Health
How to navigate Health appointments, medications, health insurance, and everything else one needs to know about today’s health system. This unit will help you understand how to do this on your own.
Health Insurance
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It is a safety net. You pay a company monthly for assurance that if something comes up, you won't go bankrupt from the cost
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There are different plans to choose from which vary between companies
When one is young there aren't many foreseeable health issues so paying the least amount is more affordable and preferable
If you have a health condition then you will want more coverage. That will be more costly, but in the long run with recurring payments and bills it will cost you less.
Using it
Typically you will pay Premiums, Deductibles, Co-Insurance, and Co-Pays when using Health Insurance. Usually, each of these resets at the beginning of each year.
Premiums: how much you pay monthly for the company’s services
Deductibles: the amount of money you must pay over the entire year before the insurance starts paying. For Example; If your medical bill is $8,000 and your annual deductible is $1,000 then you are responsible for $1,000 before the insurance company pays the other $7,000.
Co-Insurance: After you pay the deductible, this describes the proportion that you and the insurance company each pay for the remaining cost. As in the example above, with the remaining $7,000 if your health plan has a co-insurance of 80/20 proportion then you will be responsible for 20% of the $7,000 and the insurance company will pay the remaining 80%.
CoPays: A fixed amount of money you pay for specific services. For Example; A doctor visit could cost $300. If your insurance has a co-pay of $50 then you would pay only $50 for a doctor visit and the insurance company pays the balance of the doctors visit.
Finding a Doctor
To find a doctor
Within your network (insurance plan)
Talk to your family and friends about who they recommend as a good doctor.
Search online for the best doctor for what you need. This is done by consulting reviews usually found on medical websites, these are driven by the hospitals and offices the doctors work for.
Check to see if their service is covered by your plan
Call and make an appointment
At the appointment, the office will file a claim with your insurance upon arrival when you pay the copay or the deductible
If the doctor's office or hospital do it wrong you will be sent a bill
If the office or hospital does it correctly then the office will send you a summary of what you spent so you can look it over and make sure you did not overpay for the service
Medications
Prescriptions:
They are ordered by a doctor, physician’s assistant, or nurse practitioner The order is taken to a pharmacist who will dispense the medication and explain how you should use it.
The doctor will specify dosage and instructions during the appointment
You must ONLY take the medication as prescribed or it will not work as designed, it may harm you or be undereffective.
Follow the instructions for taking medication. The pharmacist will give you a brochure to tell you if you need to do anything before during or after taking the meds. The brochure details warnings
For Example: not drinking alcohol while on the meds or perhaps you may only take the meds on an empty stomach etc.
The doctor or pharmacy will bill the insurance and will charge you for your CoPay.
How to understand a prescription pill bottle
The number next to "Rx" is the prescription number, it identifies for the pharmacy what the prescription medicine is and all of the information connected to that specific order. When you want a refill you will need to provide that number.​
The number indicated by "QTY" is the number of pills inside the bottle.
The line under your name is the name of the medicine and the strength of each tablet, i.e. 5 MG means that they are five milligram tablets.
The line below that indicates whether you have received the generic or name brand form of the medicine. For example, whether you received pills with ibuprofen in them or Advil, the name brand that sells ibuprofen.
The next line indicates when to take the pill and how.
At the bottom of the bottle, there is a description of the pill's appearance, the manufacturer, and the doctor who prescribed it. Additionally, it will tell you when to discard the pills and how many more times you can get it refilled.
The side of the bottle will also contain information on side effects and cautions, i.e. do not take while driving/do not take with certain foods/do not take on empty stomach etc.
Mental & Physical Health
Keeping yourself physically and mentally healthy are very important things in all of your life, not just in early adulthood, here are some things that are recommended by experts to do just that.
Physical health:
Have a weekly total of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity ​
Two days of muscle strengthening activity
Go outside every day, the sun provides vitamin D which is vital for energy.
Eat energy dense and healthy foods.
Get good sleep. 7-10 hours per night are recommended for good health.
Mental health: Mental health and mental illness are different things, for help with mental illnesses everyone should go to a medical expert. But for general mental health and wellness the CDC recommends these things:
Coping with stress is one of the many things that plague every day life, it is natural. Though, we must learn to cope with it in healthy ways, like,​
Take care of yourself physically. Get active, get sleep, and breathe. ​​ Avoid using mind-altering substances.
Take time to relax and indulge in activities that you enjoy.
Connect with friends, family, and community. Humans are naturally social beings so being around others and bonding with your community is a big part of well-being.
Take breaks from the news media, it can be a large source of stress.​​​