Southern California is a vast city and a beautiful vacation spot. With the perpetually sunny weather, beautiful beaches, picturesque hiking spots, South California's celebrity homes, and so much more, there's no end to the list of diverse attractions the state offers. Whether you're out for family fun, a romantic getaway, or some quality alone time, South California provides a wide range of options.
If you're planning a trip to SoCal or already there, here are a few suggestions on making the best of your time. The city of San Diego is a tourist attraction on its own. With theme parks that will have your children agog with excitement, family-friendly fun is easy to find. Visit the likes of Disneyland, the San Diego Safari park, Legoland, the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park, Sea World, and the gorgeous Balboa Park. For lovers of art and history, San Diego houses many different museums and art galleries like the Museum of Photographic Arts, featuring exhibits of photographs from 850 artists, and the Museum of Contemporary Arat, where you can find more than 4500 pieces of art on display. You can drop by the Mingei International Museum to see showcases of art and craft from various ethnicities worldwide or visit the La Bodega Art Gallery to take an art class or watch a film screening. Crown your visit with a stop at the historic hub of San Diego, the district Gaslamp Quarter. A visit to South California would be incomplete without spending time at some of the many beaches. You can take your kids down to the Santa Monica Pier or surf and soak up the sand at the Leadbetter Beach in Santa Barbara or Newport Beach. Take in the gorgeous coast of New Crystal Coast Park, or take stunning pictures at the legendary Hotel del Coronado at the San Diego beach. For wine connoisseurs and enthusiasts, South California holds many gems. It is home to the renowned wineries and tasting rooms of Temecula, comprising several vineyards to visit. The Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara also boasts of globally acclaimed wineries and provides side attractions like art galleries and antique stores. There is no end to the wine tours you can take. An essential part of traveling to new cities for many people is the food. And with a wide variety of dining options, South California does not disappoint on that front. If you're a seafood lover, try out the Cioppino, a classic seafood dish among the many that San Francisco boasts of. While you can find California rolls anywhere in the country, Californians pride themselves on the fresh Avocados you can in the state, giving the sushi a more robust flavor. Another way to enjoy the creamy avocados is by making french toast. Simple but a meal you will enjoy nonetheless. You can taste all kinds of foods at the numerous restaurants in SoCal. If you want to sample as much as possible, the dineLA Restaurant Week is an opportunity to make that happen. You can't possibly exhaust all the places to visit in South California, but you can certainly try. Some other hotspots to tour include Beverly hills, where you can rub shoulders with celebrities, Palm Springs, and Sequoia National Park.
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Dr. Jonathan “Jon” Komar graduated from Wayne State University School of Medicine with an MD in 1999. He is a physician consultant at OptiMed Solutions, a medical practice consultancy in Scottsdale, Arizona, committed to improving medicine through technology. Outside of work, Jon Komar, MD is an avid runner.
5K’s are one of the most popular running races, with millions of people participating at least once each year. If you’re thinking of running in a 5K event, you might be asking yourself what would be a good time to complete the race. According to running coaches, several factors, including your gender, age, how often you run, and weight, will determine the time you complete a 5K. Men are usually faster than women, and the older you’re, the more time you’re likely to take to complete a 5K race. To give you an example, a 40 to 44-year-old man, on average, completes a 5K in 32:26 minutes, while a woman in the same age bracket will run 38:26 minutes. The same 40 to 44-year-old man or woman will be several minutes slower than a 20 to 24-year-old man or woman who takes on average 29:27 and 36:22 minutes respectively to finish a 5K. If you have never run before and are moving from couch to 5K, you should aim to finish the race in 45-60 minutes. If you’re an everyday runner, the average time you should take running a 5K is 28 to 37 minutes. Traveling is an excellent activity encompassing adventure, fun, and excitement and excitement for many. A 2021 travel statistics estimate that Americans embark on 2.29 billion domestic trips and 9.3 million international trips yearly. Additionally, 73.8 percent of the trips are for leisure. Weekend getaways form a considerable chunk of leisurely travels as there are several fascinating places to visit, particularly for couples.
