Christine Chronicles

fastcompany: The Takeaway: Don’t let critics destroy a great...

Fri, 17 May 2013 11:32:56 -0400

The Takeaway: Don’t let critics destroy a great idea.

The three women behind the THINX, a fashionable underwear line designed for a woman’s menstrual cycle, wanted to launch an untested idea in a field dominated by corporate giants like Hanes, Fruit of the Loom, and Victoria’s Secret.

After a few years of perseverance and research, THINX products are beginning to hit store shelves, and early sales have already eclipsed this year’s projections.

Here’s the scoop.

This is a really great idea!

pbsthisdayinhistory: May 17, 1954: The Supreme Court Rules on...

Fri, 17 May 2013 11:26:53 -0400

pbsthisdayinhistory:

May 17, 1954: The Supreme Court Rules on Brown v. Board of Education

On this day in 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that racial segregation in public schools violated the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which says that no state may deny equal protection of the laws to any person within its jurisdiction.

Although the decision did not succeed in fully desegregating public education in the United States, it put the Constitution on the side of racial equality and galvanized the nascent civil rights movement into a full revolution.

Can you name all the key players behind Brown v. Board of Education? Revisit the landmark case with PBS’ The Supreme Court site.

You can also learn more about Brown v. Board of Education with “The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow” and explore more events of the Civil Rights Movement with PBS Black Culture Connection.

School integration, Barnard School, Washington, D.C., 1955 (Library of Congress).

Why You Should Worry About a Case of Polio in Somalia A case of...

Fri, 17 May 2013 10:38:57 -0400

Why You Should Worry About a Case of Polio in Somalia

A case of polio is Somalia is a frustrating setback to global eradication. We are “this close” to ending this terrible disease.

An iPhone Jury-Rigged as a Microscope

Wed, 15 May 2013 11:31:40 -0400

An iPhone Jury-Rigged as a Microscope:

Researchers detected eggs of intestinal worms in stool samples with about 70 percent accuracy using an iPhone with an $8 lens attached.

The Cancer of Optimism

Mon, 06 May 2013 21:13:08 -0400

The Cancer of Optimism:

Unrelenting optimism can be more harmful to patients than disease.

The Impossible Workload for Doctors in Training

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 02:40:26 -0400

“Two years after the 16-hour mandate was established, studies on the outcomes are being published, and the results reveal one thing.

Maybe we should have thought a little harder about the arithmetic.

Contrary to expectations, these studies have shown that interns have not been getting significantly more sleep. Moreover, they are not happier, nor are they studying more. In one national survey, nearly half of all doctors in training disapproved of the regulations altogether. Another study revealed that interns were spending less time in educational activities because the additional time required for such conferences and lectures would push them over the 16-hour limit.

In addition, there has been no significant improvement in the quality of care since the work limits took effect. In one case, doctors had to scrap the night float system because the nurses thought the care offered by trainees on that schedule was so poor. Another study revealed that interns confessed to having more concerns about making serious medical errors after the mandate than before.”

——-

I’m part of the new era if interns who supposedly have it easy with the new 16 hour limit. I didn’t mind the 24-hour shift as a medical student. It meant someone else was also there to help. It also meant that you had a day off sometime on a weekday when the rest of the world has open business hours. The 12-16 our day isn’t ideal either. And night float in particular doesn’t make much sense either. Most times you’re cross covering 1-2 other teams. If your patients are more stable it’s manageable and most people sleep without incidents at night. If its July with a hospital full of new doctors and you’re an intern yourself, it’s terrifying and has the potential (and inevitability?) for mistakes and poor outcomes. Who knows what the right balance is between good quality patient care, safety, effective education and having a life outside the hospital and how to achieve it.

New Social Media Guidelines Issued for Physicians

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:36:23 -0400

A new social media policy urges doctors to “pause before posting” and to not “friend” patients online.

The position paper, issued by the American College of Physicians (ACP) and the Federation of State Medical Boards, was released at ACP Internal Medicine 2013 in San Francisco, California, and was simultaneously published online April 11 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

It addresses the benefits and drawbacks of a number of online interactions, and proposes safeguards.

