Our OB-blogger with this pearl: Have sex.
January 2007
All Stories
Kevin, M.D.’s NFL playoff analysis
As it's 2 hours before kickoff for the NFC playoff game, I thought I'd indulge in some playoff predictions.
New Orleans at Chicago (-3)
The conventional thinking is that a dome team playing outside in cold weather would slow down a high-powered offense like New Orleans'. This case seems to be no exception. However, the equalizer is Chicago's QB Rex Grossman, who inspires zero confidence. ...
Wife induces labor so husband can watch the Bears playoff game
That's one considerate wife.
The Angry Pharmacist takes on drug seekers
Ranting on online pharmacies and engaging drug-seeking patients on bulletin boards.
Can’t pay your medical bills? Throw HIPAA out the window
A recent ruling in Mississippi where procedures become public record if physician bills are unpaid:
"If you don't pay your doctor's bill, your medical privilege is waived," said Frank Russell, a former Tupelo judge who represented patient Patty Kyle. "You could have a sex change operation and if you don't pay, they are going to let the world know."
The case, Franklin Collection Service Inc. v. Patty Kyle, began ...
Do nurses complain too much?
Scalpel likens nurse complaints to how lawyers consider lawsuits:
Nevertheless, it seems to me that many nurses will complain about each other and about physicians at every opportunity. They will fire off e-mails to their bosses, my bosses, or even the CEO of the hospital about any disagreement or perceived mistreatment, whether or not it affects patient care. Everyone has to walk on eggshells or we will end up ...
The pregnant in prison
Kentucky is spending more to take care of pregnant felons.
Doctors and EMTs killed patients for funeral home kickbacks
Crazy scheme found in Poland:
A court Friday convicted two doctors and two ambulance workers of participating in a scheme in which 14 patients were allowed to die - or in some cases killed with muscle relaxants - in return for kickbacks from funeral homes.
A malpractice case filed a day late
A likely winner, as the hospital admitted negligence. However, the suit was filed a day after the statue of limitations ran out.
Next to the hospital, the next best place to have a heart attack
A paramedic has a heart attack during ACLS class.
Single-payer stories: Access to PET scans "a disgrace"
An oncologist in Canada goes off:
Calling it an "absolute disgrace," the head of a cancer group says Ontario's restricted access to PET scans is not only forcing some medical residents to relocate for training but it is also hampering patient care.
"That's an absolute disgrace coming from Ontario," said James Gowing, a hematologist-oncologist based in Cambridge, Ont., and board chairman of the Cancer Advocacy Coalition of Canada.
"Everybody lies": Is Dr. House right?
It happens more often than you think:
Why do patients lie? The examination room itself is an environment that discourages honesty, said Los Angeles psychiatrist Dr. Charles Sophy.
"You're naked in a gown and you have a guy standing there clothed, with a coat on and there's all sorts of things in his pocket. And you're sitting there, basically naked "¦ that makes it hard to come clean," Sophy ...
California’s "doctor tax" is going to further drive students away from primary care
Reaction from a medical student after Schwarzenegger's proposal of a doctor tax:
Even doctors in training are figuring out how the plan might affect them. Some physicians believe Schwarzenegger's plan might drive doctors out of state, but University of Southern California medical student Julia Cormano says she would stay in California"”but reconsider her choice of specialties. Cormano, co-president of the med school's students' association, says the talk on campus is ...
More PCPs shun the zoster vaccine
Looks great on paper, but good luck implementing it:
The zoster vaccine is terribly expensive and fragile, and it requires strict temperature control. Heaven help the practice that suffers a power outage. Patients will argue that Medicare or their prescription plan will cover the vaccine. When patients call their benefit plans, they will hear, "Sure, it's covered! Just have your doctor call us for prior authorization!" Anyone who has traveled ...
The sympathy factor trumps medicine
A malpractice case of missed endocarditis. The physician charted appropriately, but the jury overlooked that and made their decision based on emotional testimony from the grieving widow. Lessons to learn from the case:
Jurors are charged with finding evidence of negligence before they proceed to assessing damages. The powerful emotional testimony of the young widow in this case was enough to tempt them to omit or minimize ...
Health care workers smoke at a greater rate than the public
Especially in developing countries:
Conde's dilemma embodies a seldom-discussed global phenomenon. In Mexico and dozens of other countries, especially developing nations, health workers smoke at far higher rates than the general adult population. Mexican doctors and nurses smoke at twice the rate of other adults, according to international data compiled by the American Cancer Society. Similar disparities exist in Paraguay and Pakistan, countries where 32 percent of health professionals smoke, ...
