November 2009 - Posts

• Jail Time for a Medical Error, Redux: The Case of Eric Cropp

  Two years ago, I wrote about the case of Julie Thao, the Wisconsin nurse sent to prison for a medication error. I argued then that – although Julie bypassed some safety rules – she most certainly did not deserve jail time.Along comes another case involving Read More... Posted Thu, Nov 26 2009 4:47 AM by Bob Wachter | 23 Comments Filed under: Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Health Policy, Media/Press Coverage, Medical Ethics

• Singapore: Pragmatism, Noah’s Ark and the Relentless Search for Best Practices

  From Tokyo, I flew on to Singapore, where I had the honor of being visiting professor at the massive (1500-bed) Singapore General Hospital, a guest of Dr. Kheng Hock Lee. Kheng Hock, one of Singapore’s leading family physicians, has been charged with Read More... Posted Thu, Nov 12 2009 10:55 PM by Bob Wachter | 2 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Medical Education/Academia, Hospitalists/Hospital Medicine, Health Policy, Outsourcing/Medical Tourism

• A Week in Asia: Today, Japan; Tomorrow, Singapore

  A couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to visit Tokyo and Singapore – the former to speak at a conference on “Training of the Generalist Physician,” and the latter as visiting professor at Singapore General Hospital. Today: some observations on the medical Read More... Posted Wed, Nov 11 2009 8:56 PM by Bob Wachter | 3 Comments Filed under: Hospital Care, Hospitalists/Hospital Medicine, Ambulatory/Primary Care, Health Policy, Outsourcing/Medical Tourism

• NY Times Magazine on Brent James’ Quest to Transform Healthcare Quality

  Just a quick heads up on an article in next weekend’s New York Times Sunday Magazine by my friend David Leonhardt. David profiles Intermountain Healthcare’s Brent James, capturing Brent’s (and Intermountain’s) unique and increasingly influential philosophy Read More... Posted Thu, Nov 05 2009 6:16 AM by Bob Wachter | 4 Comments Filed under: Quality Improvement, Quality Measurement, Information Technology, Patient Safety/Medical Errors, Media/Press Coverage