A surgeon’s favorite stomach surgery patient

Conditions
May 9, 2022

High on my list of favorite operations was surgery on the stomach: The anatomy is neat, the re-plumbing alternatives clever, technical challenges rewarding, and, because it’s well-supplied with blood, complication-free healing is pretty predictable. Also, several procedures were invented by and named for history’s pioneer surgeons, and it’s nice to feel the connection, heir to the discoveries and invention of the greats. Let me tell you about one of my …

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The doctor as a patient: a view from the other side

Physician
May 9, 2022

I had my very first surgery ever, just last year.  Despite being cut upon, it was a remarkable experience, and the staff cracked jokes at my expense, even as I was going under.  In the mood for some inappropriate medical humor?  Well, perhaps not in this public forum; I’ll save it for gatherings less formal and where beer is plentiful.  Suffice it to say, I survived and was treated well: …

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Who will heal the physician? [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 8, 2022
YouTube video

“Medical errors exist at the far end of a continuum of unexpected events in clinical practice and they are devastating for all involved. Even when care is attentive and patient compliance perfect, unexpected outcomes occur in medicine. Unanticipated diagnoses, delays in diagnosis, premature death — these are all included in the …

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The matriarchy is all around us, but I feel it most in the practice of medicine

Physician
May 8, 2022

I have always been a lover of words. Confusingly, I have found myself unable to define words that I would have easily been able to describe a decade ago. Due to a more weighty examination of cultural and social constructs, I am now left scratching my head thinking about how to define previously simple words like woman and mother.

When posed with the question, “When did you become a mother,” I …

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A path toward clinical trial diversity

Conditions
May 8, 2022

Minority and marginalized communities have historically been underrepresented in local and federal governments and in dozens of private sectors globally. Pharma is no different; there exists a steep chasm that drugmakers have yet to bridge concerning research and trials. The longer this gulf exists, the harder it becomes to address – the feelings of mistrust, resentment, and disenfranchisement only get harder to overcome with time.

Over the last decade, the pharmaceutical …

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Love: Stepping forward or hanging back?

Conditions
May 8, 2022

The saga of distancers and pursuers in relationships exists in many different forms. Perhaps the most common version is the man as distancer and woman as pursuer.

It would seem that hardly any adult with some experience in the world of romance has not encountered this theme, at least to some degree. It is apparent that, generally speaking, men and women travel a different relationship path.

In the United States, most researchers …

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The trials and tribulations of health care delivery

Policy
May 8, 2022

The reason I pursued PA school pertained to a loved one’s cancer diagnosis. During the trials and tribulations of the diagnosis and treatment, I learned a lot about our health care system. I witnessed the work of phenomenal PAs as they took care of my loved one, which inspired me to pursue my degree as a PA. During this time, I also promised myself that I would do my best …

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What we need to know about environmental toxins [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 7, 2022
YouTube video

“Even low dose mercury toxicity can be harmful to human health in a variety of ways: enhanced free radical stress, reduced glutathione levels, increase in apolipoprotein E g4 genotype expression, promotion of neurofibrillary tangles and altered immune sensitivity. It has been implicated in contributing to autism, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinsonism, and even lupus …

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The connection between oral health and overall health

Conditions
May 7, 2022

Guess what? The mouth is attached to the rest of the body. And though dentistry and medicine are typically separated from the very beginning of professional training, they are irrevocably linked for patients and have an impact on each other. Here’s some foundational knowledge that will help set the stage for discussing the connection between overall health and oral health: Our mouths are teeming with bacteria – mostly the good, …

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Healthy patients and healthy physicians: Is it possible?

Physician
May 7, 2022

Doctors who do not practice healthy behaviors and do not exercise are less likely to counsel their patients about improving health practices. Such omissions are a missed opportunity for more effective, safer, and less expensive care, in which patients become empowered to improve their own health.

Physician well-being is also central to the successful functioning of the entire health care system because to do well, you need to be well.

Yet, Read more…

What does living with COVID really mean?

