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Tag: Remain

  • Light, efficient, affordable – the shape of things to come in components

    Light, efficient, affordable – the shape of things to come in components

    Lightweight technology has long been and is sure to remain a mainstay of automotive and aerospace engineering, shipbuilding and a host of other industries. Lighter materials and components could also help cut emissions that drive climate change. But lighter options are pricier, and the relatively steep cost has impeded their adoption. That is about to change thanks to the efforts of a consortium of automakers, suppliers and research institutes. Called ALLIANCE and coordinated by Daimler and the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability LBF, this project has some good news for designers: As it turns out, it is entirely possible to build components that are up to 33 percent lighter at an added cost of less than three euros per kilogram-saved.

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  • Used cars keep Africans moving, but dumping concerns remain

    Used cars keep Africans moving, but dumping concerns remain

    Salesmen whistle at potential buyers of scores of vehicles shining in the afternoon sun. One truck might bring over $20,000 but it’s far from the “brand new” ride the salesman touts it to be while attempting to start the engine.

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  • Statement on the meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee for Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 12 February 2020

    Statement on the meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee for Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 12 February 2020

    The meeting of the Emergency Committee convened by the WHO Director-General under the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005) to review the current Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) took place on Wednesday, 12 February 2020, from 14:00 to 16:45 Geneva time (CEST).

    Proceedings of the meeting

    Members and advisors of the Emergency Committee were convened by teleconference.

    The Secretariat welcomed the Committee and thanked them for their support. The meeting was turned over to the Chair, Dr Robert Steffen.

    Dr Steffen also welcomed the Committee and gave the floor back to the Secretariat.

    Representatives of WHO’s legal department and the department of compliance, risk management, and ethics briefed the Committee members on their roles and responsibilities.

    Committee members were reminded of their duty of confidentiality and their responsibility to disclose personal, financial, or professional connections that might be seen to constitute a conflict of interest. Each member who was present was surveyed and no conflicts of interest were judged to be relevant to the meeting.

    The Chair then reviewed the agenda for the meeting and introduced the presenters.

    Presentations were made by representatives of the Ministry of Health of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the WHO Secretariat, and the UN Ebola Emergency Response Coordinator.

    The current situation in the DRC was reviewed. As of 10 February 2020, there were a total of 3431 cases, of which 3308 were confirmed and 123 were probable. 2253 persons have died (66%). Between 3 and 9 February 2020, three new confirmed cases were reported in Beni Health Zone, North Kivu. These three cases were already registered as contacts and two were under surveillance at the time of detection. More than 2000 contacts are being followed. There has been an increase in the number of security incidents in recent months.

    Challenges that remain include: strengthening of community acceptance for full commitment to response measures; protection of personnel at strategic health checkpoints; improvement of infection prevention and control practices in health facilities; strengthening of the local health system; and comprehensive treatment and support for patients in recovery.

    The WHO Secretariat gave an overview of the epidemiological situation, which shows an overall encouraging trend in case incidence and geographic spread. It was noted that sustaining this progress depends on the security situation and control of the well-known drivers of transmission, particularly in traditional health facilities, and on continued trust and communication with the community.

    A risk communication and community engagement programme has been developed, as has an EVD survivors programme. It is critical to ensure the long-term sustainability of these two initiatives.   

    The situation in countries neighbouring DRC was reviewed, as was preparedness in nonaffected areas of DRC. An EVD operational readiness standardized approach has been implemented in 9 priority countries. More than 2400 alerts have been investigated, and more than 14,600 health workers have been vaccinated.

    The UN Ebola Emergency Response Coordinator gave a brief report on operational support, focused on security challenges and preparations for any resurgence of disease.

    Context and Discussion

    The Committee noted a great deal of progress in the situation since its last meeting and commended the response, under the leadership of the DRC Ministry of Health and the multisectoral coordination commission established in July 2019. Support provided by WHO, UN agencies, nongovernmental organizations and other partners has also contributed to limiting the spread and impact of this virus in a difficult context. An increase in the number of alerts was attributed to strong and proactive community surveillance.

