Emergency Medical Doctor

Most docs have recognized the ridiculous science behind the Quality rules requiring antibiotics in Community Aquired Pneumonia within 4 hours of arrival at the hospital. Finally, there is a study from our home NJ Medical School in Newark, NJ that reveals that giving antibiotics in the first 24 hours has little effect on survival.  The study ...

  Well, I am happy to see that the American College of Emergency Physicians is doing all it can to keep up with evolving technologies. From having our council meeting with wireless connections and live web presentations to now the addition of blogging. Yes, they now have the Gardners Gate, hosted by Dr. Angela Gardner, ...

This article per Reuter's reveals something that I am not surprised about. Physicians especially in their privat offices are not using computers to document patient records, write prescriptions or to track patients' routine preventative care.  Working at a facility where in the Emergency Department we do use all computerized systems I would ...

I am not concerned about bird flu at this point.  I think most of it is media frenzy. Yes there have been 100 deaths worldwide from it, but how many people die from the flu in the US. The graph below gives a percentage of those who die from the flu/pneumonia in the 2005 season. (It is difficult to pull the two diagnosis apart ...

Once again the alarmists at the FDA are going forward and giving a good drug a bad wrap.  This time it is benzocaine, a topical anesthetic, that is especially useful to anesthetize the inside of the mouth and throat before introducing a tube into the airway or the stomach. Simply put it makes the procedure more comfortable for the ...

Recently, I was made aware of a case of Pertussis in my area.  Now I had read about a resurgence in Pertussis in adults and young adults, but have not actually seen or perhaps recognized any.  Typically young adults and adults have a milder form of the disease or are relatively asymptomatic.  They are still very contagious ...

Recently, my grandfather died of complications from C. dificile.  At our hospital this has become a real nasty critter.  We have speculated as to why it is more virulent even in healthy young people than any of us can recall.  In a recent review article by Dr. Bartlett and Dr. Perl in the New England Journal of Medicine, they ...

I have just added the Johns Hopkins antibiotic guide to the toolbox. Not only can you access it via the web but you can also download it to your Palm OS. I have had it on my Palm for a while and only just discovered it is also on the web. Frankly, it is easier to view on the web, so I will be much more likely to use it at my workstation where I am ...

For those of you who during a shift can't seem to find the algorithm or calculation you are looking for, I am pleased to have added the Emergency Medicine toolbox on the bottom left of my blog page.  I often find myself searching the web for some information I need and the other day had a brainstorm to put it on the blog where everyone can ...

Yes, I am still alive and will resume blogging shortly. Last 2 months have been very hectic with large work and family commitments.  I have a lot of thoughts for blogging but have not had the moment....but the near future looks brighter.