Where are the Lollipop Men in Healthcare?

9 04 2012

I recently watched Dr. Atul Gawande on video describe how what American healthcare needs is pit crews and not cowboys.  This sentiment is also memorialized in his thought-provoking writings for the New Yorker.

Interestingly, Dr. Gawande is not the first person I have heard to suggest such a thing.  A colleague named Dr. Ken Catchpole actually studied Formula 1 pit crews and used the information to guide improvements in pediatric anesthesia handoffs.  His observations were astounding and really highlighted how the culture of medicine is different from Formula 1. In Formula 1, pit crews have a ‘fanatical’ approach to training that relies on repitition.   In healthcare, the first time we often do something is “on the fly”.  Moreover, on-the-job training usually means ‘checking the box’ by attending an annual patient safety lecture.   Perhaps the most important was the role of the “lollipop man” in pit crews.   And yes, even thought it’s a funny name, it’s a critical job.   As shown in the video, the Lollipop man is responsible for signaling and coordinating to the driver the major steps of the pit stop.  When it is safe to step on the gas, the Lollipop man will signal to the driver.  Sounds like a thing so perhaps it can be automated.  Wrong.  When Ferrari tried replacing the Lollipop man with a stop light that signaled the driver, the confusion created (does amber mean stop or go?) led to a driver leaving the pit with his gas still connected.  Quickly after this incident, Ferrari announced it would go back to the tried and trusted Lollipop “hu”man.

So, who are the Lollipop men (or women) in healthcare?  Turns out that Dr. Catchpole and his team observed that it was often unclear who was leading the handoff process that they were observing in healthcare.  With team training and system reengineering, Dr. Catchpole’s team was able to reorganize the pediatric handover so there was a Lollipop man (anesthesiologist) at the helm.

While these handoffs represent a critical element of healthcare communication in a focused area, it is symbolic of a larger problem in healthcare – we are still missing “Lollipop men” to coordinate healthcare for patients across multiple sites and specialties.  This is even more critical on the 2-year anniversary of healthcare reform and this month’s match results. At a time when we need to cultivate and train more “Lollipop men” to coordinate care for patients, we have had stable numbers of students who enter primary care fields.   And like the lessons from the Ferrari team, it is doubtful that a computer (even Watson who is now working in medicine apparently) will be able to do the job of a Lollipop man.

So, how can we recruit more Lollipop men?  While it is tempting to blame the rise or fall of various specialties and market forces, it is important to recognize that being this is a difficult job to do when the Lollipop is broken or even nonexistent.  Without the tools to execute the critical coordination that Lollipop men rely on, they cannot do their job.  So, the first order of business to ensure that the Lollipop, or an infrastructure to coordinate care for patients through their race that is their healthcare journey, exists.  As the Supreme Court debates the future of the Accountable Care Act, there is no greater time to highlight the importance of the Lollipop.

–Vineet Arora MD


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The Social History: Going Beyond TED

7 02 2012

As I am on service, I realized that one thing that can be easily lost in the race to take care of patients with limited duty hours – the social history.  The social history is part of the admission “history and physical” that once included a myriad of information about the patient’s job, life, and habits has now “fallen into despair” becoming little more than “negative for TED”, or in other words “no tobacco, alcohol (ethanol) or drugs.”

But, there is so much more to it than that.   How do they afford to pay for their housing, food, and medications?  Do they have insurance?   Where do they live?  Who takes care of them or do they take care of someone else?  Do they have friends or family living nearby?   What do they like to do for fun?  Given that most of the ‘discharge planning’ focuses on these elements of the social history, it seems silly that we don’t include more than just no TED.

So, when I was asked by a very astute medical student if I preferred to hear more in the social history, I said yes.   The information that is usually discussed as the patient gets better and we wonder where they will go was now presented on admission, discussed as a problem just like any other medical problem.   In just a few short days, we discerned that a patient who had chronic hypoxia and shortness of breath worked in a factory which likely contributes to his interstitial lung disease.  Another patient who had been hospitalized for alcohol withdrawal recently broke up with a girlfriend which triggered this bout of drinking.   Another patient who was a Jehovah’s Witness would rather have IV therapy for his wound infection than surgery.  Another patient with repeated hypertensive crisis had skipped his medications since he could not afford them.

Given the tremendous burden of costs of medications and the complex interplay between social factors and health, it’s time that we start teaching people to take a thorough social history. Wondering what should go into a thorough social history, I first did what most physicians do – I went online.  It turns out that Wikipedia has an entry on social history for medicine that starts out with the same substance abuse history.  It also includes occupation, sexual preference, prison, and travel.   I stumbled upon another interesting piece by a medical student in the LA Times who admits that it is easy to skimp on the social history due to the time it takes to take a complete history.  After a brief foray in PubMed, A study demonstrated that internal medicine residents do not often know the social history of patients, and this worsens if the resident is more advanced in training and when the workload is higher.  Then, I recalled the seminal text that is still in use today.  According to the Bates Guide to History and Physical Examination:

The Personal and Social History captures the patient’s personality and interests, sources of support, coping style, strengths, and fears. It should include occupation and the last year of schooling; home situation and significant others; sources of stress, both recent and long-term; important life experiences, such as military service, job history, financial situation, and retirement; leisure activities; religious affiliation and spiritual beliefs; and activities of daily living (ADLs). It also conveys lifestyle habits that promote health or create risk such as exercise and diet, including frequency of exercise; usual daily food intake; dietary supplements or restrictions; and safety measures and other devices related to specific hazards. You may want to include any alternative health care practices. You will come to thread personal and social questions throughout the interview to make the patient feel more at ease.

