Professional Practice: Blog 7
By Simon Marks
What does it mean to be a massage therapist and a multi-disciplinary healthcare provider?
Multi-disciplinary healthcare is something that is starting to be considered more frequently in all areas of healthcare. Massage is one of these areas and in order for us to provide the best treatment for clients. To do this we need to work with and understand other healthcare providers so that referrals and advice can be exchanged. Because we are is still trying to build the professional image of the massage industry both in the public eye and healthcare community, this is even more important for us to do in order to build trust and respect for our scope of treatment. I will talk about these issues and ways in which we can build this multi-disciplinary way of treatment.
Multi-disciplinary practice is something that is needed in healthcare because no one therapist can cater for all the needs of a client. Healthcare professionals need to understand their scope of practice and that of other healthcare providers. This can be done by numerous methods one being as simple as reading over the scope of practice documents provided by there representative department. Another which is more effective and beneficial to becoming a multi- disciplinary healthcare provider is to work with and build relationships with other healthcare areas. This allows you to work together to provide the best outcome for an individual, and hopefully help to gain respect for massage therapists. If we do this then hopefully networking will become more common place between massage and other healthcare providers. At the moment this doesn’t happen enough, and a reason for this is that medical and therapeutic sides of massage in NZ are not very well known. For this reason we need to be proactive in pushing toward becoming more multi-disciplinary.
Multi-disciplinary structure would be the best way to run public healthcare but there are things that prevent or make it difficult to do. One is the fact that each area of the healthcare system, not only has different techniques and procedures, but they can think of health of the body and mind etc in a different way too. This means that not only do different areas have to understand the techniques, but they need to understand the reasons they work. They may never have been taught or thought in this way, so it is understandable that they would have reservations referring on in this situation. Especially if they have ideas on the problem although not really being in there scope of practice. The multi-disciplinary approach would be to refer to another healthcare provider that would be better suited to the task.
All areas of healthcare need to be open towards understanding others areas of the healthcare system and be aware of there strengths and weaknesses for it to work. But we as massage therapist need to be proactive and prove our skills and areas of expertise to the other healthcare professions. I don’t think are aware of our skills and for this reason we haven’t yet gained their overall respect as healthcare providers. We can do this by keeping in touch with people up the chain of any mishaps, improvements or conditions of our clients to build trust and relations, knowing what we are good at and marketing to these groups, and creating a consensus on ideas by doing and presenting research to prove our ideas and theories. Doing this will help to bring us closer to the level of other healthcare providers.
Although there is a consensus that a multi-disciplinary healthcare system would be the most beneficial and effective structure for the public health system to run. There are problems that arise when it comes to understandings in techniques and angles of treatment between the different areas of the healthcare system. It would be the most beneficial for us as massage therapists, because it would help us find our place and gain respect as healthcare providers. For this reason I think we should be the proactive ones in building relationships towards the other established healthcare providers.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Professional Practice Blog 6
Professional Practice Blog 6
By Simon Marks
How does professional development, reflective practice & supervision act to support professional practice?
Professional development, reflective practice & supervision all act to support increased levels of professional practice in many ways. They do this by giving us the ability to be aware of areas in our practice that are lacking and developing our skills to better cope with them. I will go through some of the techniques and strategies that can be used, to make us more efficient in our practices by helping us to detect areas that are in need of development.
The main objective of going through reflective practices and working on our professional development is to give us the tools to provide a better service for our clients. This is done by teaching to be more aware of how we react in situations mentally, emotionally and physically and how we influence others through our practice. A good technique to use is the spiral model of reflective practice. It starts by practicing or going through your normal working procedures. You then select a area of trouble or area that is not running as smoothly as others, (the use of client feed back forms could be used to find a place to start). The next step is to describe the problem and how you have reacted to the situation it is best to write this down. You then need to reflect on what you have written and assess how you acted and think of other ways in which you could have better reacted. This can be done with the help of a supervisor, as they can give you different angles and perspectives on the situation you may not have thought of. To get ideas on how to best respond to the situation you need to research in to any gaps in your understanding of how to deal with the situation. Once you have a good understanding of this, you need to make a plan of how to change your bad habits to better cope with the problem in the future and apply them in your practice. The final step is to then monitor your progress to determine whether or not the plan is improving your over all service to your clients.
Reflective practice is a good way to improve the quality of your practice another way to maintain a good level of professional practice is to work on your professional development. One way to do this is by joining MNZ and participating in there professional development policy. This insures that you are keeping up with current procedures and always improving your skills, it also enables you to network with other therapists so you can bounce ideas off them. Another option is to do this off your own back by networking with other therapists and enrolling in courses, refreshers and seminars to keep up with changing techniques, research and trends.
To keep your professional development on track and give your practice focus allowing you to define yourself in the massage community. You need to consider where you see yourself in the future and what you want to contribute to the massage industry in the long run. If this isn’t done then your practice may become very broad and scattered. Where as it could be best to decide a certain area in the industry that suits your interests and focus in and specialise your skills around it, giving you an edge for that particular market.
I believe professional development, reflective practice & supervision influences your level of professional practice a lot. In order to maintain a good quality of practice they have to be constantly looked at. Especially in the massage industry as it is growing and advancing all the time. Although I don’t think it would suit me personally to join MNZ and participate in there professional development polity as I feel it’s a bit restricted in its choices and many of them I am not interested in doing. I think it is a good start and will help to increase the level of professional development in the industry. This is needed as many therapist already practicing don’t seem very motivated to raise there skill levels and training.
By Simon Marks
How does professional development, reflective practice & supervision act to support professional practice?
Professional development, reflective practice & supervision all act to support increased levels of professional practice in many ways. They do this by giving us the ability to be aware of areas in our practice that are lacking and developing our skills to better cope with them. I will go through some of the techniques and strategies that can be used, to make us more efficient in our practices by helping us to detect areas that are in need of development.
The main objective of going through reflective practices and working on our professional development is to give us the tools to provide a better service for our clients. This is done by teaching to be more aware of how we react in situations mentally, emotionally and physically and how we influence others through our practice. A good technique to use is the spiral model of reflective practice. It starts by practicing or going through your normal working procedures. You then select a area of trouble or area that is not running as smoothly as others, (the use of client feed back forms could be used to find a place to start). The next step is to describe the problem and how you have reacted to the situation it is best to write this down. You then need to reflect on what you have written and assess how you acted and think of other ways in which you could have better reacted. This can be done with the help of a supervisor, as they can give you different angles and perspectives on the situation you may not have thought of. To get ideas on how to best respond to the situation you need to research in to any gaps in your understanding of how to deal with the situation. Once you have a good understanding of this, you need to make a plan of how to change your bad habits to better cope with the problem in the future and apply them in your practice. The final step is to then monitor your progress to determine whether or not the plan is improving your over all service to your clients.
Reflective practice is a good way to improve the quality of your practice another way to maintain a good level of professional practice is to work on your professional development. One way to do this is by joining MNZ and participating in there professional development policy. This insures that you are keeping up with current procedures and always improving your skills, it also enables you to network with other therapists so you can bounce ideas off them. Another option is to do this off your own back by networking with other therapists and enrolling in courses, refreshers and seminars to keep up with changing techniques, research and trends.
To keep your professional development on track and give your practice focus allowing you to define yourself in the massage community. You need to consider where you see yourself in the future and what you want to contribute to the massage industry in the long run. If this isn’t done then your practice may become very broad and scattered. Where as it could be best to decide a certain area in the industry that suits your interests and focus in and specialise your skills around it, giving you an edge for that particular market.
I believe professional development, reflective practice & supervision influences your level of professional practice a lot. In order to maintain a good quality of practice they have to be constantly looked at. Especially in the massage industry as it is growing and advancing all the time. Although I don’t think it would suit me personally to join MNZ and participate in there professional development polity as I feel it’s a bit restricted in its choices and many of them I am not interested in doing. I think it is a good start and will help to increase the level of professional development in the industry. This is needed as many therapist already practicing don’t seem very motivated to raise there skill levels and training.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Professional Practice – Legalities Blog 6
Simon Marks
How can I as an individual massage therapist influence the development of government policy & laws that are supportive of the profession?
As it stands therapeutic massage isn’t regulated within a scope of practice. There are many reasons for this. Among them is the fact it is still a growing profession and there is no true representative for the industry. I believe it will be up to current therapists and those that are training to be proactive in defining our scope of practice and policy / laws to support our profession. I will talk about some of the ways in which we can influence these developments, as well as some of the current acts that massage therapy is already working under.
Although there are no laws and regulations that have been made specifically for the massage community the flowing acts are relevant to massage and must be abided by in our practice.
Privacy Act 1993
Health and Safety in Employment Regulations 1995
Consumer Guarantees Act 1993
Medicines Act 1981
Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994
Health Practitioners Competency Assurance Act 2003
Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2001
Local Body Requirements
Occupational Health and Safety requirements
In order for there to be policies and laws to support and guide our scope of practice, we need to understand how bills and acts are created in order to influence them. Parliament has overall authority creation of laws and dissolution, but we can influence the legislative process that creates them. The legislative process is not a quick or easy process to go through. Meaning a lot of time and effort would need to be put into creating them, although Massage New Zealand and other individuals are attempting to move towards this, there is a lot more support needed. The main way that we and the massage community can contribute and quicken the process is to get involved, and support any movement in this direction.
Ways in which we can influence the legislative process are by lobbying for the bills that are put forward to parliament. As this requires there to be bills to have already put forward this would be a very slow process if it happened at all. The way for us to make a really difference, would be to work on the concepts for bills that will support our profession. To do this we would need to work together to define our scope of practice and look at what we would need to support it.
The legislative process consists of seven steps in order to pass an act they are as follows
1. The creation of a concept or idea – This can be from anyone and they have to go to most relevant MP to the area the bill will be for. A bill draft is created and it is presented to parliament
2. First reading – There is general discussion of the bill and it is either thrown out or taken to the next stage
3. Select committee - Thirteen committees of MPs all in different areas of interest discuss issues within the bill and any changes to the bill are made.
4. Second reading – Bill is debated in parliament more intensely with each principle and clauses debated and voted through.
5. Third reading – The bill is finalised to become an act of parliament.
6. The bill is written into a act of parliament
7. Then becomes Common law and individual lawyers with individual cases have to go through the details in court to apply the laws.
Lobbying can be done by the public (us), corporate and social movements (us) at the concept, select committee, second and third reading to present there points for and against. This is where we can make the difference especially in numbers.
The task of developing government policies & laws that support the massage profession will take a lot of time and effort. I believe there will need to be more involvement and support from the massage community, in order to kick start the process though. As the industry grows its scope will become more defined, this will hopefully make our task easier to accomplish, as at the present moment I feel our scope is too vast to define.
Simon Marks
How can I as an individual massage therapist influence the development of government policy & laws that are supportive of the profession?
