Writing a Medical Simulation Case
It can be a daunting task to write a medical simulation cases. Regardless of prior experience in simulation, writing cases is a different skill set than programming or working a high fidelity simulator. It’s more similar to writing a play– at times an impromptu play! What is a Medical Simulation Case? It usually entails a patient encounter with a healthcare provider (learner) where an event occurs, and the learner is expected to perform actions. After some time, or after certain actions are performed, the facilitator stops the simulation, and debriefing ensues. [+]
PV card: Bell’s Palsy Treatment
Bell's Palsy is an idiopathic unilateral facial nerve paralysis. Since the 2009 Cochrane review1 showing that antivirals added no benefit to corticosteroids in Bell's Palsy, I stopped prescribing them. The NNT.com site has concluded the same. Looking at the literature a little more, the recommendations are a little murkier. Some groups are still advocating for antivirals for severe cases, because there may be a very small but questionably positive benefit. "Because of the possibility of a modest increase in recovery, patients might be offered antivirals (in addition to steroids) (Level C). Patients offered antivirals should be counseled that a benefit from antivirals has [+]
Trick of Trade: Umbilical foreign body removal
Emergency physicians are constantly challenged with fishing foreign bodies out of various orifices such as ears, as shown here in an earlier Trick of the Trade using a tissue adhesive. What do you do when an overweight person presents with the cotton portion of a Q-tip lodged in his umbilicus? Skin retractors and direct probing were unsuccessful in removing the cotton. [+]
A Tea-Steeping or i-Doc Model for Medical Education?
There was a great article written by Dr. Brian Hodges (@BDHodges1) and published in Academic Medicine1 in 2010. Dr. Cunningham (@amcunningham) provided the link via Twitter in a discussion about different models of competence in medical education. [+]
Patwari Academy videos: Searching the literature to answer Qs
Do you use a PICO method to answering a clinical question using the medical literature? Patient / problem Intervention Comparison Outcome This two-part series provides an introduction in how to search the medical literature to answer your clinical question. This provides a concise overview of epidemiology and statistics. [+]
Making Your Match Rank List
This is the moment your whole medical school career has been hinging upon: Match Rank List Time! It is time to get serious and come up with a rank list that maximizes your chances of getting your first choice residency. Ranking programs is a personal decision making process, because everyone has different priorities and life circumstances. Therefore, no one piece of advice applies to everyone. This is a run down of my own personal thoughts of what is important. [+]
Trick of the Trade: Recognizing eyedrop bottles by color
Have you ever wondered why prescription eyedrops have different color bottle caps? Did you know that the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has a policy to color-code topical ocular medication bottles caps? Why was this needed? “The Academy’s policy on color coding of eyedrop drug caps was prompted by reports to the Academy and the National Registry of Drug-Induced Ocular Side Effects of serious adverse events resulting from patient difficulty in distinguishing between various ocular medications. With input from the pharmaceutical industry and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Academy’s Committee on Drugs developed a uniform color-coding system.” — AAO policy [+]
Patwari Academy videos: Pediatric head injury – To CT or not?
When would you obtain a CT for a pediatric patient who sustained a head injury? Watch this nice 11-minute video review by Dr. Raul Patwari, discussing the 2009 Lancet PECARN study. [+]
Director of Growth, [+]
Getting serious about Serious Gaming!
Many of our childhood memories revolve around late nights playing Mario Brothers. Everybody remembers their mother yelling to stop playing so much, or else their fingers would fall off. Many of us outgrew video games, only to be sucked back in by Angry Birds and Farmville. Now there’s a new generation who experience life with an iPad glued to their hand from the womb. And then there are people like my fiance who belong to guilds in World of Warcraft. For the purposes of this write up, I want to focus on Serious Games as electronic software as opposed to table top [+]
Dexmedetomidine (Precedex) as an Adjunct to Benzodiazepines for Ethanol Withdrawal
Sometimes a question is posed on Twitter that generates a great discussion from colleagues ’round the globe. Such was the case for dexmedetomidine. Although benzodiazepines remain the standard of treatment for ethanol withdrawal, particularly seizures and delirium tremens, what’s all the hype about dexmedetomidine? [+]