Enhanced Recovery
Why Better Surgery is Critical to the Vitality of Rural Communities and Rural Healthcare
The United States is aging, but rural communities are reaching the “golden years” much faster than urban centers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median age in rural counties is significantly higher than in urban ones. Approximately 1 in 5 rural residents is aged 65 or older, compared to 1 in 7 in urban…
Read MoreThe Redemption of Celecoxib
What if the drug we ran from was safer than the one we ran to? In the early 2000s, the “Coxib Crisis” sent shockwaves through medicine. The withdrawal of Vioxx (rofecoxib) created a cardiovascular ghost that haunted every remaining drug in its class. For years, clinicians shied away from celecoxib (Celebrex), fearing that its selective…
Read MoreThe Case Against Combos
Why leading healthcare providers are turning to oxycodone monotherapy as part of multimodal pain management regimens designed to better treat pain and reduce opioid exposure for patients and families Opioid plus acetaminophen (APAP) combination products—hydrocodone/APAP (Lortab, Norco, Vicodin) and oxycodone/APAP (Percocet)—have been among the most commonly-dispensed medications in America over the last 20 years. Proactive,…
Read MoreMove Women’s Surgeries Out of the 19th Century with Health Navigators
Would you accept using the same technology in place in 1843 for well, anything? I wouldn’t. So it makes me wonder why so many physicians continue to use invasive approaches to that date to that period. Having a health navigator or a patient advocate service on your side as you go through this life-changing procedure…
Read MoreSurgery & Seniors
Surgery & Seniors: How to avoid the costliest complications in surgery patients over age 65 Nearly everyone has had the unfortunate experience of watching a loved one who is over the age of 65 undergo a surgery—and then never return to the person you once knew. Something has been lost. The toll is significant, both…
Read MoreThe Power of an Enhanced Recovery Protocol
Recently, I spoke with a physician leader championing the implementation of Enhanced Recovery protocols across an 11-hospital system. What is Enhanced Recovery Protocol? The Enhanced Recovery protocol emerged as a clinically-valid, patient-centric rethinking of the standard surgery experience 20-plus years ago. Over 7,000 articles have been published in the medical literature to support the extensive…
Read MoreDemand 21st Century Surgery with Healthcare Advocacy
It sounded like a miracle, but it wasn’t — it was a result of sound healthcare advocacy on behalf of a patient. One day after undergoing a colorectal operation to remove cancer, the patient was up and about and asking to go home. Don’t let your employees, your plans, or your patients suffer through second-rate surgeries.…
Read MoreFinding Health Equity in Surgery and Recovery
Finding Health Equity in Surgery and Recovery Bias, both unintentional and intentional, contribute to differences in the quality of care received by patients in the United States. The consequences of these disparities can be catastrophic to patients and their families. A 2002 report to Congress –just as relevant today as it was 20 years ago—detailed…
Read MoreAsking the Right Questions is the First Step in Better Surgery
Asking the Right Questions is the First Step As we have worked with patients in helping them to find the best way through surgery and back to their lives, we continue to be reminded of the importance of being an informed patient. Informed patients understand: The need for surgery Alternatives to surgery, if any, and…
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