I have too many important tasks during my workday to leave anything to chance in the hazy, slanted dawn. Failure is not on my schedule for tomorrow. So tonight, I will once again pack a lunch, lay out my clothes, and set up the coffee pot.
Before arriving at work in the morning, I will know who I will be seeing and—often—why they are coming to me. If, for some reason, …
Am I an internist or a milkman?
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We sit down with Claire Ellerbrock, a nurse practitioner with a background in psychiatric and behavioral health care. Claire shares her powerful and transformative experience with a patient named John, whose tragic passing …
Systemic failures in mental health care [PODCAST]
“I was terrified, and my foot was in so much pain,” said Mrs. C as I began our interview. There was a blood clot that had turned her toe blue. She went on to describe her history and briefly mentioned that she did not have medical insurance. With her pain now gone after a few days in the hospital, the anxiety of the financial burden of her stay was now …
From toe pain to financial strain: the hidden costs of medical care
It was a fresh start to my first day of medical school as a second-year student. With a slightly stronger arsenal of information compared to my first year, the energy was palpable. My team and I huddled in our small conference room, gathered around the table, ready to tackle our first case of the week as part of our team-based learning. The first patient was a 1-year-old female infant presenting …
Why speaking up in medical school could save lives
According to some academics, in 2019, a ban on junk food advertising across London’s entire public transport network—foods and drinks high in fat and salt and ads for foods–resulted in the prevention of 100,000 obesity cases. Yet the U.S. love affair with the new semaglutide-based weight loss drugs like Ozempic gives junk food advertising and availability a huge pass.
Drug makers and Wall Street are pleased that instead of changing …
Are rapid weight loss drugs hiding the real obesity problem?
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Join us for a conversation with Jillian Rigert, an oral medicine specialist and radiation oncology research fellow. Jillian shares her journey of overcoming mental illness during medical school, redefining self-worth, and challenging harmful …
A journey of self-worth and healing [PODCAST]
Despite the evening hour, the sun beats down on our group as we gather to orient new participants to the street run. It’s a typical Spring day in Florida, with temperatures already in the upper 80s. We stand in a circle on a downtown sidewalk in our green t-shirts. In the center of our circle are bags filled with socks, toiletries, and naloxone, an opioid reversal medication. We’ll distribute these …
Street medicine: a lifeline for Florida’s homeless amidst new public sleeping ban
As I drive to work and back, my eyes are on the ambient temperature reading in my car—it has been creeping up every day. I routinely listen to NPR, and extreme heat in various parts of the world comes up in daily discussions.
As a heart failure cardiologist in the clinic, I routinely ask my patients about their activity levels. Most of them complain about the heat and how it impacts …
A cardiologist’s urgent call to combat heat-related health risks
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Join us as we explore the world of clinician wellness and mental health with three remarkable guests. Kim Downey, a physician advocate, shares her insights on supporting health care professionals. Betsy Gall, author …
Untold stories of physician suicide and mental health [PODCAST]
An excerpt from The Connection Cure: The Prescriptive Power of Movement, Nature, Art, Service, and Belonging.
With slicked-back hair, a fancy-buttoned vest, and a politician-like charisma, you wouldn’t guess Dr. Bogdan Chiva Giurca, a doctor for England’s National Health Service (NHS), grew up in a Romanian village, handwashing his clothes because he couldn’t afford laundry. “I got to taste the real social determinants of health without knowing they were called …
How a group of British medical students fought for social prescribing
From the beginning of medical school, you are taught the rules of patient assessment; you are taught the “ABCs” – airway, breathing, and circulation. You don’t move on to B until you have established A. You don’t move on to C until B is established. If at any time you lose A or B, you go back to the beginning. Emergency medicine doctors are all about A. My first patient …
ER doctor’s adrenaline-fueled night: from life-saving procedures to unpredictable chaos
A large part of patient care in the modern corporate setting is working within your restrictions. Most corporate health care settings will limit how wide your scope can be, and this often determines how you treat patients. As a family physician working within a huge corporate setting, this oftentimes leads to alternate outcomes, such as referring a patient to another office where a procedure can be done safely or having …
How corporate health care is failing physicians and patients alike
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Join us as we explore the world of microplastics with fertility specialist Oluyemisi (Yemi) Famuyiwa. Learn about microplastics, how they permeate our environment, and their potential effects on human health and fertility. Yemi …
How microplastics affect our reproductive health [PODCAST]
In the past two weeks, there have been two social media posts, one from a resident physician and another from an attending physician, criticizing trainees. The resident was critical of a trainee’s inability to identify anatomical structures in the operating room, while the attending physician was entertained by a trainee who mistakenly wore a shoe cover as a scrub hat, with a photo of it included in the post. As …
Physicians’ social media criticism of trainees sparks controversy
Purposeful disregard for business education tears away the only platform that guarantees the highest incomes in private medical practice.
Along with the other challenges that continually reinforce physicians’ financial problems, the indoctrination of all medical students and later physicians with the “groupthink” myth that has been destroying physician practice careers for the last century is added to the list. You know, “You can practice medicine without a business education.”
The fact that …
Physicians create their own practice misery by following groupthink
I enter the exam room, met by a faint but lovely strawberry fragrance. Mrs. B. rests comfortably on an office chair; she always eschews the exam table. In her 80s, she is a formidable woman, heavyset, her deep brown skin somewhat pale, yet she sparkles in a long, bright, flowery dress, glasses with large silver frames, one hand resting on a cane of knotty oak. Her two adult sons stand …
When patients trust their doctors: a touching story of faith and medicine
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In this episode, we welcome Brooke Kempf, a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, to debunk common myths about schizophrenia and promote a more accurate understanding of the condition. We’ll explore misconceptions about the …
Debunking schizophrenia myths [PODCAST]
Another recent correlational study on the relationship between talcum powder (TP) and female reproductive tract cancers was published. This research originated in the 1970s when gynecologists at one hospital noted that an unusually high number of women were experiencing these cancers. They reviewed medical records and, in looking at possible causative agents, noted that many of the affected women used TP. They published their findings, and additional case review studies …
Talcum powder and female cancer: Separating myths from facts
Did you ever have a competitor in life who challenged you in every test and every election for a leadership role? If so, today, I would like you to imagine that person and replace them with an emotion that we, as psychiatrists, frequently encounter during our practice – anxiety!
Much like that pushy competition, anxiety can feel overwhelming and challenging. However, it also has the potential to push us to achieve …
How anxiety can be your biggest competitor and ally in achieving success
Pakistan, classified as a lower-middle-income nation, is experiencing a massive increase in the number of cancer cases. Our health expenditure as a proportion of the gross domestic product (GDP) is worryingly small in contrast to that of more developed nations.
We are fighting with illiteracy, poverty, limited resources, lack of awareness regarding screening and early presentation of tumors, and an inadequate number of trained oncologists. There are very few centers with …
How cultural barriers delay cancer treatment for women in Pakistan
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