Learn a little about this important holiday that celebrate America's independence from England, including trivia, why we set off
fireworks, recipes, and more!
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Your Weekly COVID-19 Updates
Paradise Valley Medical Clinic,
Douglas M. Lakin, M.D.
Kaitlin A. Kraemer, M.S., PA-C
9977 N 90th Street, Suite 180, Scottsdale, AZ 85258
480.614.5800 (phone), 480.614.6322 (Fax)
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ATTN PATIENTS:
for a 'Telehealth' visit. You can connect using your iPad, iPhone, Android phone, a laptop, or a PC with a camera.
Please watch these videos so you can be prepared and know how to connect with Dr. Lakin for a 'Telehealth' visit.
CLICK ON THE PICTURES
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JULY 3, 2022
FOR THE MULTI-VACCINATED…. COVID IS IN THE REAR-VIEW MIRROR.
I SAY THIS BECAUSE ZERO HOSPITALIZATIONS AMONG HUNDREDS OF OUR PATIENTS WHO HAVE RECENTLY HAD BREAKTHROUGH COVID.
PLEASE LIVE LIFE, BEING CAREFUL IN WAYS THAT MAKE YOU FEEL MOST COMFORTABLE, BUT DO NOT RESTRICT YOUR ACTIVITIES.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE SITUATION, BUT AT THIS TIME, IN THE USA FOR THE MULTI-VACCINATED, WE HAVE REACHED OUR ENDPOINT.
BA4 AND BA5 VARIANTS ARE OVER 50% OF ISOLATES CURRENTLY.
FOR THE UNVACCINATED…. KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD…. COVID CONTINUES TO BE AN ISSUE.
THE CURRENT VARIANT IS MUCH MILDER, BUT THERE ARE CONCERNS FOR THOSE WHO ARE NOT VACCINATED. . . . .
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TOP PODCAST DONE WEEKLY
BY DR. MICHAEL OSTERHOLM
(UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA)
He is a world-renowned epidemiologist who was credited with first elucidating TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME in the 1980’s.
He provides comprehensive and understandable/actionable ideas related to COVID.
Dr. Osterholm Update: COVID-19
June 23, 2022
(Same as last week's podcast.... There will be a new one next week!)
'A BA.4 and BA.5 World'
In this episode, Dr. Osterholm and Chris Dall discuss the state of the pandemic in the U.S. and around the world, the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, and the recent approval of vaccines for children under 5. Dr. Osterholm also provides an update on monkeypox and shares a Celebration of Life from one of our listeners.
According to Dr. Osterholm……
- ALL IS GOING WELL WITH THE PANDEMIC AT THIS TIME. HOSPITALIZATIONS ARE AT THE LOWEST WE HAVE SEEN DURING THE PANDEMIC
- THERE IS A LOT OF COVID ACROSS THE USA. PEOPLE ARE DOING MUCH BETTER, IT IS MUCH LESS SEVERE.
- THERE ARE ADDITIONAL SUBVARAINTS OF COVID DEVELOPING, BUT THERE IS NO CONSISTENT TREND IN SEVERITY OR CONTAGIOUSNESS.
- CHINA WILL BE EXPERIENCING MAJOR COVID OUTBREAKS AS TIME GOES ON. OMICRON IS LIKE THE WIND…YOU CAN’T STOP IT, BUT YOU CAN TRY TO CONTROL IT. THE ZERO COVID POLICY OF CHINA IS UNSUSTAINABLE.
- COVID IS SHOWING MINOR SURGES IN THE NORTHEAST.
- VACCINE, VACCINE, VACCINE…THIS IS OUR PROTECTION. ALL VACCINES ARE EFFECTIVE AND WITH TIME WE ARE SEEING THAT THE J&J VACCINE IS PICKING UP STEAM AND GIVES SOLID LONG-TERM PROTECTION.
- BOOST, BOOST, BOOST…THIS WILL BE NECESSARY TO PREVENT RECURRING SURGE AND TO RAISE ANTIBODY LEVELS IN THOSE ALREADY SET WITH THE PRIMARY COVID VACCINE SERIES.
