New Books in the Waiting Rooms

Everyone hates to wait. Especially in a urologist's office where patients dread coming in, dread what might happen and dread that it might hurt or be embarrassing.

We try to have as short a wait time as possible for our patients. We know your time is valuable and many of you have had to take off work or make arrangements for child care so you could come for your appointment.







As you know, we have the usual waiting room magazines: Oprah, Time, Architectural Digest, National Geographic, Reader's Digest Large Print, Self, Good Housekeeping, and the occasional Car and Driver.


Recently we added a few small books that have a wealth of information about some things you might have wondered about but didn't know exactly who to ask or where to find out.


And since we are plumbers, after all, it only seemed appropriate that we have these two books not only in the waiting room but in each exam room as well.

These are both really funny but very informative books. We hope you enjoy them.

Why No E-mail?

Lately we have had a number of patients who would like to be able to ask questions or communicate with Dr. Roesel via e-mail.  Our practice does not use e-mail as a form of communication with patients except for sending blank forms such as registration or medical history forms which are nice if they are completed and returned before your first appointment.

The reasons for this are several.  First, and most importantly, e-mail communications are not secure.  There are privacy laws that protect your medical information from being released to anyone but yourself and your designated individuals.  If we send medical information to you via e-mail we have no control over who could access your account and potentially see private information.

Second, all communications are considered to be part of the permanent medical records.  It is important that all questions and concerns are recorded in the record as well as the answers. We use an electronic medical record system which allows us to track calls, questions and answers and make them part of your medical record.   Although e-mails theoretically could be scanned into the record, it would be easy to forget or lose an e-mail.

We understand that many physicians now offer a special level of service to patients who wish to pay an additional fee each year and this gives them wider access to the physician via e-mail or telephone.  Our practice gives each patient the best service possible and does not charge any additional fees.    When a call with a question or a problem comes into the office it is sent to the person who is best suited to answer it.  Many medical calls are handled by Dr. Roesel's nurse.  Billing questions are handled by Dr. Roesel's office manager.  Scheduling questions are handled by our receptionist.  Please rest assured that Dr. Roesel is aware of your calls but may not be the one who answers them.

We appreciate that everyone's time is very valuable and understand fully that convenience is an important part of saving time.  We make every attempt to help you obtain care in an efficient and timely manner.   We are sorry that we cannot use e-mail for important, and private medical information.  Please remember that you are always welcome to call us at 513-271-2862.

New Guy In Town

We have a new tenant in our waiting room.  He is a Fire Belly Toad and used to live with our nurse but heard our office is a pretty nice place to live so he moved in this month.

The underside of Fire Belly toads is very colorful.  Our guy usually hides in his den behind the plant in his cage or takes a soak in his private pool.  He is not too shy so you have a pretty good chance of seeing him the next time you come to the office.

Free Prostate Cancer Screening - It's a Man Thing

The purpose of prostate cancer screening is to detect prostate cancer at its earliest stages before any symptoms have developed.  As with any cancer, early detection is key.

The screening process involves a digital rectal exam (DRE) and a PSA blood test.  PSA stands for prostate specific antigen and it is a substance released in small amounts from prostate gland cells.  Other things besides cancer can cause an elevated PSA so the combination of the lab test and the DRE is used to determine if a man needs further work up.

During the month of July you can get a free prostate cancer screening if you mention that you read about it on this blog.  Your exam will be free and we will bill your insurance company for the PSA test.  Just call for a time:  it doesn't take long, you can even run in on your lunch hour if that works for you.  

It's better to know.

Father's Day

For all the fathers who are no longer with us

And all the fathers who are

And all the fathers-to-be

Happy Father's Day with love.

First Day of Summer

Today is officially the first day of Summer.   It is also known as the Summer Solstice and is the day of the year with the longest period of daylight and the shortest night.   This marks the first day of the season of Summer and will last until the first day of Autumn which falls on September 22 this year.  After the first day of Autumn the period of daylight will get shorter each day as the earth moves in its rotation around the Sun.

