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The power of advocacy: a medical student’s journey to helping an uninsured immigrant

Fabiola Plaza

Education

February 21, 2023

It’s the day of my last case presentation for my neurology rotation. Hearing the subway doors shut, I run up the stairs just in time to see them close. Breathless, I walk to the center of the platform. Noting the next train isn’t coming for another seven minutes, I groan in frustration and pull out my notes to spend the time to prepare.

I see a woman approaching me from the …

The middle road to childhood obesity treatment: Empowering kids with healthy habits

Paul Porras, MD

Conditions

February 21, 2023

The new American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for childhood obesity have shifted from a “watchful waiting” method to “early and aggressive treatment.” Coverage of the guidelines in the Washington Post, the New York Times, and other reputable news outlets have readily accepted this new depiction of childhood obesity as a disorder in need of immediate, aggressive intervention and has given little or no attention to what …

The consequence of neglect: the lack of business education in medical schools

Curtis G. Graham, MD

Physician

February 21, 2023

Repeated media articles continue to inform the public that we don’t have enough physicians to handle our health care, and it’s worsening. We have at least 174 accredited medical schools in our nation that are still producing medical doctors and about 22,000 annually from all medical schools who enter a medical practice of some kind.

That must be a satisfactory number because they aren’t building medical schools much anymore. The existing …

Why are doctors sued and politicians aren’t?

Kellie Lease Stecher, MD

Physician

February 21, 2023

During the COVID pandemic health care workers needed to work tirelessly to correct the false information that politicians easily spread through the country. The President made claims that the virus was not real, that physicians were getting financial kickbacks from using COVID on death certificates, and that health care workers were benefiting from the pandemic. Physicians, nurses, and staff needed to talk to patients about COVID, and it really took …

3 hospitalists’ struggles with board certification: a tale of ineligibility, cancelled tests, and unfair fees

Anonymous

Physician

February 21, 2023

When I finished my pediatric residency almost 20 years ago, I embarked upon a career in general pediatrics because I didn’t enjoy any particular subspecialty enough to commit my career to it. After spending several years in a mostly outpatient setting (peppered with child abuse consults, circumcisions, and an unsatisfyingly small number of hospitalized patients), I knew I had to change and move across the country to pursue pediatric hospital …

Jimmy Carter brings attention to hospice care: the compassionate side of modern medicine

Saurabh Gupta, MD

Conditions

February 20, 2023

The recent decision by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to transition to hospice brings much-needed attention to this crucial part of health care. Hospice care is an essential and compassionate component of modern medicine, providing support and care to patients and families during the most challenging time of their lives. Historically, hospice care has been long stigmatized as giving up on treatment. However, the truth is the opposite. Hospice provides …

Breaking the stigma: Making HIV and COVID screening routine in primary care [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

February 20, 2023

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In this episode, we welcome clinical research assistant professor, Maranda C. Ward, to discuss the importance of routine screening for both HIV and COVID-19 in primary care. During the COVID pandemic, we became familiar with answering questions …

The rise of spiritual science: Uniting the soul and science

Marc Nelson

Conditions

February 20, 2023

Until recently, mainstream science has not recognized the field of spiritual science because the consensus has been that science and spirit (soul) are like oil and vinegar — they do not mix. Science is all about facts and evidence relative to the hypothesis, theory, and actual proof. At the same time, it is said that the spirit and the soul cannot be proven and are solely based on faith.

However, thanks …

From AI to love: the key to a better future in medical education

Stevan Walkowski, DO

Education

February 20, 2023

With the recent news of ChatGPT artificial intelligence successfully passing the United States Medical Licensure Exam (USMLE), we have been catapulted into a new era in medicine and medical education. What has always been regarded exclusively as a human skill and profession has now been demonstrated to be technically mastered by artificial intelligence. Rightfully, the detractors today will say that passing a board exam does not make …

From toys to tragedy: the threat of button batteries to children’s health

Patti L. Ellis, RN & The Doctors Company

Conditions

February 20, 2023

According to a study published in Pediatrics, it is estimated that between 2010 and 2019, more than 70,000 emergency department (ED) visits in the United States were related to battery ingestion, mouth exposure, and ear or nasal insertion among children under 18 years old. ED visits occurred more frequently among children ages five years and younger. Button-type and …

Ensuring universal access and quality care: the advantages of a mixed health care system in Canada

Jean Paul Brutus, MD

Policy

February 20, 2023

Canadian physicians, like many other Canadians, generally support the country’s publicly funded health care system, which is designed to provide universal access to medical care.

