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In this episode, we welcome Diana M. Girnita, a rheumatologist and founder and CEO of Rheumatologist OnCall. We discuss the challenges facing patients with arthritis and the shortage of rheumatologists. Despite the growing need for specialized care, …
Breaking barriers in arthritis care with telemedicine [PODCAST]
It was a hot day in Northern California, and my clothes were covered with the red dust of summer. At age 9, I couldn’t take a step on our property without grasshoppers launching themselves from the dry wheat grass. Colorful ladybugs were also out in force. I searched everywhere for a container to keep my prized bugs, but my efforts were to no avail. I headed for Mr. Maryfield’s trailer, …
Life as a physician is sometimes like a runaway trailer
Fainting, or syncope is a temporary loss of consciousness when the brain doesn’t get enough oxygen. Many things, including dehydration, low blood sugar, or anxiety, can cause it. As all doctors know, a common trigger for fainting is seeing blood or a needle.
Emotional fainting is very common in humans, especially in younger people, but it is extremely rare in non-human vertebrates. Fainting may be a response that Homo sapiens …
What causes fainting and how to prevent it during needle procedures
An excerpt from White Coat Ways: A History of Medical Traditions and Their Battle With Progress.
So, who wrote this immortal Hippocratic oath: Hippocrates or one of his Hippocratic followers? Though no one knows for certain, the answer is potentially neither. The most compelling evidence for this argument is that the …
The controversial origin of the Hippocratic oath
December 20, 2012, started like any other day as an OB/GYN when I was called to do a precipitous delivery. I immediately saw that the baby’s heart rate was dangerously low, and I knew I had to act quickly. Several nurses helped me maintain the patient’s position to get a vacuum on the baby’s crowning head. While placing the vacuum, the patient kicked me in my brachial plexus, and my …
From physician to patient: one doctor’s journey to finding purpose after a devastating injury
According to the Commonwealth Fund and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the health care system in the United States continues to rank the highest in health spending, has the highest rates of avoidable deaths, and rates of infant and maternal deaths compared to other high-income countries. These countries include Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Korea, Sweden, …
Breaking down the barriers to effective bar-code medication administration
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In this episode, we have Fayne Frey, a dermatologist and author of The Skincare Hoax: How You’re Being Tricked into Buying Lotions, Potions & Wrinkle Cream.
We delve into the world of skincare and the billions of dollars …
Uncovering the truth about skincare: a dermatologist’s perspective [PODCAST]
Life is often viewed as a competition where resources and opportunities are limited. This is especially true for health care professionals, who must navigate the delicate balance between their professional responsibilities and their personal lives. The challenge becomes even greater when factors such as competition among family members and the rise of artificial intelligence threaten to disrupt the traditional roles and relationships that have defined humanity.
Geography plays a significant role …
Navigating life’s zero-sum game: the struggles of competitive health care professionals
America, we have a beef problem! The inflation rate is high, and the inflation on beef is even more outrageous. At the time of this article, inflation hovers around 8 to 9 percent, while beef is priced at least 15 to 30 percent more than before COVID-19.
We are undoubtedly seeing corporate greed from the meatpacking companies as they have driven up prices throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The numbers don’t make …
The locums industry has a beef problem
As I enter the patient exam room, the first question is no longer “When can I get my COVID-19 vaccine?” but rather, “Are you leaving? My old doctor left. You are my fifth doctor in three years. What is happening?”
Nowadays, I spend more time educating patients about the visible cracks our medical system flaunts. They were present before the pandemic and will remain as it ends. In my health care …
Nobody wants this job. Should physicians stick around?
For physicians, the process of career transition can be overwhelming. With the potential to take you out of your comfort zone and into uncharted waters, it’s understandable why Physicians feel apprehensive when it comes to transitioning into a new role or environment.
Understanding what steps would best fit one’s situation as they progress through their career is essential for creating a successful outcome. As a coach that specializes in guiding medical …
The process of career transition can be confusing. It doesn’t have to be.
Presently, two-thirds of all physicians are demoralized and experiencing a less than satisfied work experience for a number of reasons other than it being “our fault” (please do not let them call it “burnout”). The future of finding happiness in practicing primary care medicine does not appear to be promising.
The combination of more complicated medical problems in addition to an increased volume of older patients on the horizon and less …
Breaking the cycle of misery in medicine: a practical guide
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Our guest for today’s episode is Samantha Benjamin-Allen, a physiatrist who will be sharing her personal struggles with setting boundaries as a physician, and the importance of self-care, as …
Why setting boundaries is essential to your mental health [PODCAST]
It is no longer hyperbole to say that we are witnessing our health system moving slowly but surely to a point where it will be very difficult to return.
Despite the weighty First Ministers’ meeting with the Prime Minister on health care, complete with many promises, health workers continue retreating from the system, as they have for the last year, in a sort of slow-motion form of resistance.
Health workers are reducing …
Canada’s health workers are sounding the alarm. We must act, now.
The Office of Management and Budget is requesting members of the public to provide feedback on a proposal from the Biden Administration to add Middle-Eastern North African (MENA) to the 2030 U.S. Census. If the reforms pass, it would be a major victory for Middle-eastern Americans who have long campaigned for their own checkbox.
For nearly 100 years, South West Asian North African (SWANA) Americans like myself, known as Middle-Eastern, have …
Imagine you found your dream home and hired an inspector to check it out. They walked around for an hour, kicking the tires on the furnace, taking pictures of the roof, peering up the chimney. In the end, they informed you they were done. You ask, “When will I get the report?” They reply, “What report? You hired me to inspect it. A report would be an undue burden.” Wouldn’t …
Fixing the broken system: Improving clinical documentation in health care
I signed up for yet another program in my relentless quest for self-improvement (and perhaps recovery from decades of physician hood). This one features Dr. Lisa Lahey, co-author of Immunity to Change.
This is my second encounter with the book (when the student is ready the master will re-appear?) in which she and her co-author, Robert Kegan, lay out a model to uncover “the disjunction between understanding the need for …
Why our quest for self-improvement is failing: Uncovering the immunity to change in health care
For an impressive 21st year in a row, Americans rated nursing as the most trusted profession in the country. The 2022 Gallup poll found that 79 percent of adults said nurses have “very high” or “high” honesty and ethical standards; significantly higher than any of the other 17 professions rated.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment rate for nursing (including …
Report on nurses: Make the profession more visible in media
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In this episode, I’m on the other side of the microphone. I’m interviewed by Daniel Wrenne on the Finance for Physicians podcast. With reports of 50 to 60 percent of physicians experiencing symptoms of burnout, even …
KevinMD on the Finance for Physicians podcast
As I write this, a friend from my church is going through terrible setbacks as he awaits a new heart. He has been lovingly supported during his lengthy trials by church members. They visit him in the hospital and at home and support his wife with meals as she cares almost around the clock for her husband. His journey into medical care began several years ago when he experienced heart …
Healing through love and spirituality
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