Make sure your decision to leave medicine is not based on an emotional response

Physician
November 18, 2018

We know the statistics. More than 50 percent of physicians are experiencing burnout at the hands of EMRs, a nonexistent work-life balance and regulatory constraints to name a few. This is causing physicians to leave clinical medicine and find other work. Some are opting for nonclinical administrative roles, and others are leaving altogether for careers outside of medicine. This is adding to the shortage of physicians that we were already …

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How technology removes the pain point from diabetes management

Conditions
November 17, 2018

There is a wealth of information about your health circulating in your blood. For people with diabetes, accessing that information can be a matter of life or death.

For nearly 30 years, the prevailing technology for checking the blood sugars of someone with diabetes has been the fingerstick. People with diabetes are often asked to stick their fingers and check their blood multiple times a day to assess whether their blood …

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The stories of rural physicians

Physician
November 17, 2018

This article is sponsored by Careers by KevinMD.com.

When George W. “Billy” Campbell, MD, walks down the street, he never knows who — or what — he’s going to encounter. Anything can happen when you’re the doctor at Foothills Family Medicine of Westminster, South Carolina, a small town with a population of only 2,500.

“I’ve had someone pull …

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The spirit of Santa Claus in medicine

Physician
November 16, 2018

For longer than anyone could remember, he was the rural community’s pharmacist.  A skilled compounder of prescriptions, he was conversant in chocolates, greeting cards, and how to obviate a trip to the doctor’s office by using an over-the-counter remedy.

A devoted family man, he was involved in many civic and church activities. Most have forgotten all the roles he once played in the community, but no one will ever forget that …

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The Osteopathic Oath vs. the Hippocratic Oath

Education
November 16, 2018

It was during the first few weeks of medical school that I realized that I was joining a secret society. Like many physicians, I was called to medicine at a young age. For me, it was Doctor Beverly Crusher from Star Trek: The Next Generation. I admired her — I wanted to be who she was and do what she did. (More or less, my dreams of space medicine transmuted …

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The evolution of the stethoscope

Physician
November 13, 2018

The stethoscope. Nothings says “I’m a doctor” more than the stethoscope in a pocket or draped around the neck. Forty-five years ago when I got my first one, a gift from my physician-father, the former was more common. Then we were more likely to wear coats — white coats or suit coats — and pockets were available. I had suit coats in which the lining was worn out from the …

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The risks of co-signing PA and NP charts

Physician
November 13, 2018

We all know that there’s a remarkable shortage of physicians in America and that it’s growing worse.  This is especially true in primary care but it’s present across all specialties.  This shortage alone is a significant stress on practicing physicians.  But when it is coupled with corporatization, the increasing complexity of medical care, unrelenting electronic charting requirements and the explosion of administrative tasks, physicians barely keep up each day.

This is one of the …

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Meet the physician who became a financial advisor

Finance
November 13, 2018

If you can’t beat ’em, join them (and make it better).  Am I right?  This was some of the sentiment I felt as I registered with FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) to take the Series 65 exam.  Passing this exam will allow me to register in my state as an Independent Advisory Representative (IAR) and function as a financial advisor.   This begs the question: Why should I become a financial …

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Doctors overcorrect too often

Physician
November 12, 2018

Back when cholesterol target numbers ruled unopposed (before 2013), we all checked fasting lipids every three months. Before 2012, we also checked liver function quarterly in hapless riders on the cholesterol pill merry-go-round. That year the FDA announced there had not been enough reports of statin-induced liver problems to recommend routine monitoring.

I have many colleagues who still do this, and who also routinely monitor routine labs quarterly …

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8 tips to land the residency of your dreams

Education
November 9, 2018

After countless hours of hard work and three demanding years of medical school, it’s now time to face the spotlight! If your interview invites have started rolling in and you are feeling intimidated by the thought, follow these tips to land your first choice of clinical residency.

1. Be prompt with your responses to interview invites 

Be sure to set your inbox to automatically refresh every hour during the interview season so you …

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The main difference between functional medicine and evidence-based medicine

Physician
November 8, 2018

Figuring out what’s actually true is far harder than most people realize. Our brains are both hypothesis-generating machines and incredibly credulous. As a result, most of the things we believe to be true turn out to be false. We don’t just mistakenly believe that vaccines cause autism, that the flu shot can give us the flu, and that astrology can predict our future. We also mistakenly believe that the salad …

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How do health insurance companies harm patients?

Physician
November 7, 2018

Health care policy has been a hotly debated political topic for many years now. In recent years, new laws passed the halls of Congress while others failed to gain any traction. Despite the rules that have rolled out, health insurance companies have been in the driver’s seat for decades.

While spokespersons for the health insurance industry will tell you that they do not make medical decisions. As a doctor, I can …

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Here’s what the third year of medical school taught me

Education
November 5, 2018

The dawn of 2018 brought new hopes and new promises for me as I began the third year of my medical school journey. This marked the beginning of a challenging era, one that would test my capabilities to the fullest but also one that was the culmination of countless sacrifices and the fulfillment of years of yearning. After all, this was what I had come to medical school for.

Third year …

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What kind of extracurricular activities do medical schools look for?

Education
November 5, 2018

Preparing for medical school demands displaying your passion for both medicine and helping others. Like medical schools, other graduate school programs (think: business or law) require strong grades, test scores, leadership experience, and resumes. But medical school requires so much more than that. Good extracurricular activities for medical school are a particularly important part of the application process.

Through your application — personal statement, AMCAS experience list, secondaries, and interviews — you must …

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3 ways physician-pharma partnerships are improving quality of care

Meds
November 4, 2018

We’ve all heard about the importance of greater stakeholder collaboration in health care. It’s the premise of current movements aimed at improving the outlook on some of the most costly, chronic conditions.

Like most physicians today, I maintain a tight work schedule to keep bottom-line margins in the black. On a daily basis, I see between 25 and 30 patients while also serving as the medical director of employee health for …

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When Western medicine fails patients and clinicians

Meds
November 3, 2018

It’s a common scenario: a patient shows up to my office lugging a bagful of over-the-counter supplements, defiantly informing me that they “don’t believe in prescription drugs.” In the very next breath, they present a lab slip with a list of bloodwork that their alternative medicine doctor wants me to order to help diagnose their myriad symptoms.

I’ll admit, my initial natural reaction in this situation was a feeling of annoyance …

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MKSAP: 79-year-old man with a sacral ulcer

Conditions
November 3, 2018

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.

A 79-year-old man is evaluated for pain in the buttocks region. He was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin large B-cell lymphoma 6 months ago. Although his lymphoma has responded well to therapy and he is without evidence of active disease, he required hospitalization three times for chemotherapy-associated complications during his treatment course. He has been …

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