West Nile virus 2013 as of July 2nd
Last year was a big year for us in Texas with West Nile, an in conversation with colleagues the other day we noted we hadn’t seen any yet.
So, to the CDC Map of cases:
Wow, Texas is dark green as are several other states! Must be an epidemic, right?
Not so much:
Two cases made Texas look like ground zero. (This isn’t to make light of the CDC, it’s to point out that maps by state aren’t necessarily as descriptive as they look).
And, I and mine got ambushed by mosquitoes today, so wear the right clothing/DEET, etc. Or the map you change might represent you!
Source: CDC West Nile virus
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Source: GruntDoc - July 8, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Medical Source Type: blogs
A Few Questions for the AMA | The Redheaded Pharmacist
Sing it!
The American Medical Association AMA just concluded their Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates in Chicago on Wednesday, June 19th. And it seems as if the profession of pharmacy was a topic of conversation. According to the AMAWire, one of the points of discussion for the delegates this year was pharmacist inquiries with practitioners to verify controlled substances. This is the statement they released in response that you will find on the AMA’s website: The AMA delegates “Issued a warning against “inappropriate inquiries” from pharmacies to verify the medical rationale behind prescrip...
Source: GruntDoc - June 20, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Policy Source Type: blogs
NEJM on inflight medical emergencies
Via Doximity, a nice review of inflight medical emergencies:
We conducted a study of in-flight medical emergencies involving large commercial airlines, characterizing on-board assistance provided by flight crews and other passengers and identifying the outcomes of these events, including ambulance transport to a hospital and hospital admission. On the basis of our findings, we suggest a practical approach to the initial management of common in-flight medical emergencies for medical personnel who may be called on to render aid.
NEJM
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Source: GruntDoc - June 14, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Announcements Source Type: blogs
DoD Buzz | Navy Scuttles All-Cap Messages
Way past time…
WE DON’T HAVE TO SEND MESSAGES THIS WAY ANYMORE, the Navy has decided.Word went out from the Navy’s Fleet Cyber Command on May 8 that the Navy’s internal messaging system now had the ability to transmit in lower case as well as the traditional upper case letters.“Therefore, it is not necessary to limit Navy messages entirely to upper case,” said the directive, first reported by the Navy Times.Of course, the message saying that upper case was no longer needed went out this way: “THEREFORE, IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO LIMIT NAVY MESSAGES ENTIRELY TO UPPER CASE.”
via DoD Buzz | Navy Scuttles All-...
Source: GruntDoc - June 11, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
Mr. Balls, aka Senhor Testicle, goes to bat for cancer research – NY Daily News
Just go look.
At first blush, the mascot’s name is rather endearing: Mr. Balls.But for those who might find that descriptive title offensive, the scrotum-shaped character also answers to "Senhor Testiculo" in Brazil, where he is a spokes-thing for a group that is seeking to raise awareness of testicular cancer research.
via Mr. Balls, aka Senhor Testicle, goes to bat for cancer research – NY Daily News.
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Source: GruntDoc - June 10, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
U.S. intelligence mining data from nine U.S. Internet companies in broad secret program – The Washington Post
Thank goodness my blog’s not on this list!
U.S. intelligence mining data from nine U.S. Internet companies in broad secret program
via U.S. intelligence mining data from nine U.S. Internet companies in broad secret program – The Washington Post.
Forgive the levity. Privacy, schmivacy. It’s not like the Government will ever use any of this for partisan purposes.
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Source: GruntDoc - June 6, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Rants Source Type: blogs
I met several CPR survivors today; I was involved with some of them
At the Fort Worth Municipal building, a gathering of AED/CPR survivors. I was told 10 of them; they came with their families, and there were a lot of lay rescuers and EMS, who as usual deserve the credit for a ‘save’, as if they don’t get the heart restarted in the field there’s not a lot we can do in the ER.
I was also told I was involved in the care of 4 of them. Crazy odds.
