December 2011
2 posts
1 tag
Obituary of A Dear Friend
Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years.
No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.
He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:
knowing when to come in out of the rain;
why the early bird gets the worm;
life isn’t always fair;
...
November 2011
7 posts
7 tags
Will you have a residency spot?!
I’m sure most of you have heard it before, or something similar — but as you know there is a significant possibility that the number of residency positions available nationally could be cut. Seriously? This just doesn’t work for me — especially when combined with a mandate out for medical schools to increase their class size by 10%. All this will do will cause a flux of...
2 tags
U.S. Healthcare: The Cost Problem
8 tags
A look at X-Rays of objects stuck in patients'...
There are lots of ways to mark the passage of time, but none as unusual as seeing what common household objects find their way up a person’s innards.
That’s the discovery that forensic psychiatrist Marty A. Sindhian, M.D., made while researching “Stuck Up!” — a look at the strange objects that have found their way into the human body through the various orifices....
4 tags
Fired from Northwestern for speaking up?
Why would a bright and promising cardiologist be fired from the University hospital that she had practiced at since 2000?
Apparently, protecting her patients is grounds for dismissal. At least, that is the case at Northwestern University here in the windy city.
Despite being promoted to Valve Director in 2006, Dr. Nalini M. Rajamannan was terminated in 2008 after reporting the use of non-FDA...
5 tags
Asteroid close encounter tonight!
Don’t forget that a 1,300 foot asteroid, about the size of an aircraft carrier, will fly by Earth tomorrow even closer to us than the moon. Don’t worry, it won’t hit. It’ll be tricky to catch a glimpse, but you might spot it if you have a telescope with at least a 6-inch mirror, says Scott Fisher, the director of the National Science Foundation’s Division of...
5 tags
On call?
As a medical student, you’ll have to be on call during your third and fourth year. Not only do you have the typical 10 to 14 hour work days (depending on the rotation), but you also have to study for the shelf exam, and the boards. On top of all that, those responsible for the rotation make you take call.
The last time I was on call, I had to come into the hospital at 5:00 am to do my normal...
7 tags
"Rituals" of the Bedside Exam
Dr. Abraham Verghese explains the “ritual” of the bedside exam.
Patients and doctors must have mutual trust. They work in partnership in the healing process. Like all good relationships, listening empathically is crucial.
October 2011
1 post
8 tags
The Importance of a History & Physical Exam
I’ve been rather busy with my Internal Medicine clerkship as of late, but I thought I’d write a post on the importance of a History & Physical Exam (H&PE) in medicine. There are several basic pieces of information that can be joined to establish the proper diagnosis by us.
These are:
History (which must be accurate, skillfully elicited, carefully interpreted, and coherently...
September 2011
4 posts
6 tags
Expecting Respect?
“Excuse me, you’re a medical student. You know nothing. Where’s your attending?”
I acknowledge that as medical students, we’re at the bottom of the medical team totem pole. As I’ve experienced it, you have medical students < interns < residents < senior residents < chief residents < attendings. And that’s ok. It’s a natural...
8 tags
Read This, Not That?
It’s an intriguing story: a teenage girl confides in you that she’s thinking about having sex with her boyfriend. Then, her parents secretly disclose to you that she has a communicable disease but doesn’t know it. What do you do?
An article from The Hastings Center Report, reprinted with free access on Medscape, gives all the details in this case, along with expert...
8 tags
FBI teaching agents that “Mainstream” Muslims are...
Spencer Ackerman at Wired.com’s Danger Room defense blog has a big story breaking tonight. It’s a very upsetting read. If you had any doubt that racism against Muslim-Americans was institutionalized at the highest levels of our government, this should take care of that misunderstanding.
The FBI is teaching its counterterrorism agents that “main stream” [sic] American Muslims are...
5 tags
How Should I Handle 'Gunners' on Clerkships?
Medical students and their slightly more mature physician counterparts are typically competitive people. In order for us to jump through the hoops of organic chemistry, biology, physics, biochemistry, the MCAT reading comprehension section, and embryology, we need that inner drive to succeed. That drive is often helpful because it motivates us to learn, makes us work hard to achieve, and helps us...
August 2011
8 posts
5 tags
The ECFMG, and My USMLE Score..
Eight weeks after taking my exam, I called the ECFMG to find out why I hadn’t received my score yet (they tell you not to call before 8 weeks).
Anyways — after waiting so long they told me that they were waiting on some documents that my school should have sent back to them! I had them resend the documents, and was waiting for my school to return the documents to the ECFMG, so they...
5 tags
How to Apply Preclinical Training to Clinical...
Preclinical training is called preclinical for a reason: it will form the knowledge base for your practice as a clinical student, resident, and attending. However, it’s not always presented in a way that’s clinically relevant. That is probably the reason for the move in some medical schools to do more case-based learning.
That being said, having a strong preclinical knowledge base...
4 tags
"At certain speeds, sometimes failure is as...
This slow motion compilation of numerous skateboard “slams, bails and falls,” is insanely cool, and often wince-inducing. But everyone involved apparently made it out in one piece, so now we can all marvel at their mistakes. Watch for the one unfortunate guy who seems to have chugged a glass of water before each attempt. You have to hydrate, of course, but preferably not while...
6 tags
Depressed? Treat a systemic disease systemically..
Depression is one version of hell on earth, and Americans have a lot of it. A recent international study of 18 countries found America near the top, with 19.2 percent of the population having experienced depression — only France, at 21 percent, ranked higher. With our tottering health care system and vigorous arguments that antidepressants are useless, what are people to do?
Lots....
7 tags
Why are people so divided when it comes to...
In the fight against childhood cancer, everyone is on the same side — the side of doing more research, finding better cures and saving lives. In the fight against childhood psychiatric disorders, there is no such unity — as the comment sections of even the most uncontroversial articles demonstrate. Some commentators feel that autism doesn’t exist, or if it does exist, it...
5 tags
"Great minds have purposes, others have dreams."
Often, the difference between achieving your goals and simply having them is your perspective, as this quote from noted historian and author Washington Irving suggests.
Rather than think of what you want as elusive or vague dreams, reframe them so they’re actually purposes — achievable and actionable goals that you’re driven to accomplish. Another variation of this quote is...
5 tags
This morning, while commuting into the hospital...