But what is it about health insurance and health care that prompts such strong feelings in Americans? To get an idea of why health insurance is such a hot button topic in the United States, and where the debate over the roll health insurance companies and the government should play in the future of health care is going, it can help to have some historical perspective. Whether or not you work in health administration, the history of health insurance is fascinating. Here are some resources that can help you learn more about health insurance in America:

Timelines

These timelines offer a variety of insights into health insurance in America, including attempts to introduce universal health care and health care reform. Here are great snapshots of the history of health insurance in the U.S.

• Healthcare Crisis: Healthcare Timeline: PBS offers this timeline of health care in America, including information on the development of health insurance.
• A History of Overhauling Health Care: You can find information about efforts to change health care, introduce health insurance and then reform the insurance system over the years. Interactive.
• Health care timeline: Multimedia presentation of health care and health insurance in America.
• Timeline: History of Health Reform Efforts in the U.S.: This interactive timeline takes you through the development of health insurance and health care reform in the U.S.
• Health Insurance Development Timeline: This Google search result is quite helpful, showing the development of health insurance. You can look at an overview, or jump to specific sets of years.
• Controversial Moments in the History of U.S. Health Care (Timeline): A look at health care, health insurance and the most controversial moments.
• Presidential influence on health care reform throughout the 20th century: Find out what different presidents have done to influence the health care system.
• Health-Care Reform in America: The Wall Street Journal offers a look at the history of health care and health insurance.

General History

If you are interested in various viewpoints related to health insurance in America, these resources can be enlightening. Includes policy arguments, essays on the history of health insurance and health care and more.

• History of Health Insurance: RandomHistory.com provides an in-depth look at health insurance, including the history of modern health insurance in the U.S.
• History of Health Insurance Benefits: A look at health insurance benefits in the U.S.
• Congress Passes Socialized Medicine and Mandates Health Insurance – In 1798: At Forbes, a contention that health insurance mandates are a time honored tradition in America.
• Thomas Jefferson supported ‘government run health care’: An interesting look at efforts made in the early days of the U.S. to get some system of health care run by the government.
• Gaps in Health Insurance: An All-American Problem: The Commonwealth Fund offers a look at the history of coverage gaps in health insurance.
• Whence And Whither Health Insurance? A Revisionist History: Health Affairs offers an essay on the history of health insurance.
• Preëxisting Condition: This commentary in The New Yorker describes one of the early hits to health insurance and health care reform.
• Accidents of History Created U.S. Health System: NPR provides a look at the history of health insurance, and how we ended up with this system.

Costs

The cost of health insurance is of huge interest to Americans. The increasing cost of health insurance, as well as the impacts the rising costs have on individuals and the economy can provide interesting insight into historical trends — and where we might be headed.

• How the Health Care Plan Costs Add Up: An interesting infographic showing future history of health care reform.
• Health Insurance in the United States: An interesting economic history of health insurance in the U.S., including rising costs.
• A little history of health care and insurance: Dr. Michael Warren offers a brief history of the rise in health costs and insurance costs.
• U.S. Health Care Costs: A look at the recent history of increases in health care costs and health insurance costs.
• A Short History of Health Care: The development of the current U.S. health insurance system, with emphasis on the costs.
• Rise in Health Care Spending Down, But Not Out: A look at recent history of health insurance premiums.
• Why Health-Insurance Premiums Rise While Insurers Sit on Piles of Cash: Find out the history behind why health insurance companies can raise premiums.

Health Care Reform 2010

Find out more about the health care reform legislation passed in 2010, and what it entails. A look at changes that health insurance companies will have to abide by if the legislation remains in effect, and some of the changes made to the industry.

• When health care reform will affect you: A look at when different provisions in the health care reform legislation will take place.
• Health Care Reform Bill Summary: Hotsheet of what’s in the health care reform bill.
• How Will Health Care Reform Affect Your Wallet?: A look at how individuals might be affected.
• Should health-care reform be repealed?: Considers whether or not health care reform should be rolled back. Brief summary of both sides of the argument.
• 6 Reasons Obama-Care Is Bad Medicine: Chuck Norris, in Human Events, explains why the health care reform efforts are a bad idea.
• Timeline of health care reform: Things may get worse before they get better: Issues that may plague health care reform in the future.

Health Care and Health Insurance in Other Countries

For those interested in learning more about how the history of health insurance compares to the development of health care systems in other countries, these resources can be quite helpful. Learn more about how the U.S. system of health insurance works in comparison with other countries’ systems.

• France Fights Universal Care’s High Cost: The Wall Street Journal takes a look at the rising cost of the health care system in France.
• Universal Health Care in Other Countries: Considers different versions of national health insurance in other countries.
• How Does Canada’s Health System Actually Work?: Explores the realities of Canada’s health system.
• History Of Tinkering Helps German System Endure: A history of health insurance in Germany — and how its nationalized system works.
• Health care in Australia: A history of Australian health care and an overview of how it works today.
• U.S. Healthcare Spending vs The Globe: An interesting infographic comparing health care spending in the U.S. with other countries.

At the same time, many hospitals are leery of accepting open source software without some guarantee that the company producing the software will remain in business to offer updates, follow-up, community and services. To find that type of open source product, look for some of the information we discovered in our search — a company with a history with an active community, guaranteed service, regular meetings and collaboration. Also, look at some of the hospitals that use that particular software to gain feedback and support.

The following list is organized alphabetically.

