The principles and practice of death: The Oslerian conflicted conception of dying

Sir William Osler espoused a particularly idealized medical life that included the patient in the physician's worldview. Disease is not considered a monolith, only a reflection of one's broader health. Death, too, is configured as a part of one's being, not as a thing apart from life. The wholesomeness that characterized Osler's practice is well known-however, his long discussions and thoughts on death have not been sufficiently analyzed. His clinical views have been hinted at and numerous medical historians have noted that Osler's worldview on death was avant-garde for its time, one in which he described finality not as a time of suffering and anguish, but as "singularly free from mental distress." This essay contends with this simple view. This straightforward understanding becomes complicated when delving into such primary resources as Osler's Study on Dying cards, his writings on other medical conditions, and personal reflections following the personal losses of his sons Edward Revere Osler and Paul Revere Osler. This essay contends that the loss and the death he imagines is not one of peace, but rather, of horror and terror. Furthermore, the primary sources show Osler not as the paragon of flawless clinical acumen and reasoning, but a man of personal beliefs that were in conflict with views he espoused more publicly. The essay therefore reconceptualizes the common understanding of a stoic Osler, determines how death prefigures into Oslerian thought, and challenges the idea of an Oslerian simple death.

Sonoist: An Innovative Peer Ultrasound Learning Initiative on Canadian Teaching Hospital Wards

Background: Students usually learn point-of-care ultrasound (PoCUS) on standardized patients, thus lacking opportunities to correlate their ultrasound findings with clinical abnormalities. Sonoist is a student-led initiative aimed at improving ultrasound training with peer-teaching and real patients. We describe here a pilot project of Sonoist, its implementation and evaluation. Methods: Sonoist was developed by Independent-Practitioner-certified medical students who teach their peers how to scan patients with abnormal clinical findings, then correlating their ultrasound findings with the physical examination. From May 2019 to February 2020, seven sessions were held, with a sessional average of 3 participants and 3 patients scanned. We collected survey data on ultrasound knowledge, participants’ perceived self-improvement, and general comments. Results were grouped by prior ultrasound training (novice n=8, experienced n=12) and year of study (1-4). Results: 20/23 completed the survey. An increase in ultrasound skill was perceived by 100% of novices and 66.7% of experienced learners. Knowledge about clinical indications for PoCUS improved in 80% of novice and 81% of experienced students; sonographic knowledge improved in 69% of novices and 81.3% of experienced learners. All novices and 91.7% of experienced learners reported that learning ultrasound was useful for correlating with physical exam and clinical diagnosis. All novices and 83% of experienced students preferred peer-to-peer teaching. Conclusion: Peer-to-peer PoCUS teaching improved medical students’ sonographic and clinical knowledge, and is perceived as useful by students. A combination of early clinical exposure and a less stressful environment from peer teaching may contribute to these results.

The Community Health and Social Medicine Incubator: a service-learning framework for medical student-led projects

The Community Health and Social Medicine (CHASM) Incubator is a social impact venture that gives medical and other health care students the opportunity to develop initiatives that sustainably promote health equity for, and in partnership with, community partners and historically marginalized communities. Students learn how to develop projects with project management curricula, are paired with community health mentors, and are given seed micro-financing. As the first community health incubator driven by medical students, CHASM provides a framework for students interested in implementing sustainable solutions to local health disparities which extends the service-learning opportunities offered in existing curricula.

Sonoist: An Innovative Peer Ultrasound Learning Initiative on Canadian Teaching Hospital Wards

Background: Students usually learn point-of-care ultrasound (PoCUS) on standardized patients, thus lacking opportunities to correlate their ultrasound findings with clinical abnormalities. Sonoist is a student-led initiative aimed at improving ultrasound training with peer-teaching and real patients. We describe here a pilot project of Sonoist, its implementation and evaluation. Methods: Sonoist was developed by Independent-Practitioner-certified medical students who teach their peers how to scan patients with abnormal clinical findings, then correlating their ultrasound findings with the physical examination. From May 2019 to February 2020, seven sessions were held, with a sessional average of 3 participants and 3 patients scanned. We collected survey data on ultrasound knowledge, participants’ perceived self-improvement, and general comments. Results were grouped by prior ultrasound training (novice n=8, experienced n=12) and year of study (1-4). Results: 20/23 completed the survey. An increase in ultrasound skill was perceived by 100% of novices and 66.7% of experienced learners. Knowledge about clinical indications for PoCUS improved in 80% of novice and 81% of experienced students; sonographic knowledge improved in 69% of novices and 81.3% of experienced learners. All novices and 91.7% of experienced learners reported that learning ultrasound was useful for correlating with physical exam and clinical diagnosis. All novices and 83% of experienced students preferred peer-to-peer teaching. Conclusion: Peer-to-peer PoCUS teaching improved medical students’ sonographic and clinical knowledge, and is perceived as useful by students. A combination of early clinical exposure and a less stressful environment from peer teaching may contribute to these results.

