With a growing aging population, demand for prescription drugs in America is at an all-time high. Older people are more vulnerable to a variety of illnesses and conditions that require them to take medication. Many are now using online pharmacies to have their medicine delivered to their doorstep. 

Online pharmacies are developing innovative ways to distinguish themselves in an increasingly competitive market. This includes specialized packaging of patients’ drugs and offering excellent customer service. 

Here are some benefits for seniors who utilize online pharmacies:

Cost savings

Many online pharmacies advertise prices cheaper than retail standards and have a price-match guarantee, meaning seniors will get their medications as cheaply as possible. While some offer standard shipping for free, an expedited delivery has an additional fee attached to it. 

A few online pharmacies insist on a small subscription fee and then provide free deliveries. Overall, subscription fees are low and cost less than traveling to a brick-and-mortar pharmacy every time you need medication.

While these savings might be helpful, seniors on Medicare must still pay for their prescriptions, even if they have Medicare Supplement Plans as these do not cover Part D, which allocates funds to medication. Russell Noga, the owner of MediSupps, encourages seniors to investigate the costs of such plans. The premiums are low and save seniors hundreds of dollars each year.

Bulk orders

Local pharmacies tend to fill prescriptions one month at a time, whereas online pharmacies can deliver a 90-day supply of medication. This can reduce any copayments required. 

It also means paying for shipping once instead of three times if the online pharmacy charges for deliveries. Seniors feel safer having an extra supply of medication available to them should an emergency occur, preventing them from getting to a pharmacy. 

Online pharmacies also benefit from this practice. It reduces their shipping and logistics costs. Additionally, they get discounts from pharmaceutical manufacturers when they make bulk purchases. They might pass some of these savings onto customers, too.

Convenience

Many seniors who have lost much of their mobility prefer staying at home or being in places where they feel safe. Venturing out to a pharmacy can be a mammoth task, especially if they no longer drive or live far away from the nearest branch. 

They might have to ask a friend or family member to take them to the pharmacy or go and collect their order on their behalf. Seniors feel that this is imposing an unnecessary burden on someone else while fighting to retain their independence. Online pharmacies solve this problem.

Caregivers also find online pharmacy services convenient as they do not have to leave their patients alone while they source their medication. This makes the caregiving role less stressful.

Additional services

Some pharmacies manage medication packaging in unique ways. For example, multi-dose dispensing (MMD) presents all the patient’s daily medication in one convenient packet. 

This makes it easier for seniors to remember to take their medicine without becoming confused about which ones need to be taken when. Each package lists the dosage and what time it should be taken. Some online pharmacies have gone the extra mile and send text reminders to seniors when they are due to take medication. 

Online pharmacies give users direct access to pharmacists during office hours, although some offer the service 24/7. Seniors or caregivers with questions or concerns about dosages and how to administer them can contact a pharmacist for prompt, accurate advice. 

Additionally, online pharmacies are not limited to providing prescription drugs. Users can also order over-the-counter (OTC) medications and vitamin supplements online. This makes online pharmacies a one-stop-shop for all a senior’s medication needs.

Compared to previous generations, seniors living in the 21st century have access to cutting edge technology that helps them live longer, fuller lives. 

Recent innovations, including the smartphone and apps it can utilize, mean that older people can deal with health issues more effectively. And it seems that the best is yet to come, with continuous tech advances that will become part of our lives in the not-too-distant future.

Here are some ways that modern tech is used to advance senior care:

Global Positioning System (GPS)

GPS has been refined over the years to improve location accuracy and how much detail a satellite can provide a user. This technology is advantageous to seniors who struggle with memory loss, become disoriented, and wander off frequently. 

It can be a terrifying experience for these people as they are not sure how they got there and have no idea how to get home. Caregivers must have the means to find their loved one or client quickly. Today’s GPS trackers are so advanced that they can be ironed into clothing or placed in the sole of a shoe.

Elderly patients who have wandered off are vulnerable to accidents or muggings. Such incidents could land them in the hospital. Russell Noga of MediSupps recommends that all seniors have Medicare Supplement plans 2021 in place to help them cover the bills should something befall them.

Tracking medication usage

Most seniors take medication of some sort, with some taking multiple doses of various medicines each day. It is easy to miss a dose, and some medicines need to be taken at precise times each day. Forgetful seniors often do not take their medication as prescribed and could wind up taking a double dose or none. 

