Emergency Medicine Doctors Blogs
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nhsblogdoc
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After much thought, I have decided to end NHS BLOG DOCTOR.
via nhsblogdoc.
Farewell. Thanks for the free entertainment!
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Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin. (Source: GruntDoc)
Source: GruntDoc - March 21, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: MedBloggers Source Type: blogs
You will see a lot more of this...Email this article to a colleague.
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Since it looks like the healthcare socialization initiative will probably pass, you patients out there should gird yourselves for more of this . You may recall a few years back, there being discussion about a looming physician shortage due to the ret (Source: Latest entries from bloodletting.blog-city.com)
Source: Latest entries from bloodletting.blog-city.com - March 21, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: doc Russia Source Type: blogs
ACEP's Staggering failure of leadershipEmail this article to a colleague.
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I was disappointed when I interviewed then-ACEP President Nick Jouriles last year that ACEP had not staked out a clear position on health care reform. However, it was not terrible that they did not have a position at that time, because the House bill was still being finished up and the Senate was still mired deeply in the fruitless "Gang of six" negotiations. If ACEP was not going to endorse reforms sight unseen, that was pretty reasonable, I thought. President Jouriles suggested that, in time, ACEP would weigh in with a position, one way or the other. But we never heard ACEP take a position in the intervening mont...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 20, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
GruntDoc is rightEmail this article to a colleague.
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(I shouldn't taunt him like that, but I can't help it.) I saw this post from GD and that reminded me that I had intended to blog about this sorta-local story but had forgotten:Walgreens: no new Medicaid patients as of April 16Effective April 16, Walgreens drugstores across the state won't take any new Medicaid patients, saying that filling their prescriptions is a money-losing proposition — the latest development in an ongoing dispute over Medicaid reimbursement.It turns out that I don't have a lot to offer beyond the irascible Texan's observation:Medicaid should be funded (or abolished); the current system isn’t act...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
One Adam-12, One Adam-12Email this article to a colleague.
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Courtesy of the police scanner in our emergency department, we’ve heard a run on concerned citizens reporting some odd things to the police lately.
There’s the report of the “reckless driver” who had the nerve to pass an elderly person’s car coming into town.
A “suspicious man” walking in an alley.
An intoxicated individual walking on someone’s lawn.
The latest was police and ambulance crews get called out to a “man down” in a car a couple of blocks away from a bar. When they got there, the doors to the car were locked. They banged on the roof of the car. The guy ...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Random Thoughts Source Type: blogs
More insurance company hijinksEmail this article to a colleague.
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We use a little company called Assurant to administer the employee health insurance plan for our business. We have about 50 employees, not all of whom are on our insurance (some get theirs through a spouse), so we are in a particularly undesirable segment of the small-business market. Ironically, we have had a fair amount of difficulty in getting coverage which was affordable and sustainable. A lot of insurers wouldn't even bid on us.Funny, right? The doctors can't get health care insurance! Hysterical!So we wound up with an unusual sort of self-funded plan administered by Assurant, which was working OK. Recently...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Friday FlashbackEmail this article to a colleague.
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How to annoy an anesthesiologistI had a minor surgical procedure today (I'm just fine, thank you). As usual, when I am incognito, I can't help tweaking the medical professionals just a bit. And since this was the outpatient surgical center, nobody knew I was a doctor. So I had a pleasant time chatting with the nurses and receptionists, they brought me back and got me prepped and hooked up. We chatted a bit about theamazing pharmacopoeia found in Anna Nicole Smith's corpse. And then the anesthesiologist came in to do his pre-op bit, and going through his routine rapid-fire questions. "We're going to be giving you an antib...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Public Service AnnouncementEmail this article to a colleague.
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Funny -- cute -- sexy -- serious.Well done. (Source: Movin' Meat)
Source: Movin' Meat - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Politifact vets HCR claimsEmail this article to a colleague.
