All posts filed under: ePatient Mindy

Fatigue with Noom

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I have been wanting to lose 15 lbs for a few years now and had not really committed to any strategy, neither through eating or exercising. I first discovered Noom in November 2018. Noom’s Facebook ads spoke to me. I could spend 10 minutes a day. Let’s see what you can do. I signed up for the 14-day trial. Immediately a few things resonated with me. Noom’s food tracker does not just count calories, but categorizes food into green, yellow, red. General rules work well for me since I am not the kind of person who is willing to spend time weighting and calculating my food every meal. The additional dimension made the connection for me that everything in moderation is good and making better food choice is also important. I have been weighing myself using a digital scale twice a day since 2012. Noom asks for daily weigh-ins in the mornings when I get up. I compared the two approaches. It’s clear that we want to track consistently at the same time during a …

Words Matter: My Medical Records

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Soon after I was discharged from McLean in 2011, I submitted a request to get a copy of my medical records. A huge pile of paper was mailed to me. When I first read them, I was overwhelmed with the “professional,” “structural,” and “brief” tone they have. I was also sometimes surprised by what was documented. Recently, I talked to a research doctor and mentioned that I had read my own medical records. She did not expect that and said, “Reading one’s own medical records is not easy. They are usually technical. And rushed. Often with mistakes.” I agreed. Very often,  a lot has to be done in a very short time. However, these medical records shaded some important light on how I was perceived and expected to behave when I first came in contact with the caregivers at McLean, people who knew about mental illness but did not know me personally. That is invaluable. *~*~*~*~* Admission Note Identification Data and Chief complaint: This is a 37-year-old, Asian-American female with a history of schizophrenia, who …

Look At All These Data

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Since my last post on PHR2, continuing with my interest in personal health records , I downloaded Partners Healthcare Patient Gateway app and set up Apple Health app. Patient Gateway is the system that my primary care doctor’s office provides for free. The Patient Gateway app allows me to contact my doctor’s office directly and easily through the app without having to pick up the phone and call. My messages were always responded within 24 hours. In addition to Messages, I now have access to my Appointments, Appointment Details, Provider Letters, Test Results, and Medications. I can also View and Pay Bills. I now have a wealth of more detailed information from my doctor’s office that I did not have before. I feel that I have become an insider! The Apple Health app connected directly with my primary care doctor’s system. The app is automatically populated and updated with my records from the doctor’s office too. One part of the app is the Health Records. It keeps track of different kinds of records such as …

PHR2: Initial Concept

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How personal health record information is presented back to the users after the information is recorded is very important. Nowadays, users expect instant value after a few clicks here and swipes there. Let’s ignore how the data gets into this PHR2 for now. (I know that’s big! I do!) I have some thoughts on what would be helpful to me. View 1: Dashboard User health goal: A good habit for everyone to have is to get regular yearly check-ups for physicals, vision, and dental. That is the basics. It is needed for a lifetime. User need: It would be so nice to be able to see in one place, how I am doing with my goal. When did I do what? Who did I see? When do I need to do it again? Concept: Instead of listing personal health records by data types which I had seen in a view solutions, we can list the information base on the type of care we received or want to get. The information should be how we think …

Personal Health Record 2

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When I was in my early twenties, I found a solid mass in my left breast. The mass was removed at a day surgery. Lucky for me, it was a benign cyst. I don’t remember the exact date of when this happened. But every time I had to explain my health history, I mentioned this fuzzy memory. If I ever forget, nobody would know about this. Part of my health history would be missing. I might also be missing the opportunity to take actions against future breast cysts or tumors. Recently, I participated in a study for schizophrenia and went through MRI scans. The researcher found a slightly significant white dot in my brain scan and notified me. She also sent me a report and a CD of all the images. If one day I need this information, I hope I remember. I have not idea where the physical report and CD is at home. When Google, Microsoft, and WebMD released their PHR a decade ago, I was excited. Finally, I would have a place …