Physicians need to complete about 50 hours of some kind of continuing medical education (CME) every year. The ideal kind of class is one that we actually attend in person, with teachers who are expert in the field being taught and are somewhere near the cutting edge. CME classes are especially nice when they include something hands-on rather than just a lecture format because much of medicine is hands on and because that wakes us up and keeps us focused. There are other ways to get education, such as studying written materials or attending classes taught via video presentation, and they are an important way for physicians who don't have the leisure to leave their work to rerfresh or expand their knowledge base. I've always gotten more from the courses that were taught by actual living breathing people, though I have availed myself of lots of the distance options One thing that physicians are often required to do, and rightly, is to remain familiar with how to deal with e
The cost of health care in the US is higher than anywhere else in the world, and yet we are not healthier than our peer nations. In fact, in terms of such measures as infant mortality and life span, we don't measure up. Why is this? Many people involved in providing or receiving care have some pretty good ideas about what costs so much, and what we can do to reduce costs and improve quality. Sharing these stories is an important step in creating affordable universal health care.