Covid 19 has exposed a dirty little secret that emergency physicians have helped keep for decades- there is not enough to go around.  Unfortunately the way things are headed, those best equipped to deal with the reality of limited medical resources are being pushed  aside - with predictable consequences.

Podcast of ExBEM

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 50- Emergency Medicine: Heading the Wrong Direction? Part 2

The specialty of Emergency Medicine sprang into being in order to fill a need.  I'm concerned that we've lost sight of that need as we train those to whom we will pass the torch.  On this episode I begin a discussion of how and why our specialty developed and why keeping our fragile medical system afloat rests on our shoulders.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 49 - Emergency Medicine: Heading the Wrong Direction?

Pretending that there exists an "opiate crisis" obscures our society's real, much more difficult health crisis. On this episode I discuss what these real problems are and why accepting the delusion that opiates are the issue is leading us down a treacherous path.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 48 - Is There Really an "Opiate Crisis"? -Part 3

Overdose deaths have tripled since our society acknowledged and declared war on an "opiate crisis".  Not surprising since much bigger problems are to blame.   In this episode I outline why beginning with the false premise that opiates are to blame only obscures our understanding of our troubles and thwarts our efforts to achieve positive change.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 47 - Is There Really an "Opiate Crisis"? -Part 2

Unquestionably Americans are tragically dying of drug overdoses each day. In this episode I explain why calling this an "opiate crisis" is a smokescreen that obscures the problem making it more difficult to solve and perhaps making it worse.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 46 - Is There Really an "Opiate Crisis"?

What will be the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic? On this episode I offer predictions regarding what to expect as we survey the post Covid 19 landscape. The central theme : we ain't seen nothing yet...

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 45- Coronavirus: Lessons Learned in 2020- Part Four

One year ago there was no data or experience to guide us as we struggled to defend ourselves against the Covid 19 pandemic.  We therefore relied on our leadership's best guesses.  In this episode I argue that it is time for individuals use the lessons learned in 2020 to replace guesswork and decide for themselves how best to protect themselves and their families. 

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 44 - Coronavirus: Lessons Learned in 2020- Part Three

In the year since the first patients with Covid 19 arrived in our emergency departments, physicians have learned some hard lessons about treating this disease.  In this second installment of my "state of the pandemic address" I discuss what works...and what doesn't.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 43 - Coronavirus: Lessons Learned in 2020- Part Two

Data collected in 2020 has allowed us to paint an objective picture of the Covid 19 pandemic that seems quite different than the portrayal fed to us by the mainstream media.  What this data shows and why it is distorted by the evening news are explored on this months offering.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 42 - Coronavirus: Lessons Learned in 2020- Part One

The rate of successful resuscitation of patients having a cardiac arrest in the hospital have not improved during the last 40 years that hospital personnel have been relying on ACLS protocols.  In this episode I discuss why ACLS fails and what it will take to move forward.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 41 - How People Die : Part Two

Ever thought in detail about how people die?  I suppose that for most this morbid subject is not dwelled upon, but for 40 years it has been a big part of my job.  Experience has taught me that people die in many ways.  And this is a problem since most medical personnel are trained to understand one model of the dying process and it is one that they are unlikely to often encounter. On this podcast I outline a different scheme for understanding this process that will finally allow caregivers to progress beyond ACLS.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 40 - How People Die : Part One

What happens when non emergency specialists provide recommendations to guide emergency care?  Spoiler alert: ...nothing good.  And no better (or worse) example of this exists than ACLS.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 39 - ACLS and the Myth of Cardiac Arrest

The Coronavirus Crisis is over.  The justification for its existence has evaporated.  Ignorance and fear have been replaced by data and reason.  All that was left was for someone to declare it dead. And on this episode I do just that.

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 38 - Corona Crisis 10- The 2020 Crisis Is Over!

As Americans struggle to return to normalcy, we are constantly told what we must do to be safe.  These instructions come at us from all directions and are numerous, wide-ranging, and inconsistent.  In this episode I reveal the secret to safety from Covid 19 (and everything else).

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 37 - Corona Crisis 9- Achieving Safety from Covid 19

The media continues to sow fear by distorting the truth.  As the coronavirus pandemic predictably and inevitably spreads, the misconceptions resulting from these lies poisons rational decision making both in individuals and society as a whole.  Emerging evidence supports an understanding of the pandemic contrary to the doomsday scenarios popularized by  the TV and internet.  

Podcast of ExBEM: Episode 36 - Corona Crisis 8- Purging the Propaganda to Get Real

Contrarian ideas and commentary on important topics in emergency medicine drawn from the experience of 35 years of practice as an emergency physician. Published monthly, the lessons discussed will be controversial and relevant to the practicing clinician.

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Podcast of ExBEM

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