Insights

<p>So convoluted was Dr. Mark B. Kabins’ scheme to scam a patient he injured that you might need a whiteboard and several differently colored markers to make sense of it.</p> <p>According to the <a href="http://lasvegas.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel10/lv011410.htm">U.S. Department of Justice</a>, Melodie Simon underwent a spine surgery by Kabins, an orthopedic surgeon, in 2000. It went badly, and Simon ended up paralyzed.</p> <p>According to the FBI, Kabins “knew that experts could say that he fell below the standard of care in his treatment of Simon, and that he could be sued.”</p>

<p><strong>UPDATE: 9:54 p.m., Jan. 19</strong></p><p>The phrase "stunning upset" doesn't even begin to capture the national political shockwaves as Republican Scott Brown <a href="http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/01/20/repu…; Martha Coakley for the late Sen. Edward Kennedy's seat. The "what happens to health reform now?" political analysis below remains relevant. In the meantime, here's a quick roundup of the latest coverage and analysis:</p>

<p>You might be alarmed at what you find in the bankruptcy records for a medical company or a physician. Here are a few things that have alarmed me.</p> <ul><li>Patient records, with birth dates and social security numbers.</li></ul><ul><li>Charts showing detailed histories of visits, procedures and lab workups over decades.</li></ul><ul><li>Pathology lab reports.</li></ul> <p>Why would you find all these things mixed in with more mundane financial records showing the sums various people are owed?</p>

<p>One of my first investigative stories as a reporter started with a call from a doctor who was worried about the sterilization practices at his hospital.</p> <p>I started calling people at the hospital to try to answer some basic questions about what they were doing to make sure that surgical equipment was clean between procedures. “Why don’t I just come down and take a look at your process?” I suggested.</p> <p>And that’s how I saw the sterilization logs.</p>

<p>Some new research and reporting on global mental health and mental health disparities has me thinking about these topics in a new way. This is the kind of context that can add more nuance and sophistication to your reporting on mental health, particularly in ethnic minority and immigrant communities, so read on:</p>

<p>When a patient has a pain problem, he can seek a doctor <a href="../../../../../../../../blogs/qa-dr-doris-cope-pain-doctors-need-better-tools-track-addicts">who has experience</a> in treating pain through a variety of measures that don’t rely solely on addictive prescription drugs.</p> <p>Or he can find a doctor who acts like a <a href="http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/01/05/best-pez-dispenser-you-ever-owned/">P… dispenser</a>.</p> <p>Dr. Daniel M. Howell was a Pez dispenser.</p>

<p>California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposed 2010-2011 <a href="http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/">state budget</a>, released Jan. 8, met with <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_14156535">the usual outrage</a> from the state’s Democratic leaders for its dramatic cuts to health and social safety net programs. California Healthline offers a nice round-up of the media coverage <a href="http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2010/1/11/governors-budget…;

<p>Last week yet another research study was released on the effectiveness of antidepressants.&nbsp; <a href="http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/303/1/47?home"><span style="color: #0000ff;">The study, published in the <em>Journal of the American Medical Association</em>, found that Paxil and Tofranil were about as effective as placebo for those people who have mild to moderate depression.&nbsp; </span></a></p>

<p>Unless someone has had a bad experience with an insurance company, most people think of insurers as either benign or positive forces in their lives. It’s the president from “24” telling us in a deep, reassuring voice that we’ll be taken care of.</p>

<p>I wrote <a href="../../../../../../../../blogs/drug-resistance-ap-investigates-globe-health-threat">earlier this week</a> about "When Drugs Stop Working," a new series of articles on drug resistance around the world based on a six-month investigation by Associated Press reporters Margie Mason and Martha Mendoza.