How objective pain management can save lives and prevent addiction

Conditions
December 17, 2024

The management of pain in clinical practice often involves navigating the critical tension between compassionate care and ensuring patient safety. While subjective self-reports of pain are essential for understanding a patient’s experience, relying solely on these assessments may risk overtreatment, leading to adverse outcomes. Incorporating objective measures can enhance safety and maintain clinical integrity without compromising compassion.

The role of objective measures in pain management

1. Promoting patient safety

Strategies to reduce costly hospital readmissions and improve patient care [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 16, 2024
YouTube video

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We explore the pressing issue of hospital readmissions and their significant impact on health outcomes and financial strain within the health care system. Our guest, health care executive Ahzam Afzal, shares insights into …

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The hidden cost of neglecting self-care: the autoimmune connection

Physician
December 16, 2024

Imagine your immune system as a vigilant guardian suddenly turning against the body it’s meant to protect. This is the reality of autoimmune diseases—a group of complex conditions where the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells, leading to chronic illnesses like multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus.

A striking statistic reveals a sobering truth: 80 percent of autoimmune diseases occur in women, with an even more pronounced impact on Black women. …

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Doctors must rethink “do no harm” to help children with long COVID

Conditions
December 16, 2024

As medical students, we all take the Hippocratic oath—a pledge to help patients and, of course, not to cause harm in any treatments we provide. It is a core element in the care of our patients. We would never want to do anything that could make things worse. But is it that simple?

As medical diseases have become more and more complex, can we ethically say we will not offer a …

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High tech should not replace high talk and high touch in health care

Physician
December 16, 2024

Though many of the dollar-driven decision makers within health care would have us believe otherwise, we can’t AI, blood tests, or high-tech image our way out of our current U.S. health care mess. I learned this from having spent 40 years as a board-certified emergency physician and 50+ years as a chronic autoimmune disease patient. We must overtly acknowledge that all three of the above are simply supplemental tools. They …

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Why failure should be part of every doctor’s story [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 15, 2024
YouTube video

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We sit down with medical student Ashley McCray to explore the powerful lessons learned from failure and the resilience it builds. Ashley shares her personal story of perseverance after failing her licensing exam, …

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A medical malpractice lawsuit is just words: Actions speak louder than words

Physician
December 15, 2024

Data indicates that there are 85,000 malpractice lawsuits filed per year. This is the status quo.

What if the status quo is worse? There are other data showing that 85,000 is only the number of lawsuits represented by lawyers. There are 3.065 million additional claims that lawyers do not represent. The total could be 3.15 million. Plaintiff lawyers agree that, for every 37 cases that cross their desks, 36 are summarily …

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From burnout to breakthrough: Why treating yourself like a patient could save your medical career

Physician
December 15, 2024

I started my career in medicine with the same noble intentions that many physicians share—to help and care for people. But like so many of my colleagues, I quickly found myself consumed by a broken system.

Three years into my medical career, I was an overwhelmed family doctor in a small town, juggling urgent care, inpatient care, and seeing 40 patients a day—spending the typical average of just seven minutes with …

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Harnessing the power of AI to improve prostate cancer outcomes

Tech
December 15, 2024

It’s important to highlight the significant progress being made to improve outcomes for men facing health challenges. Efforts to transform men’s health focus on advancing awareness and reshaping how conditions such as prostate cancer are understood and treated.

Globally, prostate cancer remains one of the most significant health challenges faced by men. Fortunately, advancements in data science are offering promising solutions to improve outcomes. While traditional methods of tracking prostate cancer …

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How the Olympic spirit can transform diabetes care [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 14, 2024
YouTube video

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Join us as we sit down with Gary Marc Rothenberg, a podiatrist, to explore the unique connections between Olympic-level perseverance and the day-to-day challenges of chronic disease management, specifically diabetes. We discuss how …

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Perspective-taking in medicine: an important tool for educators to remember

Physician
December 14, 2024

I wrote an opinion piece, as a graduating medical student, in KevinMD a little over six years ago, expressing the importance of supporting medical students through confidence and encouragement. As a pediatric attending now, with my own trainees, I continue to support this “ask,” but I would love to add to it and give it a different perspective.

I recently realized that I have been feeling quite far removed from …

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How a no-internet vacation transformed my life and career

Physician
December 14, 2024

The vacation had been planned for months. With laptop in hand, I headed to my happy place… my favorite place in the sun. I was excited to check some things off my to-do list while enjoying the sun, the beach, and the breeze.

But things didn’t go as planned. For the next ten days, the internet service was out. Despite my daily calls to the service provider, hoping for a fix, …

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Why talking to families of autistic individuals about brain donation is a priority

Conditions
December 14, 2024

Efforts to generate a resource of postmortem brain tissue for research are in their infancy. Autism BrainNet, a program of the Simons Foundation, is trying to jump-start those efforts. Currently, there are fewer than 200 postmortem autistic brains in the Autism BrainNet program available to researchers worldwide who are looking into the underlying biological causes of autism and related neurodevelopmental disorders. Postmortem brain tissue accelerates research efforts and advances …

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We’re barely using a key resource to help people with addiction

Conditions
December 14, 2024

Rachel was making her 25th visit to the emergency department. The wound on her leg from injecting drugs had spread to her entire calf and required a lengthy course of antibiotic treatment in the hospital. The few times she had been admitted to the hospital, she had left without finishing treatment because the pain and withdrawal symptoms were too much to bear. On her most recent visit, she finally stayed to …

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Where physicians need to implement AI first

Tech
December 14, 2024

Like most physicians, I’m cautiously optimistic and sometimes skeptical about the AI-powered tools coming to health care.

As a dermatologist, I understand the dire need in our profession to address administrative burdens that can be soul-crushing–the constant barrage of documentation needs, non-clinical paper shuffling, and ever-changing reporting requirements, to name a few. As a software executive, I also understand the deeply complex technical requirements needed to integrate AI into existing systems …

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How burnout sneaks up on health care professionals [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 13, 2024
YouTube video

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Devina Wadhwa, a psychiatrist, shares her personal journey through burnout and the challenges of navigating systemic pressures in health care. From recognizing subtle signs of burnout to setting boundaries and redefining resilience, she …

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How fee-for-service shapes your doctor’s decisions

Policy
December 13, 2024

An excerpt from Reshaping Health Systems: What Drives Health Care and How You Can Change It. Copyright © 2024, Wolters Kluwer.

Clinical case

Jessica is a 67-year-old woman having her very first visit with her new primary care clinician, Dr. Jackson. Jessica is accompanied by her husband, Daniel, and comes in with recent laboratory results from her previous clinician, whom she could no longer see because her clinic stopped accepting Jessica’s …

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The testosterone surge: Are men chasing solutions or creating new risks?

Meds
December 13, 2024

Among men, even before COVID-19, the popularity of testosterone therapy since 2000 likely outpaced the clinical need. There have been a number of proposed reasons for this, such as increased direct-to-consumer marketing for low testosterone treatments and the rise of clinics based around testosterone prescribing hidden under the guise of “men’s health.” Much of this growth was seen from 2000-2013 in older men before a decline around the time the …

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How primary care could transform our health system [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 12, 2024
YouTube video

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Join us for an insightful conversation with emergency physician Drew Remignanti as we explore the complexities of transitioning to Medicare for all. We’ll discuss the potential benefits, pitfalls, and misconceptions surrounding the concept, …

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