1. Caisis is an open source, web-based cancer data management system that integrates research with patient care. The system is freely distributed to promote scientific collaboration, and over the course of the last five years many other institutions have adopted the system. Collaboration is a major priority of the Caisis project, with regular Web conferences and annual two-day face-to-face meetings at collaborating centers. The institutions that employ Caisis currently are located in the U.S. and Canada, Europe and Australia.
2. dcm4che is a collection of open source clinical image and object management applications and utilities for the healthcare enterprise. Applications have been developed in the Java programming language for performance and portability, supporting deployment on JDK 1.4 and up. dcm4che offers a Web-based UI, DICOM storage, DICOM query and retrieval, WADO and RID, HL7 servers and IHE services. Also contained within the dcm4che project is dcm4chee (the extra ‘e’ stands for ‘enterprise’). dcm4chee is an Image Manager/Image Archive (according to IHE).
3. iPath was developed by the department of pathology, the University Hospital Basel, Switzerland and the iPath association as a collaborative platform for exchange of medical knowledge, distance consultations, group discussions and distance teaching in medicine. The platform forms the basis of the Solomon Islands Telemedicine Network, in the RAFT (French African Telemedicine Network) project where it links countries in French-speaking Africa, and as part of the telepathology project at Sihanouk Hospital Center of HOPE, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
4. Mirth offers open source solutions for hospitals that are fully service-backed. Mirth helps the flow of information across departments and legacy systems within an organization, speeding results delivery to clinicians across the community, or becoming part of a community-wide health information exchange. According to Mirth, “Most hospital IT departments find Mirth [EHR] quick and easy to learn, and fast to deploy.” Founded as WebReach in 1993 and headquartered in Irvine, CA, Mirth Corporation serves many of the nation’s largest and most respected healthcare organizations.
5. OpenGALEN is a collaborative GRAIL knowledge management and ontological engineering environment for the academic and not-for-profit clinical terminology community. Their goal is to promote healthcare through stimulating the use and development of GALEN experience and technology as a basis for teaching, training and services in the area of medical terminology, language, knowledge and information and in anything directly or indirectly related in the widest sense. 2010 marked OpenGALEN’s 20th anniversary.
6. OpenHRE is an open source health records exchange software with a goal to accelerate implementation of the National Health Information Network (NHIN) by providing health stakeholders an affordable means to establish the secure and interoperable exchange of health records among existing health information systems. Using innovative approaches to delivering this vital information, clinicians are able to see vital facts about their patients from many healthcare providers. Dr. John D. Halamka recommended this software, created and supported by Browsersoft, in 2009.
7. OpenMRS is a multi-institution, non-profit collaborative led by Regenstrief Institute and Partners In Health. These teams nurture a growing worldwide network of individuals and organizations all focused on creating medical record systems and a corresponding implementation network to allow system development self reliance within resource constrained environments. OpenMRS is now in use around the world, as it enables design of a customized medical records system with no programming knowledge (although medical and systems analysis knowledge is required).
8. OsiriX has been specifically designed for navigation and visualization of multimodality and multidimensional images: 2D Viewer, 3D Viewer, 4D Viewer (3D series with temporal dimension such as Cardiac-CT) and 5D Viewer (3D series with temporal and functional dimensions such as Cardiac-PET-CT). It is fully compliant with the DICOM standard for image communication and image file formats; however, the open-source version does not have FDA 510(k) clearance for clinical use in the United States. Hospitals on board with this software include Hartford Hospital and UCLA Hospital.
9. Protégé is a free, open source ontology editor and knowledge-base framework with a platform that supports two main ways of modeling ontologies via the Protégé-Frames and Protégé-OWL editors. The Stanford Center for Biomedical Informatics Research at the Stanford University School of Medicine developed Protégé. They have received support from Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the National Cancer Institute and the National Science Foundation, among others. They also receive support from affiliates Active Software and Pfizer.
10. Tolven, a branch of Tolven Institute, delivers electronic Personal Health Record (ePHR), electronic Clinician Health Record (eCHR), a Healthcare Informatics Platform and a Health Analytics solution. The informing vision of the Tolven Institute founders is to develop the most innovative health informatics and service delivery solutions, with global applicability. The open standards and open source business model that the Tolven Institute has adopted facilitate rapid collaborations with other open source developers working in the healthcare and life science marketplaces.

The individuals on this list are current administrators, people who either have been on the job for decades or who recently were hired and who have made extreme impacts in a short period. The individuals are listed in alphabetical order by surname. Follow the links to learn more about their careers.

1. Dr. Ron J. Anderson is an internist and CEO of Parkland Health and Hospital System in Dallas. Dr. Anderson served on the executive committee of the State Task Force on Indigent Health Care and in 1985 played a major role in the passage of landmark legislation concerning indigent health care in Texas.
2. Cathy Barr is CEO of Minnesota’s Bethesda Hospital, currently is working on legislative reform to help long-term acute care hospitals establish new facility and medical requirements. She also serves as president of The Women’s Health Leadership TRUST (WHLT)
3. David Bixler serves as the president and CEO of 143-bed Rutherford (N.C.) Hospital, which has been recognized by Becker’s Hospital Review as one of the best community hospitals in the nation. His career in the healthcare industry spans over thirty years in various healthcare settings.
4. Marna P. Borgstrom, president and CEO of Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut, is the first woman to run the organization. She is Chair of the Connecticut Hospital Association Board of Trustees and member of the board of the University HealthSystem Consortium.
5. Larry Cash is Executive Director and CFO for Tennessee-based Community Health Systems. Mr. Cash has been named one of America’s Best CFOs in the healthcare industry by Institutional Investor every year from 2005 to 2010.
6. Sally A. Mason Boemer is senior vice president for finance at Massachusetts General Hospital. She has improved collections, shepherded payor contracts and organized cost-cutting teams. In May, the hospital was $4.2 million ahead of budget.
7. Patrick J. Quinlan, MD, is a dermatologist and CEO of Ochsner Health System in New Orleans. Ochsner’s extensive disaster preparations before Katrina played a major role in mitigating damages. In May 2007, Dr. Quinlan was named the #1 most powerful physician executive in the nation by Modern Physician magazine.
8. Jeffrey A. Romoff is the President and CEO of UPMC, one of the leading nonprofit health systems in the United States. Under his leadership, UPMC became a fully integrated $8 billion global enterprise. With nearly 50,000 employees, UPMC is the largest employer in western Pennsylvania and a major health resource for its residents.
9. Christina M. Ryan is CEO of The Women’s Hospital in Evansville, Indiana. She was appointed to the Advisory Committee on Infant Mortality and has received many other awards. Her civic and community involvement includes a long list of local organizations as well.
10. James H. Skogsbergh is president and CEO of Advocate Health Care, a faith-based health system and the largest healthcare system in the Midwest. He was recently named the 2010 chair of the American Hospital Association’s Section for Health Care Systems.
11. Rulon F. Stacey, PhD, is president and CEO of Poudre Valley Health System in Colorado. Under his leadership, the health system received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in 2008. He was elected Chairman-Elect of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) in 2010.
12. Douglas L. Strong is CEO of University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers. The Hospitals and Health Centers unit of the University of Michigan Health System is expected to finish its fiscal year in strong financial shape, with a positive operating margin nearly twice the size predicted a year ago.
13. Joseph R. Swedish is president and CEO of Michigan-based Trinity Health, the nation’s fourth-largest Catholic health system. During his tenure at the health system, he spearheaded the Find A Way advocacy campaign, aimed at seeking healthcare reform that provides healthcare coverage for everyone.
14. Anthony Tersigni is president and CEO of Missouri’s Ascension Health, which is the nation’s largest Catholic and non-profit health system. Dr. Tersigni was listed as one of Modern Healthcare’s 100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. He is the recipient of many professional awards.
15. Richard Umbdenstock is president and CEO of the American Hospital Association. He was past chair of the AHA board of trustees and served on the executive committee, chairing the operations committee.
16. Sandra A. Van Trease is a group president for eight community and rural hospitals operated by BJC Healthcare located in and around St. Louis. Ms. Van Trease is an active member of the St. Louis community and serves on many corporate boards.
17. Anita S. Vaughn, RN is administrator and CEO of Baptist Memorial Hospital for Women in Memphis, Tennessee and has been with the hospital since its planning stages in 1998. Ms. Vaughn previously served as assistant vice president for Baptist Memorial Hospital-Memphis.
18. Ronald J. Werthman is vice president for finance at Johns Hopkins. He has achieved the highest operating margins in its history and consolidated the health system and affiliates’ finance divisions, working closely with the management team on a budget incorporating the health system and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
19. Nicholas Wolter, MD, a pulmonologist, has been CEO of Montana’s Billings Clinic, the largest and one of the most integrated health systems in the northern Rocky Mountain states. Dr. Wolter helped guide the 1993 merger of Billings Clinic with Deaconess Hospital and became the new health system’s medical executive officer.
20. Dan Wolterman is president and CEO of Memorial Hermann Healthcare System in Houston, which is the largest not-for-profit healthcare system in Texas. Altogether, Mr. Wolterman has approximately 30 years of healthcare leadership experience, with numerous awards.

