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Do Doctors Feel That They Need Permission To Share Ideas?

Let’s say you’re a doctor and you have an idea, opinion, or a new way of doing things.  What do you do with it?

It used to be that the only place we could share ideas was in a medical journal or from the podium of a national meeting.  Both require that your idea pass through someone’s filter.  As physicians we’ve been raised to seek approval before approaching the microphone.

This is unfortunate.  When I think about the doctors around me, I think about the remarkable mindshare that exists.  Each is unique in the way they think.  Each sees disease and the human condition differently.  But for many their brilliance and wisdom is stored away deep inside.  They are human silos of unique experience and perspective.  They are of a generation when someone else decided if their ideas were worthy of discussion.  They are of a generation when it was understood that few ideas are worthy of discussion.  They are the medical generation of information isolation.

I spoke with a couple of students recently about Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at 33 Charts*

FDA Approves Tetanus/Diphtheria/Pertussis Vaccine For Adults Over 65

BoostrixMost of us are familiar with the need to achieve immunization against tetanus (“lockjaw”) and diphtheria. Fewer are familiar with the need to immunize against pertussis (“whooping cough”). Boostrix is a vaccine used to achieve immunity against all three. Until recently, there had not been a vaccine approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) against pertussis intended for use in elders (ages 65 years and older). On July 8, 2011, the FDA approved Boostrix for use in this population of seniors.

The link to the FDA announcement is http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm262390.htm

Whooping cough is not a trivial disease. It is a highly communicable infectious disease caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. It is transmitted by respiratory secretions or large droplets from the respiratory tract of an infected person. In children, whooping cough is typified by Read more »

This post, FDA Approves Tetanus/Diphtheria/Pertussis Vaccine For Adults Over 65, was originally published on Healthine.com by Paul Auerbach, M.D..

Medicare’s Use Of Claims Data: Finding The Outliers

I have opposed Medicare’s use of claims data to evaluate the quality of medical care. Quality medical care is the goal that must be achieved. However, no one has described the measurement of quality medical care adequately.

Physicians recognize when other physicians are not performing quality medical care. Physicians recognize when another physician is just testing and performing procedures to increase revenue.

These over testing physicians are a small minority of physicians in practice.

Quality medical care is not about doing quarterly HbA1c’s on patients with Diabetes Mellitus. Quality medical care is about helping patients control their blood sugars so their HbA1c becomes normalized. It is about the clinical and financial results of treatment.

The clinical and financial results depend on both patients and physicians. Patients must be responsible for Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Repairing the Healthcare System*

FDA Approves GE’s Newest CT Scanner

GE Healthcare has received the FDA OK for its Optima CT660 computed tomography (CT) system. The CT660, which is already available in Europe, Latin America and Asia, distinguishes itself by its compact footprint combined with a modular design and low dose imaging. In addition, it is also one of the most energy efficient CT scanners available and has an “environmental design” that eases refurbishment and end-of-life recycling. The scanner itself is scalable from 32 to 128 slices through purchasable options and features automatic table positioning and a color 12-inch integrated gantry display monitor. Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*

Latest Interviews

IDEA Labs: Medical Students Take The Lead In Healthcare Innovation

It’s no secret that doctors are disappointed with the way that the U.S. healthcare system is evolving. Most feel helpless about improving their work conditions or solving technical problems in patient care. Fortunately one young medical student was undeterred by the mountain of disappointment carried by his senior clinician mentors…

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How To Be A Successful Patient: Young Doctors Offer Some Advice

I am proud to be a part of the American Resident Project an initiative that promotes the writing of medical students residents and new physicians as they explore ideas for transforming American health care delivery. I recently had the opportunity to interview three of the writing fellows about how to…

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Latest Book Reviews

Book Review: Is Empathy Learned By Faking It Till It’s Real?

I m often asked to do book reviews on my blog and I rarely agree to them. This is because it takes me a long time to read a book and then if I don t enjoy it I figure the author would rather me remain silent than publish my…

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The Spirit Of The Place: Samuel Shem’s New Book May Depress You

When I was in medical school I read Samuel Shem s House Of God as a right of passage. At the time I found it to be a cynical yet eerily accurate portrayal of the underbelly of academic medicine. I gained comfort from its gallows humor and it made me…

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Eat To Save Your Life: Another Half-True Diet Book

I am hesitant to review diet books because they are so often a tangled mess of fact and fiction. Teasing out their truth from falsehood is about as exhausting as delousing a long-haired elementary school student. However after being approached by the authors’ PR agency with the promise of a…

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