    Conclusions and Advice

    It was the unanimous view of the Committee that this event still constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) under the IHR (2005).

    The Committee acknowledged the revised risk assessment, which puts the risk now as high at national and regional levels, and low at the global level.

    The Committee was concerned that withdrawing the PHEIC now might have adverse consequences for the response efforts through diminishing focus. Additionally, although the primary concern of the Committee is EVD, there are serious ongoing outbreaks of other diseases, including measles and cholera, in DRC. The country continues to need support to combat infectious diseases as well as to strengthen its health system. Further, there remains an urgent need to maintain international solidarity for the response.

    The Committee noted the ongoing discussions about the interpretation in the text of the IHR (2005) of the terms international and regional spread, and about creating an intermediate level of response between the binary possibilities of PHEIC or no PHEIC, in a way that does not require reopening negotiations on the Regulations. The Committee supports these discussions, as an intermediate level would be as useful for gradually ending a PHEIC and for signaling the potential for one to be declared.

    The Committee provided the following advice to the Director-General for his issuance as revised Temporary Recommendations under the IHR (2005).

    For DRC:

    • Sustain the political commitment and multisectoral coordination approach to the response.
    • Continue to engage and build trust with associations of survivors to facilitate rapid detection of any cases arising from exposure to infected bodily fluids of survivors.
    • Continue to strengthen capacity, implementation, and coordination for community awareness and engagement, including a focus on hotspots, preventing resurgence where cases have declined, and to support survivors in their communities.
    • Further enhance the acceptance of response measures and address access and security issues by engaging influencers and decision makers for all interventions.
    • Strengthen measures to prevent and manage nosocomial infections, including systematic mapping of health facilities, targeting of IPC interventions and sustain support to those facilities through monitoring and supervision, including in private-sector and traditional health facilities.
    • Continue cross-border screening and step up monitoring at checkpoints around hotspots and at main roads.
    • Continue to implement and share real-time full-genome genetic sequencing of all new confirmed cases.
    • Strengthen measures to prevent and manage nosocomial infections, including systematic mapping of health facilities, targeting of IPC interventions and sustain support to those facilities through monitoring and supervision.
    • Strengthen preparedness in non-affected provinces of DRC, and more generally strengthen the health system across the country to respond to concurrent health emergencies.
    • Continue to implement optimal vaccine strategies that have proven maximum impact on curtailing the outbreak, as recommended by WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE).

    For countries at risk:

    • At-risk countries should maintain their work with partners to improve their preparedness for detecting and managing imported or locally acquired cases, including the transparent sharing of detailed information on suspect cases, as required by the International Health Regulations (2005), and sharing laboratory samples of suspect cases for confirmatory testing in accordance with WHO norms and guidance.
    • Countries should continue to map population movements and sociological patterns that can predict risk of disease spread.
    • Risk communications and community engagement, especially at points of entry, should be maintained.

    For all countries:

    • As recommended previously, no country should close its borders or place any restrictions on travel and trade.
    • The Committee does not consider entry screening at airports or other ports of entry outside the region to be necessary.

    The Committee emphasized the importance of continued support by WHO and other national and international partners towards the effective implementation and monitoring of these recommendations.

    Based on this advice, the reports made by the affected State Party, and the currently available information, the Director-General accepted the Committee’s assessment and on 12 February 2020 maintained the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

    The Director-General endorsed the Committee’s advice and issued them as Temporary Recommendations under IHR (2005) to reduce the international spread of Ebola, effective 12 February 2020. The Director-General thanked the Committee Members and Advisors for their advice and requested their reassessment of this situation within two months or earlier if the situation requires.

    Statement on the meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee for Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 12 February 2020
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    https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/12-02-2020-statement-on-the-meeting-of-the-international-health-regulations-(2005)-emergency-committee-for-ebola-virus-disease-in-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-on-12-february-2020

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  • How to Make Money Fast by Retrieving and Returning Shopping Carts

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    Are you looking for a way to make money fast? If you have a large utility vehicle, like a pick-up truck, you can retrieve and return shopping carts for a cash reward.