Obesity

1. America’s Fattest States – 2009: These colorful charts show the nation’s obesity rates in 2009. Obesity costs the nation $75 billion in direct costs each year.
2. Causes of Obesity: A simple infographic that shows the main factors that can contribute to obesity, including environmental, social and behavioral.
3. Eating Out: While this “From Bad to Worse Infographic” doesn’t rate states, the restaurants listed here exist in all U.S. states.
4. F as in Fat 2009: This infographic from the Trust for America’s Health is included, as it offers a state-by-state comparison at the bottom of this linked page.
5. Fattest States: This information graphic shows, among other statistics, that obesity is lower in states with higher concentrations of artists, musicians, entertainers, gays, lesbians and immigrants.
6. U.S. Obesity Trends: Watch America grow fat through an animated infographic, or learn more about how obesity affects diabetes and more through this Center for Disease Control site.
7. What is the Current State of Obesity in America? This infographic shows obesity broken down by race, age and state and offers statistics on the cost to the U.S. as well as how obesity contributes to illness.

Environmental Issues

8. Dirty Water: This infographic shows the five cleanest and the five dirtiest U.S. water utilities. If you like clean tap water, don’t use Fort Worth’s Arlington Water plan.
9. Glass Half Empty: This infographic focuses on water wars, but also contains interesting statistics on the countries that have the best and worst water.
10. HealthMap: This interactive global map shows current outbreaks and disease issues in real time. You also can use this information graphic on your mobile device.
11. How Cars Are Killing Us Around the World: Somehow our brains parse and suppress the fact that our chances of dying behind the wheel (or even just in the passenger seat) of a car are around 1 in 100.
12. Natural Pest Control: If you don’t want to share your abode with insects or animals that can spread disease, this graphic shows how you can eliminate your problem naturally.
13. The Future of Food: Today, demand for food fueled by rises in worldwide consumption of meat and protein is again outpacing farmers ability to keep up.
14. The Most Polluted Places in the World: In sum, 25 percent of all deaths in the developing world are attributable to environmental factors. Interestingly, the U.S. is not included in this graphic.
15. The Polluted Polis: In contrast to the graphic above, this image illustrates the most polluted areas in the U.S. Riverside, CA leads the chart in the most unhealthy days per year.
16. The Threat of a Global Water Shortage: It’s easy to take for granted how much water it takes to produce some of the world’s most consumed products.
17. Top 20 Carbon Emitting Countries: This infographic shows that the U.S. is number two behind China in producing carbon emissions.
18. Visualizing the BP Oil Disaster: This map is updated regularly, and allows users to overlay the oil from the Gulf disaster onto various regions to help visualize the extant of the oil on the surface of the Gulf.

Diseases and Addictions

19. America’s Problem Drugs: This psychedelic poster accounts for a number of drugs across the U.S. and names states that are high users of each drug, both legal and illegal.
20. Cancer Worldwide: This infographic shows that cancer accounts for 7.4 million deaths worldwide, that lung cancer is the leading killer and that 70 percent of all cancer deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.
21. Chances of Death in America: Choose the middle link on this page, which takes the popular minesweeper game and turns it into a simulation of actual probability of death in America.
22. Depression rates around the world: This graphic shows that the U.S. has the highest diagnosed depression rates worldwide, followed by the Ukraine. The lowest rates are found in Nigeria, but you might wonder if there is a larger issue involved with the ability to pay for diagnosis in this case.
23. Leukemia Rates by State: This map reflects 2006 statistics about the number of people who developed or who died from leukemia that year.
24. Malaria: This set of information design posters illustrates how concentrated and deadly malaria is in Africa compared to the rest of the world.
25. National Mental Health Statistics: This map shows the total psychiatric inpatient and residential treatment beds per 100,000 civilian population in number by state, 2000.
26. Progress Against Polio: In 2008, only four countries in the world remained polio-endemic. Persistent pockets remain in northern India, northern Nigeria and along the border between Afghanistan and Pakiston.
27. State Pandemic Plans: Click on your state to learn more about the pandemic plans that currently are in place for residents.
28. STDs in America: More than 65 million people currently currently living in the U.S. are living with an incurable sexually transmitted disease (std). Learn which states hold more documents carriers.
29. The Global Burden of Tuberculosis: Along with malaria and aids, tuberculosis bacterium (TB) is one of the three diseases closely linked to poverty.
30. The Global Tobacco Trade: This popular infographic shows how tobacco travels around the globe, how it affects you, and the total number of chemicals contained in cigarette smoke.
31. The Truth About Alcoholism: This infographic breaks down the incidence of alcoholism by state and country. Wisconsin holds the record for the highest rate of alcohol abuse and West Virginia and Utah have the least amount of heavy drinkers.
32. Travel Restrictions for People with HIV: In the past year, both China and America have lifted 20-odd-year bans stopping individuals with HIV from entering, but 51 countries still restrict movement in some form based on a person’s HIV status.

Other Issues

33. A Plan for All Seasons: This infographic covers the 10 most common fruits and veggies consumed and breaks down their availability by region.
34. Affording Health Care: This infographic shows across geographies, income and education levels, between 1997 and 2006, that a growing number of Americans avoided health care due to cost.
35. CDC Data and Statistics: You can find a vast resource of state-by-state information at the Center for Disease Control for all diseases, healthy living and more.
36. Health Care Expenditures per Capita by State of Residence, 2004: This map shows that the bulk of health care expenditures per capita in the U.S. occur mainly in the northeast.
37. Health Care Spending: U.S. vs. Abroad: The U.S. spent more on out-patient and in-patient care, administration and medical goods than any other country in 2007.
38. How Much Are My Organs Worth? While organ donations are on the rise, so is organ trafficking. Find out what organs are worth around the world.
39. Total Monthly Wellness Spending: A true health nut might look at this infographic and shake his or her head. One reason among others: readers might question why it seems healthy to spend more money on drugs and supplements.
40. Uninsured in America: A look at those individuals who do not carry health insurance and where they are located in the U.S. by age, gender and citizenship status.

All companies listed below are privately owned, and all are seeking investors. Some companies include financial information on the Web site, but you may need to do more research on other companies to learn more about their situations. This list is in alphabetical order and each link and logo leads to the company’s Web site.

