Blog 5

Inspirational Women in Medicine

https://opmed.doximity.com/articles/women-in-medicine-struggle-with-mentorship-and-sponsorship?_csrf_attempted=yes

Medicine has no doubt changed drastically throughout history. Leaving in its history, many inspirational women that are looked up to even today.

One woman who stands out to me is Virginia Apgar, an obstetrical anesthesiologist, the woman who invented the Apgar Score for newborns.

https://www.marchofdimes.org/mission/virginia-apgar.aspx#

As many of you may know, when a baby is born, they go through a checklist to quickly determine their health upon birth. This checklist, known as the Apgar Score, was created in 1952, and has since been a vital step in Labor & Delivery rooms all over the world. Apgar stands for the 5 things to look for: Activity, Pulse, Grimace, Appearance, and Respiration. The baby is then rated twice, 1 minute after birth and 5 minutes after, on a scale of 1 to 10, with the lower the score needing more immediate attention. A healthy baby can have a score anywhere between 7-10("Apgar Score: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia").

https://www.emsworld.com/article/10615556/ems-recap-apgar-scoring

An article written by David Rose on the March Of Dimes website, stated, "In essence, the Apgar score was revolutionary because it was the first clinical method to recognize the newborn’s needs as a patient."(Rose). I believe Virginia Apgar was an exceptionally smart woman and impacted thousands upon thousands as the years follow. Without this test, many newborns would not make it, or have serious health issues if they aren't taken care of immediately. Without Virginia Apgar, the world of Labor & Delivery would not be the same as it is today.

Works Cited

"Apgar Score: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia." MedlinePlus - Health Information from the National Library of Medicine, medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003402.htm.

Rose, David. "Virginia Apgar." March of Dimes | Healthy Moms. Strong Babies, 29 May 2009, www.marchofdimes.org/mission/virginia-apgar.aspx#.

Blog 4

FDA Approves a Cocaine Nasal Spray

With a title like that, it is easy to think: why on earth would the FDA approve something with such an abusive substance? 

How to use nasal spray. (n.d.). Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/general-use/how-to-use-nasal-spray

The article I found was called, Did The FDA Approve a Cocaine Nasal Spray? ( https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/cocaine-nasal-spray-fda/ ). A question that instantly popped into my mind was how unbelievable it sounded that the FDA would approve for something like that. It is crazy to me that we can approve things with cocaine, a schedule II drug, that has such a high abusive and addictive rate. So as I start reading the article, I already have in my head that it should be false information. However, I was wrong, and the article rating claimed it to be true. 

Basically, Lannett Company, Inc., which is the pharmaceutical company who brought this to the market, stated in a press release that, "of the mucous membranes for diagnostic procedures and surgeries on or through the nasal cavities of adults."("Did the FDA Approve a Cocaine Nasal Spray?"). This makes much more sense to me, but I still do not understand why this would need to use cocaine. So I dug deeper, and found a statement by an FDA spokesperson, " However, when used according to the directions provided in the labeling, physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms are unlikely to develop because this drug is for single use during diagnostic procedures and surgeries."("Did the FDA Approve a Cocaine Nasal Spray?"). To better understand this, it's like going to the doctors office and getting a shot, the doctor is always in possession of the substance and the patient does not have access to it like a prescription for example. 

To relate this to women, I researched more with an article called Substance Use in Women ( https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/substance-use-in-women ). Even though FDA claims no one will become addicted to it, I think it is important to relate this back to women's mental health. Women are more likely to turn to surgery to fix the things they are insecure about on themselves. I can see a potential for women to continually want to get more and more surgeries, thinking they will be able to fix themselves physically and mentally, and they quickly become addicted to the surgeries AKA the cocaine in the nasal spray. It is known to science that, "women often use substances differently than men, such as using smaller amounts of certain drugs for less time before they become addicted"(National Institute on Drug Abuse). This makes me question if the women will become addicted to the cocaine nasal spray since they can use less and become addicted much faster. 


