Hide

Error message here!

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link to create a new password.

Error message here!

Back to log-in

Close
CT scan of the patient's brain and the hand of a doctor.

82-year-old Stroke Survivor & Wife Travel From New Jersey to Oregon To Train with Tracy L. Markley

/28 October 2019/ All MFN blog/

Last year, I received an email from a wonderful woman who lives on the New Jersey Coast. She had read my books and wanted to know if she could fly herself and her 82-year-old stroke survivor husband to Florence Oregon, to train with me. She shard some stories of trainers refusing to work with him and those who did not have the knowledge needed. She also shared a couple stories about physical therapist not wanting to bother with using specific equipment that was needed for him. This is so disappointing. He is now almost 4 years post-stroke and she has still searched out some guidance toward a better recovery for him. It saddens me with all that she has gone through, but I am grateful that I could help, the best I know how. I made some great life time friends.

I am honored that she reached out to me.  I am still in “ahh”, by the whole experience. Often stroke survivors and their caregivers do not find the help needed to further their recovery after physical therapy ends. Unfortunately, some survivors do not even get good physical therapy in the crucial, early stages in recovery, when it is essentially needed. She shared with me some not so good experiences she and her husband had faced, like many others I have spoken with.

They arrived the last week of September 2018, and we met to train almost every day for 4 weeks. It was a productive training month for him. He made some important gains, but has much more hard work to do. I am helping them find a professional near them with the neuro and biomechanics knowledge, needed to bring him further in recovery.

She shared with me that what sold her to come see me was a handwritten note I sent to her inside of the book order she had. She ordered “The Stroke of An Artist, The Journey of A Fitness Trainer and a Stroke Survivor.”  I knew she would get more out of help with that book if I sent her my second book “Tipping Toward Balance, A Fitness Trainer’s Guide to Stability and Balance.” I included it with the other book as a gift.  I had no idea that that would lead to her and her husband taking a journey from the Jersey coast to the Oregon coast to train with me in person.  It is very special.

I have surveyed 100s of stroke survivors in the challenges they have faced finding good guidance in further recovery. Even though there are good stories, there were a much higher amount of disappointing experiences many survivors and their caregivers have faced. Some keep pushing forward and some gave up.


Article reprinted with permission from Tracy Markley. 

Fitness Specialist and Educator Tracy Markley is the Founder of Tracy’s Personal Training, Pilates & Yoga in Florence, OR. Tracy has over 2 decades experience in the fitness industry; she holds numerous specialty certifications, including many for those with medical conditions & chronic disease. She’s also studied the Brain and the neurological system, and has had great success working with seniors and special populations in stroke recovery, neurological challenges and fall prevention. Tracy also serves on the MedFit Education Foundation Advisory Board

She’s authored 3 books: “The Stroke of An Artist, The Journey of A Fitness Trainer and A Stroke Survivor” and “Tipping Toward Balance, A Fitness Trainer’s Guide to Stability and Walking” and “Stroke Recovery, What Now? When Physical Therapy Ends, But Your Recovery Continues”. Her books bring hope, knowledge and exercises to those in need, as well as sharing her knowledge and experience with other fitness professionals.

brain-neurons

Why Fitness Professionals Must Learn to Help Mature Adults with Brain Health

/5 September 2019/ All MFN blog/

Humanity is racing toward a brain-health crisis, according to the World Health Organization. The number of people with dementia is expected to triple in the next three decades.

The helpful news from WHO is this: Exercise plays a key role in fighting cognitive decline and dementia.

So, those of us in the fitness industry have a greater chance than ever to make a big impact by including brain health in our training and interactions with people over 50.

That’s the message of Ryan Glatt, a brain health coach at the Pacific Brain Health Center.  Ryan and the Functional Aging Institute worked together to bring you the Brain Health Trainer Certification. It’s a unique program that teaches about the connections between brain and body health – and about how fitness professionals can help mature adults with both.

“We can play a significant role in delivering exercise interventions for the primary outcome of brain health, and not just as a secondary benefit of exercising,” Ryan says. “We need to do more.”

Fitness professionals have three steps to follow, he says.

  1. Educating the public about the cognitive benefits of exercise.
  2. Referring people with possible cognitive decline to doctors for early intervention – much like physical therapists refer patients to relevant medical professionals.
  3. Building exercise programming to create primary brain-health results.

