How did you learn to speak your language? Through what technique did you master basic personal care? What was the mechanism through which you first acquired personal values? In each case, the answer is most likely through following the model of your parents. As we progress in life the number of models increases, but the […]
Health is an ongoing crisis throughout the world. Cost is high and growing. Access is limited for those separated by distance or insufficient finances. And, quality care is difficult to assure. At my presentation today at Truman State University, I stressed to the premed student organization that this is an age for heroes in healthcare;
Healthcare is a hazardous career tract. The 2019 Medscape National Physician Burnout, Depression & Suicide Report illustrates the perils inherent to most everyone in our professions. This survey of 15,000 physicians documented 44% experiencing burnout, 11% the blues, and 4% clinically depressed. And in the United States, one physician each days commits suicide – the
When I was a child, every year polio paralysed some 350 000 children in more than 100 nations. Today, this deadly, disfiguring virus has been all but defeated. In 2018, less than 30 cases were reported in just two nations: Afghanistan and Pakistan. Our world strains towards the finish line of a monumental public health
Chronic hypertension is a common illness in the general population. However, hypertension is frequently never be diagnosed because those who have it usually have no symptoms. It is also undertreated because hypertensive people may not understand its importance, do not have the funds to purchase the medication, do not remember to take their medication or
2018 ends a year of worldwide chaos: earthquakes, tsunamis, fires, forced migrations, political unrest, economic turmoil. Such chaos is most vividly expressed in armed conflict. At this moment, open fighting continues in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Ukraine, Yemen, Mexico, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and more. Less overt fighting smolders on throughout
As a student, my professors emphasized the importance of routinely ascultating a patient’s carotid arteries with my stethoscope for detection of bruits that could indicate life-threatening stenosis. Research on the reliability of this exam demonstrates it to be only moderate. If there’s any question a carotid artery stenosis exists, the physician requests an ultrasound exam
Osteopathic physicians enjoy a solid reputation for providing continuity and comprehensive primary care, especially in rural communities where other professionals are less inclined to serve. These virtues resonate soundly with some of international health’s most highly held principles: wholistic, sustainable care on behalf of people most marginalized. That osteopathic physicians would be inclined towards international