Eight Awesome Tips To Help Cancer Patients

Acts of Kindness To Help Make Life Easier for A Patient Undergoing Cancer Treatment
By Margot Malin     

It may be an awkward moment when you learn that a friend, loved one, or coworker has been diagnosed with cancer. You may initially be at a loss for words and yet you want to offer empathy and comfort. Here are 8 Tips and Helpful Gifts of Kindness so you can create your own plan to help the cancer patient you know along his or her journey.

Food – Go grocery shopping – stock the refrigerator with fresh, healthy and easy to prepare items. Cook dinner for the family and deliver it.

Childcare – Cancer patients get tired, sometimes very tired. You can offer to baby sit for young children. Offer to arrange and take older children on play dates. If you know the children well, take them on a little outing – to the playground, to a movie, to a show or museum. During this stressful time, school work might suffer. Offer to tutor, or arrange for a tutor for those subjects that are particularly challenging right now.

Laundry and other daily chores – Laundry can be easily postponed when someone is not feeling well. Offer to do the laundry – at your home or theirs – or take it to a wash and fold service. Helping with other daily chores and activities can be a great way to relieve the patient of some activities which might be repetitive, tiring and stressful.

Chemotherapy and Radiation sessions – Offer to drive to radiation oncology sessions and chemo appointments. Sitting and receiving an infusion can be cold and lonely. Stay during chemo to help the time pass – you can write letters, read aloud, listen to music, or look at poetry during these sessions. Bring a warm and cozy blanket with you. Other things you can bring to pass the time: an ipad, a laptop, a Kindle, craft supplies.

Doctor appointments – Offer to drive to a doctor appointment or accompany the patient on public transportation – and if the patient is open to the idea – be present when the patient speaks with the doctor. A second set of ears is a welcome addition during this stressful time. Maybe you can think of questions that the patient might be too overwhelmed or nervous to consider. You can also take notes about the visit to be sure that the important takeaways are remembered.

Medical record keeping and medical research – You can help by doing medical research about the patient’s diagnosis as well as research into complimentary and alternative therapies. Personal health record keeping is especially important during treatment and beyond. Consider purchasing either a special loose leaf / workbook to keep track of paper records, or the Minerva Health Manager, electronic personal health record software.

Side effect solutions – There are many products to help unpleasant and uncomfortable physical side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. For example, you can find products to help radiation dermatitis, radiation burns, hair loss, dry mouth and mouth sores, nausea, and more. To learn about products that can help reduce and relieve cancer treatment side effects visit www.LotsToLiveFor.com.

Books, CD’s and Music – There are many inspirational books written by, and about cancer patients. Just two examples are: From Incurable to Incredible – Cancer Survivors Who Beat the Odds written by Tami Boehmer, a cancer survivor and When Cancer Hits – A Complete Guide to Taking Care of You Through Treatment authored by Britta Aragon, also a cancer survivor. There are rest and relaxation CD’s. Breast Cancer Yoga has created a CD for breathing and meditation and a DVD for gentle yoga. Recovery Fitness also has an Exercise for Cancer Patients DVD. There are also CD’s and DVD’s available to reduce stress and enhance relaxation.

A little thought and creativity can help you come up with many other helpful ideas. You can even ask the patient to give you a wish list of what kind of help they might appreciate for their situation. Some of the best expressions of support are inexpensive and some are free – but they are all priceless to the patient receiving your kindness.

Margot Malin is the CEO, President and Founder of Lots To Live For, Inc. which sells carefully selected products to reduce and relieve the uncomfortable and unpleasant side effects caused by chemotherapy and radiation. Lots To Live For, Inc. was founded after the passing of Margot’s mother and grandmother who both fought courageous battles against cancer.

To find products to help reduce and relieve the uncomfortable and unpleasant side effects of cancer treatment please visit: www.LotsToLiveFor.com
Visit our facebook page at: www.facebook.com/LotsToLiveFor for information and inspiration!

Are You Prepared for a Medical Emergency? The Importance of Medical Records and Emergency Contacts

By Margot Malin and guest blogger Dan Schiavello

Back to School offers a time for fresh beginnings.
Have you created a back to school check list? Clothes, books, pens & pencils, shoes, rain gear  - what items can you check off?