As it stands therapeutic massage isn’t regulated within a scope of practice. There are many reasons for this. Among them is the fact it is still a growing profession and there is no true representative for the industry. I believe it will be up to current therapists and those that are training to be proactive in defining our scope of practice and policy / laws to support our profession. I will talk about some of the ways in which we can influence these developments, as well as some of the current acts that massage therapy is already working under.
Although there are no laws and regulations that have been made specifically for the massage community the flowing acts are relevant to massage and must be abided by in our practice.
Privacy Act 1993
Health and Safety in Employment Regulations 1995
Consumer Guarantees Act 1993
Medicines Act 1981
Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994
Health Practitioners Competency Assurance Act 2003
Injury Prevention, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2001
Local Body Requirements
Occupational Health and Safety requirements
In order for there to be policies and laws to support and guide our scope of practice, we need to understand how bills and acts are created in order to influence them. Parliament has overall authority creation of laws and dissolution, but we can influence the legislative process that creates them. The legislative process is not a quick or easy process to go through. Meaning a lot of time and effort would need to be put into creating them, although Massage New Zealand and other individuals are attempting to move towards this, there is a lot more support needed. The main way that we and the massage community can contribute and quicken the process is to get involved, and support any movement in this direction.
Ways in which we can influence the legislative process are by lobbying for the bills that are put forward to parliament. As this requires there to be bills to have already put forward this would be a very slow process if it happened at all. The way for us to make a really difference, would be to work on the concepts for bills that will support our profession. To do this we would need to work together to define our scope of practice and look at what we would need to support it.
The legislative process consists of seven steps in order to pass an act they are as follows
1. The creation of a concept or idea – This can be from anyone and they have to go to most relevant MP to the area the bill will be for. A bill draft is created and it is presented to parliament
2. First reading – There is general discussion of the bill and it is either thrown out or taken to the next stage
3. Select committee - Thirteen committees of MPs all in different areas of interest discuss issues within the bill and any changes to the bill are made.
4. Second reading – Bill is debated in parliament more intensely with each principle and clauses debated and voted through.
5. Third reading – The bill is finalised to become an act of parliament.
6. The bill is written into a act of parliament
7. Then becomes Common law and individual lawyers with individual cases have to go through the details in court to apply the laws.
Lobbying can be done by the public (us), corporate and social movements (us) at the concept, select committee, second and third reading to present there points for and against. This is where we can make the difference especially in numbers.
The task of developing government policies & laws that support the massage profession will take a lot of time and effort. I believe there will need to be more involvement and support from the massage community, in order to kick start the process though. As the industry grows its scope will become more defined, this will hopefully make our task easier to accomplish, as at the present moment I feel our scope is too vast to define.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Professional Practice - Sustainablilty Blog 4
Professional Practice – Blog 4 Sustainability
By Simon Marks
Student Number: 99003928
I believe sustainability is an important part of running a massage business. The three areas that a business needs to look at to call themselves sustainable are environmental, social and economic. I will talk about some of the reasons why sustainability is important when running a business and how someone in the massage profession can be sustainable in their business.
Sustainability is related to the quality of life in a community whether the economic, social and environmental systems that make up the community are providing a healthy, productive, meaningful life for all community residents, present and future (M. Hart 1998-2006). Businesses including the massage industry can have an effect on these things. With out taking these in to account the business is likely to fail or may not run smoothly. I believe that in massage the economic and social aspects are imperial to a successful business. Economic because without sustainable economic running the business would fail due to money lose and/or bankruptcy as economic sustainability can simply be interpreted as how companies stay in business (D Doane & A MacGillivray). Socially sustainability is huge as it is such a customer based profession. If a massage business had bad relationships with customers and the community then the business would surely suffer, through lack of clients.
Ways in which you can change the running of your business to become sustainable
Environmental:
• using environmentally friendly washing products (For linen/table)
• electricity use (using thermostats on heaters / limiting the use of dryers)
• Insulating the room used for massage to minimize need for heating
• Storing client information on computers instead of paper so as to keep paper usage down
Social
• Joining MNZ and working to guide lines to insure the public are getting a safe and regulated service
• Working in with other therapists by referring clients if others can treat them more appropriately
• Promoting health living to clients and other workers
• Looking after yourself so you can work to your potential
• not undercutting your business community
• not poaching other similar businesses clients
• Providing clear guide lines and systems in the work place
Economic
• Combine the aspects of both social and economic to become an economically sustainable businesses
• Businesses can incorporate triple-bottom line reporting into there financial reports this is now done by many large companies and could possibly become compulsory in the future as governments are becoming more aware of the need for it
• Use cash flow charts to show incomings and out goings to insure they balance of profit is created
There are benefits in working with some of the above ideas and becoming sustainable in a massage business.
• leads to improved service and processes
• saves on raw materials and energy, reducing production costs
• increases competitiveness through the use of new and improved technologies
• reduces the need for more environmental regulation
• reduces risk from on- and off-site treatment, storage and disposal of toxic wastes
• improves the health and safety of employees
• improves staff morale, leading to better productivity
• improves a company’s public image
• reduces the cost of increasingly expensive end-of-pipe solutions
(Queensland Government, 2008)
The importance of becoming sustainable in business in the past was not a priority and businesses were free to run there business without the need to worry about the impact they are having on the society, environment and other businesses around them. Time has shown that this can not last, as we are on a finite planet and are removing resources as if it were linear in design. Also people are more aware of the problems that arise if thing are not run I a sustainable way. They will soon frown upon businesses that don’t move with the times resulting in poor business. This is now more readily known and accepted and sustainable concepts will therefore get used more and more by business owners.
I believe sustainability is an important thing to consider when starting or running a business as there soon will be no place for businesses that don’t comply with the rules and guidelines of sustainability. I believe that people will come to see the benefits in lifestyle and financial gains both to businesses and consumers. This will prompt others too conform and we can start living in a world that has a long term future.
D, Doane & A, MacGillivray. (2001). The Business of staying in business. Retrieved 25/09/2009.
http://www.projectsigma.co.uk/RnDStreams/RD_economic_sustain.pdf
M, Hart. (1993). Guide to Sustainable Community Indicators. New Society Publishers. Gabriola Island, BC.
Queensland Government. (2008). Environmental Management – Cleaner Production. Retrieved 25/09/2009
http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/environmental_management/sustainability/industry/cleaner_production
By Simon Marks
Student Number: 99003928
I believe sustainability is an important part of running a massage business. The three areas that a business needs to look at to call themselves sustainable are environmental, social and economic. I will talk about some of the reasons why sustainability is important when running a business and how someone in the massage profession can be sustainable in their business.
Sustainability is related to the quality of life in a community whether the economic, social and environmental systems that make up the community are providing a healthy, productive, meaningful life for all community residents, present and future (M. Hart 1998-2006). Businesses including the massage industry can have an effect on these things. With out taking these in to account the business is likely to fail or may not run smoothly. I believe that in massage the economic and social aspects are imperial to a successful business. Economic because without sustainable economic running the business would fail due to money lose and/or bankruptcy as economic sustainability can simply be interpreted as how companies stay in business (D Doane & A MacGillivray). Socially sustainability is huge as it is such a customer based profession. If a massage business had bad relationships with customers and the community then the business would surely suffer, through lack of clients.
Ways in which you can change the running of your business to become sustainable
Environmental:
• using environmentally friendly washing products (For linen/table)
• electricity use (using thermostats on heaters / limiting the use of dryers)
• Insulating the room used for massage to minimize need for heating
• Storing client information on computers instead of paper so as to keep paper usage down
Social
• Joining MNZ and working to guide lines to insure the public are getting a safe and regulated service
• Working in with other therapists by referring clients if others can treat them more appropriately
• Promoting health living to clients and other workers
• Looking after yourself so you can work to your potential
• not undercutting your business community
• not poaching other similar businesses clients
• Providing clear guide lines and systems in the work place
Economic
• Combine the aspects of both social and economic to become an economically sustainable businesses
• Businesses can incorporate triple-bottom line reporting into there financial reports this is now done by many large companies and could possibly become compulsory in the future as governments are becoming more aware of the need for it
• Use cash flow charts to show incomings and out goings to insure they balance of profit is created
There are benefits in working with some of the above ideas and becoming sustainable in a massage business.
• leads to improved service and processes
• saves on raw materials and energy, reducing production costs
• increases competitiveness through the use of new and improved technologies
• reduces the need for more environmental regulation
• reduces risk from on- and off-site treatment, storage and disposal of toxic wastes
• improves the health and safety of employees
• improves staff morale, leading to better productivity
• improves a company’s public image
• reduces the cost of increasingly expensive end-of-pipe solutions
(Queensland Government, 2008)
The importance of becoming sustainable in business in the past was not a priority and businesses were free to run there business without the need to worry about the impact they are having on the society, environment and other businesses around them. Time has shown that this can not last, as we are on a finite planet and are removing resources as if it were linear in design. Also people are more aware of the problems that arise if thing are not run I a sustainable way. They will soon frown upon businesses that don’t move with the times resulting in poor business. This is now more readily known and accepted and sustainable concepts will therefore get used more and more by business owners.
I believe sustainability is an important thing to consider when starting or running a business as there soon will be no place for businesses that don’t comply with the rules and guidelines of sustainability. I believe that people will come to see the benefits in lifestyle and financial gains both to businesses and consumers. This will prompt others too conform and we can start living in a world that has a long term future.
D, Doane & A, MacGillivray. (2001). The Business of staying in business. Retrieved 25/09/2009.
http://www.projectsigma.co.uk/RnDStreams/RD_economic_sustain.pdf
M, Hart. (1993). Guide to Sustainable Community Indicators. New Society Publishers. Gabriola Island, BC.
Queensland Government. (2008). Environmental Management – Cleaner Production. Retrieved 25/09/2009
http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/environmental_management/sustainability/industry/cleaner_production
Monday, September 14, 2009
Pathology Blog 3 – Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Pathology Blog 3 – Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Simon Marks
Due Date: Monday 14th Oct
Description – Irritable bowel syndrome is a disorder that causes abdominal discomfort or pain that is related to gastrointestinal dysfunction. It is a three part complex that characterizes irritable bowel syndrome, the first being abnormal bowel movements, the second hypersensitivity of the visceral sensory system and thirdly abnormal processing of the central nervous system. It is usually a combination of one or more of these complexes that causes the symptoms in an individual.
(Springerlink, 2007) (E medicine, 2009)
Etiology Although the condition is common, it has no known cause, and is diagnosed through a pattern of symptoms rather than by specific tests. IBS may often follow after an infection or stressful event suffered by the person, and lactose intolerance can increase the likelihood of developing the condition, but often there will be no known trigger. (Wikipedia, 2009)
Incidence -incidence of irritable bowel syndrome in the USA is 1-2% of the population per year. (E medicine, 2009)
Prevalence – The percentage of the population of Western civilisation with IBS symptoms is between 10 and 15% in most studies 2001.
