Social support

"All United for MG" coalition launches a petition to advocate change in Myasthenia Gravis

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Social support, European Commission, Caregiver, European, Quality of life, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Human, GMG, Myasthenia gravis, Patient, Policy, Disease, Rare disease, European Parliament, Landing slot, Speech

BRUSSELS, March 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Following Rare Disease Day and in anticipation of the European elections, All United for MG has undertaken the initiative to mobilize society, initiating transformative changes for the patient community. Since its establishment in 2023, All United for MG has been amplifying the generalised Myasthenia Gravis (gMG) patient voice across Europe. A Call for Action, launched with European parliamentarians Tomislav Sokol and Istvan Ujhelyi in June 2023 during the first-ever Myasthenia Gravis Day, contains six actionable policy recommendations for the improvement of the visibility, recognition and treatment of Myasthenia Gravis (MG) and other rare diseases. These recommendations were supported by over 30 stakeholders, including 11 members of the European Parliament, healthcare professionals and Patient Advocacy Groups (PAGs). All United for MG is now intensifying its efforts and seeks the support of all citizens across Europe by launching a petition on change.org, to encourage the civil society to support and advocate for changes in the management of rare diseases care,especially in generalized Myasthenia Gravis (gMG). The ambition is to collect between 5.000 - 10.000 signatures in the lead-up to the second Myasthenia Gravis Awareness Day on June 2nd and the European elections.

Key Points:

In the context of Autoimmune Awareness Month, the coalition of patients suffering from Myasthenia Gravis (MG) "All United for MG" urges citizens throughout Europe to unite in instigating positive change and enhancing Myasthenia Gravis management.
All United for MG is officially launching a European petition to advocate for better rights for patients and their caregivers, improved access to healthcare and enhanced conditions.
Since its establishment in 2023, All United for MG has been amplifying the generalised Myasthenia Gravis (gMG) patient voice across Europe.
"Rare diseases often struggle for visibility in political discourse, making the All United for MG petition all the more important.

New Supportiv Teen Identity Article Collection Explores Mental Health Struggles Involving Ethnicity, Immigration, Gender, And More

Retrieved on:

Thursday, February 29, 2024

Panic, Social support, Knowledge, Habit, Collection, Loneliness, Anomaly, Identity, Multimedia

BERKELEY, Calif., Feb. 29, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Supportiv, the pioneer in Conversational Care® and Precision Peer Support®, publishes today a new addition to its Identity article collection (https://supportiv.com/teens), centering marginalized experiences that often go unaddressed in the world of wellbeing – while presenting paths forward, informed by lived experience.

Key Points:

Supportiv, the peer-to-peer network for mental, emotional, and social support, releases a new collection of articles exploring the spaces between identity, marginalization, and emotional wellbeing for teens.
There are people who feel just like you, and you can even get connected to them online.
Supportiv Co-Founder & CEO Helena Plater-Zyberk explains why Supportiv publishes these perspectives, by and for marginalized individuals: "Feeling misunderstood exacerbates many mental and emotional challenges.
Student writers from around the US delve into marginalized perspectives and emotional struggles related to identity.

Future Treatments for Rare Organ Disease Raise Hope, New Paper Explains

Retrieved on:

Thursday, February 29, 2024

FDA, Patient, Social support, Health, Physician, Radar, IgG4-related disease, Nursing

WASHINGTON, Feb. 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- IgG4-RD patients may finally have a treatment developed specifically for their condition, explains a clinician-authored white paper from the Alliance for Patient Access. "Addressing Access Barriers for IgG4-RD Patients" highlights that the rare condition has flown under the radar for many years and a treatment for IgG4-RD is sorely needed. Increasing awareness, thankfully, is leading to more correct diagnoses, greater social support and innovative options.

Key Points:

Physicians describe patients' years of inaccurate diagnoses and off-label treatment, look toward forthcoming FDA approvals
WASHINGTON, Feb. 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- IgG4-RD patients may finally have a treatment developed specifically for their condition, explains a clinician-authored white paper from the Alliance for Patient Access. "
Addressing Access Barriers for IgG4-RD Patients " highlights that the rare condition has flown under the radar for many years and a treatment for IgG4-RD is sorely needed.
Increasing awareness, thankfully, is leading to more correct diagnoses, greater social support and innovative options.
As treatments tailored to these patients finally emerge, patients, providers and advocates must still overcome a number of challenges:
Policymakers can play a key role in protecting patient care by implementing policies that tackle utilization management barriers and ensure new treatments are accessible.

