Choose primary care. I know all around you there are pressures to choose to become a specialist. I remember those pressures well. In medical school, one of my favorite mentors was predicting that after I got a taste of primary care, I would “come crawling back” to him. I still chuckle about that conversation to this day. In residency, I remember several seminars for us built …
The doctor/patient relationship is certainly changing and evolving. A term I hear a lot today is: “patient engagement/activation.” Why is this concept so important and what does it mean? What can physician executives do to make it easier for our patients to become engaged and activated?
Judith Hibbard has pioneered the study of patient engagement, and she noted that one needs knowledge, skills, and emotional support to actively engage in one’s …
It’s not easy trying to describe the importance of family medicine in 140 characters. Just a few months after I logged on to Twitter for the first time, I joined the “family medicine revolution,” known as #FMrevolution on the social networking site. My friends immediately noticed a marked change in my tweets. “FM revolution?” they’d say. “Is pop radio making a comeback?” If you’ve turned on a stereo lately, you …
The art of practicing medicine is dying, soon to be replaced by the art of template medicine.
Modern medicine is based on laudable terms: “quality,” “outcomes,” “cost effective,” and “evidence based medicine,” which all sound good when sold in infomercials to the medical world and public. When examined closely, all are vague and open to abuse.
Each of these terms is intent on taking the human factor out of medicine. Each …
Groupon and other similar social sites, like Living Social and CoupTessa, are all the rage now. But is it legal for doctors and dentists to advertise their services on these websites?
Groupon is a deal-of-the-day website that features discounted gift certificates usable at local or national companies. If a certain number of people sign up for the offer, then the deal becomes available to all; if the predetermined minimum is not met, no one …
I see this as a glass half-full, glass half-empty issue. Recently, a study was published in Pediatrics detailing research conducted in May of 2010 about parents’ preferences to use alternative vaccination schedules versus following the recommended CDC vaccination schedule. The majority of the media coverage focused on the finding that over 10% of parents followed a schedule other than the one recommended by the CDC. Not perfect and not ideal …
Suffice to say, as a physician, I’m not germ phobic. If I were, I wouldn’t work as a health care provider in the “culture media” of an ambulatory care clinic. I certainly respect the pathogens I come in contact with daily, along with the host who harbors them. For the most part, the virus and the patient know I don’t have much effective artillery to fight back with and my …
Congratulations! You are an amazing group of young men and women. In college, medical school and residency your dedication and discipline, but most of all your idealism helped you to persevere and conquer some difficult challenges. In college, your friends studying philosophy and literature and history wondered how you had the endurance to study biochemistry and organic chemistry and calculus. Not to mention the Krebs Citric Acid Cycle.
Up until 2001 I practiced medicine in the hospital where I was born. I still work in the hospital that was built to replace it. In our mobile society that is clearly the exception rather than the rule.
Why does health care cost so much more in the United States than in other countries? The answer is exceedingly complex; pharmaceuticals, hospitals, and physician services (among others) comprise the multiple slices of the health care pie that in the United States is about twice the size of the next largest spender for health care services.
A new study from one of President Obama’s appointees (note: this study was written prior …
As physicians, we all dread missing a diagnosis: indigestion that turns out to be angina, back pain that signals an aortic aneurysm, migraine that proves to be a brain tumor. Although it is only an estimate, several studies in the medical literature indicate that misdiagnosis occurs in 15% to 20% of all cases, and in half of these, there is serious harm to the patient.
Why is a trip to the doctor’s office more like going to the DMV than to Disney World? Both the DMV and Disney World involve waiting in long lines, but Disney has made the entire experience fun and exciting, while the DMV has made it cold and frustrating.
“But medicine is different,” you may say. After all, seeing the doctor was never meant to be a fun or exciting experience. When …
Recently, the New York Times Magazine published a lengthy piece on the issue, perhaps not coincidentally, perfectly timed with the Task Force’s announcement.
Patients expect excellent care from their physicians. Unfortunately, not all receive such care and most of us realize this. Many who do understand the wide variation in patient care probably believe it is due to the clinical knowledge and attitude of the provider—a very knowledgeable physician or nurse who is passionate about his or her job will deliver the best care. Although these ingredients are necessary for excellent patient …
Patients and friends tell me it’s sometimes difficult to decide exactly what symptoms merit a doctor’s appointment. I find that it helps to think of three basic categories of visits. One category is the all-important annual checkup, which assesses and promotes overall health and can detect signs of early disease. Another category is the follow-up appointment to track chronic conditions or recovery from a major illness.
Today’s article addresses a common complaint about physicians.
“Freewheel” responded to a previous article by writing the following, “you will not make me wait more than 10 minutes. My time is important, too.” One of the most common complaints I hear is “I waited over an hour to see you!” Waiting for an appointment, particularly when you are sick, is frustrating. Once you have that appointment, waiting for a doc who …
I’ve been reading A Game Plan for Life: The Power of Mentoring written by famed UCLA basketball coach John Wooden. Wooden spends half of his book thanking the people who had a powerful influence on his life, coaching, philosophy, and outlook on life. Important people included his father, coaches, President Abraham Lincoln, and Mother Theresa.
Yes, President Abraham Lincoln and Mother Theresa.
Whether you are a physician, nurse, physician assistant, pharmacist, or someone else who cares for sick or disabled people, your job as a healthcare professional is an important one. Healthcare professionals are expected to provide services to individuals in need and to do so with quality and care.
One way we can help ensure that we are doing our job the best way possible is to get our annual flu …
In New York State, the issue of scope of practice is at the fore. Mainly, what activities can non-physicians (NP’s) engage in, with or without physician supervision? It is a heated subject here where I reside, but not the one I will address below.
The New York Times discusses a similar matter, although altogether more controversial. Many of you are aware nurses are obtaining doctorate degrees and advancing their training.
As someone whose livelihood is dependent upon successfully recruiting physicians to various practice opportunities, whenever possible I use the tool of a “signing bonus” and it may not be for the reason you think.
If you have found yourself in the role of recruiter for your practice, you should be open to use of this valuable tool within the physician recruiting process.
Prostate cancer screening has always been controversial.
