It’s happening more frequently: Requests for medical advice by email. The more I do, the more people I meet. The network grows and friends of friends learn about what I do. So junior has a little pain and shows at the local ER where the requisite CT shows a little thickening of the ileum. Someone suggests that the family drop me a line. Here’s the problem: ... Continue Reading about The Problem with Casual Medical Advice
Plush Stuffed Organs
For the baby or physician spouse who has everything comes the I Heart Guts line of plush human organ toys. These cuddly organs resemble the major parts of the human body but without all that fear of communicable disease. Check out the uterus (“womb service”) or the liver (“I’m a liver, not a fighter”). This makes bears seem so passé. Pictured is "Pancreas Plush" ... Continue Reading about Plush Stuffed Organs
Deadly Choices – How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All
A friend suggested she was tired of hearing about vaccines. Her comment and our subsequent conversation seemed to reflect an important shift in parent sentiment: the conversation about vaccines is beginning to get somewhere. Enter Deadly Choices. While much of this was born of the MSM’s newfound realization that the vaccine-autism connection was cooked, some of ... Continue Reading about Deadly Choices – How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All
The Stethoscope in Room 2
Thursday is my endoscopy day at Texas Children's Hospital. Room 2 in the Endoscopy Suite is where I conduct my business. If you visit Room 2 you’ll find a stethoscope hanging on the coat hook. I started scoping here in 1994 and it’s been around as long as I can remember. Every Thursday as I wash my hands I look at the stethoscope and assume that by next week it ... Continue Reading about The Stethoscope in Room 2
Grand Rounds – Voices from the Medical Blogosphere
The reason I love grand rounds is that it offers me the opportunity to see stuff that I might normally overlook. No themes here, per se. Just some good stuff from around the web. The response was great and all offered something unique. I have chosen, however, to select some of the best material for your reading pleasure. Rather than generate a massive dung heap ... Continue Reading about Grand Rounds – Voices from the Medical Blogosphere
Where Good Ideas Come From
Did you ever wonder how innovation happens? I just finished Where Good Ideas Come From – The Natural History of Innovation by Steven Berlin Johnson which tackles this very question. Drawing from examples across multiple disciplines, Johnson builds the case that throughout history and nature there are recognizable patterns associated with innovation. By embracing ... Continue Reading about Where Good Ideas Come From