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Should health care come with a money-back guarantee?

Physician

October 16, 2019

It may seem odd that a gastroenterologist patronizes fast food establishments several times each week. I’m in one right now as I write this. I eschew the food items –though French fries will forever tempt me – and opt for a large-sized beverage. In truth, I am not primarily there for a thirst-quenching experience, but more to ‘rent a table’ so I can bury myself in some reading. Indeed, many …

How do you determine that the dream of medicine is worth it?

Tolu Kehinde, MD

Physician

October 16, 2019

I’m fascinated by the human body — the intricacies of it, the poetry of it. I am intrigued that a cell can come together with other cells to form tissues, those tissues, organs, and systems.

The body is a powerful metaphor for unity: what happens when the one becomes the many, and the many, even more. It is a lesson in both individuality and community; how one sets out to create …

How vaping bans create a vaping electorate

Rachel Bluth and Lauren Weber

Health Policy

October 16, 2019

Vapers across the country are swarming Twitter, the White House comment line and statehouse steps with the message “We Vape, We Vote.”

They’re speaking out after a slew of attacks on their way of life. President Donald Trump announced his support for a vaping flavor ban in September. Some states temporarily banned the sales of vaping tools or flavors. And the Centers for Disease …

We need vaccine advocacy now more than ever

Gretchen LaSalle, MD

Conditions and Diseases

October 16, 2019

It was flu season.

I was meeting the usual frustrations of trying to convince my patients to get the flu shot. The flu vaccine has such potential to save lives, yet its reputation is marred by misinformation, leading people to decline this simple, inexpensive, and effective way to limit disease and death. Day in and day out, I felt like I was beating my head against a wall.

This particular day, I …

Too few minorities become physicians. Why is that?

Linda Girgis, MD

Physician

October 15, 2019

On Twitter recently, I saw a tweet that commented on the fact that there were too few black men who became doctors. I readily confess that I don’t know the reason why. I asked whether it is due to implicit bias or outright racism. Another doctor answered that both play a role. Although I have witnessed acts of racism and bias in the past, I can’t say I understand it …

How the latest Medicare fraud schemes involve telemedicine

Victoria Knight

Health Policy

October 15, 2019

Dean Ernest had been living in a nursing home about a year when his son, John, got a call last winter asking if his father was experiencing back pain and would like a free orthotic brace.

The caller said he was with Medicare. John Ernest didn’t believe him, said “no” to the brace and hung up. He didn’t give out his father’s Medicare number.

And yet, not just one, but 13 braces …

Can answers to after hours calls be automated?

Fred N. Pelzman, MD

Physician

October 15, 2019

At a certain point, we’ve all got to go home.

Whether it’s the end of the shift when the factory whistle blows and the assembly line stops rolling for a brief period while new people take our place, or late in the day after the last patient has been seen and our notes are all written and our portal messages have …

It is always a good time to buy real estate

Cory Fawcett, MD

Physician Finance

October 15, 2019

An excerpt from The Doctors Guide to Real Estate Investing for Busy Professionals.

I left my 20-year general surgical practice at age 51, only 12 years after buying my first apartment complex. By then, my real estate investments were producing more passive income than I was spending. I no longer …

Drug ads are a campaign against physician trust

Judy Salz, MD

Medications

October 15, 2019

There was a time when drug reps fed us lunch and gave us an endless supply of pens, pads, and even umbrellas all emblazoned with their newest drugs. They explained why their drug was better than their competitors’ and what it would offer to our patients. I still have my Zantac umbrella in the trunk of my car for rain emergencies.

Although it was somewhat annoying, it did keep us somewhat …

Why Medicare for all is not going to happen in America

Margalit Gur-Arie

Health Policy

October 14, 2019

I am going to make a prediction here. No matter who we elect in 2020, Bernie or Trump or anything in between, Medicare for all is not going to happen in America. One can run an electrifying campaign on the promise of Medicare for all, or indignantly against it, but this is pure theater on both sides. I don’t know if God can make a rock so big and heavy …

The irrational exuberance of early cancer detection

H. Gilbert Welch, MD

Conditions and Diseases

October 14, 2019

Here’s some good news for a change about cancer: Cancer mortality — the rate of death from cancer — has fallen substantially over the last four decades.

