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We welcome Ron M. Aryel, a pediatrician who shares his powerful journey through medical school and residency as a physician with cerebral palsy. Facing discrimination, ableism, and hostility from colleagues and superiors, Ron …
How this pediatrician overcame cerebral palsy and discrimination in medicine [PODCAST]
“I’m in my final year of orthopedic surgery residency and will do a one-year fellowship (I finish July 2026). I’m in the early phases of talking to potential employers, many of which say they could offer a stipend as I finish my training. Do you have any advice on how a stipend should be optimally structured?”
Stipend secrets: Navigating your final year of residency
As you approach the final stretch of your …
Navigating stipend offers: a resident’s question
I miss my stethoscope—the small black one with the tiny neonatal head. I wore it around my neck constantly while on duty in the NICU and L&D. It served as an outward symbol of my knowledge and experience. Inwardly, it reminded me of all the things I could detect about a baby by simply looking, listening, and gently touching. My little stethoscope was ready in any emergency. It helped me …
Early retirement may not be the solution to your burnout
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We sit down with Michael J. Grace, attorney and author of The Mumbo Jumbo Fix: A Survival Guide for Effective Doctor-Patient-Nurse Communication. We explore how health care communication has evolved before, during, and …
How COVID changed doctor-patient-nurse communication forever [PODCAST]
I was raised in the Catholic Church. The solemn, reserved, respectful quiet as the priest whispered out his occasional reverent chants. That’s what I knew. That was the only thing I grew to love of the Catholic faith.
This friend of mine. We met years ago by happenstance. She was a firm believer in God, her husband, her dog, her daughters, and her Christian novels that she read feverishly.
She also loved …
Why prayers alone couldn’t save my friend from cancer
Many students only learn basic health facts, like how to put a condom on a banana or that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. But when it comes to making real-life health decisions, this scarce knowledge just doesn’t cut it. Shockingly, only 12 percent of American adults have proficient health literacy skills. This gap becomes especially clear in college, where young adults face new independence and make crucial …
The health crisis no one’s talking about: Why teens need better health education
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We sit down with Audra King, a surgery resident, to explore the challenges and toxic environments that medical trainees often face during their residency. From instances of disrespect and workplace bullying to the …
Inside the toxic reality of surgical residency [PODCAST]
Hearing about the school shooting last week at Apalachee High School in Georgia, I couldn’t imagine the gut-wrenching pain that the victims and the local community felt as yet another mass shooting tore apart families.
The tragedy reminded me that no one is safe from the horror of gun violence. As a pain physician, I’ll never forget hearing one of my patients say, “If I don’t get the pain fixed, I …
We can prevent another Apalachee High School, if we have the courage to act
Continuous quality improvement undoubtedly contributes to the ongoing honing of best practices in medicine. This health care-specific parallel of total quality management programs in business helps us daily inch closer to the ultimate goal of eradicating patient harm. Health care professionals familiar with these variation-reducing processes are likely well-versed in the popular Ishikawa fishbone diagram. While the focus is intended to be spread across materials, processes, equipment, and …
P.K. presents for a medical evaluation to the early intervention program. He is 26 months old. P.K.’s parents self-referred to the early intervention program because of concerns regarding a delay in his development. The mother reports that he is not saying any words and is not following directions. He does not turn to the sound of his name. He appears to be in his own world. When I, the pediatric …
Gaps in the pediatric care of autistic children
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We bring together three passionate advocates for physician wellness: Michael Foti, an internal medicine physician; Tushar Bhagat, a research assistant professor; and Kim Downey, a physical therapist. Join us as they share their …
Physician wellness: stories and solutions [PODCAST]
They died by suicide—that is the politically correct way to say it. I want to be politically correct, but I am not sure words can dampen the impact. Someone just lost a friend, a son, a partner, a child. Somehow, we believe if we say the words prettily, it takes the sting away—it doesn’t. No matter how you say it, they left the world today, or yesterday, or whatever day …
When words aren’t enough: the heartbreaking truth about suicide
In December 2019, I reached out to the grief counselors at the hospice organization that cared for my mother as she passed. It had been almost a year since her death, and I was running out of time to seek help. I had spent so much energy ensuring my daughters were OK, believing, as I was taught in medical school, that grief just passes. Back then, I learned grief lasted …
Refill your cup to pull yourself back from the ledge
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Join us in this episode as we sit down with Janet A. Jokela, an internal medicine and infectious disease physician. Janet reflects on her transformative residency at Boston City Hospital, where the “city …
From residency to leadership: the evolution of internal medicine [PODCAST]
Primary health care is the cornerstone of non-emergency medical services, offering essential support to patients and promoting overall wellness. Even individuals in good health benefit from regular visits to their primary care physician (PCP) to sustain their well-being. However, the primary care sector faces numerous challenges today, ranging from increased patient demand to the complexities of modern health care needs. Addressing these challenges is essential to sustaining the effectiveness and …
Why your primary care doctor is overwhelmed
Neurosurgery is an exhilarating and rewarding field that combines cutting-edge technology with the intricate art of surgical precision. Yet, despite its allure, many medical students feel intimidated or uncertain about pursuing this path. As a fourth-year medical student applying to neurosurgery, I have noticed several barriers that could be addressed to make the field more accessible and inclusive for future generations.
One of the primary obstacles is the lack of early …
How can we make neurosurgery more accessible to future generations?
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We explore the unique challenges faced by patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) during dental appointments. Our guests, Brian Jones, a health care executive, and Tina Saw, a dentist and health care …
How technology is changing dental appointments for patients with intellectual disabilities [PODCAST]
All physicians understand that the gradual disintegration of private medical practice in our nation is already happening and that our government continues to take complete control of health care and the medical profession by any means possible. Physicians in medical practice (both employed and independent) are reaching a level of intolerable strain imposed by fee restrictions and medical practice mandates, among other challenges.
All of these issues result from one core …
Physicians: What you don’t know about money and practice success will shock you
Reflections: Day 5
It’s a strange feeling to look down at my phone calendar and realize that nothing will be grayed out because it happened, but only because time keeps ticking.
It’s interesting and beautiful to watch my kids keep moving forward as the community around us is so devastated: playing music, rediscovering the joy that is reading, helping clean up the yard, making a game out of who does which chore …
A pediatrician’s reflections on resilience and rebuilding in Asheville after the hurricane
The floods came and we were not ready. Miles from the ocean, flanked by mountainous sentinels, we never thought to build an ark.
The skies darkened and the deluge commenced. Rapturous winds splintered ancient oaks and rent open the heavens. Barbarous gusts cleaved power lines, fractured telephone poles, brought a power grid to its knees. The lights went out in the west. Feeble candlelights flickered to life as the rivers swelled. …
After Hurricane Helene: How Asheville rose from the floodwaters stronger than ever
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