    Most every mid to large retail grocery, variety and department store has a stock of shopping carts on hand. They are purchased by the store, of course, so that customers can use them when shopping in their store.

    Shopping buggies are expensive. The average cost to the retailer for just one is between 75 and 100 dollars. Large ones like the kind you find at wholesale and club stores can run upwards of 200 dollars or more.

    Most retail stores have dozens of them; busy big-box stores may even have hundreds of them. Purchasing enough of them to meet a store’s demand and traffic levels requires a significant expenditure of cash.

    It is, therefore, in the best interest of the retailer to protect that investment. Most retailers do their best to make sure that carts remain on store property. However, shopping buggy theft is all too common. The average store loses about $8,000 $10,000 to per year to this problem.

    Because they are so expensive to buy, many store owners and retail companies pay cash rewards for the return of their carts which have been stolen (or “borrowed”) and not returned. Cash rewards typically range from 25 to 50 dollars per cart.

    Here’s how you can retrieve and return those buggies for cash: contact retailers in your area which have shopping carts. Find out if they pay for returned carts. Many do, but won’t give cash rewards to just anyone. (Store owners don’t want the public to abuse the reward system by stealing carts themselves in order to get the reward.) Usually you have to sign a cash-for-retrieval contract.

    You’ll have to provide some forms of identification, usually a driver’s license plus one other item (like a Social Security or credit card). You may have to sign a waiver absolving the store of liability in the event of something unforeseen.

    You can make arrangements with any or all of the retailers in your area. The more contracts you have, the more money you can make.

    If you’ve lived in your city for any length of time, you’ve probably seen common dump sites for stolen shopping buggies. Visit these areas regularly. Additionally, get in the habit of keeping your eyes open every time you’re out and about town. You’ll probably spot discarded shopping carts regularly. You can pick these up and return them as you come across them, or store them at home until you have several of them.

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    Source by Scott Lindsay

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  • Pharmacy Technician Jobs – Positive Aspects

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    There often are several different positive aspects to pharmacy technician jobs. Individuals that become interested in this profession usually are looking to be of assistance to other people. These people will be given an amazing opportunity to help others every day of their career. This is advantageous for people that want to make a positive impact on the world around them.

    Individuals in this profession will be given the opportunity to help customers understand the medication that they are taking. This is advantageous because the social action will be good for the person that is performing the job. Customers usually appreciate when they are able to understand what they are putting into their body.

    People involved with this profession also will have the ability to work closely with the pharmacist to make completely certain that medications are being distributed properly. Answering customer questions is also important so that there is not interaction between medications. People involved with this line of employment often will be able to explain things very clearly to individuals.

    People that are involved with this work will also make sure that paperwork is filed properly. Documentation is a very important part of this profession. When a person has the ability to stay organized and they will be very successful in this line of making money. Organization is important so that mistakes do not happen when medication is dispensed.

    These individuals will also help to make sure that there are no problems between different medications that a patient is taking. The responsibilities of an individual that has this job will vary throughout the day. The various responsibilities will make the job extremely enjoyable for anyone that has chosen this career path.

    Interacting with medical professionals is also part of the responsibilities. Clarifying information in regards to prescriptions can also be part of the job description. Performing this task is extremely valuable so that people do not wind up taking the wrong medications. It will be very clear to understand the obligations involved with this type of employment.

    Pharmacy technician jobs are very interesting and challenging. People that are making valid attempts to look for a fantastic job that will keep them intellectually stimulated will be very pleased with this career choice. When an individual has the opportunity to remain intellectually stimulated when performing their job they will usually succeed very well. Professional success is very important to individuals who are part of this line of work.

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    Source by Susan Bean

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  • Stephen King Is More Introspective in His New Novel Doctor Sleep

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    In Stephen King’s new novel, Doctor Sleep, King brings back the character of Danny Torrence, the little boy in The Shining. In interviews King says that when fans ask about the fate of specific characters (the one’s that actually live through the horror), he’s been more interested in the those that question the fate of Danny. I think most people who have seen the movie remember the cute little boy on a tricycle with a bowl haircut racing down the empty corridors of The Overlook Hotel. Later to run from a mad “white knuckle alcoholic” who was his father.

