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Assisted suicide is the wrong prescription

Physician

March 15, 2024

America expends much time, effort, and resources when people become seriously ill, bringing many face-to-face with their own mortality. For patients and their families, it is an emotional and difficult time under the best of circumstances. As a cardiologist, I participate in the decision-making that comes at this time, and it has provided me with the honor of delivering care that has allowed patients to rebound from acute illness and …

To the physician who didn’t match: You are not forgotten

Amna Shabbir, MD

Education

March 15, 2024

Match day. Many of you are rejoicing in the outcomes, while many of you might be experiencing these “other” emotions. They might sound like rejection, shame, hopelessness, despair, disappointment, anger, exhaustion, or self-doubt.

The wounds from this year’s match might still be fresh, and I do not want to thrust any toxic positivity on you. It’s okay if you are feeling awful right now; it’s natural. Give yourself time to process …

Anesthesia is not my name: Knowing each other’s name improves results in the OR

Dr. Zsuzsa Csik

Physician

March 15, 2024

As an anesthesiologist, I recall countless occasions when colleagues from the other side of the drape addressed me, like, “Anesthesia, did the patient receive antibiotics?” or “Anesthesia, I need more muscle relaxation here!”

Especially in my first years as a young physician full of insecurities, it intimidated me, so I never complained and only spoke up when vital.

Nowadays, I grasp the unspoken rules of the OR and can navigate the daily …

Understanding and addressing urinary incontinence [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 14, 2024

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

We tackle the important topic of urinary incontinence with Sarah Boyles, a urogynecologist. Join us as we explore the often overlooked but impactful effects of urinary incontinence on individuals’ quality of life, its …

Reducing political influence in health care: Building trust, transparency, and equity

Donald H. Marks, MD, PhD

Physician

March 14, 2024

In our hyperpolarized and political society, it seems everything has a political angle, including health care. I think that some of this conflict is unnecessarily but intentionally introduced by special interest groups to force a point, a change in policy, or the acceptance of societal positions that are controversial for many and not universally accepted. Examples include LGBT issues, gender changing or affirming care, abortion access, birth control, health …

Doctor charged after treating a DEA agent

L. Joseph Parker, MD

Physician

March 14, 2024

As I wait for the next patient to be brought in, I start reviewing their chart. Past medical records have been received and scanned in per protocol, I see. This won’t be the first time I’ve seen his chart as he had to submit medical records and be approved before he could get an appointment to see me.

A forty-something African American male has been complaining of chronic back pain for …

Blockchain technology in population health management

Regine Severe

Tech

March 14, 2024

Blockchain technology may revolutionize population health management. Patients and health care practitioners face the challenge of securely accessing, managing, integrating, and sharing health records. While blockchain is gaining attention in various industries, its application in health care and population health is still preliminary.

Data security and interoperability

By combining data security measures with innovative approaches to interoperability, blockchain technology offers a promising solution for overcoming the challenges inherent in traditional health care …

The doctor’s digital twin will see you now

Scott Ellner, DO, MPH

Tech

March 14, 2024

Imagine a day when you wake up from a perfect six hours and thirty-six minutes of restorative sleep. Overnight, a wearable device or implanted chip has been continuously monitoring and capturing a comprehensive set of your biological and physiological variables. The ingested data from the variables collected is processed through an adaptive machine learning algorithm to create a physician-directed longevity score to increase health span—the length of time a person …

From passion to burnout: When a doctor’s love hurts

Mary Braun, MD

Physician

March 14, 2024

If only I had managed Mrs. Smith’s blood pressure better, she wouldn’t have had that car accident.

If I had made the case for a statin better, Mr. Wu would not have had the diverticulitis episode.

These types of thoughts have been with me for all of my decades of practicing medicine. Somehow, I’m supposed to blame myself for things that are less than ideal about my patients’ situations and about which …

Navigating the health system with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 13, 2024

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

We sit down with Denise Reich, a patient advocate, to explore her journey of navigating the healthcare system with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS). Denise shares her experiences from the initial mention of EDS during …

Remembering Colgan Air Flight 3407: a medical responder’s story

Veronica Bonales, MD

Physician

March 13, 2024

Fifteen years later and I can still see it.

