I have a lot of energy. I have been going and going and going for so long.
And today, it hit me.
I’m tired.
I began this pursuit of medicine in 1983 when I decided to be a zoology major. I worked and went to medical school. And I went to medical school and worked. Then I worked and went to three years of emergency medicine residency and worked hard for those three …
This physician is tired, and he’s not alone
Populous cities are populous, well, because people want to live there. Whether the appeal comes from greater career opportunities or simply being closer to family, these places have continuously grown over the last few decades.
The growth is seemingly self-sustaining — certain industries and businesses exist because there is a population that desires these services. In return, these businesses require workers, so they attract people to the region. Add nice weather …
Doctors in tech cities are losing the rat race
COVID-19, first identified in December 2019 and declared a global pandemic in March 2020, has taken a toll on everyone around the world. After months of varying levels of lockdown and quarantine, people are developing pandemic fatigue, and craving human contact and normalcy again. This, coupled with the reopening of the nation, businesses reopening, and schools back in session, many people are relying on COVID-19 testing to say they are …
What are the limitations of COVID-19 testing?
It was distressing to hear and read recent and ongoing disparaging comments about osteopathic medicine, attacking one of our own, from remarks by Rachel Maddow to tweets by Cher and a derogatory video, since removed, portraying a female DO by Figs Scrubs.
Navy Commander Dr. Sean Conley, DO, serves as the Physician to the President. This emergency medicine-trained combat veteran graduated from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and is well-qualified …
Attacks on osteopathic medicine are attacks on all physicians
I’ve done a lot of interviews on my road to becoming a cardiology fellow. Here are a few topics that people don’t talk about enough.
Speed dating
I think of interviews like speed dating. Everyone puts on their “first date.” Everyone behaves their best; therefore, you can’t trust everything people say. Your job is to really listen to what people are saying, how they’re saying it, when they pause, when they fish …
Unconventional residency interview tips
Forums and Facebook groups abound with a frequently asked question that sounds something like this: “Should we sell our positive cash flow rental to buy (insert fun new toy), so we don’t have to attain a loan?”
When someone wants to buy a new car, boat or motorhome — but they have learned that buying toys with borrowed money is a bad idea — they start thinking about how they can …
The million-dollar ski boat mistake
The hallways were dark, and the door had a passcode that I didn’t know. What I knew was that I was nervous about entering the team room on my first day of internal medicine, my first rotation of the third year of medical school. Fortunately, it didn’t take long to realize that my main teachers, those I would spend the most time with, would be the residents, who were fun …
The role of residents in teaching and creating a positive clinical learning environment
The era of the empowered patient and patient-centered health care has been upon us for some time. Only a generation ago, there was a much more paternalistic approach to medicine. This has changed for the better across the western world. As somebody who teaches and coaches physicians on how to improve their communication skills, I would say that the newer generation of doctors is much more receptive than many of …
Doctors already are actors, whether they want to be ones or not
Racism is a pandemic that has long existed before COVID-19.
As a fourth-year medical student, I have been rotating in the hospitals and recently finished my sub-internship. Whether on the wards or in outpatient clinics, a recurring phrase would hover from one provider to the next, depending on how busy their week was: “black cloud” and “white cloud.”
In the medical world, the former has often been used to describe trainees or …
It’s time we stop saying “black cloud” and “black weekend”
As a physician working in acute care medicine, one of the biggest delights of my job is regularly still having patients from the Greatest Generation. In the United Kingdom, I really enjoyed sitting with them and hearing their stories of mandatory city evacuations during World War 2, rationing, the Blitz, and the huge struggle to rebuild a devastated country after 1945. Visiting my grandparents in India when I was a …
The Greatest Generation is dying out. It’ll really be our loss once they leave us.
I love to mountain bike. The thrill of watching trees zip by and of “sending it” through rock gardens is intoxicating, and this thrill is accompanied by a feeling of accomplishment unlike any other I’ve experienced. However, two of my good friends are professional mountain bike guides, and for a long time, I did not love biking with them – I was unable to bike as fast as they could, …
Applying the growth mindset to health care
A second opinion can be a powerful tool. It can help lower your risk of experiencing a medical error or misdiagnosis, allow you to explore all treatment options and their benefits and risks, connect you with physicians who have experience and success treating people with your diagnosis, and provide peace of that mind that your diagnosis and treatment plan are appropriate.
Research from the Mayo Clinic highlights the value of second …
5 situations when you should get a second opinion
I have been a doctor for twenty years, but I’m also a patient. We are all patients. This summer, my previously mild heart rhythm problem got a lot worse. By July, I was having frequent episodes of heart rates four times normal, causing me to almost lose consciousness. It was dangerous and scary. I consulted with a highly specialized doctor to fix this for good. He threaded four wires …
Why socialized health care is not right for America
The United Nations designated 2016 to 2025 the “Decade of Action on Nutrition” in recognition of the growing importance of food and diet as it relates to all aspects of human health. We’re almost halfway through, and we’re not making the progress we need to.
A comprehensive study of scientific evidence for global diet goals and sustainability, the EAT-Lancet Commission Summary Report, stated, “Read more…
Put nutrition counseling in primary care
The little things?
The little moments?
They aren’t little …
I noticed the two of them shortly after I arrived for my shift. I was standing at the counter, immersed in a chart, when out of the corner of my eye, I saw them walk out of their treatment room. Together.
Slowly, they walked into the hallway, looking first to their left and then to their right, wondering which way to go. One of …
How blessed was I to witness this true love story
I am a psychiatrist. My field has been marred with human rights violations and treatments that though well-meaning, did not yield the results that were intended. I have always been at the watch and helm of speaking out when I see gaps and places where my colleagues and I are called to do better. I have been treating patients for over 15 years now. I have remained silent …
Doctors are killing themselves, and who is taking notice?
I am a third-year medical student at what I believe to be the most diverse medical school in the country. Every year our entering class is made up of at least 20 percent of students who identify as underrepresented in medicine. Beyond that, we make it very clear that if fighting against health and social inequities is not a thread of the very fabric of who you are, this may …
A medical student’s story of racism and bias
As the world battles COVID-19, summer has turned to autumn, and a new chill is in the air. With this change, even in a pandemic, comes the flu season. As a physician assistant (PA), one concern for my patients’ health is the possibility that many will forgo routine health checks or other preventative care because they are avoiding medical settings. When it comes to flu vaccinations, I am especially concerned.
In …
The role of physician assistants during the pandemic
The social unrest that has erupted in the wake of the George Floyd murder has prompted many U.S. professional organizations, including those dedicated to medical education, to make changes to advance racial and socioeconomic equity. Right now, a fierce debate rages among medical students over how the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society (AOA) nominates and inducts fourth-year medical students. An example of this debate is reflected in the new …
Rapid changes to AOA inclusion are inequitable
President Trump was administered dexamethasone therapy for COVID-19 treatment, and had two episodes of low oxygen saturation levels that required supplemental oxygen, said doctors at Walter Reed Medical Center at a press conference on Sunday.
“In response to transient low oxygen levels, we did initiate dexamethasone therapy [and] our plan is to continue that for the time being,” …
President Trump received dexamethasone and had 2 episodes of low oxygen saturation levels
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