On the problems of the DSM-IV-TR

Seems about right...

Aphemia

I love medical words. I can't pronounce many of them, but I still love them. Like aphemia. It's a form of mutism seen in catatonic patients. But if you separate it into its parts, (aph)asic and -emia, you get:

Lack of language within your blood.

or

Loss of words from your vasculature.

Really, just poetic.

Cheap Medicine

"Don't be the ones who order labs because by the time you practice we won't be able to afford the labs."

-Psychiatrist Professor

Empowered

So thanks to my involvement in Step Up (a tutoring/mentoring program at NCCHS) and AMWA, I feel like I can do anything. Or at least, I can try to do anything. I have the resources and the know how. I feel as though I can affect change in my surroundings--and what could make anyone feel more powerful? Regardless:

The American Medical Women’s Association (AMWA) at my school is really awesome. I’m not just saying that because I’m on the board, but that fact helps a lot.

Regardless, last year was the first time we put together an event called the “High Heel-Athon” which was designed to raise money for a domestic abuse shelter in Chicago. It was a good event in that we raised a lot of money—over $500. It was not good in the turnout. We got about 14 people, including board members, which was depressing, at least to me, a lowly M1 who had yet to realize that medical students are flooded with apathy.

So this year, the president, the ambitious and awe-inspiring Alice Lee , and I, decided to tone it back a little bit, and have a High Heel Gala instead. We were going to get a speaker to give a speech, pertaining to domestic violence and what we as medical students should know, and how we should aspire to deal with the situation when we became practicing physicians. We wanted to not only raise awareness, but we also wanted to help our peers become better physicians.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t find a speaker, so instead my mother (a professor at the school) suggested we give the presentation ourselves. So we did! And not only was it really nerve-wracking, it turned out totally amazing. Alice Lee and I are both creative types, so the presentation looked pretty. Alice Lee talked loudly and authoritatively, and I rambled somewhat less than usual (I suck at preparing speeches; “I’ll do it live!”)

Even better, more than twenty people, not including board members, showed up and many of them said they enjoyed the presentation. So below, for your benefit dear reader, I’ve posted some of the more informative slides:

Compliance & Threats

Currently I am in Clinical Neuroscience. We are being lectured to about sleep disorders, specifically sleep apnea. The guest lecturer appears to be in the range of 40-60 years of age.

Concerning sleep apnea, there is a fairly successful treatment: continuous positive airway therapy (CPAP). Unfortunately, compliance with CPAP is pretty low. Only 46% of patients use the therapy, and of these persons, only 70% use it on a regular basis.

The lecturer urged us to tell our patients: "You're going to die in the most horrific way imaginable then list all the complications of uncontrolled sleep apnea."

This was one of my major complaints for my previous endocrinologist: vague threats. I can understand why doctors would want to do this--it is really frustrating when you're trying to help someone when they're not trying to help themselves. But I wonder if there isn't a better way to tell someone that they're killing themselves. Would this involve asking them about their life goals and how non-compliance will negatively affect these goals? I think it does.

Regardless,

I suppose doctors are among the few people that can tell you--in disturbing and exact details--how you're going to die without you freaking out and calling the cops.