10 suggestions for a smoother high school experience

Conditions
June 13, 2022

I used to spend most of my day listening.

As a high school counselor, I encouraged teenagers to talk. Feeling stressed, they said, is their automatic response to demanding teachers, parents’ high expectations, and the drama of shifting friendship alliances.

Daily dilemmas and problems affect everyone: the terrified boy who just heard rumors he was going to be jumped after school, the teary-eyed girl whose teacher embarrassed her in front of the …

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Re-wounding the wounded healer

Physician
June 13, 2022

I walk onto the inpatient unit on a Monday morning. The feeling of discomfort begins to overwhelm me. Perhaps this was due to being forced back to inpatient, but I felt it had to do with changes in the process.

I started my training at a time when therapy was a central part of education. Understanding even the most psychotic patients was a key element of our field. I do not …

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Gender inequality is making burnout worse [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 12, 2022
YouTube video

“If we want to alleviate the fatigue and frustration women physicians are experiencing, we can always start by solving two old problems: (1) All doctors need fewer bureaucratic tasks forced upon them, and (2) women physicians must be able to work in environments free of harassment and discrimination.

There’s yet another solution …

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3 decades in medicine: new name(s), same me

Physician
June 12, 2022

Many women change their last names after marriage, after a divorce, or just because. During my 30-year career in medicine, I have had three last names. Yes, not a typo, three!

I got married for the first time during my internal medicine residency. I didn’t change my name and was “Mrs. Married Name” to friends and family and “Dr. Maiden Name” at work. I grew as a physician, conducted research, and …

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3 reasons practices should implement patient-initiated collaborative texting

Tech
June 12, 2022

Medical care continues to advance at a frenetic pace, with new diagnostics, treatments, and therapies arriving monthly. So why are medical communications still stuck in the 20th century?

Despite the ubiquitous presence of smartphones among consumers of all ages, medical practices still use one-to-one telephone calls as the primary communications vehicle. While some communications have moved to patient portals, responses often take hours — or days — if they are answered …

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Receiving feedback and critique is a complicated art

Physician
June 12, 2022

In the mid 16th century, surgical education was that of a true apprenticeship. The student learned through direct observership and imitation of a skilled, elder surgeon. It wasn’t until the beginning of the 20th century that surgical education evolved into a formalized and structured program. Dr. William Osler introduced the concepts of specialty clerkships and bedside rounds in the late 1800s. Graduated autonomy, introduced by Dr. William Halsted in the …

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Thoughts of a retired physician [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 11, 2022
YouTube video

“COVID-19 melted down the world at a very inopportune time in history. Just as medicine was getting a handle on previously intractable conditions, from sophisticated diabetes management to less invasive surgical procedures, a new threat that devastates our population with few good treatments overwhelms health care.

Medical workers come to the rescue, …

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The cost of cosmetic procedures resulting in short-term disabilities

Conditions
June 11, 2022

In a viral video shared on Twitter in 2021, we see a line of women waiting to board a flight from Santo Domingo to Atlanta. Airline staff in safety vests stand around the women, all of whom are sitting—in wheelchairs. These women had recently undergone the popular Brazilian butt lift or “BBL” surgery, where fat is transferred from one part of the body to the buttocks, despite …

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How the EHR is like a growing blob

Physician
June 11, 2022

I’m not sure about you, but May 27 cannot come soon enough for me. Finally, after three years, we will get the next installment of Stranger Things and another round of monsters, friendships, and 80s memories.

For those of us Gen X-ers who grew up when all that retro fashion and music wasn’t retro, it’s a return to simpler days. Thankfully we didn’t have to worry about demogorgons IRL back then.

