Best Practice

Since COVID-19 has closed gyms across the country, many people are struggling to keep up with their fitness routine or have given up altogether. But just because your patients are stuck inside their homes doesn’t mean they can’t have good workouts. Tomorrow is National Senior Health and Fitness Day, but fitness is important for all age groups throughout the year. It’s well-known that exercise can improve mood and reduce the risk of depression, benefits that everyone could use during the current crisis. Here are some home workout resources for you to share with your patients and perhaps use yourself.

In today’s age of consumerism and technology, customers in all sectors expect more from the companies they patronize. What does this mean for what patients expect from their health care providers? NRC Health’s 2020 Healthcare Consumer Trends Report compiles insights from more than two million patient feedback comments, the Market Insights database, and more to find out what patients are looking for in their providers.

Medscape published their 2020 National Physicians Burnout & Depression Report on January 15, compiling survey results from over 15,000 physicians in more than 29 specialties, the report provides an update on one of medicine's top issues: physician burnout.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have been increasing drastically over the past few years. Since 2014, the number of chlamydia cases has increased by 19%, gonorrhea cases by 63%, primary and secondary syphilis cases by 71%, and congenital syphilis cases by a whopping 185%. Certain groups are being more severely affected than others. The CDC explains why this is, and discusses how to decrease the rates of these STIs.

Massachusetts has been hit hard by the national opioid crisis with the ninth highest rate of opioid deaths in 2017, according to the CDC.  The opioid crisis has killed over 2,000 people in Massachusetts each year for the past three years on record, peaking in 2016. As a result, Massachusetts organizations like Greater Lawrence Family Health Center (GLFHC) are looking at innovative ways to help those struggling with addiction.