Enclothed Cognition

I love to learn about the little known origins of everyday objects. After a while, extraordinary inventions become mundane aspects of everyday life, and all it takes sometimes is a little piece of history to give you new appreciation for the ordinary - and band-aids are about as ordinary as can be. Band-Aid is the Johnson & Johnson Company trademarked name for bandages. Prior to 1921, a bandage consisted on separate gauze and adhesive tape that was cut to size each time it was needed. Earle Dickson was a cotton buyer for Johnson & Johnson, and his wife was a passionate but clumsy culinary enthusiast. Josephine Dickson was always cutting her fingers in the kitchen, and Earle noticed that the gauze-and-tape bandages never stayed on very long. In an effort to help his wife, Earle invented a new bandage that would stay in place and protect small cuts. He took a piece of tape, attached gauze to the center, and covered it with crinoline to keep it sterile. When his boss, James Johnson, saw the invention, he decided to mass-produce the new band-aid - and he made Earle Dickson vice-president of the company. Sometimes good ideas just need the right opportunity, and the band-aid didn't become popular until Johnson & Johnson donated them to Boy Scout troops. So next time you're reaching for that mundane box of ordinary band-aids, remember Earle Dickson and his accident-prone wife.

I'd like to take a moment to honor one of the employees here at Medelita, David Saldana. David is our Embroidery Lead & Logo Artist. He's directly responsible for designing and digitizing every beautiful custom logo, as well all school and association logos, but as I've discovered these past weeks, his dedication to quality extends beyond his official duties. After many months of sourcing and third party testing, we have acquired new snaps for our dental lab coats. These new snaps will be included in the production of our next batch of dental lab coats, but as I'm sure you've guessed, that wasn't enough for us. If we have something better, we want to give it to our customers as soon as possible. Our solution was to replace the snaps on every dental coat currently in inventory. This is a massive undertaking, but David stepped up to the challenge. For the past few weeks, I've seen him every day at the snap machine in our warehouse, carefully removing the old snaps and replacing them with the new ones. It's no easy task either! He practiced for a long time, wanting his work to be perfect. He even obliged me when I asked to try out the machine (to be honest, I thought it would be easy) and I immediately applied too much pressure and broke the snap I was trying to place on the test fabric. David's dedication and standard of excellence embody who we are as a company, and like all of our employees, we're proud that he's a member of the Medelita family.

This year, we wanted to do something extra special for the holiday season. Our annual holiday sale is a popular event, and this year was no different, but we know that not everyone was able to order during the sale. So whether you were busy with Thanksgiving festivities or just didn't start thinking about gifts until now, we're giving you another opportunity to save on your holiday gifts with a one-day Flash Sale. TODAY ONLY we're offering 15% off in addition to FREE gift-wrap and FREE name & title embroidery. If you own a clinic or practice, December/end of tax year is a perfect time to consider an office makeover. By outfitting your staff with professional, tailored scrubs for the holidays, you can save with our sale and increase your deductions for 2011 business related taxes. Please consult your financial advisor for further details. Free name & title embroidery will turn a professional uniform into a personal and cherished gift. Consider adding custom logo embroidery to your order as well, and display a constant message to your patients of thoughtfulness and attention to detail.

The burial chamber was cold as I stared wide-eyed at the golden mask beneath the glass. I was young, and though the artifacts were well-made replicas, The Tutankhamun Exhibition in Dorchester, England was magical and mysterious nonetheless. In that moment, my fascination with Ancient Egypt (and history as a whole) was born. While I could happily dedicate pages to Tutankhamun, it wasn't until approximately 1000 years after his death that the world's first Type A personality emerged in Imhotep. Imhotep served during the Third Dynasty as chancellor to the pharaoh and high priest of the sun god Ra at Heliopolis, though his list of roles and accomplishments extends far beyond that. In fact, the full list of his titles includes Chancellor of the King of Egypt, Doctor, First in line after the King of Upper Egypt, Administrator of the Great Palace, Hereditary nobleman, High Priest of Heliopolis, Builder, Chief Carpenter, Chief Sculptor, and Maker of Vases in Chief. How many of us can claim so versatile a skill set? While Imhotep is also recognized as the world's first named architect and credited with building Egypt's first pyramid, it is his role as history's first doctor that led me to choose him as a subject for today's post. In fact, our own William Osler named Imhotep the real "Father of Medicine" - "the first figure of a physician to stand out clearly from the mists of antiquity." As a physician, Imhotep is believed to have diagnosed and treated over 200 diseases, including tuberculosis, appendicitis, and gout. He also performed surgery and practiced dentistry. As the credited author of the Edwin Smith Papyrus in which more than 90 anatomical terms and 48 injuries are described, he is notable for being one of the first doctors in history to approach medical knowledge from a perspective void of magical overtones - a like-minded ancestor of Hippocrates, who would live some 2,200 years later. For all of us, the paths we walk in the modern world echo with the footsteps of our ancestors. While the forefathers of marketing likely involve loud men selling fish from stalls, for medical professionals, your proud path began with the sandy steps of this remarkable man.