Trainers need to encourage clients to have a well-rounded exercise routine that includes balance, resistance training, and cardio work. It helps to know how some activities can have specific benefits on memory, attention and other brain functions. That includes, for instance, dance, sports and martial arts, which involve some level of choreography, which is good for the memory.

Even in initial assessments with prospective clients, fitness pros can learn to raise the topic, Ryan says. For example, if a prospect in her 50s says she wants to lose weight, you can bring up the topic of brain health even at that early stage. “There’s a growing body of research that links exercise to brain health,” you might say. “Does that sound like something you’d like to work on, as well?”

That can open the conversation to topics that might indicate a referral is necessary – or help you build a fitness program to address them.

“We like to tell people that exercise will help them be able to play with their grandkids,” Ryan points out. “But we can also help train them so that they also can remember their grandkids’ names better.”

Brain health is a big, rich topic that we’re going to be hearing more about. Any fitness professional helping mature people live well should be educated on how to help with their brain health, too.

Ryan Glatt, FAFS, BSc is a psychometrist and Brain Health Coach at the Brain Health Center in the Pacific Neuroscience Institute. With a strong background in exercise science and human health, Ryan develops curricula specifically targeted towards those with dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), and traumatic brain injury, coaching individuals towards optimal brain health. 

ORTHOPEDICS CONSULTATION WOMAN

If You Can’t Beat It, Use It: An Exercise Guide to Post-Joint Replacement Wellness

/23 July 2019/ All MFN blog/

It all started over 40 years ago, when I chose as my sport – some would say, my life – the Korean martial art of Tae Kwon Do. I was young, fit, pretty strong and, unbeknownst to me, very flexible – perfect for the art of kicking high and hard. Once I got hooked on it, I was in the gym a few hours a day, 6-7 days a week…for the next almost 20 years. That did not include the running I did to get my cardiovascular conditioning primed for the art and sport I was practicing at high levels of both skill and competition. I knew then, at age 19, that I was going to pay for the training and abuse I was putting my body through, but not until I was older, say, 40 or so.

Senior woman with help of physiotherapist

Cancer Wellness Within Healthcare – A Date With Destiny

/22 July 2019/ All MFN blog/

There are three distinct areas of exercise as it relates to healthcare – and reimbursement. Most trainers and fitness professionals are aware of cardiac rehab, which actually began in the US in the 1960s, but gained ground as a reimbursable health care service in the 1980s. At that time there was a lot of good exercise and sports medicine research available in peer reviewed publications, and there was a push on the part of health care to include cardiac rehab as part of rehab and health promotion services. The fact that most cardiac programs were reimbursed up to 36 sessions was a plus.

The second area of healthcare that is relatively new is the Silver Sneaker’s program – started in Arizona in 1994, it quickly grew to the nation’s leading reimbursable wellness program for seniors. It was accepted by Medicare Plus

Active seniors

Choice, and a host of other health plans across the nation – so that within a few years of its inception, seniors from anywhere in the US could take advantage of free exercise and health classes at area health clubs, YMCAs, and JCCs. The program was recently sold to Healthways health systems from Nashville for over $400 million – a testament to the interest of such programs within the healthcare industry.

The third area is the use of exercise therapy in worker’s compensation programming. Over the past decade there are some significant programs implemented that contract with large employer groups and HMOs to use exercise both in a preventive and therapeutic format. These programs include strength and aerobic training geared to improve functional strength, reduce WC costs and reduce lost work days. Clearly these areas of clinical exercise have set a precedent regarding both the use of fitness programs in healthcare, and reimbursement for these programs through third parties.

Enter Cancer Wellness. There were few programs for cancer survivors for any type of health program in the early 1990’s. A few health clubs and hospitals had specialty exercises for persons with cancer, but programs really started to grow when Dr. Meryl Winningham from University of Utah began publishing the first sports medicine research in the field in the 1980’s (which became more widely read in the mid 1990’s), and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong made his remarkable comeback from cancer in the late 1990’s. Over the past decade the number of health clubs and hospital wellness centers that offer cancer exercise programs has grown exponentially. There are now hundreds of programs in existence nationally – in clubs, private training centers, Pilates studios, and hospitals. More are interested, but the main question remains – is this program reimbursable?

