“We need an urgent pain consult for patient Lucy Bee in room 5621. She’s a 17-year-old drug addict and is screaming and wanting morphine,” I was told. Lucy Bee is not a real patient, but a composite of patients I have cared for either when providing pain management services on our inpatient floors, or in the operating …
Words matter: Caring for pain patients with suspected opioid use disorder
“6 in 10 Kids Got Opioids After Tonsil Surgery, Study Says.”
So screams the headline from The Daily Beast.
“In the midst of the opioid crisis, doctors sent many kids home with oxycodone and hydrocodone,” it goes on to say. Another example of scaremongering and sensational headlines, or is this something we should still be concerned about?
Well, according to the actual article, there was no greater risks of complications …
How do we manage pain in the era of the opioid crisis?
Almost every day there is a new revelation about men committing horrible, criminal, bizarre, or nauseating acts of sexual misconduct. Harassment and assault seem to be rampant. The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements have illuminated the vast scope of the problem. Most stories have focused on famous men in politics, business, sports, and entertainment, but this type of behavior is pervasive. Lately, the lay press, medical blogs, and social media have …
Harassment of women in medicine: We are all in this together
Las Vegas: 59 dead, 500+ injured. I worry about our medical colleagues who will suffer tremendously while treating the injured; they will be wracked with guilt for the patients they could not help and false back to the horror of that night and the ensuing days and weeks caring for the living. We must find ways to support each other help them cope as well as looking for sensible solutions.
My …
After Las Vegas: What is the change that needs to occur?
After surgery for my broken tibia, I realized that there were only four points on the pain scale that really mattered to me:
On the 0 to 10 pain scale, who really cares if you are at a 2 or …
Finding the right balance in pain relief: A physician’s story
Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.
