Physician

Physicians writing on KevinMD about the life of the profession: the work itself, the exhaustion, what women physicians are paid and asked to carry, the losses the profession has been slow to name, and who decides how physicians work. Five maintained records draw on this archive: Physician burnout: what physicians say, in their own words, Primary care: what physicians say, in their own words, Women in medicine: what women physicians say, in their own words,, Physician suicide: what physicians say, in their own words, and Physicians and administrators: what physicians say about who runs medicine, in their own words.

Physician burnout definition: Why it is blocked energy, not just exhaustion

Susan MacLellan-Tobert, MD

Physician

March 10, 2026

Most physicians experience burnout as exhaustion. We say, “I have nothing left.” The assumption is simple: We are depleted, and what we need is rest. But after decades in medicine, and years of listening carefully to burned-out clinicians, I wonder if that assumption is wrong.

What if burnout is not a lack of energy at all? What if it is energy that has nowhere to go?

Physicians enter medicine with extraordinary life …

Physician neutrality: a beacon of ethics in a divided world

Farid Sabet-Sharghi, MD

Physician

March 9, 2026

I watched with horror, grief, and tears in my eyes as the events of the last week unfolded. We witnessed a catastrophic massacre of Iranians seeking nothing more than the basic freedom to exist outside an oppressive system. As conflicts ignite in various corners of the world, it feels as though the fabric of our global society is tearing at the seams.

Yet, amidst the darkness, there was a silver lining: …

Pharmaceutical advertising dangers: Why drug ads hurt patients

George Issa, MD

Physician

March 9, 2026

One of the absolute worst ideas anyone in the government ever had was letting pharmaceutical companies advertise directly to the public. A public with roughly zero medical knowledge. A public that believes any weird twinge, sneeze, or momentary fatigue is a death sentence. We need that miracle pill, now! For our constipation, insomnia, erectile dysfunction, mysterious rashes, or the inevitable blood clot that we just know is coming.

These ads don’t …

How to handle clinical disagreement with patients

Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD

Physician

March 9, 2026

One of the hardest moments in medicine is not making a diagnosis. It is not writing the prescription. It is sitting across from a patient who wants something you do not believe is right for them and knowing that whatever you say next will either build trust or break it. That moment comes every day in modern practice. A patient wants an antibiotic for a virus. A patient wants a …

The quiet paradox of physician mental health and medication

Timothy Lesaca, MD

Physician

March 9, 2026

Physicians are trained, above all, to project steadiness. Long before we feel it, we learn to perform it. The lesson begins early in training. The pager goes off, a room fills with urgency, and the expectation is unspoken but unmistakable: Remain calm. Do not let uncertainty show. Do not let fear show. Patients need confidence. Teams need direction. Over time, the composure stops feeling like a performance. It becomes a …

A celebrity patient and the core of patient confidentiality

Francisco M. Torres, MD

Physician

March 9, 2026

During my second year of private practice, I was still close enough to academics to miss morning conferences, but far enough along to appreciate a predictable lunch break. It was then that I had an encounter that taught me why the core ethics of medicine must remain steady, even when the patient is someone the world recognizes. It happened on a Thursday, a day when the clinic usually looked like …

The Mamba Mentality of an immigrant physician’s journey

Joshua Salabei, MD, PhD

Physician

March 8, 2026

There is a kind of discipline that develops quietly over time, shaped not by certainty, but by persistence. I often think of it as the Mamba Mentality: a commitment to steady improvement, resilience, and focus on the process rather than the outcome.

For many immigrants, this mindset is not aspirational. It is necessary.

My own journey reflects this reality.

Before coming to the United States in 2007, I spent one year in the …

Why hospitals shouldn’t own physician practices: 6 key reasons

David Wild, MD

Physician

March 8, 2026

Over the past two decades, hospital systems have increasingly acquired physician practices, arguing that integration improves care coordination, lowers costs, and stabilizes struggling practices. In reality, this consolidation has often produced the opposite effect: higher costs, reduced physician autonomy, diminished innovation, and care that is less responsive to patients’ needs. While hospitals and physicians must collaborate closely, ownership is not collaboration, and hospital systems should not be in the business …

Why does sex work seem like a more viable path than medicine in 2026?

Corina Fratila, MD

Physician

March 8, 2026

I’d rather be a sex worker than practice medicine in this broken system (and I’m 53, menopausal, and retired from my hot years).

Let me be clear: This is not a whimsical “maybe I will pivot into OnlyFans” moment. I am 53 years old. I am menopausal. My libido is in witness protection. The bloom is not just off the rose, the whole damn bush was yanked out and replaced with …

Medicine in 1926: What being a doctor was really like

George F. Smith, MD

Physician

March 7, 2026

Even with all the incredible advances in medicine over the past 70 years, there remain severe deficits in the care of many serious deadly diseases. Pancreatic cancer, multiple sclerosis, glioblastoma, Alzheimer’s, ALS, and ovarian cancer easily come to mind in that desperate category.