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Top 10 facts to know about health care reformThis is actually a pretty fair and reasonable smmary of the bill. I particularly liked the first point, which echoed my recent post:1. The plan is not a government takeoverof health care like in Canada or Britain.The government will not take over hospitals or other privately run health care businesses. Doctors will not become government employees, like in Britain. And the U.S. government intends to help people buy insurance from private insurance companies, not pay all the bills like the single-payer system in Canada. The key parts of the current U.S. system -- employer-provi...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
A Case of High Altitude Cerebral Edema?Email this article to a colleague.
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Friday, March 19, 2010
Ang Rita Sherpa helps us at the clinic. He is a living encyclopedia of climbers and history of the Kumbu region of Nepal. For over 30 years he has helped with the clinic and he hasn’t forgotten a name. Whether it is a famous climber such as Messner, a Sherpa that climbed Everest, or an HRA doctor from 5 years ago, he can recount a meeting with that person, a funny story,... (Source: Straight Talk from the Stanford ER)
Source: Straight Talk from the Stanford ER - March 19, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: Healthline Source Type: blogs
Another Good thing about HCREmail this article to a colleague.
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This also should be a headline, especially in the medical community, but for some reason is not. Reform bill to increase Medicaid payments for primary careThe provision, would, over several years, bring Medicaid payments for primary care services up to the Medicare rate (which is itself too low but generally far outstrips the paltry remuneration offered by Medicaid). I was a bit unsure whether this provision had made it into the final bill, but the CBO score (Title I, Subtitle B, Sec 1202 for those keeping track at home) seems to imply that it did.Why is this important? Well, first of all, the problems Medicaid patie...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 18, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Another irritating memeEmail this article to a colleague.
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"Massive government takeover of one-sixth of the American economy"What a great talking point. I'm not being snarky -- it really is well-crafted. It's succinct, pithy, and memorable. It clearly encapsulates why conservatives oppose the reform effort. It's a great tool to get the message out over teevee media outlets. It's also completely misleading.Take a moment to review the numbers:US GDP - $14 Trillion (2008)Total spending on health care in the US - about $2.25 Trillion, or about 16% of GDP Total cost of the health care bill annualized over the first decade - $94 BillionYou know, these trillions-billions comp...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 18, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
The Healthcare reform bill and the deficitEmail this article to a colleague.
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It's finally out -- the actual, final bill that will be voted on (yes, there will be a vote) sometime this weekend. Bored? You can download and read the actual bill here, or you can read the CBO scoring of the bill here.It's kind of depressing to see how few actual facts make it into the mainstream media's narrative and thus into the conventional wisdom. I don't mean to pick on anybody in particular, but let's use this post from The Central Line as an example of the confusion that has been generated by the media coverage of this dynamic process. Much of the confusion, I might add, has been willfully perpetrated by ...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 18, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Match Results: 2010 Fill Rate for Family Medicine Highest Ever — AAFP News Now — American Academy of Family PhysiciansEmail this article to a colleague.
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After a downturn in 2009, more U.S. medical students chose family medicine as their specialty this year, resulting in a fill rate of 91.4 percent, the highest percentage for family medicine ever, according to the results of the 2010 National Resident Matching Program, or NRMP, also known as the Match.
via Match Results: 2010 Fill Rate for Family Medicine Highest Ever — AAFP News Now — American Academy of Family Physicians.
Happy Match Day! Today, Senior medical students all over the US opened their envelopes and found out where they matched for the next 1-7 years. Congrats to all, I hope you got what you wa...
Source: GruntDoc - March 18, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Medicine Source Type: blogs
Healthcare Update 03-18-2010Email this article to a colleague.
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If you like these, check out the satellite edition of the Healthcare Update over at ERStories.
“The only thing that changes is the names.” Canadian patients dying waiting for emergency department care. One patient’s family was told that the emergency department was short two doctors and four nurses and that “there was a 16-hour wait and that I just had to be patient” – as the patient died while sitting next to the nursing station. Nurses are forced to do overtime and then “the health system is not able to retain them.”
When you make the practice of medicine unattractive, not ...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 18, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Healthcare Update Source Type: blogs
Local News | Walgreens: no new Medicaid patients as of April 16 | Seattle Times NewspaperEmail this article to a colleague.
