![Doctor's are able to micromanage their patients' dosage of bioidentical hormones using compounding pharmacies such as Advantge Pharmaceuticals in Rocklin. Doctor's are able to micromanage their patients' dosage of bioidentical hormones using compounding pharmacies such as Advantge Pharmaceuticals in Rocklin.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/eng_9198---2010-09-22-at-09-32-44.jpg?1577874530)
Fountain of Youth
The role of bioidentical hormones during menopause
Unless you get on the wrong airplane or harbor a relentless cancer, doctors say you can pretty much count on living to be 90. A hundred years ago, it was age 50. For many women, that would have meant dying before menopause. Now it means living half a lifetime with hormones on the fritz.
![Lee Ann Trumbull, president, Gallagher Benefit Insurance Services Lee Ann Trumbull, president, Gallagher Benefit Insurance Services](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/img_3750.jpg?1577874531)
Service and Protect
Will health care reform make insurance brokers obsolete?
It’s too soon to tell whether health insurance brokers are an endangered species on the cusp of going the way of the Dodo or, more recently, the travel agent.
![Jessie Lum, 96, has dementia and currently lives in an assisted-living facility at a cost of $3,500 a month. Lum's daughter Marian Bayham purchased Lum's long-term care insurance 15 years ago. It now covers 85 percent of her living costs. Jessie Lum, 96, has dementia and currently lives in an assisted-living facility at a cost of $3,500 a month. Lum's daughter Marian Bayham purchased Lum's long-term care insurance 15 years ago. It now covers 85 percent of her living costs.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/eng_5432---2010-08-10-at-14-05-03.jpg?1577874530)
Personal Guarantee
Long-term insurance today, long-term assurance tomorrow
When 52-year-old Rosey Ramsey had a stroke in August 2002 she was one of the lucky ones.
![Heather Phillips has been in the hospital for nearly five years. She is visited regularly by Sherm and Sandy Waldman and their West Highland white terrier as a part of a palliative care program at Sutter Roseville Medical Center. Heather Phillips has been in the hospital for nearly five years. She is visited regularly by Sherm and Sandy Waldman and their West Highland white terrier as a part of a palliative care program at Sutter Roseville Medical Center.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/eng_5283---2010-08-10-at-10-27-17.jpg?1577874530)
Balancing the Burdens
Helping patients and hospitals make difficult choices
A growing senior population is changing the way society approaches life and death. “People are dying differently now,” says Judy Citko, executive director of the Coalition for Compassionate Care. In the past, patients had to choose between giving up on treatment or forging ahead with sometimes drastic measures. In contrast to the traditional focus on treatment of individual episodes at any physical and financial cost, medical experts, patients and their families are demanding a new way of approaching their final months and years.
![Pauline Smith, has Alzheimer's disease and lives with her son, Steve Smith, and his family in Forest Hill. A care companion assists the family for about $2,200 a month, a needed resource for Steve and his wife, who work full time. Pauline Smith, has Alzheimer's disease and lives with her son, Steve Smith, and his family in Forest Hill. A care companion assists the family for about $2,200 a month, a needed resource for Steve and his wife, who work full time.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/eng_6297.jpg?1577874530)
Take Care
Proper planning makes all the difference for caregivers
When his mother fell for the second time, Steve Smith was ready to put the plan in motion.
![Nearly one in five Americans over the age of 65 have been financially victimized. Such financial abuse costs older Americans more than $2.6 million annually.
(istockphoto) Nearly one in five Americans over the age of 65 have been financially victimized. Such financial abuse costs older Americans more than $2.6 million annually.
(istockphoto)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/istock_000007765196medium.jpg?1577874531)
Not Fooling Anyone
Physicians could be the missing link in detecting and reporting financial abuse
About 35 percent of the 25 million people in the United States aged 71 or older have mild cognitive impairment or dementia, according to a 2008 Duke University study.
![UC Davis medical experts are connecting with at least 75 clinics across the state at any given time.
(Photo by UC Davis Health System) UC Davis medical experts are connecting with at least 75 clinics across the state at any given time.
(Photo by UC Davis Health System)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/ruralwomandoc_jimconsult.jpg?1577874531)
Beam Me Up
Connecting urban specialists to rural patients
An infant in Redding is turning blue, slipping away with a failing heart and lungs until a specialist in Sacramento steps in and saves the baby’s life, guiding a team of nurses via a video link.
![Dr. Jan Nolta heads he stem cell program for the UC Davis Health System and directs the Institute for Regenerative Cures.
(Photo courtesy of UC Davis Health System) Dr. Jan Nolta heads he stem cell program for the UC Davis Health System and directs the Institute for Regenerative Cures.
(Photo courtesy of UC Davis Health System)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/irc_hd-tour_013010-7.jpg?1577874531)
Stemming Out
UC Davis researchers deliver lab innovations
Dr. Jan Nolta is a whirlwind of energy, and this July morning she is blitzing through UC Davis’ brand-new Institute for Regenerative Cures, a state-of-the-art lab where scientists and researchers are working on breakthrough discoveries and stem cell therapies.
![The Arthur A. Benjamin Health Professions High School in Sacramento opened in 2005 and has two graduating classes. The Arthur A. Benjamin Health Professions High School in Sacramento opened in 2005 and has two graduating classes.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/img_8581_0.jpg?1577874531)
Nursing Needs
Can local health care providers find a solution to worker shortages?
California will need close to a million new medical assistants, lab techs, respiratory therapists and other skilled health workers in the next 20 years in addition to new doctors and nurses, a recent study estimates. But the state doesn’t have enough educational capacity to train them all.
![Vikram Janardhan, CEO, Insera Therapeutics; and Cary Adams, founder of, Proximal Ventures. Vikram Janardhan, CEO, Insera Therapeutics; and Cary Adams, founder of, Proximal Ventures.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/img_8185final.jpg?1577874531)
Stayin’ a Life
Will the health care overhaul affect investment in medical technology?
After four quarters of increasing venture investment, 2010 is off to a slow start. Venture capitalists invested $4.7 billion in the year’s first quarter, down from $5.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. The life sciences sector, including biotechnology and medical device industries, took the biggest hit with a 26 percent decline in venture investment over the previous quarter.