First of all, Barcelona, being one of Europe’s most captivating cities for couples, has some interesting sites. One such is La Sagrada Familia, an 18-tower edifice that combines the architectural designs of Modernisme, Noucentisme, and Art Nouveau, to mention a few. The first stone of the structure dates back to 1882. So, for lovers who have a penchant for art and nature, the La Sagrada Familia is a good choice as it includes the creative works of Antoni Gaudi and Domenec Suganes i Gras. The Magic Fountains, which dates to 1929, is another eye-catching place in Montjuic, Barcelona. It displays more than 50 choreographed color shades, beautifying the environment. This bubbling place is quite interesting for couples who want to have fun as they can observe the acrobatic displays or dance to the music. In Iceland, one can visit the Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon situated around the Vatnajokull National park. This place is among the deepest lakes, and people believe that its ice glaciers formed a thousand years ago. Here, couples may embark on boat tours in the summer. During winter, seals converge en masse at the lake’s mouth. So, one can take photos with them. Located at the Arctic Circle in Iceland, aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, is an incredible sight. These lights result from the sun’s electrically charged particles colliding with the earth’s magnetic field. Lovers may view the lights in a dark and cloud-free sky. Charles Bridge in Prague, Czech Republic, is another place lovers can visit. It contains several ancient statues of the Holy sovereign, Charles IV, and John of Nepomuk. The bridge aligns with the setting sun and Saint Vitus’ tomb on the equinox. So, it has a more enchanting view after the sunsets. From the Charles Bridge, lovers can see the spectacular Vltava river. Many years ago, two secret lovers, whose families were not on good terms, planned to meet at a specific bridge in Prague. Sadly, their families discovered the lovers’ secret, leading to their waterloo. The bridge is a love lock bridge, and this ancient tale has inspired locals to visit the bridge. Over there, they add to the padlock collection, representing eternal adoration. The love lock bridge is also close to the John Lennon wall. And lovers may visit this symbolic place to redeem their vows by hanging a padlock on the bridge. The flight from the U.S to Bangkok in Thailand can cost around $300, making it pretty affordable. One can visit the Grand Palace, the home of Wat Phra Kaeo. The structure has existed since 1782. And it was first used as the royal abode for generations. Now, it serves as a place for important ceremonies. The palace has spectacular structures, and couples who wish to enter should dress modestly. Another site in Bangkok is the Wat Arun Temple, dating back to the ancient battle between the former Siam and Burma. Having survived the defeat from the Burmese, General Taskin, with other survivors, vowed to march till the sun rose and build a temple. Wat Arun was the temple they built. Couples can climb to the prang’s top to view the sun sinking over the Chao Praya River. A physician consultant and founder of OptiMed Solutions in Scottsdale, Arizona, Jonathan “Jon” Komar, MD, works with medical practices to effectively utilize eClinicalWorks and other electronic health record (EHR) platforms. Dr. Jon Komar maintains membership in the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
In February 2022, HIMSS announced a partnership with the California School of Management and Leadership (CSML) to offer an online Intermediate Healthcare Data Analytics program. Self-paced and spanning 12 weeks, the course will teach techniques for the efficient delivery of healthcare analytics. Healthcare analytics help drive more efficient, lower-cost patient care, in addition to improving customer satisfaction. The course provides a comprehensive overview of how healthcare providers can use analytic strategies to monitor and improve patient care, addressing topics such as impact estimate and prediction, patient profiling, and risk stratification. Additionally, providers will learn how to leverage analytics to reduce waste while building insight-driven organizations. For more information about course highlights or the possibility to earn graduate credits, visit www.himss.org. An accomplished physician in Arizona, Jonathan "Jon" Komar, MD practiced clinical medicine for more than 18 years. He has since shifted his career focus to the medical consultancy sector as the founder and physician consultant for OptiMed Solutions in Scottsdale. In this role, Dr. Jon Komar is well-versed in clinical best practices software and ICD terminology.
The International Classification of Diseases (ICD) provides a globally-accepted library of terms relating to human disease and death. These terms are clinical and serve as the main base for health statistics and the recording of diseases worldwide. It standardized treatments for certain diseases and conditions across patients, regardless of their locale, and provide support for medical payments, health services research, and service planning. Designed by the World Health Organization, ICD routinely undergoes updates over the years. Each version of the classification guide includes the most up-to-date findings, signs, symptoms, social circumstances, and related health problems. ICD-11, which went into effect in January 2022, is the most recent version of the ICD and is accessible to everyone. An Arizona physician, Jonathan "Jon" Komar, MD is the founder and physician consultant at OptiMed Solutions in Scottsdale, Arizona. Previously, Dr. Jon Komar served as a physician at AZ Spine Disc & Sport, where he provided treatments such as hormone therapy for men.
When many people think about hormone therapy or hormone replacement therapy, they largely think of it as a treatment for women going through menopause. However, hormone therapy is also used for men for several reasons. One of the most common reasons is the natural loss of testosterone in men as they age. Testosterone plays a role in many things for daily physical functioning in men, from male sexual development and reproductive function to maintaining bone density. As part of the aging process, testosterone decreases and starts causing issues in many areas. Men with unnaturally low hormone levels undergo hormone replacement therapy to return their testosterone levels to normal. Another common reason men undergo hormone therapy in treating prostate cancer. In some men with prostate cancer, testosterone increases the rate at which cancer cells grow in the body. Hormone therapy for prostate cancer treatment reduces testosterone levels in men, thus shrinking cancer and delaying the speed of cells spreading. While hormone therapy alone cannot cure prostate cancer, it does help with managing or delaying related symptoms. A graduate of Wayne State University Medical School, Jonathan “Jon” Komar, MD leads OptiMed Solutions as a physician consultant and founder. Through the Scottsdale, Arizona-based business, Dr. Jon Komar provides consultancy services for electronic health records (EHR) and electronic medical records (EMR).
