Examples of Annoying Medical Reporting
1. An article in Time magazine is headlined “It’s Not You, Doctors Are Just Rude.” The first sentence of the article is “Doctors-in-training are in need of a dose of compassion.” It describes a...
Read MoreAuthor: SkepticalScalpel
Does Lowering Speed Limits Save Lives?
New York’s mayor signed into law lowering the speed limit in the city from 30 mph to 25 mph, assuming that this would result in fewer car crashes and pedestrian casualties. The change took place on November 7th. The city...
Read MorePublishing Ratings for Airline Pilots?
CHICAGO—Airline pilots should be rated by their passengers, says a prominent doctor group. The National Association of Doctors (NAD) feels that pilots should be judged on such metrics as friendliness, communication skills, and...
Read MoreGladwell: Any College Grad Can Be a Cardiac Surgeon
For those who have ever wondered if Malcolm Gladwell is nuts, wonder no more. “I honestly think that…the overwhelming majority of college grads, given the opportunity, could be better-than-average cardiac surgeons,”...
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Anesthesia vs. Surgery: Can’t We All Just Get Along?
A surgeon did an operation under local anesthesia with sedation in a very anxious, elderly...
Read MoreA Closer Look at Medicare’s Doctor Payment Data
Journalists have had a good time with the Medicare data on payments to doctors. The most recent exposé is headlined “Taxpayers face big Medicare tab for unusual doctor billings” by the Wall Street Journal. Because of...
Read MoreI’m Thirsty. What Should I Drink?
Let’s look at a few choices. Diet soda? There have always been questions about the possible negative effects of diet soda and sugar substitutes. A paper, “Artificial sweeteners induce glucose intolerance by altering...
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A Novel Technique for Gall Bladder Removal?
The saying used to be, “You can get any paper published if you have enough stamps.”...
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What’s the Point of Medical Licensing?
A surgeon emailed me the following:. OK, I know this is radical but consider my argument…...
Read MoreWhat is Professionalism?
A while ago, I wrote about a medical student whose school tried to dismiss him just prior to graduation for unprofessional behavior. A judge ruled that the school could not do so because it had tolerated some similar behavior...
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More Docs Denying Sales Rep Access
A new report from the global sales and marketing consulting firm ZS Associates indicates...
Read MoreAttack of The Scribes
The emergence of the electronic medical record (EMR) has spawned a new occupation—the scribe. A scribe is someone who accompanies a physician and documents the interchange between the doctor and patient. This enables the doctor...
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Antibiotics for Appendicitis? I’m Still Not Convinced
Two recent papers have added more fuel to the debate about whether appendicitis can be managed...
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Anesthesiologists Are Having a Bad Year
Let’s start with an American anesthesiologist now living in Australia has admitted that he...
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Live Broadcast Surgery: Would You Be the Patient?
“Defibrillation, defibrillation, where is the defibrillator? We made a mistake while...
Read MoreFollowing Guidelines Will Not Create Safe Harbor
At the end of May, Physician’s Weekly featured an article describing a bill that was introduced into the House of Representatives called HR 1406 The Saving Lives, Saving Costs Act. It would create a “safe...
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Should We Expand Surgical Residency Training Programs?
A Physician’s Weekly post I wrote last December was on the subject of surgeons possible...
Read MoreNew Missouri Law: Practicing Without Residency Training
Everyone knows there’s a shortage of primary care physicians, especially in rural areas. The state of Missouri has decided to alleviate this problem with a bill, signed into law by the governor this month, authorizing...
Read MoreDo More Hospital Resources Equal Better Care?
It would appear that this is true for surgical patients. A study from England found that mortality rates for patients admitted with high-risk general surgery diagnoses were significantly lower in National Health Service Trust...
Read MoreExpelling a Med Student for Unprofessional Behavior?
A few weeks before graduation, a medical school tried to expel one of its students on the basis of unprofessional behavior. What happened? According to Cleveland.com, a US District Court judge ruled that the student could not be...
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