Senator Walsh: Thank you for uniting us

Physician
April 29, 2019

Senator Walsh … thank you.

Because of your flagrant words against some of the hardest-working members of our medical community, we have united to stand against you and rally for our “card-playing” nurses.

Like most of my medical family, I was astounded and frustrated at the belittling ignorance of Senator Walsh’s recent comments about the amazing nurses throughout our great country. Senator Walsh’s comments were felt not only by our hard-working nurses, …

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Senator Walsh: Thank you for uniting us

Our work goes beyond the hospital

Physician
April 29, 2019

There is a species of jellyfish that exists only in one lake on this entire planet.  Every morning, before the sun rises, these jellyfish travel to the surface of the lake so that algae that live within them can photosynthesize and produce glucose for the jellyfish to survive.  Every day, these jellyfish travel from east to west along the surface of the lake, chasing the rays of the sun, chasing …

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Our work goes beyond the hospital

How often did doctors treat you with courtesy and respect? 

Physician
April 29, 2019

During this hospital stay, how often did doctors treat you with courtesy and respect?   Seriously?  Why is this question even necessary?  Obviously, because it doesn’t always happen.  Well, that’s interesting.  Maybe interesting isn’t the word.  Maybe the word is, “shocking.”  I can’t fathom treating any patient with anything less than courtesy and respect.   I just don’t get it.

I’m not accusing anyone of being rude to patients.

Remember, HCAHPS are not necessarily …

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How often did doctors treat you with courtesy and respect? 

Seeing the effects of the opioid crisis play out live

Medications
April 29, 2019

Recently, I was at a health care facility in a semi-urban region, less than 100 miles from a major metro. It had a whiff of industry from good times that have long drifted by.

I tried to locate a Starbucks. Google Maps spotted one and took me towards the local university campus. As I drove there, I noticed several pain management clinics advertising themselves in unusual ways for “relief.”

Once inside the …

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Seeing the effects of the opioid crisis play out live

How one woman prevented a pharmaceutical disaster

Medications
April 28, 2019

An excerpt from Frankie: How One Woman Prevented a Pharmaceutical Disaster.

Between September 1960 and November 1961, when the news broke around the world about thalidomide’s responsibility for the birth of deformed babies, Dr. Frances Kelsey — Frankie — of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Cincinnati drug company Merrell, that was desperate to launch its ten million thalidomide tablets …

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How one woman prevented a pharmaceutical disaster

The eyes are a window to the brain

Conditions and Diseases
April 28, 2019

Nothing quite catches our collective attention like clear and dire issues that need solutions and traumatic brain injuries (TBI), the leading cause of death and disability across all population demographics, are no exception.

More and more research is demonstrating the serious and widespread impacts of TBI.  Every day, about 153 people die from injuries that include TBI. In 2013 alone, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and …

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The eyes are a window to the brain

It’s time we take physician satisfaction seriously

Physician
April 28, 2019

There are a lot of unhappy physicians in a lot of bad situations. I know because I write for them, and they write to me. The thing is, we deal with patient satisfaction all day long. Why not work harder on physician satisfaction? I want my colleagues to have a higher “physician satisfaction score.”

So first off, what makes us dissatisfied? What lowers that score for the hard-working physicians of America, …

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It’s time we take physician satisfaction seriously

Pause before writing your personal statement

Medical Education
April 28, 2019

Trust me: The time you spend thinking about your personal statement before you start writing will make the actual writing process much, much easier.

Before you even start writing a word, spend some time reading personal statement examples. Read good ones, read bad ones, read strange ones. The reason for this is to give you an intrinsic idea of what you personally liked and didn’t like. Moreover, you will begin to …

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Pause before writing your personal statement

Interpreting 2 recent studies involving Alzheimer disease

Conditions and Diseases
April 27, 2019

Two prestigious medical journals published studies involving Alzheimer disease (AD) and amyloid beta in successive weeks; both were paired with guest expert commentaries (editorials).  One editorial, about a drug study, also reviewed several other failures in anti-amyloid therapy and stated: “To be blunt, A-beta [amyloid] lowering seems like an ineffective approach….” The other editorial had an encouraging attitude toward amyloid PET imaging as part of …

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Interpreting 2 recent studies involving Alzheimer disease

4 reasons why this physician specialized in infectious disease

Physician
April 27, 2019

The last sunlight of the day was slanting through Joseph’s hospital window. As the sun descended, it burned the sky crimson, and the mists rolled away, disappearing into Rwanda’s seemingly endless hills. I had just arrived in Kigali for global health work with a goal of medical education and, as I looked out, I felt at peace with my recent decision to apply to an infectious disease (ID) fellowship.

