Even if your doctor doesn’t have the best beside manner, you’re probably willing to excuse her behavior as long as she treats your condition and makes you healthy again, right?
Doctors & Nurses
A Doctor’s View: Lessons from a Painful Heel
I love PRP. So far. Platelet rich plasma is a red liquid I have injected, to date, into five patient’s heels and four patient’s elbows. These people were probably going to need surgery. The foot patients had insertional Achilles …
Going Under the Knife? Ask Your Surgeon How Much He Drank Last Night
Some airlines have strict rules about how much pilots can drink the night before they’re supposed to fly, and now some researchers think similar rules should apply to surgeons the night before they operate.
The Lost Art of Doctoring
The baby was just not coming out. Not a very big problem — not in a birthing room in a world-famous obstetric hospital, where nurses, midwives and aides, and doctors, lots of them, were packed in cheek-by-jowl. The major …
Doctors Who Feel Your Pain Heal More Patients
Empathy is often seen as a nice — but nonessential — part of medicine. Indeed, for surgeons in the operating room, seeing the patient as a human being may actually be an obstacle to successful performance. At the bedside, …
Medical Insider: Why Belly Pain Is a Headache for ER Docs
Gender Gap in Doctors’ Starting Salaries: $17,000!
A review of starting salaries for new physicians leaving residency programs in New York State in 2008 found that men made $16,819 more per year than women. In 1999, that salary difference was only $3,600. In other words, the …
Report: Medical Students Perform Intrusive Exams on Unconscious Patients
According to a disturbing report in Australia’s Madison magazine, medical students are performing breast, rectal and genital exams on unconscious patients without their consent.
The Medical Insider: Are We Too Impatient to Wait for Care?
Spend time in a busy emergency room and you’ll hear a recurrent theme among the harried staff: patients in the U.S. want their health care like they want their food — served up speedily and made “your way.” It’s a phenomenon …
IKEA Pencils: The Latest in Surgical Technology
IKEA-hacking — the practice of modifying and re-purposing merchandise from the Swedish housewares giant — is practically a tradition at this point, with a blogging community that verges on a subculture. But who knew that …
In Illinois, Sex-Offending Doctors Continue Practicing With No Oversight
Sex-offending doctors and health professionals in the state of Illinois have been allowed to continue practicing on probation, virtually unmonitored, according to a long-term investigation by the Chicago Tribune.
Why Being Poked and Prodded Is a Good Thing
Richard Knox had a great story on NPR today looking at how technologies are replacing the oldest form of doctoring – the physical exam. Knox’s reporting focuses on how modern medical training doesn’t emphasize the …
Why Medical Malpractice Suits Have Little to Do with Doctor Performance
A few days ago I wrote about how difficult it is for patients to be empowered consumers. A new study released today provides more evidence that patients are basically in the dark when it comes to knowing how well doctors do their jobs.