HAYS, Kan. - Researchers have now found that the destruction of old bone during normal skeletal regrowth - a process known as resorption - is necessary to maintain a healthy level of glucose in the blood. We now know that the skeleton plays an important role in regulating blood sugar. The finding, published in Cell, is important because it may lead to a greater understanding of how to treat both diabetes type 2 as well as osteoporosis.

This study has further illuminated how bone controls this process.

HAYS, Kan. - Even though literature suggests that promoting active patient involvement in care may improve doctor-patient communication and clinical outcomes, in November 2009, a report published by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggested that most patients are dissatisfied with the way they receive results of tests and want more access to information in their medical records, specifically, detailed, lay-language results from the tests. (Patients Want Faster Access to Better Medical Records)

Technology has placed vast amounts of medical information literally a mouse click away. Yet what often may be central - a doctor's notes about a patient visit - has traditionally not been part of the discussion. In effect, such records have long been out of bounds.

Now in a new report in the July 20 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers speculate about the risks and rewards of making clinicians' notes transparent to patients.

SALINA, Kan. - Patients often receive inappropriate care when their doctors fail to take into account the patients' unique or individual circumstances, so says a new study performed by the University of Illinois at Chicago and the VA Center for Management of Complex Chronic Care.

The study of physician performance is the largest ever to be conducted using actors presenting as patients in doctors' offices.

Physicians did quite well at following guidelines or standard approaches to care, but not so well at figuring out when those approaches were inappropriate because of a particular patient's situation or life context. Physicians need to understand why a patient is failing, for instance, to control their asthma, rather than just increase the dose of the drugs they prescribe.

Specific issues - such as the lack of health insurance, the need for less costly treatment, or difficulty understanding or following instructions - must be recognized when making clinical decisions. Inattention to such issues leads to what are called "contextual errors" in patient care.

MANHATTAN, Kan. - On March 23, 2010, after a year of partisan fighting, President Obama signed into law a bill that reform the nation's $2.5 trillion health-care system. Known as the H.R.3590 - Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, this legislation will expand health care coverage to 31 million uninsured Americans through a combination of cost controls, subsidies and mandates. The cost of this reform is estimated to run close to $848 billion over a 10 year period. The cost is to be fully offset by new taxes and revenues and would actually reduce the deficit by $131 billion over the same period.

One thing for sure is that an abundance of disinformation about this legislation is streaming out of the Right's propaganda machine. In an effort to provide the public with tools to separate fact from fiction about H.R. 3590, the Manhattan Alliance for Peace and Justice (MAPJ) will host an informational Health Care Forum on Monday, 26 July, from 5:30-7:00pm at the Manhattan Public Library Auditorium.

WICHITA, Kan. - The American system of electing officials to govern has always been imperfect. The high cost of campaigns to challenging entrenched incumbents potentially discourages many good citizens from pursuing elective office. In Kansas, elections are further strained by the litmus test of the abortion issue.

Candidates who are prochoice in the democratic party have remained silent giving the impression that they are not as principled as prolife candidates. Their silence has only emboldened more prolife candidates to run for office. These republican/religious right candidates in Kansas tend to be less qualified and even more extreme in their positions than ever before. [Yes, that's a shout out to you Kris Kobach and Aaron Jacks.] It's time for the democrats to rethink their "don't ask don't tell" policy on abortion because unless you are a prolife democrat, every conservative in the state is convinced you are a baby killer any way.

Kansas Republicans are not at all shy about airing political ads touting their prolife stance discriminating against women for being women. For good measure, the ads often end by flashing the word "conservative" on the screen to denote conservatism as some kind of Christian doctrine upheld by God. It isn't.

HAYS, Kan. - In regard to federal assistance for state Medicaid funding, a recent survey found that voters oppose cutting funding to nursing homes so strongly that 62% of voters favored additional federal funding for Medicaid.

The new national survey from The Mellman Group found that Americans, by significant margins, strongly support passage of federal Medicaid relief. Voters support the use of federal funding to prevent additional cuts at the state level.

The new survey findings further punctuate the impact of Medicaid cuts enacted in state capitols across the nation on elderly and disabled constituents - and the threat of more to come as state governors face ongoing budget crises.

Results also show that voters vehemently oppose any additional state Medicaid cuts initiated by their state legislatures.

SALINA, Kan. - In the United States, 8 million adolescents aged 12 to 17 drank alcohol in the past year, around one fifth used an illicit drug, and 4 million teens under age 18 smoked cigarettes.

A new report gives insight into a day in the life of American adolescents. The study, A Day in the Life of American Adolescents: Substance Use Facts Update, presents a stark picture of the daily toll substance abuse takes on America's youth. It presents facts about adolescent substance use, including initiation, receipt of treatment, and emergency department visits for substance use "on an average day."

Among the report's major findings is that on any given day, 563,000 adolescents used marijuana, nearly 37,000 used inhalants, 24,000 used hallucinogens, 16,000 used cocaine and 2,800 used heroin.

WICHITA, Kan. - Four experts discussed the new health care reform legislation at Wichita State University last Saturday. The experts were: Dr. Richard Skibba, David Wilson (President, Kansas AARP), Bev White (President and CEO of the Center for Health & Wellness), and Monica Flask (Director of Project Acress, Central Plains Regional Health Care Foundation)...

EMPORIA, Kan. - Hi, my name is Josh Slaughter, and I have "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome." Now I'm sure half of you laughed and the other half of you are looking for a rope to hang me for being racist. First let me state, it's not my term. That term comes from the United State government who have classified "Chinese Food Syndrome" as a small to no threat to America.

Let me go back though. Let me go back to when it all started, before thousands of dollars of doctor bills. Before the months of enduring more pain than I would ever wish on anyone.

Take a journey with me, through my illness, and be ready at the end for me to call you to action.

BASEHOR, Kan. - Congress has provided funds through the Citizen Corps to assist local communities in quick response to emergency situations--particularly when first responders may be overwhelmed. These local programs, called Community Emergency Response Teams, allow groups of trained citizens to literally "care for themselves" by being first on the scene when disaster strikes. They're able to self organize and provide immediate assistance to their friends and neighbors while waiting for first responders. A multi-part training program is available, free of charge, to those who are interested.