I was startled to learn, when interviewing medical school applicants, that tagging along with a physician, or “shadowing,” is a common practice among high school and college students these days. Yes, I did say students as young as high schoolers.
Shadowing provides a way for students to observe at first hand what it is like to be a physician, and helps them decide whether the career will suit them. Medical school ...
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Of the 2.7 trillion dollars that will be spent on health care in these United States in 2012, more than $600 billion will be wasted. Excess testing and procedures, inflated charges, archaic business models, futile end-of-life care and exploding drug costs are some of many reasons. Predicted 25 years ago this crisis has been the focus of extensive academic analysis. It is reasonable to assume that with the primary goal ...
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“Your hands feel like velvet,” the 94-year-old woman told me as I pushed on her abdomen in the emergency department on a Friday night.
“That’s the nicest thing anyone’s said to me all day,” I told her.
“That’s pretty sad,” she said, and her abdomen quivered as she suppressed a laugh.
I walked out of the curtained room and briefly presented her findings to the resident on call. In return, he showed me ...
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I remember when one of my patients with coronary artery disease suggested that he be given a course of an antibiotic to lower his future risk of a heart attack. The patient quoted literature that pointed to a possible infectious link to atherosclerosis. He also was aware of the theory that aspirin’s benefit had less to do with blood thinning than reducing underlying inflammation.
Fast forward to the Economist ...
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Growing up, I rarely had a steady primary care physician. Every school-physical, immunization, sports injury, and sore throat was addressed with care and diligence at a family clinic affiliated with a major suburban hospital.
I opted to visit the clinic a few weeks ago for a minor concern but as I drove-in, I was attuned to the fact that the clinic I visit—my clinic—is a teaching site.
Before entering medical school I ...
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The gall, you might think to yourself as you click on this link in disgust. Before you write that brutal retort which I may/may not deserve, some simple disclaimers before we tackle this subject:
No one knew just how long Freddy had been homeless nor what circumstances had brought him to the doorstep of the Baltimore Rescue Mission shelter. As far as Dr. Dalton – our physician supervisor – and his students knew, Freddy had been there forever. Residents of the shelter were required to help out, sweeping floors or cooking for the other residents. Freddy always volunteered for clinic duty and was charged ...
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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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"Doctor, could we have a copy of your most recent CV."
"Sure," I said, realizing it hadn't been updated recently.
It is interesting how I approach my academic pursuits now. It used to be that it was "publish or perish" in the world of academic medicine. Of course, even now the only "publishing" that counts to the academic world is that of conventional peer-reviewed journals with high impact factors (or grant applications that ...
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A technical standard is a formal document establishing requirements in several aspects of medical care which all physicians-in-training candidates must possess. Most medical schools require that all candidates meet these requirements in order to receive their doctor of medicine (MD) degree. Some schools require students to sign that document when applying to a program or as a condition to matriculate into medical school.
I took a closer look at different technical ...
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"A comprehensive and extremely useful roadmap for doctors."
-Eric Topol, MD, author of The Creative Destruction of Medicine
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Past 6 Months
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