(Digestion, 2001). With an estimated prevalence of 12% in Canada 2009. (CPF, 2009)
Signs and symptoms
Lethargy
Gastroesophageal reflux
Fibromyalgia
Abdominal pain and or discomfort,
Bloating
Abnormal bowel movements constipation or diarrhea sometimes alternating
A feeling of incomplete evacuation of bowels
Can suffer from depression chronic fatigue headaches back pain
Heart burn
Weakness
(Wikipedia, 2009) (K, Premkumar, 2000)
Diagnostic It is recommended that people suffering constipation older than 50 years should undergo a screening colonoscopy, check for parasitic infection, lactose intolerance, and celiac disease as they need to be considered as a causes of the pain and symptoms (CPF, 2009)
There are three main methods of symptom diagnosis; they are the Rome I Criteria, the Rome II Process, Kruis Criteria and the Manning Criteria. The six manning criteria below are the most common. (Wikipedia, 2009)
The Manning Criteria are:
1. Onset of pain linked to more frequent bowel movements
2. Looser stools associated with onset of pain
3. Pain relieved by passage of stool
4. Noticeable abdominal bloating
5. Sensation of incomplete evacuation more than 25% of the time
6. Diarrhea with mucus more than 25% of the time
(Wikipedia, 2009)
Indications and contraindications
• There is no evidence that any drug is effective in alleviating IBS, although individual symptoms may respond to specific agents. Treatment trials are confounded by a placebo effect as high as 71%.
• Ingested peppermint oil relaxes intestinal smooth muscle cells to improve symptoms.
• Herbal formulas ease symptoms with minimal side affects.
• Acupuncture
• Stress relief and management techniques
• Cognitive-behavioural therapy
• Hypnotherapy
• Mind body therapies including- biofeedback therapy, progressive muscle relaxation, relaxation, and stress management.
• Probiotics (living organisms that, when ingested in adequate amounts, can help relieve symptoms
• Fibre intake helps the symptoms of constipation
• Dietary changes
For massage
• Relaxation massage as the condition can be brought on and symptoms increased with high stress levels.
• Progressive muscle relaxation techniques
• Stress relief and management techniques
• Massage to the stomach is advised for constipation, but to be avoided if they have diarrhea symptoms.
• If symptoms are severe consult their physician before treatment
(CPF, 2009) (CMAJ, 1999) (k, Premkumar, 2000)
Reference list
CMAJ. 27 July (1999). Recommendations for the management of irritable bowel syndrome in family practice retrieved 13/09/2009
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/161/2/154
CPF. 2nd February (2009). Complementary and alternative medicine for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. 14/09.2009
http://www.cfp.ca/cgi/content/full/55/2/143
Dr. Premkumar, K. (2000). Pathology A to Z: A handbook for massage therapists (2nd Ed.). Canada: Van Pub Books
E-medicine. 9th August (2009). Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Retrieved 13/09/2009
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/180389-overview
Prof. Stefan Müller-Lissner. (2001). Digestion - Epidemiological Aspects of Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Europe and North America. Retrieved 14/09.2009
http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/produkte.asp?Aktion=ShowAbstract&ProduktNr=223838&Ausgabe=227607&ArtikelNr=48862
Springer link 23 May, (2007). New concepts of irritable bowel syndrome. Retrieved 14/09.2009
http://www.springerlink.com/content/f612h61560855g5k/
Wikipedia, 9th September (2009). Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Retrieved 14/09.2009
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irritable_bowel_syndrome
Simon Marks
Due Date: Monday 14th Oct
Description – Irritable bowel syndrome is a disorder that causes abdominal discomfort or pain that is related to gastrointestinal dysfunction. It is a three part complex that characterizes irritable bowel syndrome, the first being abnormal bowel movements, the second hypersensitivity of the visceral sensory system and thirdly abnormal processing of the central nervous system. It is usually a combination of one or more of these complexes that causes the symptoms in an individual.
(Springerlink, 2007) (E medicine, 2009)
Etiology Although the condition is common, it has no known cause, and is diagnosed through a pattern of symptoms rather than by specific tests. IBS may often follow after an infection or stressful event suffered by the person, and lactose intolerance can increase the likelihood of developing the condition, but often there will be no known trigger. (Wikipedia, 2009)
Incidence -incidence of irritable bowel syndrome in the USA is 1-2% of the population per year. (E medicine, 2009)
Prevalence – The percentage of the population of Western civilisation with IBS symptoms is between 10 and 15% in most studies 2001.
(Digestion, 2001). With an estimated prevalence of 12% in Canada 2009. (CPF, 2009)
Signs and symptoms
Lethargy
Gastroesophageal reflux
Fibromyalgia
Abdominal pain and or discomfort,
Bloating
Abnormal bowel movements constipation or diarrhea sometimes alternating
A feeling of incomplete evacuation of bowels
Can suffer from depression chronic fatigue headaches back pain
Heart burn
Weakness
(Wikipedia, 2009) (K, Premkumar, 2000)
Diagnostic It is recommended that people suffering constipation older than 50 years should undergo a screening colonoscopy, check for parasitic infection, lactose intolerance, and celiac disease as they need to be considered as a causes of the pain and symptoms (CPF, 2009)
There are three main methods of symptom diagnosis; they are the Rome I Criteria, the Rome II Process, Kruis Criteria and the Manning Criteria. The six manning criteria below are the most common. (Wikipedia, 2009)
The Manning Criteria are:
1. Onset of pain linked to more frequent bowel movements
2. Looser stools associated with onset of pain
3. Pain relieved by passage of stool
4. Noticeable abdominal bloating
5. Sensation of incomplete evacuation more than 25% of the time
6. Diarrhea with mucus more than 25% of the time
(Wikipedia, 2009)
Indications and contraindications
• There is no evidence that any drug is effective in alleviating IBS, although individual symptoms may respond to specific agents. Treatment trials are confounded by a placebo effect as high as 71%.
• Ingested peppermint oil relaxes intestinal smooth muscle cells to improve symptoms.
• Herbal formulas ease symptoms with minimal side affects.
• Acupuncture
• Stress relief and management techniques
• Cognitive-behavioural therapy
• Hypnotherapy
• Mind body therapies including- biofeedback therapy, progressive muscle relaxation, relaxation, and stress management.
• Probiotics (living organisms that, when ingested in adequate amounts, can help relieve symptoms
• Fibre intake helps the symptoms of constipation
• Dietary changes
For massage
• Relaxation massage as the condition can be brought on and symptoms increased with high stress levels.
• Progressive muscle relaxation techniques
• Stress relief and management techniques
• Massage to the stomach is advised for constipation, but to be avoided if they have diarrhea symptoms.
• If symptoms are severe consult their physician before treatment
(CPF, 2009) (CMAJ, 1999) (k, Premkumar, 2000)
Reference list
CMAJ. 27 July (1999). Recommendations for the management of irritable bowel syndrome in family practice retrieved 13/09/2009
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/161/2/154
CPF. 2nd February (2009). Complementary and alternative medicine for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. 14/09.2009
http://www.cfp.ca/cgi/content/full/55/2/143
Dr. Premkumar, K. (2000). Pathology A to Z: A handbook for massage therapists (2nd Ed.). Canada: Van Pub Books
E-medicine. 9th August (2009). Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Retrieved 13/09/2009
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/180389-overview
Prof. Stefan Müller-Lissner. (2001). Digestion - Epidemiological Aspects of Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Europe and North America. Retrieved 14/09.2009
http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/produkte.asp?Aktion=ShowAbstract&ProduktNr=223838&Ausgabe=227607&ArtikelNr=48862
Springer link 23 May, (2007). New concepts of irritable bowel syndrome. Retrieved 14/09.2009
http://www.springerlink.com/content/f612h61560855g5k/
Wikipedia, 9th September (2009). Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Retrieved 14/09.2009
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irritable_bowel_syndrome
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Treaty of Waitangi Blog 2
Treaty of Waitangi Blog 2
By Simon Marks
Integrating a Treaty framework and Hauora values into my practice as a massage therapist.
I have used the treaty framework and Hauora values to identify the need for us as massage therapists to look into the different needs of individuals when practicing. I have done this by taking the main points of the Treaty of Waitangi articles and bringing them into our scope as massage therapists.
Article 1: Governance
In terms of governance we as massage therapists have to take into account the preferences of the Māori community in terms of cultural beliefs and practices, also what they believe to be Tapu (associated with risk) and Noa (associated with safety). Our practice as it stands has no formal set of guide lines to follow when working with the Māori community, so we individually need to make an effort to understand there needs as best we can. We can do this by learning about Maori history and understanding our cultural differences and incorporating it into our policies and practice.
Article 2: Authority
In our policies and practice we need to include grounds on which our relationship with the client allows them to maintain an authority to speak openly and to help in the direction of the massage process. This is not to say we as practitioners should not have an influence, but that there should be a partnership to provide the best possible outcome for the client.
Article 3 Equity
We need to insure that every client gets the best quality and most suited treatment for them as an individual. This means that we need to work with and respect each person and their intricacies to understand their issues and problems as an individual, to provide them with the best service we can. This means being aware not to just treat a symptom but the person themselves, as everyone is different, mentally, emotionally, physically or spiritually. Ethnicity can play a large part in treatment as certain social practices can be quite different. For instance in Maori culture it is not polite or is not acceptable to touch someone around the head as it is Tapu, sitting leaning on tables and using pillow as pollsters is also frowned upon because they are associated with the head that is Tapu.
Article 4 Respect
Respect of the clients’ ideas, wants and needs has to be a top priority in and around your interaction with them. This needs to be across the board no matter what the reasons for them are (cultural, mentally, emotionally, physically or spiritually). It is not our job to decide whether there reasoning is just or not. We should take them on board and work with and around them. The three P’s can be used for this partnership, protection, and participation.
Partnership – Refers to the respect of the client’s beliefs and authority of their wants, needs and ideas, in relation to treatment so that you work as a partnership that works to provide the best service and care for the client.
Protection – Is of the client themselves physically as well as there individual needs, wants and ideas
Participation – It is their right that they get the treatment they want or need and that they are not mis treated due to their wants, needs or ideas.
When looking into the four articles and how they refer to the massage scope, it really brings up points that need to be looked at in any kind of human interaction, Not just when working with different cultures, it could be just different personalities. There are also no limits to the scope it can relate to; it really can just be used as a way to give people fair and equal treatment. The downfall when used in the treaty of Waitangi was that it was not used correctly, as it did not create fair and equal treatment in terms of – access to tea o Maori
- Environmental protection
- Healthy lifestyles
- Leadership
- Participation in society
- Autonomy (Durie, 1998).