1. ACell, Inc.: ACell, Inc. offers the next generation of regenerative medicine through the development and commercialization of unique extracellular matrix (“ECM”) devices to repair and remodel damaged tissues and organs in a broad range of surgical procedures.
2. Axogen: This company has created and licensed a unique combination of patented technologies and has a rich pipeline of new products to change the standard of care for patients with peripheral nerve injuries. AxoGen is a registered tissue bank with the FDA.
3. BioBehavioral Diagnostics: This company is dedicated to providing physicians, parents and patients with high-value information to guide personalized strategies and to enhance quality of life for patients with ADHD. Their flagship tool is the Quotient™ ADHD System.
4. BodyViz: BodyViz is affordable, easy to use, innovative software that’s bringing 3D medical visualization to the forefront of technology. This company creates 3D MRI or CT scan visualizations, all quickly and easily created from a patient’s MRI or CT scan data. Visual Medical Solutions, LLC — another startup — produces BodyViz.
5. CardioInsight: CardioInsight is developing the first non-invasive, real-time, beat-to-beat simultaneous mapping and localization solution for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmia and heart failure. This company just completed a successful second round of funding.
6. CardioMag Imaging, Inc.: This company produces non-invasive devices to identify patients with coronary artery disease and other life threatening cardiovascular conditions.
7. Core Essence Orthopaedics Inc.: Core Essence Orthopaedics, Inc. is a privately held orthopedic device company focused on intuitive, enabling solutions for minimally invasive soft tissue and arthroscopic musculoskeletal repair.
8. Diopsys: Although the development of one of this company’s products began in 1983, it wasn’t until 2004 that their pediatric VEP Vision Testing System was made available. Dipsys has introduced more products within the past few years, including their NOVA product series in 2007.
9. Discovery Technology International: The company has evolved to become a leading provider of precision piezoelectric motion control and flow control devices. DTI specializes in two divisions, Piezomotor and Biomedical technologies.
10. EndoSense: Endosense is a medical technology company focused on improving the efficacy, safety and reproducibility of catheter ablation for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. Their flagship product may be used to treat a range of cardiac rhythm disorders.
11. Endosphere: EndoSphere is developing a platform of endoscopically implantable devices for the treatment of metabolic diseases, including obesity and type 2 diabetes. The shape of the devices enables easy self-anchoring without attachment to the intestine.
12. EyeMarker Systems: EyeMarker Systems is an emerging company committed to the commercialization of innovative ocular screening technology. The Ocular Scanning Instrument (OSI) is a unique combination of methodology and apparatus designed to identify, analyze, and quantify specific ocular attributes (biomarkers) and subsequently extrapolate these findings to characterize the health status of the individuals.
13. HemoSonics: HemoSonics is developing novel diagnostic instruments to rapidly quantify blood clotting and bleeding disorders. Unregulated blood clotting and bleeding (ie, unregulated hemostatic functions) represent the leading cause of mortality in the developed world.
14. Infoscitex Corporation: Founded in 2000, Infoscitex set out to create a dynamic corporation committed to excelling in the defense, aerospace, life sciences, energy and environment markets. They include annual reports on their Web site from 2006 forward.
15. InSet Technologies Incorporated: This is a medical device company providing proprietary implantable pumps that are capable of delivering a wide array of therapeutic drugs for the treatment of chronic diseases and conditions.
16. InspireMD: InspireMD Ltd.is a medical device company focusing on the development and commercialization of its proprietary stent platform technology. InspireMD addresses approximately 50 percent of a $6 billion coronary market.
17. Lerner Medical Devices, Inc.: This company is focused on the use of light to treat skin disease. Their mission is to develop, manufacture and market devices that utilize advanced HIFOL (High Intensity Fiber Optic Light) optical technology to provide novel phototherapeutic approaches to skin conditions and disease.
18. LifeBond: Lifebond was first conceived in 2006 in the midst of the Israel-Lebanon war. LifeBond’s founders identified a strong market need for next-generation products in the field of wound closure and hemostasis (stoppage of bleeding). The missions is to build a business plan for a company that would advance medical care by developing a proprietary biomaterial technology into a range of innovative biosurgical products.
19. MicroTransponder Inc.: This is a medical device development company with a strong neuroscience research focus. Their core technology is based on a previous technology developed in the DARPA Revolutionizing Prosthetics program by Dr. Larry Cauller at the University of Texas at Dallas. They have adapted this technology to create a wireless neurostimulator for the treatment of chronic pain and other neurological indications.
20. nContact: This company was founded to develop and investigate medical devices for the minimally invasive treatment of heart arrhythmia. They currently are enrolling patients in a series of clinical trials to evaluate the use of this system for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) in concomitant procedures as well as in convergent procedures.
21. PEAK Surgical: This is a medical device company that is committed to providing physicians with surgical tools that have the precision of a scalpel and the bleeding control of traditional electrosurgery without the extensive collateral damage — a revolutionary benefit that fills a critical market gap.
22. Sensimed AG: This is an emerging medical device company with its principal focus on the design, development, and commercialization of integrated micro-systems for medical diagnosis and treatment monitoring in the area of ophthalmology.
23. Sentinel Group LLC: Sentinel Group is a medical device development company formed to commercialize patents owned by its principals and to assist physician inventors in commercializing their ideas.
24. TissueGen: This is a medical device company whose patented technology enables creation of biodegradable polymer devices with unique drug delivery capabilities. TissueGen is focusing initial product development efforts on vascular stents — an application with a large dynamic market and for which our technology is ideally suited.
25. ViOptix: The mission for this company is to develop products based on Tissue Oximetry that will provide superior clinical solutions to our customers and their patients.

What’s in Soda?

First of all, it is vital that you understand what is in soda. There are a number of substances in diet soda and other soft drinks that can be downright detrimental to your health. Here are some of the substances to be wary of in soda:

• Added sugar: It may not seem like a big deal, but many soft drinks have added sugar. (This is not present in diet soda, of course.) Sugar is added to help preserve foods, provide bulk, and improve taste. Added sugar often comes in the form of high fructose corn syrup, which we know is not something that is not exactly good for our health, especially in high amounts. Another problem with added sugar, no matter its source, is the fact that if you fill up on soda, you will be less likely to drink milk, which contains healthy nutrients, and water, which is a healthy beverage.
• Aspertame: Diet sodas use aspertame and other artificial sweeteners to mimic the sweetness of sugar without any calories. However, the FDA lists 92 possible side effects of this substance, and discourages ingestion by young children and pregnant women. While health effects are limited in small amounts, too much has the potential to cause cancer and maybe even brain damage. (But you’d need an awful lot of it to do serious damage to an adult.)
• Phosphoric acid: This is available only in cola soft drinks. When you drink a diet cola, you are bringing phosphoric acid into your body. It can lower bone density, and erode your teeth. In one study, it was found that two or more cola drinks a day increased the chance of kidney disease.
• Citric acid: You probably recognize citric acid as something occurring in citrus fruits. So why is it so bad in soda? Well, the citric acid used as “food grade” in soda actually comes from a mold grown on starchy food crops. Its growth is stimulated for use in food products. So, while it probably won’t damage your health too much, if you are concerned about the source of your food, this might matter.
• Caffeine: In very moderate amounts, caffeine can be helpful to the body, providing some benefits. However, in large amounts, and taken to excess (as is the case in energy drinks, many caffeinated sodas and other beverages), it can cause health problems. Additionally, caffeine can be habit forming in some cases, and many who try to quit drinking soda find themselves suffering some degree of withdrawal symptoms when they stop.

Other ingredients found in diet soda and other soft drinks including potassium benzoate, carbonation, “natural and artificial flavors”, and caramel color. While these don’t have major health effects, many of them have the potential to cause problems when consumed in large quantities, or at the very least contribute nothing substantial to your overall wellness.

Effects on Personal Health

Diet soda and other soft drinks can have real effects on your personal health. One of the biggest dangers to soda drinkers is that of obesity. The calories in soft drinks are more than you might expect, and one of the first things doctors, health professionals and dietitians recommend when trying to lose weight is that you stop “drinking your calories” through soda. The calories consumed through soda are empty, contributing to weight gain, but not providing your body with anything that it needs to function properly.