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Seattle, Washington:
Effective April 16, Walgreens drugstores across the state won't take any new Medicaid patients, saying that filling their prescriptions is a money-losing proposition — the latest development in an ongoing dispute over Medicaid reimbursement.
via Local News | Walgreens: no new Medicaid patients as of April 16 | Seattle Times Newspaper.
Wow. Interesting timing.
Again, Medicaid should be funded (or abolished); the current system isn’t actually fair to anyone.
Related posts:Ohio.com – Akron General puts ER wait times on billboards, Internet Trying to avoid a painfully long wait i...
Source: GruntDoc - March 18, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Policy Source Type: blogs
Happy St Patrick's Day!Email this article to a colleague.
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Hope you get a chance to raise a Guinness this fine evening. I'll be home with the family, but will celebrate in spirit with all of you.As for the promised Baldrick's update -- I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to post it earlier, but here goes:The family and I arrived at the Fadó Pub in Seattle at about 6 on Monday and met up with fellow physician-blogger and shavee Carlos V and his family. Carlos, a pediatrician, and his wife, a pediatric oncologist, had recruited a couple of their cancer kids to help with the shaving! Both kids, curiously, were named Angel. They each took the first few swipes with the razors (wit...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 17, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Double EntendreEmail this article to a colleague.
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ERP here from Erstories. A little quick post while I am out skiing.
Yes, I admit I get a little juvenile on occasion during a shift. Other staff members do as well and I think this is a good thing. It lighten things up. A little silly laugh because someone said something that conjures Beavis and Butt-head – style snickering helps our blood pressures come down. Of course there is a fine line between jokes and harassment but if everyone laughs when someone says something that is unintentionally of sexual connotation, who would complain?
Some of the things I have heard or had said to me:
“Hey ERP, do you...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 17, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: TK Tags: Funny ERP Source Type: blogs
Why Sadie’s Daughter Almost Became A PatientEmail this article to a colleague.
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A middle aged woman walked up to the emergency department registration window and loudly announced that her mother was in the car and needed help.
Several people ran out to the car to assist the woman’s mother. It appeared that her mother was suffering from ATATPA. Unfortunately, she also weighed at least 300 pounds and … she was dressed in a nightgown.
The patient was awake and was looking around at everyone, but she wouldn’t get out of the car. We asked the daughter what was wrong with her and the daughter told us that her mother was moaning at home. Sadie, the patient, had suffered a previous stroke so...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 17, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Patient Encounters Source Type: blogs
Hyperbole and a Half: Boyfriend Doesn’t Have Ebola. Probably. *UPDATED*Email this article to a colleague.
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Hyperbole and a Half: Boyfriend Doesn’t Have Ebola. Probably. *UPDATED*.
I’m glad her BF doesn’t have Ebola.
That gave her time to make some truly awesome pain-scales and faces.
Which I need to print out and paste in the ED, as The Joint Commission is coming soon.
Related posts:I sent a guy with a normal EKG to the cath lab (Updated) 9/30: Update: due to popular demand, I have added the...
So, my bad habit is decreasing my pain! From Scientific American Why the #$%! Do We Swear? For...
A really excellent drug name It’s a brand new drug formulation (injectable ibuprofen (motrin)) but...
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Source: GruntDoc - March 17, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
Add Another Thing to the ListEmail this article to a colleague.
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In addition to calling it the “ER,” using cell phones in said “ER,” and engaging in baby talk, we can now add “scientific studies” like this to the list of things that drive me friggin batty.
The American College of Radiology published this study that purported to analyze the “appropriateness” of outpatient CT and MRI scans ordered from primary care clinics at an academic medical center.
In the study, researchers at the University of Washington used “appropriateness criteria from a radiology benefit management company” to determine whether CT scans and MRIs ordere...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 16, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Medical Studies Random Thoughts Source Type: blogs
Ghoulish or Good Policy?Email this article to a colleague.
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I read this article and was going to put it in the next healthcare update, but decided to make it a separate post.
Immediate organ donation from the emergency department.
You’re involved in a serious car crash, the trauma team attempts to save you, but you end up dying. Instead of your body getting whisked off to the morgue, they take you to the operating room and harvest your organs.
Ethically, will doctors be doing their best to save patients, or will they be sizing up trauma victims to see which ones would make good organ donors? One ethicist in the article calls the concept “ghoulish.”