The other night I woke to the sound of my 16 month old German Shepherd puppy named Dio clacking my Kiehl’s lip balm top around in his mouth & immediately thought, 'This would be a good Medelita blog topic: adverse drug reactions.' After I wrangled the punctured plastic from his mouth, I wondered how much pear lip balm an 82lb dog can eat. Mind you, this is 2am, on a Friday night after a long workday and I want to go back to bed. About an hour later, I hear the sound of ripping paper as I discover Dio tearing one of my bedside AAPA journal covers. Obviously, my brain is in overdrive because this second incident inspires an idea of ‘proper bowel regimen review with surgical patients’ & how THAT would be a good blog topic. I work at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington DC, 7 miles away from my home in Virginia. The DC Metro area is known for politics, education, traffic, and well-connected movers and shakers. As a Surgical Staff PA, I have the opportunity to work with amazing nurses, NPs, CRNAs, Physicians and Surgeons. Thanks to a great and flexible boss, I have been able to focus my clinical efforts primarily on preoperative medical care. I love interacting with patients and their families, and take great joy in offering them a sense of personal empowerment through patient education. Today, I was reminded that patients can also teach us great lessons. One of my patients was an add-on for a joint I&D. This patient had classic signs & symptoms of a septic joint: an exquisitely painful, hot, red, swollen joint, with limited range of motion. Despite these issues, the patient was extremely polite, articulate, and pleasant. As anyone who has ever had surgery can attest, surgery can be scary and can make patients react adversely to members of their medical team. Typically, their reactions aren’t personal - it's just fear, anxiety, and/or pain. My patient’s attitude was totally different, however, and told me, “My surgery can either make me better or not. Nothing I can do to make the odds any different.” Given that this patient was so helpful & the case, so interesting, I found one of our PA students and brought her in to see this patient. I still remember many of the 'Come here - you gotta see this!!' cases from my own clinical rotations in graduate school. Some of the most memorable include: the look (and smell) of necrotizing fasciitis, dental signs of methamphetamine abuse, metastatic cancers, and uncontrolled schizophrenia. Needless to say, my student was thrilled because she had never seen a textbook septic joint and furthermore, the patient was earnestly pleased to show her. During my student's exam, I thanked the patient for “teaching” in such an indelible way. Two days after midnight lip-balm massacre, I took Dio to the vet for his checkup & rabies shot. The vet assured me the only major damage the Kiehl’s could do to my young 4-legged thief was to 'grease his pump' so to speak; no major adverse drug reactions. I appreciated that his early morning mischief session had such a benign outcome. In truth, lessons can be learned anywhere, anytime, from anyone. So, I thanked my dog for being such a good teacher, rubbed his tummy and gave him a vet and PA-approved doggie treat. Charlotte Lemmert, MPAS, PA-C lives in Virginia & is on Surgical Staff at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington DC. The next big thing in her life will be moving, cross-country, to Northwestern Washington State in January 2012 with her husband, dog and plants in tow.

The holiday season is a perfect time for miracles, and miracles that end up saving not one, but thousands of lives are especially deserving of celebration. On December 3rd, 1967 in South Africa - a far cry from a snowy New York 34th street - Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed a miracle, the first human-to-human heart transplant. Louis Washkansky, a retired grocer in his mid-fifties, had just weeks to live when he agreed to the controversial and risky surgery. The window of opportunity for a successful operation was closing, so when 24-year-old donor Denise Darvall was killed in a traffic accident, Dr. Barnard had to move quickly. On December 3rd at 2:32 A.M., Denise's heart stopped beating, and nearly three and a half hours later, a single electrical shock revived the heart within a new body. Though the operation was considered a success, Louis Washkansky unfortunately died 18 days later from pneumonia. Still, surgeons across the world recognized the potential, and this life-changing surgery was improved over the following years. Today post-operative survival for a heart transplant averages 15 years. What began as a miracle procedure in 1967 now saves thousands of lives every year.