Fears about falling birthrate in England and Wales are misplaced – the population is due to grow for years to come

Retrieved on:

Monday, February 12, 2024

Social support, Woman, Education, Pension, Growth, Parent, Projection, Fertility, Death, Birth rate, Income tax, Mother, Family, Policy, MP, Child, Workforce, Housing, Birth control

The number of babies born in England and Wales in 2022 fell by 3.1% compared to the previous year.

Key Points:

The number of babies born in England and Wales in 2022 fell by 3.1% compared to the previous year.
The average age of parents is also at a record high, as people choose to delay having children.
Instead of targeting specific birth numbers, we should focus on supporting parents and planning for future population changes.

Long-term trends

In fact, fertility rates in England and Wales have not been that high since 1972 – more than 50 years ago – and yet the population has not decreased.
The birth rates in the UK are similar to long-term trends experienced by many places in the world.
Within this context it is clear that current birth rates, while low, are not wildly out of the ordinary.
Projections are not predictions – and migration is particularly hard to predict given how much it depends upon changing policies.

The role of immigration

Immigration has played a hugely important role in sustaining the UK’s population, economic growth, and workforce.
Some people are concerned that immigration contributes to housing shortages and puts pressure on public services.
Survey data also suggests that public attitudes to immigration have become much more positive in recent years.

In the UK, most “baby boomers” – the people born in a post-war peak in the birth rate – have reached pension age, requiring more working people to support them.
An increase in the fertility rate today would not have much impact on the working age population for at least 20 years.

Returning to work

Indeed, the prohibitive cost of childcare means that many parents, especially women, struggle to return to work after having children or do not return in their full capacity.
Over 1.5 million people are economically inactive, 85% of them women, because they are looking after family.
And, importantly, the ability to decide if, when and how often to have children is a fundamental human right.

Melanie Channon receives funding from UKRI. She is Honorary Secretary of the British Society for Population Studies and a non-exec director of Bath Social and Development Research Ltd. Bernice Kuang works on an Economic and Social Research Council funded project.

Nudj Health Expands Virtual Cardiac Rehab Services to Patients with Ornish Lifestyle Medicine by Sharecare

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Nudj Cardiac Complete, in partnership with Ornish Lifestyle Medicine by Sharecare, allows physician groups to provide cardiac rehab to patients at home thus increasing access, adoption and adherence to cardiac rehabilitation.

Key Points:

Nudj Cardiac Complete, in partnership with Ornish Lifestyle Medicine by Sharecare, allows physician groups to provide cardiac rehab to patients at home thus increasing access, adoption and adherence to cardiac rehabilitation.
Nudj is increasing access, adoption and adherence to these vital cardiac rehab services and enabling physicians to meet their patients no matter where they are on their health journey.
Nudj Cardiac Complete includes three major care pathway service offerings:
Cardiac Wellness/Risk Reduction: Using the evidence-based model of Collaborative Care, the Nudj Health American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) certified program delivers lifestyle and behavioral health modifications every month to patients.
I’m pleased that Nudj Health will now offer my intensive cardiac rehabilitation program virtually,” said Dean Ornish, M.D., founder of Ornish Lifestyle Medicine.

Stigma kills people with alcohol addiction

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Crime, Liver disease, Alcoholism, Family, Life, Prejudice, Nursing, Patient, Diagnosis, Practitioner, Bleeding, Attitude, Stigmata, Disease, Social support, Liver, Crave, Stigma, Liquor

She lived with it for years, hiding bottles of alcohol so her partner wouldn’t find out.

Key Points:

She lived with it for years, hiding bottles of alcohol so her partner wouldn’t find out.
Alcoholism, or alcohol use disorder, as it is known in medical terms, is the compulsion to drink alcohol even when it can cause physical or mental health problems.
In people with alcohol use disorder, there may be a physical need to drink alcohol to stop withdrawal symptoms like the sweats or shakes.
Most of the patients I see in hospital with alcohol-related liver disease have alcohol use disorder.

Stigma is common

First, there is public stigma.
This is the most common type of stigma, where people believe in negative stereotypes, develop prejudice, and avoid or look down on people with alcohol use disorder – the drunk on the street might be aggressive so best to avoid him.
Second, there is stigma from healthcare professionals.
The more stigma they experience, the more self-stigma they develop and the more they feel that they deserve such treatment.

