2010

April 26, 2010Apr 26, 201032

by Crystal Phend Physicians don't know much more about complementary and alternative medicine than their patients do, according to a new survey. Most healthcare professionals who answered an online survey of Drug and Therapeutic Bulletin subscribers said their profession was…

by Crystal Phend

Physicians don’t know much more about complementary and alternative medicine than their patients do, according to a new survey.

Most healthcare professionals who answered an online survey of Drug and Therapeutic Bulletin subscribers said their profession was just as poorly informed about herbal medicines (75.5%) as the general public (86.3%).

And almost half of respondents rated their own knowledge about herbal medicines as “quite” or “very” poor (36.2% and 10.4%, …

Health policy

Health reform won’t help the ER

Chris Rangel, MD

April 26, 2010Apr 26, 20102

Contrary to popular belief, those without health insurance are not flooding emergency rooms as a consequence of being cut off from routine and preventive care. Actually, frequent visitors to the local ER are far more likely to have insurance according…

Frequent users account for about 8% of ED patients but 28% of visits. Although frequent

…

Read more…

Health reform won’t help the ER

Conditions and diseases

ADHD needs more than drugs to appropriately treat

Claudia M. Gold, MD

April 25, 2010Apr 25, 20108

I consider my most successful cases to be the ones that do not seem me any more. Not that they are "better", but they and their families have come to realize the full complexity of the problems they are struggling…

I consider my most successful cases to be the ones that do not seem me any more. Not that they are “better”, but they and their families have come to realize the full complexity of the problems they are struggling with, and are getting appropriate help.

I inherited my “ADHD practice” from another pediatrician. He was wonderful man, a larger than life, toss babies in the air pediatrician with a hearty …

Real physician voices, twice a week

Free, and one click to unsubscribe.

Health policy

Don Berwick and whether he can change Medicare and Medicaid

MedPage Today

April 25, 2010Apr 25, 20107

by Marianne Mattera President Obama is planning to appoint Don Berwick -- the Harvard pediatrician, recognized health policy expert, and head of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) -- as the new head of CMS. Berwick's nomination has been heralded…

by Marianne Mattera

President Obama is planning to appoint Don Berwick — the Harvard pediatrician, recognized health policy expert, and head of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) — as the new head of CMS.

Berwick’s nomination has been heralded by many as a terrific choice.

Our own health policy columnist, David Nash, said that “Berwick’s global following is a powerful political force …

Physician voices

C-section rates and its association with lawsuits

Amy Tuteur, MD

April 25, 2010Apr 25, 201033

The National Center for Health Statistics recently released a new report, Recent Trends in Cesarean Delivery in the United States. The report is most notable for a startling statistic; the C-section rate has reached the astronomical level of 32%, an…

Why is the C-section rate sky high?

The pervasive nature of the increase may hold some clues. The increase has …

Physician voices

St. Vincent’s Hospital closes, but who’s to blame?

Marie Cooper

April 24, 2010Apr 24, 20104

St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Greenwich Village was founded in 1849, making it the third oldest hospital in New York City. It has been an occasional scene of notoriety but mostly it has witnessed countless episodes of anonymous compassion and care. My two sons were born there. As a major teaching hospital, it has over 1000 affiliated physicians. It is where generations of New Yorkers …

Conditions and diseases

Colorectal cancer in blacks is affected by healthcare utilization

MedPage Today

April 24, 2010Apr 24, 2010

by Todd Neale The greater burden of colorectal cancer in the black community appears to be related to healthcare utilization, and not biology, researchers found. Similar proportions of black and white patients had polyps or masses detected by flexible sigmoidoscopy,…

by Todd Neale

The greater burden of colorectal cancer in the black community appears to be related to healthcare utilization, and not biology, researchers found.

Similar proportions of black and white patients had polyps or masses detected by flexible sigmoidoscopy, but black patients were less likely than whites to have the recommended follow-up colonoscopy (62.6% versus 72.4%), according to Adeyinka Laiyemo, MD, MPH, of Howard University in Washington, and colleagues.