While researching stethoscopes, I ran across a blurb concerning medicine canes and found it so fascinating that I decided to write a blog about them. You'll likely find it as interesting as I did. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the cane was a symbol of medicine as recognizable as the lab coat is today. During an age when canes were a fashionable statement of social standing, importance, and prestige, it stands to reason that physicians would be among those who carried them. However, these canes were as functional as they were fashionable. Historically, doctors are often shown carrying medical bags, but those bags tended to call attention to the physician and the fact that he was likely to be carrying drugs - especially the opiates that were commonly used as medication. To lessen the likelihood of being accosted, doctors began to use hollow canes that served as a secret medicine bag - allowing physicians to store medicine and tools without revealing their identity to street urchins and thieves. The cane protected physicians in another way as well. On most medical canes, the head was perforated and contained certain vinaigrettes and aromatic powders that could be inhaled as a method of preventing contagion while treating patients. One of the most common preparations was called the "vinegar of the four thieves" - based on a tale of four thieves who robbed a plague-stricken city in France and sniffed this concoction to avoid contracting the plague. On rounds, as they entered patient rooms, some physicians would even bang their canes on the ground to aerosolize the compounds - something I imagine was a tad unnerving for their patients. Yet more unnerving is the lack of cleanliness these canes represented. While innovative in theory, the 18th and 19th centuries were not known for their strong grasp of hygiene or sterilization, and doctors would often make several house calls without changing or cleaning the instruments he had so cleverly hidden in his cane. These canes also frequently contained small flasks of liquor, allowing the physician to take a few swings on his rounds to protect himself from cholera or other deadly epidemics. If patients had thoroughly grasped just how germ-ridden that cane was likely to be, I think they would have been the ones needing the liquor. Romantic notions of top hats and house calls aside, I think it's probably for the best that medical canes went out of style. However, I can certainly appreciate this intriguing snippet of medical history - how about you?

Perhaps some of you braved the chaos of Black Friday last week, but if you're anything like me, you probably prefer to shop from the comfort (and safety) of your own home. To help you save on your holiday gifts without the risk of being trampled by crazed shoppers, we're offering an extra special Cyber Monday Special for the first time ever. Today and tomorrow only (November 28th - November 29th), you will receive free shipping with any order, regardless of the amount. Combined with our 20% holiday sale discount, this Cyber Monday Special offers an unrivaled opportunity to save on a thoughtful gift for yourself, colleagues or business partners, or loved ones. Both our Annual Holiday Sale and our Cyber Monday Special end tomorrow (November 28th - November 29th), so don't miss out on these exclusive discounts. We do run low on inventory toward the end of the year, so please order early for best size and style selection.

Thanksgiving is a time for appreciating everything wonderful in our lives, and here at Medelita, we're definitely thankful for our customers. It's because of you that we are able to thrive, and our gratitude for your support is immeasurable. Without your support and feedback, we couldn't be the company that we are today, and our Annual Holiday Sale is our way of saying thank you to our colleagues who wear Medelita proudly and confidently all year. Our 6-day Annual Holiday Sale begins on Thanksgiving Day, and from November 24th - 29th, you will receive 20% off Medelita lab coats and scrubs. The savings are automatic at checkout - no code is required, and you'll also receive free shipping on any order of $100 or more. Our garments only go on sale once a year, so now is the best time to treat yourself, your colleagues, or loved ones to an impressive, personalized gift. The 20% discount does not apply to past or future purchases, logo embroidery, name & title embroidery, gift certificates, shipping fees, amodex® or select Sanita® clogs. The Annual Sale discount cannot be combined with other professional organization discounts or school discounts. Group orders, custom logo embroidery orders, and bulk purchases are welcomed. Call 877.987.7979 or email contact.us@medelita.com if we can assist in any way.

In honor of the upcoming holiday, here is an intriguing snippet of medical history from the roots of our Thanksgiving traditions. On November 11, 1620, after 65 days at sea, a storm-battered ship named the Mayflower ended its long journey at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Among those first pilgrims who founded a colony at Plymouth was a doctor by the name of Samuel Fuller, who served as the primary physician and surgeon during the founding of the colonies. Samuel had brought an apprentice named William Butten with him, but he unfortunately died two days before reaching the New World. William Butten was hardly the only casualty of the Pilgrim's journey. Already weakened by their two-month voyage, most of the passengers failed to survive the first few months of winter in their new home. Fortunately, the native Wampanoag people and their leader, Massasoit, shared their knowledge of local crops and navigation with the settlers, helping them to survive. The first thanksgiving was, in fact, a weeklong feast held a year later to celebrate the pilgrims first successful harvest. Far from turkey and cranberry sauce, the meals were more likely to include duck, venison, seafood, cabbage, and corn. While the Native Americans shared their knowledge of the land, the pilgrims shared their knowledge of medicine. In 1623, the Wampanoag chief, Massasoit fell ill and was nursed back to health by Plymouth Colony governor, Edward Winslow. After his recovery, Massasoit felt duty-bound to observe "whilst I live I will never forget this kindness they have showed me." Despite the tragedy of future relations with the Native American tribes, these humble beginnings can be appreciated for the simple harmony our ancestors found - and the integral role that medical knowledge and basic human caring played in maintaining peace during those first difficult years.