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Names as social texts: Navigating cultural identity in medicine

Esiri Gbenedio

Education

March 8, 2026

I cannot recall the first time my name was mispronounced; that is the point. It happened so often that no single moment stands out. The sounds were altered to make them easier. In first grade, a boy loudly said my name sounded like “cereal.” I disliked it but did not tell a teacher. Early on, I learned how others would value attributes like skin color, regardless of my permission.

When adults …

Unregulated botanical products pose hidden risks in convenience stores [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 7, 2026

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

Psychiatrist, internist, and addiction medicine specialist Muhamad Aly Rifai discusses his article “Unregulated botanical products: the hidden risks of convenience store supplements.” Muhamad explores the dangerous misconception that “natural” equals safe, revealing …

What neck pain taught a medical student about patient trust

Gillian Zipursky

Education

March 7, 2026

My eyes opened with the familiar heaviness of a Monday morning, and as I began to pull myself out of bed, I felt a shooting pain in my neck. I was alarmed, but not wanting to be too dramatic, I repositioned on my side, pushed off and got to my feet, struggled to put a dress on without moving my neck, and headed to class. Finding that the painless range …

Artificial intelligence and the future of fetal heart rate monitoring

Martin G. Frasch, MD, PhD, Mark I. Evans, MD, and Philip J. Steer, MD

Conditions

March 7, 2026

For half a century, the “gold standard” of labor safety has been a single, flickering line on a screen. But as recent reporting confirms, that line is often a lie. Our obsession with isolated fetal heart rate patterns has created a surgical “false positive pipeline,” driving C-section rates to historic highs without actually reducing the incidence of cerebral palsy.

The myth of the “failed” test

The skepticism surrounding EFM often stems from …

The hidden dangers of AI voice assistants in elder care

Gerald Kuo

Conditions

March 7, 2026

“Mom says she talks to me every day now.”

The son told me this during a clinic visit. His 82-year-old mother, once painfully lonely, now smiled again. She told everyone she spoke with her son every morning. He asked about her day. He reminded her to take her medication. He listened to her stories.

There was only one problem.

She was not talking to her son. She was talking to an AI voice …

Medicine in 1926: What being a doctor was really like

George F. Smith, MD

Physician

March 7, 2026

Even with all the incredible advances in medicine over the past 70 years, there remain severe deficits in the care of many serious deadly diseases. Pancreatic cancer, multiple sclerosis, glioblastoma, Alzheimer’s, ALS, and ovarian cancer easily come to mind in that desperate category.

However, let’s get a perspective of what it was really like to practice medicine a hundred years ago. What kind of doctors were there? What did they do? …

The Platinum Rule in health care: Moving beyond the Golden Rule

Harvey Max Chochinov, MD, PhD

Conditions

March 7, 2026

An excerpt from In Search of Dignity: A Lifetime of Reflections.

Several years before her death at the age of 55 years due to complications of cerebral palsy, my sister Ellen was again in hospital, this time in intensive care and on the brink of respiratory collapse. To say cerebral palsy had shaped her life is an understatement, in that it molded nearly every facet of her being, from the …

AI could end the administrative nightmare for doctors [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 6, 2026

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

Internal medicine physician Shiv K. Goel discusses his article “Claude for Healthcare vs. administrative burden: a physician’s review.” Shiv contrasts the two hours he spent fighting a prior authorization with the promise …

Silent heart attack symptoms: my missed diagnosis story

Brian Ferri

Conditions

March 6, 2026

Most people expect a heart attack to announce itself with unmistakable force, crushing pain, shortness of breath, a dramatic collapse. Mine arrived quietly, unnoticed, and remained hidden for years. What I discovered in 2026 forced me to revisit events from 2018 and 2019 and confront how easily critical medical information can slip through the cracks when communication fails.

A routine appointment reveals a hidden past

On Jan. 8, 2026, during a routine …

The passion vine: a lesson on restraint in medicine and life

Rao M. Uppu, PhD

Conditions

March 6, 2026

I cannot claim to have been the one who nurtured our garden. That credit belongs to my wife. She is the one who waters the plants faithfully and notices when something needs care. I am more often the admirer, the one who pauses to appreciate a flower that seems almost too beautiful to belong in an ordinary backyard.

