Since joining my current practice two years ago, I've noticed that I
care for a disproportionate number of immigrants of Chinese and other
Asian descent compared to my colleagues. Although both of my parents
were born in Taiwan, I don't speak Mandarin or have special expertise on
medical conditions common in Asian Americans. Nonetheless, Asian
patients seem more comfortable with me anyway. Similarly, U.S. health
workforce analyses show that underrepresented minority physicians
(Black, Latino, and Native American) are more likely to provide...
Friday, December 5, 2014
Know the problem of pain
My patients lie to me every day. Some tell me that they have been taking
their medications regularly when they haven't. Some say that they have
been eating a healthy diet and exercising for at least 30 minutes every
day and don't know where the extra pounds are coming from. Some lie that
they are using condoms every time they have sex, that they have quit
smoking, and if they drink alcohol at all, it's only a single glass of
wine with dinner. They bend the truth for many reasons: because they
want to please their doctor, because they don't...
Why are doctors still prescribing bed rest in pregnancy?
Maternity care providers have traditionally prescribed "bed rest," or
activity restriction, for a host of pregnancy complications (including
preterm contractions, short cervix, multiple gestation, and
preeclampsia) despite evidence that it does not improve maternal or
neonatal outcomes. On the other hand, prolonged activity restriction in
pregnancy increases risk for muscle atrophy, bone loss, thromboembolic
events, and gestational diabetes. Although it did not include this
practice in its Choosing Wisely "Five Things Physicians and Patients...
Medicare reform, and the myth of "free ...
Common Sense Family Doctor: Lockboxes, Medicare reform, and the myth of "free ...: Not long after the 2012 elections, I had an interesting conversation with my dad about the policy debates involving the Medicare program. Si...
Birth control pills over-the-counter: debate evidence, not politics
I've waited to address this sensitive topic until after the midterm
elections, when political slogans such as the phony "war on women" and
trumped-up threats to religious liberty were discarded like so many
campaign posters. It was curious to see the American College of
Obstetricians & Gynecologists (ACOG) and Planned Parenthood
attacking Republican Senate candidates for supporting over-the-counter birth control pills without a prescription -
a position that, if the pills were free or the candidates were
Democrats, they would probably...
Birth control pills over-the-counter: debate evidence, not politics
Common Sense Family Doctor: Birth control pills over-the-counter: debate evide...: I've waited to address this sensitive topic until after the midterm elections, when political slogans such as the phony "war on wom...
Giving Thanks in a scary world
Medicine and Social Justice: Giving Thanks in a scary world: Let us give thanks. Let us give thanks that we are not the parents of Michael Brown. One of the more thoughtful and moving pieces on th...
Three-parent embryos for mitochondrial disease? Tw...
Christian Medical Comment: Three-parent embryos for mitochondrial disease? Tw...: The media is buzzing today with the news that Britain is planning to become the first country in the world to offer controversial ‘thre...
Today’s cancer headlines – keeping it all in perspective
Christian Medical Comment: Today’s cancer headlines – keeping it all in persp...: The alarming headline ‘Half of UK population “will get cancer in lifetime”’ has made a press release from Macmillan Cancer Support into ...
Allowing sexually active gay men to donate blood i...
Christian Medical Comment: Allowing sexually active gay men to donate blood i...: Gay men will now be able to give blood as Government restrictions are officially lifted, the Department of Health (DoH) has said . A lifet...
Thinking biblically about heal...
Christian Medical Comment: The Human Journey – Thinking biblically about heal...: Many people today hold to an atheist worldview – they believe that God doesn’t exist, that human beings are just clever monkeys, that mor...
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