Fortunately, several tech solutions help seniors keep track of medication usage. Smartphones have facilities to set multiple alarms as reminders to take medicine. There are also pill boxes that alert the user or caregiver when it is time to take medication. 

Developers are working on smart pill bottles that allow manufacturers, doctors, patients, and caregivers to track medication usage. This would include a text sent to seniors to remind them to take their dose.

The internet

While there are too many internet doctors out there who try self-diagnosing, often with disastrous consequences, there are advantages to the Medical Internet of Things (IoT). Medical practitioners can stay on top of the latest treatment trends and apply them in their practices. 

When a senior is under the treatment of several doctors, the internet allows them to remain connected so that their patient receives holistic treatments that do not interact with each other negatively.

The internet has kicked senior care up another notch by allowing remote connectivity to monitor equipment, like an oxygen tank. A doctor can see that the tank is in use and help the patient order more in advance. 

Cameras

Many seniors who need additional care complain about caregivers who are rough and impatient. Having cameras set up in the home allows family members to monitor their loved ones’ treatment and ensure that it meets their expectations and standards. 

This trend has caused an increased number of elder abuse cases reported to authorities. However, they believe that only a small fraction of such cases reach their attention.

Camera technology is that advanced that a system triggered by sensors is now commonplace. Sensors pick up motion in the room to track how often a senior is moving around their house from one room to another. 

These systems are smart enough to establish movement patterns and notify caregivers if a drastic change could indicate a problem.

These days, more so with cosmetic surgery, you have to be wary of fly by night plastic surgeons, who will offer you a cheap procedure and leave you with a host of new imperfections that you never had before. Whatever surgery you have, always choose an experienced board-certified surgeon for your own safety sake. 

If you have a good surgeon, they will discuss what your post-surgery recovery will be. However, you can also do a lot on your own to ensure a smooth recovery.

Injured by the doctor you trusted

Surgical errors from the doctor you put your trust in are more common than you think. This is medical malpractice and there are a number of examples of surgical errors that occur. Then the patient suffers the consequences and these mistakes can result in permanent injuries and death.

This is one time you have to consult with an attorney to ensure some form of justice and monetary compensation to pay for medical treatment. The Hastings law firm in Texas are medical malpractice specialists. 

They were established in 2009 and are tough and relentless when it comes to pursuing justice and winning compensation for their clients. Working on a no-win, no-fee basis, these are Houston-based lawyers worth turning to because this is one area of the law that you dare not attempt on your own.

Stick to your discharge instructions

After any surgery, you will receive discharge instructions on how to look after your incision. This may include instructions on how to take medicines, how to clean the wound and bandage it as well as instructions on what activities you should avoid. You will also be informed on how to speed up healing by eating the right kinds of foods and what exercises to do.

You will also be informed to call your surgeon’s office if you’re worried about anything or if you have any complications. Your surgeon will also have given you a date for your next appointment and it is imperative to keep this appointment and all others the doctor schedules for you.

Sticking to your hospital discharge instructions will ensure you don’t have to return to the hospital.

Get up and about

You may not feel like it after you’ve had surgery, but the quicker you get moving, the better. The speed at which one returns to preoperative independence determines the speed at which you recover, both mentally and physically. 

After surgery, pulmonary complications, as well as pneumonia, are the leading cause of postoperative death. Confinement to bed is a risk factor for these conditions, and if you’re up and moving, you automatically take deeper breaths, so important for warding off pulmonary embolism and pneumonia. 

Lying in bed day after day results in muscle loss and weakness while moving improves recovery and strength.

Sneezing the wrong way?

Even before surgery, it can only be to your benefit to learn to sneeze and cough the right way. For example, with pelvic organ prolapse, you want to make sure you don’t cough and sneeze violently to prevent the organs from pressing against the vagina.

Also, sneezing incorrectly isn’t good after some surgeries, and with an abdominal incision, for instance, you can actually do serious harm to your incision because a violent sneeze can cause an incision to pop open. You get wound separation, known as Dehiscence – a surgical complication where the wound edges no longer meet. 

When an incision heals, the new tissue isn’t strong yet. In severe cases, when the incision opens totally, it becomes a surgical emergency. This is because it could lead to a complication known as evisceration, where the organs can even extend outside the incision. The incision will need to be covered with wet sterile bandages while you wait for emergency medical care. 

