Definition of a Chronic Condition

I got rather curious.  Who came up with that term, and what does it mean in general?  I know what ‘chronic condition’ means in my life, but what does the average reader think of when they see or hear this phrase.  I give credit to Wikipedia for the following information:

“The term Invisible Disabilities[1] refers to a person’s symptoms such as extreme fatigue, dizziness, pain, weakness, cognitive impairments, etc. that are sometimes or always debilitating. These symptoms can occur due to chronic illness, chronic pain, injury, birth disorders, etc. and are not always obvious to the onlooker. A person can have an invisible disability whether or not they have a ‘visible’ impairment or use an assistive device such as a wheelchair, walker or cane. For example, whether or not a person utilizes an assistive device, if they are restricted or limited by debilitating pain, fatigue, cognitive dysfunctions, dizziness, blurred vision, weakness, etc. these symptoms are their invisible disabilities.”[2] The Invisible Disabilities Advocate.

Some people with visual or auditory impairments who do not wear glasses or hearing aids may not be obviously impaired. (Some may wear contacts or have a cochlear implant instead.) A sitting disability is another category of invisible impairments. Sitting problems are usually caused by chronic back pain. Those with joint problems or chronic pain may not use mobility aids on good days, or at all. Other examples include Asperger syndrome, attention disorders (ADD/ADHD), brain injuries, chronic pain, chronic fatigue syndrome, chemical sensitivities, fibromyalgia, epilepsy, and repetitive stress injuries.

Invisible disabilities can also include chronic illnesses such as renal failure and diabetes if those diseases significantly impair normal activities of daily living.

The article continues on, listing types of disabilities:  autoimmune, chronic pain, dietary, neurological, psychiatric, and multiple chemical sensitivity.  That was pretty eye-opening to me, to read some of the conditions listed under these different disabilities.  Let me leave you with just a bit more of their statistics cited from this article. . .

About 10% of Americans have a condition which could be considered an invisible disability.

• Nearly one in two Americans (133 million) has a chronic condition of one kind or another.^[1] According to this report, the most common chronic conditions are high blood pressure, arthritis, respiratory diseases like emphysema, and high cholesterol.

• That number is projected to increase by more than one percent per year by 2030, resulting in an estimated chronically ill population of 171 million.^[2]

• 96% of them live with an illness that is invisible. These people do not use a cane or any assistive device and may look, act, and feel perfectly healthy.^[3]

• 25% of people in the U.S. with a chronic condition have some type of activity limitation; the remaining 75% are not disabled by their chronic conditions.[4]

• 60% are between the ages of 18 and 64.^[4]

• 90% of seniors have at least one chronic disease and 77% have two or more chronic diseases.^[5]

 

HIPAA

Suffice it to say I have spent a fair amount of time having to know about HIPAA rules.  Furthermore, my employer puts a higher priority on it than most.  So I was assured throughout this process that all of my information was so confidential. . . ergo, the reason I have been so evasive during these posts.  Doesn’t make sense?  I didn’t believe them!

Whaddaya know?  I was right.  Information missing, vital information, and it is revealed to me by a slip of the tongue just exactly how it might have gotten lost.  Now, you either have all that information kept at your own desk for your eyes only ~ or you don’t.  Some questions are just black and white.

As my SO stated so eloquently last night upon this discovery, the parties involved probably wouldn’t realize that we would very likely know coworkers who could be walking around with all of my medical information.  We grew up in the backyard of my employer.

Now, this is not a violation of HIPAA.  Not whatsoever.  However, I have been told since the day I began working here how very protected my medical information is.  I work  there, and we are all human. Mistakes happen.  Papers get dropped when carried from office to office, etc.  But that is not what was told to me.  I asked point blank about the ‘rabbit trail’ of paperwork, and was told it went directly to the intended person.  No shortcuts.  It is my nature to begin questioning a lot of things when the little things start having holes in the story.  A dam doesn’t break overnight, but generally has pressure building over time.

Can I control this?  No.  Am I happy about it?  No.  Does it encourage open & forthcoming communication from me?  No.  By my very nature I cannot lie.  My face literally distorts when I even try to deceive someone.  I work very hard to find something positive to say when I am asked my opinion about something, and I have to come up with something that won’t utterly destroy a person who has just made a major decision.  Please don’t ask me! 

On the other hand, when I am the recipient of such situations I am going to put my guard up.  I will give others the benefit of the doubt all day until they give me reason to do otherwise.  Then I am likely to reveal as little about myself as I absolutely must.  For clarification of matters, this is hardly the first time this has occurred, but I did feel for a long time that I had some trust built up with one of the parties involved.  Others in the company definitely are not so compelled towards honesty. 

It is a character trait that I put at the top of my list when evaluating every person I come in contact with.  Is this a one-time situation because you are uncomfortable, or is this part of how you would be described?  There is a major difference between the two situations because to assign persistent lying as a character trait in someone who is in behaving in an unusual situational manner is a rush to judgment.  Soon you would find fault with everyone, and no one could measure up. 

We all have standards by which we judge people.  Hard for some people to admit, but it is true.  Sometimes it is by things that are beyond a person’s control, which is fairly defined as bigotry.  Sometimes it is based, as we are seeing, purely on a person’s political beliefs.  I am being honest ~ ha! ~ by saying this is probably the top critera factor by which I evaluate a person.  What is yours?