Our 500th Blog Post: Amplifying Neurosurgery’s Voice
For the past decade, Neurosurgery Blog: More Than Brain Surgery has investigated and reported on how health care policy affects patients, physicians and medical practices. Posts have discussed the state of neurosurgical sub-specialties and promoted key health care policy and advocacy initiatives to ensure patients’ timely access to care, improve neurosurgical practice and foster continued […]
Faces of Neurosurgery: Dr. Franklin Lin Keeps His Family Safe During COVID-19 Pandemic
From time to time on Neurosurgery Blog, you will see us cross-posting or linking to items from other places when we believe they are relevant to our readership. Today’s post originally appeared on FOX 5 Atlanta on May 26, 2021. In the video segment, Franklin Lin, MD, FAANS, a neurosurgeon at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital in […]
It’s Time to Fund MISSION ZERO
It’s been five years since the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) released a report titled, “A National Trauma Care System: Integrating Military and Civilian Trauma Systems to Achieve Zero Preventable Deaths After Injury.” Having led a model for military-civilian collaboration at the Army Trauma Training Center in Miami, Fla., I was invited […]
Prior Authorization Burdens March On, Even During COVID-19
For much of 2020, as COVID-19 case surges threatened to overwhelm the U.S. health system, physicians faced onerous, business-as-usual insurer policies on top of a public health emergency. In December, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data showed daily new COVID-19 cases reaching the once unthinkable total of 200,000, the American Medical […]
Neurosurgery Rotation and Application Changes Due to COVID-19: A Medical Student Perspective (Part II)
The COVID-19 public health crisis upended many norms in medical education. Most of medical school is built around significant in-person contact. During COVID-19, educators and students have had to adapt to the changing times to protect public health. Perhaps the most strongly affected individuals are those who applied for the 2021 match. Students and program […]
Congressional Docs Urge Americans to Take Action and Get the COVID-19 Vaccine
Last year, the entire world was forced to face the COVID-19 pandemic head on. And now, we — the American people — have the opportunity to achieve peace of mind and live life as free as before by choosing to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Concerned for the health and safety of our nation, I recently […]
Neurosurgery Rotation and Application Changes Due to COVID-19: A Medical Student Perspective (Part I)
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many changes in the neurosurgery residency application process. Early decisions by the Society of Neurological Surgeons led to the canceling of away rotations, installation of virtual interviews, and a required eight-week home rotation in lieu of visiting rotations. Despite being disappointed that I would be unable to visit programs […]
Connecting with the Neurosurgery Community in the COVID-19 Era: Lessons Learned at the University of Miami
The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the neurosurgery community to utilize new technologies to create and maintain connections. With social distancing guidelines in place, much attention has turned to the virtual space to accomplish this. At the University of Miami, we have trialed several virtual initiatives to connect with the neurosurgery community across the country and […]
Virtual Sub-internships and Remote Interviews: A Sudden Paradigm Shift in the Neurosurgical Residency Application Process Due to COVID-19
The year 2020 required constant adaptation to a rapidly changing environment in many facets of life. Few would have guessed that national travel would be severely restricted or that surgeons would be wearing face masks to the supermarket. As impactful as the COVID-19 pandemic has been on life in general, the effect on the neurosurgical […]
Cross-Post: Overlapping Surgery: A Safe and Smart Way to Fix COVID-Related Backlogs
From time to time on Neurosurgery Blog, you will see us cross-posting or linking to items from other places when we believe they hit the mark on an issue. Today’s post originally appeared in The American Spectator on April 1, 2021. In the op-ed, Richard Menger, MD, MPA, assistant professor of neurosurgery and political science at the […]