"'Doctor, it’s taken so long to get this appointment with you!' This is the opening line of so many medical visits, and I find myself constantly apologizing to my patients on behalf of our system. After the pandemic-induced lull in routine medical...
"It is uncomfortable to be publically vulnerable with my story. I wish the statistics and research were enough to change the field of medicine for patients and physicians. I want people to care about the experience of their patients and colleagues...
"Guess what? The mouth is attached to the rest of the body. And though dentistry and medicine are typically separated from the very beginning of professional training, they are irrevocably linked for patients and have an impact on each other. Here’s...
"Military physicians should also realize that not all employers are equal or treat their physicians equally. Military physicians entering the civilian job market are in a 'seller’s market.' They should get a reasonable employment agreement. It is...
"While the technological boom in the health care field is not a circumstance of the pandemic, the accelerated roll-out and adoption of digital features certainly are. And rapid innovation in the health care technology field is not a bad thing in...
"I think we all have an inclination—at least from time to time—to judge others. No matter how experienced, compassionate, and professional we are as physicians, we’re still human. I can admit that I have indeed struggled with patients like the...
"It might seem odd to write about what high-weight patients would like when they meet with their doctors. Don’t they want what every patient wants? The answer is yes, but the fact is, they often don’t get it due to implicit anti-fat bias among...
"Many health care professionals go into health care to help people, no matter their race, socioeconomic status, or other identities. Even as white health care professionals start to learn about the systemic nature of racism, something that our Black...
"I was working at an urgent treatment center, where a busy Saturday in January would be overwhelming. At one point, I hired a scribe. She was a bright young woman interested in medicine and some alacrity with computers. It was a pleasant change of...
"What is currently known is that monkeypox is transmitted primarily through close contact with skin lesions, bodily fluids, and respiratory droplets. Men aged between 20 and 50 years, many of whom have sex with other men (MSM), are notably included in...
"Would you expect the chef at a restaurant to be told that they are not only required to prepare the food in the kitchen but also deliver it to each of the tables and manage the billing? What about sorting out the restaurant's finances or...
"As I looked across the boxes on my screen, I saw the gleaming faces of my peers. Just as it did then, and as it has for countless of my peers since, involvement in the Student Osteopathic Medical Association (SOMA) Advocacy Day showed me the...
"Are you a perfectionist? Did you know that perfectionists are actually some of the biggest procrastinators? Yes, really. In theory, perfectionism sounds like a good thing. Who doesn’t want to do and be their best? It can even seem like a harmless...
"Five days before this story begins, where everything is upside down, and the end is the beginning. Me, standing in my PICU, slowly approaching that cradle, then removing the medication, one by one, turning off the syringe pumps. Saying out loud the...
"Ehlers-Danlos syndrome patients take an average of 10 years to be diagnosed. In that time, the pain from microtrauma and joint instability can become unbearable. “Just exercising more” can backfire, causing injury and disability and creating a...
"Dying and introspection happening at the same time were a dual reality that I found impossible to ignore when Bill was not doing well. As Bill’s poor prognosis and impending death began to reflect on our life, it was getting harder to respond to...
"Work dread. Even if you didn’t know it had a name, you know the feeling. It is that sensation in the pit of your stomach when you realize that the start of your workday or workweek is fast approaching, and you don’t want it to come. Sometimes it...
"This is an important time to rise up, come together, and understand that it is our time to remove the confusing veil put on us. We are not delirious. We are not psychotic. We are physicians. We are the ones who took an oath to benefit patients...
"Physicians have terrible technology, but they refuse to recognize high-tech as a medical specialty. They must integrate technology as they do laboratory science. Physicians are certainly suffering from poorly-designed electronic medical records...
"Address the patient’s chief complaint first. In this case, the other symptoms were only side effects of the main problem. Pay attention to lab work. In this case, the elevated white blood count and the related blood culture results. Keep an open...
The word “resiliency” has been lauded, applauded, and buzzed about in talks about physician burnout. When I hear it, I tune out. My stomach churns. I feel sick. Why? Because physicians are resilient. We are, in fact, the walking, talking,...
"Amazing pediatricians are back where I was years ago, with their C-suite asking for business plans for the medical side of their adolescent bariatric surgery programs. The reality is corporate health care has infiltrated pediatric health systems, and...
"Nearly three-quarters of consumers say they prefer texting with a business if an actual human is the returning texts — no bots need reply. But the rise of artificial intelligence has led to further advances in smart texting, including the ability...
"I was first diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer, DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ), on May 15, 2015, at 41 years old. I had my annual exam with my gynecologist and told him I felt a small, pea-sized lump under my right armpit close to my breast. He...