The real scoop on EMRs
Here is the truth about the so-called "holy grail of medicine":
Admittedly, other industries have seen large cost savings from computerization, but health care is different. First, the health-care system is hardly a system. It is hundreds of thousands of doctors and thousands of hospitals all practicing medicine their own unique way -- and the EMR will not change that. Ideally, the EMR should allow a doctor standing in the ...
"Will suing a doctor do any good?"
A family member wonders after a tragic outcome.
2006 Medical Weblog Awards: Results are in
NHS Blog Doctor dominates. Congratulations to the other winners as well.
Medical Economics examines tort reform
As long as the adversarial system persists, patients will continue to lose:
"The problem with the adversarial system today is that a patient might deserve compensation but he can't get it unless he proves that his doctor screwed up. His gain is the doctor's loss, which is part of the theory of corrective justice. Well, that theory might work okay for certain business torts, but we think it doesn't ...
Kevin Pho, MD
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Warren Buffett’s prostate cancer choices aren’t right for every man
A version of this column was published on April 24, 2012 in USA Today. There has been a recent uptick of elderly men...
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Many medical decisions require shared decision making
The following column was published on April 1, 2012 in USA Today. I recently saw a middle-age man in my primary care clinic...
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Patients deserve a medical malpractice early offer
The following column was published on March 25, 2012 in the Nashua Telegraph. Medical malpractice historically has been a contentious issue. Doctors...
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Discussing whether tests actually help patients or cause more harm
The following column was published on April 11, 2012 in CNN. When you visit the doctor, chances are you are given a...
Physician
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How we deliver bad news is critical to how families deal with grief
As a cardiac electrophysiologist, I have had to discuss bad news with patients and families more times than I would like during...
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His father’s suffering had already been too great
He looked dead. The paramedics brought him down the hall toward one of my critical care beds, and for a moment I...
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Diversity provides color to the tapestry of human experience
I was recently appointed the Assistant Director of the Yale Cancer Center with the portfolio of Diversity/Disparities. While I’m not sure I’m...
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Necessary is a word best defined when looking back in time
How do you define a “good” doc? I was reading the patient responses to an article here on KevinMD.com and was saddened...
Patient
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How death can be a beautiful experience
I was honored to be part of a beautiful experience in late January of 2011. It was the death of my mother-in-law...
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What meaningful encouragement can be given to someone who is dying?
Theirs is a lonely journey; to be moving towards the separation and end of all things known and loved. Being with a...
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Health care journalists have tendencies similar to those of doctors
As a patient who was asked to speak at the Association of Health Care Journalists 2012 conference, I felt a bit covert....
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Adaptation can be painful, but it can also be a gift
Nothing will force you to live life on your own terms faster than almost losing it. In 2008, I was on fire....
Policy
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Hospitals around the world aim to remain relevant to patients
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times ..." So begins a story called A Tale of Two...
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Repairing the tear in health care’s safety net with social media
The nation’s “safety net” hospitals are designed to ensure that uninsured, lower income and indigent populations receive adequate medical care – a...
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Look to technology to reduce health costs
Technology to lower costs rather than accelerate them. Smart phones to increase physician and other providers’ productivity. Fewer primary care physicians but...
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How to save a trillion dollars in health care
It is both conventional wisdom and factual truth that, unimpeded, American healthcare cost inflation will bankrupt the United States economically, educationally, socially,...
Tech
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Doctors, use Google to get more patients in less than 7 minutes
Every month, hundreds of thousands of people look for a doctor on Google. As an amazing practitioner, your site deserves to be...
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The user interface for EHRs should be uniform
The first thing I noticed when I walked into the physician’s office were the tall cabinets filled with manila folders, tabbed with...
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EMR liability needs to go further than just the physician
This example of a disaster waiting to happen, in the form of an error-promoting CPOE, is a poster example of why the...
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AMA: Changes are needed in the stage 2 meaningful use EHR proposal
A guest column by the American Medical Association, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Continuing our efforts to move medicine forward while prioritizing patient care and minimizing...
Social Media
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We need to see the potential harm of social media
Prior to 1794, farms across the world could only pick cotton as fast as humanly possible. In the late 18th century, Eli Whitney...
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Why social media may not be worth it for doctors
Social media in healthcare is all the rage these days. You can’t visit even one physician-oriented website without someone breathlessly advising you...
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Transparency defines social media success for doctors
Want to understand social media? Physicians wanting to learn about social media must learn transparency. We must learn transparency on a personal...
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How Twitter was used in a potential mass casualty scenario
It was my first ER shift in charge of the resuscitation area. Needless to say, my adrenaline and nerves were firing like...
