PhotoLuminations

Who shall live, and who shall die?

Living with Age will treat old age as a chronic condition to be fought at every turn.

Dr. Tom Petty was known for his generosity and for his pioneering leadership and innovative philosophy of pulmonary medicine, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

The extreme winter sport for ambulating elders (and their dogs)

New England winter offers great challenges for the elder seeking adventure and excitement. There are some little-known types of adventure, for example, walking someplace in the city after a snowfall. This sport is readily available to anyone who no longer has an automobile, and is practically unknown to the majority of people who use a car to do all their errands.

Why is the world so strange and wonderful? There are so many things I do not understand, and I don't have anyone, dog or person, to woof to about them.

Sitting on the lawn, listening to music! On a July evening, in a small green park just steps away from traffic and the city hall.

Jim at 85 is a lucky elder.

A Cat
Is Not
A Bat

Featuring Inspector Boss Van Aken and His Canaan Dog Nerek

It is a dark and stormy night. After weeks of foul weather marked by unrelenting rain, Riverby is inundated by a fierce thunderstorm and torrential rain, a true nor'easter. The town center is flooded. Riverside Manor, an apartment building for the elderly, is surrounded by flood waters that keep even emergency personnel from approaching.

Do you need to raise funds for your non-profit in these difficult economic times?

Rehabilitation classes, support groups, courage, and persistence when combined with a caring medical team can make a huge difference in the lives of people living with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

The misdirected debate on reforming health care gets bogged down on how much it will cost but overlooks the big picture. We should focus on the big pieces that waste the most--chronic diseases. This is where health reform can improve lives and save big money. Here's how.

Do you feel like the "man in the iron mask," a prisoner of your CPAP mask? Many people living with sleep apnea, regardless of the success of their treatment, wish they could be rid of the mask.

We need electronic health records, but we need to go beyond replacing traditional paper records.

I record memories and relationships, because that is what a good photographic portrait of an elder provides--affordably.

What are the prospects that electronic health records will improve care in chronic conditions such as diabetes or sleep apnea?

The California Center for Connected Health (CCCH) seeks to use telemedicine to provide "affordable, quality health care...in remote, rural, and underserved urban areas."

In healthcare, according to Tom Ferguson, a pioneer of patient Internet use, there are two complementary networks of connections: the medical, professional network and the patient network. A third network is needed--a network of health consumers working with healthcare providers.

Chronic conditions tend to travel together; the same person can have two or more conditions. How to manage them together?

You want to achieve wellness, a cure, or to manage a health condition.

Connected health--the use of technology to connect people to information, advice, and support-- can help consumers achieve wellness, and patients achieve better health.

What are the prospects today for enabling people living with a chronic health problem (like sleep apnea, COPD, or diabetes) to be empowered to manage their own health?

Economic meltdown? The government rushes to bail out investment banks, banking instututions, and investors in mortgages. What about people, for example elders and artists? Here are some thoughts about a new New Deal.

My appreciation of Salem MA has been confirmed. Salem's historic downtown has been recognized as one of the 10 best neighborhoods

What do you want to read in this newsletter? I welcome your ideas.

News about sleep apnea is welcome because it can encourage more people to seek treatment. Driving the news are reports of research that shows how dangerous sleep apnea really is, and findings that treatment does help. In addition, sleep can now be studied at home in addition to sleep centers, opening up the potential for treating many more people.

Here's an idea for action that can save you a lot of grief later in the event you lose your CPAP, or it is broken, or if you have any treatment problems.