From electric fish to smart device EHRs: the mind-blowing evolution of health care technology

Tech
August 31, 2021

Fun fact: The first recorded use of electric stimulation to ease pain was in … get ready … CE 46! That’s right, nearly 2,000 years ago, ancient Roman writer Scribonius Largus described the use of torpedo fish, aquatic animals capable of electrical discharge, to heal. This system is still as common in health care settings as a conventional TENS Unit (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation). Similarly, many health care IT innovations …

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Physicians are hurting. This is what makes them human.

Physician
August 30, 2021

It is said that everything that moves has a breaking point. Engineers understand this concept, and they have developed intricate methods to understand when metals will reach their breaking point if they sustain repeated back and forth stress.

It becomes crucial to understand that when metals break, the consequences have substantial implications as many industries rely on machines to be efficient and safe. If a machine shuts down due to the …

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A perspective on comorbidities and severity of illness in children with COVID-19

Conditions
August 30, 2021

“Children don’t get as sick with COVID-19” and “only children with comorbidities get very sick from COVID-19” are two statements that have concerned me during the pandemic.  They have been used as statements to support loosening COVID-19 prevention measures for children, like wearing masks, and rationalizing arguments opposing vaccinating children against COVID-19.   It is true that children, for the most part, do not get as sick from COVID-19.  Nevertheless, while …

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SLAT: An important estate planning strategy for physicians to lower President Biden’s estate tax

Finance
August 30, 2021

For married physicians looking into estate planning strategies, one thing to keep in mind is how to make best use of spousal benefits in reducing taxes or providing for a surviving spouse or other beneficiaries. For wealthy physicians, a spousal lifetime access trust, or SLAT, may provide a viable vehicle for avoiding estate taxes for both spouses and protecting assets from creditors while at the same time providing distributions that …

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A data-first strategy to recovering surgical volumes [PODCAST]

Podcast
August 29, 2021
YouTube video

“The first step to hospital recovery is the collection and analysis of data. Organizations that effectively leverage data to optimize surgery can see rapid, quantifiable, and sustained improvements in metrics that directly link to operational efficiency and associated financial benefits. The current situation presents a unique opportunity for hospitals …

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If I already had COVID, do I need the vaccine?

Conditions
August 29, 2021

I used to think, “I had COVID. I don’t need a vaccine… not for now at least, and maybe not ever.”

November 2020: I was a few hours into my 12-hour shift in the emergency department. I had been treating COVID at every shift for about 10 months at that point, and I knew what I was feeling now was more than just fatigue. I took a swab and went into …

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The COVID killing fields

Conditions
August 29, 2021

I go to the hospital cafeteria to unwind from this night — another unpredictable one with irrational patients that randomly attempt to assault the staff.

This time, they missed. Behavioral health. Land of the psychotics and schizophrenics. But an incredible staff to work with.
This song blares out. “Easy Like Sunday Morning.” And I know that nothing is “easy” anymore.

I’ve heard it all about COVID vaccinations:

“It’s my body.”

“It’s not FDA-approved.”

“I have natural …

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You don’t belong here. You’re not good enough. You’re no superhero.

Physician
August 29, 2021

I’ve always had a strong sense of justice. I think that’s what attracted me most to superheroes as a child. Growing up, my favorite by far was Spider-Man.

Many people think it’s because of his superpowers, but for me, it was always about Peter Parker, the man behind the mask. Peter Parker is a nerdy guy who loves science and makes inappropriate jokes all the time. He has this immense personal …

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Behavioral health opportunities during the pandemic [PODCAST]

Podcast
August 28, 2021
YouTube video

“The dramatic uptick in mental distress, trauma, and substance use since last year has driven a corresponding rise in the use of virtual mental health therapy and psychiatric care, helping us, as a society, more effectively grapple with the fallout from the pandemic. According to one study, more than …

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Alternative cryptocurrencies: 5 tips for physicians

Finance
August 28, 2021

You were finally starting to understand Bitcoin when talk about alternative cryptocurrencies or “altcoins” started springing up everywhere. Elon Musk is tweeting about Dogecoin. Mark Cuban is talking about Ethereum. The Motley Fool is posting about Chainlink.

