Blog

Failure of doctors and nurses to wash hands is causing post-operative infections

January 17, 2019

I have written before about the importance of hand washing by doctors and nurses to prevent infection. Yet another study, this one published just this month from University of Iowa researchers, reports that despite solid evidence supporting improved practices for hand washing “adherence to evidence-based, basic, preventive measures is abysmal.” Read More

Yelp! Do reviews guide your choice of ER or Urgent Care facilities?

January 7, 2019

It is very common for consumers to rate a restaurant, hotel or service online with sites such as Yelp! The practice is now spilling over to health care.  Specifically people are rating and reviewing ERs and Urgent Care Clinics. Roughly 47 percent of emergency department and 30 percent of urgent Read More

Healthcare providers — not hackers — leak more of your data

January 1, 2019

New research from Michigan State University and Johns Hopkins University found that more than half of the recent personal health information, or PHI, data breaches were because of medical providers — not because of hackers or external parties.  Employees were taking PHI home or forwarding it to a personal account or Read More

Age 75 or older? You still need mammograms!

December 27, 2018

Women age 75 years and older should continue to get screening mammograms, according to a new study. There is a high incidence of breast cancer found in this age group and mammography plays a critical role in the early detection – it can show changes in the breast up to Read More

HAPPY HOLIDAYS to all military families

December 20, 2018

Beware: YouTube videos are wrong on prostate cancer

December 14, 2018

Of the 150 most popular YouTube videos on prostate cancer, 77 percent had factual errors or biased content in either the video or its comments section. In addition, only 50 percent of the videos analyzed described correctly the current standard of care in prostate cancer screening and treatment. Researchers at Read More

Saving Twins and Triplets – preventing stillbirths

December 10, 2018

In 2011, NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) established guidelines covering the additional care that should be offered to women with twin and triplet pregnancies above that routinely offered to all women during pregnancy. It aimed to reduce the risk of complications and improve outcomes in the mother Read More

Traumatic brain injury can cause ADHD

December 2, 2018

Scientists have discovered that there are at least two forms of ADHD: one caused by a traumatic brain injury (even a mild one) and the other caused by genetic factors. While the study reporting these findings discussed the implications for children who suffer mild traumatic brain injuries in such things Read More

Fear of litigation & the decision to perform C-sections

November 18, 2018

A headline describing the results of a recent study read: “[f]ear of litigation is a key factor in decision to perform C-sections.” However, when reading the report published by the study’s authors, the conclusion was actually that the clinicians’ personal beliefs were the major factor that influenced the decision to Read More

Patient safety in hospitals a big concern

November 7, 2018

Twenty years ago, a landmark study by the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) highlighted the prevalence of medical errors and called for a national commitment to reduce patient harm. Today, a follow-up study revealed that 71 percent of hospitals made no improvements and 7 percent actually got worse. Worse yet, Read More