7/12/2013 I have had hundreds of talks with patients and their families over the years about resuscitation, and only a few of these discussions ended up with a decision that I felt was wrong for the patient.
7/5/2013 Doctors want an interesting, challenging, rewarding job with good pay, perks, hours and working conditions, just like the rest of humanity.
6/27/2013 I haven't fired a patient in years. I guess we have gotten used to each other. When I first started general practice 21 years ago (after 20 years as an emergency physician), I found I had to fire a few.
6/21/2013 Not retiring is a great thing! Winston Churchill started as prime minister during the Second World War at age 65. Colonel Saunders started Kentucky Fried Chicken at 65.
Here is why you can’t retire: it is simple mathematics. Say you and your spouse are worth $3 million. Sounds great, easy street, fire up the Ferarri and hook up the trailer; we are going to drive to Arizona for the winter.
Not so fas
6/13/2013 I have rarely lost my cool in 40 years of practising medicine, but two years ago a married couple pushed me over the brink.
6/3/2013 My wife was a former flight attendant so we have travelled the world a lot. Once, we even went to Germany for a weekend.
5/23/2013 I have an iPhone (a BlackBerry will do nicely, too). My family wants to do an intervention because I am addicted to it.
5/16/2013 I recently spoke to Dr. Aaron Smith, an emergency physician at Guelph General Hospital and the regional lead for emergency health services for the Waterloo Wellington area. Guelph General, like most hospitals in Canada, had long waits in its busy ER (50,000 visits per year), especially for the 80% of visits that are non-emergencies. A few years ago some Guelph emergency doctors and nurses sat down and figured out a plan called “See and Treat.”
5/6/2013 I am constantly amazed at how our patients try to kid themselves about weight loss.
4/29/2013 Surgeons get grumpy when they have their scheduled surgery cancelled, as do patients and their families. It seems unfair that when the volume of hospital patients inevitably backs up into the ER and surgical beds, that one way of coping is to cancel elective procedures. The trick to avoid this is to manage every patient in the hospital every day.
4/19/2013 It was 3:14 a.m., years ago when I was an emergency room physician. The department was empty and I, for some reason long forgotten, was sitting at the clerk's intake desk reading the newspaper when blood started dripping on it. I looked up and there stood a 16-year-old boy with his throat slashed wide open.
4/12/2013 I have been an expert participant in more than 200 malpractice and physician complaint cases. Here are some tips if you have to write a medical-legal opinion letter.
