Go to Steve's blog for more weighty issues of geo political importance such as jobs-outsourcing, global warming and monkey sex.
www.cocanuts.blogspot.com
Visit mine for unicorns, pictures of Owen, baseball and monkey sex.
1/14/08
1/9/08
Deal imminent?
Brian Roberts to the Cubs for young pitching appears to be just around the corner. I hope Andy McPhail knows what he's doing...
The franchise is at an all-time low so trading a fan favorite could either be seen as the final death knell or perhaps perfect timing since things can't get much worse. I suppose I see the logic of trading Roberts as part of a rebuilding effort; Bedard not so much since he'll be 29 in March and true No. 1 starters are such a rarity.
1/8/08
Owen's in a gang....
Yes, the boy with the dollhouse is confirmed to be a member of the 'Wildcats', a group of kindergartners loosely affiliated by their interest in playing football/soccer during lunch but today threatened (as a group?) to punch one of the boys they didn't want to be a Wildcat.
Owen got a good talking-to by Mom about choices he's making and the uncool act of excluding/threatening people...(apparently, O was not leading the pack according to his teacher, but still)
Dad is quietly thrilled that O plays some kind of sport during lunch but will also send the 'everybody plays' message tomorrow.
Owen got a good talking-to by Mom about choices he's making and the uncool act of excluding/threatening people...(apparently, O was not leading the pack according to his teacher, but still)
Dad is quietly thrilled that O plays some kind of sport during lunch but will also send the 'everybody plays' message tomorrow.
1/7/08
Opioids in the ER, cont'd...
The study is by Mark Pletcher and Stefan Kertesz (among others), two stalwarts in the Gen Med/Addiction world, so it is no surprise that the multivariable analysis appropriately controlled for insurance status. Sure enough, race was independently associated with receiving opioids over the entire time period of the analysis (1993-2005) even in light of an overall increase in the proportion of encounters during which opioids were prescribed regardless of race.
So, the bottom line is, blacks are less likely to get opioids for pain in the ED even when controlling for level of pain, insurance status, gender, and pain diagnosis, among other things.
The authors delicately discuss possible explanations, listing prejudice near the top but also alluding to systemic and latent factors that are exhaustively discussed in the ever-burgeoning disparities literature.
So, the bottom line is, blacks are less likely to get opioids for pain in the ED even when controlling for level of pain, insurance status, gender, and pain diagnosis, among other things.
The authors delicately discuss possible explanations, listing prejudice near the top but also alluding to systemic and latent factors that are exhaustively discussed in the ever-burgeoning disparities literature.
Rocket's 'science' is not brain surgery
I have to admit, I watched Clemens on 60 minutes last night. A few reflections:
Mike Wallace is 90 years old (in May)! Unbelievable.
The 'I'd have a third arm growing out of my head or be pulling tractors with my teeth' (if I had taken all those injections) line almost made me piss my pants. The best part is that you know he rehearsed it.
I still think he's lying for all the reasons everyone else does : primarily, what's McNamee's motivation to implicate Clemens? (the defamation of character lawsuit filed by Clemens today says McNamee was offered immunity if he would implicate Clemens -- somehow MLB wanted one of its all-time greats to be brought down, along w/ the sport itself?!?!)
Also, imagine you were on national TV to defend yourself against a claim you knew in your heart of hearts was untrue. You would take Mike Wallace's hands and say 'on my mother's grave...' or you might be bemused b/c you know your innocence would be easy to prove or you might even be threatening McNamee's life or at least one heck of a lawsuit. You would NOT be squirming and talking about third arms growing out of your head.
These congressional hearings should be interesting...
Mike Wallace is 90 years old (in May)! Unbelievable.
The 'I'd have a third arm growing out of my head or be pulling tractors with my teeth' (if I had taken all those injections) line almost made me piss my pants. The best part is that you know he rehearsed it.
I still think he's lying for all the reasons everyone else does : primarily, what's McNamee's motivation to implicate Clemens? (the defamation of character lawsuit filed by Clemens today says McNamee was offered immunity if he would implicate Clemens -- somehow MLB wanted one of its all-time greats to be brought down, along w/ the sport itself?!?!)
Also, imagine you were on national TV to defend yourself against a claim you knew in your heart of hearts was untrue. You would take Mike Wallace's hands and say 'on my mother's grave...' or you might be bemused b/c you know your innocence would be easy to prove or you might even be threatening McNamee's life or at least one heck of a lawsuit. You would NOT be squirming and talking about third arms growing out of your head.
These congressional hearings should be interesting...
1/2/08
Opioids in the ER
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22463720/
OK, it's a lay press summary of the article but you still get the idea....
Can't wait to read the real thing to see what this disparity is ascribed to. Of course latent and not-so-latent provider prejudices about who is 'drug-seeking' play a role. But we can't ignore the fact that (probably) a disproportionate percentage of miniorities use the ER as primary care --since a disproportionate percentage lacks insurance -- and therefore perhaps more are drug-seeking. The insured whites can make an appointment and be catered to. The uninsured wait in an ER.
OK, it's a lay press summary of the article but you still get the idea....
Can't wait to read the real thing to see what this disparity is ascribed to. Of course latent and not-so-latent provider prejudices about who is 'drug-seeking' play a role. But we can't ignore the fact that (probably) a disproportionate percentage of miniorities use the ER as primary care --since a disproportionate percentage lacks insurance -- and therefore perhaps more are drug-seeking. The insured whites can make an appointment and be catered to. The uninsured wait in an ER.
1/1/08
New Year's lethargy...
Owen stayed up til 12:10 last night AFTER his four-day trip to Omaha during which he stayed up late with Gabriel two nights in a row. He got up at 10 today but went back down for a nap at 2:30.
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