A recent survey of state medical boards showed that 92% reported at least 1 online violation of professionalism that led to a major action, such as license revocation (JAMA. 2012;307:1141-1142). Those researchers were surprised to find that problems ranged across every age group and demographic.

Linsanity! #linsanitythemovie #jeremylin #pacificartsmovement...

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 21:45:30 -0400

Linsanity! #linsanitythemovie #jeremylin #pacificartsmovement (at Birch North Park Theatre)

Butters at the beach

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 15:14:39 -0400

Butters at the beach

Perfect (dog) beach day! (at Ocean Beach)

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 14:47:01 -0400

Perfect (dog) beach day! (at Ocean Beach)

Negril Jamaican Restaurant - Coram, NY

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 12:43:58 -0400

Negril Jamaican Restaurant - Coram, NY:

diagnosisdelicious:

Yelp ROTD #8!

Yay!

There are certain people in your life that no matter how long you go without talking, you pick up...

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 09:14:54 -0400

There are certain people in your life that no matter how long you go without talking, you pick up where you left off. No matter how many miles apart, the distance never changes a thing. So grateful for wonderful friends.

Baldness as a Signal of Heart Disease Risk The analysis,...

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 09:25:55 -0400

Baldness as a Signal of Heart Disease Risk

The analysis, published online in BMJ Open, found that baldness increased the risk for heart disease by between 30 and 40 percent compared with men with a full head of hair. They found the association among men 55 to 60 as well as among older men, and the more severe the baldness, the greater the risk.

The reason for the association is unclear, but the authors suggest that known risk factors for heart disease — hypertension, high cholesterol, smoking and others — may affect both conditions, and that baldness may be a marker of atherosclerosis. In previous studies, baldness has been linked to an increased risk of prostate cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Sam Parnia – the man who could bring you back from the dead Sam...

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 08:14:14 -0400

Sam Parnia – the man who could bring you back from the dead

Sam Parnia MD has a highly sought after medical speciality: resurrection. His patients can be dead for several hours before they are restored to their former selves, with decades of life ahead of them. I’ve had the honor of working with him at Stony Brook on the MICU team. His work is pretty fascinating.

“Most doctors will do CPR for 20 minutes and then stop,” he says. “The decision to stop is completely arbitrary but it is based on an instinct that after that time brain damage is very likely and you don’t want to bring people back into a persistent vegetative state. But if you understand all the things that are going on in the brain in those minutes – as we now can – then you can minimise that possibility. There are numerous studies that show that if you implement all the various resuscitation steps together you not only get a doubling of your survival rates but the people who come back are not brain damaged.”

Happy Interns enjoying spring at Stony Brook University Hospital

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:52:00 -0400

Happy Interns enjoying spring at Stony Brook University Hospital

Yay it’s spring finally (from the hospital bridge)! (at...

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:37:58 -0400

Yay it’s spring finally (from the hospital bridge)! (at Stony Brook University Medical Center)

Walgreens Becomes 1st Retail Chain To Diagnose, Treat Chronic...

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 18:49:13 -0400

Walgreens Becomes 1st Retail Chain To Diagnose, Treat Chronic Conditions

While this may improve access to primary care, will this make treating chronic conditions more complicated and fragmented? Part of good care for chronic illnesses is continuity of care. I think primary care does need to be more dynamic and have several ways that patients can access the system, whether through retail clinics or their regular office visits. Either way, whatever forms that can improve communication between patients and medical providers in a safe and effective way and lead to better outcomes for patients should be considered.

First time ever seeing the heli-pad in action!

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 10:02:18 -0400

First time ever seeing the heli-pad in action!

Happy Easter!

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 09:04:29 -0400

Happy Easter!

Happy Doctors' Day!

Sat, 30 Mar 2013 13:01:03 -0400

Happy Doctors’ Day! Pretty cool to be officially celebrating this holiday for the first time!