Dogs have been part of my extended family for most of my sixty-plus years. With a dog comes poop.
It doesn’t really matter on a farm, but in the city, there is an expectation, a social contract of sorts. In the public parks and boulevards, the dog owner is expected to scoop the poop.
While some dog walkers dutifully pick up their dog’s poop, others don’t bother, and before I know it, …
Dog poop, the social contract, and pandemic behaviors
One year after the White House instated an executive order focusing on health equity and support for underserved communities, changes are in progress. But even with the positive news that the Omicron surge has peaked with the seven-day case average dropping, gaping holes in health disparities are still unanswered.
Some hospitals and health care systems such as CoxHealth have hired diversity, equity, …
Stand and deliver: Health care systems need to serve up health equity missions
Medical students are quickly familiarized with which specialties are most competitive when they finish their first year. The prior year’s Match statistics can make the process seem daunting. As if the enormous amount of material to be learned is not enough, students also face the anxiety of adequately preparing for a coveted residency position. There might be additional stressors for a medical student in a small city or rural area …
9 medical student tips to prepare for the Match
A few days ago, I talked to a mentor and brought up my anorexia recovery journey. Using my voice after years of suffering in silence has been instrumental in releasing myself from the inner torment while trying to create purpose from the pain. When I mentioned my struggle with anorexia, the mentor responded, “How are you doing, now?” followed by one of my most dreaded comments: “I mean … You …
Eating disorders are mental health illnesses that don’t have a certain “look”
This episode is sponsored by Athelas, the number one provider of remote patient monitoring.
“As a clinician who has received two Pfizer doses and a booster without any side effects, I wholeheartedly embrace vaccination to solve this pressing public health crisis. The key is for policymakers to …
Why is Covaxin not in the FDA’s toolbox? [PODCAST]
The headlines read “Why Healthcare Workers are Quitting in Droves,” “Docs are Leaving Practice,” and “Physician burnout declared a public health crisis.” The side-gig, financial independence retire early (FIRE), and non-clinical career posts pop up in my daily professional media feeds. Believing in the power of suggestion, I wonder if I should start looking for career number two.
Start. That’s a joke. …
I am not leaving medicine because I like the clinical practice part of my job
New Haven, West Virginia, is a small town nestled in Appalachia and located approximately eight miles from the juncture of the Ohio and Kanawha rivers. Newspaper articles from the 1950s and ’60s suggest that the town’s demographic makeup and surrounding area as nearly 97 percent Caucasian.
In 1926, as commissioned by West Virginia, a psychiatric facility was opened and named The Lakin Hospital for the Colored Insane. In the tradition of …
Mildred Mitchell-Bateman, MD: an icon in psychiatry
When was the last time someone sat down with you to talk about what you want from your career? Let me ask this differently: When was the last time someone sat down with you and listened while you talked about what you want from your career? If your answer is yesterday, or last week, or last month, or anytime in the last year, and you love what you do without …
What do physician coaches do, and what can they do for you?
An excerpt from First Patients: The incredible true stories of pioneer patients.
Unfazed by the village doctors’ refusals, the parish deacon forged ahead. Dr. Andrew Bell–preacher, educator, and doctor, possessed the temper and energy of a combustion engine. Nothing would stop him from carrying out his plan to vaccinate the three …
Farmer Jesty’s bold experiment
This episode is sponsored by Athelas, the number one provider of remote patient monitoring.
“At the beginning of my time as a CMIO, I needed to remain clinical to build camaraderie with my colleagues. This proved essential as the health system was going through a transition to …
Physician informatics and the chief medical information officer [PODCAST]
Success in any project is based on using the right tool for the job. No tool would be more effective in the campaign against COVID than Covaxin, which has shown its value in India and other markets during recent months.
While mRNA vaccines were a promising option in the early stages of the pandemic, a study released by the CDC on January 19, 2022 showed that in two of the most …
Why is the world’s first universal coronavirus vaccine not in the FDA’s toolbox?
What’s the problem?
Anthony Fauci, MD, has said: “Virtually everybody is going to wind up getting exposed and likely get infected.” There’s one reason to avoid this scenario: long COVID.
If Omicron is sooner or later going to infect even just “more than 50 percent,” how many will get long COVID? We can’t know yet, the variant having appeared just three months ago. Hopefully, this …
An update on COVID’s long tail
Frustration.
If you’ve treated patients with PTSD, I’m guessing that both you and your patients have experienced frustration at numerous points along the treatment course. And it’s understandable – up until this point, the efficacy of PTSD treatments has been notoriously poor. The best options aimed to diminish the severity of symptoms with a combination of therapy and daily medications.
However, the …
What doctors need to know about psychedelic medicine
COVID has been with us for two years. I have written my reflection during the pandemic periodically to vent, share and disseminate information. But I have felt at a loss for words in the last few months. I am exhausted, emotionally drained and bereft.
Critical care docs are resilient. We train to serve the sickest patients. We are used to making decisions in split seconds. Lives depend on us, and we …
Reflections of a critical care doctor after 2 years of COVID
There is a lot of confusion and outright falsehoods about fasting. You can search the internet for clarity and end up more confused than when you started.
The fact is, fasting can be a very effective tool to improve your metabolic health, increase insulin sensitivity and help you lose weight. But, who should and shouldn’t use fasting for weight loss and how long to fast for effective weight loss are questions …
This episode is sponsored by Athelas, the number one provider of remote patient monitoring.
“Patients die. This is a tragic truism in the world of medicine. Usually, the patients who die are elderly. Patients die from diabetes and kidney disease, or from alcohol abuse and liver failure, …
Never underestimate the self-flagellation of the physician [PODCAST]
My gut churned, a burning rose into my chest as I read the email. It’s happening again repeated on a reel in my mind, followed by I need to leave this job. But I wasn’t quitting. I was triggered. It was years after I’d had the rug pulled out from under me at an institution where I’d spent decades working, but sometimes my nervous system sent me right back there.
I was a palliative …
A crushing blow in a workplace I loved
The first time I heard the phrase “shoulding all over yourself,” I laughed. As a gastroenterologist, I have a particular affinity for poop jokes. It might not be obvious when you read the phrase, but say it out loud, and you will hear it. I think the phrase also caught me off guard. I didn’t understand the significance of the word should. It just seemed like an ordinary word in …
Stop “shoulding” all over yourself
As 2021 passed into 2022, I was hoping new stories would emerge and dominate the medical landscape. So, I did a bit of crowdsourcing on social media and among colleagues. Here are five topics I’d like to read less about — if for no other reason than they’ve been discussed and vented ad nauseam with little likelihood of resolution unless words give way to meaningful action.
COVID-19
We’re rapidly approaching the three-year …
5 topics I don’t want to read about in 2022 (but I probably will anyway)
As I was preparing for my next medical mission, I began to think about the word “minister.” Obviously from a religious standpoint, it has certain connotations, one of which is “to serve”. When you are ministering to someone’s needs, you are serving them.
This caused me to think of my dear friend in Nepal, Fahad. Fahad is a young Muslim physician with whom I had the privilege of serving and working …
You are a servant with a servant heart
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