We are trained to move quickly. To respond before thinking. To act before doubting. To rise at three in the morning because someone’s life might depend on it. That is how we learn ethics, not in seminar rooms, but in corridors that smell of antiseptic and coffee, under fluorescent light, beside stretchers with failing hearts.
And so, somewhere along the way, we begin to believe that morality lives in the moment. …
Cancer care has long been associated with physical, emotional, and psychological hardship. But for many patients, a quieter burden (the financial strain of treatment) shapes their experience in equally profound ways. Increasingly referred to as financial toxicity, this form of distress is emerging as a key determinant of cancer outcomes. Yet it remains under-recognized in day-to-day clinical care.
The high price of staying alive
Financial toxicity describes the economic hardship caused by …
The overlooked treasure of primary care: Why this field is more rewarding than most realize
Primary care often carries a reputation: long hours, too much paperwork, and not enough pay. Many providers see it as a burden, a stepping stone, or simply “less glamorous” than other specialties.
But here is the truth most clinicians overlook: Primary care holds hidden rewards, both financial and emotional, that can transform not just your practice, but …
One thing I know for sure is that, as a whole, our medical training system has gotten it all wrong when it comes to helping students correctly identify which specialty they want to apply to.
Coming from undergraduate school to medical school, I spent four years learning about myself. I went to graduate school, worked for a few years in the real world, and gained real-life experiences. During that time, I …
I offer these ten points in the hope that you will surpass my generation of physicians, myself included, and learn from our mistakes. God help us all if you do not.
Congratulations on your hard work, academic achievements, and the persistence and sacrifice that brought you to this moment in your medical careers. Good for you. And now, reality.
1. Although you have memorized many facts, you know nothing. Truth does not …
Born a son to immigrant parents, one of whom did not speak any English early on in my youth, I struggled to assimilate to American culture, to friends, and to the everyday language and vernacular during my formative years in grade school, middle school, and even high school. My mother raised my brother, sister, and me while my father worked two, and sometimes three, jobs to make ends meet. Mom …
What do you remember most about the movie and musical Beauty and the Beast? For some, it is the powerful theme of inner beauty versus outward appearance. Others might resonate more with the music (“Be our guest, be our guest …”). For me, it is the vision of Belle’s inventor father, Maurice, and the townspeople laughing at his follies that has left a lasting mark and continues to trigger me …
I recently attended a three-day workshop on how to lead transformational workshops. The experience was both meta and genuinely transformational, and a number of the lessons I took away continue to stand out for me.
Safety comes first. The workshop leaders highlighted over and over again that psychological safety comes first. You cannot belong to a group if you do not feel safe. They created the prerequisites for safety and then …
The desegregation bus crash
I was nearly killed in a desegregation bus crash. They called it progress, but it felt like degradation. We were children, packed into metal boxes and sent across neighborhoods like test subjects. The crash was more than metal and blood, it was a system shattering itself. I survived, and I have spent the rest of my life making sure no child has to survive reform just to …
Let us get this straight: Enjoying life is amazing. You should do more of it. Every day, if you can. But if you are truly committed to living well, you also need to get comfortable with something most people avoid like mystery meat at a buffet: preparing for your death.
Not obsessing over it. Not fearing it. Just preparing, so your loved ones are not left trying to solve your digital, …
As a psychiatry resident, I recently completed a rotation at an addiction treatment facility that looked more like a luxury wellness retreat than a medical center. The setting was picturesque: manicured lawns, private rooms bathed in sunlight, daily yoga and mindfulness sessions, and meals prepared by in-house chefs. The staff was warm, compassionate, and abundant, capable of delivering highly individualized, trauma-informed care.
Here, patients were treated not just for their substance …
As women in medicine, we have been taught to achieve, not advocate, especially not for each other. We keep our heads down. We hustle for credibility. And when we finally earn it, we are hesitant to speak it aloud, about ourselves or anyone else. As if naming our gifts makes them less legitimate.
When was the last time you publicly celebrated another woman in medicine for her brilliance? When was the …
The U.S. primary care system is unraveling. Fewer graduates are choosing it, and patients are struggling to find someone who stays. But in the background, one group continues to step up: international medical graduates (IMGs).
Quietly and steadily, they are filling the spaces others have left behind.
They are physicians who trained abroad, adapted to new systems, passed more hurdles than most of their U.S.-trained peers, and still chose to serve.
And yet, …
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Women now make up over one-third of the physician workforce and more than half of medical school graduates, yet medicine remains shaped by a deeply entrenched culture of inequity. This inequity not only harms the careers and well-being of women physicians, it also jeopardizes patient care and weakens our national health care system.
As a physician and author of the forthcoming book Doctoring While Female: The Personal and National Toll of …
Women are entering medical school in greater numbers and constitute half of all classes. There are many reasons to keep women in the medical workforce. Women physicians provide more preventative services and devote more time to psychosocial/family medical history. Studies show that patient satisfaction with women physicians is significantly higher than with men physicians. Elderly patients who received care from women general internists had lower 30-day mortality and readmission rates …
The “pay-play it forward” concept for organ transplantation is simple. Simplistically, the organ donors’ data can be explored, if feasible, to determine incidence or prevalence of organ donations by the organ recipients, thus “paying it forward.” Thereafter, the organ recipients’ data can be explored, if feasible, to determine incidence or prevalence of pledged organ donors among the organ recipients. Finally, the transplant waiting lists’ data can be explored, if feasible, …
Throughout my career as a board-certified colorectal surgeon, I have prided myself on my commitment to providing high-quality patient care and upholding professional integrity. As a long-standing member of a major surgical society, I have always believed in the mission to foster excellence in the field of surgery. However, my relationship with that organization took a challenging turn when I was placed on probation after testifying in a medical malpractice …
Although locum tenens in medicine has a rich history dating back to the 1970s, many misconceptions and questions continue to foster apprehension in those considering this alternative form of practice. While some view locum tenens providers as unstable wanderers who may have difficulty holding traditional permanent employment, many, such as myself, have taken this intentional path in search of independence and freedom.
From a busy metropolitan hospital in California to a …
When I began my internal medicine residency in 1987 at Boston City Hospital, all new interns were enrolled in the Housestaff Association, the residents’ union. Some of my resident peers were active leaders in the union. Coming from Minneapolis …
Since spring 2020, Molly Humphreys, a native of Shepherdstown, West Virginia, has photographed workers in and around the Berkeley Medical Center (BMC) and, in the process, has created a rich mosaic of the complex realities of health care in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Specializing in portraiture, Humphreys had never worked in the health care space—that is, until I invited her to partner in …
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