Now …

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Simple solutions for social connections

Conditions
June 11, 2022

When Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa acquired the company that makes Lovot,  a pet-sized robot for emotional support, it spoke about more than a financial investment in robotics. The news was tied to love, companionship, and healing. It also revealed the global loneliness and social isolation pandemic. The use of assistive robots is gaining popularity in Japan and China to deal with the caregiver shortage because social isolation is …

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Nurses are struggling in isolation [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 10, 2022
YouTube video

“It’s apparent to most that the dark clouds and stormy waters in the business of health care continue. There is much that needs attention from both health care workers and consumers.

We have learned that when we work together, strength, creativity, and energy multiply exponentially.

We need to move forward and create a …

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Burnout is a sign of something more sinister

Physician
June 10, 2022

Burnout is a sign of something even more sinister. It’s a sign that our society is out of balance. We’ve become a society that values productivity above all else. We’re always working, hustling, and trying to get ahead. And, as a result, we’re burnout. We’re exhausted, anxious and depressed.

We’re struggling to keep up with the demands of our jobs and our lives. And, worst of all, we’re not even sure …

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Shift from fighting for reproductive rights to fighting for reproductive justice

Policy
June 10, 2022

Although feminist movements include the fight for reproductive rights, they tend to forget to center on justice. Historically, the protection of women’s reproductive rights has not been a priority for governments; however, the drive and the act of attacking and dismantling a women’s bodily autonomy and dignity has been and continues to be. In the U.S., the Second Great Awakening, a period in the late 1800s that …

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A psychiatrist presenting emotion [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 9, 2022
YouTube video

“Many families still prefer their providers to wear a mask. I have no way to know who carries what political or health views around their mask-wearing. Their masks were off, and mine was on. When I asked them for their preference of whether they feel comfortable with me wearing a mask …

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Nurture yourself, get rest, and allow yourself the space you need to heal. #MeFirst

Physician
June 9, 2022

An individual crisis unfolds daily. Each starts small. When I learned about epidemics in medical school, I thought they were uncommon. I was wrong.

COVID has taught us what happens if we do not address a crisis with the urgency it deserves.

The COVID crisis quickly became an epidemic and then a pandemic.

The obesity crisis is now an epidemic.

The substance abuse crisis is now an epidemic.

The mental health crisis is now an …

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Transition planning: financial moves for medical residents and fellows

Finance
June 9, 2022

The unpaid time between training and practice is probably the one area of planning that catches most residents and fellows off guard. Transition planning involves preparing for the financial and lifestyle changes as you transition from training to practice.

Many new decisions will need to be made during this time, such as:

  • Determining which benefits you can and should continue from your former employer.
  • Electing benefits offered by your new employer.

    • …

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A physician’s infertility story [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 8, 2022
YouTube video

“My IVF baby turns 12 this week — and having attempted frozen and fresh IVF cycles six years ago, which did not result in pregnancies — I can also hold tenderly the space for those who have heard those words, ‘Only one child?’

Yes. Only one. Only one, magical, amazing, child destined …

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Physician choose wisely: 4 tips when choosing your next job

Physician
June 8, 2022

Choosing your employer is the most important next decision you will make for yourself. Signing that employment contract is the single most important use of your signature you will ink and affect your happiness for years, even the rest of your career. PAs and NPs: This applies to you, too.

1. Decide where you want to live. Location matters, and in today’s polarized political environment, choosing a state or region to …

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The conundrum of feeding our minds and our babies

Conditions
June 8, 2022

In 2022, you might have never envisioned that the United States of America would be among other countries struggling to feed its babies. As of the first week of May, more than 40 percent of formula brands are out of stock, and many families are desperately searching high and low, near and far, to find substitute options. In the background of this chaos, I cannot help but consider how we …

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The past, present, and future of fitness

Conditions
June 8, 2022

Before the contemporary context of spandex and exercise trends, physical activity and exercise were integral to daily life for most human beings across historical contexts. In this piece, we explore the historical roots of physical fitness born out of necessity for combat and survival.

Ancient fitness

The earliest evidence of fitness training dates back over three thousand years before the rise of the Greek Olympics, in 4000 BCE. Ancient civilizations residing in …

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