LONDON — Doctors have long been chided for their seemingly unintelligible handwriting. Now, they are being urged to drop the Latin. In an effort to improve written communication with patients, an initiative unveiled this week by the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges — which represents 250,000 doctors in Britain — is encouraging doctors to ditch…
Of course, not every inappropriate medical practice has the same high stakes. Several researchers mentioned the overuse of M.R.I.s for lower back pain as the sort of thing that would be nice to change with a nudge. But no one dies of an M.R.I. overdose. There are also risks that the strategy’s success could become…
LONDON — Airport security is there to protect you, but it may also give you the sniffles — or worse. To all the places and surfaces we’ve been warned are teeming with germs or bacteria — your pets, the subway seat, airplane cabins, the A.T.M. — add the airport security tray. The plastic trays —…
Playing tennis and other sports that are social might add years to your life, according to a new epidemiological study of Danish men and women. The study found that adults who reported frequently participating in tennis or other racket and team sports lived longer than people who were sedentary. But they also lived longer than…
For 45 years, Christine and John Koziol, of Somers, N.Y., have appreciated the wedding gift they received from Ms. Koziol’s beloved aunt and uncle, Eloise and Charles Harmon. It is an untitled painting created by Ms. Harmon: vibrant flowers spewing from a cream-colored vase against a bold red background. Ms. Harmon was a painter, sculptor…
Although it is a natural activity, breastfeeding is also a skill that takes time to learn. It tends to get easier with practice, as both a woman and baby master the breastfeeding strategies that work for them. The best breastfeeding positions enable a baby to latch on to the breast well and comfortably, do not…
From the stage of the Phil Donahue show in front of a live audience, Dr. Elizabeth B. Connell, a tiny middle-aged mother of six, opened her purse and began pitching condoms in wrappers with smiley faces into the audience. It wasn’t just a gimmick. Dr. Connell had a longtime commitment to raising awareness about family…
But employers, including that Amazon-Berkshire-JPMorgan alliance, are increasingly unhappy with the nation’s health care systems. Companies are paying more than they ever have. And their employees, saddled with escalating out-of-pocket costs and a confusing maze, aren’t well served, either. “The results haven’t been there,” said Jim Winkler, a senior executive at Aon, a benefits consultant.…
The color of a person’s vaginal discharge can say a lot about their health. Some people may worry if their discharge is pinkish-brown, but many different factors can cause this. Pinkish-brown discharge or spotting is common around the time of a person’s period, but it can also happen at other times because of ovulation, pregnancy,…
Human papillomavirus or HPV is a sexually transmitted infection or STI with links to some types of cancer, including cervical and throat cancer. Breastfeeding women may worry about spreading the virus to babies through breast milk. But, for most women with HPV, breastfeeding is safe, and the benefits outweigh any potential risks. In this article,…