There is another good reason to teach the social history – another study shows that those residents who took better social histories were actually perceived to be more humanistic.  As others stated, “By knowing patients better—and taking better social histories—we will provide better care and will be more fulfilled and energized in our work as physicians.”

–Vineet Arora MD


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Categories : hospital life, medical student, residency training

The Last Summer for Medical Students

12 01 2012

The summer between first year and second year of medical school is sometimes referred to as the “last summer” since it is the last time students can travel or take off before they start the journey towards USMLE Step 1 and then their third year clerkships.  With the angst building, first year medical students are actively deciding in the dead of winter what they will do over the summer.  One popular decision is to do research – this is not uncommon since residency programs are increasingly competitive and look for students who have a commitment to scholarly work.  However, there are a plethora of other things students could do as well.    As tonight is our “Intro to our Summer Research Program” for Pritzker medical students, I thought I would share some of the most common questions I get about the “Last Summer”:

  • Should I do research in a competitive field?   The answer here is to do substantive research that you are interested in with a “CAPE” mentor (Capable, Available, Project interests you, Easy to get along with).   As my premed advisor once told me, “Mickey Mouse” research is not going to look good to anyone (no offense Mickey).   The key is to find something you are passionate about – after all you have to tell this story on your interview trail of why you choose to do this and the answer “because I wanted to go into ortho” is not really that captivating to anyone (even to an orthopedic surgeon).   Instead, if you do something you are passionate about, like community health work, you can always tie it back to your chosen field.  Most residency program directors don’t expect you arrived in medical school with laser like focus towards their field anyway and expect to hear some type of journey or a-ha moment that drew you to their field.  Because competitive specialties are often reimbursed for clinical work and tend to be smaller departments, they depth of research opportunities may be more limited.  But, don’t forget that neuroscience research is relevant to neurosurgery – and oncology research on head and neck cancer is still relevant for ENT and so forth.  The best research is often interdisciplinary and crosses department boundaries so you should not be afraid to either.  It’s also important to remember that as a first year student, it’s hard to even know if you will be competitive for radiation oncology or associated competitive specialties.  You will need killer board scores, and great clinical grades.  So, while you may think securing the research with the Dept Chair will give you an extra ‘edge’, nothing and no one can make up for a poor performance on high stakes exams or clinical rotations.  So, don’t forget to study!
  • I want to go to country X?  How can I get a global health rotation there?  Well, certainly the urge to travel is strong in anyone (including me).  But, you need to separate your travel bug from a genuine interest in global health.  Most global health rotations are not a vacation – and may not be what you think of as “tourist” destination (despite the short-lived popularity of Off the Map).   Maybe your stars are aligned and your school or a nearby affiliate you know has a program near your hot spot of interest.  Usually, however, it is not that easy and you should consider how strong your affinity is for a specific country or location versus your interest in getting the best global health experience possible.  Global health programs that fund medical students are not easy to come by.  So, if you are genuinely interested in global health, it is always better to go with an established program and mentor to get the most substantive experience even if it’s not in the exact country you are interested in.  The other thing to remember is while this may be your last summer for a while; it is not your last vacation!  You will have time to plan a vacation to your designated hot spot if you can’t work it in this summer.
  • Do I have to do anything?  The answer here is easy – no, you don’t have to do anything per se with your ‘time off’.  Many students find themselves on the hamster wheel of endless extracurricular activities.  The real question is what is your goal? If it is to go home and see family and friends, there is nothing wrong with that!  The key is to ensure that you are doing something with your time off that will make you feel ready to face the second year of medical school.   It is easy to forget that there is a lot of time to participate in extracurricular activities at various other points in your medical school career.   The key is that if you will regret not spending time with your friends or family this summer, then you need to make time to do that.
  • What if I want to do everything because I don’t want to close any doors?  This is not an uncommon feeling for medical students. However, its important to remember that your summer work is not choosing a specialty! There is essentially nothing you can do over the summer that will ‘close a door’ – there may be some things that allow you to put your foot further into the doorway but that does not mean another door will close.   The only doors you close are the ones in your mind.   Most students decide on their specialty after their third year rotations and will often fine-tune their experiences in research in that area in the fourth year.   Another thing to consider is to do research in a cross-cutting area like ethics that could apply to everything.  Sometimes the angst you may be feeling is about making a choice that is wrong for you.  However, the truth is that as long as you are genuinely interested in the opportunity, you cannot make a wrong choice since it will be an easy story to tell no matter what you do.  Since everyone is different, it is always good to get individualized advice from a faculty advisor at your school who can comment on your specific career and research goals.

Finally, no matter what you do with your last summer, don’t forget to make sure you enjoy it!

Vineet Arora MD


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