I wasn’t able to go to the scene that night, but several of my colleagues did. As morning broke, a new shift of my colleagues went to the scene. And on the next morning, I did. We were there to provide medical support to the hundreds of investigators, evidence collectors, workers, and firemen who were helping with the scene. We were working …

Why we all need to care about the primary care physician shortage

American College of Physicians

Physician

March 13, 2024

It is somewhat cliché these days to talk about physician workforce shortages, but recent data highlights that the problem is getting worse. Two research publications this past year were particularly alarming.

First, in a recent analysis of internal medicine resident career plans from 2019 to 2021, only 9.4% of internal medicine residents indicated they planned to pursue a career …

From overdose to ICU: a doctor’s battle for a young woman’s life

James Champion, DO

Conditions

March 13, 2024

An excerpt from Adventures of an American Medical Student.

I can still remember Ms. Osborne’s long, messy, brown hair and pale, attractive face like it was yesterday. She was young, and she presented to the Brighton Medical Center Emergency Department (ED) unconscious after an OxyContin overdose. I saw her as soon as she arrived with Brent Johnson, a young, trim, handsome MD who was wearing hunter green scrubs embroidered with …

“No” can be a complete sentence

Tomi Mitchell, MD

Physician

March 13, 2024

Nope, nada, no gracias, non, rara—they may sound different, but they all mean the same thing: no. In our world of instant messaging, the immediate gratification society seems to have lost the ability to unplug, unwind, and say no to unnecessary demands, which inevitably causes us more inner distress than any good.

The journey into my medical career was anything but easy. It was grueling and made me question myself – …

Read more…

“No” can be a complete sentence

How situational judgment tests help medical schools evaluate applicants

Emil Chuck, PhD

Education

March 13, 2024

Within 48 hours of every job posting, hundreds of applications pour in. As the hiring manager, you want to fill the position within two months, or your supervisor might cut it out of your budget. After triaging the unqualified applicants using data-driven filters and artificial intelligence tools, you still have a few hundred left. At this point, many hiring managers invite the remaining candidates to take a situational …

Exploring the benefits of Dry January for older adults [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 12, 2024

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

We sit down with Michael Pessman, a gerontologist, to discuss the unique risks older adults face with alcohol consumption. We’ll explore the enhanced physical and mental health benefits of participating in Dry January, …

Chiefs fan to gun violence advocate: How football and tragedy reshaped my mission

Nicole M. King, MD

Policy

March 12, 2024

Those who know me well and even those who don’t are aware of my passion and commitment to the Kansas City Chiefs. As an avid fan who was born and raised in KC, I can assure everyone that there were many dark years and even decades prior to the current situation that have allowed us to live on high for the past few years. Football has been an outlet for …

Primary care for all Americans: What the U.S. health care system can learn from Scituate, Rhode Island

Sara Pastoor, MD and Scott Conard, MD

Physician

March 12, 2024

In the quaint New England town of Scituate, Rhode Island, with a population of 10,000, a health care revolution was brewing. Dr. Michael Fine, a passionate family physician, had moved to Scituate with his family in 1992 to serve a quiet, rural community with significant health care challenges. By 1999, though, Scituate’s residents had become very worried about the cost of health care. Two insurers packed up and left …

Ditch the guilt and stress: Embrace your core values like this inspiring doctor mom

Kim Downey, PT & Sarah Wittry, DO

Physician

March 12, 2024

Kim Downey:

I recently had an enlightening conversation with Dr. Sarah Wittry. We enjoyed learning about all that we share in common!

As a physical therapist, I was delighted to hear that Dr. Wittry’s medical career began in physiatry/PM&R.

Having friends and relatives who have benefited from hospice care, I have tremendous respect for her current work in palliative medicine and hospice.

We spoke of how it has felt to each of us to …

High-profile legal cases: social media’s role in modern justice [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 11, 2024

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

We explore the intersection of high-profile legal cases and social media with renowned psychiatrist and author Doug Bremner. In this episode, we’ll be discussing the impact of social media on public perception, the …

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