After adjustment for …

Health policy

Op-ed: Health insurance doesn’t mean doctors will be available

Kevin Pho, MD

April 24, 2010Apr 24, 201013

The following op-ed was published on March 30th, 2010 in AOL News. Health reform has passed, and the United States is poised to join the rest of the industrialized world in providing most of its citizens with affordable health coverage.…

The following op-ed was published on March 30th, 2010 in AOL News.

Health reform has passed, and the United States is poised to join the rest of the industrialized world in providing most of its citizens with affordable health coverage.

But having health insurance doesn’t necessarily mean it will be easy to find a doctor. Even before reform, reports projected a shortfall of 40,000 primary care physicians over …

Conditions and diseases

Bret Michaels has a subarachnoid hemorrhage, and what that means

Kevin Pho, MD

April 23, 2010Apr 23, 201019

Bret Michaels is in critical condition from a subarachnoid hemorrhage. I've been watching Celebrity Apprentice recently, and he comes across as a genuine person who, of course, has been raising awareness for Type 1 diabetes. As most people know, he…

Bret Michaels is in critical condition from a subarachnoid hemorrhage.

I’ve been watching Celebrity Apprentice recently, and he comes across as a genuine person who, of course, has been raising awareness for Type 1 diabetes. As most people know, he has battled various diabetic complications on the show, and recently underwent an emergency appendectomy.

What’s his prognosis like?

Not good, I’m …

Conditions and diseases

Palliative care physicians confronting their own mortality

Lyle Fettig, MD

April 23, 2010Apr 23, 20102

Dr. Desiree Pardi was the palliative care medical director at Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York. She died of metastatic breast cancer in 2009 at the age of 41. Her story provides palliative care clinicians an opportunity to reflect…

Dr. Desiree Pardi was the palliative care medical director at Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York. She died of metastatic breast cancer in 2009 at the age of 41.

Her story provides palliative care clinicians an opportunity to reflect on how our own personal mortality interacts with our professional lives.

I did not personally know Dr. Pardi. I write this post knowing that many readers did indeed know her, some …

Health policy

Medicaid physician payment rates hurts primary care doctors

David B. Nash, MD, MBA

April 23, 2010Apr 23, 201014

Across the country, state Medicaid health insurance programs serving low-income children and families, people with disabilities, and older adults are struggling in an environment of chronic underfunding. Consider that, nationwide, at least one child in four relies on Medicaid for…

Consider that, nationwide, at least one child in four relies on Medicaid for health coverage. Medicaid funds healthcare services for two out of every five births and fills in gaps in Medicare coverage for the elderly and disabled.

But inadequate payments and outmoded methods of …

Drugs and prescribing

Patient adherence to drugs is low and what doctors can do

Shantanu Nundy, MD

April 22, 2010Apr 22, 20106

Frequently in preventive health we ask patients to take medications that will reduce the risk of a certain bad medical outcome years down the road: cholesterol-lowering agents that lower the risk of a heart attack, blood pressure-lowering agents that reduce…

Sometimes these medications make patients feel better — for example, insulin in patients with symptomatic diabetes or …

Physician voices

Psychiatric patients detained in the ER

Edwin Leap, MD

April 22, 2010Apr 22, 201011

Our state of South Carolina is a delight. From wonderful people to beautiful landscapes, from a vibrant Southern culture to excellent food like shrimp and grits, it’s a place I’m thrilled to live. But we do lack a few things.…

The state budget, like so many state budgets, has been trimming anything and everything. And of course, mental health coverage …

Read more…

Psychiatric patients detained in the ER

Conditions and diseases

Dementia affects the entire family

MedPage Today

April 22, 2010Apr 22, 2010

by Emily P. Walker My grandfather recently died of pancreatic cancer. My grandpa was a WWII veteran, a nature enthusiast, an animal-lover, a chiropractor until the 1980s, and a firm believer in natural medicine. He helped my grandmother give birth…

by Emily P. Walker

My grandfather recently died of pancreatic cancer.

