Are You Being Treated by a Subcontracted Doctor?

September 26, 2012 by Leave a Comment

A recent story from Dayton, Ohio, caught our attention, where according to news reports, some patients remain responsible for emergency room charges when a hospital happens to ‘subcontract’  doctors who may not accept health insurance at all. This adds another layer to the oftentimes confusing in network vs. out of network debate. In many cases, especially in an emergency situation, patients who visit a local hospital or facility may experience unexpected costs after they are cared for by a doctor who may not be ‘in their network’, even if the facility itself is listed as an in network provider. There’s been a lot of discussion whether this, which may seem deceptive, especially to those without specialized knowledge in the medical billing and health insurance field, is fair. In fact, state officials, like in New York, are  looking to pass legislation which mandates better transparency for out of network charges. Taking the time to understand your health insurance plan and what defines a covered provider or facility can save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars in non-covered charges.

It seems providers tend to respond to these scenarios in two ways: Some indicate they will change their policies to include more transparency while others claim to be bound by federal laws that do not allow them to reveal to patients whether an on-call doctor or a physician on shift will accept their insurance or not.

We find the second argument to be completely unacceptable at face value. In fact, it’s reasonable that consumer advocates would expect state regulators to crack down on these well documented examples of seemingly unfair provisions in delivering medical services. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that a patient facing bankruptcy after a bill like this would have a basis for legal appeal, especially as new legislation is introduced and passed. It’s vitally important that you discuss your options and ask questions before treatment to minimize impact to your financial future. How prepared are you in the event of an emergency room visit?

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Do These Areas Influence Your Decision in Choosing a Doctor?

September 26, 2012 by Leave a Comment

When business analysts take a look at the health care industry in America, they often find both striking similarities and radical differences between what consumers say about retail and what patients say about health care. Studies on health care services underscore the fact that a doctor’s office is, in many senses, a business, even though people don’t tend to think of health care as a “consumer industry.” New studies are finding that when it comes to choosing doctors, consumers are using some of the same criteria that they would at the check-out register of a department store or other retailer.

A Friendly Experience

Some of the newest results on surveys of patients as customers come from PwC Health Research Institute, a group that surveyed several thousand patients to get a better picture of what today’s patient is looking for in a medical provider. Part of what PwC found is that a friendly greeting is twice as important at the door of the doctor’s office as it is in a bank or a big-box store. That’s big news for practices that haven’t invested the time and effort to make sure there’s someone personable sitting at the front desk. It’s also a good look at how medical offices can tune in to what patients really expect in today’s health care industry.

Price Not a Factor?

Studies also routinely find that price is not the big factor in patient provider selection that it is in retail. A lot of that has to do with the fact that, in many cases, the insurer is the one paying, not the patient. The triangular nature of most medical payments means patients aren’t likely to shop for health care the same way that they shop for consumer goods. Rather, as we have suggested many times, the health care consumer should put much more of a focus on other kinds of research that will ultimately affect price. This means checking to make sure the provider has a good contractual agreement with the patient’s insurer, that the provider uses in-network staff, and that items like facility fee charges don’t tend to go through the roof. Word of mouth is something that’s useful as well, and many studies show that the grapevine, both offline and online, plays a key role in how patients choose a provider.

What’s In It For You?

The idea that there are people out there gathering data about customer satisfaction in health care is a good sign. It means that there is an opportunity for you to get the word out to providers about what really gets you enthused, or on the other hand, turned off, by a practice. Look for ways to contribute to this major issue, whether in surveys or in other public forums, and you may help change the way your doctors deliver services in your community.

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Beware of Balance Billing in Medical Bills

August 7, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Balance billing occurs when a healthcare provider bills a patient for some or the entire amount that should have been declared an insurance discount (contractual allowance). The fact that Prime Healthcare Services in California recently settled a suit for $1.2 million and discontinued the practice suggests that this is a problem. In fact, several states have statutes that prohibit balance billing.

How do you tell if you’ve been balanced billed? First, you have to determine if your treatment was performed by an in or out-of-network healthcare professional. Then, you have to check your EOB (Explanation of Benefits).

In- Network

Check an erroneous charge simply by seeing if the bill for the service exceeds the amount on the EOB. If it does, let your insurance company know and let them handle it.

