Doctors

Kathy Snook, Terri Anderson and Gary Snook traveled from Montana to Dr. Forest Tennant's office in West Covina, Calif.

Montana's 'Pain Refugees' Leave State To Get Prescribed Opioids

5:24pm July 20, 2016

by Corin Cates-Carney

With rising awareness of opioid abuse, some pain patients say doctors are less likely to prescribe them. One Montana sufferer goes to great lengths to get his prescription — he flies to California.

Frustrated You Can't Find A Therapist? They're Frustrated, Too

10:57am July 14, 2016

by April Dembosky

Why is it so hard to connect people with therapists? Insurance bureaucracy cuts both ways, it turns out. Patients have trouble finding therapists in networks. And therapists have trouble joining them.

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Women go through a lot in the delivery of a healthy baby. But in most cases, doctors say, an episiotomy needn't be part of the experience.

Episiotomies Still Common During Childbirth Despite Advice To Do Fewer

8:00am July 04, 2016

by Jocelyn Wiener

Overall rates of the surgical snip have declined nationally in the past decade. But, despite advice, some hospitals and certain doctors still routinely cut the vagina to ease a baby's birth.

Mary Mullens, age 93, in her room at Edgewood Summit Retirement Community in Charleston, W.Va. Mullens is a patient of Dr. Todd Goldberg, one of only 36 geriatricians in the state.

Few Young Doctors Are Training To Care For U.S. Elderly

5:02pm July 03, 2016

by Kara Lofton

Only about half of geriatric fellowships for medical residents in the U.S. are filled each year. Some students blame overwhelming medical school debt, which grows with every extra year of training.

Hannah Birch and David Sleight/Propublica

Doctors At Southern Hospitals Take The Most Payments From Drug, Device Companies

7:44pm June 29, 2016

A hospital's location and whether it is for-profit make a big difference in the share of its doctors taking industry payments like meals, travel and speaking fees. Check out the ProPublica analysis.

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Virginia Anderlini (right) was the first private client to try out Dr. Sonya Kim's new virtual reality program for the elderly, and says she's eager to see more. Kim's handful of programs are still at the demo stage.

Virtual Reality Aimed At The Elderly Finds New Fans

5:29pm June 29, 2016

by Kara Platoni

Some doctors are finding that virtual travel — to Venice, a Hawaiian beach or Africa — can open new worlds to people confined by low mobility, dementia or depression.

Health & Safety

Even A Small Meal For A Doctor Can Tip The Balance For A Brand-Name Drug

7:50pm June 21, 2016

by Charles Ornstein

Researchers say the time doctors spend with drug company representatives when they are dropping off meals is probably more important than the food in influencing prescription choices.

Dr. Bernard Rosenfeld, 74, has not been able to find a successor to lead his abortion practice in Houston. He says younger doctors don't want to deal with the politics and protesters.

Politics Makes Abortion Training In Texas Difficult

5:10pm June 21, 2016

by Carrie Feibel

The hostile climate surrounding abortion in Texas has made it hard for doctors in training to learn to do abortions. Professors feel intimidated, and there are fewer clinics where residents can train.

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George Washington University is training doctors to understand the health care system as it also teaches them how to take care of patients.

For Doctors-In-Training, A Dose Of Health Policy Helps The Medicine Go Down

7:43pm June 09, 2016

by Julie Rovner

Medical residents at George Washington University go beyond what's ailing patients and spend three weeks examining and diagnosing the nation's health care system.

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FDA Moves To Speed Access To Compassionate-Use Drugs

5:00am June 08, 2016

by Rachel Bluth

A simplified form should make it easier for doctors to treat seriously ill patients with experimental drugs after other options run out. But that's not the only obstacle to compassionate use.