Earlier, while …

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4 reasons why this physician specialized in infectious disease

Why virtual visits may be an important tool for your practice

Health Technology
April 27, 2019

Telemedicine has been available now for a number of years. Despite being widely accessible, it still struggles to maintain a foothold in the minds of many traditional practitioners. There are many reasons for this, including gaps in knowledge related to billing and reimbursement for virtual visits, as well as varying levels of coverage by insurance providers. This is particularly cumbersome when it comes to Medicare patients, although there is hope …

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Why virtual visits may be an important tool for your practice

MKSAP: 62-year-old woman with hypertension

Conditions and Diseases
April 27, 2019

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.

A 62-year-old woman is evaluated during a routine examination. She feels well and has no exercise limitations. Medical history is significant for hypertension treated with enalapril. She does not smoke. At her last examination 4 years ago, her blood pressure was 122/76 mm Hg. Laboratory studies at that time …

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MKSAP: 62-year-old woman with hypertension

Autism and advocacy go hand in hand

Conditions and Diseases
April 26, 2019

“As soon as I mentioned the ‘A’ word, I knew she would not be calling me back.”  This was what one of the parents I met at my preschool told me about what it was like trying to register her son with autism in a non-specialized local community program.

Once the registrar heard the “A word” – autism – they said that another child had already taken the last spot available, …

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Autism and advocacy go hand in hand

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Physicians have a right to pursue creativity

Physician
April 26, 2019

When I mentioned to a colleague and mentee that I would be writing this article, she expressed excitement about it and felt it would be well received by many physicians who might have given up their art — their form of creative expression — for the sake of medicine.

I had recently been encouraging her to continue her passion for writing. Sometimes we need others to encourage us to “keep calm …

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Physicians have a right to pursue creativity

How diabetes education programs can help busy primary care physicians

Conditions and Diseases
April 26, 2019

Busy primary care physicians have a lot on their plates. But when it comes to helping people with diabetes learn how to improve their health, they don’t have to do it all themselves. Diabetes self-management education and support (DSMES) programs, led by a diabetes educator, can provide vital assistance by helping people with diabetes maintain a healthy weight, quit smoking, begin an exercise routine and integrate other self-management behaviors into …

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How diabetes education programs can help busy primary care physicians

When is a check-up not a check-up?

Conditions and Diseases
April 26, 2019

Kaiser Health News told the story of a 69-year-old woman who went to a new doctor for her annual check-up, assuming it was covered by Medicare and was happy with the visit until she got a $400 bill.

Most Americans believe in “annual check-ups,” at which your doctor reviews your medical history, gives you a thorough physical and orders lab tests. The actual value of such visits has been questioned, but …

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When is a check-up not a check-up?

Doctor, how are you, really?

Patient
April 26, 2019

My longtime psychiatrist died by suicide.

It still doesn’t seem real. It’s nearly impossible to accept that someone who had the talent and resources to help so many others couldn’t avail himself of the help that he needed.

It’s even harder to accept that I sensed something was wrong and didn’t do anything about it.

I’d known him for years. In the final months of our relationship, the changes in his attitude and …

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Doctor, how are you, really?

What are the best student loan repayment plans for medical students and residents?

Physician Finance
April 26, 2019

If you’ve ever tried to learn about student loan repayment plans, you might have felt overwhelmed and confused. Instead of spending days researching information — as I did — here’s a summary of the different repayment plans to help you choose the right one.

1. What is the standard repayment plan?

With the standard repayment plan, you will pay off your student loans in 10 years by making “fixed” monthly payments. The …

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What are the best student loan repayment plans for medical students and residents?

The truth and challenges of being a doctor mom

Physician
April 25, 2019

Being a doctor mom is a beautiful paradox of feeling like a badass one moment and a frazzled I-don’t-know-what-the-heck-I-am-doing mess of a person. Being a female physician, the majority of us feel there is a societal and cultural pressure to be perfect all the time in every sphere of our life: as a professional, parent, and person. Obviously, expecting perfection is a bit unrealistic.

Among doctor moms, there are some common …

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The truth and challenges of being a doctor mom

Every doctor needs to monitor their online reviews

Physician
April 25, 2019

We’ve had several articles from various sources over the years on grooming your social media. Most of them advise paying attention to your physician ratings, but not acting on anything specifically. “Don’t engage” is the mantra. Let’s take a fresh look at this.

Like probably everyone in medicine, I have my share of physician rating site reviews. Most are good, some are bad, but all of them I pay attention to. …

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Every doctor needs to monitor their online reviews

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