However, despite its strengths, there are some areas where the public system falls short, and there is growing evidence that a combination of public and private health care could help address some of these shortcomings.

One of the main benefits of a mixed system, as seen in …

Chris Hemsworth and personalized medicine: How genetic testing can impact your health [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

February 19, 2023

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

Today, we’re discussing the news about actor Chris Hemsworth and his genetic test results. Hemsworth announced that he is taking a break from acting after learning that he has a heightened risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Our …

The Dark Knight of health care: a doctor’s tale of gift cards and patient satisfaction

Anonymous

Physician

February 19, 2023

I was surprised when I began receiving gift cards to a national chain of coffee shops in recognition of positive patient satisfaction comments from my emergency department patients.

Reviewing them in my provider report card genuinely felt good, especially when someone remembered my name in a follow-up phone call while saying something positive. Still, the token incentive met with disapproval for several reasons.

In particular, the most meaningful comments expressed gratitude for …

The regret of leaving an old friend behind

Raymond Abbott

Conditions

February 19, 2023

I once knew a lady who eventually died of pancreatic cancer. She must have been by then in her early seventies. Her name was Marilyn, and I went to grade school with her son Tom. we went back a long way. I guess I was in my early thirties by the time what happened, happened.

Marilyn’s husband, Forrest, had died a few months earlier. I knew him, too. She missed him …

The cost of overpreparing: my experience with the USMLE and what I learned

Mackenzie Poole

Education

February 19, 2023

“It’s all in your head.”

When my friends, family, and mentors said these five words to me in the days leading up to the pre-pass/fail USMLE Step 1 exam, they meant it literally: everything you need to know to succeed is already in your head. When my internal dialogue repeated those words, they took on a different meaning. The question banks had been answered, and the …

Trauma in an interview: a not-so-perfect personal statement

Anonymous

Education

February 19, 2023

I have to write a “perfect medical school personal statement.” I have to write about learning and growth. I want to show empathy and grit. Most of all, I must resonate with the medical school admissions committee reading my story.

The overwhelming consensus around Student Doctor Network, the forum of terrible but successful premeds, is: don’t make waves. Adcoms can be radical feminists or religious fundamentalists, born from wealth or recently …

The hidden illness: Understanding and overcoming depersonalization-derealization disorder

Swamy Gopalsamy

Conditions

February 19, 2023

A strange mental health issue affects millions of people every year. Yet, almost no one in the medical community is aware of it. Many suffer in silence without having the right guidance and support. In this article, I’d like to help you understand what depersonalization-derealization disorder is and how you can overcome it.

Depersonalization-derealization disorder, often referred to as DP/DR, can be a debilitating and scary mental health disorder for the …

Navigating complex medical issues: one family’s story of advocacy and hope [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

February 18, 2023

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

In this episode, we have a special guest, Laura Fernando, a patient advocate, who shares her heart-wrenching story of her daughter Lily’s medical journey with COVID-19 and other health conditions. Joining her and Lily is Linda Bluestein, …

Why patients choose who they trust: Understanding the psychology of health care relationships

Anonymous

Physician

February 18, 2023

Most people, should they be in need of a transcatheter aortic “valve-in-valve” replacement procedure for a failed aortic valve replacement, would be delighted to have one of the world’s foremost experts (who has performed over 6,000 of these procedures at one of the world’s foremost heart hospitals) perform the procedure.

But not my father, despite having dyspnea on mild exertion owing to a trans-valvular gradient of 50 mmHg.

Naturally, he wanted a …

Can personalized medicine live up to its hype in health care?

Ketan Desai, MD, PhD

Meds

February 18, 2023

The genius of Henry Ford was in his perfection of mass production. Ford’s assembly lines produced oodles of Model T, with economies of scale so that the cost of each car fell to the point that even those working in those lines could afford them. His method was copied by other car manufacturers and ultimately by other industries as well.

The pharmaceutical industry was one of them. The industry mass produces …