Image 1: Josef Hadeed, MD, FACS. "Importance of Patient Safety in Plastic Surgery." American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 22 June 2016, www.plasticsurgery.org/news/blog/importance-of-patient-safety-in-plastic-surgery.

Image 2: Castillo, Stephanie. "For Men And Women, Drug Withdrawal Is A Different Beast." Medical Daily, www.medicaldaily.com/substance-abuse-affects-mens-and-womens-brains-differently-may-fuel-gender-specific-342860.

References

MacGuill, Dan, and Dan MacGuill. “Did the FDA Approve a Cocaine Nasal Spray?” Snopes.com, www.snopes.com/fact-check/cocaine-nasal-spray-fda/.

National Institute on Drug Abuse. "Substance Use in Women." National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) |, www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/substance-use-in-women.

Blog 3

Option 2

https://www.skuld.com/topics/people/crew/depression-and-mental-illness/

Before I took this self-quiz, I felt like I would have a good score since nearly everyone I know has a mental illness, and I am very curious in this subject therefore I tend to do a lot of research and know a good amount about mental illness. As I took the quiz, my predictions were true and I got the answers correct. One question that did throw me off, however, was how much serious mental illness costs America in lost earnings per year, and I had no idea how much it could be. I guessed $400 billion but it turned out to be $193.2 billion in lost earnings per year. I knew it was going to be a big number, but I really expected that to be a bigger number given how common mental illness is. 

I have been basically surrounded by people with mental illness my whole life. My grandmother has OCD, my mother is bipolar, my step dad has NPD, and so on. I see it every single day of my life. Having a mental illness impacts their lives every day. Restless nights, messed up eating patterns, impulsive decisions, are just some of the many different ways they are impacted. 

Since seeing these mental illnesses in full effect, I have learned a lot from just simply watching. I learned that if they fight with you, it's most likely something else that was fueling their anger, not you. They may not realize their words are hurting, it's not them when they are manic or depressive. You have to be patient with them because they want to try so bad, they just need small steps to get there. Mental illnesses are not something to be afraid of, it is more common than people think.

https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2019/05/mental-health-survey

To conclude, I think the self-quiz was a great way to provide information to people who want to know more about mental illness. Having a mental illness is very impactful for that persons everyday life. Knowing first hand how to deal with people who have metal illnesses, I've learned to always be patient, and love them unconditionally.

References

“Depression and Mental Illness.” Skuld, www.skuld.com/topics/people/crew/depression-and-mental-illness/.

American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2019/05/mental-health-survey.

Blog 2

Culture and Menopause?

https://wunrn.com/2016/01/growing-older-around-the-world-latest-trends-in-ageing-older-women/

Menopause is the ending stage of menstruation, simply whereas the woman does not get a period anymore, making her infertile. Women should go through menopause at the end of their reproductive years putting the age mark in her 40's or 50's. Although this is something biological that happens to almost every woman, cultures around the world yield different outcomes on how the woman perceives and feels about menopause. Her perspective however is not the only opinion on menopause, the way the people in a woman's culture perceive it is an important factor as well.

To quickly glaze over the U.S., women report symptoms like hot/cold flashes as well as night sweats. However, these symptoms are not universal, as symptoms vary from culture to culture. In a study done in 1970 by Marcha Flint showed that Indian women reported very differently in that they complained about NO symptoms other than menstrual changes (Flint). Another woman named Margaret Lock found a decade later that shoulder stiffness ranked the highest among Japanese women and hot flashes were rare among this cultural group. These studies have shown that wherever you live in the world you will probably have a different outcome in menopause. Everyone will have a different experience because not everyone has the same lifestyle. 