Maybe the most important items are not even on your list.  Have you considered:
1. Organizing family health records?
2. Identifying emergency contacts or designating a medical advocate?

You don't have to be a school parent; you don't even need to have children to use the month of September to get your health records and Emergency Contacts up to date and in order. It can save your life or the life of a loved one.

The Importance of Personal Health Records

You don't have to be sick to create a personal health record. In fact, the best time to organize your records may be when no one is in a crisis mode.  Why organize your records?  Whether individuals and their families are relatively healthy and going for a routine doctor's visit, or managing a chronic condition, many want to be actively involved in thier healthcare experience. At some point in time most families have children who might be going on a field trip, on a music competition, to a multi day extracurricular event such as choir, DECA or Model UN. Medical situations requiring health history can develop during participation in junior varsity or varsity sports, or a traveling sports program and parents are not always readily available under these circumstances. Also consider that accidents or illnesses can occur when children are on a teen tour, traveling abroad on a summer program for a semester or are away at college.

An appropriate medical record should contain physician contact information, insurance information, detailed information on medical alerts, emergency contacts, health conditions, medications, allergies, illness history and immunization records. Medical records can also store test results such as radiology reports (X-Rays and MRI's). Lack of information can lead to devastating medical oversights. Access to medical information, whether you have a medical emergency just down the street or halfway around the world, can help keep you and your family safe.

Medical records should be thorough. They can start as "analog" records and be created in a loose leaf binder, or a series of folders. However, digital records - also called personal health records - are easier to carry, and can be easier to interpret because they are methodically organized.  Digital health records can also be more thorough since personal health record software can prompt you for items that might otherwise be forgotten or omitted.  MRI's and X-Rays can be stored on electronic personal health records which means you won't have to carry around unwieldy bags or folders filled with radiology images and reports. It is important to note the difference between personal health records and the computer records which many physicians are starting to use. They are not the same thing. Your personal health record carries all of your personal health information. Most physician records only include the records that you create in one specific physician group or hospital. Said in another way, personal health records differ from the electronic health records maintained by physicians which are usually physician specific and usually not coordinated among providers.

One example of an electronic personal health record is the Minerva Health Manager.  You can read more about the surprisingly affordable Minerva Health Manager by clicking here. With your complete health history in hand — whether printed as a report from your own computer to your own printer, or carried on your Minerva slimline or wristband Flash Drive, iPhone, iPad or Android — you are in a better position to receive the very best health care for you and your family. Minerva Health Manager includes family health history reports that record hereditary health conditions in your family tree — so you can work with health care professionals to take the right steps to help maintain your good health, as early as possible. Minerva can empower you to make good choices for your health. 

Finding an "Emergency Contact"

When your children are going back to school, you are usually asked to provide a list of "emergency contacts" - people who are ready to stand in your shoes, and be called in the event that you are unreachable when a health situation develops.

Do you know what kinds of characteristics are important in emergency contacts?
First and foremost - the emergency contact has to know that they have been designated as a contact! It is surprising how many people choose a friend and write the friend's name on the emergency contact form without even asking them!

Here are some other things to think about when selecting an emergency contact:

1. Will they be available in case you can't be reached? Contacts that have jobs that are a long commuting distance from the school or sports arena are not ideal. Contacts who travel frequently and are often out of town are not ideal. Distant relatives are not appropriate emergency contacts for this situation.

2. Does the person agree to be an emergency contact? Explicitly ask them. Do not assume. You would like someone who agrees to step in to act on your behalf in an emergency not someone who doesn't even know that they have been designated, and may feel uncomfortable in the position.

3. Do they know the important medical information related to your child?
This means any allergies (especially to medications), the names and locations of primary care physicians, your child's insurance information and other details that you deem important.  Having a carefully completed personal health record available for your emergency contact is very helpful and could become life saving under certain circumstances. The Minerva Health Manager is one type of personal health record that combines ease of use with portability. You can give a flash drive to your emergency contact, or have your child carry it in their backpack for accessibility at all times.  If your child has a personal health record, make sure to let your emergency contact know!

4. Do you trust them to stand in your shoes until you can be reached or until you arrive to take over?

5. Do they ask important questions?

6. Will they remain calm?

7. Do you trust their decision making capabilities, especially related to medical issues?

The designation of an emergency contact is an important consideration. Many people do not give this the thought that it deserves.  Did you know that medical errors are the third largest cause of death after heart disease and cancer?

