Month: July 2019

On Its Anniversary, a Look at How Medicaid Helps People in Every State

By Matt Broaddus: For More Info, Go Here…

Today is the 54th anniversary of the enactment of Medicaid, a program that helps millions of families and individuals across the country, as our state-by-state fact sheets show.

Medicaid helps low-income seniors, children, people with disabilities, and families get needed health care. Medicaid coverage improves families’ financial security by protecting them from medical debt and helping them stay healthy for work. Medicaid coverage also has long-term health, educational, and financial benefits for children.

Click on the map below to learn more about Medicaid’s contributions to your state.

Click the link above to use the map.

‘Tickle’ therapy could help slow aging

From Neuroscience News: For More Info, Go Here…

ngd- This is the third electric stim article I’ve posted in the last two weeks, 2 in the ear, and1 in the tongue. Remember those diagrams of ears and reflexology?…

Summary: Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation helps improve sleep patterns and mental health in aging people. The therapy works by increasing parasympathetic activity and decreasing sympathetic activity.

Source: University of Leeds

‘Tickling’ the ear with a small electrical current appears to rebalance the autonomic nervous system for over-55s, potentially slowing down one of the effects of aging, according to new research.

Scientists found that a short daily therapy delivered for two weeks led to both physiological and wellbeing improvements, including a better quality of life, mood and sleep.

The therapy, called transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation, delivers a small, painless electrical current to the ear, which sends signals to the body’s nervous system through the vagus nerve.

The new research, conducted at the University of Leeds, suggests the therapy may slow down an important effect associated with aging.

This could help protect people from chronic diseases which we become more prone to as we get older, such as high blood pressure, heart disease and atrial fibrillation. The researchers, who published their findings today in the journal Aging, suggest that the ‘tickle’ therapy has the potential to help people age more healthily, by recalibrating the body’s internal control system.

Lead author Dr Beatrice Bretherton, from the School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Leeds, said: “The ear is like a gateway through which we can tinker with the body’s metabolic balance, without the need for medication or invasive procedures. We believe these results are just the tip of the iceberg.

“We are excited to investigate further into the effects and potential long-term benefits of daily ear stimulation, as we have seen a great response to the treatment so far.”

Irish disability-rights activist Sinéad Burke chosen by Meghan Markle to appear on cover of British Vogue

BY: Rachael O’Connor: For More Info, Go Here…

IRISH ACTIVIST Sinéad Burke will appear on the September issue of international fashion and lifestyle magazine British Vogue.

The Dublin woman, a disability rights activist, says she is “proud, incredibly honoured and humbled” to appear alongside fourteen other influential women on the cover of the magazine, which is guest-edited by British Royal Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex.

The issue is titled ‘Forces For Change’ and features feminist actress Jameela Jamil, LGBTQ+ advocate Laverne Cox, Extinction Rebellion founder Greta Thunberg, as well as other influential female figures. One space depicts a mirror, encouraging the reader to become an outspoken force for good.

Ms Burke is most-known in Ireland and abroad for her TED Talk “Why Design should include everyone” in which she speaks honestly about the struggles people with disabilities face in a world where all infrastructure was built only with the able-bodied in mind.

In the talk, she says “I often forget that I’m a little person. It’s the physical environment and society that remind me”.

The Importance of Sustainable Partnerships for Meeting the Needs of Complex Patients:

By Mekdes Tsega, Tanya Shah, and Corinne Lewis: For More Info, Go Here…

It takes more than just health care to address health concerns, especially for high-need, high-cost patients. That’s why health systems, insurers, and providers are exploring ways to ensure that basic needs like food, housing, heating, and transportation are met. According to a Commonwealth Fund review of the literature, addressing complex patients’ specific social needs can cut costs by reducing emergency department visits and hospital admissions.

Recognizing that it’s difficult to meet these nonmedical needs on their own, health care organizations are increasingly looking to forge partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs) that provide some of the services their patients need. For example, health care providers are partnering with ride-share companies to help patients make it to doctor visits. Hospitals are coordinating discharges with food banks to provide nutritious food so recovering patients aren’t coming home to bare cupboards.

Evidence to Support Investment

There is promising evidence that providing supportive housing, both with and without case management, to people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless can reduce ED visits, admissions, and inpatient days and result in large decreases in health care costs. Similarly, home-delivered, medically tailored meals for those with chronic conditions or at nutritional risk have been found to significantly lower inpatient care utilization, 30-day hospital readmissions, and overall medical costs.

Beyond food and housing, efforts to modify patients’ homes to meet their medical needs, provide transportation to medical appointments, provide care management that links patients to medical and nonmedical supports, and give patients access to legal and other types of counseling all hold promise for better outcomes and lower costs. However, research on the return on investment for addressing health-related social needs is still nascent, and the availability of high-quality studies is limited.