As people get older, their bodies are more susceptible to illness and injury, leading to surgery. Healthcare costs are not negligible by any means. Some types of surgeries can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, excluding the patient’s post-operative care, hospital stay, and medication required afterward.

Healthy living can prevent many conditions that require surgery to affect a senior’s body. But, in case they do, here are five of the most expensive surgeries many seniors undergo:

Exploratory chest surgery

While this is often a medical practitioner’s last resort, exploratory chest surgery is contemplated when doctors need to explore the chest cavity to diagnose or remediate a problem. Surgeons tend to try less invasive options to correct conditions that they can identify. However, they will not hesitate to perform this procedure in a life-threatening emergency to effectively treat a patient.

During a thoracotomy, a doctor creates an incision in the chest wall, which lies between the ribs. The chest is then ‘cracked open’ so that a surgeon can access their patient’s heart, lungs, and esophagus. 

This surgery alone will cost over a hundred thousand dollars, and even with Medicare, the copayments alone can be financially crippling. Russell Noga of MediSupps is an expert in Medicare Supplement Plans for 2021, which will provide you with some additional cover that minimizes any financial impacts of such major surgery.

Transplant surgery

Any organ transplant surgery has a high price tag attached to it. It is an intensive, invasive surgery that can take hours to complete. Numerous blood vessels must be severed from the damaged organ and then reattached to a donor organ. The amount of time spent in the operating theater and how many doctors are involved in organ transplant surgery explain why such procedures are expensive.

Additionally, treatment required while waiting for a donor is costly. For instance, patients with kidney failure need dialysis sessions. Post-operative care includes taking immunosuppressants to ensure that the body does not reject its new organ. Transplant surgery includes replacing the liver, kidneys, lungs, or heart.

Non-invasive heart surgery

Heart operations have come a long way in recent decades. There is no longer a need for open-heart surgery in all cases. However, these less invasive surgery techniques require expensive equipment to make them a possibility. 

Examples include a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) during which a collapsible replacement heart valve is delivered to the damaged area with a catheter. Mitral valve repair is also done non-invasively, although it costs upward of $50,000.

Vascular bypass surgery

In a vascular bypass graft procedure, damaged arteries are circumvented by redirecting blood to healthy blood vessels. Blood flow then bypasses its usual route to another one that does not contain damaged arteries. A damaged artery cannot facilitate adequate blood flow, leading to ischemia. For patients of advanced age, this procedure is most commonly done in the heart and legs.

Surgeons use grafts in this surgery to connect a pathway between the blood vessel and the alternate one it will be flowing to in the future. Grafts are made from the patient’s own veins, Teflon, Dacron, or another patient’s veins.

Pacemakers and defibrillators

These lifesaving devices help patients who experience problems with their heart rate. A pacemaker can control abnormal heart rhythms, while a defibrillator sends small electric shocks to a heart that beats unevenly, too slow, or too fast. It can restart the heart if it stops suddenly.

These devices do not come cheap and nor do the procedures for inserting them. Additionally, they need to be replaced after prolonged use. Removal and replacement surgery might cost more than an initial insertion operation.

Java is a ubiquitous presence in the programming world. The fact that it's been around for decades, and the ease with which it works on practically any platform, makes Java one of the most versatile languages you can learn. The legacy of Java is long and will continue to be relevant for a long time to come, but what exactly is Java good at, and what programmers can benefit most from it?

What Java Can Do

In practical terms, Java can do just about anything. This object-oriented programming language has broad application over computers and cell phones but also has wide compatibility with TVs and a wide variety of household and commercial appliances. Despite its age, it's a popular choice for building a wide variety of apps.

And since so much software out there is already built on Java, an understanding of Java is going to continue to be a valuable asset for plenty of in-house developers to have for a long time. Most companies aren't willing to rip up and rewrite their codebase, and Java's remained constantly updated for two decades without any signs of slowing any time soon. When asking what Java can do, you really need to ask yourself how it works, and whether or not its logic makes sense to your style of thinking and the types of applications you want to build.

It's a Statically Typed Language

Java is statically typed. What that means is that the programmer needs to declare all of their variables before using them, along with their data type. On the downside, that means more written code. On the upside, it means better documentation for yourself and others, less time chasing down errors, and a more concrete logic to follow when working through more complex algorithms.