An emergency contact is not the same as a medical advocate, though you might also consider some of the characteristics described by Michele Robson in her medical advocate article by clicking here. A medical advocate is an even more demanding position. The characteristics described in Ms. Robson's article such as: having a big mouth and being tough and reliable can also be important considerations for emergency contacts.

September is an important time of year to update and review the medical records of your children and your family. It also provides the opportunity to consider who you trust to be available to step into your shoes in case you are not available when an emergency occurs. Many people don't take this process seriously. Don't be one of them! Having organized medical records and a competent emergency contact can save the life of a loved one in an emergency.

Margot Main is CEO, President and Founder of Lots To Live For, Inc. - a website that sells products to help reduce and relieve the unpleasant and uncomfortable side effects of radiation and chemotherapy.

Dan Schiavello is President and Founder of Minerva Health Technologies. The medical information stored on a Minerva Health Manager flash drive actually saved Dan's life when he was taken to an emergency room.

Both authors have experience filling out numerous health records and emergency contact forms for their children and other family members over several decades.

Minerva Health Technologies Inc. Partners with Lots To Live For, Inc.

Minerva Health Technologies Inc. Partners with Lots To Live For, Inc. to Distribute Minerva® Health Manager Personal Health Record Software


WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J. – Minerva Health Technologies Inc. has partnered with Lots To Live For, Inc. to distribute Minerva® Health Manager, a Personal Health Record Manager system that organizes important health information for patients and families in one software solution.

Whether individuals and their family members are relatively healthy and going for a routine doctor’s visit, or managing a chronic condition and receiving extensive treatment, many want to be actively involved in their healthcare experience. Minerva Health Manager helps them securely manage their individual health history, without the use of the Internet; from detailed information on medical alerts, emergency contacts, health conditions, medications, allergies, immunizations, and insurance, to storing test results, treatments, and contents of their official advance directives.

And best of all, Minerva personal health records can be portable, so Healthcare Providers and Agents can have immediate access to their patient’s most current medical records – wherever, whenever, without the use of the Internet.

“Unfortunately, you can’t always rely on our healthcare system to have access to critical health information for accurate diagnoses or treatments. Anyone who has been in an emergency room likely has nightmares of all of the paperwork and chaos,” said Dan Schiavello, President, of Minerva Health Technologies. “With Minerva, you can have all of your health information stored on a lightweight wristband or tiny flash drive---smaller than a house key --- available in emergencies and for routine doctor visits.”

With a complete health history carried on their Minerva Wristband or Slimline Flash Drive, stored on a mobile device such as an iPad, iPhone or Android, or even as a printed report, they will be in a better position to receive the very best healthcare for themselves and their family members.

The Minerva personal health record software solution is comprehensive and easy to use, and it is surprisingly affordable for such a powerful software tool. Watch the 3‑minute Video Tour to learn how Minerva can help save lives. You can also download the free Trial and the Minerva PHR Viewer, a free app for your mobile device.


Lots To Live For, Inc. offers products to combat unpleasant and uncomfortable side effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Importantly, Lots To Live For, Inc. sells items to help heal and soothe radiation burns. In addition they provide helpful cancer skin care products for sensitive and compromised skin, and hair care products to reduce and prevent hair loss. Lots To Live For, Inc offers thoughtful and appreciated cancer gifts and compassionate service. Now through the partnership with Minerva, Lots To Live For, Inc. also offers patients a way to organize, coordinate, store, and carry their important medical records.


About Minerva Health Technologies
Founded in 2000, Minerva Health Technologies Inc. is a software development company specializing in computer aided health software development and consulting. Minerva Health Technologies develops Consumer and Healthcare Provider software to manage personal health records and to optimize the interaction between patients and their healthcare providers.

Follow Minerva on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MinervaHealthManager.

For more information, please visit MyMinerva.com


About Lots To Live For
Lots To Live For, Inc. is a family business created to help individuals who are battling cancer. We offer help and solutions for side effects caused by radiation and chemotherapy treatments. We have carefully selected products that were extremely useful to various patients we've worked with, which include the courageous members of our own family. All of the products are available to order on our website.

Follow Lots To Live For on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LotsToLiveFor.