    Doctor Sleep is, in my opinion, semi autobiographical. Like Duma Key, which deals with the aftermath of a man who is in a horrendous accident (like King), Doctor Sleep deals with the reality of what it is like to be a recovering alcoholic. I didn’t know King was an alcoholic, but he has been in recovery for over twenty years. So he knows the depths to which one can plunge as well as the difficulties in trying to remain sober. In Doctor Sleep, Danny is an alcoholic like his father and a chain smoker like his mother (who, in the novel, has died of lung cancer). When writing the book, King’s son, Owen, told him that the “plunge” he had given Danny, now Dan, was not far enough to equal the plunge Dan’s father, Jack, had taken. King takes his advice. So, if you don’t want gross, speed read ahead. Dan, after having picked up a girl, gotten in a fight, spends all of his paycheck on cocaine, wakes up still drunk and has to go to the bathroom. “Another lurch from his unhappy gut… That released all of the puke triggers: the vinegar smell of hard cooked eggs in a big glass jar, the taste of barbecue-flavored pork rinds, the sight of french fries drowning in a ketchup nosebleed. All of that crammed into his mouth last night between shots. He was going to spew… ” And that he does in spectacular fashion. But that leads to the main reason for the scene… Dan’s plunge. As he’s leaving the bathroom, out of another room comes a toddler with a baggy diaper full of everything a baby discards, sees the coke on the table, runs to it crying, “canny, mama, canny!” Danny keeps him from getting the “canny” and the little boy falls asleep with his drunk mother. Danny notices bruises on the little boy’s body. While the mom is passed out, he goes through her wallet taking all of her money. Justifying this by saying she’d been the one who made him spend his paycheck on coke. The taking of the money haunts Dan. And the bruises on the little boy haunt Dan. This, to me, is the real crux of the novel. Dan can not get beyond the demons of his past, his murderous, alcoholic father, the dead but not dead people from The Overlook who visit him leaving behind pieces of their rotting, putrefying bodies and the mother with her bruised baby boy. Dan discovers “that memories are the real ghosts” and that, “you take yourself with you, wherever you go.”

    Of course in every King novel there has to be some type of supernatural forces causing havoc. In this novel, King expands on the concept of “the shining”. It’s the ability to read other people’s minds, or move objects, or project out of one’s self. Dan has it and so does a young teenage girl named Abra. In Doctor Sleep, they have to battle a bunch of centuries old serial killers, the True Knot, disguised as RV driving pensioners who literally feed off the pain of others. They only feed on those with “the shining”, and they make their deaths particularly brutal. It makes for better “steam”. They get a big kick out of 9/11 and other tragedies. The leader of this group, a woman named Rose, has a tusk. In Doctor Sleep, Dan fights his past with much greater dread and sense of terror than he does the woman with the tusk. Dan does, through AA, “come to know a new freedom and new happiness.” He also comes to realize that he “will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it.” With this novel King, apparently, is not shutting the door on his past.

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    Source by Linda M Caminiti

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  • A New Perspective on Medicine

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    Society evalu resorts to pharmaceuticals as a means of alleviating pain, treating infection and illness, yet many of these synthetic drugs have long lists of side-effects. What the world doesn't know is the potency of natural remedies. Thus, medical coverage is not universal, and this precipitates the need for holistic treatments. Near Eastern medicine has largely been dismissed in favor of pharmaceuticals, in the process discarding millennia of medical knowledge. What can be cured with crushed clovers is now replaced with ibuprofen. This is one of the biggest flaws in our "universal" health care system. I developed a medical journal over last year spring break, and I have been expanding it ever since, adding holistic remedies used in place of synthetic drugs to treat a variety of ailments. Not only would this restore almost-forgotten medical knowledge, but it would also encourage a peaceful relationship between Muslims and other Near Eastern communities during a time when such peaceful relationships are vital.

