Insights on Residency Training

February 14th, 2011

Practice-Changing (or at Least Interesting!) Articles

Greg Bratton, MD

Recent advances and discussions in medicine are the cornerstone of Journal Watch. To provide some insight into what I believe is potentially the most practice-changing current medical information for busy clinicians, I will be highlighting three articles every other week that I think are interesting, relevant, and, in some cases, just plain fascinating. I hope […]

---

February 9th, 2011

Snow Days in Texas

Greg Bratton, MD

Believe it or not, it snowed in Texas this week. Mixed between our normal seasonal 60-degree days, were 5 days of ice, snow, and wintery chaos. To most outside of the Lone Star State, snow days aren’t that big a deal. You put on a heavier coat, grab the snow shovel, strap the chains on […]

---

January 31st, 2011

The Real Breathless CPR

Greg Bratton, MD

Residency is hard. The hours are long, the work is grueling, and, simply put, hospital food is not good. Many days, we, as residents, walk the wards in a lifeless haze – coasting on the wings of our white coats, our fuel tanks pointing way past empty. During these times, we find ourselves sitting in wheelchairs that are stored […]

---

January 20th, 2011

Autism: What’s the Truth??

Greg Bratton, MD

Hollywood is known for a lot of things: celebrities, the “sign,” the Walk of Fame, and Rodeo Drive. However, Hollywood recently has started to make its name in another way. Between the 1988 film Rain Man and the recent ramblings of ex-Playmate Jenny McCarthy, this iconic location has become a hotbed of controversy about autistic disorders. […]

---

January 13th, 2011

Help Me Help You

Greg Bratton, MD

Although this clip is from a movie about a sports agent trying to negotiate a new contract for an entitled egotistical football player, every time I see it, it reminds me of work. Put a white coat on Tom Cruise, and transplant them from a shower room to an exam room, and it becomes a […]

---

December 20th, 2010

Residents’ Christmas Carol Sing-Along

Greg Bratton, MD

The 12 Days of Christmas (Come on! Sing along!) On the first day of Christmas, the ER sent to me… A cardiac arrest without a DNR. On the second day of Christmas, the ER sent to me… Two gunshot wounds, And a cardiac arrest without a DNR. On the third day of Christmas, the ER […]

---

December 13th, 2010

Healthy Is Not Always Convenient

Greg Bratton, MD

7-11s and McDonalds are everywhere. They are successful because they are convenient, and we embrace convenience. We don’t want to go out of our way for anything. We have evolved into a society of drive-throughs, Internet shoppers, and Garmin users. If a short cut exists, we take it. Probably two or three times every day, patients ask […]

---

December 6th, 2010

Smoke and Mirrors

Greg Bratton, MD

I saw two patients last week that really made me scratch my head. The first was a 15-year-old girl who was smoking a pack of cigarettes daily and had been for 3 years; the other was a 26-year-old man who smoked 1.5 packs daily for 10 years and had recurrent oral ulcers and bleeding gums. […]

---

November 22nd, 2010

Thanks (for) Giving

Greg Bratton, MD

This is my favorite time of year. Not because the leaves are falling and Texas is finally cooling off, but because the upcoming holidays give me time to reflect on the year’s events and appreciate what I have been given. For some, this might bring to mind a big promotion, a new addition to the […]

---

November 9th, 2010

Concussion in Sports: A New Ballgame

Greg Bratton, MD

The September issue of Journal Watch General Medicine included an article from the American Academy of Pediatrics about new criteria for diagnosis and management of concussions in children and adolescents. Shortly after this issue was published, a segment aired on ESPN regarding a confrontation between the head football coach at Texas Christian University and its […]

---