- ANTIGEN TESTING IS USEFUL, BUT OF LIMITED VALUE. DON’T DEPEND ON THIS TEST IF YOU HAVE CLASSIC COVID SYMPTOMS.
- MASKS OF THE KN95 AND N95 VARIETY CAN BE HELPFUL. CLOTH MASKS AND SURGICAL MASKS ARE CURRENTLY NOT AS EFFECTIVE WITH DELTA VARIANT
- THE THREE VACCINE REGIMEN IS PARTICULARLY EFFECTIVE AGAINST SERIOUS ILLNESS AND HOSPITALIZATION. DEATHS AMONG THE VACCINATED ARE MASSIVELY REDUCED.
- GET YOUR BOOSTER AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. ONLY 65% OF USA IS TRIPLE VAXXED…. MAKE SURE YOU ARE ONE AMONG THEM.
Know that unvaccinated remain a source of potential infection. Avoiding unvaccinated persons will reduce your risk of COVID.
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After you received your COVID vaccinations, please let us know!
We would like to document this information into your chart.
BUT FIRST.......
PLEASE COMPLETE THE INFORMATION ON THE CARD BEFORE YOU SEND IT TO US!
What we need:
- Your name
- Date vaccination received
- Brand name
- Lot number if available
- Which dose you have received
**Email your COVID vaccine completed info HERE
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FDA Recommends Changing Composition Of Covid-19 Vaccines For Use This Fall |
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Your Covid-19 booster in the fall will likely look a little different going forward.
The US Food and Drug Administration decided Thursday to advise manufacturers that when they update the Covid-19 vaccine booster they should add an Omicron BA.4/5 component to the current vaccine mix.
This would create what's known as a bivalent, or two component, booster.
"We have advised manufacturers seeking to update their COVID-19 vaccines that they should develop modified vaccines that add an omicron BA.4/5 spike protein component to the current vaccine composition to create a two component (bivalent) booster vaccine, so that the modified vaccines can potentially be used starting in early to mid-fall 2022," Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said Thursday in a statement.
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Third Round Of Free Covid-19 Tests Now Available
The websites for HHS and the U.S. Postal Service directed people Monday to apply for a third round of at-home tests.
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The federal government started taking orders Monday for a third round of Covid-19 test kits to be mailed to any U.S. household.
A Department of Health and Human Services website said Monday that all U.S. households were eligible to order a third round of tests. Each order now contains eight rapid antigen tests, the U.S. Postal Service website says. Previously, four tests were sent out at a time.
According to U.S. Postal Service (USPS), Americans can start placing their orders for the second round of free at-home COVID-19 tests now.
If you need help ordering your tests, you can call 1-800-232-0233 (1-888-720-7489 for TTY).
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'And What About Monkeypox. . . .
Is it like COVID-19?. . .
Should We Be Concerned?'
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Today's news seems filled about the outbreak of monkeypox, almost taking the place of COVID-19 information lately.
Here is the information straight from the CDC. . . . Hopefully, this will answer your questions and concerns.
Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by infection with the monkeypox virus. Monkeypox virus belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus in the family Poxviridae. The Orthopoxvirus genus also includes variola virus (which causes smallpox), vaccinia virus (used in the smallpox vaccine), and cowpox virus. Monkeypox is not related to chickenpox.
Monkeypox was first discovered in 1958 when two outbreaks of a pox-like disease occurred in colonies of monkeys kept for research. Despite being named “monkeypox”, the source of the disease remains unknown. However, African rodents and non-human primates (like monkeys) may harbor the virus and infect people.
The first human case of monkeypox was recorded in 1970. Since then, monkeypox has been reported in people in several other central and western African countries. Prior to the 2022 outbreak, nearly all monkeypox cases in people outside of Africa were linked to international travel to countries where the disease commonly occurs, or through imported animals.
CDC is closely tracking cases of monkeypox recently detected in the United States. CDC urges healthcare providers in the U.S. to be alert for patients who have rash illnesses consistent with monkeypox.
