💊 Who’s in your doc’s pocket? Worried your doctor might not be giving you impartial advice because they’re getting paid by Big Pharma? Look ‘em up in this government database (U.S. only) and see which companies are giving them money. That includes celebrity doctors, too, if you’re feeling nosy!
A new hospital cyberattack left patients without care – Keep your records safe
Come with me. Imagine you rush to the emergency room, but after five hours, they tell you to find another hospital. Or you check in at your specialist’s office for a chronic condition, only to find they’ve lost your entire medical history. Both of these scenarios just happened.
Yesterday’s cyberattack on one of the largest health systems in the U.S., Ascension, was bad — really bad. Before you say, “Another data breach? So what, Kim?” know that having your records sold on the dark web is the least of your worries.
Code red
The hack on Ascension sent its 140 hospitals and 40 senior facilities into full-blown chaos. It took down patient record systems and medication prescribing systems, forcing doctors and nurses to rely on paper charts and handwritten records to keep things running.
One patient, Zackery Lopez, checked himself in at an Ascension-run hospital in Southfield, Michigan. He was suffering from internal bleeding and thinking his cancer had returned. Zackery waited a grueling seven hours before a nurse could help him. As he waited, he saw patients checking themselves out.
Keep your health records safe
When hospital systems get hacked, it’s a matter of life and death. And it’s happening more and more often. Keeping physical records sounds old-school, but if digital systems go down, it could save your life.
- Start with a list. Make a list of all your meds, including dosages and names, and keep both digital and physical copies. Store a physical copy in your purse or wallet if you’re currently in treatment or in case of emergency.
I also recommend compiling your full medical records and having a printed copy on hand. If you have an iPhone, you can sync them to your Health app:
Add your health records
- Open the Health app on your iPhone or iPad.
- If you’re on your iPhone, tap the Summary tab, then your profile picture in the upper-right corner. On iPad, tap Profile in the upper-left corner.
- Scroll down to Features > Health Records > Get Started.
- Search for your hospital or network, then tap it. FYI: It’ll ask you to add location services to find hospitals and health networks near you, but you don’t have to enable it to search.
- Under Available to Connect, choose Connect Account. Sign in to your health care provider’s website or app.
- Wait for your records to update. It might take a minute for your information to appear.
- Repeat these steps for each supported provider. Start by going to Features, then tap Add Account.
View your health records
Organize all your health records with this built-in smartphone feature
Health apps track your steps, heart rate, sleep patterns and more. But they’re capable of so much more. You can add your health information to certain apps to keep all your records in one place and share them with your doctors. You can even track your medication.
Should you share medical records with AI?
ChatGPT can rival doctors in diagnosing, but should you share your medical records with it? The answer is yes — if you take one precautionary step first.
🏥 The hologram will see you now: A hospital outside of Dallas is the first in the country to use a $65,000 Holobox. The device beams a 3D image of your doctor inside what looks like a futuristic vending machine for a slightly more personal telehealth appointment. Good news for areas with doctor shortages.
10 minutes
Max time doctors recommend you spend on the toilet. Any longer and you’re gonna get hemorrhoids and weakened pelvic muscles. Leave your phone out of the bathroom. I hear you: “But, no!”
What you really give away when you sign up for Amazon Clinic
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, protects your private information whenever you visit a healthcare professional. Now, the bad news. HIPAA rules and regulations don’t necessarily apply to mental health apps. Here’s what you need to know.
Find out if your doctor takes money from drug companies
Doctors and health care providers don’t just make money from your health insurance payments. Many doctors and hospitals also get paid by pharmaceutical manufacturers and other companies. Do you know who’s paying your doctor?
50 doctors and ChatGPT
Were tasked with diagnosing illnesses from medical case histories. When graded on their diagnoses and reasoning, ChatGPT scored 90%, and the doctors alone scored 74%. Docs using ChatGPT? 76%. If something’s medically wrong with you, redact your personal info and ask “Dr. AI” what it thinks. Remember, though — it can make crap up.
Many parents trust AI over doctors: Researchers asked parents to rate advice on topics like infant sleep and nutrition, and most found AI’s answers more reliable than actual health care pros. It’s always good to get a second opinion but remember — AI’s known to “hallucinate,” aka make crap up.
🏥 When you get a bladder infection, urine trouble: The next time you’re at the doctor, AI could be eavesdropping on everything you say and adding it to your health records. Ambient AI transcribes and organizes patient notes in real time. Sure, it cuts down on admin time, but AI can hallucinate facts and might use your sensitive data for training. You can decline it … for now. Just tell your doc, “No AI for me.”
“The Magic School Bus” IRL: Scientists are testing new tech that could stop a brain aneurysm before it happens. The method? Nanorobots smaller than most bacteria. They have a magnetic core that doctors can move to where they’re needed to deposit a clotting agent. That, in turn, prevents the stroke that comes after a brain aneurysm. Amazing.
1.6M brain scans
Used to train an AI tool that predicts dementia risk. Researchers are using MRI and CT scans to find patterns that could help doctors spot dementia sooner and treat it better. I sure hope it works; by 2050, the number of people with dementia is expected to triple.
17 cancers
Are more common in Gen X and millennials. Yep, if you’re born between 1965 and 1996, you’re up to three times more likely than baby boomers to develop colon, pancreatic, liver and other deadly cancers. Doctors think obesity and alcohol are partly to blame, but there’s still a lot we don’t understand.
2 pounds
The weight of a hairball pulled from a woman’s stomach. By the time doctors got to it, the hairball was so big that it could be felt from the outside. She was probably suffering from a hair-eating disorder called trichophagia. If you’re feeling brave, take a peek. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
The future is now: A Texas hospital now lets patients see their doctors via hologram. The Holobox beams a high-quality 3D image that makes it seem like the doc is sitting right there. Why this over Zoom? Doctors can see the patient’s full body. The catch? The machine costs $42,000, so expect to pay up for 3D visits.
1 in 50 knife injuries
Are avocado-related. No kidding, it’s so common doctors call it “avocado hand.” This stat guaced my world. Here’s a tool made for the job.
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🩻 Doctors get paid by drug and medical device companies: That can influence what they recommend to patients. You can look up your doctor on this site for free.
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