Obesity is unquestionably a major risk factor for disease and an increasingly serious societal problem, but is it actually a disease? I would argue that obesity, defined purely by a BMI of >30, is really just a number – an objective finding. In the long-honored tradition of medical science, an objective finding is not a disease, unless it is tied to a pathogenesis. For example, anemia is just a number, …
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Join us as we explore the intersection of medicine and art. Our guest, Farid Alsabeh, a clinical psychologist, delves into the rich tradition of medical poetry during the Islamic Golden Era. Discover how Arabic poets transformed scientific …
Unlocking the mystical world of medical poetry [PODCAST]
During my first week as an intern, a question weighed heavily on my mind: “How am I going to survive my night shift rotation?” Soon after, another question arose: “How can I make the most of my night shifts and continue to learn and grow?” I reached out to senior residents and faculty members to learn from their experiences and seek their advice.
I understand that you may have similar questions …
Internship survival guide: Thriving on the night floor rotation
Since December 2022, I have attended over 60 medical appointments, ranging from 15 minutes to as long as 6 hours. Some appointments were as short as 15 minutes, while others required a minimum of 3 hours. Through these numerous health care visits, which collectively amount to more than 60 hours, I have gained valuable insights. Here are my top 10 tips based on my experiences:
Check the location and plan ahead. …
Insider secrets: 10 must-know tips for mastering medical appointments
“I can’t afford higher,” Bobby’s (identifying information changed) mom explains when asked about his low dose. As Bobby’s dermatologist, I prescribed Accutane, curing 80 percent of acne with a six-month course. Insurance denied, requiring doxycycline. I rarely give antibiotics, following World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations. Antibiotics build resistance and aren’t curative, resulting in more scarring. Rejecting Medicaid’s incorrect treatment, Bobby’s mom is paying for the appropriate treatment, …
Insurance profits over patients’ lives: Doctors battle for proper care 33 times a week
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Join Paula Muto, a vascular surgeon, and Jeffrey Gold, a family physician, as they discuss the state of the health care system. Explore the evolution of primary care, the challenges of fragmented patient care, and the impact …
Discover the power of direct primary care and patient-centric solutions [PODCAST]
Few problems in health care are more vexing or persistent than physician burnout. It’s a problem that poses a serious threat to patient care, no different from the spread of a virus or the impact of cigarette smoke. And it has only gotten worse since the pandemic.
Burned-out physicians are less effective as healers. They don’t connect as well with patients, undermining the therapeutic benefits of a close clinician-patient relationship. They …
Physician burnout is a threat, no different from the spread of a virus—here’s how to fix it
ERAS is now open, and medical students all over are compiling their applications to match into residency. As someone who is in a field they desired to pursue while in college but took a circuitous route there (four years as a generalist in the Air Force, practicing after completing an internship), I cannot help but wonder if some of our residency match systems is a contributing factor to burnout.
Many studies …
Residency match system and flexibility: the hidden factors behind burnout
The opioid crisis continues to ravage communities, and everyone, including politicians and federal agents, has a plan. However, no one has an actual solution.
It’s time to examine the crisis from a more detailed perspective: the clinical perceptions that form during a clinical encounter between a physician and a patient. It is here that we see the true effects of opioid policy and understand why they are so ineffective.
At the end …
How legal liabilities and skewed decision-making plague clinical encounters
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Join Gail Gazelle, an internal medicine physician, physician coach, and author of Mindful MD: 6 Ways Mindfulness Restores Your Autonomy and Cures Healthcare Burnout, where we explore the transformative power of mindfulness in health care. In …
Mastering mindfulness: Restoring autonomy and curing burnout for physicians [PODCAST]
Most of the racially debated issues these days can be summed up by the terms “critical race theory” and “wokeism” – terms that have become the defining issues of our time even though half the people can’t explain them and the other half use them for political gain to dictate how history is taught, stripping it of any mention of slavery, racism, and LGBTQ+ people. So, I’d like to reframe the …
On Juneteenth I learned the ugly truth of my new hometown. It restored my faith in humanity.
The advances of AI, specifically models like GPT-4 from OpenAI, have given rise to powerful tools capable of generating human-like text responses. These models are invaluable in myriad contexts, from customer service and support systems to educational tools and content generators. However, these capabilities also present unique challenges, including the generation of ‘hallucination’ results. In AI, hallucinations refer to instances when the model provides information that, although plausible, is not …
Lowering hallucination results with ChatGPT
We’re in a rapidly growing food allergy epidemic. 1 in 13 American children have food allergies—a number that’s only growing. Private insurance claims of anaphylactic food reactions, which are severe and potentially life-threatening, rose 377 percent from 2007 to 2016. Yet despite their increased prevalence in recent years, one thing hasn’t changed: Undermining the very real risks and anxieties associated with living with food allergies.
Beyond the risk of …
Food allergies are not preferences. Let’s start treating them that way.
We live in an era now when workers have leverage over their employers. Nearly every establishment is struggling to hire employees. It’s mysterious not only why so many folks have chosen not to return to work but also how they are paying their living expenses. Remote work, particularly for younger workers, has become a non-negotiable red line. If you are an employer who expects full-time in-person presence, then good luck …
The surprising truth behind virtual visits
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Join Juan Carlos Gonzalez, Jr., health equity researcher and advocate, as we explore the transformative power of technology in health care. This podcast episode discusses the potential of health information technology, telehealth, and data-driven solutions to improve …
Revolutionizing health care through technology [PODCAST]
An excerpt from The Compound Code: An Expert Guide to Trading Stocks & Options.
The focus of this chapter is on how to use options to generate income, enhance returns, and provide downside protection. Options can be complex and confusing, if not outright intimidating. Many people think of derivatives in general …
The query surrounding graduate medical education (GME) programs and their faculty revolves around whether they truly recognize the value of residents. Assessing their value can be subjective as well as objective. Here are some questions that programs, faculty, and residents should contemplate before drawing their own conclusions.
Do health care institutions incur financial losses when they have residents who cannot directly bill health care payers for their services, compared to institutions …
The invaluable role of residents in transforming health care
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Join us as we speak with Donna Grande, CEO of the American College of Preventive Medicine. We discuss the urgent need to overhaul the broken health care system in the U.S., addressing issues such as the high …
How preventive medicine physicians can fix the broken system [PODCAST]
Lack of business education among doctors is a topic I’ve been considering as I decide which direction to take in my career. I wholeheartedly agree with the lack of physician engagement in the business of medicine is troublesome. However, blaming academia’s lack of financial education as an external force for the profession’s lack of financial ability is not productive. The mindset of placing responsibility on our educators actually exemplifies …
Unlocking business acumen: Why doctors must take charge of their careers
The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) has long been responsible for setting standards and ensuring the competence of internal medicine practitioners. However, the practice of mandatory recertification has faced increasing scrutiny and debate within the medical community. This article explores some of the key reasons why eliminating recertification requirements imposed by the ABIM could have significant benefits for physicians and patient care.
Lack of evidence for improved patient outcomes
One of …
The case for eliminating recertification by the ABIM
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