Since the alarming news about the global Covid-19 pandemic and its far-reaching effects, the detection of viruses has increasingly moved into the focus of the health care system. With the VACUETTE® Virus Stabilization Tube, Greiner Bio-One can make a significant contribution to virus detection.

Kremsmünster, February 2021 – The VACUETTE® Virus Stabilization Tube supports the safe transport and storage of samples. VACUETTE® transport line products provide additional security when delivering nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs in the virus stabilization tube to the laboratory.

At the beginning of the year, the purpose of the tube was expanded. Previously it was only intended for the transport and storage of samples that were to be used for the detection of Sars-CoV-2, but the detection of Influenza A and Influenza B is now also included.

The history of telehealth can be traced as far back as the late 19th century when doctors telephoned patients to save time on office visits; doctors in the early 20th century aided medical clinics on ships via the radio; and by the late 1950s early 1960s, telehealth was used in hospitals through closed-circuit television. Telehealth has continued since then to make great advancements, yet its popularity has increased only incrementally, having been for so many years overshadowed by traditional health care methods.

However, the convergence of technology and necessity instigated by the COVID-19 pandemic has forced telehealth into the medical foreground, enabling the populace to reap its benefits. March 2019 to March 2020 documented a 154% increase in telehealth use. Notwithstanding the reasons for its meteoric rise, telehealth has built momentum and is expected to evolve as a viable health care option due to its efficiency, accessibility, affordability and versatility.

People trying to safely socially distance themselves amid the pandemic may not see telehealth as much more than an avenue for that. While the pandemic has certainly been the catalyst for the increase in live video conferencing appointments, telehealth has much more to offer than that and has been successful for many years as a safe, secure and convenient health option. Telehealth is multifaceted, benefiting both providers and patients with services that include consults, medical information, patient monitoring, prescription filing, appointment reminders and diagnostic consults.

Examples of telehealth’s recent success prior to the pandemic include the U.S. veterans population. A 2016 government report shows veterans with chronic health conditions who were managed via telehealth experienced a 59% reduction in the need for a VA hospital stay and a 31% decrease in VA hospital admissions, while telehealth managed mental health services reduced the need for VA hospital stays by 39% and incurred a 32% decrease in VA hospital admissions.

From tracking personal exercise on a smartphone to checking test results on email, the wide breadth of telehealth options can be divided into four main components:

1)Live video conferencing (synchronous communication): What most people think of when telehealth is mentioned, this two-way live video call between provider and patient replaces the in-office doctor visit.

Benefits: Eliminates the need to commute and the hazard of delays and inclement weather. Providers can reach rural or under-served areas where access to healthcare options is often limited.

2)Store-and-forward communication (asynchronous communication): The patient’s health records and information, including documents, pre-recorded videos, X-rays and MRIs, are securely delivered electronically to other health care professionals for evaluation, diagnosis or future appointment scheduling outside of real-time when live communication is not required. Email is an example of store-and-forward communication.

Benefits: Especially effective for doctors who must consult with specialists in remote areas, this technology removes the need for doctors to coordinate schedules or travel, thereby increasing efficiency and reducing expenses.

3)Remote patient monitoring (RPM): Commonly practiced with seniors, telemonitoring involves electronically transmitting the patient’s medical information from vital signs, blood pressure and blood sugar levels to O2 levels and EKG results from one health care provider to another. This allows the patient to be monitored regardless of where they may be transferred or living, e.g., hospital, nursing facility, home.

Benefits: When patients transfer care facilities, RPM allows health care professionals to stay informed and closely monitor patients, allowing many seniors to remain living at home.

4)Mobile health (mHealth): This method uses mobile devices, including smartphones, tablets, and PDAs, to gather medical information and send it via email, text or app to providers who can then use it to assess the patient.

Benefits: Information is immediately received, which is helpful in diagnosing and tracking illnesses, especially for patients living in remote areas who may benefit from these consultations or instructions if they cannot reach health care providers quickly. This also allows health professionals working in rural and remote areas to provide or receive information or training on medical situations.