Criteria for selection to anesthesia residency programs: a survey of Canadian anesthesia program directors

INTRODUCTION

Applicants to specialty programs lack guidance on knowing what exactly is desired by selection committees and program directors. Anesthesia is especially opaque, given its failure to provide transparency reports nationally. This study was developed to survey Canadian anesthesia program directors about the aspects of the application package desired in an anesthesia applicant. The primary objective is to identify the preferred attributes of anesthesia applications by those mandating the selection committees.

METHODS

Survey was developed via Google Surveys, and sent online over a period of two months in June and July 2020. All program directors were sent requests for filling in the survey. STATA was used for all statistical analyses. Two analyses, Mann-Whitney and ANOVA tests, were performed for comparison groups. A p < 0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

Fourteen of seventeen (83%) Canadian anesthesia program directors completed the survey. Having done an anesthesia elective, good performance in it, and excellence of preclinical academic performance were considered among the most important aspects of the application package with the highest ranking important and smallest standard deviation. Any form of red flag was also considered an important criterion, again with little variation among program directors. The reference letters selected by the applicants were also important, with a personal relationship and well written reference being identified as most important (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

An applicant who has good academic performance, having anesthesia elective experience, personal, well-written reference letters, and general activity and interests that are not necessarily anesthesia-focused would be favoured by Canadian anesthesia programs.

Transnasal Sphenopalatine Ganglion Block for the Preventive Treatment of Chronic Daily Headache in Adolescents

Chronic headaches are a major source of morbidity in the pediatric population, affecting physical function, school attendance, social capacity, mood, and sleep. In adults, repetitive sphenopalatine ganglion (SPG) blockade has been studied as a preventive treatment for chronic migraines. This case series aims to evaluate the SPG block for the preventive treatment of chronic daily headache (CDH) in adolescents. We prospectively evaluated 17 adolescents (14 females, 14 ± 1 year) with CDH not responding to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), physiotherapy, and standard medications. Each patient received 10 SPG blocks (two blocks/week) using the Tx360® device. At the end of treatment, 10 patients (59%) reported a Patient's Global Impression of Change (PGIC) score ≥ 67%, and 3 months after the end of treatment, nine patients (53%) sustained a PGIC ≥ 67%. There was also a statistically significant reduction in the depression subscale of the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS) at the end of treatment and 3 months post-treatment compared with baseline. The procedure was well tolerated with no adverse effects. In our study, the use of repeat SPG blockade was associated with sustained benefits on the PGIC and the depression subscale of the RCADS when used as preventive headache treatment in adolescents with refractory CDH.

Use soap & Mango spoiled

N/A

Impact of Trump's Promotion of Unproven COVID-19 Treatments and Subsequent Internet Trends: Observational Study

BACKGROUND

Individuals with large followings can influence public opinions and behaviors, especially during a pandemic. In the early days of the pandemic, US president Donald J Trump has endorsed the use of unproven therapies. Subsequently, a death attributed to the wrongful ingestion of a chloroquine-containing compound occurred.

OBJECTIVE

We investigated Donald J Trump's speeches and Twitter posts, as well as Google searches and Amazon purchases, and television airtime for mentions of hydroxychloroquine, chloroquine, azithromycin, and remdesivir.

METHODS

Twitter sourcing was catalogued with Factba.se, and analytics data, both past and present, were analyzed with Tweet Binder to assess average analytics data on key metrics. Donald J Trump's time spent discussing unverified treatments on the United States' 5 largest TV stations was catalogued with the Global Database of Events, Language, and Tone, and his speech transcripts were obtained from White House briefings. Google searches and shopping trends were analyzed with Google Trends. Amazon purchases were assessed using Helium 10 software.

RESULTS

From March 1 to April 30, 2020, Donald J Trump made 11 tweets about unproven therapies and mentioned these therapies 65 times in White House briefings, especially touting hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine. These tweets had an impression reach of 300% above Donald J Trump's average. Following these tweets, at least 2% of airtime on conservative networks for treatment modalities like azithromycin and continuous mentions of such treatments were observed on stations like Fox News. Google searches and purchases increased following his first press conference on March 19, 2020, and increased again following his tweets on March 21, 2020. The same is true for medications on Amazon, with purchases for medicine substitutes, such as hydroxychloroquine, increasing by 200%.

CONCLUSIONS

Individuals in positions of power can sway public purchasing, resulting in undesired effects when the individuals' claims are unverified. Public health officials must work to dissuade the use of unproven treatments for COVID-19.

