“If I had $100 for every time I walked into a patient’s room, introduced myself as the doctor, and was immediately asked, ‘Hey, how old are you?’ I might be able to retire right now — at the age of 28. Of course, I am exaggerating, and yet this question echoes for …
Does your doctor’s age matter? [PODCAST]
While the current COVID pandemic has created serious health challenges, there has been a dramatic increase in research examining the effects of vitamins on COVID infections. Many studies report the positive effects of vitamin D in boosting our immune system and protecting against COVID. Studies and seminars have shown that for those people who do not receive vitamin D from outdoor sun …
The FDA should consider vitamin D as a pharmaceutical agent for COVID
“With the rapid growth of modern medicine and awareness in lifestyle and environmental influences, individuals can live longer and healthier lives. Approximately 15.2 percent of the U.S. population consists of individuals 65 years and older. To make the added years of life expectancy fulfilling, older adults need to stay socially connected and …
Don’t underestimate the value of intergenerational relationships [PODCAST]
As many of you know, burnout is an increasingly serious problem for physicians, affecting over 50 percent of clinicians in some studies conducted before our current COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, in an interesting study, one of every four physicians is looking to do some non-clinical work, in part, to ease the stress of today’s clinical practice.
In one survey just completed, more than 48 percent of physicians reported that since the …
An introduction to medical-legal consulting
“Studies have repeatedly demonstrated a vast majority of pain physicians don’t feel like they have adequate training in meeting the unique needs of this patient population, though most agree that such efforts are very necessary. This disconnect between demand and supply is a problem, a big one.
With the current pandemic stretching …
Issues faced by LGBTQ individuals in the operative setting [PODCAST]
A recent op-ed published by the Wall Street Journal, “Is There a Doctor in the White House? Not if You Need an M.D.,” has sparked a lot of controversy and immense backlash. The author Joseph Epstein, a former Northwestern University professor, first addresses the future First Lady as “kiddo” and continues with “’Dr. Jill Biden’ sounds and feels fraudulent, not to say a …
To Dr. Biden from an MD: Please keep using your deserved title
“The behavior of managers and supervisors in organizations affects the mental health of their employees. This is especially true during times of uncertainty, such as a global pandemic.
Does a leader’s health and well-being change how they lead?
Early evidence shows that when leaders are experiencing challenging conditions, they are more likely to become …
How to be a transformational, supportive leader during COVID-19 [PODCAST]
“What has kept me comprised during this entire time has been the realization that this whole situation is not normal. It’s not normal for me; it’s not normal for millions of other people. This is not how pregnancy is supposed to go. This is a pandemic and an uncertain time for …
What it’s like to be pregnant in a pandemic [PODCAST]
It’s been dubbed “COVID brain fog,” the neurological symptoms suffered by an estimated 80 percent of people who are hospitalized with COVID-19. These are early dementia-like neurological problems that patients face even after recovering from COVID-19, and there is a concern that people who recover from the disease have a higher risk of long-term cognitive decline.
We have always encouraged people age 50 and over to undergo a baseline cognitive assessment. …
Utilize a baseline test to uncover COVID brain fog
Throughout my years of pediatric training and being a mother, I have benefited from viewing medicine from both sides. I have also tried to hone listening to and understanding my patients’ parents and their perspectives. I have listed 10 things that I believe most parents wish their child’s pediatrician knew.
We are just worried about our kids
First and foremost, we are worried about and invested in the health and happiness of …
10 things parents want their pediatrician to know (from a pediatrician mom’s perspective)
“We can clearly see that exponential technologies are disrupting cars and phones. So why wouldn’t these technologies find their way into health care and gastroenterology?
What do stool tests have to do with self-driving cars? We’ll soon find out. But let’s first go back to the discussion we had earlier on the shift …
What does colon cancer screening have to do with self-driving cars? [PODCAST]
“I no longer start every day in dread,” Sheila (not her real name) told me as we completed a six-month coaching engagement. Her statement initially surprised me because that’s not how she described her interest in coaching when we began. She had simply and unemotionally told me that she needed a career change and didn’t want to jump into another not-quite-right situation. But as I recalled the time we spent …
Solving imposter syndrome in physicians
I saw a tweet recently from a medical resident training at another hospital that really hit home for me: “In response to a rumor that health care workers who treat COVID patients will be prioritized for vaccination in our health system, one of my co-residents asked unironically, ‘Does that include us?’”
“Resident” is a word coined in the twentieth century when physicians in training often physically lived (“resided”) at the hospital. …
Medical residents signed up to live in the hospital, not to die there
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Over coffee and the usual banter in the doctor’s lounge, a group of physicians takes a break from seeing patients after donning off their PPE. The TV is blasting the news, largely ignored, until the focus turns to the COVID-19 vaccine. The newscaster announced that the first group to receive the vaccine would be health care workers. Everyone stops talking; all gaze at the wall-mounted screen. And it …
What worries this physician about the COVID-19 vaccine
“Hiring locum tenens clinicians often proves to be more efficient, and when a position goes unfilled, health care organizations are potentially leaving millions of dollars on the table in unrealized revenues. Once in place, locum tenens clinicians can help organizations expand their service lines, provide access to specialists, relieve existing staff …
How can we redefine locum tenens? [PODCAST]
A year ago, if you had asked me if most doctors respected their patients’ wishes, I would have answered with a resounding yes. If you had asked me if medicine had divorced its paternalistic roots when physicians trampled over ideals like patient autonomy and non-malfeasance, I would have said yes. But that was last year, and in this new world of COVID, panic, hysteria, and ever-present claims of just “following …
COVID, paternalism, and the death of patient autonomy
Your success in the medical field is not solely contingent upon your clinical dexterity but often results from the mastery of various industry aspects. What separates a great doctor from a good doctor is their cognizance of both the clinical and business sides of medicine. The market, risks, and trends of medical businesses are a great resource for residents as they establish their place in medicine. Business management is a …
Understanding the business of medicine: How to pursue excellence in the medical field
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”
– Mary Oliver, The Summer Day
Ikigai is a Japanese concept that means “a reason for being.” The word “ikigai” is usually used to indicate the source of value in one’s life or the things that make one’s life worthwhile. The word translated to English roughly means “thing that you live for” or “the reason for …
How to make peace with purpose
“In my work with physicians and physician leaders in academic medicine, I learned that physicians are highly self-reflective and aware of the pressures they face; however, they are frequently the last to ask for help, and the first to deprioritize their own self-care. This has led to high suicide rates in the overall …
When coaching physicians with wellness, don’t lead with mindfulness [PODCAST]
Many friends have asked for my perspective on the COVID vaccine. Answering this requires both an explanation of clinical trials and an understanding of what normally slows down pharmaceutical development.
Importantly, COVID vaccines are required to go through the same process as every other pharmaceutical. These include the following:
Preclinical trials. In this stage, researchers conduct animal testing to see if the vaccine can produce an immune response. If the vaccine is …
Why can I trust the COVID vaccine?
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