    How long are we to remain ignorant of these things? Yes, perhaps medications and OTC drugs are much more efficient and work faster, but what happens to our appreciation for medical literature and the equivalent of a millennium of medical knowledge? Are they to be discarded? Thrown away?

    This is something that we, as a society, have to work toward, one step at a time.

    Recently, I put this to use. A few days ago, on January 6th, 2018 at about 9pm, my father indicated he was experiencing some discomfort in his right eye. Curious, I took a high resolution photo of the eye in question, in a slightly supine position. I analyzed the picture and discovered an irregular growth / inflammation in the right, upper eyelid. I do recall studying and reading about various eye infections and irregular growths in a few of my classes in school, such as conjunctivitis ("pink eye"), myasthenia gravis, and blepharitis. I came to conclude that the symptoms that my father was experiencing were characteristic of what is commonly called "stye". In stye, the eyelid is usually slightly red, almost looking like it was trying to develop into a minor for of blepharitis. I asked myself and my dad, "Perhaps this stye was the cause of lack of sleep? I asked this because a few blood vessels in his right eye were slightly bulging." No ", he replied. I read and researched about stye online. Just before my mom got up to go to the pharmacy to get him a few OTC's, I read that stye could be cured through ONE SIMPLE TECHNIQUE: HEAT.

    I told my father to apply heat (best option) so that the inflammation in the idea and whatever bacteria in there can dissociate (if that's the right word). He held a soaked, hot towel ABOVE his right eye (notice: he did not necessarily have to TOUCH his eye with the towel). He held it for 6-8 minutes and repeated this until the pain subsided. The next day, he performed the same procedure. After just two days routinely practicing the same procedure (WITHOUT MEDICATION), my father's eyelid returned back to its normal color and shape.

    So there you have it.

    Certain things CAN be cured by simply holistic, natural remedies. We like to think that doctors, physicians, pharmacists, etc. are "in charge" of Medicine. Not necessarily. Medicine can start at home, with us. One step at a time.

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    Source by Masood Shawyan Jan

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  • Taekwondo Drug Testing

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    Every athlete which will participate in any athletic events including Taekwondo tournaments are sanctioned to undergo drug testing which is to be performed solely by their respective Anti-Doping Agency which practices the Protocol for Olympic Movement Testing.

    In the past, there were already several athletes who have been sanctioned by the board and were not allowed to participate in Taekwondo tournament because they failed this drug test. So it is a must that every Taekwondo athlete should never refer to the use of drugs just to enhance your potentials.

    History of Drug Tests amongst Athletes:

    The history of drug test amongst athletes originated during the Summer Olympic Games which involves Carl Lewis and Ben Johnson in their 100m dash competition. Ben Johnson crossed the finish line in a remarkable finish which made him the fastest man alive but this was soon disregarded after he was positively diagnosed to have anabolic steroids in his system a week after the competition.

    This revelation prompted the Olympic Game organizers to have urine drug screens on its participants so as to guarantee that fairness and equality will remain in the competition. Drugs which are prohibited to be used by these athletes include stimulant drugs, beta blockers, masking agents and anabolic androgenic steroids. These drugs are known to help increase and enhance the athletic performance of athletes after they are taken but will also result to several negative side effects which are detrimental to the athletes’ health in the long run.

    How is the drug test performed?

    The drug test will take place at any time during the competition. The athlete is unaware when it will take place but a Doping Control representative will notify the athlete if the time for his or her drug testing has been scheduled. He or she will then be required to comply with the policies and arrive at the Doping Control Station so he or she can proceed with the drug test procedure.

    The Doping Control Representative allows him or her to bring a chaperone but the athlete should remain in the sight of the DC representative all throughout the drug testing procedure.

    What will happen if the athlete refuses to take the random doping test?

    Any athlete who refuses to take the random doping test will be duly sanctioned by the Organization in charge of the event and may receive an athletic suspension of two years such as what has happened to Park Hyo Ji, a South Korean Taekwondo athlete.

    How to pass the required drug test for Taekwondo athletes?

