www.benefitoptions.az.gov/wellness
In the United States, about 250,000 people are
admitted to a hospital each year because of blood
clots that develop in the deep veins (deep vein
thrombosis). However, because many
people with deep vein thrombosis do not
have symptoms, experts have estimated as
many as 600,000 people may be affected.
What is deep vein thrombosis?
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a blood clot
or thrombus in a deep vein of the body.
Blood clots form when blood thickens and
clumps together. DVT most often occurs in
the calf and thigh veins. Deep vein blood clots are
particularly dangerous because they can break loose,
travel through the bloodstream to the lungs, and block
blood flow in the lungs causing a pulmonary
embolism (PE). DVT requires immediate medical care
due to the often life-threatening nature of pulmonary
embolism and the possible long lasting problems.
What Causes Deep Vein Thrombosis?
Blood clots can form in your body's deep veins when:
• Damage occurs to a vein's inner lining. This
damage may result from injuries caused by physical,
chemical, and biological factors. Such factors include
surgery, serious injury, inflammation, or an immune
response.
• Blood flow is sluggish or slow due to lack of
motion. This may occur after surgery, if ill and in bed
for a long time, or if traveling for a long time.
• Your blood is thicker or more likely to clot than
usual. Certain inherited conditions increase blood's
tendency to clot. This also is true of treatment with
hormone replacement therapy or birth control pills.
What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Deep
Vein Thrombosis?
The signs and symptoms of deep vein thrombosis
(DVT) may be related to DVT itself or to pulmonary
embolism (PE). See your doctor right away if you have
symptoms of either.
Deep Vein Thrombosis
Only about half of the people with DVT have
symptoms. These symptoms occur in the leg affected
by the deep vein clot.
• Swelling of the leg or along a vein in the leg
• Pain or tenderness in the leg, which you may feel
only when standing or walking
• Increased warmth in the area of the leg that's
swollen or in pain
• Red or discolored skin on the leg
Pulmonary Embolism
Some people do not know they have DVT until they
have signs or symptoms of PE.
December
2008
From the Arizona
Department of
Administration,
Benefit Options
Wellness Program
Page 1
Symptoms of PE include:
• Unexplained shortness of breath
• Pain with deep breathing
• Coughing up blood
• Rapid breathing and a fast heart rate
How is deep vein thrombosis diagnosed
and treated?
If your doctor suspects that you have DVT,
you probably will have an ultrasound test to
measure the blood flow through your veins
and help find any clots that might be blocking the flow.
Treatment begins right away to reduce the chance that
the blood clot will grow or break loose and flow to your
lungs.
Treatment for DVT usually involves taking blood
thinners such as heparin and warfarin at least 3 months
to prevent existing clots from growing. Doctors may
also recommend propping or elevating the affected leg
when possible, using a heating pad, taking walks, and
wearing compression stockings. These measures may
help reduce the pain and swelling that can happen with
DVT.
Who Is At Risk for Deep Vein Thrombosis?
Many factors increase the risk of DVT including:
• A history of DVT or certain inherited blood
disorders that cause blood to thicken
• Injury to a deep vein from surgery, a broken bone,
or other trauma.
• Slow blood flow in a deep vein from lack of
movement or obesity
• Pregnancy and the first 6 weeks after giving birth.
• Recent or ongoing treatment for cancer.
• Being older than 40 (although DVT can occur in any
age group).
How Can Deep Vein Thrombosis Be Prevented?
If you are at risk for DVT or PE you can help prevent the
condition by:
• Seeing your doctor for regular checkups and taking
all prescribed medications
• Getting out of bed and moving around as soon as
possible after surgery or illness.
• Exercising your leg muscles hourly during long trips
• Avoid alcohol and beverages with caffeine
Sources:
National Heart Lung and Blood Institute,
www.nhlbi.hih.gov/heatlh/dci/index/html
WebMD, www.webmd.com/dvt/default.htm
December
2008
Page 2 Upcoming Events
Hang on to your Health Cards
Imagine your surprise in
opening your mail to find
you received a face lift you
know nothing about, your
health plan denied the
claims, and the doctor is
now billing you for the charges. This scenario is
real and is called Medical Identity Theft. Medical
Identity Theft is when someone steals your health
plan information and poses as you to obtain medi-cal
benefits. A victim of Medical Identity Theft can
suddenly find themselves responsible for co-pays,
deductibles, or paying for claims denied by their
health plan – and all because someone used their
medical identity to obtain services.
How it works: A thief obtains a copy of your
medical insurance card or the information from the
card and some other personal information and
simply presents at a medical facility asking for
services. They fill out all the requisite paperwork
and sign your name to the form. The thief then
gets the medical services and leaves, sometimes
without paying a dime.
Now back to that face lift you did not get. It will be
a difficult problem to sort this out with the surgeon,
anesthesiologist, medical facility, and Benefit Op-tions.
All will assume you received the services
and your insurance ID number cannot be re-placed.
With the development of electronic medi-cal
records and the ease of communications, the
opportunity for medical identity theft has increased
greatly, so your insurance card should be pro-tected
with the same defense as your social secu-rity
number or card.
What can you do to avoid being a victim:
• Do not freely give out your health plan card,
keep it in your possession or locked up securely
when not in use.
• Do not freely give out personal information
such as your address or Social Security Number.
• Do not give key personal information on the
phone; wait until you get to the provider’s office.
• Do not leave letters, invoices, EOBs
(explanations of benefits), and other sensitive ma-terials
in your trash or in your mailbox.
• Routinely check your credit report and make
sure everything on the report truly belongs to you.
• Check your EOBs or statements from your
insurer. Make sure you really did get all the ser-vices
for which you were billed.
