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The public health emergency brought health care into the 21st century. Let’s keep moving forward.

Policy

May 26, 2022

Many Americans will lose access to vital health care services in a few short months unless Congress passes bipartisan legislation already introduced in both the House and Senate.

Co-sponsored by Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore) and Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio), the Hospital Inpatient Services Modernization Act extends waivers allowing patients with acute illnesses to receive hospital-level care at home. The waivers are set to …

Non-profit work and exploring the life of a pathologist [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 25, 2022

In this episode, we talk to pathologist Hoda Zeinab M. Amer who discusses her work with non-profits, along with her book detailing the behind-the-scenes lives of pathologists. We also open the proverbial black box of pathology and she explores the traits interested students should have if they pursue the field.

Warning: Your words can kill

Nanette Nuessle, MD

Physician

May 25, 2022

Over the years, I’ve had many medical office assistants. Most were good. Some were outstanding.

Today, I’d like to tell you the story of one who was exemplary. He was never late to work. He never came in and insisted on finishing his breakfast at his desk before rooming our first patient. He was so personable that they would pour their hearts out to him while rooming patients. They would tell …

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Warning: Your words can kill

What are physician mortgages?

Paul Morton, CFP

Finance

May 25, 2022

Selecting a mortgage can be daunting. Understanding the mortgage terms, the total cost, estimated property taxes and insurance, and the bottom line on a month-to-month expense can be a lot to take in.

For many individuals, utilizing a mortgage to purchase a home can lead to months of underwriting, painful discovery and disclosure of financial documents, and consistently changing deadlines. This process aims to prove that due diligence is completed thoroughly …

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What are physician mortgages?

The Illuminated Elephant: ancient wisdom and modern medicine

Fery Pashang, PharmD

Conditions

May 25, 2022

It is one of the last days of September. The sun, pale and tired, is slowly surrendering the humdrum of earth to the grey, soulless air. My father and I walk to our very final medical appointment, hopeless, exhausted, and befuddled. My father’s labored breathing is the only sound that fills the silence on our trip. As we drift to the entrance, …

Are you financially cheating on your spouse? [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 24, 2022

“If you have never heard the term ‘financial infidelity,’ it doesn’t mean you don’t know what it is. In fact, according to a recent creditcards.com survey, 32 percent of respondents have financially cheated on their partners. Both finances and cheating can be complex subjects to discuss, even with and, sometimes especially with, those …

Premature babies grow up. It’s time to pay attention.

Deb Discenza

Conditions

May 24, 2022

Premature babies (a.k.a. preemies) and their families are increasingly becoming a powerful voice in society. Life in and after the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is like being dropped off a cliff. I support the preemie community from pregnancy to NICU to home and into the adult years because I had a preemie. My daughter’s story is a stunning example of a system gone wrong and why better outcomes research …

11 questions physicians should ask during a job interview

David Beran, DO

Physician

May 24, 2022

One of the hardest questions to answer in a job interview is, “Do you have any questions for me?”

The question itself is not hard — as physicians, we can come up with plenty of questions. What makes it challenging is that we understand the timing and depth of any question we ask and can say a lot more than we want it to. We do not want to ask too …

Reflecting on my experience as a teenage health care worker during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ananya Raghavan

Education

May 24, 2022

During the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic (April 2021), I became a high-school pharmacy technician. My senior year of high school ended in gray scrubs, gloves, and a mask. While I knew I was signing up for long hours of selling medication and administering COVID tests, I was not prepared for what else I would learn.

On my first day on the job, a couple approached me and asked …

Will Smith’s slap is a trauma response [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 23, 2022

“As physicians, we are masterful at suppressing so many of our emotions, and the thoughts and memories associated with them. However, trauma has a way of impacting us in great big obvious ways (as we saw with Will Smith), and not such obvious ways (perfectionism, workaholism, lack of boundaries).

I’m not suggesting …

The baby formula shortage puts your baby’s brain at risk

Marc Arginteanu, MD

Conditions

May 23, 2022

The baby formula shortage has morphed into a full-blown ongoing crisis. Many stores report that more than half of baby formula products are out of stock. Babies who are six months old or younger should only be fed breast milk or formula. Any substitute may be nutritionally incomplete and may cause babies to have permanent problems in brain development.

