do the right thing Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Arthur M. Lauretano, MD, MS, FACS

This is Why Thanksgiving Contributes to Our National Healing

November 17, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD 1 Comment

Entering into this season of Thanksgiving, there is much to contemplate. A very tumultuous and divisive election season has been completed, with celebration and disappointment abounding, depending on one’s choice of candidate. Protests in response to the outcome of the election seem like something that we would see on a world news report in reference to a country far from our own, yet these protests are occurring on our own city streets.

This election has raised the specter of a country divided along many lines – political party, race, religion, ancestry and ethnicity, gender and gender identification, and sexual preference – and the list goes on.

These are the Ways Black Lives Matter and White People Care

November 6, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD 1 Comment

“Black Lives Matter.” I couldn’t agree more. I am a white, Italian-American, and I totally support “Black Lives Matter.”

Now, of course, so many people hear, “Black Lives Matter” and retort, “All Lives Matter.” I’m a surgeon, so of course all lives matter to me. I know that. I live that everyday. In this World Series time of year, I can remind you that while a 0.350 batting average would be a ballplayer’s dream, a 35 percent success rate at saving lives would be a surgeon’s worst nightmare. So frankly, when someone answers, “All Lives Matter,” I am beyond frustrated – I am outraged.

Down Syndrome: This is the Reason Preconceptions are Unfortunate

October 30, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD 3 Comments

The medical record perplexed me. “Unfortunate 33-year-old-man with Down Syndrome here for routine visit for ear wax removal.” This gentleman had just moved to our area and needed a new doctor to take care of his ears. I was meeting him for the first time. He brought in an envelope full of records from his prior ear, nose, and throat doctor. Each visit was documented with an entry that began with, “Unfortunate 33-year-old man with Down Syndrome.” There were not only records printed from an electronic medical record (EMR), in which lines and even paragraphs can be copied and pasted, but also handwritten notes predating the EMR, in the typical doctor’s handwriting that I myself have taken to a new illegible level.

The Prisoner and the Presidential Candidate

October 23, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD Leave a Comment

This was not the typical operating room scene. Yes, I was there, having made the incision to expose the facial fracture that the patient had sustained in a basketball game. I was in the process of fitting the titanium plates to the fractured bones, contouring the plates to bring the cheek fragments into their original position. Sure, my usual OR team was there – my resident, the nursing staff, and the anesthesiologists. Sounds like a usual case.

What Are The Reasons Infertility Can Breed Infamy?

October 3, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD Leave a Comment

My penchant for remembering minutia and the esoteric sent my gray matter into high gear when I read the recent headline:

“Indiana fertility doctor used his own sperm’ around 50 times,’ papers say.”

Made for Television

I remembered seeing this story on an episode of “Law and Order,” Season 5, Episode 15, and it was titled “Seed.” But that episode aired February 15, 1995.

Could the above headline really be true? Who would do that outside of a television show?

Another Friday Visit to the Pediatric Ward: Newborn Abstinence Syndrome

September 24, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD 3 Comments

I love Fridays – they are the reward for the work I do earlier in the week. Fridays are my operating room day, and any surgeon will tell you that this is home – where I practice my craft, where I am most relaxed, and where I am immersed in a culture in which I flourish.

This Is The Reason I Honor Our First Responders

September 11, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD Leave a Comment

I awakened from a dream this morning, 9-11-16, and my first thought was the first responders. Let me back up for a moment to tell you about my dream.

I was in the operating room, removing a large tumor from a patient’s face, carefully dissecting and preserving the nerve that moves the patient’s facial muscles. There were all the typical bizarre dream elements: the room in which I was operating looked more like a cafeteria, with at least ten patients having surgery at the same time. One of my associates, also a head and neck surgeon, was operating on someone’s stomach. In the middle of this dream surgery, the junior resident assisting me decided to remove his glove and feel the tumor, contaminating the entire surgical field.

Do the Right Thing Means…

June 28, 2016 by Arthur Lauretano, MD Leave a Comment

Has Doing the Right Thing Gone Out of Style?

Do the right thing. It’s a phrase we all have heard so often that it’s almost become a cliché.

That’s unfortunate, because it never gets old to do the right thing. In fact, doing the right thing is so critical to society and everyone in it, all of the time, that it’s worth stopping to reflect on the meaning of the phrase.

So what does “do the right thing” really mean? Is there always a single “right thing “for everyone to do in all situations? If so, do we always recognize it?

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