news & gossip

 

medical records, news & gossip, positive patterns

“I have a right to my damn data”: Hugo Campos in the Mercury News

Well, SPM’s resident ICD patient is getting quite a lot of attention these days! First a feature in MIT Technology Review in November, then his TEDx video was released this month, leading to a spot on NPR’s On The Media on 1/20, and now he’s on the front page of Silicon Valley’s newspaper – a 900 [...]

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news & gossip, positive patterns

e-Patient hits the mass media: WBZ Radio and Angie’s List magazine

It’s one thing when we “talk amongst ourselves” in our own circles; it’s a whole different thing when the message starts popping up in *mass media*, where it reaches people who had no idea. So it’s big news that we’ve had TWO mass-media developments this week with almost identical titles: Fabulous article in the January [...]

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e-patient stories, e-pts resources, medical records, news & gossip

Gimme My Damn Data: cancer patient Xeni finds a “ghost penis” in her bone scan

This post contains street language about body parts, harvested from Twitter last night with Xeni’s permission. This is a story of a non-medical person getting it in gear when she finds herself in need, and what happens when she does. A famous blogger/journalist is discovering healthcare the hard way. At a time when she says [...]

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found on the net, news & gossip, policy issues

Daniel Carpenter in NY Times: Move the FDA out from under politicians

I’m no expert on the FDA but my science antennas are twitching nervously about this, so I’ll post and invite discussion. In a surprising move last week, President Obama and HHS Secretary Sebelius overrules (basically, vetoed) the FDA’s recommendation to make “Plan B” morning-after contraceptives more easily available. This was widely agreed to be purely [...]

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end of life, general, key people, news & gossip, others' e-patient stories

Steve Jobs’ Cancer Denial

The 60 minutes interview with Steve Jobs’ biographer is an intriguing piece that gives us a few insights into Steve Jobs and his battle with pancreatic cancer. But the most disturbing part of the interview for me was watching Walter Isaacson, a former editor of TIME Magazine, talk about how Jobs was in complete denial [...]

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general, news & gossip

Invitation to Connected Health Attendees, 2011

Please join us for the 2nd Annual Society for Participatory Medicine Cocktail Reception, taking place on Thursday, October 20, 2011 at the Liberty Hotel in Boston (http://www.libertyhotel.com/) from 6:00 – 8:00 pm. If you’re attending the Connected Health Symposium in Boston this week, we invite you to share your ideas and enjoy a wine bottle service, [...]

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medical records, news & gossip, policy issues, Why PM

Australian Consumer Health Forum flips from opt-in to opt-out for EHR enrollment

Big news from Down Under: the Sydney Morning Herald reports that a group of fifty consumer health advocates has unanimously backed an “opt-out” process for enrollment in electronic health records, reversing their previous position. The issue is whether by default all patients have an EHR. “Opt-out” means you’re in by default – your records will be [...]

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general, news & gossip, research issues, trends & principles, understanding statistics

Why Sometimes Health Reporting Should be Done By Journalists

I’m all for citizen journalism, and can even stand the content mills like LiveStrong, who have pimped out their name and brand in order to make a quick buck. But I draw the line with bad reporting and worse, biased representation of the data to prove a point. Case in point — the blood test [...]

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key people, news & gossip, policy issues

“Father Knows Best”: Vint Cerf on what innovation really is

For those who like to look deep into the structure and causes of change, something fun is in process: an interview with Vint Cerf, with an explicit e-patient component. Cerf is acknowledged as one of the fathers of the internet. In my lifetime few people, if any, have contributed more to ground-breaking, earth-shaking change. The interview [...]

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found on the net, news & gossip, positive patterns

Would Your Doctor Pay for Wasted Time? (CNN.com)

Strictly speaking this isn’t about participatory medicine, but it is about being an empowered consumer of care. There are several dimensions to empowerment, including (but not limited to): Knowing what you want Recognizing whether you’re getting it When you’re not, speaking up about it – courteously, when you can. You know real change is happening [...]

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