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The humorous essay that predicted today’s medical anxiety epidemic

Conditions

March 10, 2024

In elementary school, we read an essay named “The Man Who Was a Hospital” by Jerome K. Jerome. This is a humorous essay in which the writer describes his misadventure in a humorous way. He says that once, he was reading a liver pill circular when he suspected that his liver was out of order. He went to the British Museum Library to study the details of liver disease. He …

Psychological safety: an overlooked factor in clinician burnout and moral injury in health care

Maiysha Clairborne, MD

Physician

March 10, 2024

I remember when I first decided to step away from medicine. While I wasn’t burned out like some of my colleagues whom I would later coach, I did have what I now understand to be compassion fatigue. It was a familiar feeling I had felt before, and I knew that if I continued down the path, it would take me right back to the night I almost ended my life.

Called …

Panic button: Escaping the broken health care escape room

Paula Muto, MD

Physician

March 10, 2024

Escape rooms have become very popular. Entering a room of seemingly unconnected clues with a group of family members or coworkers creates a sense of fear and excitement that ultimately leads, if successful, to a great sense of accomplishment and relief. The entire experience is designed to enhance trust among team members and inspire confidence in working together to solve difficult problems. When it comes to improving the health care …

Unlocking physician autonomy: the path to career freedom [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 9, 2024

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

Join Tod Stillson, a family physician and entrepreneur, as he shares his journey from traditional hospital employment to forming a micro-corporation. Discover how Tod regained professional autonomy and boosted his net worth through …

Elon Musk’s Neuralink aims to empower disabled with brain implants

Shalini Yagnik and Tejas Sekhar

Tech

March 9, 2024

As of January 29th, the Elon Musk startup Neuralink delivered its first brain implant to a human. As described in initial reports, the patient seems to be doing well and is already benefiting from increased interneuronal communication. The goal of this application is to empower those with disabilities, specifically those with sensory and motor deficits, to be able to control a keyboard or a cursor using their brain. This …

America’s nurses have PTSD: Will anyone listen to them?

Tara Rynders, RN

Conditions

March 9, 2024

My first clinical rotation as a nursing student was on the same floor where my mother died of cancer. And my very first patient was a young Hispanic man with four children. I was asked to tell him that he had pancreatic cancer and very little time left. I was 21 years old and the only Spanish speaker on the floor – back in those days, interpretive services were rarely …

A surgeon said no: the catalyst for my evolution

Mercy Hylton, MD

Physician

March 9, 2024

“When are you expecting?” Eighteen months after my third child was born, I was tired of hearing this question. In addition to the embarrassment I felt, I became increasingly worried that something was wrong with me as my body stubbornly held its postpartum shape.

Within a year of delivering each of my first two children, I was able to lose most of the weight I had gained and maintain a normal …

Health benefits under the microscope: What employers aren’t telling you [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 8, 2024

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

Join ophthalmologist Paul Pender delves into the results of the annual KFF survey, focusing on employer attitudes towards employee satisfaction, the increasing costs of healthcare, and the emerging trends reshaping the landscape of …

Critical care physician battles long COVID with hope and grit

Sonali Mantoo, MD

Conditions

March 8, 2024

I recognize your anguish. Long COVID is new, and I will do my best to support you through this new and confusing illness. This is all I wanted to hear in my countless doctor’s visits. Some came close. The rest were baffled, given how healthy I was prior to a “mild COVID” infection.

I felt patronized by my own colleagues for trying experimental therapy. When activities of daily living are a …

Physician employment 2.0: Unveiling the secret world of employment lite

Tod Stillson, MD

Finance

March 8, 2024

Chance meeting

In the fast-paced world of medicine, characterized by long hours, administrative burdens, and burnout, I’d like to share a story about an OB/GYN physician who discovered a path to professional freedom that revolutionized his career. Dr. B.A. had spent almost a decade working as a W-2 employee after finishing his residency. However, just before committing to a new contract with a substantial $500,000 annual salary, he came across an …

The burden of choice: Navigating the complexities of surrogate decision-making in medicine

Raya Kheirbek, MD, MPH

Physician

March 8, 2024

“I could have saved him,” the intensivist murmured, reflecting on a recent patient’s death. His silhouette was framed against the fading evening light that spilled into the ICU. His words, heavy with regret and resignation, floated over the hum of life-sustaining machines, recounting the tale of Caleb Stratford.