However, let’s get a perspective of what it was really like to practice medicine a hundred years ago. What kind of doctors were there? What did they do? …

The future of U.S. medicine: 10 health care trends in 2026

Richard E. Anderson, MD & The Doctors Company

Physician

March 6, 2026

Predicting shifts in the health care environment has always been difficult, but this year, the pace of change, driven by regulatory complexity, mounting financial pressures, and artificial intelligence (AI), makes long-term forecasts increasingly uncertain. Each year, TDC Group has predicted emerging health care trends over the next decade, focusing on the challenges, risks, and opportunities that shape the industry. …

Why your nonprofit hospital system is spending millions on marketing

Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA

Physician

March 6, 2026

An excerpt from Narrative Medicine in the Age of Uncertainty: When Systems Strain and Stories Steady.

When a nonprofit hospital system posts a $201 million operating loss, lays off roughly 650 workers, and then buys naming rights to an NFL practice facility, it does not just create bad optics. It teaches a lesson.

Not to the marketing department. To the workforce.

In Philadelphia, Jefferson Health reported a $201 million …

Administrative workforce stability: the new clinical metric for 2026

Rihan Javid, MD

Physician

March 6, 2026

In 2025, the health care industry faced a crisis that has quietly reshaped how providers think about care: administrative workforce shortages. Clinics struggled to fill roles like medical billers, schedulers, and revenue cycle specialists, with vacancies lasting over 30 days in many cases.

The impact was tangible:

Slower billing cycles.
Operational inefficiencies.
Less time for clinicians to spend with patients.

The real differentiator for high-performing practices was a surprisingly human …

AI in pain assessment: Balancing innovation with patient safety

Kayvan Haddadan, MD

Physician

March 5, 2026

In Northern California and beyond, health care systems are rapidly integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and digital tools to transform how pain is recognized, measured, and managed. From algorithm-guided assessments to wearable sensors and predictive analytics, these tools promise to augment clinical decision-making and improve patient outcomes. Yet significant controversies remain, including concerns over algorithmic accuracy, bias, data privacy, and the extent to which technology should complement or potentially displace human …

The hidden cost of uncompensated work on physician burnout

Jessie Mahoney, MD

Physician

March 5, 2026

Physicians are renowned for their dedication to helping others. The problem is that their dedication has become synonymous with self-sacrifice and working for free.

Giving away time, energy, and expertise is simply “what good doctors are supposed to do.”

We work through lunch. We attend meetings during lunch. We respond to patient messages on our days off. We prepare lectures and teach without compensation. Leaders hold space for complaints and conflict and …

Physician burnout solutions: Why system change isn’t enough

Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH

Physician

March 5, 2026

When I experienced burnout as a young primary care physician, I thought it was my fault. Actually, I didn’t know it was burnout; I had never heard the word. But I believed whatever was causing the deep exhaustion, lack of empathy, and feelings of uselessness were surely due to a flaw or weakness in me.

Eventually, I stumbled across the definition of professional burnout. I was so curious to understand what …

How board certification fuels the physician shortage crisis

Brian Hudes, MD

Physician

March 5, 2026

For years, the conversation about board certification has centered on fairness, cost, and evidence. But there is another consequence that gets far less attention: how these systems affect the supply of practicing physicians.

America’s physician shortage isn’t theoretical anymore. It is here. Hospitals are scrambling to fill call schedules, rural communities are waiting months for specialist appointments, and medical groups are watching senior clinicians retire earlier than planned. Among the many …

Systemic failure in professional environments: the myth of protection

Tiffiny Black, DM, MBA, MPA

Physician

March 4, 2026

There are moments when professional boundaries collapse under the weight of something more fundamental: our shared humanity.

You do not have to be a physician to recognize when a system has failed at its most basic level. You only have to be human.

What happened to Alex Pretti is not solely a tragedy confined to one profession, one agency, or one moment. It is a systemic rupture, one that exposes a dangerous …

The Blanket Sign: Recognizing difficult patient encounters in the ER

George Issa, MD

Physician

March 4, 2026

It is honestly impressive the lengths people will go to cure their illnesses, or, alternatively, to lovingly nurture their favorite delusions. And to be fair, I get it. We have all been sick. I am a doctor and I have still Googled home remedies for canker sores, tooth pain, and ingrown toenails. The difference is that experimenting with saltwater rinses is unlikely to end your life.

When it comes to actual, …

Coping with survivor guilt: wisdom from Saadi Shirazi and Viktor Frankl

Farid Sabet-Sharghi, MD

Physician

March 3, 2026

When someone you love is in a different location and suffering while you are safe, a heavy silence begins to fill the room. This survivor guilt is one of the most difficult burdens to carry because it turns even the smallest joys, a hot cup of tea, a peaceful morning, or a moment of laughter, into something that feels like a betrayal. The heart constantly asks: Why them and not …

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