Medical Malpractice Legislation in Illinois

From Modern Physician
“Ilinois OKs malpractice reform, with push from Democrats”
Medical-malpractice reform is close to reality in Illinois, awaiting only the signature of Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
The Illinois Senate, in a 36-22 vote shortly after midnight, approved a reform package that includes a cap on noneconomic damages, online publication of physician disciplinary histories, standards for [...]

Paramedics Providing Preventive Care

From the Daytona Beach News-Journal:
“Proposal aims to head off avoidable 911 calls, Preventative care program could reduce ER visits”
Under a new proposal, city and county firefighter paramedics could provide preventive care — like checking in to see whether a forgetful diabetic is taking her medicine and eating her meals. Expensive medical costs could be [...]

Boarding in the ER

Excerpted from an article in the Washington Post, “Holdover in the ER”
The boarder phenomenon arises because there are not enough hospital beds and nursing staff to accommodate all the patients who need to be admitted on an emergency basis. Financial incentives reward hospitals for keeping their beds full, which favors patients scheduled for elective procedures. [...]

Google Scholar

A great new research tool…
Google Scholar Review from Kidney Notes
There are several ways of searching the medical literature. Previously I used PubMed, the interface from the National Library of Medicine. I’ve recently switched to Google Scholar, which has these advantages:
Papers are listed not in order of publication, but in order of relevance, which is determined [...]

Visits to U.S. Emergency Departments at All-Time High; Number of Departments Shrinking

From the National Center for Health Statistics
Visits to the nation’s emergency departments (EDs) reached a record high of nearly 114 million in 2003, but the number of EDs decreased by 12 percent from 1993 to 2003, according to a new report released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The report attributes the [...]

Illinois Medical Malpractice: A Compromise

From the Chicago Tribune
Springfield forges cap on malpracticeSPRINGFIELD — After months of bitter feuding, medical leaders and key Illinois lawmakers from both political parties agreed Wednesday on a plan to cap pain-and-suffering damages in medical malpractice cases.
The hard-fought compromise paved the way for passage of legislation in the next few days. It reflects concerns by [...]

Iowa Malpractice: A Net Gain of Doctors?

From a Cedar Rapids TV station, a story I believe went out on the AP wire:
“Malpractice costs both attract and drive doctors away”
The cost of medical malpractice insurance appears to cut both ways in Iowa.
Critics say the rising cost of malpractice premiums is driving doctors away from Iowa, but a report by the University of [...]

Sock in the Eye

Boy, the New York Times sure comes in handy…
“Treating a Sock in the Eye”
Q. Does it work to slap a steak on a black eye, as they do in cartoons and after fistfights in old movies?
A. Experts in modern emergency medicine uniformly reject the steak approach to first aid for a bruise in the [...]

AutoPulse Resuscitation System

I was browsing the excellent MedGadget blog and, lurking in the Emergency Medicine section, I found mention of the new Revivant (sold through Zoll) AutoPulse Resuscitation System. A participant in one of my ACLS Provider classes mentioned this device and provided me with a brochure. I thought I’d share news of this innovation with the [...]

Supraglottic Airways

I’ve found a rather comprehensive resource for consideration and comparison of supraglottic airways: King LT, Cobra PLA, (both the subject of posts and pictures in this blog)and several styles of the Laryngeal Mask Airway (LMA). The resource is built with Shockwave so you’ll need that plug-in (and a broadband connection), but the descriptions, 3-D models, [...]