The perfect son. The perfect doctor. / The grave consequences of a single survey question

--------------------------------------------------------------- Here are the stories you missed on KevinMD. Thank you for your continuing readership. --------------------------------------------------------------- Sponsors [3 ways to maximize your hospital contact center]. The contact center is your mission-critical hub for hospital communications. Learn three tips to help maximize this vital department and the support it delivers throughout your healthcare facility. [Read the eBrief]. [Is your hospital communication system trapped in the dark ages?] Just like a medieval page boy, pagers are annoying and inefficient. This leads to delayed patient care, frustrated providers, and potential HIPAA breaches. Learn why you need to ditch your [Page Boy] today. Wearables, apps, EHRs, artificial intelligence: How can doctors adapt to the [massive digital transformation of medicine]? Dr. Bob Wachter, author of The Digital Doctor, shares [powerful insights on medicine of the future] … from digitization to personalization. [Video]: Are communication solutions at your hospital like puzzle pieces that just don’t fit? [There’s a better way]. --------------------------------------------------------------- KevinMD Today: Jul. 11, 2016 [The perfect son. The perfect doctor.] Benjamin, Jr. was the apple of their eye. He was cute and inquisitive, and smart. Very, very smart. The minute he took his first breath into this world, his mom and dad had already ordained him as a future MD. He would become a doctor and follow in his father’s steps. No questions asked. He […] [We are suffering the grave consequences of a single survey question] “You’re nothing but a punk ass kid. And you’ll die a punk ass kid!” With that, she stormed out of the exam room, leaving me sitting on a stool, slamming the door behind her. Apparently she walked straight up to the front desk and asked to file a complaint about me, but left prior to […] [A case of abdominal pain in the ER. And a surprising cause.] (Triage note: 45-year-old male, vomiting for two days. Abdominal pain.) Dr. Stephen Cluff is like Yoda. Judging by body hair, he’s more like Chewbacca. But he’s short, wise, and with his white hair and arthritic limp, he may as well have green skin, poor sentence structure, and a Muppet’s voice. If I’m stumped on a case, I’ll […] [How the practice of medicine changed my prayers] I was standing outside of the patient room with two family members, a faithful wife, and a devoted mother. In the sea of faces that surrounded his bed on a daily basis, these were the two that stood out to me. For this young man in his 30s who was battling metastatic colon cancer, his […] [Is health IT modern day snake oil?] Recently, the American Medical Association CEO called digital health care products modern day “snake oil.” As a provider and a technologist, I think we need a deeper dive to understand the issues, avoiding the kind of hyperbole that’s so common in politics today. Paul B. Batalden, MD, Senior Fellow, Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), once […] [Somewhere between the extremes: The ideal health system for America] This is my 12th year as a physician in the United States. I was born in London, grew up in Berkshire, and decided to become a doctor when I was a teenager. I remember being asked what I thought about the National Health Service (or NHS, the UK’s government-run health system) during my medical school interview. […] [The perioperative surgical home: What’s in a name?] A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Our institution, like countless others across the country, has been working to institute processes to achieve the “triple aim” of improving the quality of health care, increasing patient satisfaction, and reducing the cost of providing that care. As chair of my anesthesiology department, a number […] [Meeting your new doctor can come with some baggage] I find interesting how much lies in the fate of the day’s mood when it comes to forming a new patient-physician relationship. I can have one of my typical days (and thankfully this is usually the case) in which my mood is great; I stroll into work, after having sipped an entire cup of coffee, […] [Obesity changes the way our endocrine system functions] A patient of mine brought donuts in yesterday for the staff, and I confess! I had the one with sprinkles. But with the study published in JAMA reporting that 35 percent of U.S. men and 40 percent of U.S. women are obese, I felt the need to talk a little about obesity and reproduction. The endocrine […] [Survival of the fittest does not apply after a certain age] John was an 88-year-old ranch owner who struck gold when he sold his homestead in Wyoming. His golden years in Arizona were spent struggling with back pain and caring for his 80-year-old niece with dementia. He ran out of pain medication and presented to the ER for another “handout” of hydrocodone. He admitted that life […] [MKSAP: 52-year-old man is evaluated for low back pain] A 52-year-old man is evaluated for low back pain of 3 months’ duration that is nonradiating, progressive, and worse with ambulation. He reports no preceding injury. Medical history is notable for smoldering multiple myeloma diagnosed 1 year ago; he has been stable since that time. His only medication is as-needed acetaminophen. On physical examination, temperature […] [The case for teaching medical students about religion] Health care providers are often uncomfortable discussing issues of religion with patients, despite studies that indicate nearly 9 in 10 Americans believe in some sort of spiritual power. As a medical student, I have noticed that religion plays an important role in many patients’ lives, and that conversations about spirituality can build rapport between doctors […] [How spirituality can help motivate patients] Recently, I was asked to give a talk on spirituality, and it’s importance in health care. I found myself thinking about how I have spent the last few years focusing on the “easy” fixes with my patients such as diet, sleep, and exercise. Now, I am not saying that these things are truly easy to […] [How cash-pay patients can beat high-deductible plans] Many of us now have high-deductible health insurance plans, which makes us “cash-pay” patients until we meet our deductibles. According to a Health Affairs health policy brief, high deductible plans are now much more prevalent in both individual and group markets. The higher the deductible, the lower the monthly premium. If you have a high deductible […] [Do 2 little letters define who you are?] Have you ever stopped to consider who you are or what defines you? Is your self-worth or self-esteem wrapped up in those two little letters “Dr.”? How would you feel if they were removed? Would you know who you are without them? As medical students we work hard, study long hours, sit tons of exams and tests, to […] --------------------------------------------------------------- [Follow on Facebook] | [Twitter] --------------------------------------------------------------- You are receiving this email because you subscribed to the KevinMD e-newsletter. 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