A Sense of Community: How Rochester Became a Hub for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Individuals

By Sarah Friedmann: For More Info, Go Here…

On June 16, the city of Rochester, New York celebrated its tenth annual Deaf Festival, gathering at a local park to share and celebrate Deaf culture. Rochester is home to one of the largest deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHoH) populations in the United States, and June’s festivities served to honor those that helped shape this community – and those who are continuing to foster its growth.

Educational Roots

The DHoH community has roots in Rochester that date all the way back to 1876, when the Rochester School for the Deaf opened. Initially, the school taught its pupils to communicate primarily via fingerspelling and speech, a method of signing that is sometimes referred to as the “Rochester Method.”

While the Rochester School provided an initial draw for the deaf community, the city began attracting DHoH individuals in much higher numbers almost a century later. In 1965, the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) opened its doors in the city, becoming the first-ever technological college in the world for DHoH students. The school was established by Congress with the goal of promoting “the employment of persons who are deaf by providing technical and professional education.” The NTID is one of the nine colleges of the Rochester Institute of Technology and currently enrolls around one thousand students per year.

Businesses Begin to Respond and Adapt

The NTID has certainly played a significant role in drawing a large DHOH community to Rochester, with students and alumni taking up residency in the city. Notably, as Syracuse.com pointed out, all NTID associate degree students are required to complete off-campus internships, which typically result in them taking a wide variety of jobs throughout the city. This has meant that the business community in Rochester has evolved to better meet the needs of DHoH interns (and alumni employees) – and the DHoH community has played a very active role in shaping the trajectory of business development in the city.

As businesses in Rochester evolved to better accommodate DHoH employees, social services and consumer outlets also began actively taking steps to meet their needs. “Bars and restaurants — and even local television news reports — turned on captioning long before news tickers became common,” Teri Weaver of Syracuse.com wrote. “Hospitals began staffing interpreters. Hair stylists and bartenders who learned ASL attracted loyal clients. And as the major factories downsized, video relay services and other communications businesses opened. All the while, a parish for deaf people grew.”

A Sense of Liberation

The vibrant student and alumni DHoH community in Rochester, coupled with the city’s evolution to become more DHoH-friendly, drew more and more DHoH individuals to live in Rochester over time, as the city became a place where they felt they could live most fully as themselves, the New York Times reported back in 2006. Francis Kimmes, a deaf individual who moved to Rochester in 1962 after spending many years in Niagara Falls — where he was one of only a few DHoH individuals — said he felt liberated when he moved to Rochester. “I felt more free,” Kimmes said through an interpreter. “It hit me. It was powerful.”

Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund Signed Into Law After Years Of Shameful Delay

By Ryan Grenoble: For More Info, Go Here…

Despite strong bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress, the bill had languished for months, stalled by two Republican senators ― Rand Paul (Ky.) and Mike Lee (Utah) ― over purported funding issues.

The holdup prompted a flurry of lobbying by 9/11 first responders backed by the fierce support of former “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart, a longtime advocate of their cause.

In July, Stewart appeared on Fox News and accused Paul of “fiscal responsibility virtue signaling” for holding up the bill over budget concerns. He noted that Paul had voted in favor of Trump’s $1.5 trillion tax cut in 2017, which has added billions of dollars to the national debt.

“It’s absolutely outrageous,” Stewart said. “Now [Paul] stands up at the last minute, after 15 years of blood, sweat and tears from the 9/11 community, to say that it’s all over. Now we’re going to balance the budget on the backs of the 9/11 first responder community.”

In a tweet that same day, Paul denied he was “blocking” the bill and said he was “simply asking for a vote on an amendment to offset the cost.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) blocked similar legislation in 2015, reportedly as a negotiating tactic to try to lift a ban on U.S. oil exports.

The legislation’s eventual passage offered little solace to people like 9/11 first responder and advocate John Feal, who had his foot crushed at Ground Zero. Or New York police detective Luis Alvarez, who faced 69 rounds of chemotherapy before he died this June, shortly after testifying before Congress.

“Passing this legislation — there’s no joy. There’s no comfort,” Feal said after the bill cleared the Senate. “Yes, I cried with Jon [Stewart]. But that was to exhale. That was to get 18 years of pain and suffering out.”

Experts predict deaths from 9/11-related diseases will soon outnumber the nearly 3,000 killed in the attack itself, if they haven’t already.

Study: Too Many Kids With ADHD Given Antipsychotic Drugs

ngd-Ya think???

By Traci Pedersen: For More Info, Go Here…

A new study finds that many antipsychotic drug prescriptions given to children and teens with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) do not appear to be clinically warranted.

The findings, published in the journal JAMA Network Open, show that fewer than half of the youth in the study who were prescribed antipsychotic drugs had first been treated with stimulants such as Adderall and Ritalin, the recommended medication treatments for ADHD.

