda, and fruit," says Cynthia Finley, R.D., a clinical dietician at the Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center. The downside? Don't expect a break from the normal in-room price-gouging.

Extra tip: Save money and calories andpack your own arsenal withthis list of the 15 best snacks with 100 calories or less.
6. Keep your laptop on the desk. "If you work in bed, the bed becomes associated with being awake and active, not sleep and relaxation," says Mark Rosekind, Ph.D., president of Alertness Solutions and a former sleep scientist at NASA. Why is that so important? Because people average 2 to 3 fewer hours of sleep when they travel for business. Not only is that bad for your health, it’s bad for your belly. This disturbance in your internal clock decreases your levels of leptin, a hormone that delivers feelings of satiation, and increases grehlin, a hormone that sparks hunger. "The net effect is that your appetite increases by 23 percent," says Rosekind.

Extra tip: For more simple ways to improve your life, use these 100 perfect fitness training tips—small gems that make a huge difference.

7. Invite a new client to dinner. In a recent study, researchers at the State University of New York at Buffalo observed that men downed 35 percent fewer calories when eating with strangers as when breaking bread with friends. If you're eating alone in your room, don't rely on your television for company. University of Massachusetts scientists found that people who watch TV during a meal consume, on average, 288 more calories than those who eat with the boob tube off.

8. Download a pedometer. Enter your location, and this Google feature—found at gmap-pedometer.com—allows you to design running routes, complete with mileage on its high-tech satellite maps. So you can get your 3-mile walk or run in anywhere.

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Sugaring hair removal

Sugaring hair removal

Have you thought about sugaring hair removal instead of the rather more usual waxing treatments? Sugaring is an age old practice that first came into being in Persia and has been around for 1000's of years.

The practice of sugaring hair removal is very similar to waxing, but it has several key differences that may help you make the decision of whether it's for you.

Firstly, this practice uses a sugar solution often made of sugar, water and lemon juice, instead of the standard wax. There are two different procedures for applying the solution.

The first procedure is very similar to waxing in that the solution is applied with a spatula or wooden applicator stick, and then pieces of muslin or linen are applied to the area with the solution and then removed quickly, pulling the hairs out by the roots. The second procedure involves making a large, sticky ball out of the solution and rolling the ball quickly over the area in the direction of hair growth, thus removing hairs.

People who prefer this procedure to waxing feel that it has several key advantages. They are as follows:

• The procedure tends to hurt less as the solution isn't as hot, and only sticks to the hairs, and not the skin
• Since the hairs are removed in the direction of growth rather than against it, there is more chance of getting the hair by its root, and less chance of breakage
• The ball method is more hygienic than traditional waxing because the solution is not shared between people
• When it comes to the clean up, it's easier because the excess solution simply washes away with warm water

If you're interested in trying the procedure, why not make an appointment at your local beauty salons?

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