How night volunteers could transform health care during staff shortages

Physician
January 4, 2025

Inpatient caregiving companions, especially during nights, may hold significant value in enhancing patient recovery and expediting discharge. Hospital nights can be tumultuous not only for inpatients but also for their caregivers, whether professional or personal. This need persists despite humanity’s adaptation to varying chronotypes—lion, bear, wolf, and dolphin—which have enabled people to transcend their diurnal instincts for the collective good. Nevertheless, the challenges of nighttime caregiving remain profound.

A critical issue …

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Why data-driven telehealth is the key to solving the mental health crisis [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 3, 2025
YouTube video

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The state of mental health care in the U.S. is at a crossroads, with telehealth prescription waivers set to expire and millions of Americans left without access to crucial treatments. Physician executive Mikkel …

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Why the public’s anger at a health care CEO’s death speaks volumes

Physician
January 3, 2025

It was rich to watch the TV pundits, who excel at creating storms in a teacup, feigning shock at the public response on social media to UnitedHealthcare’s CEO being gunned down. They were aghast at the over 57,000 laugh emojis on the statement of condolence platitudes put out by UnitedHealthcare. Mr. Smercornish on CNN was properly clutching his pearls and, after some scolding, declared at least the responders on the …

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My husband’s rare drunken disease made me an international advocate

Conditions
January 3, 2025

Can you imagine waking up drunk, or getting drunk in the middle of your workday without having touched a drop of alcohol?! When I first saw my husband Joe having these drunken episodes, I thought he must be secretly drinking or at least sleepwalking to the liquor cabinet.

He’d been having weird episodes for six years and got checked out by a neurologist, an endocrinologist, a cardiologist, and other specialists, but …

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Sobriety is the ultimate superpower for overcoming life’s challenges [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 2, 2025
YouTube video

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We dive into the transformative power of recovery with Courtney Barrows McKeown, a surgeon who shares her journey of sobriety and resilience. From navigating career setbacks to fostering personal growth, Courtney discusses how …

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I knew hospitals were not taking good care of doctors. But when I became a patient, I experienced it.

Conditions
January 2, 2025

I have spent nearly half a century in the world of health care leadership, first in management and later as a consultant. Throughout my career, one of my most consistent observations has been that most health care organizations do not treat physicians very well.

I knew it because I saw it nearly every day in the hospitals I worked with. But it wasn’t until this year that I experienced firsthand how …

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Don’t dream it’s over: the resilience we all need in 2025

Physician
January 2, 2025

Many songs and famous refrains flooded my mind as we transitioned into 2025. “Living on a thin line,” “It’s all over now, baby blue,” and “Can’t find my way home” were some of the notable downers. On the flip side (no pun intended), I was uplifted by “Land of hope and dreams” and “It’s gonna be a bright sun-shiny day,” and the thought that “Love [would] reign o’er me.”

Of all, …

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Health care’s modern-day Wicked: How insurers label doctors as the villains

Physician
January 2, 2025

The box office hit Wicked is a modern retelling of the classic Wizard of Oz, where the Wizard labels Elphaba as “wicked” in his pursuit of control and greed. Much like the Wizard, who manipulates society by changing Elphaba’s name and orchestrating a movement to bring about her downfall, today’s health care insurance industry uses similar tactics to portray physicians—particularly anesthesiologists—as the villains. A recent article from Vox echoes …

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Why professionalism in health care shouldn’t depend on appearance [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 1, 2025
YouTube video

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In this episode, we sit down with neurologist Lealani Mae Acosta to explore the intersection of beauty standards, professionalism, and gender disparities in medicine. From the impact of COVID-19 on personal appearance routines …

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Even medical practices aren’t immune from the high cost of employer-provided health insurance

Physician
January 1, 2025

As a licensed practitioner of family medicine who is also the majority owner of a small medical practice, I feel a responsibility to provide top-quality care for my patients as well as comprehensive health insurance coverage for my employees. The problem is, the high cost of health insurance and some of the solutions intended to lower insurance costs have made it increasingly difficult to do both.

