LATEST HEALTH BUZZ


4000 kids start or try using drugs every day!

It is estimated that 1.5 million kids aged 12 to 17 or on average of more than 4,000 kids a day, used a drug other than alcohol for the first time in the past year.  According to the 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, most kids reported that marijuana was the first drug they tried (56%).  This was followed by prescription-type drugs used non-medically (24%), and inhalants (17%).

Prescription type drugs include stimulants, sedatives, tranquilizers, and pain relievers, often found in a parent’s medicine cabinet. Non-medical use is defined as using a medication without a prescription, the medications were prescribed to someone else.  The young person abusing the medication is simply doing so to experience a high that many think is safe “because it’s a prescription”.

Remember that parents have the greatest influence on their children.  Healthy parental involvement is the most powerful antidote to a child’s temptation to smoke, drink, use illegal drugs or engage in other risky behaviors (such as sex).

Eat dinner regularly with your child, get involved in their school and extracurricular activities and talk and listen to them in earnest.  Monitor your kids’ activities including the movies and television shows that they watch, the music they download and the internet sites they visit.

Take the time to explain to your kids the dangers of smoking and drinking alcohol since so much of the advertising of these products is designed to make them attractive to teens.  Make sure that they understand the dangers of experimenting with products they have access to around the house.  Point out the dangers of abusing aerosol cans, glue bottles and controlled prescription such as Vicodin, Valium and OxyContin.

Supervise and set and enforce reasonable limits to reduce the risk that your child will use illegal drugs.

If you would like more information this is the source:
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

 

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Hospitals checking your credit scores

As the economy continues to deteriorate there has been added pressure to hospital revenues.  More patients seeking care have no health insurance.  Those people with insurance now have huge deductibles often $1,000 or more and may not be able to pay their medical bills. Many hospitals are collecting an average of only 10 cents on a dollar from many patients.  Hospitals are being forced to write off a staggering amount of bad debt.

To combat this loss, many hospitals are beginning to utilize the services of companies that can provide them with data to help improve their back-office accounts.

These services include credit scoring tool to determine who can pay and who can’t.  Even tax-exempt nonprofit hospitals are attempting to identify patients who qualify for charity or free care, those eligible for discounts and those who should pay the whole bill.

Historically, hospitals have asked for payment after the medical care has been rendered. But except for emergency care, they’re now increasingly reaching out to patients before procedures, looking for a deposit and setting up payment plans.  The danger now is that if a hospital determines a patient’s financial data before a procedure is done, it may influence the facility to deny elective services for the uninsured and the underinsured.

The concerns that many consumer groups have is that credit scoring of patients can be misleading.  Credit scores vary a great deal and are easy to get it wrong. 

Consumer groups advocate that it is better for hospitals to have a clear, sensitive financial assistance policy.  Sending patients to collections, garnishing wages and other “collection activities” will create negative PR at a time when nonprofit hospitals face more requirements to justify their tax-exempt status.

The problems are just building.  A February IRS report showed that nonprofit hospitals spent an average of 9 percent of their total revenues on community benefits (the standard for the federal tax exemption). But about half of the surveyed hospitals apparently spent less than 5 percent on community benefits, which include charity care.  With the 2009 tax year, nonprofit hospitals will be required to give a detailed assessment and value of their charity care and community benefits on a revised IRS form 990.

The new IRS form is forcing many hospitals to hire these data-mining companies to calculate who deserves free care.  Some hospitals are using data-driven scores to rate consumers’ willingness and ability to pay their medical bills after the service is rendered.  Instead of hospitals sending all the non-paying patients to collections, they are using technology to help hospitals become more efficient.  They can better focus on people who have the ability and responsibility to pay the cost of their procedure.


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Parents Today are More Likely to Discuss Alcohol, Marijuana, and Cocaine Use with Their Children BUT are Less Likely to Discuss Inhalants and Prescription Drugs

Parents are more likely to discuss the risks of alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine use with their children, according to data from the 2008 Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS).

The great news is that the majority of teens (78%) reported that their parents had discussed the risks of using beer, other alcoholic beverages, or marijuana with them. Forty-four percent of teens reported that their parents had discussed the dangers of cocaine and crack use with them.

The cheerless news is that significantly fewer teens reported that their parents discussed the risks of inhalants (25%) and prescription drug abuse (24%), despite the fact that these substances were the most prevalent substances used by teens, after marijuana and alcohol.

Other substances less commonly discussed included performance enhancing drugs used without a prescription (such as steroids and human growth hormone), ecstasy, and over-the-counter cold or cough medicines used to get high.


SOURCE:  SOURCE:  Adapted from CESAR (www.cesar.umd.edu) who compiled the data from The Partnership for a Drug-Free America, The Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS): Teens 2008 Report, 2009. Available online at http://www.drugfree.org/Files/full_report_teens_2008. 

 

 

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Smokeless Tobacco Use Increases Among Teenage Boys

According to a new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, smokeless tobacco use among boys aged 12-17 increased from 3.4 percent to 4.4 percent between 2002 and 2007.

The report showed that among current smokeless-tobacco users, 85.8 percent also smoked cigarettes at some point in their lives.

Men were more likely than women to be current smokeless-tobacco users. 

88.1 percent of daily smokers who started using smokeless tobacco were still smoking six months later, thus arguing against the notion that smokeless tobacco could help smokers quit cigarette use.


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Marijuana, Inhalants, and Prescription Drugs Are Top Three Substances Abused by Teens
(not including alcohol and marijuana)

More teens report abusing prescription drugs and inhalants than any illicit drug except marijuana, according to data from the recently released Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS). Marijuana continues to be the most prevalent drug used among this population.  Nearly one-third of teens reported that they have tried marijuana. The next two most prevalent substances abused, are substances that are not illegal when used as directed, and are often readily available in a teen’s household.

Nearly one in five (an estimated 4.7 million) teens have abused inhalants and the same number report abusing prescription drugs. 10% of teens (an estimated 2.5 million) have abused over-the-counter cough medicines such as cough syrup.  Nearly 1 in 10 teens have used crack, cocaine or ecstasy.

41% of teens thought that prescription drugs are much safer to use than illegal drugs and 61% reported that prescription drugs are easier to get than illegal drugs.

SOURCE:  Adapted from CESAR (www.cesar.umd.edu) who compiled the data from The Partnership for a Drug-Free America, The Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS): Teens 2008 Report, 2009 that is aAvailable online at http://www.drugfree.org/Files/full_report_teens_2008. 


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Army Suicide Rate at 30-Year Peak
 
The suicide rate among U.S. soldiers reached a 30-year high in 2008, surpassing the civilian rate for the first time since the Vietnam War.

The U.S. Army reported at least 128 suicides among soldiers serving in the Army, Army Reserve and National Guard, with the number likely to grow upon resolution of the cause of 15 more deaths. Approximately 20.2 of every 100,000 soldiers killed themselves, compared with the 2006 civilian rate of 19.2.

Although not specifying any particular cause for the increase, officials said that 15-month deployments in combat zones contributed to post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, addiction, and family problems.

Veteran advocates voice their concerns that since the Iraq war began, suicide rates and other signs of psychological injury, like marital strain and substance abuse, have been increasing every year.

If you are a vet or know a vet, please be mindful of any signs of depression or anxiety.  Contact your local VA Hospital or local Mental Health clinic and make sure that they receive the appropriate psychological help.

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