Brittany Maynard, a death with dignity advocate, chose to end her life in early November. The news did not get as much attention as it should have, possibly because Ebola was the biggest issue of the weeks that surrounded it. Her self-directed death by pills in Oregon, one of the few states in the U.S.…
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Ebola: What History Questions Should Always Be Asked?
The recent discovery of a case of Ebola in the U.S. made me wonder: since the patient was seen twice, why was it missed the first time? The symptoms as listed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) can include fever (>38.6o C), severe headache, muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, and unexplained hemorrhage.…
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What’s the Most Important Solution to Making EHRs Usable for Physicians?
I’ve written before about my use of EMR, and what I’ve heard from some of you. I tend to place blame for a lot of the problems physicians tell me they have with their EMR on the unintended consequence of Meaningful Use (MU) requirements. In their rush to put the requirements into place and remain…
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Paving the Path to Pennsylvania’s Health Care Information Highway
What if you are seeing a patient for a follow-up from the ER, and with a click or two, you could find out what happened, what tests they had, and what you needed to know as you saw them the next day? A patient recently discharged from the hospital? A new patient you’ve never seen…
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