This is a tough...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 16, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Policy Source Type: blogs
Pheriche Day 2Email this article to a colleague.
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Surprisingly, I presented as our first patient. My symptoms began in Namche with a runny nose, a headache, chills, and weakness. Our brains were primed for signs of altitude illness after a week of lectures on the topic. Usually, acute mountain sickness begins with a headache, loss of appetite, nausea, sometimes vomiting, tiredness, or insomnia. Precipitants of altitude illness include... (Source: Straight Talk from the Stanford ER)
Source: Straight Talk from the Stanford ER - March 15, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: Anil Source Type: blogs
amednews: Astrodocs: For these physicians, space is their workplace :: March 15, 2010 … American Medical NewsEmail this article to a colleague.
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Astrodocs: For these physicians, space is their workplace
Since 1973, 23 U.S. physicians have launched into space. They have taken part in spacewalks, treated fellow crew members and conducted medical research.
via amednews: Astrodocs: For these physicians, space is their workplace :: March 15, 2010 … American Medical News.
Good article, and I had no idea this many physicians had been into space.
Read the cautionary tale, though of 128 days in space requiring years of rehab…
Related posts:Specialist nurses paid higher salaries than family doctors – Mar. 11, 2010 NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Despite t...
Source: GruntDoc - March 14, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Aviation Source Type: blogs
Fixing Firefox 3.6’s tab blunder: Blogs – Null Pointer – ZDNet AustraliaEmail this article to a colleague.
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I’ve been playing around with a beta build of Firefox's 3.6 browser for some time, and while it’s been completely stable, its new tab behaviour has annoyed me.
via Fixing Firefox 3.6’s tab blunder: Blogs – Null Pointer – ZDNet Australia.
It’s the one think I don’t like about the newest Firefox release (3.6), opening a link from a tab puts it right next to the one you were reading, rather than off the right end like it used to (which I liked…). Here’s a fix.
A like it: it’s simple and it works.
Related posts:Backpacker Blogs – Hallelujah: Beer Hy...
Source: GruntDoc - March 14, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Web/Tech Source Type: blogs
Spring Forward, 2010Email this article to a colleague.
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My favorite overnight shift of the year! (To be fair, I worked the fall back, and it’s my least favorite…).
From a post a few years ago:
From a prior post of mine on the subject:
“Yes, tonight you either a) lose one hours’ sleep, or, b) get to church in time to shake hands as everyone else leaves. (Sorry if that leaves your religon out, but the joke works better that way).”
There’s a lot to DST, and here’s link to more info.
Also, here’s a “how’d that get past them?” moment, from infoplease:
No More Sunlight in Arizona and Hawaii
Arizona (with the exception...
Source: GruntDoc - March 14, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Announcements Source Type: blogs
Proceedings of the Himalayan Rescue Association, Pheriche Chapter, 10 MAR 2010Email this article to a colleague.
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After 5 days of climbing and one additional week of preparation, our small group of physicians has arrived in Pheriche, Nepal, to open the doors at the HRA clinic. It will take a few more days to ready this remote outpost for patient care. We decided to post our case reports and experiences here under the auspices of the Proceedings of the HRA. Mostly, we just like the way that sounds, and we... (Source: Straight Talk from the Stanford ER)
Source: Straight Talk from the Stanford ER - March 14, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: Anil Source Type: blogs
Best movie trailer so far.Email this article to a colleague.
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Laugh out loud funny.
So, that’s how to do a dramatic movie. Here’s how to report the news feature (mild language warning):
Both via HotAir. I needed a laugh.
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Backpacker Blogs – Hallelujah: Beer Hydrates Better Than Water Backpacker Blogs – Hallelujah: Beer Hydrates Better Than Water Our...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin. (Source: GruntDoc)
Source: GruntDoc - March 13, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
Care does not include sex – Dutch nurses’ union – Yahoo! NewsEmail this article to a colleague.
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AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – A union representing Dutch nurses will launch a national campaign on Friday against demands for sexual services by patients who claim it should be part of their standard care.
