This past weekend I saw the most traumas since I started back in July. We usually have one or two a shift but this was out of control. It is the first time that the consequences of this type of tragedy really hit home for me. This was made worse by having multiple teenagers/young adults involved in a good number of these accidents. ...

Percutaneous cholecystostomy (PC) is usually an image-guided procedure that involves placing a drainage catheter directly into the gallbladder. The procedure has an important clinical application in emergency treatment of gallbladder disease. I said it is ''usually'' an image-guided procedure; however, our institution had several patients in need ...

Tampa General Hospital, my home away from home on the weekends, does a great deal to ensure that all employees provide the best customer service to all of our patients and visitors. This week, I attended a four-hour training off site at a beautiful hotel on the water. A delicious dinner was also provided, and we even got paid for our time.The ...

Now that Halloween has passed, I would like to return to our discussion on peripheral vascular disease. I would like to devote this entry to an exploration of the pathophysiology of lower extremity occlusive disease (LEOD). LEOD is a progressive disease--specifically, chronic ischemia of the lower limbs due to the atherosclerotic process ...

Happy Halloween everyone, even though I am not a fan of the celebrations, I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable time. It is a nice time of the year and I do enjoy fall until it is time to turn the clocks back. Last week I drove to New Hampshire to visit my son for parents' day at his college, and I must say it was a very scenic ride, even ...

Growing up the daughter of a college English professor I quickly learned the power, beauty, and often humor of the written word. A well written poem is as brilliant to me as a famous painting. One task I have at work is to read the nurse's and doctor's notes charted on my patient before performing the ordered exam. The reasons why people come to ...

Times are changing. That is a fact we all know too well. In a lot of hospitals cardiac catheterization labs and interventional radiology are being joined in one department with the name cardiovascular interventional services. It helps hospitals consolidate services that utilize very expensive equipment. I am not getting into all the politics ...

I am finally starting to feel like part of the ''CT family.'' I am growing closer to many of my co-workers. It is a small group of us who work only weekends and it has taken a little while for this to happen. This past weekend culminated in my birthday and one of my favorite colleagues got me a delicious cake and card signed by everyone I ...

This post is in response to a comment on a previous blog. That particular blog was on peripheral angioplasty and stenting. Jo from Gulphport,MS, wrote in concerning the coding for multiple stenting procedures in the superficial femoral artery (SFA). The question was, could there be multiple charges with several stents placed in the SFA. It has ...

I recently had the pleasure of taking care of and scanning my first legally blind patient. Having worked with special needs children in previous jobs I had no reservations about treating this patient. Most patients are usually in pain and scared to have their first CT so you can imagine how nervous she must have been not being able to see the ...