Health care documentation is terrible. Here’s why.

Heath care documentation is done for three reasons: health care delivery (that’s the obvious one) regulatory compliance (checking all the boxes our government and payers think are important) malpractice avoidance (no one wants to get sued) These three categories actually apply to every task we do in health care, but let’s confine this discussion to […]

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Medical treatment has its limits. Empathy does not.

“This is our sickest patient,” my co-intern began as she told me about one of her patients I would care for overnight. It was my first week of intern year, and I was assigned the overnight cross-cover shift for a busy cardiology service. Introducing myself as “Dr. Tredway” still rolled awkwardly off my tongue, but […]

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25 things my dog taught me about medicine

1. Be nice to others, even if there are a lot of butt sniffers out there. 2. Waiting to be seen is really hard. Try to keep a schedule and routine. 3. Get out for that walk. It will fill you with joy, well-being and makes the rest of the day calmer. Take other dogs […]

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A patient presents with painless diarrhea. What should you do next?

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 67-year-old woman is evaluated for a 1-year history of loose stools. She reports approximately four episodes per day without abdominal pain. She has not had nausea, vomiting, weight loss, bright red blood per rectum, or melena. On physical examination, temperature […]

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Parents and pediatricians are fighting for the same cause. Remember that.

“If he is hungry when he wakes up, and you don’t let him eat, we’re taking him to another hospital,” the man shouted. I stood trapped between a protective papa bear and his cub. My instinct was to find an exit, but I braced myself for more. This father gave me one last glare before […]

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Hold nurse practitioners accountable by including them in the conversation

I read a fascinating article from ProPublica about a nurse practitioner (NP), Heather Alfonso, who pleaded guilty in June to accepting $83,000 in payments from a drug company in exchange for prescribing a high priced drug used to treat cancer pain. However disturbing this is, notably in the data released by the federal government on […]

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How pre-visit planning saves time and helps the bottom line

A guest column by the American College of Physicians, exclusive to KevinMD.com. I love pre-visit planning. OK, “love” may be too strong a word — I like pre-visit planning. Pre-visit planning isn’t new. Many of you have done it for years, even before it had a name, for example when pre-ordering labs before a visit. […]

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