Contributing Member of the Healthcare Councils

GLG News by this Author

Healthcare and Health Insurance Costs

February 5, 2009

Analysis of:Facts on Healthcare | www.nchc.org

Sixteen percent of the GDP goes toward healthcare and that number is rising.  Any component of the economy that takes such a high percentage bears scrutiny; one that affects overall health and well-being and is so fraught with emotion even more so.   First we must ask if portions of this money could be better spent on other resources like education and economic development, both of which have been shown to affect overall health and well-being.  Second, we must ask if we are funding the proper services in the proper amount, e.g. prevention vs. intervention.   Employers still pay the bulk of health insurance and rising costs have implications for economic viability and employee out-of-pocket expenses.   One approach would be to offer a more basic level of coverage which included prevention, primary care and catastrophic coverage.  Broader scope coverage could be purchased at the discretion of the employee based on individual needs and resources.

ADHD Strategies: Parental Focus

October 2, 2008

Analysis of:Parents 'need lessons about ADHD | news.bbc.co.uk

This article's focus on strategies that parents of ADHD children need to know is insightful.  Too often the focus is on the individual child and techniques for personal use.  Ultimately, it is the context that significant adults create and the interventions they use that are going to have the greatest impact.  The ADHD child may or may not be distraught by the disorder, or at least certainly not to the extent the parents are.  Pointing out that this training needs to be ADHD specific is also wise because there are unique aspects that differentiate these children from others with problems.  In the case of ADHD, childhood problems are not a one size fits all challenge. Finally, the article is correct in pointing out the need for caution in using medicines.  The risk is that the un-informed reader could view this as an absolute prohibition against use of medicine rather than a clear directive to save medications as a last resort and for the most severe cases.

Page : 11 to 2 of 2