Chicago Health’s COVID-19 Resource Guide
With millions of people in Illinois unemployed, under lockdown and caring for loved ones, we’ve developed a list of local resources to help you through the COVID-19 crisis. We’ll check back regularly and update as we find out about more resources. If you know of any we’ve missed, (including in the suburbs), please let us […]
Pain and Mental Health
When chronic pain strikes, depression and anxiety can follow Chronic pain is more than a physical problem. Those who suffer from long-term pain often experience emotional and psychological aspects as well, particularly depression and anxiety. Add to that potential anger, frustration, hopelessness, fear and jealousy, and the emotional symptoms of chronic pain can quickly become […]
PRP: A Promising Panacea or a Premature Procedure?
Can a patient’s own platelet-enhanced blood augment traditional orthopedic procedures and reduce post-surgical healing time? The soreness in Brent Jurceka’s shoulder was not only causing him terrible pain but getting in the way of his pitching at his college baseball games. That’s when he contacted Rush University Medical Center orthopedic surgeon Brian Cole, MD, to schedule […]
Funding the Cancer War
Despite the money spent on fighting the disease, we’re still searching for the cure to win by Alex Lubischer Bad news first: Cancer is still here, despite the hundreds of billions of dollars the United States government and its citizens have spent fighting it. And it’s not going away any time soon. The good news, […]
Adults with Autism and Brain Injuries
Image courtesy of The Julie + Michael Tracy Family Foundation [spacer style=”3″] When faced with medical or developmental challenges, it helps to have aid from resources that offer support. And when those resources don’t exist, motivated parents create them. That’s the case with these two Chicago-based nonprofits. By Megy Karydes The Julie + Michael Tracy […]
Chicago-Based Website Helps Individuals Buy Health Insurance
By Leigh Page GoHealth is a Chicago-based website that people can access if they can’t get group coverage through their employer. It bills itself as the easiest way to purchase health insurance on the individual market. Navigating the individual market can be confusing. There are dozens of different policies offered in the Chicago area by […]
Critical Questions: What to Ask Your Doctor During a Consultation
By Eve Becker Even if a doctor is in a rush, patients have the right to make sure that their questions are answered. The National Patient Safety Foundation’s “Ask Me 3” program encourages patients to ask basic questions about their care including: 1. What is my main problem? Make sure you understand the diagnosis and […]
Health Literacy
Simplifying patient communication can lead to better health outcomes By Eve Becker When patients leave the doctor’s office, the control of their care is largely in their own hands. They are responsible for taking their medication and implementing the doctor’s instructions on their own, at home. But if patients don’t adequately understand those instructions, they are […]
Above and Beyond
By Megy Karydes Learning that someone you love has cancer often unleashes a whirlwind of emotions from fear to anger. Then reality hits: You need to figure out how to take care of, and provide support for, your loved one, or, if you’re the one diagnosed, you have to start searching for answers. The last […]
Doxil Drama
The FDA’s approval of generic Doxil has begun to ease shortages of the cancer drug By Patrick Kenney Over the last couple years, our healthcare system has been plagued by nationwide drug shortages that have threatened the lives of thousands of patients. The consequences of these shortages have been particularly dangerous because many of the […]
The Primary Problem
As the population grows, so does the need for effective primary care. Yet the number of family doctors has dwindled, and the trend isn’t expected to change course By Patrick Kenney The modern healthcare industry faces an array of challenges, some more vexing than others. One particularly confounding problem; we have a shortage of primary […]
The Cost of Delaying Childbirth
Celebs can afford to do it, can you? So many stories abound about celebrities in their late 30s or 40s giving birth to healthy babies, that delaying childbirth seems like a normal, natural experience. Yet women who wait until their mid-30s or later to have a baby face certain risks. “The first important hurdle they […]
Going Above and Beyond
Shining the spotlight on Chicago’s charitable organizations By Megy Karydes There is no shortage of nonprofit organizations doing great work in Chicago. For families dealt with a devastating blow like news that they have been diagnosed with cancer or they don’t have health insurance to cover prescriptions that can keep them from an emergency room […]
Online Resources For Choosing a Hospital or Doctor
The Internet offers an array of websites designed to help patients evaluate doctors and hospitals. But which one is best? Here, Dr. Bruce Minsky, chief quality officer at the University of Chicago Medical Center, and Cynthia Barnard, director of quality strategies at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and chair of the Quality Measurement Advisory Task Force of […]
Thursday’s Great American Smokeout
Tomorrow (November 15), marks the American Cancer Society’s 37th annual Great American Smokeout. This nationwide event occurs every year on the third Thursday of November. It challenges people to stop smoking by providing tools, education and support for smokers to help them quit. On the day of the Great American Smokeout, local volunteers throughout the […]
Sweet Technology
