Doctor

Nine years ago, near the end of my residency training, I sat across from a patient, wondering whether he’d accepted that he was dying. He was in his 60s, an artist with sinewy arms and serene eyes, someone I’d come to know well over the past three years. Cancer had broken into his liver and bone marrow, robbing him of hunger and energy. Each time I saw him, the hollows of his cheeks deepened. I wanted to tell him that he was dying, that I wanted to understand how he envisioned spending his remaining life. But he mostly spoke about his plans: a camping vacation in six months, a friend’s wedding after that. I awaited some sort of arbitrary signal that it was safe to talk about dying. Maybe he’d tell me that he didn’t want more chemotherapy or that his affairs were in order. Like many physicians, I feared that by talking about death before he appeared ready, I might take away his hope, make him give up or send him into an unstoppable tailspin of anxiety and depression. Whether he … [Read more...] about As a Doctor, I Know Being Ready to Die Is an Illusion

There's a mystery brewing in Cambodia around the case of two North Korean doctors who died from apparent alcohol poisoning in uncertain circumstances. According to The Phnom Penh Post , the doctors, An Hyong Chan, 56, and Rimun Chol, 50, both died on Saturday "after an evening of eating and drinking with their wives and 10 other North Koreans." An autopsy indicated both men died of heart attacks, although the doctors' wives told police they injected their husbands with "a substance intended to counteract the effects of alcohol" when both men developed a high temperature after consuming a number of cocktails. Both doctors died in their home that doubles as their clinic in the Tuol Kork district of Phnom Penh. While the newspaper doesn't provide specific details on how the doctors came to be working in Cambodia, they were likely among the estimated 50,000 North Koreans who are sent to work outside the country and earn between $1.2 billion and $2.3 billion a year for the regime … [Read more...] about The Bizarre Case of the Dead North Korean Doctors

Medicare , the federal program that insures 55 million older and disabled Americans, announced plans on Wednesday to reimburse doctors for conversations with patients about whether and how they would want to be kept alive if they became too sick to speak for themselves. The proposal would settle a debate that raged before the passage of the Affordable Care Act, when Sarah Palin labeled a similar plan as tantamount to setting up “death panels” that could cut off care for the sick. The new plan is expected to be approved and to take effect in January, although it will be open to public comment for 60 days. Medicare’s plan comes as many patients, families and health providers are pushing to give people greater say about how they die — whether that means trying every possible medical option to stay alive or discontinuing life support for those who do not want to be sustained by ventilators and feeding tubes. “We think that today’s proposal supports individuals and families who … [Read more...] about Medicare Plans to Pay Doctors for Counseling on End of Life

Some leading experts on gut health have revealed the foods they always avoid so as not to run the risk of getting some nasty gastro issues. While it's very often things like highly processed foods and sweets which we are told to avoid, some of these might surprise you as they could be staples of your diets. But eating these foods can lead to some health affects like bloating, gas and even more serious health problems. Gastroenterologist at Tufts Medical Centre, Doctor Harmony Allison, avoids something consumed by many fitness fans daily - protein bars. She told the Huffington Post : "I never eat protein bars. They tend to be highly processed and contain lots of additives that are of unknown utility." One of the experts avoids white bread (stock photo) ( Image: Getty Images) The doctor went onto say that more natural sources of protein such as from nuts, pumpkin seeds or Peanut Butter would be a far better alternative. A second expert, Dr Reezwana Chowdhury, … [Read more...] about Gastro doctors share foods they never eat – as they can wreak havoc on the gut

Jeong Jae-hong The author is an international, diplomatic and security news editor for the JoongAng Ilbo. In a recent meeting, I met a man who had sent his teenage son to the United States alone to study. He sighed over the burden of sending more than $46,000 a year to support him but nevertheless was proud he was doing well at an American school. He wished his son would graduate from a U.S. university, find a job, and settle there. Another man whose son was still in elementary school also hoped his son could work in America, as he projected job situation in Korea will get worse after a decade. “Korea has no future,” he cynically said. Their pessimism about the country’s future is well-grounded. Korea’s fertility rate last year was 0.78, the lowest in the world. The trend will likely get worse as more and more do not see the need to get married and have kids. Aging is also the fastest. The share of people aged 65 or older that took up 17.5 percent of the South Korean population … [Read more...] about [Column] A fatal exodus for Korea

