Kevin R. Campbell, MD
Kevin R. Campbell is a cardiac electrophysiologist.
Physicians
Nothing exemplifies more the complete lack of understanding of the issues surrounding our healthcare system than an article that appeared in the New York Times recently. Author Jane Brody’s piece attempts to address issues with the astronomical costs and misuses…
Nothing exemplifies more the complete lack of understanding of the issues surrounding our healthcare system than an article that appeared in the New York Times recently.
Author Jane Brody’s piece attempts to address issues with the astronomical costs and misuses of emergency department (ED) visits in the US today. While I agree that ED visits for routine issues are a waste of resources and money, her suggestion that physicians should …
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Should doctors be available to patients around the clock?
Education
Medical education today requires students to assimilate lots of facts and amass an incredible fund of knowledge quickly. As medical science advances, more material must be mastered. Medical students must be able to organize facts and apply them to patient…
Medical education today requires students to assimilate lots of facts and amass an incredible fund of knowledge quickly. As medical science advances, more material must be mastered. Medical students must be able to organize facts and apply them to patient care. Medical care today is becoming more of a team effort. Successful physicians must be adept at both leadership roles and in the role of a team member (worker bee). …
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A good business school student makes for a good medical student
Physicians
Let me start by saying that I am by no means an expert in medical oncology and I have great respect for what my colleagues in this field are able to do for their patients and their families. From my…
Let me start by saying that I am by no means an expert in medical oncology and I have great respect for what my colleagues in this field are able to do for their patients and their families.
From my earliest days of internal medicine training at the University of Virginia, I can remember the oncologists as being some of the most caring and compassionate physicians around. However, recently I came …
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Ask patients if they feel comfortable asking questions
Social media
Social media has opened a whole new world for patients. Now, information about disease is readily accessible and available to everyone. Certainly, there are issues with reliability and accuracy of internet sources and this can create uneasiness and misunderstanding for…
Social media has opened a whole new world for patients. Now, information about disease is readily accessible and available to everyone. Certainly, there are issues with reliability and accuracy of internet sources and this can create uneasiness and misunderstanding for both physician and patient.
However, the internet can also provide many new therapeutic possibilities. In particular, online support groups, twitter chats and blogging can provide a positive outlet for patients suffering …
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4 reasons why patients should blog
Physicians
Medicine is about balancing risk and benefit. Certainly, as healthcare providers, we attempt to provide the best care for our patients based on available evidence. Physicians often are seen as shepherds, helping to guide patients through disease and therapy. As…
Medicine is about balancing risk and benefit. Certainly, as healthcare providers, we attempt to provide the best care for our patients based on available evidence. Physicians often are seen as shepherds, helping to guide patients through disease and therapy. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, ultimately medicine will be personalized and tailored to one’s particular genetic make-up. However, the need for a clear discussion of treatment options …
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We must change how we discuss procedures with our patients
Conditions
Women are undertreated and underserved when it comes to cardiovascular disease and stroke. Now, more than ever, this may even be more important due to several recent studies that have been published recently. Several investigations have demonstrated two troublesome facts.…
Women are undertreated and underserved when it comes to cardiovascular disease and stroke. Now, more than ever, this may even be more important due to several recent studies that have been published recently.
Several investigations have demonstrated two troublesome facts. In certain areas of the country, life expectancy for women is decreasing and women who smoke are much more likely to have lung cancer than men who smoke. These facts argue …
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We continue to fall short in treating women with heart disease
Education
The practice of medicine is based on a solid fund of knowledge and a physician’s ability to quickly assimilate and organize information during a patient encounter. However, the process of making a diagnosis and formulating a treatment plan is not…
The practice of medicine is based on a solid fund of knowledge and a physician’s ability to quickly assimilate and organize information during a patient encounter. However, the process of making a diagnosis and formulating a treatment plan is not always straightforward. Often, what separates the truly exceptional physicians from the rest is the ability to attack problems from alternative angles–more simply put, creativity.
Traditionally, medical education is centered around science. …
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Promoting creativity in medical education
Physicians
I can remember making rounds with a seasoned surgical attending in medical school. In typical fashion, surgical rounds were a lot like the military. The “General” (attending physician) at the front, always commanding respect (and often fear) followed by the…
I can remember making rounds with a seasoned surgical attending in medical school. In typical fashion, surgical rounds were a lot like the military. The “General” (attending physician) at the front, always commanding respect (and often fear) followed by the chief resident, junior residents, interns and finally medical students. Cases were presented, statuses were updated and plans were formulated. Then came the barrage of medical fact questions–mostly directed at the …
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The fallout of chance medical findings
Physicians
As healthcare providers we are focused on life. We are committed to healing. We measure success by lives saved. Unfortunately, many diseases remain incurable. Some diagnoses do carry with them a death sentence in spite of the best that modern…
As healthcare providers we are focused on life. We are committed to healing. We measure success by lives saved. Unfortunately, many diseases remain incurable. Some diagnoses do carry with them a death sentence in spite of the best that modern medicine has to offer. Even in theses extremely devastating cases, We can still make a huge difference in the lives of our patients in the way in which we help …
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A duty to guide patients through the process of death
Education
In the satirical novel The House of God, author Samuel Shem writes about experiences as a medical student at Harvard. In the novel, many famous quotations are used that have been passed on from generation after generation of medical students…
In the satirical novel The House of God, author Samuel Shem writes about experiences as a medical student at Harvard. In the novel, many famous quotations are used that have been passed on from generation after generation of medical students and residents. Some slang terminology is also referenced and characters are created to illustrate the qualities of certain types of students.