Conditions
May 7, 2022

It’s a standard instruction during safety demonstrations on airplanes: “In the event of a sudden loss in cabin pressure, an oxygen mask will drop down in front of you. Put your mask on before helping others.”

But why is that? Wouldn’t it make more sense to help those who are most vulnerable?

The answer has to do with the way our bodies react to a lack of oxygen.

When cabin pressure drops, the …

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Finding meaning with medical missions [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 6, 2022
YouTube video

“One initiative that more administrators should support is global medical outreach. The ability to practice pure medicine, like the neighborhood doctor from long ago, renews a love for the vocation that physicians sought when they first entered medical school. Humanitarian outreach will help reinvigorate physician workforces immediately, allowing physicians to have …

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Burnout follows from physician to wellness director

Physician
May 6, 2022

Tuesday, at the podium in a small auditorium, I realized that my time was finally up. Even as an educator/administrator (non-clinical) physician, I was done. Preparing to give a canned talk — a requirement of my current career strategy — facing a group of anonymous medical students, the only thought going through my head was, “Why don’t we blow through these slides and get out of here?”

Normally, I relish public …

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A physician’s infertility story

Physician
May 6, 2022

How ironic the way a young woman’s thoughts and attitudes change.

We spend so many years — decades, perhaps — preoccupied by controlling our cycles. For some, it is about cycle control.

For others, it is to avoid pregnancy because we are not yet ready or do not want to have a family. In those cases, most start some form of birth control, and for years we wait anxiously to bleed each …

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The Great Resignation is a great opportunity to renegotiate physician employment agreements

Physician
May 6, 2022

The Great Resignation is producing tremendous challenges for physicians. In particular, many “senior” physicians (some as young as 50 years old) are simply throwing in the towel and resigning rather than continue with the brutal schedules imposed by many employers. As physicians leave, it is becoming increasingly difficult to recruit new talent, so in many cases the remaining physicians are forced to take up the “slack.” That “slack,” of course, …

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What patients need vs. what patients want [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 5, 2022
YouTube video

“Patients want more than simply learning about a problem and how to treat it. Patients want reassurance. While I summarized the proposed surgical treatment, I watched for signs of anxiety or lack of understanding. Ultimately, my patient wanted to have confidence that I was the right person for the job and …

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5 reasons why women in medicine are burned out (and what to do about it)

Physician
May 5, 2022

There has been a lot of increased focus on burnout in health workers over the past two years—with good reason.  The added stress of a global health crisis to an inefficient system created a compounding effect on a pre-existing issue.  This has led to soaring rates of burnout and increased the overwhelm, moral injury, trauma, and stress that clinicians were already facing.

The great resignation is at our doorstep as well.  …

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A matter of trust: Bill Maher loses trust in medical professionals

Conditions
May 5, 2022

I was at my gym last night. Billy Joel’s ballad about trust was the metronome to my squats. Though vaccinated and boosted, I was wearing my mask. I know the latest evidence about vaccines and natural immunity, the dramatic transmissibility but mild virulence of the latest Omicron variant.

So my mask was only for optics. Someone might recognize me as a doctor in the local hospital where masking is still mandated. …

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The inevitable reboot of the primary care experience

Physician
May 5, 2022

Visiting the doctor’s office can be a source of anxiety for millions of patients, who often fear unknown costs, an unexpected diagnosis, or exposure risk to diseases, like COVID-19.

On the other side of the equation, business stakeholders of a community-based primary care setting are struggling to exist within the confines of 20th-century technology and strategies. The Physicians Foundation estimates that 16,000 physician practices closed during the pandemic …

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Understanding your medical malpractice insurance policy [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 4, 2022
YouTube video

“Arguably one of the most overlooked yet incredibly important aspects of your malpractice insurance policy is the Consent to Settle Provision. You’re paying thousands of dollars a year for your malpractice insurance; you should have a say in how your claims are handled, don’t you think? Today we’re going to talk …

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