August 20th, 2010 by BarbaraFicarraRN in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Research
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We’ve all made the excuses: You can’t face the drive to the gym, you’re too tired at night, getting up in the morning is a chore, or it’s too hot or cold outside. So you cozy up on the couch in front of the television. If you’re a couch potato, you’re a gambler — with your life.
Unfortunately you’ll need a big sofa because you’re not the only one whose heart isn’t in physical activity. About 60 percent of adults in the U.S. are not getting the exercise they need, according to a report from the U.S. Surgeon General.
It’s time to get up and face — or better yet, dance to — the music! Here are a few facts that may get you moving for your heart’s sake. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Health in 30*
August 18th, 2010 by DrRich in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion
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DrRich entered medical school 40 years ago with every intention of becoming a general medical practitioner, and indeed he became one. But after only a year in practice as a generalist, he found himself so frustrated with the frivolous limitations and the superfluous obligations that even then were being externally imposed on these supposedly revered professionals, that DrRich altered course and spent several years retraining to become a cardiac electrophysiologist.
(Electrophysiology is a field of endeavor so arcane as to be mystifying even to other cardiologists. DrRich hoped that the officious regulators and stone-witted insurance clerks would be so confused –- and possibly intimidated –- by the mysterious doings of electrophysiologists that they would leave him alone. Happily, this ploy worked for almost 15 years.)
Still, DrRich has always held general practitioners (now called primary care physicians or PCPs) in the highest regard, if for no other reason than these brave souls –- unlike DrRich himself, who cut and ran at his earliest opportunity –- have stuck it out. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at The Covert Rationing Blog*
August 18th, 2010 by RyanDuBosar in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News
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New primary care arrangements show how primary care is evolving — or splitting apart, depending upon one’s perspective.
Retainer fees let one practice handle more patients by phone or email. But, points out Richard Baron, FACP, affluent communities can take advantage of such arrangements, and not every community is. And Sam Fink, FACP, of southern California says tele-visits are no substitute for hands-on care. In another model, nurse-led facilities service the poor in north Philadelphia, and more states are expanding the power of the pen to cover shortages.
Another trend is the shared medical appointment. Led by physicians and conducted by “behaviorists,” the sessions cover a half-dozen or more patients at a time for both primary and specialty care.
Even pharmacists are getting in on primary care. Blue Shield of California is trying a pilot project of pharmacists, believing they have the clinical and patient communication skills to be as effective as doctors, but for less cost. But primary care doctors aren’t completely ceding their profession. There are also pilot projects in California to train more doctors and steer them into communities facing a shortage of primary care services. (USA Today, Fox News, ACP Internist, New York Times, Whittier Daily News)
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
August 18th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion, Research
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This article was written more for family medicine physicians, but all of us can benefit from self-assessment of potential biases that might affect our judgment. It was also written with the potential bias towards the obese patient in mind, but the article could have been written with any “fill in the blank” bias as the topic.
The article points out that bias among physicians tends to “be implicit rather than explicit because of social pressure for healthcare providers to show tolerance and cultural sensitivity.” Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
August 17th, 2010 by KevinMD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Research
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The hospital is never a quiet place. Walk through the wards on a typical day and you’ll hear a cacophony of alarms, bells, and other tones coming from both computers and medical equipment.
American Medical News recently discussed so-called “alarm fatigue.” They cite a study showing find that “16,934 alarms sounded in [a medical] unit during an 18-day period.” That’s astounding, and for those who are wondering, that’s about 40 alarms an hour.
It’s not surprising that doctors become desensitized to these alarms, and that has potential to harm patients, as physicians may miss legitimate, emergent findings. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at KevinMD.com*