Static languages like Java can be a great choice for beginners because the nature of the language forces you to write out your work. A dynamically typed language might be a bit easier from the beginning, but it won't hammer in the full procedural logic of what you're doing as well as a language like Java.

It's Object-Oriented

Java is an object-oriented programming language, and that makes it an eminently modular solution. Since everything within Java is designed as a discrete object, tracing problems is easy, and so is expanding or transplanting features. Doubling down on that is the notion of inheritance, which allows you to add complexity to your objects without having to rewrite or dramatically alter existing objects. It's an elegant solution that's especially well-suited for the long term. If someone needs to call in another programmer or bring a new coder onboard for computer programming help, they can usually get up to speed quickly with Java.

The Final Word on Java

Despite the hand-wringing of some in the coding community, Java isn't going anywhere soon. It does so much well, and it continues to grow with each passing year without lagging behind and while maintaining great documentation and a helpful community of users.

Java has a moderate learning curve for beginners, but that curve also comes with an advantage - teaching you the fundamentals that other languages will just parse for you. Java allows you to take those training wheels off safely. And with its modular, object-oriented functionality, it's likely going to be a pragmatic choice for application design for a long time to come.

Although The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)in Washington, D.C., the non-profit organization established in 1876, recommends that a medical student needs at least 350 hours to prepare for the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), we now live in such a hectic and demanding time that studying for several months may not be possible.

Two Conditions Necessary to Study MCAT in a Month

While it is theoretically possible to study for the MCAT in just a month, you must fully understand that this is a heroic task. Still, it’s possible to be successful if you can meet two conditions:

The first condition is that you must already have a firm grasp of science so that you can read critical information without the need to look up the definition of common terms in biochemistry, biology, and behavioral science. You must also be comfortable with chemistry, both general and organic chemistry, and understand the basic mathematics of physics.

The second condition is that you must be able to study for long hours almost every day of the week. At a minimum, you need to spend at least three hours a day for at least six days every week. More, of course, would be better. Ideally, you should be able to have most of the month free to follow your demanding schedule. If you have a second job or need to attend school or take care of other responsibilities that could compromise your schedule, then your study project is likely to go off the rails.

How to Organize Your Study Plan

Assuming that you can satisfy both conditions, here are some guidelines on how to study:

First, get all the MCAT test prep materials and tutoring assistance that you need so that you can get totally focused.

Spend a full day every week devoted to biochemistry, biology, behavioral science, general chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics.

Just study a few subjects within that discipline every week. For instance, in the first week when studying organic chemistry, limit yourself to only studying bonding, stereochemistry, and nomenclature. Don’t also try to squeeze in studying alcohols and aldehydes.

Don’t overstretch your capacity to get a good understanding of too many subjects within a discipline during your focus day. Get a deep understanding of just a few topics in every discipline. Develop such a deep understanding that you could explain it clearly to someone who knows only little about science.

Next, create or adopt a study guide that plans out how to study everything that you must know in all six of the major disciplines. Also, go over AAMC sample questions and sections.

Finally, on the last couple of days before the test, devote your time to your weakest areas. Work to get a good understanding of the things that you had trouble with understanding. If you need help from an MCAT prep tutor, ask for it.

Rest up Before the Big Day

On the day before the test, rest. You need to give your brain plenty of time to rest and recuperate. Do nothing strenuous during the day. Just eat healthy meals, do some light stretching, and get plenty of rest at night. The test is strenuous, rather like running a mental marathon, so on the day of the exam have a nutritious breakfast to fuel your brain to perform at its best.

Customers are used to purposeful dealings from the businesses they buy from, so when they come across more personalized dealings, they're converted into fans. For any business, offering amazing customer services is important if you want to retain customers.  

In the past, people chose which companies they did business with based solely on price, but these days they want an overall good experience, and to this end, we look at some customer service essentials.  

Competency 

It matters little how good a product is if the customer service is poor. If customers want to know about the product, and they can't seem to get any information, you'll lose customers.  

Consumers see competency as an element that plays a huge role in a pleasant customer experience. To be competent, they require an appointed professional who has plenty of knowledge of the company and its products. 

Virtual phone line  

Every business simply has to have a reliable telephone communication system, and a virtual phone number is a simple, affordable solution to making contact with customers wherever they are. A virtual phone number isn't tied to a specific phone device, giving a business greater flexibility in how it receives calls.