Two patients knew of me (probably from billing, frankly, none were awake in the ED), and they were 100% neurologically intact. We had nice chats, and I got my photo with both, but as I didn’t ask their permission to post...
Source: GruntDoc - June 5, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Emergency Source Type: blogs
Carl McCoy: Dear Grads, Don’t ‘Do What You Love’ – WSJ.com
What he said. Even Docs have to come to terms with this.
Does the doctor love going into the hospital to see a patient in the middle of the night? Does the firefighter love entering a burning building? Does the teacher love trying to control a classroom full of disrespectful children? Not likely. But the work is performed with a sense of purpose that "love" doesn’t capture.We don’t all have to become first responders or social workers. And we can’t all find jobs with such obvious benefits to society. When diplomas are being handed out, though, it might be worthwhile for graduates—and the rest ...
Source: GruntDoc - May 29, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
FatBottomed Girls, mens’ chorus version
I like it.
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Source: GruntDoc - May 28, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
RAND studies the ED, finds we are good.
RAND did us a huge favor here, documenting the shifts in styles of care and validating most of what we’ve said anecdotally.
http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RR200/RR280/RAND_RR280.pdf
Enjoy!
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Source: GruntDoc - May 21, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Announcements Source Type: blogs
I turned 50 today
Some reflections on the first third of my life.
I’ve been blessed with people in all stages of my life who supported me, and even when situations didn’t warrant it, they kept believing. My parents are alive and healthy, three terrific kids, two grand kids, a most excellent and accomplished son-in-law (and another in the wings).
Professionally I’m on plane, and keep finding new things to be curious about, and sometimes fix, the lifelong learning continues.
My wife deserves the majority of the credit for survival to this point. She kept me from dying of malnutrition in med school, and refrained from killing...
Source: GruntDoc - May 14, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Family Source Type: blogs
Our unrealistic attitudes about death, through a doctor’s eyes
We all die. Here’s just a snippet from this doctors’ experience:
…Sometimes an estranged family member is “flying in next week to get all this straightened out.” This is usually the person who knows the least about her struggling parent’s health; she’ll have problems bringing her white horse as carry-on luggage. This person may think she is being driven by compassion, but a good deal of what got her on the plane was the guilt and regret of living far away and having not done any of the heavy lifting in caring for her parent.
via Washington Post.
I’ve seen this many, many times in my ED; the ...
Source: GruntDoc - May 12, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Emergency Source Type: blogs
Zachary Quinto vs. Leonard Nimoy
It’s been a while since I posted something fun:
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Source: GruntDoc - May 9, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Source Type: blogs
Is farting in the OR transmitting germs?
From the BMJ:
“It all started with an enquiry from a nurse,” Dr Karl Kruszelnicki told listeners to his science phone-in show on the Triple J radio station in Brisbane. “She wanted to know whether she was contaminating the operating theatre she worked in by quietly farting in the sterile environment during operations, and I realised that I didn’t know. But I was determined to find out.”
via Hot air?.
Yes, it’s a 2001 article, but I wasn’t blogging then, so missed it.
Brought to my attention by Glen in West Texas, thanks Glen!
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Source: GruntDoc - May 8, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Amusements Medical Source Type: blogs
All health-care systems have ‘death panels’ of one sort or another | Full Comment | National Post
Via @medskep on twitter:
Many scoff at the term “death panel” — Sarah Palin’s morbid, if misleading description of the powers contained in U.S. government health-care legislation back in 2009. Yet there was a grain of truth in that infamous noun phrase. The fact of the matter is that all health-care systems have “death panels” of one sort or another. It’s just a question of who sits on them — bureaucrats, insurers or doctors — and what label we put on their functions.
via All health-care systems have ‘death panels’ of one sort or another | Full Comment | National Post.
There’s the truth, letR...
Source: GruntDoc - May 5, 2013 Category: Emergency Medicine Doctors Authors: GruntDoc Tags: Policy Source Type: blogs