For more information, please visit LotsToLiveFor.com

Minerva Health Manager Video Tour - Describing Personal Health Record Software

Please view this short video which describes the Minerva Health Manager personal health record software. Personal health records are important to maintain as healthcare in the US becomes more complicated. Personal health records can help you if you visit multiple doctors, for different diagnoses or for second opinions. Storing personal information electronically is the wave of the future. Minerva is highly rated by services which rate personal health record software.



There are many reasons to buy this product. Most important:
Minerva Health Manager can save your life!
As a reminder, some of Minerva’s main features are:
Keeps track of medical alerts
Track medications and check for side effects and drug interactions
Can store digital x-rays, videos, MRI’s and photos
Keeps doctor contact information organized and accessible
Keeps an updated list of Emergency Contacts
Keeps a record of diagnoses
Keeps a record of surgeries
Family history is coordinated
Keeps records of doctor visits
Can help prevent medical mistakes and duplicate testing
Easy access to important health information
Carry your family health records with you on your slimline or wristband flashdrive, or on your iphone, ipad or android
Create and access advanced directives including living wills

Minerva is essential for everyone, not just people with complicated, lengthy or significant health histories. It is also essential for families with young or college age children. It is especially helpful for children who participate in varsity athletics, children who are away at camp or college, and family members who may be traveling or studying abroad. It is essential for people who travel frequently for business and may encounter a health situation while traveling in a different city, state or country. It is essential for athletes who train vigorously and who might be at risk of traffic or other accidents during training.

To read more about the Minerva health manager click here.
To purchase the Minerva health manager click here.

Patients Want Coordinated Care - Personal Health Records and Portability

Since our last post was about the importance of coordinating, organizing and maintaining personal health records and how Minerva Health Manager can help to accomplish this, we have decided to reprint a Q&A which was originally published in the magazine Cure Today on 9/14/2011. Dr. Lichtenfeld gives excellent advice about becoming your own health advocate.

Here is a complete reprint of the article which you can also access by clicking here.

Q & A: Patients Want Coordinated Care
BY LEN LICHTENFELD, MD PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 14, 2011
Q: After switching doctors, I was surprised that I had to retrieve paper copies of my records. Weren’t patient records supposed to go digital?

A: Cancer patients and their caregivers see firsthand the problems we have in our healthcare system, not the least of which is how we transfer information from place to place. Patients, in transition from active cancer care to more routine follow-up in community settings, are particularly vulnerable when diagnostic and treatment data doesn’t flow easily from oncologists to primary care professionals.
Patients are beginning to recognize that they are caught in the middle of the muddle. A recent survey commissioned by the Center to Advance Palliative Care and supported by the American Cancer Society asked consumers what their biggest concerns were for patients with serious illnesses. A top issue was that doctors might not talk to and share information with each other—and these results aren’t surprising. Patients are letting it be known that from their perspective their care has become disjointed and uncoordinated as they move from place to place and doctor to doctor. The challenges are increasing as the ways in which we deliver care are morphing into new and more challenging systems.
Much of this was supposed to be addressed by expanding the influence of electronic medical records. Although there has been progress, it has been slow in coming. We still need widely accepted standards that allow different computer systems to use the same data—that way, test results could be easily available wherever the patient receives care, and scans wouldn’t have to be repeated. And, although the process of health information exchange is gaining traction, it may be some time before networks that will move patient information from one place to another, just like an ATM network, are up and running.
Until we arrive at that magical day when our treatment information follows us to where we get our health care, you must be your own advocate. Know your disease, know your treatment, and know what your healthcare team wants you to do and when you should do it. Keep copies of important records and even CDs of scans. If you don’t understand something, speak up and ask questions. No one is going to look out for you more than you do for yourself.
—Len Lichtenfeld, MD, is deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society.
(end of article from Cure Today)

To learn more about how the Minerva Health Manager can help you organize personal health records click here.
To read about and order the Minerva Health Manager personal health software click here.

Minerva Health Manager Software Organizes Personal Health Records

Many people associate electronic health records with healthcare providers. In fact, personal health records should be organized and consolidated as well. Many people don't realize that having thir personal health records available in an emergency can be lifesaving.

Minerva Health Manager is a personal health manager that organizes important health information for you and your family in one software solution. Minerva Health Manager is surprisingly affordable - the individual version costs less than $30 and the family version less than $60.

