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Submitted by PatientsEngage on 8 June 2020

A handy list of resources for living with the coronavirus and managing your chronic conditions. Just look for your condition below. If you don't find what you are looking for, please leave a comment and we will get back to you.    

We must live with Covid-19 pandemic for a while. For people with chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, chronic kidney disease, rheumatic conditions, pulmonary conditions, it is even more essential to manage these conditions better. For e.g. a person whose blood sugars are under control is better equipped to deal with the coronavirus infection. 

As we prepare for the easing of restrictions, we must be aware of the risks of infection associated with it and mitigate these risks by practicing safety guidelines viz. mask hygiene, regular washing and sanitisation of hands, and maintaining safe distance at all times. 

We must also recognise that we cannot delay seeking help and treatment of our chronic conditions, and seek out the doctor. The process of these has changed in some places. While some places have started OPDs, most still require that you first connect and consult with the doctor through telemedicine. If the doctor advises you to go for tests or go see the doctor in person, please go ahead and not delay diagnosis and treatment. Do not let your fear of Covid-19 risk overtake your need for timely care.

We have also compiled resources for various conditions. Click on the topics you are interested in to get a detailed understanding of your specific condition. If you have specific questions, you can ask in our discussion forums or contact us at  https://www.patientsengage.com/contact

Cancer

1. How to manage cancer treatment during Covid-19 by Dr. Vinay Deshmane, Consultant in Surgical Oncology & Breast Diseases and Medical Director and Jnt. Hon secretary of the Indian Cancer Society. Link to the webinar recording.

2.Also, here is the link to the key notes from the recording of the above webinar    

Diabetes 

1. How to live well with Diabetes during Covid-19 by Dr. Debashis Basu, Diabetes Awareness and You

2. How to manage diabetes during Covid-19 lockdown by Dr. Piya Balani Thakkar. Summary of her webinar recording

2a. How to manage diabetes during Covid-19 lockdown by Dr. Piya Balani Thakkar. Link to the webinar recording

Dementia

1. Dementia Home Care, the COVID-19 infection risk, and Lockdown/ Unlock challenges

This is a good resource to track the impact of the changes due to lockdowns and re-opening of cities and areas and how it impacts dementia care and even elder care. Useful tips for family caregivers of persons with dementia.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      

 

Changed
13/Apr/2021

Stories

  • Stop Your Child Smoking
    Why your child is at risk and what to say to him or her. By Dr Shital Raval Patel. When you think of a smoker, you don’t think of a 10-year-old. But 67% of smokers in India start the tobacco habit between the ages of 9 and 15. According to the Global Youth Tobacco Survey (2006), more than one third of students aged 13 to 15 years (36.8%) reported initiating tobacco use before the age of 10 (Sinha et al., 2008). This could be cigarettes, bidis (which have three times the amount of nicotine and…
  • Just say No to Tobacco
    World No Tobacco Day is on May 31. Cancer survivor Vandana Gupta (VG), the founder of V Care, a support service for cancer patients and their families in India, talks about the urgent need to protect your kids and family members from the widespread scourge of tobacco use. Plus, what to say to kids who think smoking is cool.  PE: Your organisation, V Care, offers support to different types of cancer patients. What are the specific challenges pertaining to …
  • Stock pic of a person's teeth being examined by a dentist
    Dental Health and its influence on Systemic Diseases
    Maintaining good oral health is more than just about keeping cavities at bay. Your dental health has far-reaching consequences on your body, with oral bacteria being linked to many life-threatening conditions, like cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, renal health and even brain abcess. Oral hygiene and overall good health  Like many areas of the body, your mouth is teeming with bacteria, most of them harmless. Normally the body's natural defences and good oral health can keep these…
  • Turning a home into a hospital
    The idea of hospice care in my home overwhelmed me. I was very afraid of witnessing her physical deterioration and her death. At age 99, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Because of her advanced age, there was little to do except make the last months of her life comfortable. Her doctor arranged for home hospice care. But part of me wanted to place her in a nursing home.  When would she no longer be able to bathe herself ? When would she be bedridden ? Incontinent. Read on about how…
  • Kidney Donation and Gender Disparity
    A widely prevalent skew in kidney donation — gender disparity — is just as shocking as economic disparity, when the bald numbers are scanned. Doctors at Narayana Health, a large Bangalore-headquartered hospital chain run by well-known cardiac surgeon Devi Shetty, found that an overwhelming 65 per cent of kidney donors in its hospitals are women, whereas 70 per cent of kidney recipients are male. Kidney donation is a medically proven safe process that has no bearing on a person’s lifespan. Yet,…
  • Foods that increase Cancer risk
    1. Processed and Red Meat: contribute to colorectal cancer, the most common cancer in Singapore and one of the top 5 cancers in India as well as to stomach, breast, endometrium, oesophagus cancer. Regular consumption, even in small quantities increase your risk because of presence of nitrates and nitrites. 2. Cured and Salted Fish: Preserved fish are high in nitrates and nitrites and increase the risk of nasopharyngeal cancer.  Opt for oily fish like salmon, sardines and tuna which are…
  • Student aces A-level exams despite cancer
    He was diagnosed with colon cancer in his first year of junior college, which kept him away from school for four months. But that did not stop Hwa Chong Institution student Ng Yi Pin from catching up with his studies. He also managed to find the time and energy to tutor his older twin brother, Yi Yang, who studied in the same school. Yesterday, the 18-year-old scored eight As for his A levels. Yi Yang also made a marked improvement from his usual results. Yi Pin was in Secondary 4 when he…
  • Colon cancer at 27 did not stop her aiming for 5Km
    Choo Mei Sze from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia surprised doctors with her condition and then even more with her fighting spirit. The TV host/columnist/blogger/emcee shares her tips for coming back stronger than ever.  Please tell us a bit about your condition. I had stage 1b/2 colon cancer. The tumour was 1/3 the size of my colon and I had to remove 2/3 of my rectum and 12 cm of my colon, total of 18 lymph nodes. I had complications during the surgery as I had low blood…
  • Oliver Sacks on learning he has terminal cancer
    Oliver Sacks, professor of neurology at the New York University of Medicine. He had an ocular melanoma (a rare tumor of the eye), the treatment of which with lasers and radiations left him blind in that eye. On discovering that he had multiple metastases in the liver, he wrote this lovely piece.   "It is up to me now to choose how to live out the months that remain to me. I have to live in the richest, deepest, most productive way I can" "Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking…
  • Fruit consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes
    We get this question so often from people with diabetes who are worried about eating fruit that we thought we should share this research extract. Please remember every time you eat a cup of fruit (not juice), you are not eating something unhealthy like a packet of chips or a sweet.  Greater consumption of specific whole fruits, particularly blueberries, grapes, and apples, is significantly associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, whereas greater consumption of fruit juice is…