Although EHRs and EMRs are similar in name, they refer to two different types of medical records. The EMR term existed first and provided clinicians with information necessary for diagnosing and treating varying illnesses. Today, they are digital versions of paper charts containing each patient’s medical and treatment history within a single practice. This provides physicians with the information necessary for tracking patient health over time, identifying when certain patients need specialized checkups, and monitoring the quality of care at the practice. EHRs provide clinicians with this same information, but they go beyond that. Instead of focusing on a single practice, they incorporate the patient’s entire health record. This includes data from a patient’s past medical provider’s offices. Designed for sharing, EHRs ensure patients receive a good quality of care throughout their experience with different specialty offices and laboratories. With the EHR, specialists, nursing homes, and doctors in other countries or states are immediately caught up on the health background of a new patient. An accomplished healthcare consultant with an extensive medical background, Jonathan "Jon" Komar. MD, has served as a physician consultant at OptiMed Solutions in Scottsdale, Arizona, since founding the company in 2018. In this role, he works with private medical practices to provide clinical and business optimization solutions with the objective of realizing the full potential of electronic health record platforms. In addition, Dr. Jon Komar co-authored Scheuermann's Kyphosis Following Cervical Spinal Cord Injury.
Kyphosis is characterized by an excess curvature in the midsection of the spine, resulting in an abnormally round back. While some children are born with the condition due to an aberration in the spine's development, other children develop it gradually after birth due to an underlying defect in their spine (Scheuermann's kyphosis). Other children develop kyphosis as a result of poor posture, which can place excess tension on the spine and weaken the muscles and ligaments in the ribcage region. The spine yields to the stress by curving further. Parents should monitor the posture of their children. Frequent slouching can cause postural kyphosis, so parents should correct children when they slouch. An ideal way to prevent slouching is to encourage children to sit upright. Heavy backpacks can weaken the back muscles and ligaments, robbing the spine of the needed support to carry the weight and forcing it to curve. Therefore, parents should ensure that their children are not carrying too much of a load in their backpacks. Activities like running, walking, swimming, and yoga support the spine and can help prevent problems. Children need to do any or all of these activities regularly. The founder of OptiMed Solutions in Scottsdale, Arizona, Dr. Jonathan "Jon" Komar serves as a physician partner at the boutique consultancy, where he assists private medical practices in optimizing clinical and business operations. Jon Komar, MD, completed a challenging fellowship in musculoskeletal and spine medicine at Southwest Spine & Sport in 2004.
A vertebral tumor occurs inside one or more bones in the spine. As the tumor grows, it can cause the backbone to press on the spinal cord. When this happens, the nerves within the compressed area can become irritated or damaged, resulting in back pain (especially at the tumor site), pain in the thigh or legs, numbness or loss of sensation in the arms or legs, disrupted bowel or bladder function, and paralysis of some parts of the body. Vertebral tumors sometimes begin in the back, but the majority are the result of cancers in other parts of the body that have metastasized from the primary site. The most common tumors that do this are those of the lung, prostate, and breast. A medical evaluation can help determine whether tumors are metastatic or benign and can also help determine the necessary treatment. A Scottsdale, Arizona-based physician with a medical career that has spanned two decades, Dr. Jonathan "Jon" Komar serves as a physician consultant at OptiMed Solutions, a boutique consultancy that he established in 2018. An accomplished medical researcher, Jon Komar, MD, co-authored the research paper Scheuermann's Kyphosis Following Cervical Spinal Cord Injury.
Kyphosis is a condition defined by excess curvature in the thoracic region of the spine. In a healthy spine, the vertebrae align in a pattern that forms a curve, but the curve is minimal (less than 40 degrees). A person can be diagnosed with kyphosis if the curvature is greater than 45 degrees. The most prevalent symptom of kyphosis is a rounded back, sometimes called a hunchback. If the curvature is not severe, a patient may experience no further symptoms. However, in many cases, kyphosis presents with symptoms such as back pain and stiffness, tenderness of the spine, and a low capacity to perform daily activities. The back pain could be a result of musculoskeletal tension in the region of the abnormal curvature. Adults are also more prone to complications from severe kyphosis. These include persistent pain that does not improve with medication. Breathing difficulty occurs if there is compression of the lungs and/or airway. In some cases, there may also be compression of certain nerves that run through the spinal cord in the affected region. When this happens, the nerves become damaged. In the case of severe damage, control or feeling in that part of the body is lost. Some complications include weakness or numbness in the extremities, poor coordination due to a lack of sense of balance, and loss of bladder control. These severe cases of kyphosis require more invasive treatment -- typically, surgery. |
AuthorJonathan Komar, MD, has involved himself as an active voice in the medical community throughout his career. Archives
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