For those in health promotion who haven’t noticed – reimbursement has changed dramatically in the past 10 years. Programs that historically received reimbursement (such as cardiac rehab), have been cut dramatically (while, ironically, cardiac operations and prescription medication costs have escalated three-fold). However – that doesn’t mean that reimbursement doesn’t exist for health programs, you just have to know where to look. An example is smoking cessation classes. Instructed by counselors and physician assistants, most of the reimbursement for these classes (and nicotine replacement therapy) is funded by state tobacco settlement grants and initiatives, which is very helpful in terms of passing along savings to patients.

Is reimbursement possible for cancer wellness? Select groups from areas in the US are working with local health plans, or pharmaceutical companies to capture their markets in terms of offerings to patients. For those who are interested in looking towards reimbursement for their program – here is some advice for getting started:

  1. Find out how many persons in your region are cancer survivors. Your local cancer treatment center should have statistics. Most areas have well over 1,000 new cases per year. You may also market to persons who have had cancer diagnosed years before. They may still attend support groups, or be on mailing lists from the same cancer centers.
  2. Establish a relationship with a local oncologist or treatment center. You may be able to hold exercise programs on-site and bill through your community local oncology or rehab clinic. This is similar to billing for group therapy or physical therapy. However – it should be remembered that this is a wellness program, and there are specific wellness codes that physicians and billing departments can bill under.
  3. Know your billing codes. In order to receive any form of reimbursement – you should know the system you are working in. There are resources that may assist you in learning coding for wellness programs, and you should take advantage of them (see resource section).
  4. Know what outcomes you are interested in reporting. For many cancer patients, a reduction in lymphedema, less pain and fatigue, and increases in fitness parameters are an excellent way to show that the program is working well. Improving these outcomes will also boost attendance, which is another important aspect of the program (compliance).
  5. Look for local sponsors. A proposal to local pharmaceutical reps may increase your odds of receiving reimbursement – through a third party such as a pharma company. They often set aside money in their budgets for health programs, and cancer wellness may fit the bill very well.

Health Care Collage Words Medicine BackgroundWhat to do once you’re up and running? In the first year it’s important to have a working budget. This may only lend itself to 3-5 patients coming to your program to start. Once they experience the benefits of exercise and wellness, they will quickly tell their fellow patients. It’s also important to spread the word via small group lectures and fitness demonstrations. Since most cancer centers have monthly support groups, it’s a great place to conduct a 30 minute lecture and demonstration for local survivors. Next – a couple of sample articles for the local newspaper (perhaps a series) on the benefits of exercise for cancer survivorship. There are new research reports out each month. Lastly – call your local radio show and book a time to discuss exercise for cancer survivorship. They would love to have a topic like this for their time slots.

The initial year is a “make or break” one for survivor programs. In my experience with many of my national programs – those that got some funding, and did some promotion have programs that have grown. Those who relied solely on patient membership fees in many cases have not been able to grow their programs. Funding is important, and reimbursement may be a part of patient’s health plans, so it would benefit you to contact local health plan reps to see if they cover the cost of post rehab exercise, and/or health club membership for their members.

Cancer Wellness is one of a handful of growing wellness programs in this country that health specialists AND physicians are looking to for avenues of increased reimbursement, or sponsorship. There are many local and regional resources (cancer treatment centers, non profit organizations and foundations, pharmaceutical companies, and regional HMOs) that may be interested in funding such programs. It is up to you to start looking for financing as you start your education program. This will ensure future success at both the educational AND financial levels.

Written by Eric Durak, Medical Health and Fitness ©2011-2014. Eric Durak is the President of Medical Health and Fitness, and Director of the Cancer Wellness CEU Program in Santa Barbara, CA. He is also the author of The Reimbursement Book for Health and Fitness Instructors . Contact him at edurak@medhealthfit.com / 805-451-8072. www.medhealthfit.com

References
Durak, EP. The important link between exercise and cancer. ACE Matters. Pg. 13, Sept. 1999
Author – Exercise reduces cancer treatment side effects. Health News. 12(9):pg.8, 2006
Jones, LW, Denmark-Wahnefried, W. Diet, exercise, and complementary therapies after primary treatment for cancer. Lancet Oncology. 7(12):1017-26, 2006.
Korstjens, I, Mesters, I, et al. Quality of life of cancer survivors after physical and psychosocial rehabilitation. European Journal of Cancer Prevention. 15(6): 541-7, 2006.