Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Breaking the cycle of failure in modern medicine

Kortney West, MD
Physician
April 1, 2023
Share
Tweet
Share

The allopathic medical system has failed me – as a patient, mother, and physician. Like many physician peers, I entered the health care world with grand visions of healing others. I quickly learned during my clinical rotations in medical school that healing (in the truest sense of the word) was less likely but that helping was still possible. So I rolled up my sleeves and entered pediatric residency, where I learned how to make sick kids healthy and keep the healthy ones from getting sick.

Or so I thought.

After training, I started working as a pediatrician in outpatient practice doing the same work albeit on a less acute level. To keep children healthy, I performed many check-ups, gave vaccines, and offered parents advice on various topics with the knowledge gleaned from my years of education. Sure, I also “healed” lots of children by prescribing antibiotics and other medications for their medical diagnoses. In doing so, I came to think of children with frequent ear infections, reflux, asthma, allergies, eczema, constipation, and a whole host of other complaints as “healthy with a touch of [insert symptom here].”

My perspective began to change when my son was diagnosed with idiopathic ketotic hypoglycemia. Yep, idiopathic because we really don’t know why, but “oh, don’t worry, kids tend to grow out of this by the time they are teens.” This diagnosis came during his third hospitalization at only three years old – twice before due to respiratory issues and this time due to altered mental status from the hypoglycemic event in an otherwise “healthy” child, who also has severe eczema and behavioral issues. Because I was suspicious his other diagnoses were not separate and unrelated. Because I would not accept idiopathic as an answer, and because the traditional medical system wasn’t able to provide one, I looked elsewhere.

This led to me diving head-first into integrative and functional medicine. In doing so, I found that my son’s multiple medical issues, not just the hypoglycemia, directly resulted from mycotoxin exposure. All of his symptoms fit so nicely. You see, mycotoxins damage the respiratory tract, are immunotoxic, and can cause both allergic symptoms (i.e., skin issues) and autoimmunity of the neurologic system (i.e., behavioral issues). When I discovered the interior of his wall was covered in mold, it was like the perfect present with a bow around it fell into my lap. What was once multiple chronic medical issues was now one treatable root cause.

My question is this: When did it become acceptable that we consider eczema, asthma, or gut issues, common childhood conditions? Until we as physicians acknowledge that these are indeed chronic conditions, that they are not normal, and that they indicate an underlying health problem, we will keep treating the symptoms and, in doing so, continue to disrupt the ecosystem of our bodies.

I’ve realized that the allopathic medical system keeps us in a vicious failure cycle due to the above fallacy. As a patient and mother of a patient, I’ve been given medications to ultimately treat symptoms. I’ve done the same as a physician and, thus, not truly healed my patients. This is what I was taught, and let’s be honest, all I had time to offer families as treatment in the current churn and burn health care system. This is a disservice to us all, patients and physicians alike.

Please don’t misunderstand me – I am incredibly grateful for modern medicine and the power of extremely talented physicians who have treated me, my family, and countless others. I wholly recognize that many people would not be here today without the advances we’ve made in medicine. My point is that we need to re-examine what we consider success and what we consider health.

When I was speaking with a friend about my recent discoveries and interest in integrative medicine, she jokingly said, “Welcome to the dark side.”

So here I find myself, perceived in the dark, yet feeling more cloaked in light than ever before in my career. If the dark side is one where physicians question blanket uniform recommendations, truly consider the needs of the patient sitting in front of them and their uniquely individual circumstances, and seek to find a unifying root cause of disease symptoms, then count me in. Or, I suppose, out.

Kortney West is a pediatrician.

Prev

ChatGPT: the Napster of the AI world?

April 1, 2023 Kevin 0
…
Next

Collaborating with occupational therapists: a game-changer for behavioral health [PODCAST]

April 1, 2023 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Pediatrics

Post navigation

< Previous Post
ChatGPT: the Napster of the AI world?
Next Post >
Collaborating with occupational therapists: a game-changer for behavioral health [PODCAST]

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • How social media can advance humanism in medicine

    Pooja Lakshmin, MD
  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • The difference between learning medicine and doing medicine

    Steven Zhang, MD
  • Medicine rewards self-sacrifice often at the cost of physician happiness

    Daniella Klebaner
  • Why academic medicine needs to value physician contributions to online platforms

    Ariela L. Marshall, MD
  • The life cycle of medication consumption

    Fery Pashang, PharmD

More in Physician

  • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

    Howard Smith, MD
  • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

    Harvey Castro, MD, MBA
  • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

    Kara Pepper, MD
  • How doctors took back control from hospital executives

    Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD
  • How art and science fueled one woman’s path to medicine

    Amy Avakian, MD
  • In a fractured world, Brian Wilson’s message still heals

    Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

      Kara Pepper, MD | Physician
    • Graduating from medical school without family: a story of strength and survival

      Anonymous | Education

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 1 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

      Kara Pepper, MD | Physician
    • Graduating from medical school without family: a story of strength and survival

      Anonymous | Education

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Breaking the cycle of failure in modern medicine
1 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...