There is also, however, some not-so-good news: Cancer incidence — the rate of cancer diagnoses — has been rising. This doesn’t reflect increasing dangers in our environment, but a danger in …

The medical illiteracy epidemic

Nicolai Hinds, MD

Physician

October 14, 2019

This past August, I attended the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) District VI meeting in Wisconsin. The theme of this year’s meeting was “Bringing it Back Home,” with a keynote presentation focused on developing the emotional habits to influence others and “embody the inner attitude of a leader.”

After a day of much self-reflection, I decided to stop by the poster presentations during a break between the major talks. …

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The medical illiteracy epidemic

Save health care by saving kids

H. Robert Cannon

Conditions and Diseases

October 14, 2019

My wife is a teacher. Her passion is helping the Bart Simpsons of the education system. This past year the school district in the rural area where we live tasked her with the job of opening the community’s first alternative education school.

Imagine taking 60 of some of the hardest kids in the area and creating a school just for them, so they have an opportunity to feel success, thrive, and …

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Save health care by saving kids

Will Alzheimer’s disease researchers miss seeing the forest from the trees?

Ron Louie, MD

Conditions and Diseases

October 14, 2019

The National Institute of Aging (NIA) just announced $73 million over five years to fund two new research centers. “The Alzheimer Centers for the Discovery of New Medicines are designed to diversify and reinvigorate the Alzheimer’s disease drug development pipeline,” says the NIA online. The AlzForum.org has more details, quoting researchers saying they will change the direction away from amyloid-beta and tau (the presumed …

The stages of grief when a physician is sued

Anonymous

Physician

October 14, 2019

It’s hard to describe the feelings I had when I received my first letter of intent to sue. I think I went through the Kubler-Ross stages of grief — denial at first, of course. This denial didn’t last long since the letter was clearly addressed to me — first, middle, and last name.

Anger was almost immediate … I was immediately upset at the deceased patient’s family who were bringing the …

A cardiologist’s take on red meat consumption

Anthony Pearson, MD

Conditions and Diseases

October 13, 2019

The Skeptical Cardiologist was recently greeted by headlines announcing that an international panel of 14 unbiased researchers had concluded that it was OK for humans to continue eating red meat and processed meat at current levels.

The startling news was a reversal of what the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the American Heart Association, and the American Cancer Society …

How do you celebrate small wins?

Passive Income, MD

Physician

October 13, 2019

If you’re reading this, I have news for you. You are a high achiever.

Yes, I mean you.

You’ve set lofty goals in your life, and you’ve achieved a level of success others only dream of.

This might be in the area of academics, business, or relationships–and for some of you, all of the above. You’ve accomplished big things.

But I have a question for you. When was the last time you celebrated something small?

Really, …

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How do you celebrate small wins?

Do you have these 5 risk factors for physician burnout?

Suneel Dhand, MD

Physician

October 13, 2019

Long gone are the days of our parents’ and grandparents’ generations, when you would graduate, join a company or organization, and pretty much stay there for your whole career. Our own personal expectations have changed, and we are fortunate to be living in a time (and country) where we do not need to feel beholden to any one employer, or feel stuck in a job we are unhappy with. Obviously …

Physicians: Did you ever play the zero percent interest game?

Cory Fawcett, MD

Physician Finance

October 13, 2019

Back in 2001, we paid off our last personal loan, our home mortgage. At that time, we decided to begin investing in real estate with the money that used to go towards digging us out of our personal debt. Our real estate was held in an LLC, and we acquired loans to purchase these properties. In fact, most of our real estate was purchased with 100% financing.

In 2002, the credit …

These medical students signed up for rural medicine. What happened to them?

Lauren Weber

Medical Education

October 12, 2019

The University of Kansas School of Medicine-Salina opened in 2011 — a one-building campus in the heart of wheat country dedicated to producing the rural doctors the country needs.

Now, eight years later, the school’s first graduates are settling into their chosen practices — and locales. And those choices are cause for both hope and despair.

Of the eight graduates, just three chose to go where the shortages are most evident. Two …