The International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification, better known as the ICD-9-CM, is a health care classification system that hospitals currently use in order to standardize morbidity and mortality statistics and better streamline reimbursement systems.

Now that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services...

Click here to read an original op-ed from the TED speaker who inspired this post and watch the TEDTalk below.

When The Huffington Post invited me to put in my two cents regarding Ben Goldacre's thought-provoking talk on publication bias in the medical field...

Full code. Do not resuscitate. Do not intubate.

Ask anyone without a personal or family history of a hospitalization on the implication of these terms and you'd likely get a blank stare in response. Unfortunately, this incomprehension often rings true with those who need to know it most: the...

Prior to entering the medical field, my preconceived notion of what makes a good doctor essentially comprised of compassion, intelligence, and the ability to think fast on one's feet. Although I continue to believe that these professional qualities are paramount to excellent patient care, I am finding that other, less-obvious...

The gall, you might think to yourself as you click on this link in disgust. Before you write that brutal retort which I may/may not deserve, some simple disclaimers before we tackle this subject:

- This is not a ruthless attempt to crush your dreams and passions.
- This...

Spring season is still many months away, but residency programs are in early heat as selection committees across the country buckle down to nominate the next batch of interns for the upcoming academic year.

Spread across these institutions' tables one may find headshots, board scores, recommendations and interviewer comments...

Hey, I heard your doctor is a hypochondriac. He is a friend of a friend of mine, so I happen to know this as an unquestionable fact. I thought you should know.

Outlandish, you say? Let me explain.

This close acquaintance of mine happened to acquire an interest in...

Dogs are great. Although I had never thought to own a pooch due to time constraints and general selfishness, I do not deny purposefully befriending dog owners just to hang out with their pets.

But things have changed.

Contrary to suspicion, it is not the aging, biologically-driven desire...

To some, drinking coffee is simply a habit passed on from their parents and old Folger's commercials. To others, coffee is essentially just another warm beverage enjoyed on a cold winter's day.

In my life, coffee is a gift and a curse, a euphoric elixir and a nerve-bending brew....

Prior to heading out west for my postgraduate medical training, I spent four amazing years in Chicago absorbing everything I could about becoming a doctor. Throughout this time in medical school, I was taught everything from the smallest components of atoms to the largest organs of the human body. Academic...

You try to hide it.

You leave the scrubs in the locker room, the shop talk at the staff dining hall and the on-call phone consults outside in the cold, away from the highly-anticipated dinner date or holiday party.

But regardless how much effort you put into leaving your...

Although the human papillomavirus (HPV) has been recognized as a transmissible pathogen for the past several decades, the controversial use of HPV vaccines has vaulted the pesky bug into eyes of the mainstream media and scientific communities alike. In effort to better understand the fundamentals of this virus amidst this...

Accepting a promotion in the workplace is never easy task. One must take on a higher level of responsibility, carry out new job objectives, and must quickly form new working relationships with colleagues at the office.

Taking on the role as a newly-branded doctor after years of being a...

For the majority of my life, I have received a constant flow of unsolicited counsel from my family of doctors on how to succeed in medicine (see here for more on this). Now that I have gone through the arduous process of first getting into medical school and...

Ed Harris. Mr. Clean. Some men can pull it off.

Although my pseudo-coifed crop of hair currently remains intact, I come from a strong line of follicly-challenged hair loss survivors. I know that in the next few years, I too will likely don the family emblem of my forefathers:...

Hey, did you hear about the new doctor in town?

Sources tell me that he trained in one of the most rigorous and esteemed medical programs in the country. After finishing his postgraduate work with multiple awards and commendations for his ability to keep every one of his patients...

Chickenpox was all the rage back in the day.

Oatmeal baths with your siblings, unexplained weekday sleepovers with pox-laden, peripheral childhood friends. Even the sweet but short-lived relief of itching and scratching made the week-long infectious endeavor, if anything, a pleasant respite from the doldrums of early childhood.

This past week, I was hanging out at a café with my good friend Molly doing what I do best: complaining. Because Molly happens to be a doctor of audiology, I decided to customize my generic and drawn-out rants to the matters of the ear.

Teary-eyed and full of...

I am three months into my medical residency, and I am getting fat. Not the noticeable change-in-pant-size fat, not yet. But I am most certain that what was once muscle is now just "padding," and I can no longer solely attribute the words "muffin top" to the anatomy of the...

For more than a decade, the West Nile virus (WN virus or WNV) has made America its new home, infecting a multitude of unsuspecting individuals each year. With more than 1,000 documented cases and dozens of deaths reported so far this summer, Americans may be experiencing the largest outbreak of...