by Dr. Philip J. O’Donnell | Nov 1, 2024 | Articles
As an internist (a PCP for adults), one of my greatest challenges was finding a good specialist pool when referral was necessary. A specialist should be well-trained, judicious in use of resources, and at least reasonable in bedside manner. Interestingly enough, the...
by Dr. Philip J. O’Donnell | Oct 15, 2024 | Articles
Few issues affect society at so many levels as does the current controlled substance debacle and arguably the opioid crisis in particular. It disproportionately exists within poorer and less educated communities. It draws resources from law enforcement at the federal...
by Dr. Philip J. O’Donnell | Oct 1, 2024 | Articles
So, we will now resume development of how best to measure factors influencing the future cost of care for a patient. In Part I, the idea was brought up of measuring patient fitness as a good surrogate of future cost of care for the patient. A simple starting point for...
by Dr. Philip J. O’Donnell | Sep 15, 2024 | Articles
In order for the patient population to benefit best from any medical system and especially a universal healthcare system, the care team ministering to the patient must be, ideally, headed by a PCP (primary care physician). Specifically, I believe that every patient in...
by Dr. Philip J. O’Donnell | Sep 1, 2024 | Articles
An important question to ask at this point in what positive behaviors might a patient engage to stay healthier and reduce costs (as opposed to avoiding negative behaviors such as smoking, excess drinking, etc.) Allow me the following story after which I will develop...
