Good Health Blog

In my recent reading in the Medical press I came across a study in the Medical Journal of Australia (MJA) about your opinion about Preventative health care and who you think should be providing it.

Participants saw preventive care as legitimate in general practice when it was associated with concrete action or a test, but rated their general practitioners (GP) as poor at delivering prevention. Trust, rapport and continuity of care were viewed as enablers for participants to engage in prevention with their GP. Barriers to participants seeking preventive care through their GPs included lack of knowledge about what preventive care was relevant to them, consultations focused exclusively on acute-care concerns, time pressures and the cost of consultations.

The study concluded that a disconnect exists between your (the patient) perceptions of prevention in general practice and government expectations of this sector at a time when general practice is being asked to increase its focus and effectiveness in this field.

Preventative health makes good sense. It saves the Government money and improves the wellbeing of the community. There are barriers in the way General practice works. The slower, caring, comprehensive GP is the most likely to privately bill and is often booked out. The often similarly caring GP who bulk bills is overloaded with acute cases and long consultations are less likely to be undertaken.

And so eDoc evolved. The idea was to put the power back in your hands. Know what you should be doing, ask your GP to arrange the tests, educate yourself. The real responsibility is in your hands.

Consider doing a health check on your children. A good preventative health plan starts while the mother is pregnant!

To give you an example lets find out about a  10 year old boy whose grandparent had diabetes. The edoc recommendations include:

Dental Check-up
Most children and adults should see their dentist for a regular cleaning and check up every six to 12 months. People at a greater risk for oral diseases should have dental check ups more than twice a year. Tobacco and alcohol use, diabetes, pregnancy, periodontal and gum disease, poor oral hygiene and certain medical conditions are some of the many factors that your dentist takes into consideration when deciding how often you need your dental cleaning and check up.

Diabetes  Screening
Young people who are at risk for developing diabetes should be tested every two years. Risks include being overweight, inactive and a family history of diabetes.
Most people do not have any symptoms when they develop type 2 diabetes. However, when the levels of glucose in the blood are particularly high (this is common in type 1 diabetes), symptoms can include weight loss, tiredness and lack of energy, excessive thirst, blurred vision, increased infections and frequent urination.
Occasionally, the onset of diabetes can be abrupt. This is particularly the case with type 1 diabetes. The symptoms include: Loss of appetite, weight loss, vomiting, excessive passing of urine, atered consciousness and coma.
Seek immediate medical advice if these symptoms occur.

Eye examination
A routine eye examination should be done every two years to detect early changes that you may not notice now but might lead later to vision loss.
Your best defense is to have regular checkups, because eye diseases do not always have symptoms. See an eye care professional right away if you have a sudden change in vision or everything looks dim or if you see flashes of light. Other symptoms that need quick attention are pain, double vision, fluid coming from the eye and inflammation.

Weight screening
Know your childs weight and height and check it annualy to ensure theyremain in a healthy range over the years.   A healthy weight reflects a a healthy diet and exercise level.

To keep teeth healthy:

• Clean your teeth at least twice a day after meals.
• Low fluoride toothpaste is best for children under six years of age. Introduce low fluoride toothpaste from approximately 18 months of age.
• Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods.
• If you eat sugary foods and snacks, limit their intake – especially between meals.
• Drink plenty of tap water – especially if fluoridated.
• Milk and flavoured milks are preferable to other sugary drinks. If you do drink acidic and sugary drinks such as soft drinks, sports drinks, cordials and fruit juices, limit how often and how much of these you drink.
• If you live in a non-fluoridated area, seek advice about the use of fluoride toothpaste for children. A dental professional may advise more frequent use of a fluoride toothpaste, commencement of toothpaste at a younger age or earlier commencement of use of standard toothpaste.

Regular dental check-ups (as recommended by your dentist or other oral health professional) help to keep teeth and gums healthy. The Child Health Record recommends children’s teeth should be checked at least twice before they are three and a half years of age. This might be done by a maternal and child health nurse, dental professional or paediatrician.

A wise old Dentist told me ‘You only have to floss the teeth you want to keep’