    There is no safer way to pass the urine test for Taekwondo athletes than to do practice a clean and healthy lifestyle. In the end you will be the sole benefactor of your healthy living. Do not fool yourself because honour and prestige which is earned through hard work is always sweeter compared to something acquired through deception. If in doubt, consult the list of banned substances and supplements which are available in all area agencies. Again always cover yourself, if you are taking something that isn’t on the accepted list, that doesn’t mean it has no performance enhancing properties. Write to your Governing Doping Agency to get the all clear prior to starting a new or unknown supplement.

    Keep in mind the Five Tenets of Taekwondo. Be true to your oath as a student and live the principles of you were taught.

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    Source by Brendan Mark Smith

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  • Concierge Medicine – Is it For You?

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    The last time you called your doctor’s office, how long did you have to wait for a reply? How long do you usually have to wait to get an appointment or wait for a prescription to be called in? When you get to the office, how long do you spend in the waiting room and how much time does the doctor spend with you?

    Did you get all your questions answered? How many seconds do you have in the beginning of your appointment to explain your symptoms before you are interrupted? Do the nurses and doctors seem to be more interested in their computers or their charts than they are to you?

    If your experiences are like most people, your answers to these questions are not very flattering to the medical profession and to the health care system in general. Most doctors don’t really want their practices to be like this, but they don’t have much choice. They have to have a high volume of patients in order to make ends meet financially. The high volume makes the clinic a very busy place and most patients don’t feel like they get much attention.

    In 1996 in Seattle, a doctor named Howard Moran thought there should be a better way to do this. He pioneered the concept of having a lower volume practice with highly attentive medical care provided as a service for patients in return for a retainer fee, much like many attorneys or accountants use. This fee may be in addition to, or in lieu of, the regular office fees that are billed to insurance companies. This concept allows the practice to remain financially solvent while providing better, more attentive medical service to its low volume of patients (usually keeping the patient count down to about one tenth of the number in a typical traditional primary care practice).

    Unfortunately, health insurance companies currently don’t pay for this type of service, so that means the patients have to pay this out of pocket, but if the service is good, it may be worth it. Patients who join these practices are encouraged to keep their usual insurance which they will need for visits to other specialists, laboratory testing, radiological testing and/or hospital services if needed.

    Many concierge practices offer same or next day appointments, no long waits for appointments or prescription refills, direct access to your personal physician day or night, house calls if necessary, continuing care if hospitalized, complete physical examinations, audiometry screening, cardiovascular and cancer risk screening, more attention to preventive care, unrushed appointments, all questions answered, family meetings if needed, coordination of care with specialists, provision of personal health records on CDs or flash drives, etc., etc.

    Depending on the type and number of services that are provided, the flat retainer fee can vary widely from one area to the next ranging from $100 to $20,000/ year, most probably averaging around $1500-3000/year. There were only a few hundred of these physicians a few years ago, but there are over 5000 of them now all over the country. Many of them, but not all, are listed at the main website for the American Academy of Private Physicians – http://www.aapp.org/. Patients may be able to find a concierge physician in their area on this site.

    There has been some controversy surrounding some of these practices because some authorities feel the growth of concierge medicine will lead to a 2-tiered medical system in this country – one for the wealthy and one for the not-so-wealthy. Also, with the current shortage of primary care physicians (PCPs), with increasing numbers of concierge practices, the number of PCPs available for traditional offices will be even smaller, and access to care for patients served by those practices will suffer. On the other hand, more medical students may become interested in primary care if opportunities in concierge medicine are available to them when they finish their residencies.

    Some of these practices have come under fire from insurance companies who say that concierge physicians are basically providing an insurance plan for their patients without having an insurance license to do so. The practices must therefore be legally and financially structured in such a way that avoids this criticism.

    Overall, the concept of concierge medicine provides a good alternative to the currently unsatisfying traditional model of medical practice. The fee may seem high to some, but in most instances, it probably isn’t much higher than the cost of the local cable or telephone bill, or about the same as what a family would spend eating out at a restaurant once a week. 

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    Source by Greg Warth, M.D.

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