As a young medical student I remember the arrival of the first video arcade games very clearly: Asteroids, Space Invaders and Pacman.
I spent whatever spare cash I had on them, never playing long enough to be any good, or rich enough to get any better. When I bought my first computer in my late-twenties, I relived my excitement with the newest computer games, spending a disproportionate amount of time long ...
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The following op-ed was published on June 7th, 2010 in CNN.com.
"I read all about my condition on the Internet," a recent patient proudly told me. Like other doctors, I'm seeing more patients research their symptoms thoroughly before setting foot in the exam room.
Patients are using the Web in unprecedented ways for their own health empowerment. According to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 61 percent of American adults ...
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by Todd Neale
Children whose mothers reported chronic abuse at the hands of an intimate partner were more likely to be obese at age 5 than those from violence-free families, researchers found.
After controlling for several potential confounders, including maternal obesity and depression, children whose mothers reported chronic violence had 1.8 times the odds of being obese, according to Renée Boynton-Jarrett, MD, ScD, of Boston University, and colleagues.
The association appeared to be ...
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At least 200 patients whose echocardiograms went unread by a cardiologist for as long as three years have died, according to a new article in the New York Times by Anemona Hartocollis.
Equally troubling, a cardiologist reading some of the tests says that he has found “life-threatening diagnoses” on some of the tests.
The Times reports that medical officials said that “none of those patients needed ‘follow-up care.” But the cardiologist, ...
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We had our dog put down yesterday.
Simon joined our family when our son was 10 years old as a two year old that we adopted from the Purdy Prison Pet Parole Program and was with us until he developed status epilepticus forcing our decision to have Simon euthanized.
Simon had been getting old, lame, nearly blind, and uncomfortable most of the time, but we felt he still had some enjoyment in ...
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An ambulance service was recently held liable for failing to “do what was necessary” before accepting emergency transport of pregnant patient.
A child was born at 25 weeks gestation -- 15 weeks premature -- and was not breathing. Babies born at this age have a viability of 50-70%. In other words, up to half of children born at this age of gestation die. The family called 911. The paramedics arrived, ...
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One of the more notable findings from the special report on the TransforMED National Medical Home Demonstration project was that “patient satisfaction doesn’t automatically go up.”
Terry McGeeney, CEO of TransforMED, attributed the lack of increased patient satisfaction experienced by the 18 participating physician practices to a variety of factors, chief of which “was the turmoil of change experienced by patients as practices implemented after-hours access, quick access to laboratory results ...
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“Hey doc, all I need is this referral.”
I’ve been encountering more of this lately. A patient who has not been seen in the office for months to years (well beyond when they were supposed to come back for a follow up visit) walks in and requests a “referral” for a specialist visit but they can’t be bothered with actually being seen and evaluated in the office or to be compliant ...
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It's worth your while to browse through Sid Schwab's sampler one rainy Saturday afternoon when you get a chance.
The old man can write. I was reading through a couple of his old posts the other day when I stumbled upon this one. It's a shorter post (for him) but very powerful and moving.
He describes what it's like to enter an abdominal cavity of a patient, with all its ...
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Emergency physicians are in a dilemma. Risk missing a diagnosis and be sued, or be criticized for overtesting.
Regular readers of this blog, along with many other physicians', are familiar with the difficult choices facing doctors in the emergency department.
The Associated Press, continuing its excellent series on overtesting, discusses how lawsuit fears is a leading driver of unnecessary tests.
Consider chest pain, one of the most common presenting symptoms in the ...
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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
Dear lawmakers: This is what it’s like to be a doctor today
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Edwin Leap, MD | PhysicianIs Chris Christie too obese to run for president?
Jeffrey Parks, MD | PhysicianIf I’m wrong about guns, can you please explain why?
Claire McCarthy, MD | PhysicianPrimary care doctors may no longer be needed
Doug Olson, MD | PhysicianWalgreens moves into primary care, and it’s our own damn fault
Kevin Pho, MD | Kevin's Take