Researchers facing ‘shocking’ levels of stress, survey reveals
Nearly two thirds of those who took part had witnessed bullying or harassment. More
Practices to Foster Physician Presence and Connection With Patients in the Clinical Encounter
This mixed-methods study identified 5 practices that have the potential to enhance physician presence and meaningful connection with patients in the clinical encounter. More
Giving Birth Where the Family Is
Canada’s government once pressured Inuit women to travel south to give birth. Now, they can have their babies at a hometown maternity clinic led by Inuit midwives. More
Electronic Health Records Creating A ‘New Era’ Of Health Care Fraud
The federal government funneled billions in subsidies to software vendors who overstated or deceived the government about what their products could do, according to whistleblowers. More
Bridging the Gap Between Where the Quality Metric Ends and Real Life Begins—A Trusting Relationship
On the surface, the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines for treating hypertension seemed straightforward. More
‘We can help ourselves:’ Native women come together to confront high rates of maternal mortality
Too many Native women are dying due to complications from pregnancy and childbirth – deaths that should be preventable with the right intervention and care. More
The Secret to Saving the Lives of Black Mothers and Babies
In the mountains of North Carolina, black women are fighting a national health care crisis by helping each other have healthier pregnancies. More
Primary Care Physicians in U.S. Struggle More to Coordinate Care and Communicate with Other Providers But Offer Patients More Health IT Tools
Fewer than half of U.S. primary care providers receive information from specialists about changes to their patients’ care plans or medications, compared with at least seven of 10 in Norway, France, and New Zealand. Overall, U.S. physicians are among the most likely to offer health IT tools to better communicate with patients, but problems of interoperability have led to challenges. More
After A Freak Accident, A Doctor Finds Insight Into ‘Living Life And Facing Death’
As a palliative care physician at the University of California San Francisco's Cancer Center, Miller draws on his own experiences to help people with their physical, emotional and spiritual pain at the end of their lives. More
Burnout in Pediatric Residents: Three Years of National Survey Data
A majority of residents met burnout criteria. Several identified factors (eg, stress, sleepiness, medical errors, empathy, CCC, and self-compassion) suggest targets for interventions to reduce burnout in future studies. More
Remembering Louise Lown
We remember Louise Lown, social worker, peace activist, and beloved wife of Bernard Lown, who passed away on Friday. More
They Bring Medical Care To The Homeless And Build Relationships To Save Lives
"Street medicine" programs, like one in Atlanta, seek out people living in back alleys and under highways. The public health outreach improves patients' health and is cost-effective, hospitals find. More
EHRs get a failing grade for usability
How usable are electronic health records, compared to other types of technology we use every day? More
The power and paradox of caregiving
Caregiving involves significant time and emotional work, yet much of this work is invisible. In his new book, The Soul of Care, Dr. Arthur Kleinman shares his story of caring for his wife, Joan, who was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's Disease. More
Bringing caregivers into the conversation
Health care systems are not always built to accommodate caregivers into the care team, but including caregivers into the conversation can provide essential information to clinicians about the patient's health. More
Ignored, threatened, berated: After difficult childbirth experiences, new parents seek healing by speaking up
A 2019 study of more than 2,100 U.S. mothers found that 1 in 6 reported “mistreatment” during childbirth, including being ignored, threatened or berated, or losing their autonomy. Women of color were even more likely to report such experiences. It can be hard for parents to speak up after a difficult childbirth. But a small number of health care providers and others are beginning to encourage them to speak up — and to provide feedback about their experiences. In some cases, the process is helping give parents closure, and may even bring about change. In other cases, looking forward may prove better than looking back. More
“Do you want everything done?” How language impacts advance care planning
A recent study shows the impact of asking "Do you want everything done?" for critically ill patients and their family members. More
Burnout is rampant among doctors and nurses. Can the arts help?
Some 20 years ago, pulmonologist Marc Moss was working in the intensive care unit when a patient went into cardiac arrest. Moss and others tried to revive the man, but he did not survive. As doctors often are, Moss was pressed for time and he asked several medical students to stay with the deceased patient and fill out the necessary paperwork so that Moss could return to another patient he’d been seeing. Not long after, he noticed one of the students crying. More
The EMR has changed the doctor-patient duet into a ménage-à-trois
It’s not so much whether one EMR is better than another — they all have their breathtaking assets and their snarling annoyances. What is really becoming clear to me is the uncomfortable realization that there are actually three of us in the room now: the patient, me, and Epic. What started out as a tool — a database to store information more efficiently than the paper chart — has inserted itself as a member of the medical team. What used to be a tango between the doctor and patient is now a troika. More
A Gender Divide on Microaggressions in Medicine
Many microaggressions are gaffes where the perpetrator is making a misguided attempt at humor. I vividly recall the time I was in training many years ago, and I told my supervising physician about my pregnancy. He responded good-naturedly: “Pregnant? How did you even find the time? We must not be working you hard enough!” I remember mustering a feeble smile, not quite knowing how to respond to his misplaced humor. More