Living with and managing type 1 diabetes November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, and with over 8 percent of the population living with diabetes (according to the American Diabetes Association), it makes sense to stress the education of this disease. And this year, Illinois will amp up its awareness by making November 14 Illinois Diabetes […]
Surprising Breast Cancer Research
Intriguing findings from this year’s breast cancer studies Researchers have been hard at work all year long, publishing a slew of breast cancer studies. We sifted through the pile and picked out the ones we found most interesting, just in time for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. One study published in June in the journal Cancer […]
Long Live Some of Us
Life expectancy in Cook County is a function of geography; access to grocery stores The health and longevity of Cook County residents varies dramatically, based on where they live, according to a report by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies and Cook County Place Matters. The study titled, Place Matters for Health in […]
Access to Care
In a shifting healthcare landscape, where do you find the best and most practical care? And how in the world do you pay for it? Healthcare is a complicated business. And an expensive one. But never before has it been this complex. The intricacies of our healthcare ecology have extended into nearly every other aspect of our society. […]
Have a Heart
When the heart fails, it’s time to consider a transplant Glenn Bovard didn’t realize he’d had a heart attack six years ago. The Valparaiso, Ind., resident had been having trouble breathing while lying down at night. He was fatigued, too, but he assumed it was from working long hours as a state trooper. There may […]
Worth the Risk
Cancer trials come with uncertain outcomes that can lead to innovations When patients are diagnosed with cancer, they are hit with an emotional wallop. Trying an experimental, potentially risky drug might be the last thing they want to think about. But clinical trials of new drugs represent the cutting edge in cancer care, giving patients […]
Undercover Skin Care
Three Chicago-area dermatologists have some important tips for Chicagoans who are spending time out in the sun this summer. “I see a lot of young people lying out in the sun, and they feel [that] if they don’t burn, they don’t need sunscreen, which is a myth,” says Dr. Diana Bolotin, board-certified dermatologist and fellowship-trained […]
Bringing Healthcare Up to Speed
How electronic medical records are improving an outdated system Once upon a time, to find a book at the library you had to shuffle through drawers of alphabetically listed cards. To check out at the grocery store, the clerk entered every price manually. Identification wristbands at the hospital had your name written on them in pen […]
Heart to Heart
A conversation about heart health with Loyola’s Dr. Binh An P. Phan Men and women are different. Should the two sexes be looking for different warning signs of heart disease? One of the biggest things to remember is that heart disease is the number one killer for both men and women. There is a lot […]
Health Mastery
Don’t underestimate the power of belief I remember drinking in the elixir of belief as a 4-year-old during the telling of Peter Pan in kindergarten. Tinker Bell was almost annihilated that day by classmate Johnny Sweeney’s half-hearted, floppy-wrist, air-between-the-fingers, don’t-believe-in-fairies clap. But my friends and I believed. We clapped powerfully and with passion. And through […]
Where is all the Medicine?
Rampant drug shortages demand the attention of everyone—from patients to Obama Every year, there are periods during which certain drugs are in short supply. Hospitals and pharmacies scramble to make up the difference, and patients are sometimes forced to make sacrifices. The problem is a constant in healthcare, and the causes are difficult to understand. […]
Cancer’s Target
Pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest forms of cancer and most difficult to treat The announcement that Steve Jobs had died of pancreatic cancer last week brought surprise and shock to many. After being diagnosed in 2004, he underwent a pancreaticoduodenectomy, also known as a Whipple procedure that removed the tumor. And although he […]
A Quiet Killer
HPV awareness can save lives The Human Papillomavirus, commonly known as HPV, is quietly claiming the lives of thousands of women each year. What makes this stealthy killer so dangerous, besides the fact that there are almost always no signs of infection, is the reluctance of the American public to recognize infection can be prevented. […]
Sleeping Safe and Sound
Snoring can be a sign of life-threatening sleep apnea Loud, disruptive snoring is certainly no treat, as any afflicted spouse will attest. But snoring, especially when accompanied by occasional gasps for breath in the middle of the night and excessive daytime sleepiness, can be a sign of something significantly more serious. Obstructive sleep apnea—when a […]
Questions to Ask Your Plastic Surgeon
Questions compiled by Eve Becker as suggested to her by Dr. Gregory Dumanian and Dr. David Song • Are you board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery? • What procedures do you specialize in? • Why is this procedure the best one for me, rather than a similar one? • What is […]
Sleep Apnea: Questions to Ask Your Doctor
Questions compiled by Eve Becker as told to her by Dr. Babak Mokhlesi and Dr. James Wyatt • Are you board certified in sleep medicine? • Is your sleep disorders center accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine? • What type of specialists work at your sleep center? • Do I have a sleeping disorder? […]
