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

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

The visionary pediatrician may soon be an endangered species

Karla Lester, MD

Physician

May 21, 2022

If I were writing a book about what it’s like to be a visionary pediatrician speaking up for children’s health, I would title it, The Hate We Get.

A few months ago, I received a death threat comment on a TikTok video I posted advocating for COVID vaccines.

My college-aged daughter called me, “Mom, I saw your TikTok video. That’s so scary. I’m so sorry.”

“I expected it. I’ve had worse.”

I did a …

A physician’s story of dissociative identity disorder [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 20, 2022

“I had no recollection of this, but as I processed what Yael said, my response was the opposite of what one might expect—I felt tremendous relief! I was happy. My pain had a name and hopefully that meant that I could get well. I was a doctor, and I knew well …

Automatic refill and 90-day fill programs don’t improve medication adherence

Tony Willoughby, PharmD

Meds

May 20, 2022

Health care has fooled us into believing a number of myths that—taken at face value—sound logical and true. Here’s one of the most pervasive and dangerous myths: Pharmacy’s value comes from convenience and access. And here’s another one: 90-day fills, and automatic refills on prescriptions improve medication adherence and patient health.

It’s not surprising that people might champion the efficacy of these tactics. It feels easier to get 90 days of …

Factors to weigh when choosing substance use disorder treatment

Miles J. Varn, MD

Conditions

May 20, 2022

During the pandemic, the already significant number of people living with substance use disorder increased. According to data gathered by the CDC, in June 2020, 13 percent of Americans surveyed said they had started using substances (not including alcohol and tobacco) or increased their use in response to the stress of the pandemic.

The number of people who died as a result of an overdose …

3 misperceptions and myths about food allergies

Kara Wada, MD

Conditions

May 20, 2022

Recently, singer and musician Halsey shared her recent allergy testing results on TikTok along with the news of her recent diagnosis of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and Sjogren’s Disease. Pictured were the telltale red welts we inflict day in and day out in allergy clinic with our scratch tests and a long list of foods to which she was possibly allergic.

Halsey has a history of being …

Infertility treatment’s hidden costs [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

May 19, 2022

“Looking to the future, since I only froze one embryo and my ovary reserve is diminishing, we are hoping to go through another infertility treatment cycle. Although, once again, the medications are once again being denied.

Infertility is just like any other mental or physical health condition and should be fully covered, …

The journey to diagnosing a mysterious illness

Linda Bluestein, MD and Lauren Vasko

Conditions

May 19, 2022

As a clinician, you likely do not have the luxury of playing “Dr. House.” Patients enter your exam room, long story in hand, with a litany of mysterious symptoms involving every bodily system, and you were already massively overbooked. Your patient leaves the encounter no closer to answers despite your best attempts which involved you spending far more time on their assessment than your crazy office schedule allows.

Your staff becomes …

Shame can no longer be accepted as a rite of passage in medicine

Ni-Cheng Liang, MD and Dr. Patricia Lück

Physician

May 19, 2022

“Then why did this patient come to the hospital? You haven’t done anything to help this patient,” the attending physician said angrily during our morning rounds, upset that the patient had not met their urination output goals during treatment for heart failure exacerbation.

A hot flush crept up my face. Tightness clenching my chest and stomach. What was this feeling I felt? Shame. The entire team attended morning rounds — the …

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