References
Bachelor of Midwifery/Diploma in Massage Therapy; Treaty Workshop. May 18th 2009
Durie, M (1998). Whaiora; Maori health development (pp.69-74). Auckland, New Zealand; Oxford University Press.
My own thoughts
By Simon Marks
Integrating a Treaty framework and Hauora values into my practice as a massage therapist.
I have used the treaty framework and Hauora values to identify the need for us as massage therapists to look into the different needs of individuals when practicing. I have done this by taking the main points of the Treaty of Waitangi articles and bringing them into our scope as massage therapists.
Article 1: Governance
In terms of governance we as massage therapists have to take into account the preferences of the Māori community in terms of cultural beliefs and practices, also what they believe to be Tapu (associated with risk) and Noa (associated with safety). Our practice as it stands has no formal set of guide lines to follow when working with the Māori community, so we individually need to make an effort to understand there needs as best we can. We can do this by learning about Maori history and understanding our cultural differences and incorporating it into our policies and practice.
Article 2: Authority
In our policies and practice we need to include grounds on which our relationship with the client allows them to maintain an authority to speak openly and to help in the direction of the massage process. This is not to say we as practitioners should not have an influence, but that there should be a partnership to provide the best possible outcome for the client.
Article 3 Equity
We need to insure that every client gets the best quality and most suited treatment for them as an individual. This means that we need to work with and respect each person and their intricacies to understand their issues and problems as an individual, to provide them with the best service we can. This means being aware not to just treat a symptom but the person themselves, as everyone is different, mentally, emotionally, physically or spiritually. Ethnicity can play a large part in treatment as certain social practices can be quite different. For instance in Maori culture it is not polite or is not acceptable to touch someone around the head as it is Tapu, sitting leaning on tables and using pillow as pollsters is also frowned upon because they are associated with the head that is Tapu.
Article 4 Respect
Respect of the clients’ ideas, wants and needs has to be a top priority in and around your interaction with them. This needs to be across the board no matter what the reasons for them are (cultural, mentally, emotionally, physically or spiritually). It is not our job to decide whether there reasoning is just or not. We should take them on board and work with and around them. The three P’s can be used for this partnership, protection, and participation.
Partnership – Refers to the respect of the client’s beliefs and authority of their wants, needs and ideas, in relation to treatment so that you work as a partnership that works to provide the best service and care for the client.
Protection – Is of the client themselves physically as well as there individual needs, wants and ideas
Participation – It is their right that they get the treatment they want or need and that they are not mis treated due to their wants, needs or ideas.
When looking into the four articles and how they refer to the massage scope, it really brings up points that need to be looked at in any kind of human interaction, Not just when working with different cultures, it could be just different personalities. There are also no limits to the scope it can relate to; it really can just be used as a way to give people fair and equal treatment. The downfall when used in the treaty of Waitangi was that it was not used correctly, as it did not create fair and equal treatment in terms of – access to tea o Maori
- Environmental protection
- Healthy lifestyles
- Leadership
- Participation in society
- Autonomy (Durie, 1998).
References
Bachelor of Midwifery/Diploma in Massage Therapy; Treaty Workshop. May 18th 2009
Durie, M (1998). Whaiora; Maori health development (pp.69-74). Auckland, New Zealand; Oxford University Press.
My own thoughts
Monday, June 29, 2009
Pathology Blog 2 - Depression
Pathology blog 2
Simon Marks
Depression
Description – Depression also known as clinical depression is a mental disorder that causes a person to feel an all-encompassing low mood which can be accompanied by low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. These conditions can interfere with the suffers everyday life as is more than just feeling down or blue for a few days it is a persistent feeling that they can not shake (Medline Plus, ). Most studies of depression have shown it is almost twice as common in females than males (F M, Mondimore).
Types:
Major depression- Also called clinical depression is when the ability to enjoy everyday activities is lost, the effects can be experienced from mild to severe and generally lasts about six months and can be recurring (Help guide 2009)
Atypical Depression – can be put down to specific symptom patterns, which show a temporary rise in mood from good experiences they feel. Other symptoms of atypical depression include weight gain, increased appetite, sleeping excessively, a heavy feeling in the arms and legs, and sensitivity to rejection. (Help guide 2009)
Dysthymia (recurrent, mild depression) – Is a chronic condition (normally lasts over two years) in which they may feel a mild depression more days than not. It is can stop the person from reaching their full potential in their day to day life and is often linked with pouts of major depression. (Help guide 2009)
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) - is more common in the northern climates and in younger people it is experienced through fall, winter, and in long periods of over-cast whether (Help guide 2009), it is thought to be related to the amount of exposure to sunlight a person my get. (Familydoctor, 2008)
Manic depression – is defined by swinging of mood extremes with lowered moods resembling those of major depression and highs of impulsive behaviour, hyperactivity, rapid speech and little sleep. Each episode lasting for several weeks (Familydoctor, 2008)
Etiology – There are many causes for depression biological, genetic, psychological, or social factors can all be triggers for the condition. (Wiki, 2009)
It has been thought that depression can be passed down the generations as records show that you have a high chance of getting the symptoms if it runs in your family. (Medical news today, 2009)
“MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) has shown that the brain of a person with depression looks different, compared to the brain of a person who has never had depression. The areas of the brain that deal with thinking, sleep, mood, appetite and behavior do not appear to function normally. There are also indications that neurotransmitters appear to be out of balance.” (Medical news today, 2009)
General environmental and lifestyle causes and risk factors for depression
• Loneliness
• Lack of social support
• Recent stressful life experiences
• Family history of depression
• Marital or relationship problems
• Financial strain
• Early childhood trauma or abuse
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• Unemployment or underemployment
• Health problems or chronic pain
(Help guide.org, 2008)
Incidence - approx 1 in 14 or 6.91% or 18.8 million people in USA annually get diagnosed with depression (NIMH) National Institute of Mental Health (Wrong diagnosis.com, 2009)
Prevalence - According to National institute of mental health (NIMH), approximately 6.5% of women suffer from major depressive disorder at a given point of time in America, and comparatively 3.3% of male population suffers major depressive disorder at any given point of time. As per studies performed by National institute of Mental health overall approximately 5.3% adults and 4% adolescents suffer from serious depression annually. (Harold Cortez, 2008)
Signs and symptoms
General signs and symptoms
• A constant feeling of sadness, anxiety, and emptiness
• A general feeling of pessimism sets in (the glass is always half empty)
• The person feels hopeless
• Individuals can feel restless
• The sufferer may experience irritability
• Patients may lose interest in activities or hobbies they once enjoyed
• He/she may lose interest in sex
• Levels of energy feel lower, fatigue sets in
• Many people with a depressive illness find it hard to concentrate, remember details, and make decisions
• Sleep patterns are disturbed - the person may sleep too little or too much
• Eating habits may change - he/she may either eat too much or have no appetite
• Suicidal thoughts may occur - some may act on those thoughts
• The sufferer may complain more of aches and pains, headaches, cramps, or digestive problems. These problems do not get better with treatment.
(Medical news today, 2009)
Seasonal depression (winter)
• A change in appetite, especially a craving for sweet or starchy foods
• Weight gain
• A drop in energy level
• Fatigue
• A tendency to oversleep
• Difficulty concentrating
• Irritability and anxiety
• Increased sensitivity to social rejection
• Avoidance of social situations and a loss of interest in the activities you used to enjoy
Seasonal depression (summer)
• A loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Insomnia
• Irritability and anxiety
• Agitation
• Increased sex drive
(Family doctor, 2008)
Indications and contraindications for massage therapy
- Check to see if the client is on antidepressants as the symptoms are similar to inhibition of parasympathetic system they are orthostatatic hypotension, constipation, dry mouth, blurred vision, dizziness, sedation and drowsiness as therapists we need to watch for hypotension and dizziness when the client gets off the table. Also the sedative effects may mean that the clients feed back maybe inadequate.
- Studies done by the Touch Research Institute of the University of Miami have concluded that you can reduce your anxiety and feelings of depression with regular massage therapy. (G Galley, 2009). So just regular general relaxation massage.
- Massage can help to move oxygen around the body and stimulate lymph glands to eliminate toxins and stress hormones.
- The Relaxing of muscles and touch help can help the release of endorphins. (B K Puri & H Boyd, 2005).
Reference list
Dr. Premkumar, K. (1959). Pathology A to Z: A handbook for massage therapists (2nd Ed.). Canada: VanPub Books
Familydoctor, (2008). Seasonal affective disorder. Retrieved 26/06/2009. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/mentalhealth/depression/267.html
Genna Galley, (2009). Suite 101.com – Does massage really reduce depression. Retrieved 26/06/2009. http://relaxation-stress-reduction.suite101.com/article.cfm/does_massage_really_reduce_depression#ixzz0JV6vhtSN&C
Harold Cortez, (2008). Ezine articles.com - Incidence and Depression Prevalence Retrieved 26/06/2009
http://ezinearticles.com/?Incidence-and-Depression-Prevalence&id=1243325
Help guide.org, (2008). Understanding depression. Retrieved 25/06/2009 http://www.helpguide.org/mental/depression_signs_types_diagnosis_treatment.htm
Medical news today, (2009). What is depression? What causes depression? Retrieved 26/06/2009 http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/8933.php
Medline Plus, (2009). Depression. Retrieved 25/06/2009 http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/depression.html
Mondimore, F M. (1995). Depression: The Mood Disease, (Revised Edition). The John Hopkins Press LTD. London.
Professor B K Puri & H Boyd. (2005). The Natural Way to Beat Depression. Hodder and Stoughton, London NWI.
Wikipedia, (2009). Major depressive disorder. Retrieved 26/06/2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_depressive_disorder
Wrongdiagnosis.com, (2009). Prevalence and Incidence of Depressive disorders. Retrieved 26/06/2009
http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/d/depressive_disorders/prevalence.htm
Simon Marks
Depression
Description – Depression also known as clinical depression is a mental disorder that causes a person to feel an all-encompassing low mood which can be accompanied by low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. These conditions can interfere with the suffers everyday life as is more than just feeling down or blue for a few days it is a persistent feeling that they can not shake (Medline Plus, ). Most studies of depression have shown it is almost twice as common in females than males (F M, Mondimore).