Minerva Health Manager is portable, so you and your doctors can have access to your most current medical records – wherever you are, whenever you want.
Your personal health information will never be inaccessible or out of reach again.

With Minerva, your health records are organized, in your hands, and in your control.
Coordinate and organize your health records so you can be prepared in an emergency!
Minerva Health Manager can save your life!
Here are some of Minerva’s main features:

• Keeps track of medical alerts
• Keeps track of allergies
• Track medications and check for side effects and drug interactions
• Keeps track of immunization history
• Can store digital x-rays, videos, MRI’s and photos
• Keeps doctor contact information organized and accessible
• Keeps an updated list of Emergency Contacts
• Keeps a record of diagnoses
• Keeps a record of surgeries
• Family history is coordinated
• Keeps records of doctor visits
• Can help prevent medical mistakes and duplicate testing
• Easy access to important health information
• Carry your family health records with you on your slimline or wristband Flash Drive, or on your iPhone, iPad or Android
• Create and access advanced directives including living wills

 MORE POWER TO THE PATIENT

Whether you are relatively healthy or managing a chronic condition, you want to be actively involved in your healthcare experience. With Minerva, you can be. Minerva helps you privately manage your individual health history on your own computer; from detailed information on your health conditions, medications, allergies, immunizations, and insurance to storing your test results, diagnoses, treatments, and contents of your official advance directive.

This means that in any medical situation, from a routine doctor’s visit to a medical emergency, you are equipped with important aspects of your personal health, along with valuable emergency contact information. With your complete health history in hand – whether printed as a report from your own computer to your own printer, or carried on your Minerva slimline or wristband Flash Drive, iPhone, iPad or Android – you are in a better position to receive the very best healthcare for you and your family. Minerva Health Manager includes family health history reports that record hereditary health conditions in your family tree – so you can work with healthcare professionals to take the right steps to help maintain your good health, as early as possible. Minerva can empower you to make good choices for your health.

FEWER MEDICAL OVERSIGHTS

Lack of information can lead to devastating medical oversights. Access to that information, whether your healthcare happens down the street or around the world, can help keep you and your family safe. A doctor responds to a medical emergency with the information available. With Minerva, that information can be far more complete. And, when it comes to the care of family members, easy access to the details of each and every one of their medications, immunizations, allergies, conditions, and historic health events can enrich the quality of care they receive. Accurate information such as allergies to medications can be lifesaving in emergency situations.

YOUR HEALTH HISTORY – TO GO – WITH YOU WHEN YOU NEED IT

You probably won’t be seeing your doctor while sitting at your computer. That’s why Minerva Health Manager is completely portable: all of your health history on you Minerva slimline or wristband Flash Drive, iPhone, iPad, or Android. Where you go, it goes! Plus, with the click of you mouse, you can print as much of your health history as you want in a report, along with an emergency identification card that you can always carry in your wallet. If you have a chronic condition: just take your flash drive with you to your new specialist and you won’t have to detail a lifetime of information, or potentially forget details that could mean the difference between the right medical decision and the wrong one. You just have to hand your flash drive to your doctor, and he or she can see the information on their computer. And even more importantly and potentially lifesaving – if you are rushed to the emergency room, unable to communicate, your flash drive can do the talking for you – your medications, drug allergies, health conditions, medical alerts, and emergency contacts.

PERSONAL OR FAMILY SOFTWARE AVAILABLE

All of the features and benefits of Minerva that are available to you are also available to your parents and children. That’s because, unlike some other Personal Health Records, Minerva Health Manager is a solution for your entire family. With a unique login, your parents and children can access and manager their own Personal Health Record in the same software. Your parents and children can carry their Personal Health Records with them wherever they go. So, not only will you be protected at home and around the globe, so will the people you treasure most.

Minerva is the Roman goddess of wisdom, medicine and science and can protect you too.

If you would like to purchase a copy of Minerva Health Manager CLICKHERE. Go to the upper right where it says SHOP NOW (in red) and select whether you want the individual or family version. Use the code LIVEFOR at check out to save 20% off the list price.
To watch a short youtube video about Minerva Health Manager CLICK HERE
To watch a short youtube video that will convince you that portable personal health records can be lifesaving CLICK HERE