With the power to utilize any number from any location, a business is able to remove the problems usually associated with long-distance phone calls. Talkroute offers benefits like this for your business. Virtual numbers allow your business to establish a local presence without actually having one.

Customers like dealing with a local service provider, and using virtual numbers allow your business to establish a local presence. The use of a local virtual number gives you the ability to add a personalized feel to customer contact. 

Listen before you leap

You can't learn anything when you're babbling away. When you attend a meeting with a customer, don't immediately start freely expressing your opinion on your products and services. Stop for a second and absorb what's going on and what the mood of the customer is. 

Are they down, happy, expectant? Are they keen to learn something from you or do they radiate resistance? Customer services are about sensing what is happening with your customers and being better able to reach them. 

The best way to find out if you are satisfying customers is to simply find out. Some of the more formal efforts to do this could be conducting a survey or creating a questionnaire. Ask them directly how they feel about the services you provide. 

Adequate training

A company's greatest asset is its customers, and excellent customer services is about having trained staff who can assist customers. Customers detest being passed from one employee to the next because these employees aren't trained and empowered to assist them.

If an employee has a good experience with a difficult or bad situation, they will be more than willing to stay with your business. The idea is for all staff to always provide exceptional services and also resolve any issues with a disgruntled customer. 

Focused energy

If a business sends a sales representative to meet a customer, they need to think of the goal of the meeting. There is a magnetic intensity that a sales rep displays when he or she believes in something and is enthusiastic about it.  

When people with energy speak, they are involved with their audience and their message and they speak with conviction. Customers expect you to be animated around them, as though their input counts.  

Take stock of your energy, pitch, and tone of voice, animation, gestures, and expressiveness of eyes so that you can hold the interest of customers and not make them believe you're bored by them. 

There’s a good chance you’ve heard the popular refrain “know thyself” before. As it turns out, this age-old advice isn’t such a useless cliché after all. When it comes to lifting yourself up and improving your mood, tracking your emotions is a great way to get results.

What is Emotion Tracking?

When people talk about emotion tracking, they’re referring to the process by which individuals take note of their feelings during the course of every day. These feelings can include both emotions and moods. It’s important to acknowledge that emotions are not the same thing as moods. Whereas moods linger for hours or even days, emotions are quick and appear instantaneously. Effective emotion tracking takes both moods and emotions into account.

How To Track Your Emotions

There are a number of methods for tracking your moods and emotions. What they all share is an emphasis on self-analysis and providing a name for what you’re feeling.

Mood charts are one of the simplest ways to track moods and emotions. These charts offer you a list of adjectives to choose from to describe how you're feeling. The main benefit of this approach is that the charts provide you with a vocabulary. Sometimes we struggle to find the words to describe our complex emotional make-up. These charts force us to pick a word that, even if imperfect, will still serve a valuable purpose.

Mood charting applications work similarly to mood charts, but they’re better for people who prefer to work with a digital platform. Since most of us keep our cell phones on us at all times, this method can also prove more convenient.

Mood journals give you a more open-ended option. They’re great for people who prefer to use their own vocabulary to describe their emotions. If you’re interested in using a mood journal, you should probably familiarize yourself with common emotional vocabulary to make the task simpler. When it comes to mood tracking, words are the tools of the trade.

Why Emotion Tracking Works

Our moods and emotions are part of a cycle that determines our overall well-being. When we feel sad, for example, we make decisions and carry out actions that go on to determine our future moods. This cycle of emotion-action-mood-emotion is impossible to break, but it’s not always impossible to influence.

Tracking your emotions allows you to better understand your moods and emotional patterns. Seeing how often you experience a certain emotion gives you a chance to take stock of your emotional tendencies. This knowledge alone won’t solve all your problems, but it’s an excellent place to start.

When you’re tracking your emotions, you can identify the feelings that dominate your emotion-action-mood cycle. You’ll be able to recognize the types of emotions that lead to harmful or destructive behavior. This recognition will then allow you to alter your cycle and improve your well-being.

The modern world is a hectic and complicated place. It's completely natural to suffer from a daily ride on the emotional roller coaster. There are all sorts of ways to improve your mental health, and emotion tracking is one of them. Try giving this method a shot. You might just find that it gives your mood and general well-being a major boost.