Types:
Major depression- Also called clinical depression is when the ability to enjoy everyday activities is lost, the effects can be experienced from mild to severe and generally lasts about six months and can be recurring (Help guide 2009)
Atypical Depression – can be put down to specific symptom patterns, which show a temporary rise in mood from good experiences they feel. Other symptoms of atypical depression include weight gain, increased appetite, sleeping excessively, a heavy feeling in the arms and legs, and sensitivity to rejection. (Help guide 2009)
Dysthymia (recurrent, mild depression) – Is a chronic condition (normally lasts over two years) in which they may feel a mild depression more days than not. It is can stop the person from reaching their full potential in their day to day life and is often linked with pouts of major depression. (Help guide 2009)
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) - is more common in the northern climates and in younger people it is experienced through fall, winter, and in long periods of over-cast whether (Help guide 2009), it is thought to be related to the amount of exposure to sunlight a person my get. (Familydoctor, 2008)
Manic depression – is defined by swinging of mood extremes with lowered moods resembling those of major depression and highs of impulsive behaviour, hyperactivity, rapid speech and little sleep. Each episode lasting for several weeks (Familydoctor, 2008)
Etiology – There are many causes for depression biological, genetic, psychological, or social factors can all be triggers for the condition. (Wiki, 2009)
It has been thought that depression can be passed down the generations as records show that you have a high chance of getting the symptoms if it runs in your family. (Medical news today, 2009)
“MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) has shown that the brain of a person with depression looks different, compared to the brain of a person who has never had depression. The areas of the brain that deal with thinking, sleep, mood, appetite and behavior do not appear to function normally. There are also indications that neurotransmitters appear to be out of balance.” (Medical news today, 2009)
General environmental and lifestyle causes and risk factors for depression
• Loneliness
• Lack of social support
• Recent stressful life experiences
• Family history of depression
• Marital or relationship problems
• Financial strain
• Early childhood trauma or abuse
• Alcohol or drug abuse
• Unemployment or underemployment
• Health problems or chronic pain
(Help guide.org, 2008)
Incidence - approx 1 in 14 or 6.91% or 18.8 million people in USA annually get diagnosed with depression (NIMH) National Institute of Mental Health (Wrong diagnosis.com, 2009)
Prevalence - According to National institute of mental health (NIMH), approximately 6.5% of women suffer from major depressive disorder at a given point of time in America, and comparatively 3.3% of male population suffers major depressive disorder at any given point of time. As per studies performed by National institute of Mental health overall approximately 5.3% adults and 4% adolescents suffer from serious depression annually. (Harold Cortez, 2008)
Signs and symptoms
General signs and symptoms
• A constant feeling of sadness, anxiety, and emptiness
• A general feeling of pessimism sets in (the glass is always half empty)
• The person feels hopeless
• Individuals can feel restless
• The sufferer may experience irritability
• Patients may lose interest in activities or hobbies they once enjoyed
• He/she may lose interest in sex
• Levels of energy feel lower, fatigue sets in
• Many people with a depressive illness find it hard to concentrate, remember details, and make decisions
• Sleep patterns are disturbed - the person may sleep too little or too much
• Eating habits may change - he/she may either eat too much or have no appetite
• Suicidal thoughts may occur - some may act on those thoughts
• The sufferer may complain more of aches and pains, headaches, cramps, or digestive problems. These problems do not get better with treatment.
(Medical news today, 2009)
Seasonal depression (winter)
• A change in appetite, especially a craving for sweet or starchy foods
• Weight gain
• A drop in energy level
• Fatigue
• A tendency to oversleep
• Difficulty concentrating
• Irritability and anxiety
• Increased sensitivity to social rejection
• Avoidance of social situations and a loss of interest in the activities you used to enjoy
Seasonal depression (summer)
• A loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Insomnia
• Irritability and anxiety
• Agitation
• Increased sex drive
(Family doctor, 2008)
Indications and contraindications for massage therapy
- Check to see if the client is on antidepressants as the symptoms are similar to inhibition of parasympathetic system they are orthostatatic hypotension, constipation, dry mouth, blurred vision, dizziness, sedation and drowsiness as therapists we need to watch for hypotension and dizziness when the client gets off the table. Also the sedative effects may mean that the clients feed back maybe inadequate.
- Studies done by the Touch Research Institute of the University of Miami have concluded that you can reduce your anxiety and feelings of depression with regular massage therapy. (G Galley, 2009). So just regular general relaxation massage.
- Massage can help to move oxygen around the body and stimulate lymph glands to eliminate toxins and stress hormones.
- The Relaxing of muscles and touch help can help the release of endorphins. (B K Puri & H Boyd, 2005).
Reference list
Dr. Premkumar, K. (1959). Pathology A to Z: A handbook for massage therapists (2nd Ed.). Canada: VanPub Books
Familydoctor, (2008). Seasonal affective disorder. Retrieved 26/06/2009. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/mentalhealth/depression/267.html
Genna Galley, (2009). Suite 101.com – Does massage really reduce depression. Retrieved 26/06/2009. http://relaxation-stress-reduction.suite101.com/article.cfm/does_massage_really_reduce_depression#ixzz0JV6vhtSN&C
Harold Cortez, (2008). Ezine articles.com - Incidence and Depression Prevalence Retrieved 26/06/2009
http://ezinearticles.com/?Incidence-and-Depression-Prevalence&id=1243325
Help guide.org, (2008). Understanding depression. Retrieved 25/06/2009 http://www.helpguide.org/mental/depression_signs_types_diagnosis_treatment.htm
Medical news today, (2009). What is depression? What causes depression? Retrieved 26/06/2009 http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/8933.php
Medline Plus, (2009). Depression. Retrieved 25/06/2009 http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/depression.html
Mondimore, F M. (1995). Depression: The Mood Disease, (Revised Edition). The John Hopkins Press LTD. London.
Professor B K Puri & H Boyd. (2005). The Natural Way to Beat Depression. Hodder and Stoughton, London NWI.
Wikipedia, (2009). Major depressive disorder. Retrieved 26/06/2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_depressive_disorder
Wrongdiagnosis.com, (2009). Prevalence and Incidence of Depressive disorders. Retrieved 26/06/2009
http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/d/depressive_disorders/prevalence.htm
Monday, May 18, 2009
Muscular Dystrophy
Muscular Dystrophy
Condition 1
Due date.Draft-18 May, 2009 Final-5 Jun, 2009 19 Jun, 2009
Simon Marks
Description - Muscular dystrophy is a condition that comes in many forms and is a genetic, hereditary disease that weakens the muscles that move the human body. It can be a multi-system disorder affecting body systems including the heart, gastrointestinal and nervous systems, endocrine glands, skin, eyes and other organs. The many forms over one hundred in total are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cells and tissue. Nine diseases including Duchenne, Becker, limb girdle, congenital, facioscapulohumeral, myotonic, oculopharyngeal, distal, and Emery-Dreifuss are the main forms of muscular dystrophy but there are more than 100 diseases in total with similarities to muscular dystrophy.
Etiology - Muscular dystrophy is caused by various genetic mechanisms. One is due to the lack of or faulty muscle protein called dystrophin involved in maintaining the integrity of muscle, in the case of Duchenne’s and Becker’s the main type of MD is due to defects on the X Chromosome. The inheritance pattern includes the sex-linked, autosomal recessive, and autosomal dominant MDs. Within each group of heritable MDs, several disorders exist.
Heritable MDs include the following:
• Sex-linked MDs
o Duchenne
o Becker
o Emery-Dreifuss
• Autosomal dominant MDs
o Facioscapulohumeral
o Distal
o Ocular
o Oculopharyngeal
• Autosomal recessive MD – limb-girdle form (Twee Do, 31/03/2009)
Incidence - 500 - 600 male newborns are diagnosed with muscular dystrophy each year in the US, Duchenne and Becker types (wrongdiagnosis.com, 06/05/2009)
Signs and symptoms - Generally a loss in muscle tissue and weakness are the main signs there but some times the loss of muscle tissue can be hard to see because some types of muscular dystrophy cause a build up of fat and connective tissue that makes the muscle appear larger. This is called pseudohypertrophy. If medical help is sort then DNA tests or results from a muscle biopsy can identify the disease.
Main symptoms include
• Progressive muscular wasting (weakness)
• Poor balance
• Frequent falls
• Walking difficulty
• Waddling gait
• Calf pain
• Limited range of movement
• Respiratory difficulty
• Drooping eyelids (ptosis)
• Gonadal atrophy (wasting away of)
• Scoliosis (curvature of the spine)
• Inability to walk
(Wikipedia 17/05/2009)
Indications and contraindications for massage therapy
There is no loss of sensation or neural activity so massage pressures can be checked with client. It is recommended for treatment to move and stretch all joints actively and passively to increase range of motion. Massage helps to slow down muscle atrophy. Abdominal massage may help to relieve constipation that clients could be suffering due to the effects of the disorder on the involuntary muscles. Be patient and cautious as the client gets on and off the table as they will be physically weak and have a lack of balance.
Reference list
Dr. Premkumar, K. (1959). Pathology A to Z: A handbook for massage therapists (2nd Ed.). Canada: VanPub Books.
Wikipedia, May 17th 2009.. Retrieved 18/05/2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscular_dystrophy
Wrongdiagnosis.com, May 6th 2009. What is muscular dystrophy - How many people get muscular dystrophy. Retrieved 18/05/2009 http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/m/musdys/basics.htm
Wrongdiagnosis.com, May 6th 2009. Muscular Dystrophy - Causes and incidence. Retrieved 18/05/2009 http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/m/musdys/book-diseases-7a.htm
Twee Do, March 31st 2009. E Medicine - Muscular Dystrophy. Retrieved 18/05/2009
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1259041-overview
Condition 1
Due date.Draft-18 May, 2009 Final-5 Jun, 2009 19 Jun, 2009
Simon Marks
Description - Muscular dystrophy is a condition that comes in many forms and is a genetic, hereditary disease that weakens the muscles that move the human body. It can be a multi-system disorder affecting body systems including the heart, gastrointestinal and nervous systems, endocrine glands, skin, eyes and other organs. The many forms over one hundred in total are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cells and tissue. Nine diseases including Duchenne, Becker, limb girdle, congenital, facioscapulohumeral, myotonic, oculopharyngeal, distal, and Emery-Dreifuss are the main forms of muscular dystrophy but there are more than 100 diseases in total with similarities to muscular dystrophy.
Etiology - Muscular dystrophy is caused by various genetic mechanisms. One is due to the lack of or faulty muscle protein called dystrophin involved in maintaining the integrity of muscle, in the case of Duchenne’s and Becker’s the main type of MD is due to defects on the X Chromosome. The inheritance pattern includes the sex-linked, autosomal recessive, and autosomal dominant MDs. Within each group of heritable MDs, several disorders exist.
Heritable MDs include the following:
• Sex-linked MDs
o Duchenne
o Becker
o Emery-Dreifuss
• Autosomal dominant MDs
o Facioscapulohumeral
o Distal
o Ocular
o Oculopharyngeal
• Autosomal recessive MD – limb-girdle form (Twee Do, 31/03/2009)
Incidence - 500 - 600 male newborns are diagnosed with muscular dystrophy each year in the US, Duchenne and Becker types (wrongdiagnosis.com, 06/05/2009)
Signs and symptoms - Generally a loss in muscle tissue and weakness are the main signs there but some times the loss of muscle tissue can be hard to see because some types of muscular dystrophy cause a build up of fat and connective tissue that makes the muscle appear larger. This is called pseudohypertrophy. If medical help is sort then DNA tests or results from a muscle biopsy can identify the disease.
