Controlling chronic pain, advising on alcohol, and more stories
Advice on interviews, conference coverage on neutropenic fever, and virtual waiting rooms are also featured.
Chronic pain is a complicated thing to treat, as both primary care physicians and patients know. Recent research has shown progress in avoidance of opioids as first-line therapy but also indicates that use of guideline-recommended remedies like cognitive behavioral therapy continues to lag. Physicians can improve chronic pain care by connecting with their patients, collaborating on common goals, and managing expectations, according to experts.
Earlier this year, a U.S. Surgeon General report on the health effects of alcohol made a splash in part because of its stark message that any alcohol consumption increased cancer risk. As a result, physicians may be reconsidering how to frame conversations about alcohol with their patients, and patients may be wondering how to cut down or stop drinking entirely. In our second cover story, Senior Writer Gianna Melillo reviews the evidence and talks to primary care physicians and addiction medicine specialists about screening, intervening, and do's and don'ts.
Interviewing for a new job is almost always stressful, but there are ways to make it less so. For example, it's almost a given that your interview will ask some version of the question "Tell me about yourself," so be ready for it by practicing a concise statement that presents your background and highlights key skills.
Our conference coverage in this issue is from the Society of Hospital Medicine's Converge. David Goese, MD, provided an overview of neutropenic fever, stressing the importance of finding it early and outlining the criteria for outpatient versus inpatient treatment, including which antibiotics are currently recommended.
All physicians have had to deal with no-shows and same-day cancellations, as well as find time to see patients who call with urgent concerns. One academic health care center in Massachusetts devised a way to tackle both of these issues via a virtual waiting room. Patients who called for same-day appointments were placed on a waiting list for telehealth, and clinicians with no-shows or cancellations could then choose someone from the list to fill that slot.
Finally, the Washington Perspective details what's in the proposed rule for the 2026 Physician Fee Schedule, and ACP's President describes his first international trip on behalf of the College and how it reinforced his belief in the importance of diversity in internal medicine. This issue also features our third I.M. Puzzled, with a "Primetime" theme.
How do you approach chronic pain and alcohol use with your patients? Are no-shows and cancellations a pervasive problem in your practice? Let us know.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Kearney-Strouse
Executive Editor