The union, NU'91, is calling the campaign “I Draw The Line Here,” with an advert that features a young woman covering her face with crossed hands.
via Care does not include sex – Dutch nurses’ union – Yahoo! News.
Hmmm. Their nursing curriculum must be quite different from ours…
Related posts:Specialist nurses paid higher salaries than family doctors – Mar. 11, 2010 NEW YO...
Source: GruntDoc - March 13, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Nursing Source Type: blogs
You Don’t Listen!Email this article to a colleague.
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Little ol’ Marge came waddling up to the registration desk asking to see a doctor because she was urinating blood. In tow behind her was her obviously unhappy husband who was making it clear that the reason for his unhappiness was his wife’s trip to the emergency department.
“Great. Now we can sit in the waiting room so people can cough on us,” he said at the triage desk.
Marge and Charlie finally made it back to a room. Marge was having painless hematuria that began around dinner time. Painless hematuria in an elderly person generally isn’t a good sign. Through the whole history and physical ...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 12, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Patient Encounters Source Type: blogs
Friday FlashbackEmail this article to a colleague.
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AnticipationMy neighbor's kid constructed this ramp:I am not sure what use he intends to put it to. He skates and rides a dirt bike on the streets around here, though not with any great skill, it must be said. But I kind of admire his chutzpah -- by my eye, that thing takes off at about a 45-degree angle. Unfortunately, I've got to go to work soon, so I won't be around to witness the excitement.That's okay; I can ask him about it when he gets to the ER later.Originally posted 3 February 2007 (Source: Movin' Meat)
Source: Movin' Meat - March 12, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Specialist nurses paid higher salaries than family doctors – Mar. 11, 2010Email this article to a colleague.
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Despite the growing shortage of family doctors in the United States, medical centers last year offered higher salaries and incentives to specialist nurses than to primary care doctors, according to an annual survey of physicians' salaries.
Primary care doctors were offered an average base salary of $173,000 in 2009 compared to an average base salary of $189,000 offered to certified nurse anesthetists, or CRNAs, according to the latest numbers from Merritt Hawkins & Associates, a physician recruiting and consulting firm.
via Specialist nurses paid higher salaries than family doct...
Source: GruntDoc - March 11, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Medicine Nursing Source Type: blogs
Medicare Cuts Delayed Again — PHEWEmail this article to a colleague.
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I had planned to log on and write a quick post reminding docs that they have less than a week to decide whether or not to remain a participating provider in Medicare in the face of 21% payment cuts — and to encourage docs to drop Medicare.
While perusing the morning news, I discovered that once again the Senate has made a last-minute decision to delay the Medicare pay cuts — this time until October 1, 2010. I’ll be linking back to my Brinksmanship article somewhere around September 15, 2010, I’m sure.
According to one Senate Republican, this means that the federal deficit will increase by $100 billi...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 11, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: CMS Medicare News Commentary Source Type: blogs
Healthcare Update — 03-10-2010Email this article to a colleague.
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If you like this, you’ll also like the satellite edition of this week’s Healthcare Update with more links over at ER Stories.
——-
Dirtbag emergency department technician steals credit cards from plane crash victim’s wallet while other personnel try to save the man’s life. Then he buys himself some Armani clothes using the patient’s credit cards while the patient is dying in the hospital.
HIPAA violations that occur for personal gain are punishable by up to $250,000 in fines and 10 years in prison. You’ll have to make an awful lot of license plates to buy an Armani shirt in ...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Healthcare Update Source Type: blogs
The Impact of the SGREmail this article to a colleague.
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I was reading a white paper on health care cost savings written by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (cause that's just the way I roll) and the following passage jumped out at me:In arguing that Medicare cuts never “stick,” critics point in particular to Congress’ repeated refusal to let the reductions in physician reimbursement rates under Medicare’s so-called “sustainable growth rate” (SGR) mechanism, which it enacted in 1997, take full effect. The SGR cuts, however, represented a badly designed measure that was not intended to produce large savings (the projected SGR savings represented less than fi...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Our Dumb DiscourseEmail this article to a colleague.
