How to be a DR: 5 Critical Steps to Become a Medical Doctor



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Training and education are two important factors on how to be a DR or a doctor. They include undergraduate, graduate and clinical residency. The length of training will depend on the area of specialization you will choose. However, it usually requires at least 11 years of education and training on how to be a dr.
These are some of the steps you should take on how to be a Dr:

Earn a Bachelor’s Degree. To be a doctor, you must earn a Bachelor of Science degree. This allows you to have basic medical learning. You should take courses in chemistry, biology, physics and mathematics. BS in Medical Technology is one of the degrees you can obtain to help you on how to be a Dr.

Apply to medical school. Before you will be admitted to a medical school, you must pass the medical college admission test first. It is an examination that tests your knowledge about medical concepts and terminology.

Complete a Doctor of Medicine degree. It takes four years to complete this. The first two years involve classroom and laboratory work. It tackles anatomy, medical laws and ethics, microbiology and pharmacology, among others. The last two years will involve clinical rotation in different medical departments. Internships allow students to decide which area of medicine they want to specialize in.

Finish medical residency on how to be a Dr. After completing medical school, you must enter a residency program. Unlike other OJT programs, you will be paid when undergoing on-the-job training on how to be a Dr.

Pass a licensure examination. Before you can practice medicine, you must pass a medical licensing examination. If not, you cannot legally work as a medical doctor.

Here in DC, there is only one medical school that aspiring doctors can attend to --Davao Medical School Foundation. It was supposed to be my school if I decided to fulfill my dream to become a DR.

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Sleep Apnea: Improving CPAP Compliance

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Generally patients like to believe that there is a cure for everything.  Medical professionals know that there simply isn’t.  Not every medical complaint can be eliminated by a course of medication, therapy of some kind or a surgical procedure.  Doctors spend much of their time simply managing illnesses, attempting to alleviate the most dangerous, most debilitating or most distressing aspects of chronic conditions, and therefore not only extend the lifespan of their patients but also the quality of life they experience.

Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is often one such condition.  During sleep, sufferers experience repeated short episodes, typically of 10 to 20 seconds when their breathing becomes dangerously shallow or ceases completely.  Naturally this has consequences.  Most noticeable to the person and their family are day time fatigue, instances of inappropriate napping and low mood, but there are also health issues beyond the perils of breathing interruption, including hypertension and changes in atrial fibrillation.
There are three types of sleep apnea:
  • Obstructive sleep apnea accounts for the vast majority of sufferers.  It occurs when the soft tissue at the back of your throat relaxes during sleep, leading to a blockage of the airway, and often characterized by heavy snoring. The condition can occur in children as well as adults, but is then generally due to problems with the child’s adenoids or tonsils and can be fully resolved by their removal.
  • Central sleep apnea is far less common, and results from a failure of the central nervous system to properly control the breathing response during sleep.  As there is no blockage of the airway, such sufferers rarely snore.
  • Complex sleep apnea is a combination of the obstructive and central varieties. 
Research shows that there are ethnic and familial predilections amongst sufferers, and that obesity and smoking are high risk factors.  Losing weight and smoking cessation can bring about improvements, or sometimes resolve the issue, but often the condition is likely to be life long and will require on-going management.  Patients are usually given advice on sleeping positions and establishing regular sleep patterns, and warned against the use of sleeping tablets or sedatives, drinking alcohol, or consuming caffeine or heavy meals too closely to bedtime. 

Technology that helps

However, whilst such strictures may be good advice for all patients, and helpful to some; a large number will continue to experience dangerous interruptions in their night time breathing.  For these patients the solution will generally involve providing artificial assistance through positive airway pressure, which will secure their airway during sleep.  Most commonly in the home a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine will be used, but in some circumstances an Automatic (APAP) machine which responds to interruptions in breathing and operates at a lower pressure may be recommended.  Rarely, a Bi-level (BPAP) device which adjusts pressure with each breath in and out will be employed.  BPAP machines are used for other major respiratory illnesses and generally operate at higher pressures, which is why they are not commonly used in sleep apnea cases.
Issues of Compliance