Out-of-Network (OON)

There are two scenarios:

  • If you have an OON benefit, the OON deductible and co-insurance will apply first. The insurance company pays the balance above that like always. However, if the provider billed you for more than the deductible and co-insurance you may be the victim of a scam. Check the EOB. Did insurance pay the provider? If so, report it. It’s a scam and it is wrong.
  • If you do not have an OON benefit and accidentally got treated by the provider, tell them you want to be treated like an uninsured patient. A standard discount will be applied.

When in doubt, check with a medical bill advocate.

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Clutter

May 14, 2012 by Leave a Comment

We all have it. Well at least I like to think that we all have it. I was looking around the house today, at the clutter, thinking about ho I needed to do something about it. Not only is it annoying, I don’t want to see all this crap lying around, but for anyone who has read self help books you now that to declutter your space and your mind allows for new, even better things to come to you. So here are the things that are taking up space, the clutter, that I just can’t bear to part with.

  1. Boxes of books. Not only do I have book shelves full of books but I have totes in the garage full of books. I’m not talking about expensive books or collectors editions, I’m talking about paperback Janet Evanovich books or Stori Telling by Tori Spelling. I just love books and hate to get rid of them but the reality is I rarely read a physical book these days. I read ebooks on my reader, my laptop, or my phone so do I really need all those?
  2. Clothes. I have clothes I haven’t worn in years, cloths that are “fat” or “skinny” that again haven’t worn in at least a few seasons. Clothes with the tags still on that I hate to get rid of “just in case” just in case what? They take up so much space.
  3. Notecards and other paper products. I love to buy notebooks, notecards, fun paper and again I have totes of the stuff that I have every intention of using but I keep buying more so I never have the chance to use it all.
  4. Misc crap. Such as a zillion USB adapters, old phone chargers, a heated coaster for my coffee mug that I haven’t used in years, and things I’m not even sure what they are.
  5. Kids stuff. Where is the limit here? I don’t want to toss all my kids artwork and drawings out but I am not a scrapbooker so I just have boxes of the stuff. I feel so guilty tossing it out.

I know if I go with my first instinct on what to get rid of it will declutter fabulously and I will never miss the stuff. But then there’s that “what if” what if three years from now I need it?

I never used to be like this. I used to systematically go through my house every six months and toss what very hadn’t been used or thought of within the last six months (not counting seasonal stuff) but after many life changing events I just am not as willing to get rid of things. Silly but true and something I really need to get over. I read something in a book that said “holding on to things you don’t need allows you to hold on to what you were, not embrace what you are now.” I definitely need to embrace the now!

 

How do you deal with clutter?

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25 Million Americans Underinsured Including Middle and Upper Income Families

May 1, 2012 by Leave a Comment

As current government initiatives wrestle with the issue of millions of uninsured Americans facing potential medical bankruptcy, new studies are revealing that it’s not just the uninsured who are at risk. The issue of underinsured American individuals and families is becoming a major part of today’s healthcare conversation and alerting many more Americans to the dangers that they face, even if they have access to affordable health insurance policies.

Current statistics show a startling trend, where being underinsured is becoming a common way to fall into extreme medical debt and eventual bankruptcy or bad credit situations. Research by the Commonwealth Fund that appeared in recent industry journals shows that America’s underinsured community has doubled in the past four years to over 25 million people. While the highest number of underinsured Americans are in the income range below the poverty level, research shows that middle and upper income families are being affected in larger numbers each year. Research also shows that some individuals with what others would consider healthy annual incomes are still very likely to become underinsured in the immediate future.

In general, being underinsured has to do with the cost of one’s medical bills against that person’s annual income. Consumer advocates point to co-pays and high plan deductibles as being part of the equation that pushes an underinsured American toward bankruptcy, but many experts would say that the largest component of these kinds of situations are massive bills for complex medical procedures where a factor called co-insurance can leave a patient with many thousands of dollars in debt. If someone who is insured faces an extensive and very costly set of medical procedures related to a certain condition, he or she can end up paying 5%, 10%, 15% or more of the total medical bill. Although the insurer will pick up the major portion of the cost, even a small amount of the total bill is enough to bankrupt many patients, simply because the bills for these procedures can be so large. It’s not uncommon for medical bills, including separate facility and doctor charges, anesthesia charges, charges for related items and multiple doctor visits, and more, to total up above $100,000 in a given year. For the majority of Americans, this is completely unaffordable and will result in an inability to pay the entire debt. In these situations, the resulting debt must be managed down to workable levels, or the patient simply defaults, going through bankruptcy or suffering a destroyed credit rating.

