Understanding True 911 Emergencies

September 12th, 2011 by admin No comments »

Is urgency and panic always associated with all 911 calls or is there another disturbing trend starting to surface and is showing evidence that there are other reasons for 911 calls that are neither urgent or an emergency that required immediate care and attention? The factual numbers are showing more often than not that many 911 calls are actually made by persons who are not fully covered by health insurance.

There are several life threatening situations that justify making a 911 call and include such emergencies as crisis situations, someone unable to drive to the emergency room or a hospital or persons that cannot be moved without professional handlers. With the current economy in crisis for many citizens it is ever more pressing that the 911 system not be abused by non emergencies because this could jeopardize a real life threatening situation for other people. If at all possible wait until you can on your own see a regular medical doctor the next day and not tie up 911 emergency services.

Many people choose to call 911 because they think that this is the only way to receive immediate medical attention when they don’t have health insurance. It is extremely important to realize that 911 is really only for emergencies and these days even an ambulance ride can cost you big money. What used to be considered part of the service is now an extra service that is not being covered. In other words that call to 911 could wind up costing you quite a bit to ride to the hospital via ambulance and the sad thing is that many in rural areas without their own vehicle need the ambulance to transport them simply because they don’t have another way to get to the hospital.

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Emergency Contraceptives That Work

September 12th, 2011 by admin No comments »

The risk of unintended pregnancies remains when you are into frequent sex. You never know when the condom might break, or worse, you may forget to take your regular birth control pills for 2-3 days at a stretch. But the good news is that you can avoid an unintended pregnancy with emergency contraceptive pills. Meant to be used only in emergency, these pills can be taken after unprotected sexual intercourse or failure of contraception to prevent pregnancy. ellaOne is the only morning after pill which you can take within 5 days from unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy. Levonelle is another popular emergency contraception choice for women in the UK. You can take this pill within 3 days from sexual intercourse and be confident about its ability to prevent fertilisation of eggs.

Which pill to take?

With ellaOne, Levonelle and so many other pills available, it can be a bit tricky to decide which pill you can take just in case something didn’t go as planned. The best option, as always, is to go to a doctor and discuss everything ranging from safety of emergency contraceptive methods to their possible impact on your health. Progestin-only pills such as ellaOne and Levonelle are generally safe and effective.

How does ellaOne work?

ellaOne contains ulipristal acetate as its active ingredient. It is a synthetic version of the female hormone progesterone and can stop or delay ovulation. The drug was approved by an FDA Advisory Committee in June, 2010. Ulipristal acetate offers a twofold protection against pregnancy. First, it stops any egg from being fertilised by sperms. Second, if fertilisation occurs by accident, it stops the fertilised egg from getting attached to the womb.

What about ellaOne’s safety and effectiveness?

Clinical trials have shown that 98 out of 100 women taking ellaOne immediately after sex can prevent pregnancy. The average rate of success for ellaOne is 60%, which is quite impressive considering you have 5 days to take the pill.

As far as side effects are concerned, ulipristal acetate may cause mild nausea, headache, abdominal pain and period pain.

How does Levonelle work?

Levonorgestrel, the active ingredient of Levonelle, is also a synthetic sex hormone that can prevent pregnancy if taken immediately after sex. Unlike ellaOne, Levonelle should be taken within 3 days from unprotected sexual intercourse. It works the same way as ellaOne does.

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Pulse Oximeter Used in Emergency Response Systems

September 12th, 2011 by admin No comments »

Emergency response health care professionals serve one of the most important functions in our society. They are there when we most need them and at our most critical time of health. Emergency response technicians are the individuals that care for you during your time that you have to quickly get to the hospital for treatment. Also they are the individuals that are there for you to treat you during an emergency such as a house fire or some sort of gas poisoning. These individuals have always been needing to carry around large and heavy vital sign monitoring devices to measure the victim’s vital signs in order to determine immediate life saving treatment. One new device that has had a true innovative impact on the emergency response care arena is the use of a pulse oximeter.

A pulse oximeter is a medical device that measures pulse rate as well as blood oxygen saturation with amazing speed and accuracy. The oximeter utilizes the latest in infrared light technology in order to get the vital signs of an individual. The great thing about this new generation of oximeter technology is the fact that they are unbelievably small and portable. In the past the health care professionals had to rely on pulse oximeter products that were large and extremely heavy to move around easily. However, with the advent of new chip technology the oximeters today are made to be extremely portable. They are only a fraction of the size of a cellphone and provide the same complete services of the previous generations of oximeters while at not only the fraction of the cost but also a fraction of the size and weight. Today medical emergency response individuals are utilizing these new generations of pulse oximeter technology. The new generation will allow the professionals to easily move quickly in and out of complex and risky situations without the unnecessary and unneeded weight and equipment.

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