Looking at the studies behind masks

Conditions and Diseases
October 13, 2021

With the recent onset of the Delta variant rendering havoc on an already strained economy and weary population post- the rabid COVID-19 surge, there is much debate on effective policies that negate the harmful outcomes of viral acquisition. The B.1.617.2 Delta variant originated in India and is among the most easily transmissible form of the novel SAR-CoV-2 pathogen, apart from the Alpha-Britain isolated, Beta-South Africa isolated, and Gamma-Brazil isolated forms. …

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Looking at the studies behind masks

Sharing medical information between EHRs: 4 different approaches

Health Technology
October 13, 2021

The current COVID pandemic has brought into stark contrast the woeful state of medical data collection and data sharing in the United States. It has been a central goal of Health and Human Services (HHS) to at first encourage and later mandate sharing clinical data across multiple electronic health records. Unfortunately, progress has been slow and actual clinically useful widespread adoption of shared medical data remains an aspiration.  Here, we …

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Sharing medical information between EHRs: 4 different approaches

Patients should never underestimate the self-flagellation of the physician

Physician
October 12, 2021

Patients die. This is a tragic truism in the world of medicine. Usually, the patients who die are elderly. Patients die from diabetes and kidney disease, or from alcohol abuse and liver failure, or from heavy smoking and lung disease. Or patients die from cancer.

As a physician, I take these deaths in stride. I try to provide comfort care as they lay dying. Patients often pass into a dreamlike state, …

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Patients should never underestimate the self-flagellation of the physician

“Call the family. Let them know she passed away.”

Physician
October 12, 2021

She was an ICU downgrade. Hospice care is what they told me. We added her name to our list, and my senior resident told me she was now my patient. I did not have a clear story. Sepsis? Complications? The ICU note was lengthy. Rounds were coming up, and I needed to see all my patients.

I went into her room. She was breathing slow. Oxygen saturation dipping. Unconscious. I asked …

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“Call the family. Let them know she passed away.”

A COVID long-hauler shares her story

Conditions and Diseases
October 12, 2021

According to the WHO, 10 to 20 percent of COVID-19 patients experience lingering symptoms for several months following infection. What we know as long COVID is now termed post-COVID condition as of October 6. Post COVID-19 condition occurs in individuals with a history of probable or confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, usually three months from the onset of COVID-19, with symptoms that last for at least two months and cannot be …

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A COVID long-hauler shares her story

HIV/AIDS vaccine underscores need for better health access

Health Policy
October 11, 2021

“HIV has been a blessing in my life.”

Lola was a 48-year-old woman living in Denver when I interviewed her in 2002 about her HIV-positive diagnosis. She said the diagnosis improved her life in important ways; she had received income and housing support, nutritional assistance, health insurance, medication assistance and primary and infectious disease health care based on that diagnosis.

She said her sense of life’s purpose had changed, her basic needs …

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HIV/AIDS vaccine underscores need for better health access

Domestic violence: May the circle be broken

Conditions and Diseases
October 11, 2021

My youngest daughter just got married to a fine young man. She was beautiful and radiant.

As I gave my daughter away when the minister told me to, I sat down next to a picture of my deceased husband. He passed away four years ago.

Lisa was our last child. Most likely, she saw the truth.

She saw the way my husband treated me after the other two children had gone off to …

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Domestic violence: May the circle be broken

What my father taught me about language

Medical Education
October 11, 2021

Here — outside with nature — this was where I needed to be. It was raining cats and dogs, unlike the light drizzle earlier in the day.

Earlier in the day.

Earlier in the day, I could still see the casket go into the ground, adding finality to the affair as if death was not final enough. Goodbye, Baba. I was yet to cry. That was why I needed to be here. …

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What my father taught me about language

Can medicine transcend beyond the clinic walls? I’d like to see us try.

Physician
October 10, 2021

Nothing like a tragic global pandemic to make everyone rethink their careers. This past year and a half have brought a lot of changes to the workplace. Many of us don’t want to go back to the way things were. According to a Pew Research Center survey from late 2020, of the 71 percent of employees working from home because of the pandemic, more than half, given …

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Can medicine transcend beyond the clinic walls? I’d like to see us try.