What are altcoins, and should you be investing in them?

I cannot speak to whether investing in altcoins is appropriate for you. Altcoins are a highly volatile and risky asset class that offers the potential …

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How medical training teaches doctors to be financially unhealthy

Finance
August 28, 2021

I recently unearthed all my pay stubs from residency, including the first one — all $89.14 of it.

When I received that check, I had just moved across the country after a grueling internship in Philadelphia, which left me physically and emotionally exhausted.

I was staying in a motel, which I paid for with a credit card because I used my last paycheck from internship to pay for moving across the country. …

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I do not want to be resilient

Physician
August 28, 2021

I went to replace four hanging plants at a nursery this past weekend because they all died once the Texas heat made its appearance, despite being watered, placed in the shade, and talked to by my daughter and me.

While I was looking for plants that will hopefully survive the Texas summer, I was chatting with my husband, who cheekily said, “Those plants weren’t resilient.”

He, of course, knows my disdain for …

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Can doctors have personalities? [PODCAST]

Podcast
August 27, 2021
YouTube video

“When I teach medical students who rotate with me at my clinic, I ask them to write about the single most negative and single most positive emotional experiences they have had in their 3 to 4 years of training thus far. Commonly, I see fear as a negative emotion …

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If Simone Biles were a doctor she would be vilified, not praised [PODCAST]

Podcast
August 26, 2021
YouTube video

“Just as Simone Biles has her detractors, there will always be physicians unable to empathize with their mentally ill colleagues, believing psychological struggles are a constant state of being human. But if taking care of oneself means temporarily leaving the workforce to receive professional treatment, then so be it. Physicians …

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Medicine rewards self-sacrifice often at the cost of physician happiness

Education
August 26, 2021

We’ve all been told by a well-meaning friend, family member, or therapist, “You can’t care for others unless you care for yourself first.” Put your oxygen mask on first, blah blah. But in medical training, we repeatedly demonstrate that, unfortunately, you can provide great care for patients while neglecting yourself. Medicine rewards self-sacrifice and hard work, often at the cost of physician happiness or wholeness.

Maybe it starts in undergraduate school, …

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Asylum seekers: a snapshot from an American physician’s lens

Policy
August 26, 2021

Despite the bright pink walls of its exterior, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility stands inconspicuously, set back along a stretch of a frequently traveled road. We had come to meet Carla (identifying information changed), a detainee seeking asylum whose lawyer had requested a medical evaluation from our medical student-run human rights clinic. The immigration officer peered closely at our letter granting entrance and balked at the medical equipment …

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Scholarship tips for medical school [PODCAST]

Podcast
August 25, 2021
YouTube video

“According to AAMC, the median debt for medical students in 2019 was $200,000. Unfortunately, fundraising for scholarships was difficult for many organizations due to the pandemic despite more students seeking out scholarships. Luckily, more anonymous generous donors have helped the next generations of physicians in recent years, but what happens …

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The abundant and colorful world of pharmaceuticals

Meds
August 25, 2021

Creative photography

Year after year, new medications find their way into the market, adding to the abundant and colorful world of pharmaceuticals.

Medications play a dual role in our lives, as they represent wellness and illness concomitantly. I am primarily fascinated by the human love-hate relationship with medicine in the form of dependency and liberation, desire and distaste, and hope and despair. On one …

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Christina Applegate reveals multiple sclerosis diagnosis

Conditions
August 25, 2021

Award-winning actress Christina Applegate revealed on social media that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). “It’s been a tough road. But as we all know, the road keeps going,” wrote Applegate in a tweet.

Multiple sclerosis is a neurological autoimmune disease that has puzzled patients and health care providers for decades. The disease was first described by the French physician Charcot in the 1800s in the original report “sclerose …

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