Take the time to thoroughly review your medical bills and health plan coverage details to ensure accuracy of billing and insurance charges and payments. This step alone could save you thousands in out-of-pocket medical debt.

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Famous People on the Power of Positive Thinking

April 11, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Think positive

Oh, my friend, it’s not what they take away from you that counts. It’s what you do with what you have left. ~Hubert Humphrey

Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.~Winston Churchill

There are exactly as many special occasions in life as we choose to celebrate.~Robert Brault,

The sun shines and warms and lights us and we have no curiosity to know why this is so; but we ask the reason of all evil, of pain, and hunger, and mosquitoes and silly people.~Ralph Waldo Emerson

A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely. ~Roald Dahl

To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.~George Santayana

Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.~Francesca Reigler

If you don’t like something change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. ~Mary Engelbreit

So often time it happens, we all live our life in chains, and we never even know we have the key. ~The Eagles, “Already Gone”

He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless efforts. ~Samuel Johnson

I’ve decided that the stuff falling through the cracks is confetti and I’m having a party!~Betsy Cañas Garmon

The only people who find what they are looking for in life are the fault finders. ~Foster’s Law

Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures. ~H. Jackson Brown, Jr., Life’s Little Instruction Book

Every thought is a seed. If you plant crab apples, don’t count on harvesting Golden Delicious. ~Bill Meyer

We find things where we look for them, which is why I never look for a golf ball out of bounds. ~Robert Brault

We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. ~Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere’s Fan, 1893

Blessed is he who expects nothing, for he shall never be disappointed. ~Attributed to both Jonathan Swift and Benjamin Franklin

Defeat is not bitter unless you swallow it. ~Joe Clark

The only disability in life is a bad attitude. ~Scott Hamilton

If you aren’t fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm. ~Vince Lombardi

My riches consist not in the extent of my possessions, but in the fewness of my wants. ~J. Brotherton

There is nothing so easy but that it becomes difficult when you do it reluctantly. ~Publius Terentius Afer

I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better. ~Abraham Lincoln

Just because you’re miserable doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy your life. ~Annette Goodheart

In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer. ~Albert Camus, Lyrical and Critical Essays

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful. ~Buddha

There are no menial jobs, only menial attitudes. ~William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues

I always plucked a thistle and planted a flower where I thought a flower would grow. ~Abraham Lincoln

Got no checkbooks, got no banks,
Still I’d like to express my thanks -
I got the sun in the morning and the moon at night.
~Irving Berlin, “I Got the Sun in the Morning,” 1946

To everyone is given the key to heaven; the same key opens the gates of hell. ~Ancient Proverb

True contentment depends not upon what we have; a tub was large enough for Diogenes, but a world was too little for Alexander. ~Charles Caleb Colton

I’ve got dreams in hidden places and extra smiles for when I’m blue. ~Author Unknown

The human spirit is stronger than anything that can happen to it. ~C.C. Scott

I am a little deaf, a little blind, a little impotent, and on top of this are two or three abominable infirmities, but nothing destroys my hope. ~Voltaire

The world is full of cactus, but we don’t have to sit on it.~Will Foley

Optimist: someone who isn’t sure whether life is a tragedy or a comedy but is tickled silly just to be in the play. ~Robert Brault

If you have the will to win, you have achieved half your success; if you don’t, you have achieved half your failure. ~David Ambrose

If the skies fall, one may hope to catch larks. ~Francis Rabelais

For my part I believe in the forgiveness of sin and the redemption of ignorance. ~Adlai Stevenson

A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes. ~Hugh Downs

Very often a change of self is needed more than a change of scene. ~Arthur Christopher Benson

Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses. ~Alphonse Karr

If you call a thing bad you do little, if you call a thing good you do much. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The Kingdom of Heaven is not a place, but a state of mind. ~John Burroughs

