Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from July, 2021

The Rise in Healthcare Cybersecurity Risks, and How to Combat Them

  Guest post by Brad Smith Image from Unsplash.com   The problem of cyber-attacks against the healthcare sector is not new. Over the past year, though, there has been a massive spike in the rate of attacks happening against this sector. This calls for serious concern from healthcare players and regulators lest they fall to this new wave of cyber pandemics coursing through their ranks.   What’s the Problem? Hackers going after the healthcare sector know that they can score a lot of good data and money at the same time. Data theft exposes sensitive details such as patient name, social status, social security number, credit card details, insurance information, and more. Selling such data in whole or parts on the black market can fetch a pretty sum for the hacker who lands it. In some other instances, ransomware attacks are the preferred mode. While hacks against this sector have been going on for a long time, the pandemic brought out the worst in these hackers. I

Two Tips for Summertime Skin Cancer Prevention

Guest post by Reyzan Shali, MD   It’s summertime, and for most people, that means fun in the sun. Now I’m all for having fun, but I wanted to share some important information about how exposure to the sun can ruin the fun. In my years as a friend, sister, mother, and family care doctor, I have heard a lot of comments about the sun, and more specifically, about getting tan.  Stories people have told me I used to rub olive oil all over my skin and then go sit in the sun. I used to apply baby oil before I lay in the sun and had a shinier tan as a result. I grew up in Southern California and baked myself for years from lying on the beach. I went to the beach whenever I could, and who remembered to apply sunscreen? What? You’ve never gone to get a tan before? I don’t like tanning; I love tanning! Things I have been told about my tan (or lack thereof) Please cover your legs, or get a tan. You know, you would look better tanned. The impact of the sun, and artificial sun in the form of a tanni

Stretch to Keep Moving

 I woke up at 5:00 am this morning before my alarm even went off. I rolled over, checked my phone, took a drink of water, and stretched as I got out of bed. My little dog stretched, too. She stretches as she begins every day. It's her way of telling me she is ready to get moving.  I took my dog for a walk around the apartment complex, and then we both came back in and ate breakfast. I drank a bottle of water (from a reusable water bottle) that I had cooled over night, and I dressed and headed for the trail. I arrived at the trail at 6:15 am.  We have been having a heat wave here in the Pacific Northwest. Temperatures have been hovering around the 100 degrees mark for weeks now. During that time, it's been important to stay hydrated. I drink a 24 ounces bottle of water at every meal time and at least one or two more bottles of water the same size during the day.  Photo by Jeanette R. Harrison, MPH Drinking water allows your body to function properly. Your body has something call