Main symptoms include
• Progressive muscular wasting (weakness)
• Poor balance
• Frequent falls
• Walking difficulty
• Waddling gait
• Calf pain
• Limited range of movement
• Respiratory difficulty
• Drooping eyelids (ptosis)
• Gonadal atrophy (wasting away of)
• Scoliosis (curvature of the spine)
• Inability to walk
(Wikipedia 17/05/2009)
Indications and contraindications for massage therapy
There is no loss of sensation or neural activity so massage pressures can be checked with client. It is recommended for treatment to move and stretch all joints actively and passively to increase range of motion. Massage helps to slow down muscle atrophy. Abdominal massage may help to relieve constipation that clients could be suffering due to the effects of the disorder on the involuntary muscles. Be patient and cautious as the client gets on and off the table as they will be physically weak and have a lack of balance.
Reference list
Dr. Premkumar, K. (1959). Pathology A to Z: A handbook for massage therapists (2nd Ed.). Canada: VanPub Books.
Wikipedia, May 17th 2009.. Retrieved 18/05/2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscular_dystrophy
Wrongdiagnosis.com, May 6th 2009. What is muscular dystrophy - How many people get muscular dystrophy. Retrieved 18/05/2009 http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/m/musdys/basics.htm
Wrongdiagnosis.com, May 6th 2009. Muscular Dystrophy - Causes and incidence. Retrieved 18/05/2009 http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/m/musdys/book-diseases-7a.htm
Twee Do, March 31st 2009. E Medicine - Muscular Dystrophy. Retrieved 18/05/2009
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1259041-overview
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Scope of Practice
Professional practice
Assessment Task 1 - Scope of practice as defined by Massage New Zealand
In investigating the scope of practice as it is defined by Massage New Zealand. It seems it has been put in place to insure that massage therapists both RMT and CMT work within there individual scopes of practice to provide a treatment that is most suited to the clients symptoms and that they act in a professional and safe manor.
MNZ defines both RMT and CMT scopes of practice accurately, from what I have personally experienced in my training so far. In that massage therapists research medical history of clients and determine their need for massage and refer on if appropriate, (RMT’s going deeper into diagnosing and finding causes of the symptoms in the client for treatment if appropriate). Then going on to use techniques within their scope to treat them, be it hands on treatment and/or advice in self help management - stretches etc. This is followed by methods of reducing discomfort and explanation of possible after effects. Whilst maintaining a professional image and maintaining good ethics toward clients.
Scope of practice is defined as skills that licensed healthcare providers are trained to do. Scope of practice is defined by the government that issues the license, usually a state. Every healthcare provider has a scope of practice, except physicians. Physicians have the ability to develop new skills as necessary (About.com,23/09/08). As Massage New Zealand is not a government organisation or backed by them and at some point massage therapy will most probably need to be government regulated for this it will need to come under the Health Practioners Competence Assurance Act.
I believe with the MNZ scope of practice in place along with MNZ code of ethics, massage therapy as a profession could easily fit within the Health Practioners Competence Assurance Act. It insures that correct procedures are followed so clients are treated in a safe, professional manor and within a scope of practice they are qualified in. As the purpose of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act, is to provide a framework for the regulation of health practitioners in order to protect the public where there is a risk of harm from the practice of the profession. (Ministry of health, 2008). The MNZ scope of practice and Code of Ethics surly sets a standard that would be acceptable.
The question would need to be asked though whether or not Massage New Zealand and its therapists would want to come under that type of scrutiny. I agree with Victoria that as with the recognition of the HPCAA there would be stricter guide lines to practice by, and the ease in evolving and expanding the massage field would be lessened greatly, as practice would have to become more generic and systemised. This is most likely the main reason it has not already happened. I personally back the choice, as I think that massage therapy is still growing, to put a holt on it would do it harm and could prevent it from becoming a highly skilled and recognised health care provider in the future.
The Scope of practice as defined by Massage New Zealand accurately describes the level of competence in the industry when referring to CMT and RMT. The guide lines and ethics they direct are at a respectable level in healthcare terms, the only down side is that it is not backed by HPCAA. At this point in the life of the massage therapy field, it would be beneficial to keep it that way despite possible the loss of credibility. This is due to the need for growth in the industry.
References
About.com, September 23rd 2008, Scope of Practice. Retrieved 14/05/2009 http://firstaid.about.com/od/glossary/g/08_Scope.htm
Blog Spot, May 7th 2009, V—dub - Professional Practice. Retrieved 14/05/2009
http://v--dub.blogspot.com/
Elluminate, Otago Polytechnic, April 8th, 2009
Massage New Zealand, (2009), Certified Massage Therapist. Retrieved May 14th 2009 from http://massagenewzealand.org.nz/about-us/scope-of-practice-cmt/
Massage New Zealand, (2009), Remedial Massage Therapist. Retrieved May 14th 2009 from http://massagenewzealand.org.nz/about-us/scope-of-practice-rmt/
Ministry of health, May 7th 2008, Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. Retrieved 14/05/2009 http://www.moh.govt.nz/hpca
Assessment Task 1 - Scope of practice as defined by Massage New Zealand
In investigating the scope of practice as it is defined by Massage New Zealand. It seems it has been put in place to insure that massage therapists both RMT and CMT work within there individual scopes of practice to provide a treatment that is most suited to the clients symptoms and that they act in a professional and safe manor.
MNZ defines both RMT and CMT scopes of practice accurately, from what I have personally experienced in my training so far. In that massage therapists research medical history of clients and determine their need for massage and refer on if appropriate, (RMT’s going deeper into diagnosing and finding causes of the symptoms in the client for treatment if appropriate). Then going on to use techniques within their scope to treat them, be it hands on treatment and/or advice in self help management - stretches etc. This is followed by methods of reducing discomfort and explanation of possible after effects. Whilst maintaining a professional image and maintaining good ethics toward clients.
Scope of practice is defined as skills that licensed healthcare providers are trained to do. Scope of practice is defined by the government that issues the license, usually a state. Every healthcare provider has a scope of practice, except physicians. Physicians have the ability to develop new skills as necessary (About.com,23/09/08). As Massage New Zealand is not a government organisation or backed by them and at some point massage therapy will most probably need to be government regulated for this it will need to come under the Health Practioners Competence Assurance Act.
I believe with the MNZ scope of practice in place along with MNZ code of ethics, massage therapy as a profession could easily fit within the Health Practioners Competence Assurance Act. It insures that correct procedures are followed so clients are treated in a safe, professional manor and within a scope of practice they are qualified in. As the purpose of the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act, is to provide a framework for the regulation of health practitioners in order to protect the public where there is a risk of harm from the practice of the profession. (Ministry of health, 2008). The MNZ scope of practice and Code of Ethics surly sets a standard that would be acceptable.
The question would need to be asked though whether or not Massage New Zealand and its therapists would want to come under that type of scrutiny. I agree with Victoria that as with the recognition of the HPCAA there would be stricter guide lines to practice by, and the ease in evolving and expanding the massage field would be lessened greatly, as practice would have to become more generic and systemised. This is most likely the main reason it has not already happened. I personally back the choice, as I think that massage therapy is still growing, to put a holt on it would do it harm and could prevent it from becoming a highly skilled and recognised health care provider in the future.
The Scope of practice as defined by Massage New Zealand accurately describes the level of competence in the industry when referring to CMT and RMT. The guide lines and ethics they direct are at a respectable level in healthcare terms, the only down side is that it is not backed by HPCAA. At this point in the life of the massage therapy field, it would be beneficial to keep it that way despite possible the loss of credibility. This is due to the need for growth in the industry.
References
About.com, September 23rd 2008, Scope of Practice. Retrieved 14/05/2009 http://firstaid.about.com/od/glossary/g/08_Scope.htm
Blog Spot, May 7th 2009, V—dub - Professional Practice. Retrieved 14/05/2009
http://v--dub.blogspot.com/
Elluminate, Otago Polytechnic, April 8th, 2009
Massage New Zealand, (2009), Certified Massage Therapist. Retrieved May 14th 2009 from http://massagenewzealand.org.nz/about-us/scope-of-practice-cmt/
Massage New Zealand, (2009), Remedial Massage Therapist. Retrieved May 14th 2009 from http://massagenewzealand.org.nz/about-us/scope-of-practice-rmt/
Ministry of health, May 7th 2008, Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. Retrieved 14/05/2009 http://www.moh.govt.nz/hpca
Friday, May 1, 2009
Evaluation of Research Findings
Evaluation of Research Findings
As an article I found ‘Unravelling the mysteries of unwinding’ had some interesting points and information, although I found it was very broad and lacking depth of information in some parts. I was unsure of whom it was directed at, and it felt like it was a bit of a jumble of information as it didn’t flow very well jumping from one topic to another.
I didn’t feel like I came away really understanding what fascia was or how it was connected to the mind, muscles and body posture. I think these points should have been covered to give more substance to their claims in the article. Also there seemed to be a bias in the article, which gave you the feeling they were trying to sell the technique to you rather than inform you about the technique, and allow you to make a informed decision or judgement. The way it was written gave the approach to the technique an air of mysticism, which could be off putting to many readers as it has no scientific explanation to why it would work e.g. In one paragraph it talks of the practitioner being aware of client’s inherent wisdom, which is not a very scientific or medical approach to a treatment. Someone who didn’t know about fascial release reading the article could think the article and technique to be a bit air ferry.
I thought the article did cover how a therapist could go about treatment and its possible outcomes, although it could have been explained in a more scientific and in-depth way. The pictures were a help to show some of the techniques, and gave the reader an idea of what could go on in a treatment. I thought that perhaps instead of directions on how to do the technique an explanation on what would happen through a technique would have been more appropriate as the article seemed more directed at a client than a therapist.
I think that the information could have been tied together in a way so there was better flow to the article as it seemed to jump from topic to topic instead of lead into the next naturally. The fact there where a lot of references from different sources, with many angles and areas of research made this hard. I think that I would have got a better understanding from the article if the writer had just gone into more depth on just a few of them.
The article was informative on the different treatments and outcomes of them, but lacked depth of research and I felt tried to cover, too many different angles instead of giving a good understanding of a few. Some of the claims of treatments needed to be backed by some more scientific research and explanations on how they worked to give them more substance. Over all I thought it was to general in its information and needed a more fluent structure.
As an article I found ‘Unravelling the mysteries of unwinding’ had some interesting points and information, although I found it was very broad and lacking depth of information in some parts. I was unsure of whom it was directed at, and it felt like it was a bit of a jumble of information as it didn’t flow very well jumping from one topic to another.