These are merely a few ways you can help protect
yourself from Medical Identity Theft. Exercising
good care and control over your medical identity
will not only save losses, but it will ensure your
medical records are yours alone.
Program Features
° One on One Counseling with a
trained, clinical health coach
° 6 scheduled calls over 6 months
° Step by step quitting advice, health
education, and motivational materials
° Program workbook with industry
leading expertise and goal setting tips
° $500 allowance for tobacco cessation
prescriptions and over-the-counter
medications per member per lifetime
Get Started Today!
° Call Toll Free 866-661-6781
Monday thru Thursday, 8a.m. to 11p.m.
Friday 8a.m. to 9p.m.
Saturday 9a.m. to 6p.m. (EST)
Join the Tobacco-Free
Program Today!
Sign up to participate in the Healthful
Living™ Smoke Free Program. Success-fully
end your tobacco addiction.
December www.benefitoptions.az.gov/wellness
2008
Page 3
Upcoming Events
INGREDIENTS
° 1 butternut squash (1.5 lbs)
° 1 large ripe, firm plantain
° 4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
° 1/4 cup vegetable stock
° 1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
° 1/2 tsp salt
° 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 375° F.
2. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray
3. Halve the squash and scoop out the seeds and
fibers. Peel the halves and cut into 1 inch
pieces.
4. Trim the ends of the plantain. Cut a slit
lengthwise through the inner cureve of the skin,
pry off the skin, and cut the piantain crosswise
into 1 inch segments.
5. Place the squash, plantain and garlic cloves on
the prepared baking sheet. Roast until very
tender (about 25 minutes). Let cool slightly
and peel the garlic cloves
6. In a saucepan, heat the vegetable stock over
high heat until simmering. Remove from the
heat and add the garlic, squash, plantain and
olive oil.
7. Mash the mixture with a potato masher until
almost smooth.
8. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve
immediately
SCREENING SERVICES STATUS:
Screening contracts were awarded on June 17th.
Mobile Onsite Mammography, Healthwaves,
Banner Occupational Health, and Maxim
Health Systems are now under contract to pro-vide
convenient, at-work screening services.
Wellness is currently taking requests for screen-ings
at State worksites. Listed below are each
companies services.
Healthwaves
• Flu/Pneumonia Vaccinations
• Mini Health Screening
• Osteoporosis Screening
Maxim Health Systems
• Flu/Pneumonia Vaccinations
• Mini Health Screening
• Osteoporosis Screening
• Skin Cancer Screening
Mobile Onsite Mammography
• Mammography Screening
Banner Occupational Health
• Skin Cancer Screening
EDUCATIONAL CLASSES STATUS:
Wellness awarded contracts for educational
classes, fitness classes, massage, and weight
management on October 24th. Kronos Optimal
Health, The Back Rub Co., and Jesse Tsao will
be the State’s vendors providing services in the
future. Wellness is working to complete the
vendor implementation, but due to severe
budget restrictions will not be able to offer the
contracted services at this time. These pro-grams
will be placed on hold pending analysis
from the ADOA budget team.
Thank you for your patience during this
difficult budgeting period.
Holiday Recipe:
Butternut squash and
plantain mash
Nutritional Analysis (per serving)
Calories = 79
Protein = 1 g
Carbohydrate = 19 g
Total Fat = 1 g
Saturated Fat = 0 g
Monounsaturated Fat = 1 g
Cholesterol = 0 g
Sodium = 219 mg
Fiber = 3 g
www.benefitoptions.az.gov/wellness
Balancing Work, Family, and Self
December
2008
Page 4
wellness information
Created and published by ADOA, Benefit Options Wellness
Program
100 N 15th Ave, Suite 103
Phoenix, AZ 85007
www.benefitoptions.az.gov/wellness
email: wellness@azdoa.gov,
Phone: 602-771-9355
“Early detection is the best defense we have at this
time for catching breast cancer in its earliest
stages,” says Catherine Midgette, Executive Vice
President of MOM. “If we find the cancer in its earli-est
stages, the patient has a 97 percent survival
rate.” Mobile On-Site Mammography (MOM) travels
to perform mammography screenings at worksites
across Arizona.
MOM will directly bill insurance. Benefit Options
health plan members do not have to pay a copay at
these events. (Other insurance plan members may
have a copay. Check with your insurance’s member
services department for more information.)
Call MOM at 480-967-3767 to schedule your
appointment.
This service is generally provided on a request-basis.
Call MOM at 480-967-3767 or 1-800-285-
0272 to schedule this service at your worksite.
There is a minimum of 25 people required.
What Services & Programs are
Offered by Benefit Options
Wellness?
The Wellness website has the complete list of
screenings, classes and other programs
available for request and scheduling at State
worksites.
Wellness events are requested and
coordinated by State employees at
worksites. If you are interested in hosting a
program at your worksite, visit the Wellness
website to view what is available and learn
what Wellness has to offer.
Event requests must be submitted online by
clicking this logo:
Complete the brief form pictured below,
including contact information and the event
requested and hit “submit!” A Wellness
team member will reply to your request and
begin scheduling your event.
Log on Today!
Take advantage of the
many programs and
services to keep
employees healthy
Mini Health Screening at Work
All State employees and Benefit Options
members are eligible to participate in mini
health screenings.
The basic screenings are FREE
• Height & weight; BMI; blood pressure; and
percent of body fat (body composition).
• Cholesterol and blood sugar
You will need your Employee Identification Number
(EIN) and Insurance card for this event.
Dec. 8th — 8:00am-11:00am
Supreme Court, PHX
1501 W. Washington, #230
The screening will operate with BOTH 10 min.
appointments and walk ins.
To schedule an appointment go to the link
below and select your desired time.
http://www.maximhealthsystems.com/pickatime/?id=212