Even diet soda, without any calories, has its issues. Diet soda has been liked to heart problems, and even drinking diet soda doesn’t protect against weight increase. Indeed, those who drank one diet soda per day saw an increased chance of becoming obese. Possibly, the confidence that comes with a diet drink encourages calorie binges elsewhere.  Another issue is that diet soda contributes to higher blood sugar, even though it uses an artificial sweetener.

The other big problem with diet soda and soft drinks is the possible contribution to diabetes. Links between the development of Type 2 diabetes and soft drinks are substantiated more every day. The increase in blood sugar can easily lead to diabetes. This can even happen with diet soda, which is shown to be linked as well. Additionally, regular soda consumption is linked to other unhealthy behaviors, including less exercise, consumption of junk food and the tendency to smoke.

An occasional soda probably won’t hurt you, but drinking it every day — especially if you are drinking 20 ounces or more — could add up to significant personal health consequences down the road.

Public Health

Diet soda and soft drinks are not just a matter of personal health any more: It is also a public health concern. In fact, the concern over soda is increasing to the point that some policymakers are suggesting a tax on soda. Campaigns to remove soda from beverage machines public schools have been underway for years, and there are a number schools that offer only healthier options, such as water and natural juices.

The reason that soda provides a public health challenge lies in the fact that, as a society, we are becoming less healthy. The consumption of diet soda, soft drinks and other sugary beverages appears to be a factor in childhood obesity. The costs related to treating this condition, not to mention the costs related to adult onset diabetes, are rising, and affecting, to some extent, the health care costs everyone pays. In fact, “adult onset diabetes” is no longer accurate because children and teenagers are developing Type 2 diabetes in increasing numbers.

Another point is that healthy options continue to cost more than unhealthy foods and beverages. As a result, it is little surprise that soda tax supporters are pointing out that increasing the cost of soda would perhaps encourage many to look for healthier options, since the price disparity would no longer be as great. And, of course, there is some thought that a soda tax could help pay for health care reform.

Opponents, of course, point out that even though soda accounts for a large amount of calories consumed by Americans (7%), there are other behaviors that need to be changed in order to combat the rising tide of obesity, heart disease and diabetes. Simply reducing soda consumption, they say, isn’t enough.

The blogs are categorized by administrative blogs, legal blogs, eHealth and IT blogs and health care policy blogs and every blog in this list has been recently updated. Each link is listed alphabetically within those categories to show readers that we do not favor one expert over another.

Administration Blogs

1. Candid CIO: Will Weider, CIO of Ministry Health Care and Affinity Health System, offers his perspectives on administration issues in this blog.
2. Christina’s Considerations: Christina Thielst is a hospital and healthcare administrator and entrepreneur with a deep desire for continually improving the health of the community being served. This is her blog.
3. Healing Hospitals — Formerly Ask a Hospital President: F. Nicholas “Nick” Jacobs has more than 20 years experience in hospital management, with an acknowledged reputation for innovation and consumer-centered leadership.
4. Hospital Impact: Part of the Fierce network of health sites, this site is becoming popular among healthcare administrators for its news updates, tips and opinions on health care matters.
5. Leading the Way to Medical Excellence: the president of McLeod Health non-profit institutions provides weekly insights into his facilities and health care in general.
6. Let’s Talk Health Care: Bruce Bullen, Interim Chief Executive Officer at Harvard Pilgrim in Massachusetts, provides and open and ongoing conversation about health care administration.
7. Life as a Healthcare CIO: Dr. John Halamka records his experiences with infrastructure, applications, policies, management, and governance as he supports 3,000 doctors, 18,000 faculty and about three million patients.
8. Managed Care Matters: Joe Paduda shares his knowledge on managed care for group health, health policy, health research, and medical news for insurers, employers, and healthcare providers.
9. More than Medicine: Tom Quinn, president and CEO of Community General Hospital in Syracuse, New York, began his career as a hospital kitchen worker. His perspective on administration reflects his knowledge on how hospitals work from every angle.
10. Regis University Health Services Administration Blog: Learn more about a college health service through the blog provided by its health administrator, Michael Jackson.
11. Running a Hospital: A CEO of a large Boston hospital shares thoughts on hospitals, medicine and health care issues.
12. St. Joseph Medical Center: Chief Executive Officer at St. Joseph Medical Center in Missouri, Mr. Kashman, provides personal insight into administrative matters and general topics.
13. Todd’s Perspective: Todd Linden, president and CEO of Grinnell Regional Medical Center, offers insights into medical administration and guest bloggers provide insight into various departments.
14. Wachter’s World: This blog focuses on hospitals, hospitalists, quality, safety, policy and much more from Robert M. Wachter, MD, Professor and Associate Chairman of the Department of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco.

Legal Matters

15. Drug and Device Law: This blog contains an attorney’s personal views (and those of several other Dechert attorneys) on topics that arise in the defense of pharmaceutical and medical device product liability litigation.
16. Drug Injury Watch: Learn more about drug injury lawsuits from an attorney who represents patients and their families.
17. FDA Law Blog: Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C. is the largest dedicated food and drug law firm in the country. Their knowledge about laws and regulations governing drugs, medical devices, foods, dietary supplements, and cosmetics is helpful to anyone interested in these topics.
18. Health Care Law Blog: Bob Coffield’s expertise lies in helping businesses and health care providers weave through a variety of state and federal health care regulations and assisting them in business transactions.
19. Health Plan Law: This site contains information about group health plans, claims administration and related ERISA fiduciary issues. This site also contains tutorials.
20. HealthBlawg: this is David Harlow’s popular health care law blog, offering expert insights and easy-to-understand analysis.
21. Healthcare Law Blog: Holland & Hart’s healthcare practice provides insight into this arena, including HIPAA, Stark law, the Anti-kickback Statute and more.
22. HIPAA Blog: Join in on this discussion of medical privacy issues often buried in “political arcana.”
23. HIPAA, HiTech & HIT: This updated blog brings insight into legal issues, developments and other pertinent information that relates to the creation, use and exchange of electronic health records.
24. HIT Blawg: This blog is focused on national health information technology legal trends and current news on this topic.
25. Home Care Law Blog: Learn more about legal and policy issues in the home health care, private duty and hospice industries from Gilliland & Markette LLP.
26. Med Law Blog: This law blog focuses on topics that range from compliance to contracts and from employee benefits to HIPAA and HIT.
27. Physician Law: This blog provides and easy way to stay on top of current news, updates and useful tips relating to legal issues that affect physicians and non-institutional providers.

eHealth and Health IT

28. Chilmark Research: This blog provides perspectives on key IT trends in the healthcare sector.
29. davidrothman.net: David is the Information Services Specialist at the Community General Hospital Medical Library, but he also provides great ideas for 2.0 tools and tips for healthcare industry professionals on this blog.
30. e-CareManagement blog: Vince Kuraitis, owner of Better Health Technologies, LLC, has a passion for disease management and care coordination that dates back to 1995.
31. e-HealthExpert: A non-profit organization provides a free and open forum to support the development of expertise in the field of eHealth, Healthcare Information Systems, and Health IT (Clinical IT).
32. eHealth: John Sharp is an IT Manager for a major medical center in Northeast Ohio, with a focus on ehealth, personal health records, Web 2.0 technologies, Windows Sharepoint Services and project management.
33. Found In Cache: If you would prefer a professional’s take on social media matters, Web sites and all things technological, then follow Ed Bennett, a technology expert for a Maryland medical care system.
34. Future Health IT: A health IT and EPR advocate from the UK provides a format to discuss the future of health care and IT.
35. Informaticopia: This UK blogger provides eclectic news and views on health informatics and elearning.
36. MedGadget: Stay ahead of the gadget curve with this site, which offers information about the newest health care gadgets on the market as well as emerging medical technologies.
37. Neil Versel’s Healthcare IT Blog: A healthcare journalist’s provides his views on the major segment of the industry he covers — and, he provides a ton of links to other sites as well.
38. Schwartz Healthcare IT Blog: A variety of authors from Schwartz Communications provide insights into ways to use IT effectively within healthcare facilities.
39. The Health IT Channel: For a different perspective on IT and EHR as well as other health care issues, watch a few videos at this site.
40. The Healthcare IT Guy: The CEO of Netspective, a Java/.NET consultancy that specializes in healthcare IT with an emphasis on e-health, EMRs, data integration, and legacy modernization, supplies tips and information for physicians and healthcare administration.

