“A child is born with a food allergy. They do not choose to have their immune system compromised. Parents do not get the choice to opt-in or out of having their child’s body recognize ordinary food as a threat. Food allergies are a unique disease in that we need the …
When celebrities attack children with food allergies [PODCAST]
I was recently coaching a bright, energetic primary care physician in her first few years of practice. She was working through her Life’s Purpose statement, an exercise we often recommend. At the end of her admirable statement, she tagged on “with efficiency.” Naturally, we explored this a bit. Our conversation meandered toward an interesting conclusion: the more she focused on efficiency, the more likely she was to feel overwhelmed and …
The inverse relationship of efficiency and resilience
“I believe there is an art to medicine, a psychological connection to your patients through a hands-on patient encounter. There are nuances AI may take decades to compete with. For now, in my lifetime, I hope that people examine patients and when there are questions about the quality of care, …
Patient complaints have psychological repercussions [PODCAST]
“If you think a mother’s pain is unimaginable, you should see her strength.”
You were visiting your mother when, while in another room, you became unresponsive and fell to the floor. She heard the thump of your fall and raced into the room to find you pale and barely breathing. Drug paraphernalia sat beside you.
Your mother screamed. She cried. She fell to her knees and tried to wake you, slapping your …
If you think a mother’s pain is unimaginable, you should see her strength
Being a doctor is often more about talking to people and communicating than it is about the scientific practice of medicine. This is something that is unfortunately not taught enough in medical school, and it’s left to newly qualified doctors to realize very quickly as they start their careers.
Throughout the busy and hectic day of any hospital-based physician—no matter what their specialty—one of the most common requests we hear from …
When the family wants to speak to the doctor
Everybody knows how to operate smartphones and understands complex modern phenomena, but many Americans are frighteningly ignorant about basic human nutrition.
I am convinced this is the result of a powerful conspiracy fueled by the (junk) food industry. Here are just a few examples:
Milk has been advertised as a healthy beverage. It is not. No other species consumes milk beyond infancy. Milk-based products like ice cream and yogurt are on top …
“We can’t expect those with a business school mindset to solve physician burnout. What is needed is leadership throughout health care organizations by those with expertise in the core business, deep commitment to health care workers and patients, extensive tacit knowledge, and credibility. Physician CEOs have better outcomes in all …
Why the business school mindset doesn’t mind physician burnout [PODCAST]
I love stories, either told, written, or listened to. Songs tell stories, as does art. Blogs such as the rich content open so many doors for rich conversations. Telling stories is part of who I am. My father loved to tell them, as did my grandfather, whose name I took. They were called bull-sh*tters – and perhaps some refer to me that way at times. In medicine, I find storytelling …
Why storytelling is critical in medicine
This morning, while scrolling through social media, I encountered a resounding theme. Multiple physicians posting about being challenged, disrespected, and made to feel worthless by the very people they were trying to help: their patients. Being brought to tears by the disrespect of the patient’s family members. Physician expertise blatantly questioned. Advice ignored.
Patients telling doctors – to their faces – that they “don’t like their tone” and then telling nurses …
Honor your oath. Set boundaries. Demand respect.
“I can imagine the horror of watching a colleague being attacked. I worry about the coworker who Lynne protected that day, since being a survivor can be so bittersweet. I can feel the shock of how quickly the violence escalated, tasting the bitterness from the desperation of being so alone …
A nurse’s story of health care workplace violence [PODCAST]
With the recent onset of the Delta variant rendering havoc on an already strained economy and weary population post- the rabid COVID-19 surge, there is much debate on effective policies that negate the harmful outcomes of viral acquisition. The B.1.617.2 Delta variant originated in India and is among the most easily transmissible form of the novel SAR-CoV-2 pathogen, apart from the Alpha-Britain isolated, Beta-South Africa isolated, and Gamma-Brazil isolated forms. …
Looking at the studies behind masks
The current COVID pandemic has brought into stark contrast the woeful state of medical data collection and data sharing in the United States. It has been a central goal of Health and Human Services (HHS) to at first encourage and later mandate sharing clinical data across multiple electronic health records. Unfortunately, progress has been slow and actual clinically useful widespread adoption of shared medical data remains an aspiration. Here, we …
Sharing medical information between EHRs: 4 different approaches
“The first amendment protects your right to free speech. But it does not make you more right, more ethical, or more kind. And nor does it give one license to rewrite history as has been occurring since July 27th, adding insult to our experience. Let me break this down.
On …
When clinicians are bullied at a school board meeting [PODCAST]
She was an ICU downgrade. Hospice care is what they told me. We added her name to our list, and my senior resident told me she was now my patient. I did not have a clear story. Sepsis? Complications? The ICU note was lengthy. Rounds were coming up, and I needed to see all my patients.
I went into her room. She was breathing slow. Oxygen saturation dipping. Unconscious. I asked …
“Call the family. Let them know she passed away.”
According to the WHO, 10 to 20 percent of COVID-19 patients experience lingering symptoms for several months following infection. What we know as long COVID is now termed post-COVID condition as of October 6. Post COVID-19 condition occurs in individuals with a history of probable or confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, usually three months from the onset of COVID-19, with symptoms that last for at least two months and cannot be …
A COVID long-hauler shares her story
“Is your health care organization reeling from a bad EHR implementation?
There have been rumblings from hospital leadership and congressional committees about the Veterans Administration (VA) Hospitals’ implementation of the Cerner Corporation electronic health record (EHR) replacing the VistA EHR. The $10 million EHR overhaul has been controversial since the staggered …
How to recover from a bad electronic health records implementation [PODCAST]
“HIV has been a blessing in my life.”
Lola was a 48-year-old woman living in Denver when I interviewed her in 2002 about her HIV-positive diagnosis. She said the diagnosis improved her life in important ways; she had received income and housing support, nutritional assistance, health insurance, medication assistance and primary and infectious disease health care based on that diagnosis.
She said her sense of life’s purpose had changed, her basic needs …
HIV/AIDS vaccine underscores need for better health access
Here — outside with nature — this was where I needed to be. It was raining cats and dogs, unlike the light drizzle earlier in the day.
Earlier in the day.
Earlier in the day, I could still see the casket go into the ground, adding finality to the affair as if death was not final enough. Goodbye, Baba. I was yet to cry. That was why I needed to be here. …
What my father taught me about language
“Scarcity has, in many ways, defined the COVID-19 experience in the U.S., from shortages in personal protective equipment to ICU ventilators and hospital capacity, to COVID test kits, to drugs like Remdesivir in hard-hit states. These shortages have added impetus and new dimensions to existing conversations around health care …
Is COVID a turning point for sustainability in hospital supply chains? [PODCAST]
Nothing like a tragic global pandemic to make everyone rethink their careers. This past year and a half have brought a lot of changes to the workplace. Many of us don’t want to go back to the way things were. According to a Pew Research Center survey from late 2020, of the 71 percent of employees working from home because of the pandemic, more than half, given …
Can medicine transcend beyond the clinic walls? I’d like to see us try.
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