One particular student that is found in every medical school …
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Should medical schools find a way to fail gunners?
Physicians
As I have written many times in my previous blogs, it is essential that patients and physicians partner in the management of disease. Outcomes are improved when patients are actively engaged in their own healthcare. Part of engagement involves forming…
As I have written many times in my previous blogs, it is essential that patients and physicians partner in the management of disease. Outcomes are improved when patients are actively engaged in their own healthcare. Part of engagement involves forming a relationship with a physician through regular follow up visits. Relationships with doctors, just as with friends and spouses, evolve over time. …
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Office visits are essential to providing quality care
Education
When I was in medical school in the 1990s, students were given a bleak picture of the life of a subspecialist. We were told that there would be few job opportunities and that the only way to ensure a job…
When I was in medical school in the 1990s, students were given a bleak picture of the life of a subspecialist. We were told that there would be few job opportunities and that the only way to ensure a job was to pursue a career in primary care. Many of my classmates did go into primary care but the majority of us accepted residency positions in surgery, neurosurgery and other …
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Medical education: Reform the investment of tuition and time
Education
When I was in medical school in the 1990s, students were given a bleak picture of the life of a subspecialist. We were told that there would be few job opportunities and that the only way to ensure a job…
When I was in medical school in the 1990s, students were given a bleak picture of the life of a subspecialist. We were told that there would be few job opportunities and that the only way to ensure a job was to pursue a career in primary care. Many of my classmates did go into primary care but the majority of us accepted residency positions in surgery, neurosurgery and other …
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Reform medical education to fix the primary care shortage
Physicians
Recently, my middle school daughter has been learning about the use of the scientific method in science class. In her school laboratory, she and the other sixth graders learn how to ask a question, perform background research, formulate a hypothesis,…
Recently, my middle school daughter has been learning about the use of the scientific method in science class. In her school laboratory, she and the other sixth graders learn how to ask a question, perform background research, formulate a hypothesis, design and execute an experiment to test the hypothesis, and ultimately synthesize conclusions. She is being taught to accurately record and interpret data; the concept of manipulating data to suit …
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Regulate medical research so that it can help patients
Physicians
Physicians are terrible patients. That fact is one of the few absolutes in medicine. I can remember developing an acute appendicitis as a medical student. I remember the fear, the uncertainty and the discomfort. I can remember wanting someone who…
Physicians are terrible patients. That fact is one of the few absolutes in medicine. I can remember developing an acute appendicitis as a medical student. I remember the fear, the uncertainty and the discomfort. I can remember wanting someone who was in charge to spend a little time in my room explaining things to me. I can remember the embarrassment I felt when a group of 6 student nurses paraded …
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Physicians can be better doctors by being patients
Physicians
The events of the past week in Connecticut hopefully have given us all pause to appreciate the fragileness and uncertainty of life. We have all cried with heartache for the parents who have lost children. We have honored the adults…
The events of the past week in Connecticut hopefully have given us all pause to appreciate the fragileness and uncertainty of life. We have all cried with heartache for the parents who have lost children. We have honored the adults that gave their lives to protect the students in their charge. We have all stood with outrage at the senselessness and brutality of this crime. As time passes, the families …
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After Newtown, treasure the preciousness of time
Physicians
Recently, millions of people around the world witnessed a remarkable feat. Daredevil Felix Baumgartner rose to remarkable heights in a capsule tethered to a helium filled balloon. At approximately 128,100 ft (24 miles) and a speed in excess of mach…
Recently, millions of people around the world witnessed a remarkable feat. Daredevil Felix Baumgartner rose to remarkable heights in a capsule tethered to a helium filled balloon. At approximately 128,100 ft (24 miles) and a speed in excess of mach one (faster than sound), he leapt from his capsule and endured a free fall of 119,846 feet. At one point in the dive, he began to spin dangerously …
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Heroics in medicine involve both a team and an empowered patient
Tech
As medicine moves forward in its most technologically advanced era yet, we continue to struggle with basic concepts such as record keeping. The medical record is vital to the care of the patient. It tells the story of each patient’s…
As medicine moves forward in its most technologically advanced era yet, we continue to struggle with basic concepts such as record keeping. The medical record is vital to the care of the patient. It tells the story of each patient’s journey through the medical system. The idea of centralizing all pertinent medical information is, in theory, a step in the right direction. In utopia, there would be one medical record …
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What are the biggest issues with EMR today?
Social media
The use of social media is a tricky business. A recent Wall Street Journal article points out the challenges that CEOs and business leaders face when using Twitter. Many CEOs and other executives relate stories of personal attacks and cyber…
The use of social media is a tricky business. A recent Wall Street Journal article points out the challenges that CEOs and business leaders face when using Twitter. Many CEOs and other executives relate stories of personal attacks and cyber stalking from disgruntled customers, former employees or competitors. Some have opted out of the social media space due to specific legal concerns. Other very successful business leaders continue …
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Guidelines to engage professionally in social media
Policy
Two articles recently addressed medical errors. In the Wall Street Journal, surgeon Dr. Marty Makary discusses the alarming costs of medical errors and offers suggestions to improve the system. In medicine, particularly during the training years of residency and fellowship,…
Two articles recently addressed medical errors.
In the Wall Street Journal, surgeon Dr. Marty Makary discusses the alarming costs of medical errors and offers suggestions to improve the system. In medicine, particularly during the training years of residency and fellowship, young doctors are not given the opportunity or security to report shortcomings of their superiors.
As discussed in the article, all of us have a memory of a particular surgeon …
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National reporting isn’t the answer to reduce medical errors
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