This post’s publish date, Sept. 17, aligns with International Patient Safety Day, a global campaign to rally stakeholders across health care systems to work together to improve patient safety. I think it bodes well that this is also the day Johns Hopkins Medicine International welcomes Hospital Sírio-Libanês (HSL) into our global collaborative health family. Located(...)
Patient Care
Big Steps for a Kuwaiti Child with Cerebral Palsy
Posted by | Care Providers, Middle East, Patient CareBy Shenandoah Robinson, M.D. Before I began treating Mohammad Almutairi, 9, he walked with a gait typical of patients with cerebral palsy. His muscles were shorter than those of a healthy child, and his hamstrings were tighter — they pulled him up on his toes and forced his legs to cross as he tried to(...)
Promoting Healthy Weight, Patient by Patient
Posted by | Clinical Program Development, Collaboration, Middle East, Patient CareThe patient was a grandmother. She had diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea and a body mass index of 84 — more than four times what experts consider healthy. She waited four years to become an eligible candidate for bariatric surgery, but physicians deemed her case too risky. Then, last October, Hien Nguyen, a Johns Hopkins bariatric(...)
Engineering Precision Cardiology
Posted by | Care Providers, Collaboration, Health Innovation, Medical Technology, Middle East, Patient Care, Precision Medicine, ResearchBy Dr. Hugh Calkins Here at Johns Hopkins, we are blending engineering and cardiology to create more personalized approaches to diagnose and treat heart rhythm disorders. Leveraging innovations in cardiac imaging, computer simulations and data science could help us manage these disorders, which can lead to elevated risks of blood clots, stroke, dementia and death.(...)
Building Bridges Between Pediatric and Adult Care
Posted by | Patient Care, Patient SafetyBy Rosalyn Stewart In a previous post, Kathy DeRuggiero discussed how Johns Hopkins helps patients transition from pediatric to adult care by having a children’s hospital integrated within our flagship hospital. We see the best outcomes when we work in tandem with patients, when possible, and their families — though no transition is easy. I(...)
Young Patients Don’t Have to Outgrow Us
Posted by | Patient Care, Patient SafetyU.S. News & World Report’s 2019–20 today released its Best Hospitals list, with The Johns Hopkins Hospital earning a #1 ranking in Maryland and #3 in the nation. Coupled with the pediatric hospital ranking in which U.S. News named Johns Hopkins Children’s Center #9 nationally, Johns Hopkins is the top-ranked hospital combined for both adult(...)
When Innovators Unite: Five Years of Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare
Posted by | Academic Medicine, Clinical Program Development, Collaboration, Health System Sustainability, Middle East, Nurse Development, Patient Care, Patient Safety, Project DevelopmentSaudi Aramco traces its beginnings to 1933 when Saudi Arabia signed an agreement with the Standard Oil Company of California. Soon thereafter, a few determined explorers began surveying and drilling to find oil in the Saudi dessert. It wasn’t until 1938, however, that they discovered oil in commercial quantities at the drilling site Dammam No.(...)
Who’s the Person in Personalized Medicine?
Posted by | Academic Medicine, Care Providers, Health Innovation, Medical Education, Patient Care, Precision MedicineIn health care, we tend to value the new and the next, occasionally with a snub of the tried and the true. I’m thinking about how clinicians today build relationships with their patients. Research findings differ, but on average, patients spend 10 or 15 minutes with their doctor during each visit. Because of changes in(...)
Not Born to Walk, but Ready to Run
Posted by | Middle East, Patient CareFrom birth, Naif had hip, knee and ankle problems and had to use a wheelchair for mobility as he grew into childhood. Naif and his family traveled from Saudi Arabia to Johns Hopkins with one goal: to help him walk. Although the Saudi embassy didn’t refer Naif to Johns Hopkins Medicine for treatment, his family(...)
One Robot, Zero Radiation, Healing Twice as Fast
Posted by | Care Providers, Health Innovation, Medical Technology, Patient Care, Patient SafetyBy Nicholas Theodore, M.D. If a person’s spine is unstable because of injury, degenerative disease or another cause, he or she may need spinal stabilization surgery to correct the problem. During this procedure, surgeons typically take multiple X-rays to pinpoint where to place screws to stabilize the spine. I was convinced there was a better(...)