Contributing Writer Emeritus
University of Texas Medical School at Houston
Jon is a graduate from Texas A&M University, former investment banking analyst, and aspiring physician. He serves as a student advisor for the McGovern Center for Humanities and Ethics in Houston. Jon and his fiancée Kimberly enjoy birding, tennis, and eating Chinese takeout.
I arrived at the neuro ICU at 5:30 a.m. to read up on my new patient before rounds. The resident on duty the day before had accepted a transfer at 7:00 p.m. and documented the following in his note: Mr. X is a 72-year-old male with a past medical history of severe bilateral carotid artery stenosis who had a devastating right MCA ischemic stroke at home this morning, confirmed by CT at an outlying hospital.
Evidence-based medicine is a topic about which we as medical students hear lectures, have workshops and complete written assignments. What is it really? Is it just keeping up with the most recent literature in the field of medicine and practicing medicine based on evidence?
I will admit to being an “OR avoider” — albeit, one who is certainly in awe of the stylized pageantry of sterile armor adornment. In the operating room, safe spaces are demarcated by mere inches. Rest your hand beyond the thresholds monitored by the scrub techs and you are deemed a threat to a clean procedure. Gesturing in ways that are otherwise socially advantageous gives new territory to harmful bacteria that threaten favorable outcomes. As third-year medical …
Location: Surgery inpatient floor Time: 6:00 a.m. Surgery morning rounds began: “Ms. A, your MRI shows you have colorectal cancer, so we plan to take you to the OR for surgery tomorrow. Alright, see you later,” said my surgery attending, who rushed out of Ms. A’s room right after he abruptly dropped this shocking news. Inside the room, Ms. A, a fragile, bony 75-year-old lady, was laying on her bed with her eyes full of …
Rugged yet breathtakingly subtle, the backdrop of Telluride, Colorado was a boon for our group of medical students to dissect the obstacles we encounter to safely care for our patients. The setting was the 2012 Telluride Patient Safety Roundtable. I, along with nearly 20 other medical students and leaders from prominent patient safety and health care quality organizations, convened to become better advocates for patient safety. This innovative roundtable, in its eighth iteration, sought to immerse upcoming medical professionals in discussions …
Since the beginning of medical school, I have always been astonished at the fact that my preceptors often had no idea what was going on with their patients. Many times, they resorted to prescribing Tylenol, simply telling their patients to come back if the condition became worse. Gastric ulcer? Tylenol. Terrible headache? Tylenol. Joint aches? Tylenol. Period cramps? Tylenol. Of course, they were family doctors with years and years of experience, but it came to …
Contributing Writer Emeritus
University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine
Currently in Canada. Loving every moment of the way.