My situation is particularly challenging …

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Small moments that made 2024 unforgettable

Physician
January 1, 2025

Frank Sinatra’s 1965 hit, “It was a very good year,” framed the benchmarks of a life well-lived through relationships at various ages: when he was 17, “small-town girls … on the village green”; at 21, “city girls who lived up the stair”; at 35, “blue-blooded girls of independent means.”

Fast forward 60 years. What are the ingredients that now constitute “a very good year?” Data from a survey of 2,000 …

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Tobacco’s time warp: How centuries of smoke obscured our future

Policy
January 1, 2025

In the halls of the Smithsonian, we often contemplate how the past shapes our present. But a groundbreaking new study on tobacco use forces us to consider how our present actions will dramatically alter our future.

Research published in The Lancet Public Health reveals a staggering statistic: current smoking trends will rob humanity of over 2 billion years of life by 2050. To put this in perspective, that’s more time than …

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Telehealth under threat: Why Congress must act to save Medicare coverage [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 31, 2024
YouTube video

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Join us for a conversation with patient advocate Stephanie Marcovici as we explore the potential rollback of Medicare telehealth coverage in 2025. Stephanie shares her personal story and highlights the devastating impact this …

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Why women doctors spend more time on EHRs and what it means for patient care

Physician
December 31, 2024

Last week, while on vacation, my husband and I were swimming in a salt-water inlet when a rainstorm hit. (Actually, I was indulging in my favorite leisure-time pursuit: floating prone, chin resting on my forearm, on a lime green inner tube.)

Fortunately, there was no lightning, though there was a bit of hail. We decided to stick it out. Heck, we were already wet.

As we floated along with the outgoing tide, …

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When the caregiver becomes the patient: lessons from my experiences in the health care system

Physician
December 31, 2024

As a physician, I’ve spent years working to provide care that’s compassionate and focused on the patient. But everything changed when I found myself on the other side of the system—as a patient. Suddenly, I saw health care through a new lens, one that revealed cracks I hadn’t fully understood before.

What I went through opened my eyes to the real risks patients face, especially those from marginalized communities. It was …

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Inside the system that’s costing health care billions every year

Physician
December 31, 2024

It all begins with a political movement for national health in the 1970s. There are no “health systems,” just doctors and hospitals. Fee-for-service is determined by conventional principles of cost accounting, in which payment for services compensates for overhead and leaves enough profit to remain in practice and enjoy the American dream.

There are health insurance companies. The purpose of health insurance is to protect patients against medical expenses, not to …

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How gratitude can reshape health care during uncertain times [PODCAST]

Podcast
December 30, 2024
YouTube video

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How can gratitude guide health care professionals in navigating political uncertainty, misinformation, and the challenges of post-election transitions? Join us as Janet A. Jokela, an infectious disease physician and Treasurer of the American …

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How a mid-flight emergency taught me to put myself first

Physician
December 30, 2024

It’s crack-of-dawn early, and I’m on a flight. Working swing ER shifts has left me exhausted, barely packed, and running on fumes. But hey, as long as I’ve got my passport and clean underwear, I’m good to go. There’s a mall in every city, right?

I settle in, headphones on, ready to dive into the latest episodes of The Lincoln Lawyer. I’m beyond tired – there aren’t even words for this …

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Physician suicide: Addressing the silent epidemic

Conditions
December 30, 2024

Suicide is the act of an individual ending their life. It is generally caused by the convergence of multiple factors, the most significant of which is untreated or end-stage psychiatric illness. As a practicing psychiatrist who has been involved in the Pennsylvania Physicians Health Program for more than a decade, I believe we need to do better to stem the increasing numbers of physician suicides. A better understanding of and …

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What your clothes say about love and loss

Physician
December 30, 2024

I have an eye for finding beautiful clothes. Though I find jeans and shirts/kurtas comfortable, I’m not sure why I adore the shalwar kameez so much! Perhaps it’s because it’s my national dress, and I adore everything that connects me to my homeland. Secondly, I’ve been wearing it since I was a child. My mother was an expert at sewing clothes, and she made all of my dresses.

Jeans and shirts/sweaters/kurtas/tops …

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