As a leading national locum tenens agency, Barton Associates places talented physicians in great locum tenens positions across the country. We are also committed to providing resources for our locum tenens professionals and insights into the latest industry trends.
Here we wanted to highlight physicians who share our vision of providing valuable information, advice, and resources to colleagues and patients. We scoured the internet to find our favorite blogs managed by physicians. Each of these sites provides compelling, fresh content that any physician should have bookmarked. We call them Barton’s Best.
KevinMD
Dr. Kevin Pho runs the popular KevinMD blog, which features posts written by Dr. Pho as well as other prominent physician bloggers. In fact, many of the bloggers featured on our list have appeared on KevinMD. The topics discussed range widely, from comments on healthcare legislation to stories about patient encounters. KevinMD is a great blog for those who are interested in reading a variety of medical professionals’ opinions. It’s also a great place to discover new blogs.
“I started KevinMD.com to give physicians a voice. Not only to help patients navigate online health information, but also to make sure doctors are heard as our health system is poised to undergo significant change in the years to come.” – Kevin Pho, MD
Family Medicine Rocks
Dr. Mike Sevilla is passionate about family medicine and social media, and his Family Medicine Rocks blog is a true multimedia experience. In addition to traditional, written blog posts, Sevilla posts the episodes of his podcast and materials from his latest speaking engagements. Sevilla is a true believer in social media as a tool to improve the patient-doctor relationship and much of the blog’s content is dedicated to educating physicians on the benefits of social media. With over 10,000 Twitter followers, Sevilla knows a thing or two about social media.
Howard J. Luks, MD
Dr. Howard J. Luks maintains a true healthcare 2.0 blog. His site is dedicated to providing evidence-based information and advice about orthopedic injuries to the knee, shoulder, elbow, or ankle. Patients who have suffered an injury to one of these areas, or other doctors who treat them, will no doubt value Luks’s insights. Our favorite posts are when Luks uses injuries to high-profile athletes as a platform to discuss anatomy and treatment options. For example, Luks used Derrick Rose’s ACL tear as a launch pad to discuss graft choices available to reconstruct the knee. You won’t find that on ESPN.
Luks defines his blog as, “Medicine, new media, technology and improving the healthcare system one post at a time.”
Seattle Mama Doc
The internet can be a confusing place for parents who have questions about their children’s health, which makes the Seattle Mama Doc blog a great resource. Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson is a practicing pediatrician and a mother, allowing her to speak as an expert and a peer. Swanson offers advice on nutrition, medication, and behavior issues, but our favorite topics appear in the “If It Were My Child” series, which addresses tough parenting choices such as allowing children to play football and choosing vaccinations. It’s no surprise those polarizing topics typically generate lively discussions in the comments section.
Common Sense Family Doctor
As the name suggests, the Common Sense Family Doctor blog provides common sense insights into the healthcare industry. Dr. Kenny Lin writes thoughtful and well-researched commentaries on the top healthcare topics of the day. For example, in his post “Health communication: what not to do” Lin uses a character in the 19th century novel An Enemy of the People to demonstrate how public health professionals must align with other community figures to inform the population about important medical findings. It’s certainly not the typical physician rant you find on other blogs.
“I started the blog because I had always wanted to write a health column for a newspaper, but friends and colleagues told me that blogging was a better way to reach modern-day readers. My goals are to provide patients with information that allows them to get the most out of our imperfect health care system, and to start discussions about how to make that system better for all of us.” Dr. Kenny Lin
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Dr. Wes
Dr. Westby Fisher has ideas, and he shares them freely on his blog, Dr. Wes. In one post, Fisher calls for the elimination of the coding system. In another he suggests hospitals invest money in front line healthcare providers instead of readmission reduction strategies. Based on the blog’s large following and lively discussions, Fisher’s ideas are shared by many practicing physicians who scratch their head when they read about the latest government regulations.
Skeptical Scalpel
Skeptical Scalpel is the pseudonym of a board certified surgeon who maintains a blog of the same name. The Skeptical Scalpel blog includes insights into new surgical technologies as well as comments on the general healthcare industry landscape. Recent posts touch on a difficult HIPAA conundrum and hand washing surveillance cameras. Some of Skeptical Scalpel’s funniest posts are when he shares his unique prospective on topics outside the healthcare space.
“I blog about medicine, surgery, research and things I find interesting. I say what I couldn’t say when I was part of the establishment.” – Skeptical Scalpel
Academic Life in Emergency Medicine
The knowledge and resources contained in the Academic Life in Emergency Medicine blog is unmatched. The blog features well-researched posts targeted at educating emergency medicine providers. Weekly features include the top medical tweets of the week and Paucis Verbis Cards, which summarize the critical information for common ED problems. Our favorite feature is the “Tricks of the Trade”, where ED physicians share innovative treatments for emergency conditions. Did you know mayonnaise can be used to remove hot coal tar from a patient’s skin?
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