The MARquee posted a link the most intriguing medical facts of 2011 as collected from the pages of the American Medical News and I thought I would pass it along as it is perfect for a little Friday Fun.
The list is pretty long, here are just some that I found to be the most interesting. Go to the website for the complete list, the links within the list go to the full story.
- Nearly half of health organizations do nothing to protect data on mobile devices.
- 63% of doctors say they have changed an initial diagnosis based on new information found online.
- A third of U.S. physicians have received Facebook friend requests from patients; 75% of them declined.
- More adults visit doctors each year for adverse drug events than for pneumonia or strep throat.
- Health insurance claims filed electronically have a lower denial rate than paper claims.
- More than half of U.S. physicians now use an EMR system.
If you are curious about past intriguing stories, check out the 2009 and 2010 lists.
So doctors use Web MD too eh. I sometimes help physician researchers at the USC Medical School library look up the prevailing literature on a diagnosis or procedure. But sometimes I wonder about a lack of innovation in medicine, especially in their reliance on radiation for cancer treatment and diagnosis.