Physician Blog -- Kate Scannell, MD

Dr. Kate Scannell
First published in print: 05/12/2012

It was a dark and stormy day. I sat in an overlit hallway of a sprawling urban hospital, anxiously waiting to be ushered into a conference room filled with doctors and administrators. Under considerable stress, I looked down at the notes in my hands, reviewing them one final time in preparation for my presentation. That's when three clowns approached me -- and, no, they were not members of the hospital staff.

I looked up and stared into their painted faces. One clown withdrew a squeaky rubber pen from her enormous pocket and, with dramatic flourish, made two giant check marks on a pink card. After her clown colleagues nodded approval, she handed the "ticket" to me and said: "We're citing you on two counts."

To be frank, I hesitated about engaging with these clowns. After all, I was a serious doctor on a serious mission, preparing for a tense interaction, and I didn't have time for, well, clowning around. Still, I was surrounded by three clowns, and the last thing I needed before my meeting was a lapel-flower squirt of water in my face.

So I smiled politely and read aloud the charges on my citation: "Feet are not big enough" and "Gathering too much dust." (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated columnist
First Published in Pribt: 04/28/2012

One of my patients used to demand each year that he be screened for "any kind of cancer imaginable." He wanted blood tests and radiographic scans that scoured every reach of his body. He devoured handfuls of so-called "anti-cancer" supplements and wore copper bracelets to ward off malignancies. As healthy as he was, he suffered terribly with cancerphobia.

Ironically, his anxiety was his greatest risk for developing cancer. Every X-ray or CT scan he underwent to help "manage" his anxiety just increased his cumulative radiation exposure and, consequently, his chance of developing a malignancy. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated columnist
First Published in Print: 04/14/2012

A few days ago, my friend with severe dementia asked me at least a dozen times whether I'd heard about her granddaughter's scholarship award. We had been speaking by telephone during our weekly phone date, a tradition we've kept for many years.

Each time my friend asked the same question, she expressed continuously renewed joy -- no less infused with delight than any time she had asked before. She seemed to be living "in the moment" -- one that repeated independent of her memory. I was grateful that this moment of her reliving was a happy occasion. It is not always so. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated columnist
First Published in Print: 03/31/2012

Two studies published in last week's New England Journal of Medicine generated much media attention and hope that maybe, just maybe, a swift surgical fix could cure two notoriously chronic and intertwined medical conditions that affect millions of people worldwide: obesity and Type 2 diabetes. But it would be wise -- and healthy -- to scale back any unbridled enthusiasm about that until many more facts weigh in. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated columnist
First Published in Print: 03/15/2012

If you've been feeling somewhat anxious about our wobbly world, imagining hoof beats from the four horses of the Apocalypse every time a squirrel scampers across your roof -- you might derive some comfort in news events of the prior week.

For example, if you're reading this column on its publication date -- Sunday, March 18th -- you can rest assured that, despite what many doomsayers had predicted, the end of the world did not occur March 16th when the Large Hadron Collider CMS detector was switched on "somewhere" near the French-Swiss border.

You also might let out a sigh of relief that fiery solar storms did not incinerate the Earth to a crispy nubbin last week -- contrary to several grim prophesies.

Finally, solace may come from knowing that preacher Harold Camping announced last week that he would cease making predictions about the world's end. After spending millions of dollars informing and preparing followers for the Rapture on two separate but failed occasions in 2011, he humbly conceded that he'd been wrong to even try. He furthermore declared that "we have no new evidence pointing to another date for the end of the world."

Yes, last week was a white-knuckled, roller-coaster ride for Apocalypse spotters. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell
First published in print: 02/18/2012

Last week, the journal Health Affairs published a study exploring physicians' attitudes about truth-telling that generated abundant media attention. Many public commentators deemed the results "shocking" -- although few seem to have read the fine print. You almost needed a tranquilizer to withstand headlines that "asked" whether YOUR DOCTOR IS LYING TO YOU!

In comparison, the study's actual title reads less sensationally: "Survey shows that at least some physicians are not always open or honest with patients." Although not much of an attention grabber, it concisely summarizes the researchers' main conclusion based upon a survey of 1,891 practicing physicians in the United States.

The actual media reports about the content of the new survey also tended to be off-key and misleading. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated Columnist
First published in print: February 5, 2012

It's often said that "a picture is worth a thousand words." Now, according to new research, we also know that a picture might be worth "the price of a meal ticket" to healthier eating habits for young children.

This week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, University of Minnesota researchers reported that elementary-school children ate more vegetables when the compartments in their lunch trays were lined with photographs of vegetables. Pictures of carrots served as . . . well, carrots, and led three times as many children to that veggie in the cafeteria line. Images of green beans inspired twice as many children to give beans a chance.

That's the good news. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated Columnist
First Published in Print: 01/22/12

In the early 1970s, my friend's father died on stage while receiving a golden watch from his boss to mark his retirement. Grasping the watch in one hand, he reportedly clutched his chest with the other and collapsed. He could not be revived. His sudden death had been completely unexpected, and his family was devastated. His death was officially attributed to a heart attack.

Afterward, my grieving friend speculated that her father's death had been triggered by the stress and heightened emotions he'd been experiencing over the unwelcome prospect of retirement. He'd been a dedicated "company man" his entire adult life, someone who had found meaning and personal fulfillment through his job at the auto plant. He couldn't imagine living without the satisfying daily routine of his work and the companionship of co-workers.

I knew nothing at the time about cardiology, the heart's autonomic neural regulation or the body's powerful, smoldering brew of stress hormones. However, I was convinced by what had happened to my friend's father that a heart could be broken by grief and loss. That it could shatter under the unbearable weight of despair.

Years later, after becoming a physician, I often was reminded of my friend's father. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated Columnist
First Published in Print: 01/07/2012

Is it OK for an anesthesiologist to play Angry Birds on his iPhone while administering anesthesia during a gallbladder surgery? During your gallbladder surgery?

What do you think about a surgeon voice-dialing her colleagues or chatting with family during the operation?

Although we've inhabited the Digital Age for many years, only recently have we begun to examine how it might affect us personally as patients and doctors, and whether overall patient safety and care have actually improved.

This inquiry is long overdue, and, as recent studies suggest, urgent. (more…)

By Dr. Kate Scannell, Syndicated columnist
First published in print: 12/25/2011

The top 10 medical stories chosen for 2011 are distinguished for their broad reach into people's lives. I look to the new year with hope that 2012's list contains much good health news for us.

Drug shortage: Our nationwide prescription drug shortage worsened this year, compromising some patients' health while also revealing systemic problems with pharmaceutical production and regulation. At least 250 drug shortages were reported, with hospitals facing worrisome scarcity of lifesaving medications including chemotherapies, heart drugs and antibiotics. An executive order signed in October by President Obama broadened the Food and Drug Administration's authority to expand its reporting of potential drug shortages, expedite regulatory reviews and monitor for opportunistic price-gouging on sales of scarce drugs. Still, the FDA cannot require pharmaceutical companies to resume or increase drug supplies -- and pharmaceutical companies are not legally obligated to do so.

Celebs help: Celebrities can influence societal views about health and disease. They can share the spotlight with public health issues to make them more visible to millions of people. The death of 27-year-old singer Amy Winehouse in July sadly illuminated the health hazards of excessive drinking. In November, the involuntary manslaughter conviction of Michael Jackson's physician cast a dark light on prescription drug abuse. When former first lady Betty Ford died in July, we were reminded about the power of one person's voice to speak truth to silence in changing how people viewed illnesses such as cancers and addictions. (more…)