The Southern Medical Journal is the official, peer-reviewed journal of the Southern Medical Association. It has a multidisciplinary and inter-professional focus that covers a broad range of topics relevant to physicians and other healthcare specialists.
SMJ // Browse the Southern Medical Journal
SMJ Article | Letter to the Editor
On Aristotle and Upper Leveling
To the Editor: “I guess what I really want to know is how I can become that good.” It is our end-of-rotation feedback session, and Jessica, the intern on the team, is describing her goals moving forward after finishing her first inpatient service. She is referencing the example set by...
SMJ Article | Original Article
Pediatric Providers’ Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice, and Barriers to Firearms Safety Counseling
Objectives: Firearms-related injuries and deaths are a leading cause of death in children and young adults ages 5 to 24 years. This study evaluated the counseling practices and barriers to providing safe firearms storage education by pediatricians and advance practice providers. Methods: An online survey was sent to 296 pediatric...
SMJ Article | Original Article
Association of the All-Patient Refined Diagnosis-Related Groups Severity of Illness and Risk of Mortality Classification with Outcomes
Objectives: Diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) is a patient classification system used to characterize the types of patients that the hospital manages and to compare the resources needed during hospitalization. The DRG classification is based on International Classification of Diseases diagnoses, procedures, demographics, discharge status, and complications or comorbidities and compares hospital...
SMJ Article | Original Article
Association between Opioids Prescribed to Medical Inpatients with Pain and Long-Term Opioid Use
Objectives: Opioid receipt during medical hospitalizations may be associated with subsequent long-term use. Studies, however, have not accounted for pain, which may explain chronic use. The objective of this study was to identify the association between opioid exposure during a medical hospitalization and use 6 to 12 months later. Methods:...
SMJ Article | Letter to the Editor
On “On Aristotle and Upper Leveling”
To the Editor: The editorial office of the Southern Medical Journal commends Dr Benjamin Frush for his contemplative considerations of what it is to be a “good” physician, and the importance of residents’ inculcation of role modeling for those learners for whom they are responsible.1 In addition, given Dr Frush’s...
SMJ Article | Original Article
CME Article: Sugammadex Reduces PACU Recovery Time after Abdominal Surgery Compared with Neostigmine
Objective: This study blindly evaluated sugammadex compared with neostigmine on length of stay in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU). Methods: Fifty patients undergoing elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy or abdominal wall hernia repair consented to receive either sugammadex (2 mg/kg) or neostigmine (0.07 mg/kg) for the reversal of rocuronium neuromuscular blockade. Reversal...
SMJ Article | Original Article
National Resident Matching Program Rank Order and Performance in an Internal Medicine Residency
Objectives: Prospective first-year house staff and residency program leaders spend substantial time, effort, and expense preparing a rank order list for the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP). Previous studies have mostly shown minimal or no relation between rank order and subsequent resident performance, raising questions about the value of this...
SMJ Article | Original Article
Health Disparities of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Texas, March–July 2020
Objectives: Although disparities in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) prevalence are known, knowledge of the recent surge of COVID-19 in Texas and factors affecting fatality rates is limited. Understanding the health disparities associated with COVID-19 can help healthcare professionals determine the populations that are most in need of COVID-19 preventive care...
Posted in: Infectious Disease44
SMJ Article | Original Article
Do We Know Where They Go? Obtaining Travel History in Pediatric Patients
Objective: To determine how often travel histories are obtained in pediatric patients. Methods: A retrospective medical record review was performed at a single tertiary care children’s hospital for patients aged 2 months to 18 years who were admitted October 2015–December 2017 with International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision codes for...
SMJ Article | Perspectives
Preparing Health Professions Students to Serve Southern Rural Communities in the Time of COVID-19 and Beyond: A Model for Interprofessional Online Telehealth Education
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a significant impact on southern rural communities1–4 and requires an interdisciplinary workforce prepared to address the unique and holistic needs of people in these communities. Telehealth, long used to improve services for people living in rural areas,5,6 has rapidly and significantly expanded...
Posted in: Infectious Disease44
