What to Look for in a Heart Disease Doctor
Your relationship with your cardiologist matters. Here’s how to find the perfect match.
February 25, 2021
Call us sappy, but we’re in the mood to give our hearts a little love right now (and not just because February is Heart Health Month). Maintaining good heart health is essential to living a long and robust life, as evidenced by this sobering statistic: heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States for both men and women. More than 600,000 Americans die from it every year.
No one knows heart health better than a cardiologist, so we tapped Michael Blaha, M.D., director of Clinical Research for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease at John Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, to explain how to find the right doctor and develop a lasting expert-patient relationship.
Folks living with chronic illness are prepared for just about anything when it comes to their health. You never know when an unexpected flare or odd symptoms may send you to the hospital on the quick. But right now, with reports of hospitals around the country being overcrowded with COVID-19 patients, it can be scary to think about what might happen if you need to call 911.
How can you be sure you’ll get the care you need, and that you won’t contract COVID in the process? We spoke to David K. Tan, M.D., president of the National Association of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Physicians, about what emergency medical technicians (EMTs) the first faces you see when you call an ambulance are doing to ensure every patient is prioritized. He helped shed some light on the current state of emergency healthcare and what to expect from an ambulance ride (if for some reason you need one).
As the star of Netflix’s hit show
Queer Eye, Karamo Brown (pictured above) knows a thing or two about self-love. The Emmy-nominated reality host is known for his colorful bomber jackets, kind demeanor, and innate gift for helping people work through their insecurities and learn to love themselves.
Here’s something you might not know about Brown: He has been living with migraines since he was in high school. Growing up, he dealt with stigma from friends and family who didn’t understand the severity of his condition. “When it comes to migraine, it’s more than a headache,” he says. “It’s debilitating in so many ways.”
Dementia can take a real toll on families. When a loved one begins losing treasured memories, forgetting names, and even mistaking the identities of close relatives, it is heartbreaking for everybody involved. And in cases of dementia-related psychosis where hallucinations and delusions cause a patient to believe things that aren’t real these episodes can be scary and confusing to witness.
“Seeing a family member’s behavior change in such a profound way has a direct impact on relationships,” says Angela Lunde, neurology associate and co-investigator of the Outreach, Recruitment and Engagement Core in the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center in Rochester, MN. This is especially true for young children, who don’t necessarily understand dementia and how it affects someone’s brain. “For children, it can be hard to navigate seeing a grandparent in a way they haven’t seen before,” Lunde explains. “Unless a child has good guidance and understanding in terms