Things may have turned out differently

She battled her addiction for several years and with the support of alcohol services and her family, managed several months at a stretch without alcohol.
I can’t help but think that if Emma hadn’t experienced all that stigma, things may have turned out differently for her.
She may have been able to get help to control her addiction and prevent liver disease from taking her life.

Ashwin Dhanda receives funding from the National Institute of Health and Social Care Research for a study investigating methods to tackle stigma in alcohol-related liver disease.

Coke Florida Empowers Communities Through Access to Educational and Technology Resources During Black History Month

Retrieved on:

Thursday, February 1, 2024

Since its inception in 2015, Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC (Coke Florida) has had a stated commitment to education through its Black History Month programming.

Key Points:

Since its inception in 2015, Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC (Coke Florida) has had a stated commitment to education through its Black History Month programming.
View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240201613255/en/
Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LLC (Coke Florida), a family-owned Coca-Cola bottler, announces that its Black History Month initiatives will again focus on education and technology access for Floridians.
Coke Florida's Black History Month program is in its ninth year and will surpass $800,000 in donations.
At the conclusion of Black History Month 2024, Coke Florida, through its laptop donation campaign, will have established and upgraded 11 community computer labs across the state.

Pair Team Announces the Appointment of Nate Favini, M.D., M.S., as Inaugural Chief Medical Officer

Retrieved on:

Thursday, February 1, 2024

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Pair Team, a virtual and community-based care solution connecting Medicaid's highest-risk patients to high-quality care, today announced the appointment of its first-ever Chief Medical Officer, Nate Favini, M.D., M.S. In this role, Nate will oversee clinical services at Pair Team, including supporting and scaling its clinical teams, leading population health efforts, shaping the company's value-based care strategy and developing new clinical programs and services to improve the health of its patients and lower total costs of care.

Key Points:

We're poised for another year of explosive growth and hiring Nate enables us to do so," said Neil Batlivala, co-founder and CEO of Pair Team.
Nate joins Pair Team from Forward, where he served as Chief Medical Officer.
In addition to Nate's new role as Chief Medical Officer, Pair Team has also announced two new appointments within its leadership team:
Connie Kim , Executive Vice President of Operations.
For more information about Pair Team or if you're interested in joining its team, please visit www.pairteam.com .

How teenagers navigate the nuances of social media – and what adults can learn from them

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Sibling, Code, Parent, Friends, Perception, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Negotiation, Social media, Social support

But there are nuances to interacting on social media – and teens are often acutely aware of them.

Key Points:

But there are nuances to interacting on social media – and teens are often acutely aware of them.
These active kinds of social media use could support teens’ expression of their identity, and therefore, feelings of social support and belonging.
Social cues
On the other hand, the way social media makes the subtleties of friendships and peer relationships explicit can create difficulties.
In many ways, there are lessons we can learn from how teenagers use social media.

How looking after your willpower can help you reduce stress and stay productive, wherever you are working

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

People, Family, Woman, Code, Mental distress, Research, Employment, Sleep, Business failure, Culture, Knowledge, CQD, Friends, COVID, Mental health, Divorce, Work, Income, Risk, Anxiety, COVID-19, Grief, Investor, Emotion, Human, Social support, Depression, Nursing

The COVID pandemic led to big increases in psychological distress for many people, including symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression.

Key Points:

The COVID pandemic led to big increases in psychological distress for many people, including symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression.
The negative impact on mental health has been substantial and is likely to be long-lasting, with many people experiencing psychological distress even now.
Our research seeks to understand how psychological distress created by the pandemic has affected how productive people are at work.

Remote work, productivity and stress

Our study shows the impact of psychological distress on productivity during the pandemic was even more pronounced for people who worked from home.
Remote workers also reported that boundaries between work and home are often blurred, with workspaces and job-related tasks intruding on home life.
But unfortunately, other situations can still cause stress that affects productivity at work – whether that’s a health issue, bereavement, a divorce or other major life events.
So, what can you do to try to cope, and even maintain your productivity at work, during such stressful situations?

Get the right support when stressed at work

This can include support from family, friends and colleagues, but also mental health and financial support.
Sufficient recovery time after a stressful event and, more generally, sleep and breaks from work can also replenish your self-regulation resources.
As our research shows, organisations need to support employees who work from home in particular.
Managers should also take individual preferences for homeworking into account, and make sure homeworkers have sufficient control over their work.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.