An emerging treatment for a common hospital-acquired infection could be (slightly) less gross in the future. Researchers have found that delivering a fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) in a pill—a poop pill, basically—is no worse than a similar procedure done with a colonoscopy. Neither option may sound particularly enticing, but FMTs are wildly effective at treating a very nasty infection called Clostridium difficile. One of the first controlled clinical trials for FMTs in 2013 ended early because the patients who received the treatment were doing so much better than patients who didn't. In the new study, almost 90 percent of adults treated with the capsules were cured. "It's absolutely insane. We just don't see kind of efficacy with drugs," Dr. Dina Kao told Newsweek . Kao is one of the authors of the paper and a gastroenterologist at the University of Alberta. Kao and her colleagues published the findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Tuesday. C. … [Read more...] about Fecal Transplants Can Be Given Through a Pill

Tech & Science PETA Poop Most vegans are happy to list the reasons why a plant-based diet is superior. Going strictly animal-free can reduce one's carbon footprint, cut the risk for cancer and chronic diseases, prevent animal cruelty and provide an excuse to make a really great dessert. But one thing that's probably not on your average vegan's list is that this restrictive diet improves the quality of one's poop—at least according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). This week, the animal rights organization issued a call for more healthy vegans to consider becoming stool super donors (i.e., providing specimens on a regular basis) to serve the growing demand since fecal microbiotoa transplant is now considered the gold standard for treating recurrent Clostridium difficile ( C. difficile ) infections and other potentially life-threatening gastrointestinal illnesses. In this experimental medical procedure, stool from a healthy person is … [Read more...] about PETA Wants Vegans to Donate Their Poop

The government benefits began their existence as objects of partisan rancor and harsh criticism. Eventually, though, they became so popular that politicians of both parties promised to protect them. It was true of Social Security and Medicare. And now the pattern seems to be repeating itself with Obamacare. Consider what has happened recently in North Carolina: Only a decade after the state’s Republican politicians described the law as dangerous and refused to sign up for its expansion of Medicaid, Republicans and Democrats came together to pass such an expansion . The Republican-controlled House in North Carolina passed the bill 87 to 24, while the Republican-controlled Senate passed it 44 to 2. “Wow, have things changed,” Jonathan Cohn wrote in a HuffPost piece explaining how the turnabout happened . Obamacare — the country’s largest expansion of health insurance since Medicare and Medicaid in 1965 — is still not as widely accepted as those programs. North Carolina … [Read more...] about Obamacare Keeps Winning

Narcan, a prescription nasal spray that reverses opioid overdoses, can now be sold over the counter, the Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday, authorizing a move long-sought by public health officials and treatment experts, who hope wider availability of the medicine will reduce the nation’s alarmingly high drug fatality rates. By late summer, over-the-counter Narcan, could be for sale in big-box chains, vending machines, supermarkets, convenience stores, gas stations and even online retailers. The commissioner of the F.D.A., Dr. Robert M. Califf, said in a statement that the over-the-counter authorization was meant to address a “dire public health need.” “Today’s approval of OTC naloxone nasal spray will help improve access to naloxone, increase the number of locations where it’s available and help reduce opioid overdose deaths throughout the country. We encourage the manufacturer to make accessibility to the product a priority by making it available as soon as … [Read more...] about F.D.A. Approves Narcan for Over-the-Counter Sales

Season 3, Episode 3: ‘4-5-1’ Welcome to the Zava era. For those who skipped the first two episodes of this third season of “Ted Lasso” — and honestly, shame on you; go back , do the homework and rejoin us — Ted’s team has signed one of the greatest players of the age, a mercurial striker named Zava. (He is based closely on the real-life star Zlatan Ibrahimovic .) This was accomplished by Rebecca rudely accosting him while he was using a urinal last episode . Whatever works, right? Zava is immediately weird — showing up hours late with his cellphone on another continent, ostentatiously meditating while the rest of the team prepares for games, and so on. But so far he seems reasonably friendly, even if his preferred alignment is everyone in the midfield or on defense except him. This is the meaning of the episode’s title, “4-5-1”: He’s the “1.” As the coaches explain, all free kicks will be taken by Zava. All penalty kicks will be taken by Zava. And all corner kicks must be … [Read more...] about ‘Ted Lasso,’ Season 3, Episode 3 Recap: Zava Superstar