The real “it is well” is something I say from the ground, having fallen. ~Antonio Porchia, Voces, 1943, translated from Spanish by W.S. Merwin

Since the house is on fire let us warm ourselves. ~Italian Proverb

Reach for the stars, even if you have to stand on a cactus. ~Susan Longacre
Impossible is a word only to be found in the dictionary of fools. ~Napoleon

Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out. ~Art Linkletter

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. ~ Helen Keller

 

Both optimists and pessimists contribute to the society. The optimist invents the aeroplane, the pessimist the parachute. ~George Bernard Shaw

The optimist sees the rose and not its thorns; the pessimist stares at the thorns, oblivious to the rose. ~ Kahlil Gibran

 

interested to learn how to think positively? Check out this article 

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Go Green, Lower Your Budget, and Help the Environment by Liz Karschner

April 10, 2012 by Leave a Comment

There are many articles written on how to go green, lower your budget, or use less, but a lot don’t cover what the writer actually does to help. I don’t have the money to install solar or anything spectacular like that, but I do work hard to do my part in making my family as green as it can be. Here are just a few things that I do every day.

  1. Recycle – yes, this may sound redundant, but recycling is a huge part of my daily activities. Every piece of “trash” our home comes across I first see if it can be reused or repurposed into something else. If it cannot, I see if it can be recycled. If it cannot, can it be composted? I go down the list mentally to see if I really have to throw the item out. This may seem difficult at first, but after a while it becomes second nature.
  2. Purchase less – I love to shop, but realize that neither my budget nor the environment really needs me to shop the way I like. Purchasing things that are unnecessary or serve no purpose is very wasteful, even grocery items. Therefore I shop as little as possible. I try to purchase everything I would need for the next month in one trip. If I go to the grocery store, I make a list of menu items and pick up what I need for them, plus some additional supplies like rice, pasta, etc. and then store them for quick meals not on the list. The only things I return once a week for are milk, bread, and other items we use more and cannot store the excess. This cuts my budget down and doesn’t waste gas or allow me to impulse buy for things we do not need or won’t use and will end up wasting in the end.
  3. Staycation – I do not leave my house 1 day per week and spend time with my family doing projects at home. Instead of running around like my schedule makes me do all week, I take every Sunday and just stay home. We clean up around the house (using environmentally friendly products of course), watch a movie with homemade popcorn (love my whirly pop), take the dogs for a walk around the neighborhood, garden for fresh vegetables, and do all sorts of other projects.
  4. Home Improvements – We installed low flow shower heads that use only 1.5 gpm instead of standard 2.5+ gpm. We also installed aerators on other faucets that didn’t already have them and installed CFL or LED light bulbs. Next on the list is fixing all screens so we can open up the house and turn off the air during the nicer months here in South Florida and install tint and blinds on the windows to help keep out the heat during our hot summer months.

These are just a few things my family and I do to make our home greener and lower our impact on the environment. What things do you do to make your family green, lower your budget, and use less?

About the Author:

Liz Karschner writes for SEPCO’s blog (http://www.sepco-solarlighting.com/blog) that provides information on commercial solar lighting, off grid solar power, renewable energy and going green. She also writes on Thoughts of Randomness (http://www.thoughtsofrandomness) that provides the random thoughts on all sorts of subjects.

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Upcoming Coding Changes Can Create Confusion

April 3, 2012 by Leave a Comment

As Americans continue to absorb the healthcare reform and projected modifications, the federal government is updating the way that medical services are coded and billed to consumers. The first mandate is HIPAA 5010, which is an update to the existing HIPAA format and the healthcare information processing systems. 5010 compliance is currently set for July 1, 2012. This will be followed by implementation of an updated coding system, ICD-10, which is to be effective October 1, 2013.

The existing coding system has approximately 13,600 codes while the updated system will have approximately 69,000 codes. The detailed coding system will allow for better analysis and treatment outcomes while providing payers with an initial claim submission that is much easier to understand. However, you may find interpreting your medical bill to be even more confusing as you may see more line item charges.