What are the essential brain ingredients in the leading baby formulas?

Docosahexaenoic acid …

Don’t give up on intermittent fasting just yet

Heather Awad, MD

Conditions

May 23, 2022

In late April 2022, headlines were plastered across the internet calling for the death of intermittent fasting. This was in relation to a New England Journal study out that week titled “Calorie Restriction with or without Time-Restricted Eating in Weight Loss.” I would have named it, “If you ask the wrong question, then you don’t get a helpful answer.”

The researchers asked if people lose …

A small intern in a big hospital

Ariella Rubel, MD

Physician

May 23, 2022

I am a gopher. See my tiny paws. See them furiously digging and digging and digging. Little puffs of dirt and soil are thrown haphazardly over my little shoulders. My tiny brain was completely absorbed in the digging of that very inconsequential, very little, very specific hole. Tail in the air, head down, no breaks. Dig, dig, dig.

As a small intern in a big hospital, that’s me. Day after day …

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A small intern in a big hospital

A burnout coach saved my medical career — and possibly my life [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 22, 2022

“I almost quit my job in 2014. I didn’t like my life, and I didn’t like myself. I had a lot of problems personally and professionally, and I wondered if I was good enough to solve them. I often felt weak and powerless. People were coming to me for answers, but …

What and who needs to change in medicine for it to be sustainable?

Amanda Gwin, RN, PA-C

Conditions

May 22, 2022

I was a nurse before I was a PA. As the mantra goes, once a nurse, always a nurse. I have lived on both sides of the toxic structure: the medical and nursing models. Nurses eat their young, then place an unrealistic and unsustainable standard of altruism onto their offspring. Many times, the worthiness of nurses is gauged by how much they are willing to give of themselves, work overtime, …

Attorney generals are not qualified to set medical practice guidance

Lynn Webster, MD

Physician

May 22, 2022

Eleven attorneys general (AGs) have responded to a long-awaited draft update on a nationwide opioid-prescribing guideline by asking that drafters do more to prevent prescription opioid diversion. Logically focused on law enforcement, the AGs, unfortunately, suggest reviving policies the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has already cited as potentially harmful to patients. In doing so, the AGs step into the practice of medicine which they are not qualified …

LGBTQ+ basics: 10 things your queer patient wishes you knew

Uchenna Umeh, MD

Physician

May 22, 2022

Several months ago, I wrote a post on a Facebook community of over 17K Black physicians. The post asked them what they would do and how they would react if their child told them they were gay. The responses I received ranged from “I will love and accept them” to “Heaven forbid!” to “I will beat it out of him!”

When I got over my shock, I realized that even as …

Why I help physicians write [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 21, 2022

“Physicians have a deep well of experiences to draw from in their writing. They witness dramatic episodes of heroism, cures, disappointments, and failures. They see unforgettable scenes, hear devastating words, make difficult decisions, and observe people at crucial moments in their lives. Most importantly, they witness the power of cause and …

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Why I help physicians write [PODCAST]

For medical students: 20 pearls to honor every clinical rotation

Ton La, Jr., MD, JD

Education

May 21, 2022

With medical school graduation on the horizon, I wanted to share my pearls for success for any clinical rotation.

1. Integrate yourself into your team and be engaged in all patient care.

2. Ask questions and be motivated to learn.

3. Follow up on patients without being asked.

4. Be the “extra” pair of hands to help the team.

5. Be proactive in picking up new patients.

6. Come up with solid differentials and plans before …

Why a nurse should not go to jail

Barbara L. Olson, RN

Policy

May 21, 2022

I recently wrote a letter to the Davidson County, TN judge who will sentence RaDonda Vaught, a former Vanderbilt University Medical Center nurse convicted on two felony counts in the 2017 death of a patient. RaDonda faces up to 12 years in prison for her role in a complex chain of events that led to the death of Charlene Murphey. I shared my belief that incarcerating Ms. Vaught will not …

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Why a nurse should not go to jail

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