When Caleb Stratford (not real name), 61, was rushed to the hospital last June, the shock trauma team at the University of Maryland …

Physician work-life balance: How boundaries protect you and your patients

Shideh Shafie, MD

Physician

March 8, 2024

“Shideh joon, can you talk to this woman? We met her at a party, and her kid is sick.”

This request from my father exemplifies the blurred lines between personal and professional life many physicians experience. He had met a mother at a party whose child, after being diagnosed with a virus and prescribed rest and ibuprofen, was still feeling unwell. She had, however, thought it a good idea to drive …

Putting patients first: Safeguarding health care from AI risks [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 7, 2024

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

In this thought-provoking panel discussion, orthopedic surgeon Yoshihiro Katsuura and premedical students Kie Shidara, Maria Llose, and James Schmidt come together to examine the growing influence of artificial intelligence in the health care …

From intern to witness: Working in a resource-limited health care system

Dr. Muhammad Usama

Physician

March 7, 2024

A little anecdote

The year was 2022, and it marked the first month of my initial rotation at one of the largest tertiary care hospitals in Punjab, Pakistan. After having assisted with several procedures in the ENT operating room one morning, I found myself on call for the next 18 hours in the emergency department as the new intern.

As soon as the shift changed, a young boy landed in the ED …

Navigating spring allergies in the era of climate change

Kara Wada, MD

Conditions

March 7, 2024

As winter chill thaws and the spring flowers begin to bloom, many of us find ourselves grappling with the unwelcome return of sneezing, itching, and congestion that signals spring allergy season. This year, like nearly every in the last decade, seems to have arrived earlier—a trend that’s becoming increasingly common. As a physician specializing in allergy and immunology, I’ve observed firsthand the impact of climate change and air pollution on …

If surgery is so precise, why are we leaving outcomes up to chance?

Tamir Wolf, MD, PhD

Tech

March 7, 2024

It is well known that today there is significant variability in surgical outcomes – not only in different parts of the world, but even within the hospital. And, little understanding as to why. While video is becoming a key component of surgery, up until now, it has gone largely uncaptured, making it impossible for surgeons to surface how different techniques and surgical practices impact quality and efficiency. Compounding the problem …

Sunbeams of hope: one woman’s journey to heal and dream

Luissa Kiprono, DO, MBA

Physician

March 7, 2024

An excerpt from Push, Then Breathe: Trauma, Triumph, and the Making of an American Doctor.

Suzette purred and slid her soft body across my shins as I sat in the shade of the oak tree, a book splayed open on my belly and my eyes closed. I breathed deeply. In, out. In, out.

The late-afternoon air was beginning to cool. I sat …

Achieving internal balance and overcoming depression [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 6, 2024

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

We sit down with clinical psychologist Faust Ruggiero to delve into the transformative insights from his book, The Fix Your Depression Handbook. Faust offers practical guidance on achieving internal balance and breaking free …

Inside the mind of Alzheimer’s: a caregiver’s haunting nightmare

Max Sherman

Conditions

March 6, 2024

An excerpt from Releasing the Butterfly: A Love Affair in Four Acts.

Imagine there must be thousands, if not millions, of family members and caregivers who wonder what it must be like to be the one who has Alzheimer’s. Genie and I have always shared our thoughts and experiences with each other. Often, I would imagine telling her about something that had happened to me and could hear her voice …

Ultrasound shows promise as new pain treatment, targeting a specific brain region

L. Joseph Parker, MD

Conditions

March 6, 2024

A recent study published in PhysicsWorld documented a possible new treatment for pain. Something most physicians would be surprised to hear. Ultrasound. That’s right, low-frequency ultrasound waves, when directed to a specific area of the brain called the insula, have been shown to give some pain relief to persons who were being subjected to a standard contact heat evoked potential (CHEP). In this test, brief pulses of heat are …

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