For many years, telehealth has managed in-home patients stricken with chronic disease and has successfully reduced hospital stays, readmissions and expenses. While telehealth’s full array of technological advancements are not yet publicly well-known, its recent widespread prominence has initiated its tenure into mainstream health care options and furthering its success on the whole.

Eczema is a condition that causes dry, inflamed, itchy skin because of a gene variant that decreases the skin’s ability to protect itself. When a person’s eczema isn’t well treated or controlled, their skin develops patches of skin that are red, swollen, and intensely itchy. The patches can weep fluids, and skin infections may be more common.

While there is no cure for eczema, it is treatable. In tandem with your holistic treatment plan prescribed by your doctor, the following everyday tips may help you take care of your eczema.

1. Be Mindful of Your Eczema and What You Eat

People with eczema often find that certain foods are irritants or eczema triggers. A trigger is anything that aggravates your skin, causing new eczema to appear or existing eczema to worsen. There is no singular, one-size-fits-all eczema diet, but following certain recommendations and dietary guidelines may help you control your eczema flares and symptoms.

For example, it may be helpful to eat more probiotics, omega 3 fatty acids, vitamins D and E, and zinc as part of your diet to support a healthy immune system. It may help to avoid gluten, dairy, sugar, and highly processed foods, which are often the source of intolerances or sensitivities.

Food sensitivities or allergies are specific to you and as such, your diet should be personalized to you and your condition. Pay attention to your diet and how it makes you feel, and see if avoiding potential triggers helps relieve your redness and itching.

2. Run an Eczema-Friendly Bath

Bathing properly is an important part of the eczema skin care routine. Daily baths help the skin heal, restore much-needed moisture, prevent infection, and soothe itchiness.

To find the most relief, try running a lukewarm bath with disinfecting and soothing ingredients. Adding a small amount of bleach (a half cup to a full tub of water) to your bath water may decrease inflammation and reduce the bacteria on your skin to help avoid infection. Colloidal oatmeal added to bathwater may also help soothe itching. Salt, vinegar, and baking soda may have similar benefits.

While you’re in the bath, use a gentle, fragrance-free cleanser instead of harsh soap to clean your skin. Avoid soaking too long, which may further aggravate your skin. Instead, shoot for five to 10 minutes. After getting out and patting dry, apply your moisturizer as soon as possible.

3. Resist the Itch to Scratch

An important part of living with eczema is not scratching: scratching is what leads to broken skin and increases the risk of infection. Broken skin allows irritants and harmful infectious agents to enter the skin more easily and cause a reaction. Scratching will ultimately exacerbate itching and may cause the eczema to flare up.

To overcome the urge to scratch that eczema itch, try to substitute another action for scratching, such as gently pinching the skin. A cool pack or a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a towel may also provide the relief you’re looking for. To minimize damage to your skin if you do scratch, keep your nails short and make sure there are no jagged edges.

There’s no cookie-cutter treatment approach for eczema, but steps toward proactive daily management can help.

The Right Way To Use The Elliptical Machine

An elliptical trainer or cross-trainer has gained considerable popularity in fitness centers and home gyms. The low-impact machine includes the movements for running, walking, or stair climbing. It helps burn calories faster and is even good for people who suffer from joint ache, such as arthritis.

Make sure you know how to use the machine correctly before getting started. There is a variety of ellipticals available that might offer different features and functions. You must understand how to operate the machine correctly for an effective workout and prevent injury.

This article will provide you a detailed guide on the correct use of an elliptical machine. After going through it, you can make the most out of the machine and achieve your fitness goals. So, let’s walk you through it. 

Getting The Right Posture

When you get on the elliptical machine, ensure that you position your body in the right manner. Here is what you need to keep in mind:

Hop On The Machine: Be mindful of the moving pedals as you step onto the machine. Many people do not realize it as they get on, and end up losing balance. First, hold the stationary handlebars and then get onto the machine, keeping your foot on each pedal.

