Author's posts
The surprising truth on how to avoid postpartum depression
The current popular notion is that postpartum depression (PPD) cannot be prevented. Rather, it can only be diagnosed with an Edinburgh test once the patient has PPD. Often PPD is considered to be both surprising and mysterious. In reality, it is neithe…
A difficult case managed well
As time passes, we have more new names for what we used to call quality assurance, but it appears to me to now be a public relations issue and have very little to do with quality. Years ago, I returned home about 10:00 p.m. on Sunday night. I had spent…
U.S. maternal mortality crisis: a deep dive
Our increasing maternal mortality rate is gathering attention both nationally and internationally. The U.S. is 33rd among developed nations, and the rate is increasing. Indeed, as Neel Shah notes: Americans today are 50 percent more likely to die in th…
Personalized hypertension care in pregnancy: Beyond evidence-based thresholds
There has always been a research bias against the case of one. A success story that isn’t part of a research pool is called “anecdotal.” The implication is that no doctor should base treatment on a story of one. Then we devised the te…
Unveiling the hidden damage: the secretive world of medical boards
For years, I have tried to interest journalists in the machinations of state medical boards, but all we ever see in the media are notices of doctors sanctioned by state boards. Unfortunately, when journalists report only on sanctioned physicians, the p…
Breaking the silence: a doctor’s plea for clarity in end-of-life care
Six years ago, I met a man who was 93 years old. I sat down to listen to him, something we physicians don’t do as often as we should in the long-term care setting. “I want you to treat me like I’m 73,” he said, “What do yo…
