Who Has Grit? Cutting Resident Attrition Rates
What is grit? In an article in The Guardian, Angela Duckworth, a psychologist often called the guru of grit, defined it as the commitment to finish what
View ArticleThe Burnout Paradox: Why Are We Still Surprised?
If you go to medical school, you will be stressed—bigly. It should not come as a surprise. Two posts on the Kevin MD website highlight the problems
View ArticleStronger Malpractice Laws Don’t Reduce Complications
A study of over 890,000 Medicare beneficiaries shows that states with malpractice environments unfavorable to physicians do not see improved postoperative outcomes for 11 different types of
View ArticleHow much would you pay for a nap?
Los Cruces High School in New Mexico decided to address the growing problem of sleepy students by allowing naps. Last week the Wall Street Journal ran a
View ArticleSome autonomous robots are not ready for prime time
A Twitter friend posted this on a blustery Wisconsin morning: His car wasn’t being driven by a robot, but the tweet highlights some issues. Driverless cars use
View ArticleWill robots ever be able to perform surgery independently?
Will robots ever be able to perform surgery independently? And if they can, should they? In my last post, I wrote about some unresolved issues with driverless
View ArticleSystem errors, human errors, and common sense
“It was a system failure.” That’s what United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz said in an interview with ABC News about the recent incident involving the violent
View ArticleTransgastric appendectomy: The answer to a question no one is asking
No one really wants to know if taking out an inflamed appendix using an endoscope passed through the mouth, esophagus, and stomach is a safe operation.
View ArticleNonadherence to medications: Who’s to blame?
No foundations or patient advocate groups are promoting awareness of nonadherence. There are no colored ribbons, no fundraising walks, runs, jogs, trots, or swims. The New York
View Article“Brazilian butt lift” takes another life
Last year I blogged about a cosmetic surgeon in Florida named Osak Omulepu who had several bad patient outcomes resulting in the Florida Board of Health prohibiting
View ArticleAn unusual cause of shoulder pain
A woman in Montréal underwent a total hysterectomy for ovarian cancer back in March, and from the moment she woke up from anesthesia, had shoulder pain
View ArticleHow has United Airlines done since the doctor was manhandled?
Three months ago I blogged about the doctor who was dragged off a United plane in Chicago and the airline’s response to the incident. The CEO
View ArticleMoney can’t buy drug adherence
In June I asked, “Who’s to blame?” for patients not taking their medications and cited a couple of papers describing the poor state of medication adherence. I
View ArticleBladder catheter + oxygen supply tubing = death
According to the coroner of South Australia, a 72-year-old former member of the Australian national men’s soccer team died a “horrific” and “macabre” death after his
View ArticleDo good online ratings mean you’re a good doctor?
If you are a patient looking for help when trying to find the right doctor, you probably think checking out online reviews would be a good
View ArticleA surgical resident’s legal battle with her program
A surgical resident is suing St. Louis University, its surgical residency program director, and its trauma service chief for what she claims is an unjustified decision
View ArticleWhy public reporting of individual surgeon outcomes should not be done
Last week Dr. Ashish K. Jha, a Harvard internist and health policy researcher, published an opinion piece in JAMA, advocating public reporting of individual surgeon outcomes
View ArticleNearly 42% of users are satisfied with their EHR systems, survey finds
Okay, what was your first reaction when you read the above headline? Mine was a tweet: “How’s this for positive spin? LOL.” Some responses to me. @cwrightmd
View ArticleCan a handheld ultrasound replace your doctor?
Dr. Mercola, described by Wikipedia as “an alternative medicine proponent, osteopathic physician, and web entrepreneur, who markets a variety of controversial dietary supplements and medical
View ArticleElective surgery ban for smokers and obese patients
The committee that plans and oversees medical care for the county of Hertfordshire, England announced recently that unless obese patients lose a specified amount of weight and
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