The sun is out and the weather is warming up. It is getting close to what those of us in health care term "Trauma Season". People are out riding ATVs, bikes, long boards, and skate boards without helmets putting them at high risk for head injury. "Wearing a helmet reduced the risk of head injury by 63%, and loss of consciousness by 86%" (1) You can't put a bandaid on your bruised brain, and you can't put a cast on a broken skull. These just have to heal. Head injuries and con
When I started in health care in 2006 I quickly realized that preventive care was lacking. This was partially because people didn't have access to care, and partially because people didn't know they needed preventive care. Working in a busy emergency room I watched person after person come in with "no medical problems" having a heart attack, stroke, or issues with diabetes they didn't know they had. In 2011, my first year working as a certified Nurse Practitioner I had a youn