This would be funny except that it's true

From Candorville.com

Unfortunately, the Republican win in the Massachusetts Senate election probably means that these kinds of shenanigans will keep happening.

Rochester, NY: IMP Capital

Anyone who has been following my blog won't find this article from today's Rochester Democrat and Chronicle unusual:

When Dr. Linda Lee sees patients, she brings them from the waiting room, typically spends a half hour with them, cleans up the exam room and submits the insurance claims online. She's the one who returns phone voicemails, and she gives patients her cell phone number for urgent after-hours needs.

She has no nurse, no billing staff and no answering service. She only has a part-time secretary to digitally scan records that still arrive on paper at her paperless office.

The Rochester family physician's 5-year-old, low-overhead, solo practice is a stark contrast to the hurry-up, assembly-line format she found in large medical practices. "You basically had to see a patient every 10 minutes," said Lee. "How can you address the patient's medical problems in that short a time?"

What is unusual is that this article points out that there are 8 Ideal Medical Practices in this local area, which is frankly amazing considering how few IMPs there are in the entire US.

Other IMP clusters are located in Seattle, Portland (OR), Southern California, Albuquerque, Albany, St. Louis and New York City.

For a list of IMPs around the country, go to www.impmap.com. Don't forget to use the zoom in/out controls to take a closer look.

Those Who Can't Blog, Link

So even though I haven't been keeping up with my blog, I thought I should point out some excellent bloggers who not only manage to write something on a regular basis, but also have something meaningful to say.

The Ideal Medical Practices Blog's focus is on the myriad problems facing America's healthcare system and especially its beleaguered primary care physicians, and what can be done to bring about real change.

Dr. Malia Reckons are the insights and thoughts of a solo family doctor in Rochester, NY, whose practice model is very similar to mine.

I just discovered that The Examining Room of Dr. Charles has re-opened after a two year absence. "Dr. Charles" is a unique voice in the blogosphere, whose tales about medicine and life in general are more like finely crafted works of art. I highly recommend his site.

Finally, while not a blogger, Dr. Atul Gawande is clearly an excellent and insightful writer who also happens to be a general and endocrine surgeon. His recent article for The New Yorker echoes my thoughts on how no single solution to our healthcare crisis is possible, namely because nobody knows which approach will work. He argues that, like in America's early agricultural industry, pilot programs may help guide us out of our national dilemma. After all, when you don't know which way to go, why not try several different directions at the same time instead of just one?

When News Topics Collide

From Sage, Ink at The Atlantic.com.

Happy New Year!