An example of this was recently reported in a Pennsylvania’s Fox News story. The patient was charged for an office visit and on top of this, she received a separate charge for a “consultation” when the doctor advised her to quit smoking. One thing that these new consultation charges will make clear is that medical care is not like any other product or service. Patients will usually not request additional consultation, and when it shows up in their bill, it seems to represent a service that has been forced on them. Similarly, patients don’t choose where and when to be sick, and when they are hit with high out of network charges or excessive medical bills, this is another example of out-of-control billing that is virtually unavoidable.

By contrast, consumers can avoid expensive charges for other products and services simply by delaying purchase or going without. Going without healthcare, though, is something that governments and other organizations don’t want to see happen, and that’s why legislators are looking at limiting the ways that healthcare providers can bill for services. Still, while there is some help available from medical advocates and others, patients and families need to be vigilant about what they are charged by a healthcare provider, and they need to have frank discussions with their doctors up front to determine how much they will be charged for a specific treatment or consultation.

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The Transformative Power of Meditation: Finding spiritual power within

March 24, 2012 by Leave a Comment

(This article is adapted from Sai Maa’s book Petals of Grace: Essential Teachings for Self-Mastery.)

Dear ones, remember that meditation is a natural state, an experience that allows you to discover your inner being. Through meditation you realize who you are.

Through meditation your consciousness shifts. This can be very subtle. You may notice the shift in your everyday activities. Limitations may vanish and you begin to see your own inner light shine brighter and brighter.

When you meditate you may feel that nothing is happening. Know however that something is happening. As soon as you start to meditate, your inner being unfolds and the inner spiritual power uplifts you. This power transforms you on many different levels, and through this spiritual knowledge your enlightenment begins.

Meditation has its own power, its own grace. Here are some simple ways to get started:

  • Go Within – Always start your meditation with an absolute feeling of conviction to cherish your own divine light. Remember; when you meditate you enter your own being, your own inner heart.
  • Cultivate Stillness – When you sit for meditation, do not do anything. Only when all our senses are quiet can we experience Sat-Chit-Ananda (existence-consciousness-bliss). Instead of thinking negative thoughts, breathe the awareness “I AM loved, I AM pure, I AM bliss.” This is the So Ham, the divine breath.
  • Discover Your Mantra – A mantra is a set of sacred syllables invoking a divine being, or the name of God. Mantras are unique and powerful. They are words that are infused with divine power that can heal and calm the mind. The mantra is a divine sound, of and from Mother-Father Creator. It may be music, chants, wind, birds, human sounds, water, drumming, toning, or using your breath. Mantras are made of divine letters as well as divine sound. Begin with So Ham – inhale “So,” exhale “Ham”.
  • Live and Breathe the Mantra – The power of mantras can transform a being if the right understanding is present. Japa is the repetition of the mantra to bring about union of your mind with the Divine. Do you truly understand, identify with, activate and breathe the mantra you have chosen? Using a mantra consciously is a powerful method of cleansing for your whole being. The more you repeat the mantra, the more it becomes a part of you. Say your mantra as much as possible, the name of God always on the tongue, so that you think only divine thoughts and speak only divine words.

When you meditate, step with courage into the unknown. Be silent. Keep your mantra on the breath until you are lost. The mantra will take you to that place from which it comes: the All That Is space where you have no reference. This is where you will find Oneness, Unity, Freedom, Bliss, Love, Light and RealLlife.

As experiences come to you while meditating, do not be attached to any of them. Many colors of light will come. Go beyond them also. Go to that place where there is no thing, nothing. This is the place.

Meditate on the divine. Pure Love is divine Love, God’s Love. God’s Love is grace and power. God’s nature is Love and compassion. God “all ways” looks at you with eyes of Love. Be God. Look at others and yourself with eyes of Love. God is pure. Self is pure. This purity is inside each of you, no matter who you are. Meditate on that purity, on that divinity, and you will be permeated by that which you meditate on with Love.

Make an effort, and you will find the treasure. You carry your Higher Self with you wherever you go, so it is very easy to meditate on that. Wherever you are, meditate. Freedom and liberation lie in meditation. It is the only place where you can master your mind and actually meet yourself.

People often tell they are happy because they are in love with X or Y. It lasts a few days, weeks or months, and then they are sad. I suggest instead that you be in Love with life in its fullness. Be in Love with life and you will never be sad. To experience that state in its fullness, be still in body and mind and meditate. Within you will find the tremendous power of Love and an ocean of bliss.