I didn’t feel like I came away really understanding what fascia was or how it was connected to the mind, muscles and body posture. I think these points should have been covered to give more substance to their claims in the article. Also there seemed to be a bias in the article, which gave you the feeling they were trying to sell the technique to you rather than inform you about the technique, and allow you to make a informed decision or judgement. The way it was written gave the approach to the technique an air of mysticism, which could be off putting to many readers as it has no scientific explanation to why it would work e.g. In one paragraph it talks of the practitioner being aware of client’s inherent wisdom, which is not a very scientific or medical approach to a treatment. Someone who didn’t know about fascial release reading the article could think the article and technique to be a bit air ferry.
I thought the article did cover how a therapist could go about treatment and its possible outcomes, although it could have been explained in a more scientific and in-depth way. The pictures were a help to show some of the techniques, and gave the reader an idea of what could go on in a treatment. I thought that perhaps instead of directions on how to do the technique an explanation on what would happen through a technique would have been more appropriate as the article seemed more directed at a client than a therapist.
I think that the information could have been tied together in a way so there was better flow to the article as it seemed to jump from topic to topic instead of lead into the next naturally. The fact there where a lot of references from different sources, with many angles and areas of research made this hard. I think that I would have got a better understanding from the article if the writer had just gone into more depth on just a few of them.
The article was informative on the different treatments and outcomes of them, but lacked depth of research and I felt tried to cover, too many different angles instead of giving a good understanding of a few. Some of the claims of treatments needed to be backed by some more scientific research and explanations on how they worked to give them more substance. Over all I thought it was to general in its information and needed a more fluent structure.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
My Research Process
My Research Process
I have found the study and use of the research process quite an interesting topic. It’s something I have never looked into. The structured format has been new to me from the making of topic questions, to the researching and writing up of information. It has shown me how to better research a topic, and that you can not just write up a theory on something or resource information with out it being backed it up with qualitative and quantitative proof, if you want it to be successful.
The fact that I have never used the research process, or had much experience in research itself, I found it hard to work and think in a formal structure, my natural tendency would be to just decide on a topic and get into the research and writing it up with not much conscious thought. I can see the benefits of insuring you follow curtain steps in the research process. When this is done the research is more ordered and it allows you to keep track of things, this would be needed for larger topics.
Learning how to structure a topic question opened my eyes. I wasn’t aware how much the wording of the question could change the ease of researching a topic and insuring you are going find the answers you wanted in your research. I think the structured approach to setting the question, researching, processing information and writing up the topic, are good ways to keep on track and finish with a successful project.
This topic has taught me that to write a successful project, you need to back up claims as much as possible with qualitative and quantitative proof for it to be respected and valid. This is not something I have thought in the past. I can now see the reasons referencing is so important as it allows people to follow up on claims or access further information on the topic, as well as insuring the right people get credit for there work.
The use of the research process with my Collaborative research project has gone well so far. We are currently in the researching faze after working with Felicity on our topic question. Our group first started with everyone thinking up topics of interest, then we came together to choose one that we all agreed on. We then met with Felicity to refine and reword the question so as it would not be to broad or simple, and that it was accurately directed to what we wanted to find out. Since then we have meet as a group and made a set of questions that we will need to research within our topic question. This will to help direct us to the areas of research we will need look into. Our group is now individually searching through some of the possible sources we came up to those questions, and we are set to bring what we find to our next group meeting.
The whole topic has been a big learning curve for me, and I hope it will become more natural in the future. Learning the structures of the research process has not come easy, but I can see its benefits so will persevere with it. I have also learnt the need and importants of backing your work with qualitative and quantitative proof, which before I just sore as a nuisance and time consuming. I am glad that my first research project is a collaborative one as the work is shared amongst the group and any lack of understanding can be put right by the other members. This makes the process less over whelming, and allows you more time to get comfortable with the structures of the research process.
Resources
K, Pullen, (12/11/2008). How to Find Quality Information, Suite109.com. Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://internet.suite101.com/article.cfm/finding_good_quality_information#ixzz0ABZGEaSd
Class Notes
My Thoughts
I have found the study and use of the research process quite an interesting topic. It’s something I have never looked into. The structured format has been new to me from the making of topic questions, to the researching and writing up of information. It has shown me how to better research a topic, and that you can not just write up a theory on something or resource information with out it being backed it up with qualitative and quantitative proof, if you want it to be successful.
The fact that I have never used the research process, or had much experience in research itself, I found it hard to work and think in a formal structure, my natural tendency would be to just decide on a topic and get into the research and writing it up with not much conscious thought. I can see the benefits of insuring you follow curtain steps in the research process. When this is done the research is more ordered and it allows you to keep track of things, this would be needed for larger topics.
Learning how to structure a topic question opened my eyes. I wasn’t aware how much the wording of the question could change the ease of researching a topic and insuring you are going find the answers you wanted in your research. I think the structured approach to setting the question, researching, processing information and writing up the topic, are good ways to keep on track and finish with a successful project.
This topic has taught me that to write a successful project, you need to back up claims as much as possible with qualitative and quantitative proof for it to be respected and valid. This is not something I have thought in the past. I can now see the reasons referencing is so important as it allows people to follow up on claims or access further information on the topic, as well as insuring the right people get credit for there work.
The use of the research process with my Collaborative research project has gone well so far. We are currently in the researching faze after working with Felicity on our topic question. Our group first started with everyone thinking up topics of interest, then we came together to choose one that we all agreed on. We then met with Felicity to refine and reword the question so as it would not be to broad or simple, and that it was accurately directed to what we wanted to find out. Since then we have meet as a group and made a set of questions that we will need to research within our topic question. This will to help direct us to the areas of research we will need look into. Our group is now individually searching through some of the possible sources we came up to those questions, and we are set to bring what we find to our next group meeting.
The whole topic has been a big learning curve for me, and I hope it will become more natural in the future. Learning the structures of the research process has not come easy, but I can see its benefits so will persevere with it. I have also learnt the need and importants of backing your work with qualitative and quantitative proof, which before I just sore as a nuisance and time consuming. I am glad that my first research project is a collaborative one as the work is shared amongst the group and any lack of understanding can be put right by the other members. This makes the process less over whelming, and allows you more time to get comfortable with the structures of the research process.
Resources
K, Pullen, (12/11/2008). How to Find Quality Information, Suite109.com. Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://internet.suite101.com/article.cfm/finding_good_quality_information#ixzz0ABZGEaSd
Class Notes
My Thoughts
Pathology - Tennis Elbow
Tennis Elbow
Etiology - Tennis elbow, also called lateral epicondylitis is a very common injury that results from overuse, injury. It can be caused by any repetitive movements that involves bending the wrist in a turning or backwards motion (e.g., tennis, painting, hammering, using a screwdriver). In some cases, no specific cause can be found. (Canada.com, 1996-2009)
Pathogenesis - The cellular or tissue damage/changes that occur that cause the injury “tennis elbow” is thought to be the forming of small tears in the tendons specifically, the extensor carpi radialis brevis that attach forearm muscles to the humerus bone at the elbow joint. (J, Cluett, 20/03/2009). From these tears they restrict movement and inflict pain, they also lead to the formation of scar tissue and calcium deposits therefore putting a lot of pressure on the muscles and nerves that can cut off blood flow to those areas (B, Walker 1999).
Morphological - Morphological abnormalities were significantly more frequent in patients than controls and included moth-eaten fibres, fibre necrosis and signs of muscle fibre regeneration as well as higher percentages of the fast-twitch oxidative (type 2A) fibre type. (B, Ljung, R, Lieber and J Friden 29/4/2002)
Histological - Some of the histological effects in tennis elbow are, the area affected area shows raised levels of neurochemicals including glutamate, substance
P, and calcitonin gene-related peptide in patients with chronic tennis elbow, Their presence provides an alternative mechanism for
pain mediation, despite the absence of inflammation (J, Fedorczyk)
Epidemiology
Incidence -About 5 in 1000 adults develop tennis elbow each year (Medical conditions, 02/2009)
Prevalence- At any one time tennis elbow on average affects 1% to 3% of the population overall (Web MD, 2005-09)
References
B, Ljung, R, Lieber and J Friden, (29/042002). Science Direct: Wrist Extensor Muscle Pathology in Lateral Epicondylitis.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6WJM-45PM9WX-8&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=b3aa9d70a4b833f57cd5dcbb52a8a496
Jane M. Fedorczyk. Tennis Elbow: Blending Basic Science with Clinical Practice
http://idea.library.drexel.edu/bitstream/1860/2606/1/2006175372.pdf
J, Cluett, M.D, (20/03/2009). About.com: Orthopedics- Tennis Elbow. Retrieved 1st of April 2009
http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/elbow/a/tenniselbow.htm
Tennis Elbow, (02/2009). Medical conditions. Retrieved 1st of April 2009 http://www.surgerydoor.co.uk/medcons/detail.asp?Recno=23068837
Tennis Elbow, (1996-2009)., Canada.com Retrieved 1st of April 2009 http://bodyandhealth.canada.com/condition_info_details.asp?disease_id=318
Walker, B, (1999). The Stretching Institute. Tennis Elbow: Guide to the treatment and prevention of tennis elbow. Retrieved 1st of April 2009 www.thestretchinghandbook.com/archives/tennis-elbow.php
Web MD, (2005-09). Osteoarthritis Guide: Arthritis and Tennis Elbow. Retrieved 1st of April 2009 from http://www.webmd.com/osteoarthritis/guide/tennis-elbow
Etiology - Tennis elbow, also called lateral epicondylitis is a very common injury that results from overuse, injury. It can be caused by any repetitive movements that involves bending the wrist in a turning or backwards motion (e.g., tennis, painting, hammering, using a screwdriver). In some cases, no specific cause can be found. (Canada.com, 1996-2009)
Pathogenesis - The cellular or tissue damage/changes that occur that cause the injury “tennis elbow” is thought to be the forming of small tears in the tendons specifically, the extensor carpi radialis brevis that attach forearm muscles to the humerus bone at the elbow joint. (J, Cluett, 20/03/2009). From these tears they restrict movement and inflict pain, they also lead to the formation of scar tissue and calcium deposits therefore putting a lot of pressure on the muscles and nerves that can cut off blood flow to those areas (B, Walker 1999).
