Month: February 2016

Home Improvement Ideas for Every Area of Your Home

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With the holiday season now just a memory, perhaps you find yourself with some time on your hands to devote to those big New Year’s resolutions-so you’ve been frequenting the gym, taking Sundays to prepare and freeze healthy recipes for the week and spending more time with your family and friends. But what about all those to-dos on your house that never seemed to get done in 2010?

Whether you’re looking to put your house on the market in 2011 or just want to make some positive changes for your family, here are some great home improvement ideas that will deliver the most bang for your buck that you can spend a winter weekend or two or three on implementing. If you live in a condo building make sure to speak with the homeowner’s association first about any changes you’re planning to make.

Kitchen and Bathroom Upgrades

Remodeling kitchens and bathrooms have the highest return on investment. You could replace the cabinetry or install energy-efficient appliances, but a surefire way to immediately up your kitchen’s visual appeal is to replace the counter-top.

For good or bad, the bathtub can be a focal point in your bathroom. If a new tub is in your budget, you could add a new model or a freestanding soaking tub to really increase your bathroom’s luxuriousness factor. Even just refinishing your existing tub can make it look brand new.

Let Their Be Light

Recessed lighting looks clean and doesn’t compromise headroom. It’s easily installed and will instantly brighten the room. You also might want to consider adding new windows or expanding existing ones in order to make a room seem larger and more inviting. Even just adding or moving electrical outlets and switches can allow for easier access to electricity, and improve the eyesores associated with electrical cords being visible throughout the room.

Better Flooring

New flooring is one of the best projects for whatever room you’ve decided to focus on, whether that includes carpet in the upstairs bedroom, hardwood floors throughout the downstairs or a unique tile in the bathrooms. People constantly can see and touch their floors, and prospective buyers will definitely be interested in the quality of your flooring when considering whether to make your home theirs.

Hide Unattractive Storage

If you live in a small space, you might not have a home office that can house an unsightly file cabinet. In that case, you probably have to hide your files in the open. This entails measuring fabric to the length and width of the cabinet and using hook and loop tape to attach the fabric to it. Or you can find extra storage space by using a skirting table, under which you could stack boxes. It pays to be inventive, and the pay off is extra room for your belongings without any additional eyesores in your home.

Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Pros and Cons

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Within the last few years there as been an aggressive push on the part of government, professional organizations, and other authorities to institute a uniform EMR system. This includes generous subsidies allocated by recent legislation and mandatory legal requirements to occur in the next few years. As a practicing and academic physician with a masters degree in public health, I would like to briefly note some observations.

Intuitively, a uniform, easily accessible EMR seems like a very good idea. In fact, one of my major difficulties in practice occurs when a new patient arrives without copies of previous diagnostic studies or lists of medications. This is compounded in an incapacitated or elderly individual with many medical conditions and medications, and when there is a language barrier. Such patients may have great difficulty, or be incapable of, relaying this information to the new physician. To go online and immediately retrieve it would be very helpful indeed.

However, in these days of lower reimbursement and higher practice volumes, time spent imputing information may be time spent away from patient care. You may have experienced a visit where your doctor, using an EMR, has his eyes and hands on the computer much more than on you. I personally have accompanied relatives to physicians and emergency rooms where the doctor spent almost no time talking to, or examining the patient but instead sat in front of the computer, recording or retrieving information.

Also, these electronic records include templates where “check off” of existing information, rather than recording of original information is involved. This helps improve physician reimbursement by conforming with insurance company guidelines for level of service. It does little, however, to record the doctor’s thought processes or enhance the necessary medical information provided by this specific physician.

Don’t get me wrong. Good information is a good thing. But, it must be good for the patient and not just there to satisfy an insurance company. Also, it must contribute to, not detract from, the overall quality of care.

What Does a Notary Public Do and Why?

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Notary Public is important to the legal system as many court documents must be notarized. A notary public is a person authorized by the Secretary of State to serve the public in non-contentious matters and has statutory powers to witness documents, administer oaths, and perform other wide-ranging administrative functions of a national and international nature. The main functions of a notary include:

· Attesting documents and certifying their due execution for use
· Preparing and certifying powers of attorney, wills, deeds, contracts and other legal documents
· Administering oaths
· Witnessing signatures to affidavits, statutory declarations, powers of attorney, contracts, and other documents
· Verifying documents
· Certifying copy documents
· Exemplifying official documents
· Notes and protests bills of exchange

A document is “notarized” with a special embossed notary seal to affirm that the signers are indeed who they say they are. Notaries Public affix their official seal or stamp, to documents immediately under, adjacent or as near as possible to their signatures.

The eligibility criteria for becoming a notary are determined by state law. Each state has its own requirements. Generally the person must be at least 18 years of age and either living or be employed in the state. There are no specific legal training requirements. Most states also require applicants to take and pass a proctored exam before practicing as a notary public. Some states ask that individuals secure a bond prior to applying for a position as a notary public. Once commissioned as a notary public, the commission is valid for a fixed term and must be renewed on expiry of the term. Most states prescribe the fees that a notary public can charge. A notary public must keep a record in a well-bound book of each of his or her attestations.

Notaries are expected to be familiar with the codes and ordinances applicable to notarizing documents and performing notary duties. A notary may be sued if his/her actions were negligent. Upon notification by a court of law that a notary has been convicted of false certification, the Secretary of State will revoke the notary’s commission. Errors and Omissions Insurance (commonly called E & O) is a form of liability insurance that protects the notary public from claims or suits that are the result of the notary’s negligent acts, errors or omissions.

Atlanta Real Estate Online

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Atlanta real estate online services help you meet all your real estate needs in and around Atlanta. They help you to buy or sell your property or to relocate. These online services provide information on all residential and commercial properties for sale. Atlanta real estate online services are equally helpful for both experienced investors and first-time buyers.

There are hundreds of reliable websites offering you many kinds of Atlanta real estate services. Most of them have good listings of homes and other properties. They display high-quality photographs of homes and office buildings. In most cases, price tags are also provided. Certain real estate firms with online services make use of multiple listing services (MLS). Many companies offer mortgage help as well. Online real estate services usually monitor your deal from the very beginning to the final settlement.

Most Atlanta real estate agents foster their own websites. They provide huge area-wide lists of real estate properties. Information about some of the best real estate agents is also provided through various websites. These agents will help you make a market evaluation of properties, price your home, and pursue the various procedures involved in the buying or selling process.

Online Atlanta real estate services offer you many advantages, especially if you are an outsider. They offer direct access to various properties available for sale. These services keep you abreast of the changes in trends and help you make decisions accordingly. Atlanta’s online real estate is flourishing, owing to a rapid growth in the Atlanta population and the increased rate of employed people.