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Health & Medicine

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Health & Medicine

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

"the patient in the hospital bed is just the icon" - Doctors Without Boredom

Abraham Verghese has a moving and pointed reflection about the ubiquity of technology in the hospital: When students arrive on the wards full time, white coats packed with the aforementioned instruments, measuring tape, tuning fork, flashlight and Snellen eye chart, […]

Matthew LoftusFamilyHealth & Medicine

"Let Me Stand" - Doctors Without Boredom

This is a tremendous essay on one victim of the opioid crisis, as narrated by her brother: Several years ago, I felt convicted to ask Tricia for forgiveness. She was in jail at the time. By appearances, I was a […]

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

learning from other countries about community health workers - Doctors Without Boredom

One of my favorite hobbyhorses is community health workers, so I’m delighted to see that someone is trying to study how we might more broadly implement them in the US: The task force says that involving community representatives in the […]

Matthew LoftusEthicsHealth & Medicine

love in a time of ebola - Doctors Without Boredom

The Christian Journal for Global Health is an underappreciated source of interesting articles and original research. I wanted to highlight a recent article reflecting on the Ebola crisis and the risk taken by health professionals (both African and non-African) to […]

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

"the medicated soul": I'm at Plough again! - Doctors Without Boredom

It’s such an honor to write for Plough Quarterly, one of the best out there. They’re putting out great stuff, and this latest issue on “The Soul of Medicine” is no exception. They have a piece from me about mental health disparities, […]

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

the good work of Jon Fielder - Doctors Without Boredom

I’m honored to know Jon Fielder and call him a friend. This article at The Gospel Coalition describes the good work he’s done in Africa to treat patients, teach health professionals, and proclaim the Gospel in word and deed. It […]

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

global health innovations: delivering blood by drones! - Doctors Without Boredom

I’m really enjoying MTV News’ Africa Specific series on various happenings in Africa — it’s not just “gee-whiz” stories, but substantial reporting that digs into some of the more complex political and social changes happening in many countries. This story […]

Matthew LoftusEthicsEducationHealth & Medicine

professionalism: the emperor has no clothes! - Doctors Without Boredom

Medical professionals appeal to professionalism to guide their moral and ethical decision-making, but this is simply insufficient for the problems we face.

Matthew LoftusCriminal JusticeHealth & Medicine

"Traumatized officers sent out to deal with traumatized citizens" - Doctors Without Boredom

Baynard Woods tells the story of a Baltimore police officer struggling with mental illness very well here: In a city like Baltimore, where a large number of citizens are suffering from severe and repeated trauma, often at levels higher than […]

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

the public health promise of vaping - Doctors Without Boredom

Smoking is very, very bad. It’s in everyone’s interest to cut it back. And it looks like e-cigarettes might be helpful as smokers try to quit! And then the kids started doing it… and then the kids found the juul. Cigarette […]

Matthew LoftusHealth & Medicine

what kind of diet should we eat? - Doctors Without Boredom

I’ve never seen a better, more succinct Q&A on what a good diet means, so I’m sharing this one: I feel smarter, but what happens when new information comes out, like, tomorrow? How can I stay up to date? It seems […]

Matthew LoftusFamilyHealth & Medicine

life and death for black mothers and their babies - Doctors Without Boredom

Black mothers & their children die at higher rates than their white counterparts, even when controlling for income and education. What can be done?