My grandpa was a WWII veteran, a nature enthusiast, an animal-lover, a chiropractor until the 1980s, and a firm believer in natural medicine. He helped my grandmother give birth to five children in her bed, and neither of them had ever taken any drugs except when both were hospitalized one winter with pneumonia.

As someone with a major respect for medical doctors …

Read more…

Dementia affects the entire family

Physician voices

Patient satisfaction scores improve when doctors sit

Kevin

April 22, 2010Apr 22, 201013

Patient satisfaction, as I wrote previously, is being increasingly focused upon. Doctors are often pressed for time, and appear rushed -- which can potentially lead to unhappy patients. I saw this small study showing that the simple act of sitting…

Patient satisfaction, as I wrote previously, is being increasingly focused upon.

Doctors are often pressed for time, and appear rushed — which can potentially lead to unhappy patients.

I saw this small study showing that the simple act of sitting down while talking to patients can have a profound effect. Many doctors I know already do this, but now there’s some data to support sitting.

According to the study, performed at …

Conditions and diseases

High blood pressure treatment that patients need to know

Erin Marcus, MD

April 21, 2010Apr 21, 20109

When her gynecologist told her she had high blood pressure, Marie had a simple solution: switch doctors. After all, she had gone to him for a different problem, and this was the first time he had ever checked her blood…

“He said, ‘Oh my God, you’re like a bomb waiting to explode.’ I said, ‘I didn’t come here for that, I came here for something else,’” she explained.

Two years later, …

Patient voices

Top doctors may not always be the best physicians

Dr. Charles

April 21, 2010Apr 21, 201017

I’m sure you’ve read through top doctor rankings and online physician ratings. It is only human to seek perceived leaders. But as sometimes seen in politics, those who have reached the pinnacles are often motivated by ambition, charisma, and gamesmanship…

Beware the top doctors issues found in magazines and newspapers.

Some of these doctors are excellent, but many are simply “notable.” They may be well-connected, in …

Conditions and diseases

Social networks affect alcohol drinking patterns

MedPage Today

April 21, 2010Apr 21, 20103

by Kristina Fiore If you're surrounded by heavy drinkers, you're more likely to become one, new research shows. An analysis of data on alcohol consumption and social networks found that people are 50% more likely to drink heavily if someone…

by Kristina Fiore

If you’re surrounded by heavy drinkers, you’re more likely to become one, new research shows.

An analysis of data on alcohol consumption and social networks found that people are 50% more likely to drink heavily if someone they’re directly connected to does so, Nicholas Christakis, MD, PhD, of Harvard University, and colleagues reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

“We’ve found that the influence of your friends and people you …

Patient voices

Sick friends could use your help

Duncan Cross

April 20, 2010Apr 20, 20105

Illness might be the most isolating and alienating experience a person can know. Lots of well people simply have no clue how to relate to someone with a chronic and catastrophic illness. That sort of thing is scary even just to witness. They hope (or assume) you’ll get better, and then they won’t have to deal with whatever you’re going through – but when that takes too long, they drift …

Read more…

Sick friends could use your help

Physician voices

Palliative care needs a simple and consistent message

Alex Smith, MD

April 20, 2010Apr 20, 20106

I was consulted recently about an elderly woman who refused surgery for a large bowel obstruction from a colonic mass, likely cancer. The inpatient team asked me to help with the transition to hospice and to help make her comfortable.…

I went to see her. She had a nasogastric tube sucking up brown material from her stomach. Her abdomen was swollen and uncomfortable. Her primary goal was to return to walking …

2010

Real physician voices, twice a week

The Podcast

Latest episodes

Most popular

The Podcast

Latest episodes

Most popular