All images from: Free Patient Clipart

If animals have rights, then more so with people going to the hospital for treatment. However, some people do not know about these rights because of misinformation.
Below are these basic patient rights in condensed form as endorsed by The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO)

The Patient’s Bill of Rights are now being adopted by many hospitals internationally.

PATIENT’S BILL OF RIGHTS:

The patient has the right to:

1. Impartial access to treatment or accommodations that are available or medically indicated, regardless of race, creed, sex, national origin, or sources of payment for care.

2. Considerate, respectful care.

3. Confidentiality of all communications and other records pertaining to the patient’s care.

4. Expect that any discussion or consultation involving the patient’s case will be conducted discreetly and that individuals not directly involved in the case will not be present without patient permission.

5. Expect reasonable safety congruent with the hospital practices and environment.

6. Know the identity and professional status of individuals providing service and to know which physician or other practitioner is primarily responsible for his or her care.

7. Obtain from the practitioner complete and current information about diagnosis, treatment, and any known prognosis, in terms the patient can reasonably be expected to understand.

8. Reasonable informed participation in decisions involving the patient’s health care. The patient shall be informed if the hospital proposes to engage in or perform human experimentation or other research/educational profits affecting his or her care or treatment. The patient has the right to refuse participation in such activity.

9. Consult a specialist at the patient’s own request and expense.

10. Refuse treatment to the extent permitted by law.

11. Regardless of the source of payment, request and receive an itemized and detailed explanation of the total bill for services rendered in the hospital.

12. Be informed of the hospital rules and regulations regarding patient conduct

These rights are not to be abused however, there will always be an extraordinary case wherein one has to forgo them for some valid reasons.

Source : Tricare.osd.mil
medlib.med.utah.edu

Exercise is one significant part of staying healthy. Muscles need to be flexed in order for them to retain their tone, mass and flexibility. Even machines grow rusty when not used for long periods of time. That is precisely the reason why men who want to have great muscles go to the gym often. The more a muscle is used, the greater it would develop. Exercising also increases the secretion of testosterone (the true male sexual hormone) in men, allowing maximum growth and development of their secondary male sexual characteristics.

Exercising also lowers blood pressure because it “eats” up the lipid deposits in the blood vessels thereby avoiding plaque formation. Blood circulation is also increased allowing the blood to flow freely and “unresisted”.

Brisk walking is a good form of exercise for people of all ages. There are very few restrictions – unlike with other forms. Walking is generally good for the heart, for the elderly, for children and young adults and is even advised for pregnant women in their late stages, in most cases.

Before you go to work, do a 30 minute “jog-in place” workout. In the office, do your own errands. Walk around during breaks instead of sitting down. Run for that cup of tea. Do 10 minute-walks within the day, as often as you can.

Image from :Free Clip Art

Just like any other exercise; however, consult your doctor first before commencing on your exercise regimen.

Giving and sharing would be more meaningful if it does not involve only the financial and material aspect but more of yourself as well. In this particular instance, people shared by donating their BLOOD!

Every year in our University, we sponsor and facilitate a voluntary “Blood Letting Program” to encourage people to share what they have and help the less fortunate. The blood bags collected would be donated to hospitals and made available to those who do not have the financial means to buy blood for ailing relatives.

Everyone is encouraged to participate as long as he/she meets the criteria for blood donors. The donor often realizes that his donation is something special because he has really given a piece of himself to other people; that another person lived because of his blood!

BE SOMEONE SPECIAL, DONATE BLOOD VOLUNTARILY ( contact your local blood bank center)!
By the way, donating blood could be good for you. Read more from this link:
Doctor NDTV

This is what true sharing is all about!

It is great to be out in the beach in the mornings and evenings, with the cold, ocean air playing on your face and the brackish water pouring in into your pores. But watch out for those diseases that you can catch while enoying your swim. You can contract the following intestinal conditions through accidentally swallowing the infected water. These are the following microorganisms you could come in contact with:

1. E. coli infection – causative agent – Entamoeba histolytica – causing diarrhea from contaminated water
2. Shigella infection – causative agent- Shigella bacilli – causing bacillary dysentery and fever, from contaminated
water.
3. G. lamblia – causative agent – Giardia lamblia – causing giardiasis and diarrhea
4. Hepatitis A vrius – causing jaundice and liver damage.
5. Fungi or bacteria – causing Otitis externa or Swimmer’s ear(an ear infection). Swimmer’s ear because of long exposure to water. This occurs especially in children.

Certain skin diseases could also be acquired through the contaminated water; so, before you eagerly splash into the water, make sure the establishment have proper cleaning and sanitation protocols in place.