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TNR's Jon Chait has a great piece about the depressingly myopic tone of the political discourse during this whole health care debate:Across the political spectrum, myopia is the order of the day. A few recent items give expression to this myopia.Begin with the left. Without a doubt, Obama's proposals would leave the health care system far short of what most progressives, myself included, would design in the absence of political constraints. But also without a doubt, it would lift the system far above the status quo that is the only near-term alternative. Here it is, the most dramatic improvement in social justice in at lea...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
The Onion Nails it AgainEmail this article to a colleague.
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Alternate Health Care BillsIn response to President Obama's call for compromise, several lawmakers have concocted their own health care reform bills. Here are some provisions of the top contenders:Hoyer-Larson Bill: All 45 million uninsured Americans would be guaranteed medical care, all of it provided by Dr. Tom Janicak of Houston, TXMelancon-Cooper Bill: Would create a low-cost government-administered health insurance plan, but would prohibit anyone from buying into itGriffith-Cantor Bill: Low-income families would be allowed to huddle outside hospital windows in the cold and look at wealthier families receiving careHutc...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Are most emergency room visits really unnecessary? – By Zachary F. Meisel and Jesse M. Pines – Slate MagazineEmail this article to a colleague.
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Much of the ongoing health care reform debate has focused on unnecessary health care expenses—specifically, medical bills that rack up without demonstrably improving peoples' health. According to Peter Orszag, the director of the federal Office of Management and Budget, about $700 billion, or 5 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product, is wasted on unnecessary care, such as extra costs related to medical errors, defensive medicine, and just plain fraud. At the center of this discussion are “unnecessary” ER visits for minor conditions—colds, headaches, and feverish babies—that could be handled m...
Source: GruntDoc - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Medical Source Type: blogs
Health Care Law Blog: AHLA Connections: Legal Implications of Health Care Social MediaEmail this article to a colleague.
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The current issue of the American Health Lawyers Association's Connections magazine features an article I co-authored with fellow AHLA health lawyer, Jody Joiner, on the impact of social media use in health care.
The article, Risky Business: Treating Tweeting the Symptoms of Social Media (PDF version), is featured in the March 2010 issue of AHLA Connections (Vol.14, No. 3, March 2010), a health lawyer magazine for the health and life sciences law community.
via Health Care Law Blog: AHLA Connections: Legal Implications of Health Care Social Media.
Nice overview of the concerns health care lawyers have about social...
Source: GruntDoc - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: MedBloggers Policy Source Type: blogs
I have a confession: I’ve been risking my lifeEmail this article to a colleague.
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Yes, still driving a Prius.
I do buy that accelerator pedals can be mechanically jammed by a floor mat (though there’s clips on my car to hold it in place), but this unintended acceleration ‘panic’ is just that. (If for no other reason that there’s now a flurry of cases of this, and none before it was the freak-out du jour).
Sorry, I do intend to keep risking my life by driving a Prius. If I die in an unintended acceleration incident in it, I’ll refund your yearly viewing fee.
see more Funny Graphs
Update: I couldn’t find this link last night, but here’s Popular Mechanics expl...
Source: GruntDoc - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
Raisins OK, Grapes … Not So GoodEmail this article to a colleague.
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Come on. Allergies to fresh fruit and vegetables?
Guess all the chemicals used in processing are good for the immune system. (Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room)
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 10, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs
Baldrick's approaches!Email this article to a colleague.
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One week to the shaving! Just a reminder that if you haven't given, now is a critical time to support causes like St Baldrick's. Due to the recession, private support for cancer research has significantly diminished, federal budgets are shrinking, and children's cancers were poorly funded from the get-go, so it's up to generous, community-minded people like you to step up and carry the load in these times of need. So please consider making a donation -- click the link to make a secure, on-line donation.I'm shaving in memory of Nathan Gentry. Nathan was a great kid, and he happened to be the son of some of my closes...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 9, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
First nonstop around-the-world flight began, ended in Fort Worth in 1949 | Nation | News…Email this article to a colleague.
