Minnesota medicine
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From January 1, 1991, through May 1, 1993, we identified 42 patients from our prospective computer-based trauma registry (38 males, four females; mean age, 25 years) who were hospitalized after snowmobile accidents. The primary reason for hospitalization varied: bone fracture (n = 18), blunt abdominal trauma (n = nine), closed head injury (n = five), and miscellaneous injuries (n = 10). The mean injury Severity Score was 9.3 (range, one to 43; median, nine). ⋯ Medical charges totaled $569,566 (mean, $16,227; range, $1,003 to $51,642). Snowmobiling causes significant accidental injury in young persons. The physical and financial costs of such injuries are high.
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Family violence is ubiquitous in our society and, thus, is encountered in all medical practices. The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether physicians wearing buttons with an anti-abuse message have more conversations about violence compared with physicians not wearing such buttons. Six of 11 family practice residents wore Minnesota Medical Association buttons that invited conversations about abuse. ⋯ Analyses comparing the two groups showed that the physicians wearing buttons had significantly more conversations than those not wearing buttons (c2 = 9.040, p < 0.005). Physicians wearing buttons had a higher percentage of days with conversations about domestic violence than physicians without buttons (c2 = 7.695, p < 0.01). From the significant p-values documented, we conclude that wearing the buttons increases conversations about family violence and makes physicians more consistent in talking about violence with patients.