In a western culture like the one we live in today, we tend to mark menopause as an ending. This is however not the case with many other cultures across the world. In a post called "Menopause around the world" writer Kaitlyn Pote states that,"A study reported that Mayan women, although experiencing some uncomfortable symptoms, looked forward to menopause, as it provided newfound freedom and status (Stefanopoulou). Marcha Flint found that in Rajasthan, India, women who were veiled and secluded before menopause, could now "come downstairs from their women's quarters to where the men talked and drank home brew" and could publicly visit and joke with men after menopause (Flint 1975)." After reading this statement in Kaitlyn Pote's article, I fully agree that the culture you live in changes how menopause is perceived. 

https://www.helpage.org/newsroom/latest-news/older-people-across-the-world-march-against-ageism-/

To wrap things up, menopause is completely different for everyone. There should be more studies done in multiple cultures that we don't have data in to see how big the differences are around the world. Knowing what I know now I am very interested in finding out more about why women are going through the same exact natural process, all with different symptoms.

Resources

Pote, K. (2020). Menopause Around the World - Women in Balance Institute. [online] Women in Balance Institute. Available at: https://womeninbalance.org/2014/09/17/menopause-around-the-world/ [Accessed 10 Feb. 2020].

Mayo Clinic. (2020). Menopause - Symptoms and causes. [online] Available at: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menopause/symptoms-causes/syc-20353397 [Accessed 10 Feb. 2020].

Blog 1

The Status of Women Worldwide

As I read the information given in the PowerPoint, I couldn't help but wonder how much information I actually don't know. Growing up, people in your life can choose to expose or not to expose you to certain information. I feel like I was very sheltered in the sense that I never learned about the "bad things".  

Although I found almost all of the information surprising, I found the CEDAW Treaty very intriguing. The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women was a Treaty made in 1979, and had 187 nations sign. Even though these nations had signed the treaty, there were still stories of bride burnings and honor killings. This amazes me because the fact that they publicly signed the treaty to me seemed like they would stop the horrific acts on these women, but it didn't stop them. The nations then say the abuse is accepted  as "normal" or private family and cultural matters. It's almost as if they never signed the treaty! What good does it do if it is not followed by its very own signees?

Another piece of information I found very interesting was that 830 women per day die from preventable causes of child birth as stated by WHO (World Health Organization). This makes me emotional because I have a strong passion for pregnancy, labor and delivery, mothers health, and babies health. That is 830 women too many for this world we live in today. We have the resources, skills, and technology to educate and implement new strategies on childbirth to save these women from unnecessary death and it blows my mind that this many women are dying in this decade.

Even though there are many improvements in treatment for women, I admired this the most. In 2015, 77% of mothers with HIV globally had access to medicines to prevent the transmission of HIV onto their babies. Also, HIV infections among children has declined by 50% since 2010. Even though that still leaves thousands untreated, I couldn't help but smile for all of the people it DID save! This by no means is a stopping point for the efforts being made, but it sure does make me feel better about the issue we have because people are working to make a difference and it is showing. 

Women in power has only just started, and I'm glad I live in the time I do to watch us women grow to be bigger and better. Today, 10% of the World Leaders are women. This means that only 15 women are a world leader. This may look like a ridiculous statistic but the number of female leaders has doubled since 2000. I know there aren't many women out there in power but I couldn't imagine a world that didn't have this many if not more women in power! It is crazy to me that the number has only doubled in 20 years- it should be more!

Overall after reading about global women's health I carry many emotions but one topic sticks out the most. Sex Trafficking is TERRIFYING. To know that 80% of people in trafficking are female, and 600 to 800 THOUSAND are trafficked ANNUALLY?! I'm scared to be a woman and I'm scared of being alone. To think of so many women and children that are taken and never seen again are then used for their bodies and tortured until they simply can't take the abuse anymore and die is gut wrenching. I feel like us women have to be SO CAREFUL for predators in our every day lives. It is even scarier to not know who you should even be looking out for. A predator can be ANYBODY. You seriously cannot trust anything anyone says.

BIO

Hello all! My name is Madeline (Maddy) McKenna and I am in my second semester at TWU. I am from Keller, Texas about 30 minutes south of Denton and I am majoring in Nursing. I hope to become a NICU Nurse or Nurse Practitioner! I am currently working as an Early Learner Teacher for Kumon- a tutoring company. I teach 3-5 year olds in reading and math and I absolutely LOVE going to work to see my kiddos!