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On the morning of March 2, 1949, Lucky Lady II, an Air Force B-50 Superfortress, touched down at Carswell Air Force Base in Fort Worth, becoming the first airplane to fly nonstop around the world.Lucky Lady II had departed Carswell midday Feb. 26 with a crew of 14 under the command of Capt. James Gallagher. The plane traveled 23,452 miles in 94 hours and 1 minute, flying an average ground speed of 239 mph at altitudes ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 feet.
via First nonstop around-the-world flight began, ended in Fort Worth in 1949 | Nation | News….
I did not know that. Neither did you!
Related posts:Fort Worth sold...
Source: GruntDoc - March 8, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Aviation Source Type: blogs
The EscapeEmail this article to a colleague.
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I’m in Washington DC doing some lobbying for emergency medicine.
It’s near the end of the day and I’m sitting at a conference surfing the internet between lectures.
I log in to this blog to jot down a quick post. As I’m writing, I get the feeling that I’m being watched. I look over my shoulder and there’s some guy watching me type. He remarks “YOU’RE WhiteCoat?!?!?”
I close up my computer. “Not cool, buddy,” I said.
After the lecture I’m walking back to my hotel room and this guy starts walking next to me trying to make small talk. I get out my phone ...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 7, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: Random Thoughts Source Type: blogs
Need “Entirely Free Health Care?” Go to the ER!Email this article to a colleague.
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After hearing Mitt Romney’s views of emergency medical care during a recent interview, I’ve concluded that he is a dope.
He was recently interviewed on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” about some book he’s peddling and his response to one of the questions just shows that he has no clue about the economics of health care.
Question: Do you believe in “universal coverage”?
Answer: “Oh, sure. Look, it doesn’t make a lot of sense for us to have millions and millions of people who have no health insurance and yet who can go to the emergency room and get entirely free care for which t...
Source: WhiteCoat's Call Room - March 6, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: WhiteCoat Tags: News Commentary Source Type: blogs
Friday FlashbackEmail this article to a colleague.
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Awkward!At our ER, we have a pretty huge geriatric population. We are the only hospital in the county of any reasonable size, so we get most of the nursing home traffic, and I guess that there are a lot of old people out there living in our catchment area. It's a mixed blessing -- lots of interesting pathology, but often challenging and not always in a good way. One happy consequence, however, is that I see a lot of World War II vets.I am not unusual among males of my age group in that I am a huge WWII buff. I have avidly consumed histories of the "Last Good War," watched "Band of Brothers" and made countless models of Spi...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 5, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Getting betterEmail this article to a colleague.
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So, besides having a newborn to contend with at home (whose arrival apparently triggered a bout of Erythema Nodosum for me) and the lack of sleep, things are starting to turn around at work. My problems have fundamentally stemmed from some toxic pers (Source: Latest entries from bloodletting.blog-city.com)
Source: Latest entries from bloodletting.blog-city.com - March 5, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: doc Russia Source Type: blogs
But ... steroids fix everything!Email this article to a colleague.
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RCentor has an interesting article on Sore Throats and Pharyngitis over at MedRants. He writes:There is a new trend in pharyngitis that has taken hold amongst emergency physicians – the use of steroids to provide symptom relief.I too have noticed this, and I completely agree with Dr Centor that while this is a highly effective treatment, it needs to be used with some caution. For our practice, this has been pushed by the ENTs. It has been our experience that when we see someone with a really bad sore throat or even with a peritonsillar abscess, 100% of the time the instruction from the ENTs has been to administer...
Source: Movin' Meat - March 4, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Catch!Email this article to a colleague.
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I'm a sucker for Slo-Mo. (Source: Movin' Meat)
Source: Movin' Meat - March 4, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Source Type: blogs
Coffee good for that heart?Email this article to a colleague.
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Drinking coffee 'protects the heart'. Researchers have discovered that regular coffee drinkers are less likely to be admitted to hospital with irregular heart beats or rhythms. And the more cups they drink a day, the less likely they are to suffer from the condition. (From The Telegraph).OK.But isn't red wine and whiskey good for the heart as well? Hook me up to a combo drip of the 3 of those.I've thought of SA Doc's next post. WHY COFFEE WILL KILL YOU.Awesome. (Source: All Scrubbed Up)
Source: All Scrubbed Up - March 4, 2010 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Tags: news coffee Source Type: blogs
