Background: Oral case presentations are a core learning opportunity for students, during which they synthesize data, develop assessments and plans, and communicate clinical reasoning. However, during focus groups at our institution, faculty and students described presentations as inefficient, redundant, and lacking standardized expectations. Faculty were overall dissatisfied with student presentations. Students described presentations as stressful [...]

Background: The overdose epidemic in the United States has seen a significant rise in deaths associated with antidepressants in the last two decades. This study examines mortality trends related to antidepressants in adults aged >25 years between 1999 and 2020 across various demographics. Methods: Analysis of poisoning by anti-depressants-related deaths in the US from the [...]

Background: Acute heart failure exacerbations are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, with high rates of hospitalization and healthcare expenditure. Guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) has improved outcomes in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), improved ejection fraction (HFimpEF), preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), and moderately reduced ejection fraction (HFmrEF). Recent studies highlight the benefits [...]

Background: Opioid overdose is a well-established cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States1. Naloxone is an opioid antagonist and harm-reducing treatment with a complex history of prescribing behaviors, attitudes, availability and reimbursement2. Interventions to increase appropriate co-prescription of naloxone include government mandates3 and Electronic Health Record (EHR) clinical decision support4. Our institution used [...]

Background: Real-Time Prescription Benefit (RTPB) tools remain underutilized by hospitalists, partly due to concerns surrounding the tools’ availability and accuracy of the co-payment estimates provided. The RTPB tool’s functionality is contingent on the patient’s pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) identification and selection in the electronic health record (EHR). This study aims to investigate the availability of [...]

Background: In the U.S., hospitalizations related to Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) are amongst the most frequent and costly, yet a unified approach toward improving outcomes remains elusive. In 2022, the AHA/ACC/HFSA released updated guidelines for the management of heart failure. Recommendations include prescribing four classes of medications for eligible patients, known as guideline-directed medical therapy [...]

Case Presentation: A 36-year-old female with past medical history of endometrial polyp and lumbar degenerative disease presented with chest pressure, lower extremity swelling, and shortness of breath for four days. Physical examination revealed increased work of breathing, bilateral crackles, and trace lower extremity edema. Lab work showed elevated NT-Pro-BNP of 5930 pg/ml, mildly elevated creatinine, [...]

Case Presentation: A 24-year-old Hispanic male with morbid obesity, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and class IV/V lupus nephritis on immunosuppressive therapy presented with a one-week history of progressive pain, erythema, and swelling in the lower abdomen and extremities. Symptoms included fever, shortness of breath, and diarrhea. Physical examination revealed a tender, erythematous rash with violaceous discoloration over [...]

Case Presentation: An 87-year-old male presented to the emergency department following a syncopal episode, preceded by one week of generalized weakness, poor oral intake, and acute left leg pain. His medical history included heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), atrial fibrillation (AFib), chronic kidney disease (CKD) stage IV, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) managed with chronic [...]

Case Presentation: A 62-year-old man presented to the emergency department with chest pain and dyspnea after recently driving from Michigan to Florida. In the ER, he was hypertensive and tachypneic with normal saturations. EKG showed sinus tachycardia with a classic S1Q3T3 pattern. Labs revealed an elevated D-dimer and troponin. CTA chest revealed a large saddle [...]