Policy Blogs

41. Health Affairs: The staff of the policy journal, Health Affairs, offers their insights and provide a venue for guest bloggers as well.
42. Health Care Organizational Ethics: Use this blog to discuss and debate the ethics within today’s health care organizations and within the wider health system.
43. Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review: This blog provides an ongoing review of health care policy activity in Washington, D. C. and in the marketplace.
44. Health Care Renewal: This blog, provided by a number of health care professionals, focuses on “threats to health care’s core values, especially those stemming from concentration and abuse of power.”
45. Health Policy and Communications Blog: This blog was created to foster discussion and analysis about how health policy and communications issues affect clinical and economic outcomes.
46. Health Wonk Review: A handy place to find the best in health care policy blogs gathered biweekly.
47. Mayo Clinic Health Policy Blog: The Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center (HPC) blog provides updates about HPC activities, viewpoints and news, and is an open forum intended to foster a rigorous discussion about health care reform topics.
48. Medicare News Blog: This blog provides an easy way to stay on top of Medicare news.
49. The Alan Katz Health Care Reform Blog: One agent’s perspective on health care reform and other health care policy issues.
50. The New Health Dialogue: The New America Foundation provides a health care policy blog based upon their policy program.

Some hospitals listed below have become famous for medical tourism. Others are famous for their research facilities or for their medical skills or philanthropy. Some are famous simply for their historical beginnings. The following links are listed alphabetically, with no preference as to level of fame.

1. Bangkok Hospital Phuket: Part of the largest health-care providers in southeast Asia, this hospital specializes in plastic and cosmetic surgery and is a destination resource for medical tourism. They also provide an educational Web site as well as marketing schemes such as free check-ups for every passenger who flies from Jakarta and Medan to Phuket by Air Asia in December 2009. These tools help keep this hospital in the news.
2. Bumrungrad Medical Center: This hospital also is a world medical destination, located in Bangkok, Thailand. The largest private hospital in southeast Asia, Bumrungrad offers state-of-the-art diagnostic, therapeutic and intensive care facilities to over one million patients annually. Over 400,000 of those patients arrive from outside Thailand. This hospital was the first Asian hospital accredited by JCI (Joint Commission International).
3. Cedars-Sinai: Cedars-Sinai physicians and scientists are leaders in basic and clinical research, bringing advancements in medicine directly from the laboratory to the bedside. Located in Los Angeles, this hospital also is the destination for many Hollywood stars who plan surgery or to have babies. While this hospital caters to all health needs, they are most noted for cancer research and heart surgery.
4. Centro Médico ABC: ABC (American British Cowdray Medical Center) in Mexico is affiliated with Methodist International, a partnership that increases integrated quality control and safety standards. Charity health care of the economically challenged residents in areas surrounding the two ABC facilities is a permanent mission of the organization, but the facility also is noted for high technical standards. It is accredited by the JCI.
5. Eisenhower Medical Center: This not-for-profit hospital is located in Rancho Mirage, California. Although noted for its open heart surgery, this hospital is most noted for the Betty Ford Center, established in 1982 by First Lady Betty Ford. This center has seen many celebrities pass through its doors over the years. Ford’s decision to open this center was based upon her own battles with alcohol dependence and opioid analgesic addiction.
6. Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University: Also known as Mahidol University, this is one of the most famous hospitals throughout Thailand and southeast Asia. Affiliated with Mahidol University, both the expanding hospital and its university are noted worldwide for outstanding achievements in teaching, research, international academic collaboration and professional services.
7. Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children: Founded in London in 1852 as the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children became the first hospital to provide medical in-patient beds specifically for children in the English-speaking world. The hospital works with the UCL Institute for Child Health, its medical school, and is the largest center for research into childhood illness outside the United States and Canada.
8. Groote Schuur Hospital: This government-funded teaching hospital is situated on the slopes of Devil’s Peak in the city of Cape Town, South Africa. It was founded in 1938 and is famous for being the institution where the first human heart transplant took place, conducted by University of Cape Town-educated surgeon Christiaan Barnard on the patient Louis Washkansky.
9. Hospitaller Order of Saint John of God: This group of hospitals, located throughout the world (St. Menni Alzheimer’s Unit in Los Angeles, California, shown here), is noted for its history as well as for its health and social care provided to millions of sick, vulneralbe and disadvantaged people in 52 countries. Its founder? St. John of God (1495-1550). World headquarters is located in Rome.
10. Johns Hopkins Hospital: Diverse and inclusive, The Johns Hopkins Hospital in collaboration with the faculty of The Johns Hopkins University supports medical education and research, and provides innovative patient-centered care to prevent, diagnose and treat human illness from its base in Baltimore, Maryland, and at full-time campuses elsewhere in Maryland, Washington, D.C., Italy, China, and Singapore.
11. Klinik Hirslanden: This healthcare system offers thirteen private hospitals throughout Switzerland that offer first-class medical service through affiliation with almost 1,500 medical specialists with years of experience. Well known for their quality of care, Klinik Hirslanden also believes in making that hospital stay as short as possible without compromising health. They serve approximately 270,000 patients per year within their hospitals for afflictions that range from headaches to sleep disorders.
12. Matilda International Hospital: This hospital is famous for its beginnings as a project included in the will of Granville Sharp, the husband of Matilda Lincolne Sharp, a couple who traveled to Hong Kong from London. The hospital opened in 1907, mainly to provide free care to expatriates; however, it has grown to serve as a not-for-profit hospital that serves Hong Kong residents and a wider region. Its core services include maternity, surgery, health assessment and health services.
13. Mayo Clinic: Possibly the most recognized hospital worldwide, the Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, non-profit group practice in the world. More than 3,300 physicians, scientists and researchers and 46,000 allied health staff work at Mayo Clinic, which has sites in Rochester, Minn., Jacksonville, Fla., and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz. Collectively, the three locations treat more than half a million people each year.
14. McLean Hospital: Located in Massachusetts, McLean Hospital is the largest psychiatric facility of Harvard medical School, an affiliate of Massachusetts General Hospital and a member of Partners HealthCare. Outside it’s ranking as one of the top psychiatric hospitals in the world, this place is noted for its patients, including mathematician John Nash, poets robert Lowell and Sylvia Plath and singer-songwriters James Taylor and Ray Charles.
15. Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center: As one of the world’s premier cancer centers and oldest cancer hospital, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center is committed to exceptional patient care, leading-edge research, and superb educational programs. They also are one of 40 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers, affirming their leadership in research, patient care, and education.
16. Papworth Hospital: Known throughout the world as the largest specialist cardiothoracic hospital, located in Cambridge, UK. Their services include cardiology, respiratory medicine, and cardiothoracic surgery and they are the country’s main heart and lung transplant center. It is home to the first successful heart transplant in the UK and one of the world’s first beating-heart transplants.
17. ParkwayHealth: This link leads to the Web site for a number of hospitals within a Singapore healthcare system.They have an extensive network that also reaches across Asia, Europe and the Middle East and are committed to being a global leader in integrated healthcare. As part of ParkwayHealth’s talent development initiative, the company has rolled out the award-winning Healthcare Executive Residency Program for people who are inspired to establish a career in the field of healthcare.
18. Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center: This hospital is located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles. The center has research facilities that cover nearly all major medicinal specialties as well as dentistry and ophthalmology. The emergency department is certified as a level I trauma center for adults and children. Most recently, UCLA Medical Center terminated the employment of several employees and disciplined others for viewing Britney Spears’ confidential medical records.
19. Shriners Hospitals for Children: This is a network of twenty-two pediatric non-profit hospitals located across North America. They provide specialty care at no charge to their patients and families. Known as “The World’s Greatest Philanthropy,” the only qualification is that the patient be under age eighteen and treatable. The hospitals are owned and operated by the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (Shriners).
20. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: This hospital, located in Memphis, Tennessee, remains famous for discoveries that have completely altered how the world treats children who have cancer and other catastrophic diseases. St. Jude researchers are published and cited more often in high impact publications than any other private pediatric oncology research institution in America. All patients accepted for treatment at St. Jude are treated without regard to the family’s ability to pay.
21. The American Hospital of Paris: This private and non-profit Franco-American institution contains 197 surgical, medical and obstetric beds in various locations along with the latest in diagnostic and treatment care. It is the only civilian hospital in Europed accredited by the JCI and also is certified in France by the Haute Autorité de Santé. This hospital relies solely on private and corporate donors to benefit the public at large.
22. The Lambaréné Hospital: Founded in 1913, this hospital’s claim to fame is its affiliation with Dr. Albert Schweitzer, who founded the hospital based upon his research in that country. Now this hospital conducts 40,000 patient examinations, 5000 operations, 600 births, 80,000 labor-tests and 4000 dental treatments yearly and has expanded to include a research center.
23. Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital: Located in Huanhuxi Road,Hexi District,Tianjin, China, this hospital is the birthplace of Chinese oncology. Founded in 1861 as London Christian Church Hospital, its current status is worldwide, providing a base for cancer prevention, treatment, training and research in oncology from China throughout Asia, Europe and in conferences throughout the world.
24. Prince of Wales Hospital: Located in Sydney, Australia, this hospital is affiliated with the University of New South Wales and is one of the premier medical teaching facilities in Australia. Each year more than 30,000 acute patients are admitted and about 40,000 patients are treated in their emergency department. They also attend to around 900,000 non-admitted patients each year through their Community Health, outpatients and rural outreach services.
25. Walter Reed Army Medical Center: The WRAMC is the U.S. Army flagship medical center, located in Washington, DC. It serves more than 150,000 active and retired personnel from all branches of the military. This hospital most recently made the news in 2007 for cases of alleged neglect reported by outpatient soldiers and their family members. The controversy and investigation are ongoing and has spread to other military health facilities and throughout the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system.

