With summer fast approaching, the thought of having to take off our winter coats to wear bathers can make us feel a little self-conscious about our varicose veins. 

There are not only cosmetic reasons why some people may reach out for a specialist opinion from a Vascular / Endovascular Surgeon to discuss options to remove them but, also varicose veins can actually cause people a lot of pain making standing and moving our bodies very uncomfortable. 

So today I speak with St John of God Hospital Subiaco, Endovascular & Vascular Surgeon Dr Ponosh to let us know some facts about ‘Varicose Veins’ and he explains the varying options now available to treat them. 

A big thank you to Dr Ponosh for taking the time to share his knowledge with us today on Meditalk.

To learn more about Dr Ponosh visit: sjog.org.au  ponoshvascular.com.au 

Thank you for taking the time to listen and support Meditalk. 

Stay well,
Danae :-)

MediTalk

Talking Varicose Veins with Vascular Surgeon Dr Ponosh

At some point in our life unfortuately ourselves or a loved one may need to attend a medical appointment or spend time in hospital.

Thanks to the internet and doctor google we can type in a medical condition and can read, listen and watch a lot of medical information which may or may not always be relevant to our own personal situation.

Medical advancement nowadays in terms of surgery particularly is incredible however, how many questions are we asking before saying 'yes' to medical procedures and how confident do we feel when signing medical consent forms? 

Please consider the following questions: 

What do we really understand about informed medical consent?
Are we reading fully our consent forms before signing?
Do you leave medical appointments pondering and worrying about un-answered medical questions?
Are we asking enough questions when making medical decisions that can affect our health in the long term? 
What questions could we be asking of medical professionals that can really help us with our medical decision-making?

Decisions we make about our medical care often have long term implications to our health and our quality of life. The information we discuss in this podcast episode may really help us as healthcare consumers feel more empowered to have our individual needs better met.

I speak with Dr Matthew Anstey who is an Intensivist at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Western Australia, who also is the current chair of the Choosing Wisely Australia advisory group. Dr Anstey summarises for us five key questions that can help us when making medical decisions. 

Choosing Wisely 5 Key Questions:
1.  Do I really need this test or procedure?
2. What are the risks?
3. Are there simpler, safer options?
4. What happens if I don't do anything?
4. What are the costs?

www.choosingwisely.org.au

Dr Anstey mentions in the interview we don't necessarily need to ask all 5 questions but, perhaps 1 or 2 of the questions may help to facilitate good discussion between yourself and your doctor.

We also speak with Pip Brennan the Executive Director of the Health Consumers Council of WA about informed consent. Pip highlighted when making decisions about medical procedures consider asking the proceduralist how many of a particular procedure have they conducted? And the outcomes patients' have had from these procedures?

For more information on informed consent from Health Consumers' Council visit:

www.hconc.org.au

Both Dr Anstey and Pip provide some insightful information to assist us to make the right decisions for our health, quality of life and our back pocket as sometimes these medical decisions not only can be quite costly both financially but also to our health in the long term.

Making Medical Decisions Best For Me - Choosing Wisely Questions & Informed Consent

Many people worldwide are living with chronic pain!

It is estimated globally that 1.5 billion people suffer from chronic pain which just seems uncomprehensible. Making pain a global public health concern.

According to Pain Australia, ''one in five Australians are living with chronic pain and the prevalence increases to one in three people over the age of 65''.

Suffering from chronic pain can take its toll on people mentally, physically and socially as it can lead to living a life of isolation as they are often unable to participate in activities that enhance one's quality of life.

Diagnosing and managing chronic pain can be complex, takes time and everyone's experience of pain is individual. For this reason when speaking on chronic pain it was important to provide quality information on pain and pain management by speaking to a medical specialist in pain management - Dr Paul Graziotti who is a Pain Medicine Physician & Anaesthetist. 

In this interview with Dr Paul Graziotti provided an excellent overview of what is pain, the different types of pain, how is pain diagnosed and the varying treatment options available to help manage chronic pain. Dr Graziotti was asked in the interview about the use of opiods, medical marijuana, surgery, injections, physiotherapy and the many other treatment options that may be offered to people and used to treat chronic pain. 

A big thank you to Dr Graziotti for giving his time and sharing his years of expertise and knowledge on Pain with us all in this interview! 

To learn more about Dr Graziotti & SJOG (Subiaco) visit:
www.sjog.org.au/find-a-doctor/search-results/g/r/a/z/graziotti-pauljames-subiaco

Chronic Pain References:
www.painaustralia.org.au/

National Chronic Pain Action Plan:
www.painaustralia.org.au/static/uploads/files/national-action-plan-11-06-2019-wfflaefbxbdy.pdf

Chronic Pain Australia:
www.chronicpainaustralia.org.au/home-2

Global Chronic Pain Statistics:
www.thegoodbody.com

Thank you for supporting MediTalkPodcast which is an independent podcast. If you have enjoyed the podcast and felt it was of value please share with others and if you are able to take a minute to write a quick review on Apple Podcasts it would be a great help! 

Stay well and thank you for taking the time to listen to Meditalk! 
D :-)

Chronic Pain with Pain Specialist Dr Graziotti

MediTalk is an Australian Podcast Finalist in 2019.

MeditalkPodcast is a medical podcast ''talking all things medical, in a way you can understand''.  A medical podcast that empowers people by providing credible medical information so we feel more confident and comfortable to make medical decisions that best suit ourselves and our own personal situation. 

Being a podcast it is a free and accessible. It is an independent podcast that is presented by an everyday person presenting on real health-medical issues in a real way interviewing medical specialists. 

MeditalkPodcast also shares patient stories; people who have walked or are on the medical journey so people can learn from others is also very powerful. 

To become our own health advocates or to be an advocate for family member we need to become better informed and listening to MediTalkPodcast serves to help in this way.

MediTalkPodcast is available on SoundCloud, iTunes, Spotify, Podcasts App or listen to episodes by visiting www.meditalk.com.au

Making Medical Decisions Best For Me - Choosing Wisely Questions & Informed Consent

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