Among the plants that brought me the greatest joy was a passion vine. …

The future of U.S. medicine: 10 health care trends in 2026

Richard E. Anderson, MD & The Doctors Company

Physician

March 6, 2026

Predicting shifts in the health care environment has always been difficult, but this year, the pace of change, driven by regulatory complexity, mounting financial pressures, and artificial intelligence (AI), makes long-term forecasts increasingly uncertain. Each year, TDC Group has predicted emerging health care trends over the next decade, focusing on the challenges, risks, and opportunities that shape the industry. …

Artificial intelligence in clinical care: Shaping the HHS policy landscape

Ido Zamberg, MD

Policy

March 6, 2026

I read with interest HHS’s request for public input on how regulation, reimbursement, and research and development can accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence in clinical care. As someone who began his career as a software engineer, then became a practicing physician, and later founded a clinical AI company, I welcome this moment. It is overdue, and it is also fragile.

The promise of efficiency over autonomous medicine

AI’s greatest opportunity …

Predictive staffing in health care: Solving the nurse burnout crisis

Lori Runion, MBA

Conditions

March 6, 2026

The way hospitals traditionally staff is burning out nurses and killing patients.

A single call-in or unanticipated census spike creates heavier patient loads for front-line nurses. Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that surgical patients have a 31 percent increased likelihood of death within 30 days in hospitals with 8:1 nurse-to-patient ratios, compared to those with the optimal 4:1 ratio.

Further, when nurses were asked why …

Why your nonprofit hospital system is spending millions on marketing

Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA

Physician

March 6, 2026

An excerpt from Narrative Medicine in the Age of Uncertainty: When Systems Strain and Stories Steady.

When a nonprofit hospital system posts a $201 million operating loss, lays off roughly 650 workers, and then buys naming rights to an NFL practice facility, it does not just create bad optics. It teaches a lesson.

Not to the marketing department. To the workforce.

In Philadelphia, Jefferson Health reported a $201 million …

The Dozortsev-Diamond paradigm: Is progesterone the true ovulation trigger?

Michael Allon, MD, Lina Villar, MD, and Beata Tralik, MD, PhD

Conditions

March 6, 2026

Every reproductive endocrinologist knows that ovulation is triggered by estradiol. In our textbooks, the sequence is clear: Estradiol rises, triggers an LH surge, and ovulation follows, culminating in the formation of a corpus luteum, which produces progesterone to support implantation and pregnancy. It is straightforward and reassuringly precise, and it forms the backbone of our clinical practice.

Yet, from the very beginning of training, we are instructed to use artificial ovulation …

Administrative workforce stability: the new clinical metric for 2026

Rihan Javid, MD

Physician

March 6, 2026

In 2025, the health care industry faced a crisis that has quietly reshaped how providers think about care: administrative workforce shortages. Clinics struggled to fill roles like medical billers, schedulers, and revenue cycle specialists, with vacancies lasting over 30 days in many cases.

The impact was tangible:

Slower billing cycles.
Operational inefficiencies.
Less time for clinicians to spend with patients.

The real differentiator for high-performing practices was a surprisingly human …

Physician vulnerability and authenticity: How shared stories heal [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

March 5, 2026

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

Professor of clinical psychiatry Michael F. Myers discusses his book Physicians With Lived Experience: How Their Stories Offer Clinical Guidance and the article “Breaking the silence: mental health and racism in medical …

AI in pain assessment: Balancing innovation with patient safety

Kayvan Haddadan, MD

Physician

March 5, 2026

In Northern California and beyond, health care systems are rapidly integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and digital tools to transform how pain is recognized, measured, and managed. From algorithm-guided assessments to wearable sensors and predictive analytics, these tools promise to augment clinical decision-making and improve patient outcomes. Yet significant controversies remain, including concerns over algorithmic accuracy, bias, data privacy, and the extent to which technology should complement or potentially displace human …

What HCPs across the country are saying about policy and emerging research and why your voice matters

InCrowd

Winter in Islamabad: Finding hope in the daily struggle

Dr. Damane Zehra

Conditions

March 5, 2026

It is very cold in Islamabad. These days, I feel overwhelmed by joblessness, the constant lack of money, an upcoming medical exam, and the slow progress I am making in life. Apart from studying for my upcoming medical exam, the most consistent part of my routine has become counting money. I check all my bank accounts, calculate every remaining rupee, and make small, anxious plans about how I will manage …

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