If my grandfather were alive, he would be the same age as Mr. Hendricks. Seventy-eight years old. That’s why when I first met him, he introduced himself as John, but I preferred to call him Mr. Hendricks. That’s how I was taught as one of the ways to give respect to the elderly. The “American” way is to call someone by their first name if you have some level of …
Which one is worse: cancer or loneliness?
I see there has been yet another measles outbreak; at the time of writing, the count is 59 in central Ohio. All are either unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated. No doubt local pediatricians are being flooded with worried parents proffering their offspring for viewing with the statement, “Could this rash be measles, doctor?”
This certainly happened to me in 2019 when doing some primary care practice. That year experienced a massive …
Measles: a preventable disease that is making a comeback
Dr. Dominic Corrigan appeared to have it all.
He’d wanted to be a doctor since he was young.
So he worked hard, got into med school, took out a loan and did what it took to realize his dream.
“I was high functioning, upwardly mobile, respected specialist leading a department, doing international research, sitting on charity boards and the PTA,” says Corrigan — a pseudonym for the founder of an international doctors-for-doctors support …
Physicians are masterful at hiding. It’s part of the training.
There’s a burgeoning crisis taking hold in the COPD management space; there are simply not enough pulmonologists, respiratory therapists, or pulmonary rehabilitation facilities to treat the growing number of COPD patients. This has left our field with an urgent window of opportunity to implement digital innovation into traditional treatment paradigms. Ironically enough, it was a respiratory disease that led to a global pandemic more than two years ago, which …
The time is ripe for virtual care solutions in COPD
‘This victory ensures that advance planning documents are legally enforceable and will be respected by doctors; if they are not, individuals can hold providers accountable for violating their health care decisions.”
– Greenberg decision, 2022
Dr. Gerald Greenberg was a New York dentist when in 2010, he was diagnosed with early-onset dementia. In 2011, he executed a living will stating the medical staff was to provide comfort measures only and no medical …
What’s the sense of having a living will if it’s not honored?
Every five weeks, I see a different vampire from the phlebotomy and give this collective of blood-suckers consent to take my blood. The crimson-filled, turquoise-capped vacutainer is destined for analysis to see how fast my blood coagulates. If the vampires read my chart, they would see the graph showing values dating back to 2015, marking my third open-heart surgery when I got my mechanical aortic valve. My lab testing is …
The vampire, phlebotomy, and advocating for my care
Have you ever experienced brain fog? It’s one thing to reach for an extra coffee or reflect on the vagaries of age, but growing research shows that subjective cognitive decline (SCD) is a powerfully predictive indicator that many patients either dismiss or fail to report. About one in four people who experience SCD will have further declines – which can often be mitigated if patients report …
The stigma of cognitive decline: Silence has a price
She was 82 years old — sweet, frail, and maybe four feet eight inches tall.
She had many beloved children, grandchildren, and even a few great-grandchildren
They all grew up knowing that family was their core — their base, their home where love resided.
It was only a few days before Christmas, and Mrs. Mary entered our ICU.
COPD.
She lived with this for a long time. But this time, it crippled her. We gave …
The Christmas miracle and the music box
A prominent celebrity named Stephen “tWitch” Boss of the Ellen DeGeneres Show took his life at 40. Boss’ contagious love of dancing, carefree spirit, and milewide grin brought joy to millions. From the outside looking in, we saw a gentle soul – a successful actor and dancer with a wife and three children.
Just days before his passing, Boss shared a joyful video on social media of him dancing …
Stephen “tWitch” Boss’ tragic death highlights the importance of mental health
As I drove home from work and turned right onto the familiar street that would eventually wind around like a smile to my home, I briefly closed my eyes and tilted my face to the sky, enjoying the butterscotch sunlight still peeking through the leaves framing the street. I noticed with contentment the various groups of people clustered alongside one another, walking at a leisurely pace on the adjacent sidewalk.
It …
Overcoming the epidemic of loneliness
As winter approaches and life slows down, it’s a time to pause and reflect on all everyone has had to endure these past few years. To those involved in health care, it has been an especially difficult time… a test of both resolution and inner strength. With my hope that all will see brighter days ahead, I offer the following as my means of giving thanks to all of you …
A blessing for health care workers
I saw two positive lines on the home test kit. My body felt like I had been beaten with a jackhammer and the buzzing in my head reminded me of a hangover, the likes of which I had not seen for at least 20 years. Somehow, I organized my thoughts enough to call employee health and then updated the primary care clinic where I work as a physician. Clinic …
Lessons from employer-mandated COVID leave
At least two million people in the United States are incarcerated in 122 United States prisons. Little is known about the prisoners themselves. Did their background condemn them to bad behavior? Or did they just make grievous mistakes? Do they suffer from a mental illness masquerading as criminal behavior? Can they change their life path? A mental health specialist with 25 years of direct …
For the first time, primary care physicians (PCPs) are being urged to screen their patients, above and below age 65, for mental health concerns alongside screening for physical health conditions. The United States Preventive Services Task Force has published its first recommendation for PCPs to screen adults for anxiety as standard practice. This recommendation followed a peak in the prevalence of mental illnesses in 2020. During this time and …
U.S. adults should get routine anxiety screening. But then what?
An excerpt from The Mumbo Jumbo Fix: A Survival Guide for Effective Doctor-Patient-Nurse Communication.
Team building is a popular trend in health care. It promotes cooperation, trust and respect, improves communication, and enhances patient outcomes. Most of the time.
But the camaraderie and familiarity of working with the same group of people …
Communication protocols exist for a reason
Over the last three years, we have faced the original COVID-19, followed by Omicron, Delta, and monkeypox.
It is apropos that on the third anniversary of COVID-19, we are facing the tripledemic of COVID, influenza, and RSV.
After almost three years of not getting COVID-19, I started believing that my childhood fantasies about me being superman were true and that my immune system was superpowered with bullet-proof antibodies that would keep me …
A physician in denial after being diagnosed with COVID-19
Recently, I found a lump that was diagnosed as breast cancer. It is Stage IA, with a high chance of cure, but of course, more information might change that sooner or later. I have entered the uncertain world of being a patient – before this, as a physician myself, I happily avoided seeing the doctor.
While my cancer should be curable, and this will just be a …
Cancer: Why silence and anonymity are also courageous
The winter holidays are almost here. And it’s the time of year when food abounds and alcohol sales double. So, in the spirit of wellness and health, I’m sharing some ideas for alcohol substitutes, safe drinking, and some general information about alcohol. Enjoying the holidays with good company, food, and drink is a treat. But too much alcohol can be problematic, especially when taking prescription medications or when struggling with …
Enjoying the spirit of the holidays with fewer spirits
I just walked 120 km over five days on the South Downs Way along the southeast coast of the United Kingdom. It was a beautiful walk through the pastoral English countryside, culminating in the dramatic chalk cliffs near the coastal town of Eastbourne. While not a technically difficult walk, there were certainly enough hills to climb, high winds, and rainy days to make us ready for our evening pub dinners.
Start walking to improve health and well-being
Having spent over 30 years of my career in diabetes, first as a practicing diabetologist and later as a diabetes researcher, I’ve met many people with diabetes. And while diabetes care has evolved significantly over my career, I’m amazed to see that daily insulin management is just as complex and manual for many people, particularly those with type 2 diabetes (T2D) — daily insulin management is just as complex and …
Lack of innovation is leading to disparities in diabetes care
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