Monkeypox spreads in different ways. The virus can spread from person-to-person through:
- direct contact with the infectious rash, scabs, or body fluids
- respiratory secretions during prolonged, face-to-face contact, or during intimate physical contact, such as kissing, cuddling, or sex
- touching items (such as clothing or linens) that previously touched the infectious rash or body fluids
- pregnant people can spread the virus to their fetus through the placenta
It’s also possible for people to get monkeypox from infected animals, either by being scratched or bitten by the animal or by preparing or eating meat or using products from an infected animal.
Monkeypox can spread from the time symptoms start until the rash has fully healed and a fresh layer of skin has formed. The illness typically lasts 2-4 weeks. People who do not have monkeypox symptoms cannot spread the virus to others.
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Covid Anxiety Is Giving Way To Economic Anxiety. How To Cope. . . .
To mitigate against the very real and corrosive worry that there isn’t enough to go around, we need to employ some reverse psychology.
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We waited for vaccines, for boosters and for lockdowns to be lifted. Major life events were postponed or — worse — missed. But the hope was that life would resume on the other side of the pandemic and we would make up for lost time. Those fortunate enough to weather the pandemic with their savings intact dreamed of having a wedding, traveling or continuing their education.
Now the stock market is tumbling, the price of necessities is spiking and there is talk of an impending recession. The return to normal has been put off again as the economy becomes the new uncertainty and limitation to contend with, and the cause of another bout of collective anxiety. Pandemic anxiety centered around health and isolation. Work and school schedules were profoundly altered. But economic anxiety can be even further reaching and can trigger a scarcity mindset that has profound psychological consequences.
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How would you rate your current anxiety level?
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Getting better, but still worried.
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Doing ok, considering today's environment.
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Fine, have my anxiety well under control!
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Mask Policy in Our Office |
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At our office, we are continuing to follow CDC guidelines and will strive for ways to keep our patients and staff safe.
We recommend that all unvaccinated and vaccinated patients and visitors entering our office cover their nose and mouth at all times.
To prevent further spread of the Delta & Omicron variants, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its mask guidance on February 25, 2022, to recommend that fully vaccinated people wear masks when in areas with “substantial” and “high” transmission of Covid-19.
We have a limited supply of paper masks and will make these available to patients while they last, however, we encourage you to bring your own facial covering.
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We Are Here to Take Care of Your Healthcare Needs.
We Are Here to Serve!
Our office is using all techniques to reduce exposure to a minimum during your visit. These include:
· Temperature checks of all patients and staff.
· Masks for all people in the office.
· Cleansing of hands and surfaces repeatedly.
· Multiple Super-HEPA filters to filter out potential virus and particles in the office.
· High Level UV light air cleansing in the office to eliminate bacteria and viruses in the air.
OUR OFFICE SCHEDULE
DOORS OPEN
7AM - 4PM Monday through Thursday
7AM - 11AM Friday
IN OFFICE
APPOINTMENTS: MONDAY – THURSDAY
7AM – 11:15AM & 1PM – 3:30PM
APPOINTMENTS: FRIDAY
7AM – 10:30 AM
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Dr. Lakin's Info For COVID-19 Kit &
Recommended Treatments
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SUMMARY OF A COVID KIT:
This is what you should have at home to prepare for possible COVID, to monitor yourself if you were to get infected:
- DIGITAL ORAL THERMOMETER
- PULSE OXIMETER
OTHER ITEMS FROM THE HOME MEDICAL KIT:
TYLENOL, ADVIL, OR ALEVE
Sudafed 30mg tablets
Chlorpheniramine 4mg tablets
Robitussin DM syrup
Imodium AD
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“Hamilton”
is the story of America then, told by America now. Featuring a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B and Broadway, “Hamilton” has taken the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton and created a revolutionary moment in theatre—a musical that has had a profound impact on culture, politics, and education.
Filmed at The Richard Rodgers Theatre on Broadway in June of 2016, the film transports its audience into the world of the Broadway show in a uniquely intimate way.
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