Shared decision making in surgery: A scoping review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Shared decision making (SDM) has been increasingly implemented to improve health-care outcomes. Despite the mixed efficacy of SDM to provide better patient-guided care, its use in surgery has not been studied. The aim of this study was to systematically review SDM application in surgery.

DESIGN

The search strategy, developed with a medical librarian, included nine databases from inception until June 2019. After a 2-person title and abstract screen, full-text publications were analysed. Data collected included author, year, surgical discipline, location, study duration, type of decision aid, survey methodology and variable outcomes. Quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional studies, as well as RCTs, were included.

RESULTS

A total of 6060 studies were retrieved. A total of 148 were included in the final review. The majority of the studies were in plastic surgery, followed by general surgery and orthopaedics. The use of SDM decreased surgical intervention rate (12 of 22), decisional conflict (25 of 29), and decisional regret (5 of 5), and increased decisional satisfaction (17 of 21), knowledge (33 of 35), SDM preference (13 of 16), and physician trust (4 of 6). Time increase per patient encounter was inconclusive. Cross-sectional studies showed that patients prefer shared treatment and surgical treatment varied less. The results of SDM per type of decision aid vary in terms of their outcome.

CONCLUSION

SDM in surgery decreases decisional conflict, anxiety and surgical intervention rates, while increasing knowledge retained decisional satisfaction, quality and physician trust. Surgical patients also appear to prefer SDM paradigms. SDM appears beneficial in surgery and therefore worth promoting and expanding in use.

A corona virus tracker for clinicians and students: Assessing education during an evolving phenomenon

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Guide to every death and a little life

The following is a narrativised story of my experience rotating in palliative care. It is lively.

Shared Decision Making in Surgery: A Meta-Analysis and Full Systematic Review

Shared decision-making (SDM), the process where physician and patient reach an agreed-upon choice by understanding the values, concerns, and preferences inherent within each treatment option available, has been increasingly implemented in clinical practice to better health care outcomes. Despite the proven efficacy of SDM to provide better patient-guided care in medicine, its use in surgery has not been studied widely. A search strategy was developed with a medical librarian. It included nine databases from inception until December 2018. After a 2-person title and abstract screen, full-text publications were analyzed in detail. A meta-analysis was done to quantify the impact of SDM in surgical specialties. In total 5,596 studies were retrieved. After duplicates were removed, titles and abstracts were screened, and p-values were recorded, 140 (45 RCTs and 95 cross-sectional studies) were used for the systematic review and 42 for the meta-analyses. Most of the studies noted decreased intervention rate (8 of 14), decisional conflict (13 of 16), and decisional regret (3 of 3), and an increased decisional satisfaction (9 of 12), knowledge (19 of 20), SDM preference (6 of 8), and physician trust (3 of 4) when using SDM. Time increase per patient encounter was inconclusive. The meta-analysis showed that despite high heterogeneity, the results were significant. Far from obviating surgical immediacy, these results suggest that SDM is vital for the best indicators of care. With decreased conflict and anxiety, increasing knowledge and satisfaction, and creating a more whole, trusting relationship, SDM appears to be beneficial in surgery.

Greenery

The following narrative essay is a combined narrative of many instances during a surgical rotation.

Ripe

The this is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental in the same way a flower described here would not smell as good as the real.

Imprinting Care and the Loss of Patient Narrative: Creation and Standardization of Medical Records

BACKGROUND

Medical records manufacture a representational model of a person. Yet, little has been done to analyze the historical construction of patient charts, the deliberations in the process of their creation, and how early patient charts displaced patients' narratives.

OBJECTIVES

To retrospectively study the structure and production of old patient charts.

METHODS

Anchored by the Archives of Ontario's medical records from three 19th century psychiatric asylums-Hamilton, London, and Kingston, Canada-the paper tools are reproduced on the basis of their original manufacturing processes using cast-iron presses and relevant typesetting. This includes mirroring the process of assembly, recontextualizing the form's limitations as a function of its construction, making historical the diagnostic considerations relevant at the time, and noting the continuum of practical and operational choices that have stretched into current records.

RESULTS

An explication of the advance of physicians' objective records and the decline of the subjective patient view is given from index-card inception through design, accreditation, standardization, forms, and quantity, to analysis replacing narration.

CONCLUSION

Through this artistic work, medical paradigms become realized through paper borders. With ink, lead, and historical manufacturing, a world view is re-created. Such a marriage of medicine and art challenges the static interpretations of paper tools as only ends to the objectification of patients; instead, a tradition of reconfiguring the medical body as a thing dissolving into objectification becomes apparent. This trend continues now through the lack of narrative balancing a person's health care experience and his/her medical record.