Unfortunately, everybody eventually crosses paths with Father Time. 

And this is especially true where our bodies are concerned.

Do you know the expression, ‘out of sight, out of mind?’ Well, when was the last time you thought about your bones? You know, the hard, whitish tissue that makes up the skeleton inside your body.

Chances are, you haven’t given much thought about them unless you’ve had a specific problem, like breaking one. But Physicians First Messages is here to remind you that you should be leery of bone disease called Osteoporosis.

According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF), Osteoporosis is a bone disease that occurs when the body loses too much bone, makes too little bone, or both. As a result, bones become weak and may break from a fall or, in serious cases, from sneezing or minor bumps.

The NOF says about 54 million Americans have osteoporosis and low bone mass, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis. Suffice it to say, the older you get, the more prone you are to contract osteoporosis.

What are the risk factors, you ask? Well, according to WebMD, age (bone mass begins to decline after age 30); gender (women over the age of 50 have the greatest risk of developing osteoporosis, and are four times more likely to develop it then men); ethnicity (research has shown that Caucasian and Asian women are more likely to develop 
osteoporosis) and bone structure and body weight (petite and thin women have a greater risk of developing osteoporosis) are some of the major factors.  

In addition, prior history of breaking bones, cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption are other factors.

So what can we do to prevent and/or treat such a common disease?

Physicians First Messages urges you not to wait for something to happen before you act on osteoporosis. Don’t wait to break a bone via an accidental fall.  

Ask your doctor for other ways you can avoid this possible painful disease. In the long run, you’ll be doing yourself a favor. 
​ 

Sincerely,

John Calhoun

Owner and operator

It’s time to think pink again.

And in doing so, you’ll without a doubt be aiding a worthy cause.

October, of course, is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Physicians First
Messages is here to remind you that you can help fight this horrible
disease in a number of ways, big or small.

And we’re going to throw out several ideas where you can possibly help run
a fund-raiser with all proceeds going toward a Breast Cancer charity.

First and foremost, it doesn’t hurt to wear pink, whether it’s part of your
clothes, a pin, a ribbon or whatever. The mere sight of the color pink is a
reminder that it is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and you never know when
someone else will be influenced by it.

Ok, and as for the fund-raising events, for starters, how about running a
car wash with all the washers clad in pink. Hey, everybody needs their car
washed and when people see that it’s for a good cause, perhaps they’ll drop
in.

How about contacting your school principal or the president of the PTA and
organizing a pink ‘dress-down day.’’ You arrange the fee … maybe $1-2 to
participate … and every student, teacher and school worker that takes part
will wear pink on the day chosen.

And while we’re on the subject of school, if the ‘dress-down day’’ doesn’t
come to fruition, how about an all-pink bake sale? Have participating
students donate baked goods, all in pink, of course, with the proceeds
being donated.

You can, of course, form a team of runners and join a local road race with
sponsors promising x amount of money for every mile you run. Naturally,
while you compete, you’ll be donned in pink.

Want to do something fun without the hassle of setting and cleaning up? How
about organizing a Bowling Night? Perhaps you can get the local bowling
alley to donate a lane or two toward the cause. Anybody that participates
will donate a suggested price toward the cause with the proceeds, of
course, going to charity.

There’s a number of other things that can also be done, the key is getting
support behind your project and taking the time to plan. Now that it’s
October, there’s no better time to do so.

And, please keep in mind that it’s certainly worth your time and effort. In
case you didn’t know, breast cancer is the second leading cause of death
among women and, although it’s a rare occurrence, the disease can also
attack men as well.

Remember, the best way to fight Breast Cancer, as well as any other type of
cancer, is through early detection. Both women and men should have breast
self-exams or have a mammogram (an x-ray that allows a specialist to
examine breast tissue) annually.

The National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc., says that maintaining a
balanced diet and a healthy weight, living an active lifestyle (running or
playing tennis are just two examples) and refraining from smoking or
limiting alcohol intake can help reduce your risk of getting breast cancer.

Won’t you do your part in fighting such a terrible disease as Breast
Cancer? The time is right and Physicians First Messages encourages you to
get involved, no matter how big or small your contribution is.

Sincerely,

John Calhoun

Owner and operator

Hurricane Matthew is in the headlines this week as the monster storm readies to make landfall. After the devastation it left behind in Haiti with deaths, power outages and flooding, many of us are only too familiar with storm preparation not just at our homes but our places of business. Just in the past few days we've been fielding dozens of calls from our clients all up and down the eastern seaboard along the storm's predicted path. 

If there’s one thing we’ve learned over the last 14 years or so it’s that disaster can strike at any time.

Although we’d like to think we’ll never see anything similar to the World Trade Center attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 or Hurricane Sandy again, truth of the matter is we just don’t know. Bottom line is, anything can happen at any time.

Unfortunately, following the 9/11 attacks, Physicians First Messages was ground zero and, in turn, all of our doctors’ offices were left without an answering service.

The good news is, PFMI took extreme measures to upgrade our system following the 9/11 tragedy and, I’m happy to inform you, that when Super storm Sandy hit on Oct. 29, 2012, our company didn’t miss a beat in terms of providing our usual, reliable service.