The pediatricians are not alright

Physician
October 10, 2021

In the past week alone, I have heard the following comments from pediatricians on the front lines: “I’ve been practicing for 21 years, and I’ve never seen things this bad”; “I have been called uncaring because my patient had to wait an hour. But I couldn’t tell my patient that I was running behind because of a suicidal patient”; “I’m considering leaving clinical medicine because it seems like there is …

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The pediatricians are not alright

Ode to a little bile bag

Conditions and Diseases
October 10, 2021

Surgery to remove the gallbladder is a relatively late intervention.  The first laparotomy was performed in 1807 in Danville, Kentucky, and surgeons like Billroth and Kocher, were removing thyroids and even parts of the esophagus as early as the 1870s; the pricklish gallbladder was not completely excised until 1882. For years previously, the medical and surgical dogma was that the gallbladder was an essential organ and couldn’t safely be …

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Ode to a little bile bag

Trapped in a cauldron of suffering, medical staff are weary

Physician
October 9, 2021

Sometimes I really look forward to something new. An alien race arriving on earth would be a nice start. I think we could all use a change in the news cycle. Because I am very tired of thinking about, talking about, and especially treating COVID-19.

In all of my years of medical practice, I have never seen anything that taxed the system and caused so much mayhem, while simultaneously producing such …

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Trapped in a cauldron of suffering, medical staff are weary

Clinicians are diamonds in the rough

Physician
October 9, 2021

According to the Smithsonian Magazine, diamonds are formed deep within the earth, about one hundred miles down in the upper mantle. As you might imagine, it is quite hot in that part of the planet, and there is a tremendous amount of pressure bearing down in that location. The brutal combination of pressure and heat is what it takes to form diamond crystals.

Now, we can’t actually travel there or even …

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Clinicians are diamonds in the rough

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5 technologies that will transform medicine post-COVID

Physician
October 9, 2021

When medical historians write about the coronavirus pandemic, they’ll likely focus on the slow U.S. response and failures of leadership that led to a tragically high death toll. But that will be only part of the story.

From the wreckage and devastation will emerge something few contemporary observers would expect: a brighter future for American health care.

Five technologies, all previously underappreciated and underutilized, will help …

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5 technologies that will transform medicine post-COVID

Being a health care hero means we get free ChapStick

Physician
October 8, 2021

Guess what, everyone, I am a health care hero. I have been applauded by strangers. The Blue Angels flew over the hospital once in the pitch of COVID to salute us. I once sifted through a giant box of free chapsticks delivered to the hospital basement and grabbed one for my colleagues.

First of all, let me clarify: There is no such thing as a “hero.” It’s a social construct laypeople …

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Being a health care hero means we get free ChapStick

Why residency applications need to change

Medical Education
October 8, 2021

So, what’s the problem?

Alright, anybody that has been through the process knows that applying to residency programs is a long and expensive process.

The issue is not how long it is, or honestly how expensive it is, even though those are problems.

The issue is the secrecy of it all from an applicant’s perspective.

As an applicant, you don’t know what is on the deans’ letter, your letters of recommendation, and the residency …

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Why residency applications need to change

How to overcome the roadblocks to getting a medical second opinion

Physician
October 7, 2021

There are many reasons why you should seek a second opinion. A second opinion can help you:

  • Make sure your diagnosis is accurate, lowering your risk of misdiagnosis and the harms that can cause.
  • Ensure that you’re choosing an appropriate, evidence-based treatment that has been shown to achieve better outcomes.
  • Learn about all appropriate treatment options, both medical and surgical, so you can make an informed decision.

One study conducted by …

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How to overcome the roadblocks to getting a medical second opinion

Women are still being “burned at the stake” in medicine

Physician
October 7, 2021

Are you a woman, and your sanity has been questioned? Congratulations: You are now an activist.

There is such a thing as implicit bias in which we may not be aware of how our subconscious thoughts are affecting our conscious thoughts, opinions, or actions we have daily.

They manifest in all aspects of life. Whether you come to see me for a surgical consultation and when you walk into the room, you …

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Women are still being “burned at the stake” in medicine

Sexism in medicine: Alive and well or a dying breed?

Physician
October 7, 2021

Thirty-five years ago, as a first-year student, I (DWS) wrote an article for my medical school’s student-run newspaper titled, “Sexism in Medical School.” The article highlighted three examples of sexism:

  • In the middle of a pathology lecture, the professor projected a photo of a woman in a skimpy bikini lounging on a sports car to “liven things up.” He then showed a photo of a kitten, “So you ladies don’t …

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Sexism in medicine: Alive and well or a dying breed?

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