In anticipation of the new outbreak this autumn, the government has been rushing to develop a swine flu vaccine to combat the effects. The first doses have been made generally available to the public this month. Many people are concerned about the swine flu vaccine, since there were stories of several complications and deaths from the last swine flu vaccine developed in the 1970s. The current vaccine is not the same developed then, and so far has had fewer jarmful side effects.

Swine Flu Vaccine Safety

With all vaccines there is the chance of unpleasant — and even deadly — side effects. However, the swine flu vaccine is considered as safe as vaccinations can be. Testing has been thorough in a number of age groups. Military personnel were required to be vaccinated, and this population has been closely monitored for ill effects. So far, the effects have been minimal, and the vaccine is considered mostly safe. The injected version of the swine flu vaccine does not contain a live virus. Instead it has viral proteins. The nasal version does have a weakened form of the virus, however.

For those who are allergic to eggs, getting the swine flu vaccine is a bad idea, since chicken eggs are used in the production. The swine flu vaccine is also not recommended for infants under the age of six months. Instead, caregivers are encouraged to get vaccine in order to avoid contracting swine flu and passing it on to infants. Side effects of the swine flu vaccine include the effects you are likely to see with any seasonal flu vaccination:

• Pain at injection site
• Muscle aches
• Malaise
• Runny nose
• Mild, short-lived flu symptoms (with the nasal vaccine)

In some cases another reaction might be seen, and in extremely rare cases some sort of disorder, such as Guillian Barre Syndrome, or death may occur. Many medical professionals agree that the risks posed by the swine flu vaccine are low as compared to the risk of complications from the swine flu, which is more aggressive than the seasonal flu.

Recommendations for the Swine Flu Vaccine

You should realize that the seasonal flu vaccine will not provide adequate protection against the swine flu. These are two different types of flu, and one vaccine will not protect you from both. This means that getting the swine flu vaccine will not protect against the seasonal flu.It is recommended that you get both vaccinations in order to receive protection from both these types of flus. You can get the injections at the same time, but if you use the nasal spray versions, you should separate the vaccinations out by a month.

There are some groups that are at greater risk for the swine flu. In addition to health care providers, emergency responders and those who work with children on a regular basis (teachers and caregivers), here are those who should receive the swine flu vaccine:

• Pregnant women
• Those between the ages of six months and 24 years old
• Those between the ages of 24 and 65 years old with health conditions that increases the risk of contracting a disease

Interestingly, those who are over the age of 65 in good health are not as susceptible to swine flu as those who are younger and in good health. This age group is considered the least likely to get sick from the swine flu.

Adults should get one dose of the swine flu vaccine. Children under the age of 10, however, need two doses in order to ensure immunity. There should be a month’s period of time between the two doses of the swine flu vaccine for children. Healthy adults should wait until higher-risk populations have received the vaccine before getting vaccinated. Limited amounts of the swine flu vaccine will be initially available, so it is important to make sure those with a higher risk of death from complications due to the swine flu be vaccinated first.

If you have already had the swine flu, there is no need to receive the vaccine. It won’t harm you, but it is fairly pointless to do so if you have already suffered from swine flu.

Information About the Swine Flu

The H1N1 flu, also called swine flu, is a rather unpleasant illness that is a strain of influenza with a genetic combination of swine flu, human flu and avian flu viruses. The symptoms are quite similar the seasonal flu, but might be a little more aggressive. Some of the symptoms include headache, chills, cough, fever, diarrhea, fatigue, sore throat and vomiting. The swine flu also lasts a little bit longer than the seasonal flu, averaging about eight days, although symptoms can last for anywhere between five days and 12 days.

H1N1 can cause complications in those who have chronic conditions, such as asthma, heart problems and other issues. Additionally, swine flu can result in death for young children, and threaten the health of pregnant women. While healthy adults can mostly expect to recover, the process is considered quite unpleasant, and the vaccine, which is covered by most health insurance plans, can save the hassle.

