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We dive into the pain care crisis in the United States with Cindy Perlin, a social worker and chronic pain expert. We explore the epidemic of chronic pain, the limitations of conventional treatments, …
How alternative therapies could be the key to ending the pain care crisis [PODCAST]
Like him or not, Bruce Springsteen’s albums have served as the soundtrack to our lives, writing songs that are a reflection of ourselves, challenging our assumptions, and helping us make sense of our messy, chaotic lives. People from all walks of life and from all over the world have found meaning in his music. So, it was no surprise that several months prior to the 2024 presidential election, while on …
The long walk home to a better health care system
Sometimes in life, we experience feelings of desperation, uncertainty, confusion, or curiosity.
I was desperate and wanted to explore my options regarding employment after completing two fellowships, one in oncology and the second one in palliative care.
I don’t have many opportunities in my city due to the limited number of oncology centers. So I started considering other centers, especially in the surrounding cities.
I was thinking about the nearest city, which is …
How this young physician’s job search uncovered hidden sexism in health care
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Join us for a conversation with Fazlur Rahman, a hematology-oncology physician and author of Our Connected Lives. In this episode, we explore how Fazlur’s journey from physician to patient transformed his understanding of …
A doctor’s life-changing realization about empathy after becoming a patient [PODCAST]
As a child, I was always reading. As is the case for many people, I lost my literary passion in high school and college as my time was taken up by extracurriculars and doomscrolling on my phone. One thing I have thoroughly enjoyed about my gap years between graduation from college and matriculation into medical school is reconnecting with reading. I have read a wide variety of books, but below …
My book reviews for premed students
Sure, going on a hike is great exercise. Every step brings you closer to your healthiest body. But did you know, hiking confers brain benefits? What’s more, if you do it right, hiking is magic for your mind. If you’re feeling scattered and your mind is drifting without direction, a properly curated hike can lead you to the right mental path. The color of your hike (green, blue, or red) …
A hike filled with color is mind magic
Too often, language and cultural barriers prevent diverse immigrant patients from receiving the quality treatment they deserve. Hospitals frequently fail to provide basic translation services that are efficient and culturally complementary for immigrant patients or fail to train health care professionals on how to incorporate these services into treatments. This lack of proper care for immigrant patients is a discriminatory, biomedical issue that robs them of their voice and rights.
Imagine: …
Voices for the voiceless: lives lost in translation
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We sit down with Paula Muto, a vascular surgeon, who discusses the challenges she’s faced in a health care system on the brink of collapse. From hospital closures driven by private equity to …
How to fix our broken health care system from the inside [PODCAST]
I lost an inspiration—my relative (Dr. PBA), a dedicated and talented doctor, who succumbed after a long and courageous battle with metastatic breast cancer and brain metastasis. She was the driving force behind my passion for oncology research, especially in breast cancer. Her journey began with a late and missed diagnosis, leading her across borders in search of evidence-based care, from one health care provider to another, and through relentless …
As an OB/GYN for the past 22 years, I have loved delivering babies, performing surgeries, and having long-term relationships with my patients. Now, I am on the other side of things, as a patient myself. I was diagnosed with adult polyglucosan body disease (APBD) in April of 2023 at the age of 59.
APBD is an ultra-rare, neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a deficiency of glycogen-branching enzyme. The result: an accumulation of …
When a physician gets a rare disease diagnosis
I am a surgeon from a family of surgeons, all based in Massachusetts. Throughout my career, I have faced many challenges, both in and outside of the operating room. Like most doctors, I am saddened by the current collapse of our system in general and my own hospital in particular, which is facing closure due to mounting debt owed to private equity. For the record, I have been warning my …
A physician’s perspective on the crisis in Massachusetts health care
All physicians are leaders, not just those with designated leadership titles, such as department chief, chief medical officer, or CEO. Leadership – i.e., influencing behavior to achieve a desired result – is foundational to the role of doctor.
But we aren’t routinely trained as leaders. More critically, as brand-new physicians, we aren’t explicitly told we are leaders. Typically, we think a “physician leader” is someone who has been promoted to an …
How better physician leadership can benefit our health care systems
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We dive deep into the evolving role of artificial intelligence in health care with Muhamad Aly Rifai, a practicing internist and psychiatrist. We explore how AI is not only shaping clinical care but …
How AI could disrupt the future of health care regulations [PODCAST]
Up until a few years ago, I was living my life entirely in fear. In my earliest years, I remember lying awake at night judging if the creak I heard was significant enough to mean someone was breaking in. I was scared of basements, scared of strangers, worried if my parents would come home safely—the usual collection of childhood fears. During adolescent years, the fears of my approval-seeking self focused …
How I conquered fear and reclaimed my life—a doctor’s story
This year, the world was shocked by the tragic death of 33-year-old Rebecca Cheptegei, who had just completed the women’s marathon at the Olympics in Paris. She succumbed to her injuries in a Kenyan hospital after her partner’s brutal attack left 80 percent of her body burned. This horrific incident is not isolated; it is part of a disturbing global pattern of gender-based violence (GBV).
Gender-based violence and the life-changing power of reconstructive surgery for survivors
An excerpt from Our Connected Lives by permission of Texas Tech University Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
I used to think that as an active oncologist for thirty-five years, I was well-versed on the subject of empathy. But I was wrong. It was only when, in a matter of seconds, I went from doctor …
From doctor to patient: a life-changing lesson in empathy
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In this episode, nurse consultant Beth Boynton joins us to discuss the transformative power of the Medical Improv Toolkit in clinical settings. We dive into how playful, experiential activities can enhance communication, reduce …
Transforming health care communication with simple playful activities [PODCAST]
For decades, patients with restless legs syndrome (RLS) have been prescribed medications that, unbeknownst to them, were making their symptoms worse. Many doctors who have been prescribing these drugs are unaware that these treatments—primarily ropinirole and pramipexole—are exacerbating the condition. Thankfully, this is about to change.
In September, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) released new clinical practice guidelines that recommend against these drugs (marketed as Requip and Mirapex, respectively) …
The unexpected truth about restless legs syndrome treatments
I spend most of my working hours trying to unlock superpowers. When I chose to pursue medicine—pediatrics, and later, developmental behavioral pediatrics—I didn’t realize I would be learning to decode languages. These languages aren’t always spoken, yet over time, I’ve developed a sharp instinct for reading them. Every time I step into an exam room, my task is to slowly unravel how a child sees the world, communicates with it, …
Bridging worlds through the language of neurodiversity
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We dive into the power of expressive writing with guest Aine M. Greaney, an accomplished writer. Aine shares her personal journey through caregiving, journaling, and emotional healing during a difficult time in her …
How journaling transforms emotional turmoil into healing for caregivers [PODCAST]
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