Ruth Tapp, a patient in the U.K., describes what it feels like for the patient to be the subject of bedside teaching. Here is the BMJ article: bmj.i6190.full This was a useful (and short) essay that will be of help to physicians, students, patients and their families. Some things have changed since 1920 — but not all!
After Great Pain
After great pain a formal feeling comes — The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs — The stiff Heart questions was it, He, that bore, And Yesterday–or Centuries before? The Feet, mechanical, go round — Of Ground, or Air, or Ought — A Wooden way Regardless grown, A Quartz contentment, like a stone — This is the Hour of Lead — Remembered, if outlived, As Freezing persons, recollect the Snow — First — Chill — then Stupor — then the letting go — There are times when pain is the artist’s teacher. Emily Dickinson expresses that in her great poem, After Great Pain. Keats, having studied medicine for seven years at … Continue reading
Gratitude
by Allen Shih In the well-lit room, students bustled, Dressed in scrubs, holding scalpels, and clutching Netters. Not one spoke, but some did pray. Today was the day. With swift broad strokes of knives, we cut into the flesh. Like lawyers on cross-examination, sifting through layers of muscles, we tagged hidden nerves and camouflaged vessels. Beyond donning the white coat on stage, Beyond the first patient hailing “bye doc!” Beyond spending time alone with terminally-ill patients, Anatomy taught us our first patient. Enshrined in a place of learning, A still woman with prominent cheekbones lay, With slender hands as cold as ice. Her blue eyes squinted into the night. Author … Continue reading
Hopkins Humanity and Medicine Conference
Humanity and Medicine Conference Johns Hopkins School of Medicine December 10, 2016 submitted by DJ Elpern The Turner Auditorium. I haven’t been in this room for 37 years… Not much appears to have changed. It is an imposing amphitheater that suits the Oslerian tradition of Hopkins. What follows are some random notes I took. There was much more that I missed. It was a day of rich pickings and I wish I could have gorged on more that was offered. The following photo could be a key theme of this day at the Turner Auditorium. The physician (observing) not doing something to the patient. The meeting began with a stressing … Continue reading
Free Money in Finland
In his book, The Health Gap, Michael Marmot discusses the effect income inequality has on well-being and longevity. He discusses how the income gap is less in Scandinavia than almost anywhere else and shows how this translates into a narrower health gab between the upper and lower income brackets. Finland is now starting “an experiment in the form of social welfare: universal basic income.” This holds promise to further narrow the health gap. The December 18th NY Times article about this does not mention “the social determinants of health” but some of what the article covers is straight out of Marmot’s book. See: Free Money for the Jobless.
Tossed Photographs
by Marla Lukofsky Today I attended the funeral of my friend and neighbor of 35 years, Ms. Enid. No one knew her exact age except for her best friend Ruby, another neighbor here at The Burnside, our six-storey art deco apartment building that we all lived in. Enid was distinguished and healthy, but dementia grabbed her sensibilities in her last year. Because she was single and had no family, she was sent to a nursing home far away from The Burnside and her friends, a good forty-minutes drive on the highway. Her death has had a huge impact on me. I miss her tremendously, of course, and her passing has … Continue reading
Crazy New Journals
Over a 16 month period from late June 2015 through late October 2016, I received 20 solicitations to submit articles to, or join the editorial board of, the following new journals. I will keep adding to this list. D.J. Elpern Austin Journal of Dermatology Dermatology Research and Practice International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Dermatology Journal of Dermatology and Pigmentation Research! International Journal of Women’s Dermatology (IJWD) Jacobs Journal of Experimental Dermatology Journal of Clinical Dermatology & Therapy The Journal of Cosmetic & Laser Therapy Journal of Cosmetology & Trichology Journal of Dermatology and Pigmentation Research Journal of Dermatology Research Journal of Dermatology Research and Therapy Journal of Dermatological Research … Continue reading
2017 Hot Spots in Dermatology
Hot Spots in Dermatology August 18 – 20, 2017 Turtle Bay Resort, Kahuku, Oahu, Hawaii ‘A’ohe pau ka’ike i ka halau ho’okahi One can learn from many sources The Road to Turtle Bay and Hot Spots! HOT SPOTS HAWAII is a unique continuing medical education program that blends clinical and therapeutic updates while allowing time for reflection and introspection. The program will be held at the Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu’s North Shore. Doug Johnson has negotiated a favorable room rate. Hot Spots is designed to allow attendees to consider aspects of our personal and professional lives not typically included in traditional continuing education. Leave your cell phones, pagers and … Continue reading
Don’t Get Caught Listening to Your Patient!
The pupil and the teacher, one just a little ahead of the other. William Osler Don’t Get Caught Listening to Your Patient! D. Micah Milgraum, MS4, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Abstract: A fourth year medical student blunders while learning not to take everything a patient says at face value. Keywords: pityriasis rosea, medical student, tinea, listening, medical lingo, pimping, embarrassed, ringworm, patient presentation, lesson learned, herpes, dyshidrotic eczema During the fourth day of my first dermatology rotation, I enter one of the clinic’s patient exam rooms to meet a 42 year old man sitting on the examination table holding his palms out towards me. “What brings you into clinic today?” I ask. … Continue reading
The Relativity of Time in Dermatology
By Leonard J. Hoenig, MD Abstract: Rarely, human aging can dramatically speed up or slow down, resulting in devastating clinical consequences for patients. Two case histories are presented to illustrate this “relativity” of the human aging process. One patient suffered from progeria and aged rapidly, dying prematurely at 17 years-old. The second patient suffered from syndrome X and seemed not to age at all, remaining a toddler till her death at age 20. Despite their many handicaps, both patients lived inspiring lives that brought much love to their families and friends. To read a PDF of Len Hoenig’s inspiring article go to THIS LINK and click on Download. Key Words: … Continue reading
