Tag: pandemic
Suggested questions for Donald Trump’s health nominees during confirmation hearings
It won't be long before we're treated to the spectacle of Senators grilling antivax nominees like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (HHS) and Dr. Dave Weldon (CDC). We exist to serve, which is why I'm suggesting some questions for Senators to ask all of Trump's health picks.
Dr. Lucy McBride: “As physicians, dispensing false hope is dangerous & unethical.”
The many sheltered physicians like Dr. Lucy McBride who confidently said herd immunity was at hand and fear of COVID was pathological are the last people who should be sanctimoniously sermonizing about the importance of trust in medicine.
Sensible Medicine: Medical Misinformation and Medical Groupthink From the Medical Establishment
We all have biases, including in-group loyalty. It's often easy to see such bias in others, though nearly impossible to see in oneself. As such, it's both normal and dangerous to imagine that only those who disagree with you are vulnerable to groupthink, while you are perfect beacon of independent, rational thought- along with everyone who agrees with you.
The 2022-2023 Respiratory Virus Season Hits Early and Hard: Part 2
What is RSV and why is it so bad this season? I discuss this and a promising new vaccine candidate.
Aromatase inhibitors and acupuncture in breast cancer: Spinning a negative study, four years later
Four years ago, I wrote about an essentially negative study looking at whether acupuncture could alleviate joint pain caused by aromatase inhibitors, a common treatment for estrogen-sensitive breast cancer. The study's back, and it doesn't look any more positive.
The war on the science-based regulation of medicine accelerates
Last week, it was reported how increasingly there is a war on the science-based regulation of medicine and physicians. It's an old story, but unfortunately the forces arrayed against science-based policy have been emboldened by the pandemic and an stronger alliance with political groups that are against government regulation in general.
Medical debt vs. universal health insurance: The interface between SBM and policy
This blog has long argued that the best medicine is science-based medicine (SBM). The problem is that in the US SBM is often not accessible, except at ruinous cost, which is why I argue that we have to broaden our definition of SBM to include the systems that deliver it and pay for it.