Monthly Archives: February 2010

My Mini-”Checklist Manifesto”

Posted on February 25, 2010 by admin

In his new book The Checklist Manifesto, Atul Gawande argues that in our increasingly complex and specialized world checklists can be a powerful tool to improve performance. While at first glance the claim seems far-fetched, Gawande makes his argument by citing examples … Continue reading →

Posted in Thinking Out Loud | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

The Deadly Side of Preventive Health

Posted on February 20, 2010 by admin

Medical residents sometimes joke that admissions come in pairs. And so it was on my last call a few nights ago that I was called to the ER to evaluate two GI bleeders. Gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding — blood loss anywhere from the … Continue reading →

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Quitting Smoking on Facebook

Posted on February 13, 2010 by admin

At 3am on Jan 1st 2010 my cousin-brother stubbed his last cigarette. New Year’s resolutions to quit smoking, lose weight, or change another bad habit are certainly not uncommon. Having tried — and failed — to quit a number of times before, … Continue reading →

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Diagnosing Diabetes Easier

Posted on February 7, 2010 by

About 24 million Americans, or 8 percent of the U.S. population, have diabetes. Although people with diabetes are at risk for serious medical complications, with close monitoring and treatment they need not suffer from them. The problem is 1 in … Continue reading →

Posted in Heart Disease Prevention | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Heart Health Checklist

Posted on February 1, 2010 by

Last week the internal medicine residents in my program participated in a simple but profound experiment. Using a standardized patient communication tool we created, called the “Heart Health Checklist,” we wanted to see if we could improve our patients’ satisfaction with their preventive … Continue reading →

Posted in Heart Disease Prevention, Thinking Out Loud | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments