The U.S. health care industry has evolved and changed rapidly over the past several decades. This evolution took place in response to a number of environmental influences including, technological advances, demographic shifts, and economic and political changes.

It might seem surprising that nurses ’ whose entire career focuses on healing, compassion, and empathy ’ frequently bully one another as well as feel the brunt of bullying from a superior. Some measure of bullying occurs in virtually every profession, but those who witness it or experience it first hand in the healthcare profession seem afraid and reluctant to voice their concerns ’ especially publicly for fear of retaliation.

In a May 2011 press release, the WHO/International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as a possible human carcinogen due to an increased risk of a malignant brain cancer known as glioma. The IARC report associates cell phone use with an increase in glioma cases. A group of 31 scientists from 14 countries has met in Lyon, France to discuss and assess the potential dangers of continued exposure to these fields.

The term, Paleo nutrition, refers to a diet that seeks to imitate the primal eating habits of our Paleolithic ancestors. This ancestral concept of nutrition and lifestyle requires that people eat common foods that our Paleolithic ancestors might have hunted and gathered. Proponents of the program feel that the human body metabolizes natural, unprocessed foods more effectively than those most Americans eat on a regular basis. If you can’t ostensibly hunt and gather a certain food, then it isn’t on the Paleo eating program.

The number of Americans (including children) prescribed anti-depressants, for a variety of reasons, increases daily. Clearly anti-depressant drugs have helped millions of people and they have their place as a treatment for depression, anxiety, and a number of other mental health issues. But are these amazing, groundbreaking medications being overprescribed today?

Most people associate pregnancy with morning sickness. While OB/GYN physiciansconsider a fair amount of nausea and vomiting as normal, severe and long-term symptoms can negatively impact the pregnancy and the mother’s quality of life. In fact, morning sickness is associated with reduced miscarriage risk. However, a small amount of mothers-to-be experience nausea and vomiting that progresses to the point of hyperemesis gravidarum ’ a form of severe morning sickness that causes weight loss, dangerous electrolyte disturbances, and other problems.

Recently, I came across a provocative article by Dr. Kevin Pho of KevinMD.com. The article states that physicians without a presence on the various social media platforms, such as Twitter, Facebook, and blogs, risk irrelevancy. Dr. Pho represents the leading physician authority on healthcare social media and when he makes such a bold and public statement regarding the importance of online engagement for physicians, people take notice.

Those hoping to pursue a career in nursing can choose between three different levels of the profession. Each level requires specialized coursework and that graduates, of the various specializations, sit for and pass the appropriate licensing exam in their state.

As social media continues to permeate nearly all aspects of the healthcare landscape, its growth as a medical practice tool is rapidly changing the face of medicine. Change of any kind brings with it both positive and negative outcomes. The number of physicians choosing to integrate social media and mobile computing devices into their practice protocols is steadily increasing; yet a considerable number of holdouts have reservations about utilizing the still-fledgling tool of the digital age.

It’s no secret that American physicians are having a love affair with Apple’s iPad mobile computing device.