Those with the swine flu are encouraged to stay home from school or work, since H1N1 is high contagious. Symptoms usually appear about three to five days from exposure. It is important to take preventative measures, such as washing your hands frequently, and coughing or sneezing into your elbow, rather than onto your hands. Use proper hygiene, and avoid places where the risk of catching the swine flu might be greater.

Since the swine flu has been identified as a pandemic, there is a chance that you will be exposed to it. You can protect yourself — and those around you — by getting vaccinated.

You can learn more about the swine flu and the swine flu vaccine from the following resources:

• Centers for Disease Control
• Flu.gov
• Medline Plus
• World Health Organization
• Web MD
• Scientific American
• Parenting.com

General Biology Blogs

Get a general idea of what is going on in biology. The science of the body is quite interesting, and many breakthroughs are being made. Get a front row seat to the many advancements related to human and non-human biology.

1. a simple prop: A great view of the biology world, written by a biology teacher at Arizona State University.
2. Twisted Bacteria: An interesting look at microbiology. Includes scientific information, videos and interesting images.
3. Gene Expression: This biologically based blog is focused on the science of genetics and the breakthroughs in that particular area of interest.
4. The Wild Side: This is the New York Times‘ evolutionary biology blog. An interesting look at nature, biology and the advancement of technology.
5. Life Science: This is the blog about biology and life sciences from ScienceBlogs. An interest blog that offers insight into human and animal biology, and breakthroughs in our understanding of fundamental principles.
6. Biology in Science Fiction: Now this is cool. A look at how biology is used in science fiction. Offers scientific background for some scientific advancements of the fictional future, and debunks others.
7. Discovering Biology in a Digital World: A look at science and biology in a digital era. An interesting look at how technology makes biology even more interesting and accessible.
8. Extreme Biology Blog: Learn about the most extreme cases of biology, and what we can learn to advance our own knowledge and improve our technology.
9. Institute of Biology blog: This is the blog associated with the Institute of Biology, an organization that works to promote biological sciences. Include interesting information on biotech.
10. Biology News Net: Biology breakthroughs and the latest news in biotech and other biology related science.
11. Biology-blog.com: Get the latest information on biological breakthroughs, as well as insight on how nature can be used to help us develop more interesting technologies.

Biology: Science and Technology

Science and technology blogs offer insights into the latest scientific breakthroughs and information about technological advancement. Many of these blogs are in some way related to biotech and the advancement of our knowledge.

12. Sandwalk: A biochemistry blog that looks into the fusion of biology and chemistry. Provides commentary on the latest science news and happenings, sprinkled with a little attitude.
13. Science Blog: A great look at science and technology from a variety of fields and viewpoints. Includes information on biology and biotechnology, as well as medicine, physics and other scientific communities.
14. Everyday Scientist: Pulls out some interesting — and every day — facts about science and personal observations.
15. Observations: A cool blog from Scientific American addressing issues in scientific advancement. It’s meant to be easy to read, and helpful in terms of letting you see how technology is coming out of science.
16. Wired Science: One of the pre-eminent technology sites, Wired, has a science blog. And it is cool. Includes information on biotech as well as other science and technology breakthroughs.
17. The Sceptical Chymist: An interesting look at chemistry from nature. Includes interesting information on what we can learn from nature in our daily lives and for scientific advancement.
18. Biocurious: An interesting biophysics blog that looks at biology at a very basic level, as well as how to use it to advance technology.
19. Stan’s NMR Blog: Great blog with all sorts of information on nuclear magnetic resonance. It is worth noting, of course, that NMR has biological applications, and those are addressed on this blog as well.
20. Philosophy to Chemistry to Elucidation: An interesting look at different aspects of chemistry, physics and even biology as part of the scientific advancement of technology and knowledge.
21. JC Says: A look at NMR, and its various uses. This blog is only sporadically updated, but it contains interesting information when it is.

Biotech News and Breakthroughs

Learn about the latest scientific breakthroughs in the field of biology, and get the newest information on biotechnology.

22. Biotechnology: This blog is devoted to biotech news and the latest happenings in the field. Also includes commentary.
23. Terry Etherton Blog on Biotechnology: This blog is written by a professor at Penn State. The blog includes news and information on biotech, and how it applies in our lives.
24. Biotech 360: A blog devoted to news and breakthroughs in the world of biotechnology.
25. Bio Screening Industry News: A blog that looks at biotech and how it is advancing to help those with diseases and with other problems.
26. BioSpace: Offers news, information and helpful links on all things related to biotech and scientific breakthroughs in the field.
27. Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News: Just what it sounds like: news from the world of genetics and biotechnology. Advancements and breakthroughs at the genetic level.
28. Biotechnology News: This blog is from ScienceDaily, and addresses the latest happenings in the world of biotech.
29. The Biotech Weblog: Latest news and information on biotech advancements.
30. BioWorld Online: The latest news and information on technology, as well as biotech business news.
31. China Biotechnology: Get information from the Business Exchange at BusinessWeek. This is news straight out of China, one of the emerging powerhouses in biotechnology.
32. Biotech News, Blogs and Jobs: Pulls from information across the web, focusing on biotech news and information.

Pharma Blogs

One of the biggest applications of biotechnology is pharmaceuticals. Get the latest information on the pharma advancements that come out of biotech.

33. In the Pipeline: A look at what pharma is coming up with next, using biotechnology to develop the latest drugs.
34. Pharmablogger: Commentary, from an employee at a pharmaceutical representative, on the latest happenings in the world of big pharma.
35. PharmaGossip: Get the latest happenings in drug development and news.
36. Pharma Blog Review: A look at biotech and pharmaceutical developments.
37. Pharma Strategy Blog: This is a blog aimed at pharma professionals, but it also includes interesting information on the latest drug developments and biotech breakthroughs.
38. Pharma’s Cutting Edge: This blog is updated sporadically, but contains a treasure trove of information and insightful essays about the latest developments in biotech and pharma.
39. Pharma Marketing Blog: The latest happenings in the pharma industry, and the technology behind the latest drug breakthroughs.
40. Pharma Marketing Network: Includes news posts and information geared toward pharma professionals.
41. Seeking Alpha’s Biotech Sector: See the latest in pharma stocks and information on the cutting edge of biotechnology.

Biotech Policy and Law Blogs

Biotechnology offers an interesting array of interesting policy questions and legal issues. Find out what’s happening in the world of pharmacy law and policy.

42. Biotech Blog: This blog looks at legal, commercial and policy questions related biotechnology and pharma.
43. Drug Wonks: Policy news and information about big pharma and the biotech industry.
44. MaRS Blog: This is a Canadian blog about the policies and laws surrounding biotech and drug development.
45. Eye on the FDA: A look at drug policy and how biotech developments are handled by the U.S. government.
46. Health Care Renewal: A look at the health care industry, big pharma and how biotech advancements are actually used in our society.
47. Black Triangle: Pharma an biotech policy and consumer information, from a British perspective.
48. Life Sciences Lawyer: Issues in biotechnology and business.
49. California Biotech Law Blog: An interesting look at news and information related to biotech law in California.
50. Patent Baristas: Follow patent law and information on inventions and processes related to biotech and pharma.