From the President

• Publication year: 2021
• Pages: 0006
• Citation: Vol. 26 No. 6 Pg. 0006

From the President No. Vol. 26, No. 6 Pg. 6 Kansas Bar Journal June, 2021

Signs and Symptoms of a Healthy Bar

DAWN M. JONES

President

State Bar of Georgia

president@gabar.org

When I was installed as State Bar of Georgia president last June, I had never been more concerned with the health and welfare of myself, my family, my friends and our community as I was at that time. There were so many unknowns that we were facing, with information changing almost daily. Added to that, we had frontrow seats to horrific video footage played over and over, sometimes multiple times a day, of inhuman treatment against people of color, often leading to death. Protests and civil unrest brought millions of Americans together, while also serving to divide our country. Even with my critical care nursing background and experience, it was extremely stressful and difficult to cope with the two health pandemics we faced and continue to face as individuals, as a profession and as a society. Attempting to do my very best, I faced those challenges and forged ahead to lead the Bar as I had been elected to do. Now, as we close out the year, I wonder how much was actually accomplished. How successful was I in sustaining a sound Bar this year?

I will always have a nurse's heart. Nurses are trained to identify signs and symptoms in order to determine a person's health status at the time of examination. Signs are objective evidence of a disease or illness, often visible to others and measurable. Symptoms are subjective and determined by what a person feels or experiences. Others can identify a presenting sign, but usually only the individual can experience symptoms that are then communicated to others. Here are some examples of signs and symptoms, using common diseases familiar to many.

According to the Mayo Clinic, signs and symptoms of cancer can include fatigue, a lump or area of thickening that can be felt beneath the skin, unintentional changes in weight, skin changes, a persistent cough or trouble breathing, problems swallowing, or unexplained bleeding or bruising, among others.^[1] In comparison to cancer, high blood pressure usually does not have symptoms associated with it. According to the Cleveland Clinic, high blood pressure is often first discovered when a blood pressure reading is taken.^[2] Everyone should know what their blood pressure readings are and what they mean. The Cleveland Clinic explains it simply—"Your blood pressure reading has two numbers. The top number is the systolic, which measures the pressure on the blood vessel walls when your heart beats. The bottom number is the diastolic, which measures the pressure on your blood vessels between beats when the heart is at rest."^[3]

This past...