A guest column by the American College of Physicians, exclusive to KevinMD.com.
Over the past several months, I have covered some controversial topics, such as electronic health records and the overuse of diagnostic testing. For this month’s column, I will address a less provocative topic: the role of non-physician providers …
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) identifies the first use of the term “doctour”, as the year 1303 AD, shortened to “doctor” in the 1557 addition of the Geneva Bible. The OED first defines doctor not as a caregiver or healer, not as a science researcher or expert and not even as one with an advanced educational degree. The OED, the world’s foremost English language dictionary, defines “doctor,” 700 years ago …
I inherited motion sickness from my father’s side of the family. I can’t sit in the back seat of a car for more than 10 minutes without becoming sick. I take meclizine before every plane flight.
I inherited asthma from my mother’s side of the family. Exposure to perfume, 90+ degree temps with 90+% humidity, or even a good laugh will all prompt me to cough.
These two maladies of mine have …
Academic Medicine, a journal of the American Association of Medical Colleges, has sent out a recent call for articles addressing the 2013 question of the year: “What is a doctor? What is a nurse?” Thirty years ago this would have been an absurd question. Not only would it have been absurd for doctors and nurses, but for patients too. Roles were …
The cavernous hospital amphitheater in Tel Aviv, normally used to screen videos and new surgical procedures, was illuminated only by tea candles floating in decorative dishes of water on a recent Wednesday in January. Hundreds of doctors, nurses and other medical personnel filled the seats, as usual. But we had not come to learn the latest life-saving technique.
Dr. Ofira Ben-Tal, one of Israel’s leading hematologists, had lost her battle with …
Al Franken, the humorist-turned-senator, once published a book that was titled “Oh, the Things I Know!” Indeed, by the time we reach parenthood, it is truly amazing what we keep up there in that attic of a brain.
Here is a brief selection of things about the practice of medicine that I have had to discover for myself or never quite figured out, including clinical pearls, aphorisms, dictums, platitudes, mysteries and …
There are many ways to write about health, medicine, and health care. And there are many people – patients, caregivers, policymakers, pundits, thought leaders, and health professionals – in a position to do so.
Fortunately, the world also offers a similar and growing diversity of places in which to publish this sort of work.
My focus today is more, well, literary.
I know the word “literary” often …
I happened to read an article in the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch where Ohio coroners are complaining because some doctors, including emergency physicians, are refusing to sign death certificates listing a patient’s cause of death. The coroners are concerned because they are being “burdened” with hundreds of extra cases every year that they must handle. And if other doctors don’t sign off on the cause of death, sometimes it takes two …
Most professional business enterprises nationwide understand that they could never expect to compete in the marketplace if they shut down their phones 20 – 25% of important business hours every day. Yet that is exactly what your medical practice is doing if you are shutting your phones down for a “lunch break”.
You might be wondering how important can this really be for a medical practice? Can’t patients just wait an …
In March 2008, prominent Denver business owner Leslie Fishbein suffered cardiac arrest and died after receiving trigger point injections with bupivacaine for chronic neck pain. Ms. Fishbein owned a chain of high-end furniture stores. She was well known within the community because of her starring role in television commercials promoting her business. Her death drew tremendous media attention and heavy scrutiny for …
I began the medical school application process 10 years ago. I was 23, single and most of my role models worked full time. I had no idea that a part-time medical career lay in my future. Quite a bit has changed since the days of hoping and praying and crossing my fingers for a medical school acceptance letter. In the past 10 years I have, at varying times, declared …
The United States is higher in its use of computed tomography (CT) scans than any other industrialized country. There were about 3 million scans done in the U.S. in 1980. By 2007 that number had risen to 70 million. A number of articles published in medical journals over the past few years have reported that excess radiation delivered by these scans will …
Recently one of our readers posted this comment:
“If any Shrink Rapper ever has the time and inclination it would be interesting to read about what you would do to fix the mental health system, particularly the issue of involuntary hospitalization, if you had unlimited funds and political resources. You’ve been in the trenches, it would be great to hear your thoughts.”
Over on Peter Earley’s blog I see that …
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Next in a continuing series.
The preliminaries are over. Sponges, needles, and instruments have been counted and checked, their number recorded on a whiteboard on the wall, as well as a clipboard. The checkoff is a comforting hum of words; the tuned machinery of the workplace. As the bottle of local is opened and poured into a sterile bowl on the …
A few months ago I wrote a post about the 159 page digital fax that I received, containing records for a patient’s recent lengthy hospitalization.
I’ve now discovered something even more time-consuming and annoying: a 202 page paper record mailed to me by a major medical system. (I won’t name names right now; suffice to say this system uses Read more…
I have it on good authority that it’s not easy being green. But I’m willing to wager that it’s a whole lot easier when you have a lovable name like “Kermit.” Imagine being green (or brown) with a name like “Ramachandran”? Growing up with a name like mine certainly had its disadvantages. While most neighborhoods have a local bully who kicks ass and takes names, in my case, he would …
I recently received this email message from one of my residents who has moonlighted in a local commercial urgent care center. This message is reprinted with his permission just as I received it, except I removed the brand name.
Hey Dr. Young, I’m looking for some basic mentoring advice. I’ve been moonlighting at ZZZ Urgent Care for about a year. Not my favorite work, but oh well. I don’t routinely prescribe antibiotics …
She was 94-years old with advanced Alzheimer’s. She thought it was 1954 and asked if I wanted tea. Not a bad memory for someone in a hospital bed with a broken left hip.
She’d fallen at her assisted living facility. It was the second time in as many months. She’d broken her collarbone on the previous occasion.
Over the past year, she’d lost 30 pounds. This is natural in the progression of …
There are surprising misconceptions about what family physicians actually do in practice.
Americans maintain a fond respect for the classic image of the family physician, making house calls with black handbag in tow. They admire the Marcus Welbys of the world. While this classic image is endearing, it should not be confused with the 21st century family doctor. The modern family physician is trained to engage in the adaptable world of health …
Health and health care are hot topics lately, and not just for journalists and bloggers debating Obamacare. Suddenly – or so it seems; in fact the trend has been building for years – people from all walks of life want to read about medicine.
Within medicine, a majority of journals now have essay, viewpoint, or perspectives sections. Not only are such sections frequently …
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