The PMD Critical List: Ebola vs Civil Liberties

This week's list of stories every physician should read includes reflections on the Ebola virus' civil liberties implications, the employer/physician relationship in family and medical leave cases, and the nation's prison system.

• Doctors Make House Calls Again (Santa Barbara Independent)

An innovative healthcare program in California, Doctors Assisting Seniors at Home (DASH), has resurrected an illustrious doctor-patient connection—the house call. And it’s working very well for both doctors and patients.

• The Beginners' Guide to Healthcare Blogs (Health Works Collective)

It’s a fact—3 out of 4 patients go online for their health info. Docs must have a presence. Here’s a quick guide for physicians seeking to connect with patients via social media.

• Ebola vs. Civil Liberties (Washington Post)

Charles Krauthammer is a national columnist, Pulitzer-Prize-winner, and physician. His writings, particularly on health, are intelligent and accurate. Here he takes on Ebola and why a little worry might be in order.

• 9 Real Technologies That Will Soon Be Inside You (Yahoo News)

“I’m a doctor not a mechanic,” is a classic comment from Dr. “Bones” McCoy of Star Trek. But astonishing medical technology and patient demand may soon force physicians to be both.

• Doctors Can Lead the Way on Family Medical Leave (JD Supra)

For many of the nation’s businesses, the matter of family medical leave is a growing concern. Employers must understand that physicians can be useful and still be ethically bound to a patient.

• Physician Burnout on the Rise (Chicago Tribune)

Every stressed-out doctor who quits costs $250,000+ to replace. Docs totally fed up with our healthcare system are now “the rule, not the exception.” Solution: Better communication and teamwork.

• Why Doctors Give Obamacare a Failing Grade (The Hill)

It’s not so much the doctors who dislike the law (though they now do by a 2 to 1 margin), rather it’s their patients who tell them of the absolute loss of “trust and continuity” in care.

• Jailhouse Doctor: Inside & Out (Corrections.com)

America is the prison capital of the world (25% of all the world’s prison population is in the US). A doctor with decades of practicing medicine in a prison offer ups some interesting thoughts on good healthcare.

• 100 Healthcare Statistics to Know (Becker's Hospital Review)

Did you know? There are 893,851 professionally active US physicians. Nurse Practitioners average $95,070 in annual salary. 83% of doctors now use EMRs. The nation will be short 130,000 physicians by 2025.