Here’s hoping that the long holiday weekend wasn’t particularly cruel to any of you- and here’s some summer reading that has caught my eye.
This paper questioning who will be able to do an open chole in 2025 was one of the highlights of the 2015 Western Surgical Association meeting. It generated some interesting discussions, both real-time and in the ACS Communities.
Since I’m not “really” a general surgeon (I haven’t operated in the belly in several years!), I’ve followed the discussions around early feeding with great interest and no great investment. This meta-analysis of early oral feeding supports this practice- and perhaps shows a benefit in terms of less pneumonia. Use the gut, people. Use the gut.
I’ve long believed that leadership training is beneficial; about 8 years ago we piloted a leadership elective for our residents, and I now wish we had done more with it. This study uses qualitative data from the University of Michigan to describe the benefits of leadership training for faculty. It’s great food for thought.
Last month I found myself explaining to a patient’s wife that delirium is one of the greatest challenges that we face in the care of the ICU patient. This month’s Critical Care Medicine has a great overview of the current challenges we face in this area.
And finally, if you want some literary fiction summer reading, I’m in the thick of Sebastian Barry’s The Secret Scripture. It’s a fantastic, and intriguing, story. I suspect our book group discussion will be exceptional.