Morphological - Morphological abnormalities were significantly more frequent in patients than controls and included moth-eaten fibres, fibre necrosis and signs of muscle fibre regeneration as well as higher percentages of the fast-twitch oxidative (type 2A) fibre type. (B, Ljung, R, Lieber and J Friden 29/4/2002)
Histological - Some of the histological effects in tennis elbow are, the area affected area shows raised levels of neurochemicals including glutamate, substance
P, and calcitonin gene-related peptide in patients with chronic tennis elbow, Their presence provides an alternative mechanism for
pain mediation, despite the absence of inflammation (J, Fedorczyk)
Epidemiology
Incidence -About 5 in 1000 adults develop tennis elbow each year (Medical conditions, 02/2009)
Prevalence- At any one time tennis elbow on average affects 1% to 3% of the population overall (Web MD, 2005-09)
References
B, Ljung, R, Lieber and J Friden, (29/042002). Science Direct: Wrist Extensor Muscle Pathology in Lateral Epicondylitis.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6WJM-45PM9WX-8&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=b3aa9d70a4b833f57cd5dcbb52a8a496
Jane M. Fedorczyk. Tennis Elbow: Blending Basic Science with Clinical Practice
http://idea.library.drexel.edu/bitstream/1860/2606/1/2006175372.pdf
J, Cluett, M.D, (20/03/2009). About.com: Orthopedics- Tennis Elbow. Retrieved 1st of April 2009
http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/elbow/a/tenniselbow.htm
Tennis Elbow, (02/2009). Medical conditions. Retrieved 1st of April 2009 http://www.surgerydoor.co.uk/medcons/detail.asp?Recno=23068837
Tennis Elbow, (1996-2009)., Canada.com Retrieved 1st of April 2009 http://bodyandhealth.canada.com/condition_info_details.asp?disease_id=318
Walker, B, (1999). The Stretching Institute. Tennis Elbow: Guide to the treatment and prevention of tennis elbow. Retrieved 1st of April 2009 www.thestretchinghandbook.com/archives/tennis-elbow.php
Web MD, (2005-09). Osteoarthritis Guide: Arthritis and Tennis Elbow. Retrieved 1st of April 2009 from http://www.webmd.com/osteoarthritis/guide/tennis-elbow
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Quality Information
Information quality
Describe how information from different sources may vary in quality, and how to differentiate good quality information from poor quality.
When undertaking research there are many resources to draw information but they are not all of the same quality. As some may not be accurate, out dated, or backed by quantitative and qualitative research. So time needs to be taken to filter through the good from the bad. After doing some research there are curtain techniques you can use, and curtain things to look out for to save you time sorting through them.
Firstly published articles and books generally have to go through a series of editors and publishers before it can be viewed by the public. It is more likely to be valid and accurate, but that still doesn’t mean it will be quality in comparison to others available. So filtering through them is still needed.
The internet is a great resource of information, that is easy to gain access to, so good that it ‘has given people from all over the world and from all walks of life the opportunity to utilize tools such as blogs, wikis, personal websites etc and to have a voice'.(Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This is the reason there is so much information but also brings the problem of validity. There are some ways to get through it and identify the weak or invalid ones.
• Quantitative and qualitative / evidence-based research -Look for sources to be cited in an article particularly where facts and figures are referred to, this help to validate the information on the website. (Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This will help to back your research and your claims. It might also give you better material to work with, if you can use examples from those figures.
• Taking a look at the writer's credentials can help. A writer with qualifications or extensive experience, with a track record of writing on a subject, is likely to offer good, knowledgeable articles (Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This can help with information published in books too. You wouldn’t want to base your research on someone’s hearsay
• Many articles are not dated and this means that if they have not been carefully worded, the information can be ambiguous (Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This can also be a problem if the information is out dated and no longer accurate.
Because of the huge amount of information available from books, articles and the internet, you need to know how to filter through it, to save you time and prevent you from researching unproven theories. The main things to be aware of when looking for quality information are that the author has proven experience in a field, and/or the material is backed by quantitative and qualitative research. Without this there is no way to know the level of validity or quality of the information. This would then be passed on though your own work or study which you wouldn’t want.
References:
K, Pullen, (12/11/2008). How to Find Quality Information, Suite109.com. Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://internet.suite101.com/article.cfm/finding_good_quality_information#ixzz0ABZGEaSd
Describe how information from different sources may vary in quality, and how to differentiate good quality information from poor quality.
When undertaking research there are many resources to draw information but they are not all of the same quality. As some may not be accurate, out dated, or backed by quantitative and qualitative research. So time needs to be taken to filter through the good from the bad. After doing some research there are curtain techniques you can use, and curtain things to look out for to save you time sorting through them.
Firstly published articles and books generally have to go through a series of editors and publishers before it can be viewed by the public. It is more likely to be valid and accurate, but that still doesn’t mean it will be quality in comparison to others available. So filtering through them is still needed.
The internet is a great resource of information, that is easy to gain access to, so good that it ‘has given people from all over the world and from all walks of life the opportunity to utilize tools such as blogs, wikis, personal websites etc and to have a voice'.(Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This is the reason there is so much information but also brings the problem of validity. There are some ways to get through it and identify the weak or invalid ones.
• Quantitative and qualitative / evidence-based research -Look for sources to be cited in an article particularly where facts and figures are referred to, this help to validate the information on the website. (Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This will help to back your research and your claims. It might also give you better material to work with, if you can use examples from those figures.
• Taking a look at the writer's credentials can help. A writer with qualifications or extensive experience, with a track record of writing on a subject, is likely to offer good, knowledgeable articles (Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This can help with information published in books too. You wouldn’t want to base your research on someone’s hearsay
• Many articles are not dated and this means that if they have not been carefully worded, the information can be ambiguous (Suite109.com 12/11/2009). This can also be a problem if the information is out dated and no longer accurate.
Because of the huge amount of information available from books, articles and the internet, you need to know how to filter through it, to save you time and prevent you from researching unproven theories. The main things to be aware of when looking for quality information are that the author has proven experience in a field, and/or the material is backed by quantitative and qualitative research. Without this there is no way to know the level of validity or quality of the information. This would then be passed on though your own work or study which you wouldn’t want.
References:
K, Pullen, (12/11/2008). How to Find Quality Information, Suite109.com. Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://internet.suite101.com/article.cfm/finding_good_quality_information#ixzz0ABZGEaSd
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Profile
Im Simon, I am Currently a student at The Otago Polytechnic in my second year of the massage therapy course. I also work at Starfish Cafe part-time which keeps the funds up. I am living with my folks as I have just returned from Canada over the Christmas break, but am currently looking into living in Wanaka and doing the course through distance learning figure if its gonna be cold best to be where the snow is.
The Research Process
The Research Process
In compiling research there are steps you need to take in order for it to be valid, and of use once it is compiled. To insure this we use a research process. The research process should help to choose an appropriate topic question, direct, and keep you on track though your research.
The research process is described as the ordered set of activities focused on the systematic collection of information using accepted methods of analysis as a basis for drawing conclusions and making recommendations. (I.A.R, 19/12/07)
Defining the goals and objectives of a research project is one of the most important steps in the research process (Step 3 below). Clearly stated goals keep a research project focused. As the process continues, the goals become more clearly defined and the research issues are narrowed (Statpac, 1997-2008). This is important as the success of a paper, could be due to something as simple as incorrect selecting of your topic statement or having a weak objective.
These steps are as follows (On-line Library Learning Centre)
STEP 1: Formulate your question
STEP 2: Get background information
STEP 3: Refine your search topic
STEP 4: Consider your resource options
STEP 5: Select the appropriate tool (Research)
STEP 6: Use the tool
STEP 7: Locate your materials
STEP 8: Analyze your materials
STEP 9: Organize and write
STEP 10: Compose your bibliography
In formulating your question, you need to find something of interest on a topic that needs to be researched. You then need to get back ground information on the topic, to see what exactly you will need to research. You may need to refine your question, as it maybe to broad or simpler question. The next job is to look into what resources you can draw from, and which will be most beneficial and use them. From the resources found, you then need to analyze and sort through the information that is relevant to your topic question. Then organize them into useable notes / material and write them up in a way that will best cover your research question
The many resources that refer to the research process can be different but they all maintain the same general guide lines. They all have a systematic formula to help choose and formulate the topic and write up the information found. Without using and keeping to a research process while writing a paper, there is a risk that material may become invalid and scatted, this could be due to something as simple as not selecting your topic statement correctly, or having a weak objective. For this reason I think that the use of a research process is useful, as it solidifies your objective and keeps you on track.
Instructional Assessment Resources, The University of Texas at Austin, (19/12/2007). Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://www.utexas.edu/academic/diia/assessment/iar/glossary.php
Steps in the Research Process, On-line Library Learning Centre, Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://www.usg.edu/galileo/skills/unit01/infoage01_04.phtml
David S. Walonick, (1993). Problem Recognition & Definition, Stadpac, Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://www.statpac.com/research-papers/research-process.htm
In compiling research there are steps you need to take in order for it to be valid, and of use once it is compiled. To insure this we use a research process. The research process should help to choose an appropriate topic question, direct, and keep you on track though your research.
The research process is described as the ordered set of activities focused on the systematic collection of information using accepted methods of analysis as a basis for drawing conclusions and making recommendations. (I.A.R, 19/12/07)
Defining the goals and objectives of a research project is one of the most important steps in the research process (Step 3 below). Clearly stated goals keep a research project focused. As the process continues, the goals become more clearly defined and the research issues are narrowed (Statpac, 1997-2008). This is important as the success of a paper, could be due to something as simple as incorrect selecting of your topic statement or having a weak objective.
These steps are as follows (On-line Library Learning Centre)
STEP 1: Formulate your question
STEP 2: Get background information
STEP 3: Refine your search topic
STEP 4: Consider your resource options
STEP 5: Select the appropriate tool (Research)
STEP 6: Use the tool
STEP 7: Locate your materials
STEP 8: Analyze your materials
STEP 9: Organize and write
STEP 10: Compose your bibliography
In formulating your question, you need to find something of interest on a topic that needs to be researched. You then need to get back ground information on the topic, to see what exactly you will need to research. You may need to refine your question, as it maybe to broad or simpler question. The next job is to look into what resources you can draw from, and which will be most beneficial and use them. From the resources found, you then need to analyze and sort through the information that is relevant to your topic question. Then organize them into useable notes / material and write them up in a way that will best cover your research question
The many resources that refer to the research process can be different but they all maintain the same general guide lines. They all have a systematic formula to help choose and formulate the topic and write up the information found. Without using and keeping to a research process while writing a paper, there is a risk that material may become invalid and scatted, this could be due to something as simple as not selecting your topic statement correctly, or having a weak objective. For this reason I think that the use of a research process is useful, as it solidifies your objective and keeps you on track.
Instructional Assessment Resources, The University of Texas at Austin, (19/12/2007). Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://www.utexas.edu/academic/diia/assessment/iar/glossary.php
Steps in the Research Process, On-line Library Learning Centre, Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://www.usg.edu/galileo/skills/unit01/infoage01_04.phtml
David S. Walonick, (1993). Problem Recognition & Definition, Stadpac, Retrieved 19/03/2009 http://www.statpac.com/research-papers/research-process.htm
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