"Solstice" is derived from two Latin words: "sol" meaning sun, and "sistere" meaning to cause to stand still.  This is because, as the summer solstice approaches, the noonday sun rises higher and higher in the sky on each successive day.  On the day of the solstice, it rises an imperceptible amount compared to the day before.  In this sense, it "stands still."

People around the world have observed spiritual and religious seasonal days of celebration during the month of June. Most have been religious holy days which are linked in some way to the Summer Solstice.  Some of these  Summer Solstice celebrations are: Alban Heflin, Alben Heruin, All-couples day, Feast of Epona, Feast of St. John the Baptist, Feill-Sheathain, Gathering Day, Johannistag, Litha, Midsummer, Sonnwend, Thing-Tide and Vestailia just to name a few.   

And of course, there are many different forms of celebration of the Summer Solstice that have no religious connection at all.   These range from art festivals, parades, concerts and all kinds of parties.  Some of these parties involve quite a bit of nakedness.  There is a famous celebration at Stonehenge in England that brings thousands of visitors each year.  This is the only time that visitors are allowed to park for free, get free access to the monument and spend the whole night at Stonehenge.

We are happy to see the sun in the sky for so long these days.  We'd like to wish everyone a very wonderful first day of Summer and leave you with a little "mom-like" list of things to do to stay happy, healthy and safe:

1. Wear sunscreen

2. Wear your seatbelt

3. Wear clean underwear if you are going out

4. Drink lots of water

5. Don't smoke

6. Be kind to one another

7. Tell the people you love that you love them every chance you get

 

Father's Day thoughts.... to snip or not to snip?

Vasectomy. This word can make a grown man nervous and instinctively reach down to protect "the boys". Totally understandable. The idea of somebody cutting on your scrotum doesn't rank very high on many lists of favorites. But it doesn't have to be terrifying thing. Here is a short "True or False" quiz to take to see how much you know about a vasectomy. The answers follow below.

1. A vasectomy is the same thing as a neuter. The dog had a neuter and he came home with no testicles. T or F

2. If I have a vasectomy it will make my voice high and ruin my sex drive. T or F

3. A vasectomy is very painful. I will certainly suffer post traumatic stress disorder. T or F

4. You can resume sexual relations immediately after a vasectomy. T or F

5. Having a vasectomy is 100% effective in preventing pregnancy. T or F

And here are the answers:

1. False: A vasectomy involves the removal of a small part of each tube that carries sperm from each testicle to the penis. The testicles are NOT removed.

2. False: Testosterone is produced by the testicles and is responsible for sex drive and thickening of the vocal cords at puberty (leading to a deeper voice). Because the testicles are not removed, the amount of testosterone produced before the vasectomy will be the same afterwards.  The vocal cords will stay the way they are and your voice will remain as it was.

3. False: A vasectomy does not have to be painful - before, during or after. There are many very effective pain medications that are used to ensure your comfort. Dr. Roesel believes strongly in making any procedure as painless as possible and will explain this to you during your vasectomy consultation visit.

4. False: You must refrain from ejaculation for one week after the vasectomy to let things heal, and then you must continue to use another form of birth control until your semen is tested and found to be free of sperm.  Men who do not follow this advice may possibly be called "Dad" 9 months later.

5. False: Other than abstinence, there is no method of birth control that 100% effective. Vasectomy failure rate is between 0.5% and 1%. It is possible for the cut ends to grow back together and "recanalize" or reform a channel that sperm can get through. This is why the postop semen checks are so important.

If you are interested in having a vasectomy we encourage you to make an appointment to talk to Dr. Roesel. She will explain the procedure to you and if you like, she will put you in contact with patients who are willing to talk about their experience having their vasectomies done in our office.

Most insurance companies cover vasectomies but it is always a good idea to check your specific policy to see if this is a covered benefit for you. Our office is always happy to check for you and if needed, will obtain precertification or provide a letter of medical necessity to the insurance company. We can make the entire process as painless as possible... just give us a call.