Feet Position: Some elliptical machines come with huge pedals, providing your feet enough space around. But you might slide your feet off the pedal. To prevent it from happening, keep your feet in line with the edges of the pedals.

Keep Your Back Straight: It is significant to keep your back straight while using an elliptical. Make sure your abdominals are pushed in and your pelvis a little forward. Keep your head straight up to get the right posture.

Arms Position: You will find some machines having movable arms and others having fixed arms. Most machines come with two sets of handlebars. If you want to have a full upper-body workout, then grab onto the moving handle. However, for a lower-body workout, you may hold stationary arms, providing you balance and correct posture. Make sure to bend your elbows a little for smooth movement. 

Let’s Get Moving!

As you set yourself onto the machine, it is time for you to get in motion. Here you will learn the right way of using elliptical equipment. So, let’s take a look.

Begin With Pedaling

The display on the machine will start as you start pedaling and take some steps forward on the machine. Ensure that your knees are slightly bent while you are pedaling forward. Your movement might get disturbed if you lock your knees. 

While you are pedaling, move your legs in an oval shape. Bent knees will enable you to go faster on the machine. Further, as you pedal, your arms should swing with the handlebars. When the left foot moves down and your leg is straightened, pull the right handle toward your body. Do the same when your right leg moves down.

Setting Incline And Resistance Level

When you get on the machine, you will find resistance and incline level displaying on it. The increase in resistance level will render the pedals harder. As a result, you will have to push through harder, making your muscles stronger.

Similarly, when the incline level is increased, it will work for your other muscle groups and provide an effective workout. Increase the resistance and incline each after a five minutes interval. 

Set your base pace at a level you feel is comfortable for you. You may make changes in your workout routine depending on your fitness goals.

Also, make sure you do not lean into the handlebars as the resistance level is increased. Doing so will not serve the purpose of building your muscles stronger, as you would just lift off the weight of your body onto the handles.

Keep At It

Make sure you set a goal when you start working out. Aim for at least 20-30 minutes as you set your resistance level and start your training session on an elliptical. 

If you are performing high-intensity interval training, the least you should target is 20 minutes. However, on days when you feel tired or exhausted, you must listen to your body and reduce your workout to 15 minutes.

Also, bring changes to your workout routine to keep it interesting and engaging. In interval workouts, you may modify the incline and intensity of the elliptical after a few weeks. It will lead you to achieve your fitness goals effectively and keep you motivated as well.

When it comes to healthy minds and healthy bodies, the skin and hair is often the most popular place to see changes.

For most people, jumping in the shower and indulging in a good hair care treatment might be a weekly occurrence, but for others, the very idea of scrubbing what little you still have might be a recipe for disaster. Here are the facts about hair loss and the options you have to combat it.

The Causes Of Hair loss

Many hundreds of thousands of people across the world will suffer from hair loss at some point in their lives. For many, this can be a temporary thing, either from stress or a change in lifestyle. For others though, the very real issue of permanent hair loss can’t be understated. 

We tend to think of hair loss as a male issue, with male pattern baldness being one of the most common types of hair loss, but this isn’t always the case. In fact, there are many women who suffer from hair loss throughout their lives, and it can be an embarrassing condition that negatively impacts their mental health and wellbeing.

What Are The Options?

Amongst the very real threat of fake information, there are some nuggets of real information out there that really can help with hair loss.

Caffeinated Shampoo

A popular and fairly cheap option for most people is to try a caffeinated shampoo. This type of shampoo stimulates the hair follicles and can help to bring back a bit of vigor to your scalp.

If you are suffering from hair loss due to illness or stress, this is an easy option that you can try, with most caffeinated shampoos being over-the-counter treatments that don’t require a prescription.

Follicular Unit Extraction

If you’re looking for something much more permanent, then follicular unit extraction (FUE) might be the option for you. 