–

About the Author: Sai Maa is an international spiritual master, healer and leader of humanitarian efforts. She inspires and energizes people worldwide through Sai Maa Diksha (pure light blessing). With her unique combination of Eastern spiritual wisdom, Western therapeutic knowledge and maternal love, Sai Maa shares lessons to uplift humanity and help people master their own lives as she has mastered hers. Sai Maa has published two books, Petals of Grace: Essential Teachings for Self-Mastery and Points of Light. Learn more at http://www.sai-maa.com.

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Nine Benefits of Music Education for Kids: Keep Kids Learning Over The Summer

March 23, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Summer is almost here and parents are looking for ways to keep their kids entertained, engaged and learning.

Kids who learn to play a musical instrument gain an outlet for their creativity that can bring them a joy for a lifetime. They also reap tangible benefits that can help them as students and throughout their lives.

Through musical instruction, children learn discipline, patience, problem-solving skills, confidence and responsibility, to name just a few benefits. Let’s take a closer look at some of the advantages your child can gain from learning to play an instrument:

Precision, discipline and focus: In addition to fostering the development of discipline, music enables children to learn precision and accuracy. I know of no other form of education that can help students learn this kind of focused precision at a young age. Students learn to pay close attention to exactly how a particular skill looks, sounds and feels. The brain learns to notice more detail.

Patience: Students gain the valuable quality of patience, especially with a more complex instrument like violin or piano. Each skill requires hundreds of repetitions to become easy. Students must have the confidence that they will get it if they just keep practicing.

Problem-solving and persistence: Practicing is always about problem-solving. Why do I make a mistake here or why does it sound squeaky? What solutions can I come up with to fix the mistake? Good practice techniques require creativity and patience to identify and solve the problem. From this, students learn persistence. No passage is impossible to play correctly. It’s just a matter of finding the right way of practicing.

Fine motor skills: I have seen the development of fine motor skills in my violin students, particularly the ability to isolate certain muscles and joints as well as the independent use of each finger.

Healthy habits: Learning a musical instrument requires good posture and the ability to keep muscles relaxed even while doing something challenging. Students also strengthen muscles and gain flexibility, both of which contribute to overall health.

Memory: As music is memorized, the capabilities of memory are greatly enhanced. Education then becomes a matter of drawing conclusions and making connections between concepts rather than an exertion to merely memorize all the material. The younger a child can begin learning music, the greater the benefit for their short- and long-term memory.

Creativity: The wonderful thing about music is that, although it requires precision and accuracy in terms of rhythms, notes and playing technique, when it comes to interpretation, there is so much room for individuality. The skill of improvisation allows even greater creativity. Students learn to think for themselves and make their own artistic choices rather than being told how to do everything.

Cultural Understanding: Students are introduced to music of different cultures and from different times. This exposure is useful for kids to learn about and appreciate the differences and individuality of all people.

Confidence and work ethic: Students learn that if they apply themselves intelligently, efficiently, and persistently they achieve the desired result.

So what is the best way to introduce children to music? Many children with encouragement can learn challenging instruments such as the violin and piano. But not all families can invest the money and time required for instruments and lessons. A wonderful instrument that I have found to help spur children’s interest in music is the ocarina.

These ancient little wind instruments were played by the Mayans, Aztecs and Incas of South and Central America and in ancient India and China. The ocarina was well known in the United States in the early part of the last century after being issued to troops in the two World Wars.

In 2004, I bought several ocarinas while on a visit to Taiwan. I was impressed by how easy the ocarina was to pick up and play. So we began teaching it at the St. Louis School of Music. It turned out to be a perfect fit.

The ocarina is pocket-sized, fun and intriguing to play. It’s portable, economical and has a pleasant sound even in the hands of a beginner. It offers a great way to teach children the lifelong joys of music and introduce them to skills that will help them excel in everything they do.

–
About the Author:Laura Yeh is a performer and music educator trained in the Suzuki method of instruction who teaches violin and ocarina at the St. Louis School of Music to children as young as 3 and adults. Laura and her husband Dennis have collaborated with ocarina makers around the world to produce new models of the ocarina. They have designed and produced many unique and innovative ocarinas sold by STL Ocarina (http://www.stlocarina.com).

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