I remember the disdain some of the EHR trainers had for their trainees back when our hospital system “went live” several years ago. Of course this disdain was tempered by their knowledge that if docs weren’t so computer illiterate, or the user interfaces of the EHR systems weren’t so awful, or if the EHR software… Continue reading Geeky Docs
Category: Medicine
Stranger in a Strange Land
Reading about the opening of the Noah’s Ark Theme Park in Kentucky brings to mind the days when I worked as a physician in that state. I had moved from an academic position in Colorado and joined a large group of private practice cardiologists in Louisville. I found that people in Kentucky were different from those… Continue reading Stranger in a Strange Land
I’m a Better Computer Than Any Doctor
[Ed note: I couldn’t resist writing the following after reading this post on KevinMD.com by Dr. Keith Pochick. Please read it first. Apologies in advance.] I’m a Better Computer Than Any Doctor “I love you,” she said as she was leaving the room. “I, I um…” “Not you. Your computer.” She cast my computer, still… Continue reading I’m a Better Computer Than Any Doctor
Life Interrupted
I don’t mean to trivialize the plight of soldiers with the real thing, but I believe that after many years of carrying a pager (and later a smart phone qua pager) I have developed something akin to PTSD. I seem to have an excessive fright/flight response to the phone ringing, to sudden loud noises, and,… Continue reading Life Interrupted
1950s Prescription Drug Commercial
If annoying 21st century TV prescription drug ads were run as annoying 1950s TV ads (and taking into consideration 1950s morals and censorship). Here is a pdf version of this post formatted as a screenplay, if you’d prefer (it looks nicer). ====== CUT TO: TITLE CARD. “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show.” Theme music begins. HARRY… Continue reading 1950s Prescription Drug Commercial
Reining in the EHR Monster
Dr. Lisa Rosenbaum has an excellent piece in the NEJM this week entitled Transitional Chaos or Enduring Harm? The EHR and the Disruption of Medicine. In essence a review of Dr. Robert Wachter’s book The Digital Doctor: Hope, Hype, and Harm at the Dawn of Medicine’s Computer Age, it deals with the ever increasing intrusion of… Continue reading Reining in the EHR Monster
Why Electronic Health Records Will Not Get Better
Today I read an article in Politico entitled “Doctors barred from discussing safety glitches in U.S.-funded software.” The article states that, despite massive public funding of Electronic Health Records (EHR), the EHR corporations (including Epic Systems, Cerner, Siemens, Allscripts, eClinicalWorks and Meditech) routinely attach gag clauses to contracts with the hospitals and medical groups who… Continue reading Why Electronic Health Records Will Not Get Better
You Can’t Tell the Batters Without a Scorecard
If you want to know who the best surgeon in the hospital is, ask the surgical nursing staff. If you want to know who does the best job opening up coronary arteries using catheters, balloons, and stents, ask the cardiac catheterization lab nurses and technicians. Unfortunately these approaches to comparing physicians’ skills are only available to hospital… Continue reading You Can’t Tell the Batters Without a Scorecard
What If My CHA2DS2-VASc Score Is One?
There is nothing simple about atrial fibrillation; it is a complicated, often overwhelming disease, both for patient and physician. One question that invariably comes up early on is the question of prophylactic anticoagulation for prevention of stroke. Who should receive anticoagulation? Which anticoagulant? How should anticoagulation be handled around the time of surgical procedures, or… Continue reading What If My CHA2DS2-VASc Score Is One?
Introducing EP Calipers
Ever since the 1990s, when computer-based electrophysiology (EP) systems were introduced, HV intervals and ventricular tachycardia cycle lengths have been measured in the EP lab by electronic calipers — simple but accurate measurements accomplished on-screen using a track ball or a mouse. Despite this, physicians still often carry a physical pair of calipers, perhaps preserved… Continue reading Introducing EP Calipers