“We didn’t know how widespread this practice was among young people starting ADHD treatment,” said senior author Mark Olfson, M.D., M.P.H., Elizabeth K Dollard Professor of Psychiatry, Medicine, and Law at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. “There are substantial risks associated with the use of antipsychotic drugs in young people, including weight gain, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, and even unexpected death.”

In recent years, pediatricians and parents have expressed concern that some physicians are prescribing antipsychotic drugs to children with ADHD who have significant aggressive or impulsive behavior.

Children and teens with ADHD who are treated with antipsychotics are often also diagnosed with depression, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), or conduct disorders (CD), even though there is limited evidence that the drugs are effective for ODD or CD and no evidence they are effective in treating depression.

At Concerts, American Sign Language Interpreters Translate More Than Lyrics

By Avery Lill and Ryan Warner: For More Info, Go Here…

The lights come up. The first beats of the drum and the vibration of the bass reverberate through Red Rocks Amphitheatre, where great sandstone slabs jut into the sky, surrounding the audience, and the energy is electric. As the lead singer steps up to the microphone, at the corner of the stage an interpreter translates the lyrics into American Sign Language and uses her whole body to communicate the emotion and feel of the song.

“There are a lot of hearing people who seem to think that deaf and hard of hearing people can’t enjoy music,” said Rachel Berman, a concertgoer who is deaf. She has residual hearing and uses a hearing aid that allows her to hear some lower tones, but she said she struggles with the high notes and cannot make out words. She pointed out that other concert-goers may not hear a single note, but they can still feel the pounding rhythms.

Performance ASL interpreting requires requires a high level of preparation and creativity.

Ahead of a concert, Austin will research an artist’s top songs, and set lists from previous performances. She looks up the lyrics, and translates them into ASL. That’s a challenge because ASL is a distinct language with its own idioms, and its word order is different from English.

“Rap definitely is one of the most difficult genres, I would say, to interpret,” said Austin. “Because a lot of times, when they do improvise, it’s nonsensical improvisation. And so they’re just doing it because the words maybe rhyme with each other. Which in sign language, doesn’t always translate to something that makes sense to a deaf audience member.”

At the concert, interpreters are performing more than the lyrics. They’re communicating the musicality of the song with their bodies. Austin said that FLOW is often hired to interpret jam bands.

“So you can imagine, a lot of that is showing the guitar and showing the drums… hearing audience members can sit back to the jam and feel the different levels — if it’s just a soft jam, when it gets more intensified. So we have to show that through our bodies, through replicating the instruments with our hands. Also our facial expressions are a big part of it.”

Life-changing’ Surrey brain treatment helps woman heal years after hit-and-run

BY AMY REID: For More Info, Go Here…

Canada the first country to offer new ‘PoNS’ treatment, which targets brain through tongue stimulation.

Her difficulties were significant: from lack of balance, to slurred speech to near-constant dizziness and nausea. Webb could no longer take a bus or a taxi safely, let alone drive a vehicle. She was dizzy and nauseous constantly. She regularly fell, banging and bruising herself.

“My cognition was too slow to stop myself,” Webb told the Now-Leader. “I fell like a sack of potatoes.”

She’d hit her head on ceiling fans, and get her hands stuck in the washing machine. She couldn’t look upward because she’d immediately become nauseous.

Her memory suffered, as did general cognition. She was often disoriented, forgetful and got lost in areas she knew. Her speech was dramatically impacted and at times, her speech would slow down to a stutter.

“My brain just wouldn’t offer my mouth the word,” said Webb, who now lives on Quadra Island.

That is, Webb said, until she found the Surrey Neuroplasticity Clinic and was accepted into a five-week trial it was running using a “PoNS” device, intended to help the brain rewire itself by sending electricity through the tongue.

Webb said she previously underwent extensive neuro-physiotherapy. While gains were made, there was nothing near as significant as the progress she made almost instantly with the PoNS treatment – which she found thanks to her brother who learned of it in a documentary.

The treatment features a technology that combines stimulation of the tongue with physiotherapy to achieve functional improvements.

Ep 56: Parenting

From Disability Visibility Project: For More Info, Go Here…

Today’s episode is on parenting with Eliza Hull and Heather Watkins. Eliza is a composer, writer, and producer based in Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia. Most recently Eliza was the Regional Storyteller Scholarship recipient with the ABC, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, which enabled her to produce an eight-part audio series “We’ve Got This: Parenting with a Disability” for the ABC. Heather is a Disability Advocate, author, blogger, and proud mother based in the Boston area. Her blog Slow Walkers See More includes reflections and insight from her life with disability.

Eliza and Heather share their experiences as disabled parents, misconceptions and assumptions about disabled parents, what they love about being parents, and missing narratives about disabled parents in media.

Transcript

[Google doc]     [PDF]