HEAL topics covered in class today include:
Alcohol use and the similarities or differences across ethnicity, income, education, economics and more specifically, amongst medical students and physicians (signs of impairment) and what one can do to be an activist against alcohol use and how to be a resource in providing others in seeking assistance or how to go about reporting. Suggestions included prevention measures such as stress management and setting standards in place for behaviors that are acceptable, what behaviors are not and the consequences. The use of other various substances and the stats on the different types used were discussed.
Adolescent pregnancy and the rates across different regions in the United States. Being in the south, a region where teenage pregnancy is high, the class discussed thoughts about how to go about patient care and the importance of giving out correct information to teens and creating a comfortable, nonjudgmental environment where the patient can ask questions
Cigarette Smoking and the expense, prevalence, rates among ethnicity and factors affecting use such as risky behaviors and education. Resources discussed included smoking cessation programs, stress reduction and medications such as the patch.
Please share your thoughts.
The statistics concerning alcohol/smoking and medical students does not surprise me. Right before our discussion I was speaking to three students, two of whom admitting they smoked recently and one who was a smoker and hides it from our peers. Smoking may be stigmatized in medical school, but it is definitely not absent. Every post-exam activity in medical school seems to involve drinking into oblivion for many students as well. I have read statistics claiming that physicians have twice the rate of alcoholism as the general population. This is disconcerting given the information physicians present to patients. Physicians tell many patients to limit alcohol use or to quit smoking, and should attempt to model good habits. Patients will never take seriously advice from a physician that the physician himself does not heed. We discussed many stress reduction techniques, but I feel that not many of these techniques will be effective given the difficulty with work-life balance that physicians face and the stress they are under. I believe that a good solution would be to increase vacation time; most other developed nations have much longer vacation periods as well as maternity leave options. Americans in general are overworked and overstressed, and this is especially evident in the life of physicians who may work 80-100 hours a week rather than the typical 40.
ReplyDeleteConcerning teen pregnancy, I believe teen pregnancy can be attributed to lack of good education. Some schools teach abstinence only, for example, and this limits the flow of important factual information to students. Overall education level affects this as well. Georgia is behind in educating people compared to most other states in the nation, and this probably affects the teen pregnancy issue to some degree.
Alcohol use in the physician population is especially concerning. Recreational use of alcohol is not a problem; however when alcohol begins to negatively affect your work performance, as a doctor, that has enormous consequences. Knowing the signs and being responsible enough to report it is crucial. In the general population alcohol abuse is fairly common and may not have any negative consequences for anyone apart from the consumer. Although it should be noted and discussed, it will always be untimely up to the patient when and if they will quit.
ReplyDeleteAdolescent pregnancy and cigarette smoking were also discussed in today's class. Adolescent pregnancy continues to grow and I believe it is the physicians’ role to provide a safe environment for the adolescent to seek advice while providing information to sexually active teens that could hopefully lower their chances of becoming pregnant. Smoking is a problem especially in the South. While the consequences are widely known, people continue to start young, become addicted, and smoke for years. In order to reduce the rates of smoking we have to make it a less desirable option for people. We also need to make sure clear information about its consequences is available in more rural areas where smoking is more common.
Some of the stats involving other substance abuse among medical students did surprise me (ie cocaine). I knew that marijuana use and drinking were more prominent in our country and wasn't too surprised with these statistics, but I was just surprised at how current/future medical professionals would continue to use such dangerous substances even while being educated. However, like Diana stated above, that does speak much about the stress levels of medical professionals. Why is it that these activities are sought out for stress relievers? For drinking, part of it I believe is the "fun" aspect that is associated with the activity in our society. Thus I feel that not too much can be done about that. ---Now that I think about it, I feel that there are commercials on TV that discuss meth use, etc, but not so much about binge drinking. Perhaps our nation as a whole should have programs/initiatives to fight binge drinking along with the current substance abuse programs just like there are initiatives towards fighting obesity.
ReplyDeleteOverall, I feel that with these problems in general--cigarette smoking, drinking, substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, there is not much that we, as individuals, can do but to help educate others on the risk of developing problems/unhealthy habits associated with these activities. Hopefully, overtime more people will understand these risks, take action, and participate in other activities for stress relief.
In a recent lecture, a clinician briefly discussed the need for Physician Health Programs (PHPs) within the state of Georgia. This effort has been halted by lack of funding, but it is reassuring to know that the field is both aware of and attempting to resolve this issue. In addition, the PHPs that are established have collected data indicating a generally high success rate with clinicians that enter such programs. I was particularly interested in the opinions shared in class on how to address substance abuse within the hierarchy found in the medical setting. Undoubtedly, it is a difficult situation to approach and much easier to consider as a hypothetical. Having programs like PHPs would help in such difficult encounters and would provide a strong network for those seeking assistance with addiction and those reporting such problems observed within the workforce.
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