Episodes

"The peer-review process is fallible, slow, and biased, and it takes advantage of the scientific community’s altruism. We need to keep pushing the conversation forward about making publishing more equitable, timely, accessible, and fair. An obvious...

"I can do better. We can do better. Please partner with me and advocate for the ability for doctors and residents in our profession to receive medical and psychiatric care without fear of losing our licenses or having to face stigma and judgment. It...

"Is the ACA perfect? Not by a long shot. In Kentucky, where I live, there are only 2 insurers selling individual policies on the exchange. A Silver plan for my husband and myself costs $1,800 per month in premiums, with a $13,600 deductible and an...

"Being a neonatologist and a mother is living with the knowledge that the question 'What would you do?' could so easily become real, not hypothetical.  And so what would I do? I don’t know, heartbroken mama. Because I feel too much, but I...

"As the mother of a child born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, besides going through four open-heart surgeries and coding, my son has also had eight abdominal surgeries, including a Ladd’s procedure and resection of his colon. William also...

"Rumor has it that the SARS-CoV 2 virus was brought into prison via inmates who were on a work-release program.  Allegedly, they boarded a city bus with a driver who was ill.  From there, it crept beyond the work-release camp and wafted over...

"What form the incoming winter will take depends on the location and status of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each city must find a method that will provide the most relief and assistance for their homeless population. Analyzing the results of the measures...

"Everything I ever have and ever will accomplish is in part due to the doctors, nurses, administrators, and security officers who gave me safe, compassionate care. This was no fairytale ending; I wish I never had to make this choice, and I grieved for...

"At first, it may seem strange that 'physician' and 'side gig' are even used in the same sentence. After all, the average physician in the United States is already working more than a 40 hour work week and struggling with issues related to work-life...

"In Wooster, Ohio, where I practiced, a small not-for-profit hospice agency relied on local physicians, clergy, and many other volunteers to supplement the skills and dedication of their employed staff. It was through this work with Hospice of Wayne...

"A practicing anesthesiologist for the past 14 years, when COVID hit, and the ORs came to an abrupt halt, I needed to occupy my mind. An opportunity to learn about the business behind running a practice came to me via a good friend who is a founding...

"Just as the pandemic has forced massive technology adoption in the delivery of care, we will see the rapid, widespread implementation of innovative solutions that medical education has desperately needed for years. Technologies like computer-based...

"We lack the necessary signaling of the nonverbal cues when only looking at one’s face. The presenter’s large face only a few inches from our screen may evoke our primordial threat response with its resulting cascading transmitters. The angulation...

"The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted everyone, especially those of us in health care.  Our way of practicing medicine has been changed; some would say forever. We find ourselves affected not only clinically but also emotionally.  As a result,...

"Doctors are indeed noble for what they do. Their work is undoubtedly physically intense and emotionally taxing. But the notion that they are 'superhuman' and 'different' from the rest of society is exactly the trap that we fall into the moment we don...

"I am left wondering what would have happened if I was the patient’s daughter, niece (who she said I reminded her of), or friend. The nurse made a quick judgment based on my physical characteristics, and she was completely incorrect. I am blessed to...

"My own dream-induced pain started at the same time this child was mowed down. Then and there is when and where my faith in God died because God, the higher power, had allowed this unspeakable nightmare to happen. My hope for the future evaporated,...

"The new American Medical Association policy recognizing racism as a public health threat and providing an anti-racist approach to equitable care will have no effectiveness unless health care organizations get their own houses in order and actively do...

"To understand how to create good shifts irrespective of external factors, I turned to the ancient philosophy of Stoicism. One of its core tenets is that we must focus on what is within our control. Epictetus said: 'Happiness and freedom begin with a...

"Touted by some as a 'great equalizer,' the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront long-standing disparities in access to health for Black, Latinx, immigrant, and low-income communities. While we are all in this fight together, some are...

"Today and for the foreseeable future, COVID-19 is a serious threat, virulent and contagious, not only leading to an impressive display of human vulnerability and arrogance, but also demonstrating how innovative and creative humans can be during a...

"I do want you all to know that shame is a very familiar brain track (like an 8-track tape, if you know what that is), but not one I am stuck in. The above experience of failing a class turned out to be amazing. I am now appreciative of how far I have...

"Environmental cleaning rightfully plays a more prominent role within health care facilities to control the spread of other diseases, but even hospitals have overreacted when it comes to contact precautions for SARS-CoV-2.  I recently went to get...

"It has been over a month since I started this new hobby. I told my middle-school-aged daughter tonight, 'I am going to write a post about how ocean plastic picking has made me a better pediatrician.' She replied, 'You mean better than other...