According to hshairclinic.co.uk, FUE is a minimally invasive treatment that can be carried out under local anesthetic by a skilled professional. The results vary, but most people (around 98% of people) will see hair regrowth in the treated area to a level that is very satisfactory.

This type of treatment is not as invasive as follicular unit transplantation, but it does need to be carried out by a skilled professional to get the results you really want to see.

Follicular Unit Transplantation 

When most people think ‘hair transplant’ they are usually thinking of follicular unit transplantation (FUT).  

FUT is definitely a more invasive treatment than FUE, and it is required that the procedure is done under anesthetic. Small pieces of the scalp are removed from areas that have good hair growth, and they are split into individual follicular units.

The follicle units are then grafted onto the scalp using small holes cut by the surgeon to ‘fill in’ areas of balding and concern.

Due to FUT being a much more invasive treatment, there is usually a requirement for a team of healthcare assistants and nurses to be on hand, but the procedure is safe when completed by a licensed practitioner and usually gives great results.

Every year millions of people across the globe are involved in minor or major automobile accidents. They are certainly one of the most traumatic experiences to overcome. You may just want to walk away from the accident scene without acquiring medical care. Shock and trauma can cause serious disorientation and you may not be able to figure out what to do next. Here we have discussed a few important things to help you with such an unfortunate situation.

Medical Help

The very first step you should consider is seeking medical care. Even if you think that there aren’t any injuries, it is still important to get a detailed medical examination since you never know when any unexpected injuries from car accidents start showing up. There are certain injuries such as whiplash or internal wounds that take some time to appear. Also, they can be more expensive and life-threatening in the long run.

Car accidents can cause emotional stress and mental trauma that can be as harmful as physical injuries. Your emotional wellbeing can worsen if left untreated. Many car accident victims experience anxiety, insomnia, or PTSD. To combat the situation, seeking professional medical care can help you begin your life with a fresh perspective.

Collecting Essential Information

As soon as you make sure everyone is safe and sound, it’s time to consider the post-accident formalities. Here is what you need to do!

• Take a paper and pen and write about the circumstances while you were driving. This may include the condition of lighting and weather. If you find any unusual facts, write them too. Every piece of information can help you later.
• Another important piece of evidence is the photographs. Get as many photos as possible from multiple angles that can clearly depict the situation. If your mobile phone is damaged, you can ask someone to help you.
• Note down the model, color, and registration number of every automobile involved.
• Names and contact information of the witnesses along with insurance information with the other car driver.

Information to Give

If you are involved in an automobile accident, you must provide your name and contact information. Though keep in mind not to accept any blame unless and until you clearly know what has happened and everything is precisely recorded. Make sure to report the accident within 24 hours otherwise you may be held accountable for any penalty points or disqualification.

Inform Your Car Insurer

We suggest you inform your care insurance agency whether or not you want to make a claim. Once they are familiar with the situation, they can better guide you on how to proceed further. They are more likely to contact other agencies of the people involved to resolve the financial claim. At the same time, remember medical bills may considerably increase after a car accident so make sure to have every detail of the injury well documented. Insurance agencies will carefully evaluate your claim to decide how much financial compensation you deserve.

It is no surprise that insurance companies will prefer settling the case as cheaply as possible. They will try to cut down the compensation cost. If you wait for the medical treatment or visit a doctor after few days, they can put up an argument that your injuries were not as severe otherwise you would have visited the car accident clinic immediately. Seek prompt medical care and contact an experienced car accident lawyer who can put up the case in your best interest.

Potential Harmful Symptoms

Many victims often have a flow of adrenaline during the accident which is why they do not experience any painful symptoms at the moment. You may believe that that there aren’t any injuries since you are not feeling pain. However, the painful symptoms may appear after a few days or even weeks. These are referred to as delayed injuries primarily including soft tissue injuries. If left untreated can lead to worse consequences. Therefore do not come to a conclusion whether you are injured or not before the medical examination.

