The health of world leaders has often played a critical role in shaping the course of history. Decisions made while under the influence of poor health or illness can have far-reaching consequences, and the untimely demise of some leaders has altered the trajectory of nations. This article explores the lives of a few famous leaders whose health issues significantly impacted their countries …
Eleven-year-old Abby sat nervously in the emergency department, her eyes darting around the room as she clutched Patches, her beloved stuffed sheep. Her guardian sat beside her, anxiety etched on her face as she explained the situation to me. Abby had been diagnosed with depression at the tender age of nine after suffering years of abuse and neglect at the hands of her biological parents.
A few months ago, a loving …
“I don’t know how you do what you do.” About 90 percent of the time, this is the response I get when I tell people that I am a hospice physician. “Isn’t it sad to work with dying people all the time? You lose all of your patients… that must be so difficult.”
Having been exposed to the many different ways that people can die throughout my medical training, I see …
Nearly 290,000 American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2023. Thankfully, the vast majority will be diagnosed with clinically localized disease and can be cured with either surgery or radiotherapy. Emerging clinical trial data have cemented stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), a form of radiation in which ≤5 daily doses are delivered with high precision in generally five or fewer treatments, as a curative option for most men with …
The medical field has always been an ever-evolving landscape with technological advancements, treatments, and diagnoses. But the workforce behind these advancements also plays a crucial role in shaping the medical industry. Over the years, different generations have contributed unique work habits and values, impacting how doctors practice medicine. In this article, we will explore the work habits of Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Millennials and discuss how these generational differences …
Today, the current health care ecosystem is broken and in need of an overhaul. To start, this country’s high cost of health care is not sustainable, preventing millions of Americans from accessing important health care services. The recent ruling will only exacerbate this to remove requirements for preventive screenings from the Affordable Care Act. Further, there are vast omissions of care provided to individuals in historically marginalized communities. These inexcusable …
I need to tell you about John (not his real name). He is a Cameroonian immigrant who came to the U.S. on a student visa. He waited tables in a popular pub in downtown Houston to earn a little change and support himself through school. Hardworking, courteous, and gregarious, John wears the most infectious and charming smile you have ever seen.
It didn’t take long for him to get noticed by …
As I’m pre-charting for my primary care clinic, I see Ms. C on the schedule, whom I know well through our nearly monthly follow-up visits over the past two and a half years of residency. We talk in Spanish as it’s her preferred language. She shares her escalating distress over being an immigrant, a full-time caregiver for her dad with advancing dementia and three kids, and current marital issues while …
As artificial intelligence continues to evolve, businesses are increasingly integrating AI-powered tools, such as ChatGPT by OpenAI, to enhance productivity and automate processes. However, using these tools without understanding the implications of feeding proprietary data into them can lead to unintended consequences, as demonstrated by the recent Samsung incident.
The Samsung incident and other examples
Samsung allowed their staff to use ChatGPT to improve their coding skills. Unfortunately, employees input proprietary code …
Millions of Americans are more worried than ever about obesity. And millions are willing to consider weight-loss methods they never had before, including metabolic and bariatric surgery and anti-obesity medications. The reason: a pandemic that put those with obesity in its crosshairs. These are among the findings from a recent survey from the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) and NORC, an independent research organization.
Fears …
In the spring of 2020, as COVID-19 swept through hospitals in the tri-state area, Dr. Lorna Breen, a physician who served as the medical director of the emergency department at New York-Presbyterian Allen Hospital, contracted COVID while caring for patients. Shortly after returning to work under relentlessly overwhelming circumstances, she died by suicide.
Dr. Breen had no prior mental health conditions.
As her story made national headlines, Dr. Breen’s death became …
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As painfully revealed by the coronavirus pandemic, the American health care system is ailing, plagued by the inefficiencies and greed of big business and for-profit medicine. It is not unlike the virus, attacking vital organs one by one until the whole is weakened. In more grave cases, the severely ill can’t survive. In much the same way our health care system is killing Americans. The sickness is proving incurable, for …
Artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly advanced in various fields, including health care, finance, and education. One of the most promising areas for AI application is criminology, which has the potential to transform how criminal investigations are conducted. The groundbreaking capabilities of ChatGPT-4 have the potential to revolutionize criminology by aiding forensic science, crime scene analysis, and criminal investigations in medical and non-medical …
After all the hours spent in HIPAA training over the years, physicians and other health care workers might think of HIPAA as a powerful regulation. It’s true that HIPAA does require health care workers to follow a number of rules, with pretty harsh penalties for violations. But from a patient’s perspective, how well does U.S. law protect overall health information privacy? Unfortunately, not very well, and things are getting worse.
The …
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 …
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