American Medical Association (AMA) Blogs This is an RSS file. You can use it to subscribe to this data in your favourite RSS reader or to display this data on your own website or blog.

How the CPT system shortchanges primary care
In a very unique study, researchers have tabulated how often family physicians provide patient care that is not covered with a CPT code. This is a little complex, for the non-physicians and even for many physicians to grasp, so I will provide a little more background first. CPT stands for Current Procedural Terminology, which is the book written by the American Medical Association (AMA) since about 1965. This is the code book that Medicare, Medicaid, and all U.S. insurance companies use for billing purposes. It started off just as the name implies, codes for procedures. But sometime after the first addition (the early 1990...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - December 25, 2017 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/richard-young" rel="tag" > Richard Young, MD < /a > Tags: Policy Primary Care Public Health & Source Type: blogs

PEARLS+: Putting the Social Determinants of Health into Practice
By: William Ventres, MD, MA, clinical attending, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine; Jay D. Kravitz, MD, MPH, assistant professor (retired), Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University; and Shafik Dharamsi, PhD, dean, College of Health Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso Understanding the social determinants of health, including their upstream causes and downstream health outcomes, is a difficult task. Contemplating the complexity of these issues can often feel overwhelming, leaving medical studen...
Source: Academic Medicine Blog - December 12, 2017 Category: Universities & Medical Training Authors: Guest Author Tags: Featured Guest Perspective health outcomes PEARLS professionalism social determinants of health social responsibility underserved communities Source Type: blogs

Many digital health solutions lack evidence: How physicians can help
Technology makes this an exciting time for health care. Not only are technological advances making health care better, they’re also making it more affordable. To get a taste of the potential of where health and technology are going, you only need to look as far the recent Fortune article titled, “Prepare for a Digital Health Revolution,” or to search through the more than 300,000 health apps available today. But is all this excitement just hype? Opinions differ. Last year the CEO of the American Medical Association (AMA), the nation’s largest association of physicians, described many of the current digital tool...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - December 11, 2017 Category: General Medicine Authors: < a href="https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/post-author/bronwyn-harris" rel="tag" > Bronwyn Harris, MD < /a > Tags: Tech Cardiology Mobile health Pulmonology Source Type: blogs

Drugstore pain pills as effective as opioids in ER patients - AP
Emergency rooms are where many patients are first introduced to powerful opioid painkillers, but what if doctors offered over-the-counter pills instead? A new study tested that approach on patients with broken bones and sprains and found pain relievers sold as Tylenol and Motrin worked as well as opioids at reducing severe pain.The results challenge common ER practice for treating short-term, severe pain and could prompt changes that would help prevent new patients from becoming addicted.The study has limitations: It only looked at short-term pain relief in the emergency room and researchers didn't evaluate how patient...
Source: Psychology of Pain - November 7, 2017 Category: Anesthesiology Source Type: blogs

Cardioverting the First Emergency Medicine Residency Graduate
The labor pains leading to the birth of the specialty of emergency medicine began in the mid-1960s. The public demand for emergency care was growing around the country, and physicians were leaving their private practices in greater numbers and working full-time in urban emergency departments. Nevertheless, the quality of care was at times problematic, and the need for training in emergency medicine was widely recognized.The American College of Emergency Physicians was founded in 1968, and it became a driving force for the creation of the specialty. The first training institution was the University of Cincinnati, and thi...
Source: M2E Too! Mellick's Multimedia EduBlog - November 1, 2017 Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Blog Posts Source Type: blogs

The Hidden Message Coming From the AMA
This morning I received a press release from the American Medical Association (AMA) that said "New AMA Research Finds One in Five Physicians Ready to Reduce Clinical Work Hours." The press release pointed to "new research" (sorry, it's behind a pay wall) that appeared in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings from "experts" from the AMA, Mayo Clinic and Stanford University. The lead author of the research (Source: Dr. Wes)
Source: Dr. Wes - November 1, 2017 Category: Cardiology Authors: Westby G. Fisher, MD Source Type: blogs

How To Talk To Your Doctor: Statins, Side Effects, and Heart Attacks
Discussions with Physicians) online on behalf of Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., within the United States from July 7- August 4, 2017, among 5,014 U.S. adults aged 45 or older, who have been diagnosed with high cholesterol, and have ever used a statin to treat high cholesterol. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Erin Bittner at W2O Group, 212-301-7226. Sources: http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamacardiology/fullarticle/2599102 GEN-2...
Source: Embrace Your Heart Wellness Initiative - October 31, 2017 Category: Cardiology Authors: Eliz Greene Tags: Award Winning Blog Heart Health cholesterol communication with doctor Heart Disease Risk Factors Statin Source Type: blogs

How To Talk To Your Doctor: Statins, Side Effects, and Heart Attacks
Discussions with Physicians) online on behalf of Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., within the United States from July 7- August 4, 2017, among 5,014 U.S. adults aged 45 or older, who have been diagnosed with high cholesterol, and have ever used a statin to treat high cholesterol. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Erin Bittner at W2O Group, 212-301-7226. Sources: http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamacardiology/fullarticle/2599102 GEN-2736 The post H...
Source: Embrace Your Heart Wellness Initiative - October 31, 2017 Category: Cardiology Authors: Eliz Greene Tags: Heart Disease Risk Factors Heart Health Women's Wellness cholesterol communication with doctor Statin Source Type: blogs

I Refuse to Tell You What to Eat
By MICHEL ACCAD, MD A recent tweet from JAMA, the journal of the American Medical Association, urged me andother doctors to “include nutrition counseling into the flow of [our] daily practice.” Along with the tweet came a link to an article that outlines “relatively small” dietary changes, based on the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans, that can “significantly improve health.” My response to the tweet was swift and knee-jerk. I will not do it. I simply will not. I refuse to follow dietary guidelines or recommend them to my patients. “What are you saying?!” “Are you the kind of self-in...
Source: The Health Care Blog - October 24, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: John Irvine Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs

Regarding objections to the change in the contraceptive coverage rule
The Journal of the American Medical Association carries a “Viewpoint” piece that categorically rejects the Trump administration’s reversal of its predecessor’s mandate that employer-based health insurance include payments for contraceptives. As reported in the general press, the current administration’s new stance was hailed by religious and other political conservatives as a welcome support of conscience rights. Read the article here. Briefly, some key points and... // Read More » (Source: blog.bioethics.net)
Source: blog.bioethics.net - October 20, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Authors: Jon Holmlund Tags: Health Care abortion Health Care Practice syndicated Source Type: blogs

ABMS Launches New Initiative: Continuing Board Certification
The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) and its twenty-four Member Boards have launched a major initiative, "Continuing Board Certification: Vision for the Future" (Commission). A collaborative process, the Commission will bring together multiple partners to vision a system of continuing board certification that is meaningful, relevant and of value, while remaining responsive to the patients, hospitals and others who expect that physician specialists are maintaining their knowledge and skills to provide quality specialty care. The Planning Committee to establish the Commission will include representatives from: A...
Source: Policy and Medicine - October 13, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs

AMA/ACCME Alignment Implementation Coming Soon
The American Medical Association (AMA) and the ACCME are working together to develop a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ), instructions for designating credit, and other resources that will be available by the end of September. These resources will support CME providers’ implementation of the simplification and alignment of the requirements for accredited CME activities certified for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. As soon as these resources are available, they will be posted on the AMA/ACCME Alignment webpage. As previously announced, the simplification is reflective of the AMA and ACCME’s share...
Source: Policy and Medicine - October 12, 2017 Category: American Health Authors: Thomas Sullivan - Policy & Medicine Writing Staff Source Type: blogs