I moved to Ontario, Canada, a little less than a year ago, with a sense of adventure and a spring in my step. I was excited at the thought of being reunited with family, apprehensive about the hurdles in my path to becoming a practicing physician, but hopeful that there would be light at the end of the tunnel. There had to be.
I had been chief resident at an ACGME-accredited …
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In this episode, we discuss the important factors that physicians need to consider when reviewing their employment contracts with guest Dennis Hursh, a physician contract attorney. From compensation to benefits, we dive into the details of what …
A young teen patient, eyes averted, clutching a cell phone, sits in my office. It’s a scheduled annual exam, and the patient reports some ailments—fatigue, anxiety, and poor sleep. Across the room, the parent sits in apparent composure, but as my eyes meet the parent’s gaze and hover here for an instant, I register pain, frustration, and desperation. The patient’s symptoms are not new, and there may have been calls …
Artificial intelligence (AI) and generative pre-trained transformers (GPTs) have made significant advancements in recent years, with potential applications in various industries. The health care sector stands to benefit significantly from AI and GPTs, as they offer promising solutions for improving patient care, diagnostics, and treatment. This article will discuss the role of leading AI models like Copilot Bing, Bard, BioGPT, GatorTron, and …
How can health care professionals put patients at ease before and during stressful procedures? A new virtual reality (VR) technology might be the answer for millions of patients with fears and concerns about visiting the clinic.
Needles are the most common office procedure, and needle fear is nearly universal in young children. Studies show nearly two-thirds of children and one-fourth of adults have a fear of needles. Poorly managed …
An alarming trend has emerged in my medical practice in recent years: I’m seeing more and more young adults with colorectal cancer.
When I began practicing as a family physician 21 years ago, I never saw patients in their 40s and 50s with the disease, much less ones in their 30s. Now, I diagnose two to three people in those age groups every year.
On the heels of National Colorectal Cancer Awareness …
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Join us on this episode of the podcast, where we speak with Marc Nelson, a scientific researcher, about the growing field of spiritual science. Despite the historical divide between science and spirituality, Nelson shares how pioneering work …
As I look at his obituary pictures, I can’t help but feel a sense of longing. I wish I could have known him – that other side of him that his family, friends, and colleagues are sharing in their photos. They’re all smiling and laughing, hugging each other, and radiating a genuine sense of happiness.
He was one of our main ICU physicians, a brilliant man who could meticulously turn a …
As I finish my 21st year of clinical practice, I have been reflecting a lot about my career. Several friends asked me for advice as their children begin medical school. Instead of repeating myself, I decided to make a list. Here are the five things I would tell my younger self.
1. Just apply. Recently, I attended a luncheon and sat next to a female physician. I hadn’t met …
Though celebrated by anti-abortion advocates across the country, the overturning of Roe v. Wade by no means closed the book on the abortion debate. However, it was a victory for both human rights and federalism. The decision reinforced that the U.S. is a constitutional republic composed of individual states, each with its own agenda. States are now individually empowered to enact abortion legislation anywhere along the human gestation cycle. As …
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of 2020, approximately 5.8 million people in the U.S. were living with Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive brain disorder affecting memory, thinking, and behavior. The prevalence of this disease is expected to continue to rise as the population ages. The number of people living with the disease is projected to grow threefold to 14 million by 2060. While there is …
It is no longer news that Silicon Valley Bank has collapsed like a pack of cards. Quite unsettling is also the uncanny way the whole enterprise unraveled like a Ponzi scheme. Faced with uncertainty and a crisis of confidence, investors went on a withdrawal binge. But how does the crash of a bank for tech startups in Santa Clara, California, that caters to extremely high net worth individuals concern an …
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Maybe dogs aren’t the only ones drinking water from a toilet bowl. In the United States, we have easy access to clean water. We use culinary water to do our dishes, bathe, wash our cars, and even fill our toilets. Most Americans don’t ever consider the possibility of running out of drinkable water; the same can’t be said for the friends I made in the Philippines. Let me tell you …
The first time I saw a preceptor use the American College of Cardiology’s atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (mercifully, ASCVD) risk calculator, I was hooked. As a first-year medical student, data nerd, and aspiring primary care provider, I love a good diagnostic tool. Watching as he entered our patient’s pertinent medical history, I ran down the list of risk factors for cardiovascular disease we’d just learned in my …
This article is sponsored by Pfizer.
The diagnosis and treatment of migraine, a debilitating neurological disease that affects nearly 40 million people in the U.S. and one billion worldwide, is poised for a transformation, and primary care physicians (PCPs) hold the key.
Migraine is the most common diagnosis among patients presenting with headache in the primary care setting. More than 50 percent of all visits for migraine take place in …
Recently, two of my most beloved teachers came to our continuity clinic as Mrs. Melendez brought in her daughter, Maria, for her annual physical (not real names). I have known the Melendez family for nearly the entire 18+ years I have been at this clinic, at first taking care of their four older children who were at that time in early middle school through high school. At one of the …
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In this episode, we have Dennis Hursh, a physician contract lawyer, sharing his experiences in dealing with hospitals and their tendency to condescend towards physicians and their lawyers, also known as “hospitalsplaining.” He discusses a recent example …
When I was growing up, I remember my father saying the phrase, “Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.” In today’s world, I find myself often recalling those words. Most of life these days should not be taken at face value.
It also appears that if you shout out falsehoods frequently enough, then it seems that members of extreme political groups will believe it as the gospel truth. …
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