The chief problem with CPAP machines is poor compliance.  Generally the worse the condition is, the better the rates of compliance, but there are a number of factors which influence patient behavior on this matter. These include:
  • A history of previous poor medical compliance in other areas tends towards a similar reaction to CPAP therapy.
  • A failure to appreciate the long term health problems that sleep apnea can cause.
  • Self-consciousness that creates a reluctance to wear the CPAP mask, particularly in the presence of a partner
  • Complaints of claustrophobia and discomfort
  •  Side effects such as nasal drying, increased congestion, sneezing, rhinorrhea, sinusitis, conjunctivitis, claustrophobia, pressure sores on the bridge of the nose, difficulty exhaling, allergic reaction to the mask, air swallowing  and machine noise.
Many patients have a poor understanding of their own condition.  They will spend longer choosing which restaurant to visit or sorting out their credit card transfer than they do understanding the implications of poorly managed sleep apnea.  Therefore, the first three points above can only be properly addressed by health professionals educating their patients appropriately, and re-emphasizing the importance of compliance on a regular basis. 

The problems of claustrophobia, discomfort and other side effects are perhaps more amenable to practical solutions.  There are a large number of different and increasingly sophisticated machines and equipment available on the market, some with very minimal light weight masks to reduce the sense of entrapment, and others designed from materials for those with allergy issues.  It is also possible to attach a humidifier to most machines to prevent issues related to dryness; and both minimal noise and portable models are also available.
If a patient is reluctant or has difficulties in using their CPAP equipment, it is essential that the health professionals involved identify the problem early on during treatment.  This will give the best chance of establishing an early and hopefully enduring pattern of compliance.  It is also important that checks are made on an on-going basis to ensure that a satisfactory regime is maintained.

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Healthcare IT: Its Benefits in Patient Care

healthcare IT
(Photo source: medicexchange.com)

Healthcare IT is a mixture of information technology and medical care. Its main goal is to develop a system that enhances the security of the healthcare system. It includes not just computer and information technology but it also involves health-related data. With healthcare IT, healthcare delivery to consumers has been tremendously improved.

Healthcare IT can be implemented or applied in various types of health environments. These will include general practice, rehabilitation and primary care, among others.

Benefits of healthcare IT solutions

Minimizes errors. Instead of writing down prescriptions, physicians can use electronic prescribing systems which can eliminate the hassle of hand-written prescriptions, thereby, minimizing errors. (Admit it. Doctor's handwriting is sometimes (most of the time) impossible to decipher.)

Enhances overall healthcare treatment. With the advanced technology, some treatments for life-threatening diseases have been unearthed. With this technology, doctors can easily treat their patient with less error.

Reduces the task of healthcare billing. Healthcare IT solutions can somehow eradicate the manual process of billing a patient, which will lead to few or no errors.

Maintains healthcare record. The medical records of a patient must be properly maintained. Doctors can just pull out his/her record to help him/her diagnose the patient’s ailment. Without proper maintenance of patients’ records, it could lead to a life-threatening situation for the patient.

Sadly, in the Philippines, healthcare IT is not yet fully embraced. Hospitals and clinics are still  utilizing the manual process of maintaining their patients’ records, i.e. folder filing system.

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Health IT: Salary and How to Earn More in this Field?

health IT
christianolmeda.com


Health IT service is an important field in the health care industry. People who work in this area maintain the medical information of the patients from the moment they contacted their respective physicians. This field tackles how health information of the patient is structured and formatted. It processes medical data and documents for treatments. It makes sure that physicians and health care facilities meet the standards and requirements in the health care industry in order to make sure that they offer highest quality patient care.

Salary


Individuals who work in the health IT service obtain median salaries of $85,600 and $82,100. Those who are into the consulting area may receive a median salary of $69,900.

How to earn more?

Experience. Individuals working in the health IT service can earn more by getting years of exprience in this field. According to a report, veterans in this field with 20+ years of experience are receiving a median salary of $95,500. Newbies, on the other hand, are only getting $46,500.

Education. Another way to obtain higher salary in health IT industry is to obtain higher level of education. Professionals with a MBA degree can have a median salary of $85,200 while those with MS in computer science will have a median salary of $77,200. BS degree holders in business adminstration have the lowest salaries.

Health IT exam. Professionals can also earn more in this industry if they pass the Registered  Health IT exam. It is a mandatory examination for those who want to work in the health information management.

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