Much has been written on the social divides laid bare and amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thankfully, the more divisive punditry and polemics have receded along with the COVID-19 mandates. And yet, as professionals in health care who have worked in direct patient care and in support of our clinician colleagues, we still see a broad gap separating the culture and worldviews of the people in health care and the …
A recent post on KevinMD resonated with me, probably because I am a doctor who grew up in a rural area and returned to a small-town practice in my home county. Like the author, I experienced the suffocating grip of traditional hospital employment as it slowly drained the life out of me.
Before burnout consumed me, I took proactive steps to start a micro-corporation and transitioned …
I’ve been reflecting lately because, honestly, I feel like I am—finally—good at primary care. With experience, patience, and, dare I say, wisdom, I experience satisfaction, knowing I can do this job. I’m the real McCoy. Or, in my case, the real McCarthy. And despite this, maybe because of this, the effort required often leaves me incapable of doing much else.
At 47 years old, having survived a pandemic, having found my …
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We have a conversation with Claudia Finkelstein, an internal medicine physician, as she reimagines the concept of physician burnout. Join us as Claudia introduces her alternative model for addressing burnout and discusses the multifaceted factors contributing to …
Violence and assaults against health care workers are now reported at an all-time high. While health care workers comprise just 13% of the U.S. workforce, they experience 60% of all workplace assaults. Health care has been declared America’s most dangerous profession due to workplace violence. Health care and social service industries experience the highest rates of injuries caused by workplace violence and are five times as likely to suffer a …
It is not breaking news that we are currently in the midst of a mental health and substance use disorder crisis. We saw a record number of overdose deaths in a 12-month period from May 2022 to May 2023. According to the CDC, overdose deaths totaled more than 112,000 during that period. There has been an all-hands-on-deck effort to curb these deaths with efforts aimed at decreasing supply, educating the …
Medicine, for many of us, has been a calling. Since I was a child, I knew I would be a doctor, and I did everything in my power to make that dream come to fruition. Nearly 13 years of education, hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, years of lost income and retirement savings, countless hours away from family and loved ones, and a disregard for personal passions and hobbies …
A monologue in the style of America Ferrera’s character Gloria in the Barbie Movie (original script by Greta Gerwig).
It is literally impossible to be a woman in medicine. You can be at the top of your class in medical school and residency, and yet you will never think you’re good enough. Like, we have to always be infallible, but somehow, we’re made to feel it’s never …
We’ve known for the last decade that electronic health records (EHRs) have a significant impact on physicians’ ability to deliver high-value care. It not only has a largely negative influence on their quality of life, which bleeds over into the entire health care landscape, but also impacts their ability to successfully adapt practices to evolving payment models intended to improve patient health outcomes — especially important for primary care.
Yet despite …
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Join Parastoo Jangouk, a dual board-certified expert in gastroenterology and internal medicine. Discover her remarkable journey from growing up in an oppressive society to becoming a successful physician and entrepreneur. Explore the powerful concept of “reverse leadership” …
It is a typical day on the inpatient unit. A patient is refusing medication, and I want to take her to court to compel her to take medication while her lawyer is arguing for her right to refuse.
Me: “She’s clearly psychotic. She has lost her family, and she has no place to live… all because of these delusions.”
Lawyer: “But is she behaving in a dangerous way?”
Me: “Being unable to survive …
My flights had been delayed, and I did not arrive at the hotel in downtown San Francisco until almost 1 a.m. As I exited the Uber, struggling to shoulder my briefcase and wrangle my suitcase, I was a bit startled to hear a very loud voice coming from my left. “Hey, mister, do you have a dollar or two?” I had been in the city for less than one minute, …
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It took four tries, but we synchronized the newest episode of Outlander perfectly. Just outside of Philadelphia, I’m watching the same scene in lockstep with my best friend, Corinne, one thousand miles away in St. Louis. We make all the same faces in response to the dialogue. We roll our eyes together when someone dares to suggest that Claire won’t be able to heal someone who’s sick.
“I’ll honor you until …
“A doctor must work eighteen hours a day and seven days a week. If you cannot console yourself to this, get out of the profession.”
During the 20th century, these famous words from Dr. Martin Henry Fischer (1879-1962) were often quoted to students on their first day of medical school with a veiled threat to “toughen up.” Unfortunately, remnants of this outdated “get over it or get out” attitude in …
This article is sponsored by symplr.
Transforming hospital operations: impacts on clinicians
In the rapidly evolving world of health care, the integration of advanced technology is not just an option, but a necessity. This transformation is not merely about adopting new tools; it’s …
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Attorney Andrea Sonnenberg joins us to delve into the transformative power of bibliotherapy. Join us as we explore how literature can be a potent tool for addressing mental health challenges, offering insights and solutions for individuals and …
There may be a distinction between sensitivity and sensibility; however, these lines often blur and even overlap rapidly. Conducting oneself sensibly both at and outside of work automatically assumes that one’s sensitivity is well-attuned to the present times. Simultaneously, regularly refreshing sensitivity presumably ensures that one always carries oneself sensibly, both at and outside of work. Yet, it’s worth pondering: what is the origin of human common sense? Has our …
Burnout:
“An erosion of the soul caused by a deterioration of one’s values, dignity, spirit, and will.”
– Christine Maslach (The Truth about Burnout by Maslach and Leiter)
“Shredding of the soul.”
– Rita Nakashima Brock (Director of the Shay Moral Injury Center at Volunteers of America)
The word “soul” captures our attention by speaking in a language that bypasses the superficial, connecting directly to our deepest values and thoughts. In the context of burnout …
A solid mass silently grew on my kidney. An unwelcome addition. Asymptomatic. Discovered haphazardly during a CT scan of my lungs … And it revealed itself.
At first, I was devastated. Will cancer ever leave me alone? It has already visited me twice before. First, breast cancer, also asymptomatic, detected during my very first mammogram at the age of 42, and then a troublesome mole that tested positive for melanoma.
I seemed …
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