Medical Care and Lawsuit

After an unfortunate accident, you might not want to think about anything else other than being recovered from the injuries. If you have experienced this traumatic event of your life and have been injured, you truly deserve compensation. Medical records will improve your likelihood of getting fair compensation. The longer you wait, the more challenging your case will become as we have mentioned above. These documentations make crucial evidence that your attorney can put forward to file a lawsuit. Consulting a doctor for physical and emotional wounds is the best approach to fight your case for justified financial compensation.

What NOT to Do

If you have read this far, you are more likely to be familiar with what to do in an unfortunate car accident situation. Yet you may make some mistakes with so much panic and undesirable circumstances all around. Here is what you need to avoid.

• If you are involved in a car accident, irrespective of whether you are at fault or the other party, do not run away. According to traffic rules and regulations, it’s an offense to drive away from the accident scene. If you do so, you will be held accountable for the penalty.
• Try to control your emotional state of mind and keep calm in this situation instead of showing your anger or losing temper on others. At the end of the day remember no argument can help you to resolve the problem. It will even make the scenario more intense.
• When it comes to a car accident, there are many ambiguities about the situation and who is at fault. Things will take some time to become obvious. Even if you think you have made a slight mistake, do not accept it. Try not to utter any word that may go against you and make things challenging.
• Lastly, we would suggest you not apologize for the accident. Many people make this mistake out of courtesy or care. It may appear that you are guilty and admitting the mistake. It will affect your case even if you are not at fault.

Wrapping Up

Irrespective of the nature of a car accident, it can be traumatic leaving the worst memories in your life. Since many things are going around in an accident from reporting the police to noting down important information, you may ignore a few crucial factors that must be considered. The foremost one is your physical and emotional wellbeing. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to seek medical treatment immediately to make sure you are safe and sound or get treatment in case of any evident or non-evident injuries.

On the other hand, it helps you with the insurance claim procedure so you can receive well-deserved compensation. Even if you have received medical care after a few days, it may not be strong evidence in your best interest. We hope this article will help you on how to deal with such unwelcomed situations. For any other queries or information regarding car accident, feel free to write to us in the comment section below. Stay Safe!

MPX, a leading provider of proprietary, cloud-based solutions for print and digital communications management and delivery, is pleased to introduce HealthLinq by MPX, a comprehensive communications solution specifically designed for the healthcare insurance market.

For over 75 years, MPX has been a leading innovator in the print and digital fulfillment industry, providing creative, cost-effective and process-disrupting solutions to clients across numerous industry sectors.

“Our experience, technology and flexibility has allowed us to deliver exceptional solutions in multiple industries that rely heavily on complex customer communication systems,” comments MPX CEO, Ryan Jackson. “Healthcare insurance is a fast-growing market segment and one in which we’ve had a great history of success. It’s why we are so excited to deepen our commitment to this industry with our investment in HealthLinq.”

Built on the company’s uniquely designed, cloud-based Business Process as a Service (BPaaS) technology, HealthLinq provides a full suite of accurate, fast, flexible and secure communications solutions all managed and accessed from an intuitive central dashboard. Using HealthLinq, healthcare payers are able to manage all inbound and outbound member and provider communications more efficiently, with greater clarity and with full security and industry compliance.

Healthcare payers and their third party administrators have immediately found success with HealthLinq.

“With HealthLinq, our clients are seeing real and immediate improvements,” says Tim Cole, Chief Customer Officer at MPX . “Transitions from in-house and other vendors are seamless and quick, with custom design and integration helping to realize immediate time and resource savings not achieved with traditional solutions.”

About MPX
MPX delivers innovative solutions to meet the ever-changing communications needs of customers, simply and efficiently, when and how they want, elevating every interaction to deliver the right experience each and every time. Using proprietary, cloud-based BPaaS applications, MPX simplifies the management of critical customer communications — seamlessly, securely, and cost-effectively.