If academic medicine is to avoid becoming academic, it must prioritize patient care

Physician
March 6, 2018

One of the definitions of “academic” is the following: Not of practical relevance; of only theoretical interest.

When we look at the term academic medicine, sadly the descriptor “academic” increasingly falls under this definition.

To be fair, there have been some wonderful scholars in the field of medicine: Semmelweis, Fleming, Salk, Sabine, Starzl, and Marshall to name a few. And these few were not readily embraced by their peers in medicine. Barry Marshall was ridiculed …

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Don’t ignore ADHD in adults

Conditions
March 6, 2018

Eight-year-old Tommy has trouble paying attention in school, is always restless in class, unable to complete his tasks, hyperactive both in school and home and his teacher discusses the possibility of him having ADHD with his parents. They decide to take him to see a pediatric psychiatrist. After some analysis, he’s diagnosed with ADHD, prescribed with Ritalin and is on his way home with his medicine. Classic childhood ADHD story, …

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Is your spouse experiencing physician burnout?

Physician
March 5, 2018

Many things in life can only be truly appreciated once reflected upon — like the onset of dementia, depression, and cancer, just to name a few. This got me thinking about the onset of burnout and how the true presentation in life is quite different than reading about it.

The term “burnout” is often thrown around loosely but is an actual syndrome comprised of the progression of “exhaustion, cynicism and reduced …

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Medicine systematically disadvantages women physicians at every stage of their careers

Physician
March 5, 2018

When my friend was in her fourth year of medical school, she and her boyfriend sat down with their dean to discuss their residency applications. Both have since gone on to have successful academic medicine careers, but on that day in the dean’s office, they were nervous. My friend asked the dean for reassurance.

“I’m sure it will all work out,” she recalled the dean saying. “After all, in 20 years …

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5 must-haves for great physician online profiles

Social media
March 3, 2018

Patients have a lot of choices when it comes to physicians.  Making sure your online profile is up to date, complete, and contains these five items will improve the chances that a website visitor will become a patient.

Create a personal connection. Having good rapport with patients is important, and that process starts before patients ever walk in the door.

How often have you seen a physician bio that only contains a single, …

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If physicians are burned out, why don’t they just quit? Here’s why.

Physician
March 3, 2018

Those of you that follow me know that I write and speak often on the topic of physician burnout.  About a year ago, after my grandmother passed away, my extended family and I got together for a few days.  One night, my cousin and I got to talking about my work, and he pressed me on a question that so many have asked me before, “What makes physician burnout different than that which every other profession experiences — and if …

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Is apathy needed to survive medical school?

Education
March 2, 2018

I’m about two-thirds of the way through my 3rd year of medical school, and I have hit my wall. I have become so fed up with the set up of medical school. I think a decent amount of this comes from the fact I am on my 6th week of an eight-week surgery clerkship (an area of medicine that I literally have zero interest in). I’m tired of waking up …

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You’re a physician and a parent. Which comes first?

Physician
March 1, 2018

If you’re a physician-parent, no doubt you’re familiar with the helplessness associated with the phone call informing you that your child is sick — and needs to be picked up within the hour.  You know, the one that coincides with when you were about to start a procedure or a time where there’s no backup available to take over your responsibilities.  Murphy’s law.

Many of us have nannies exactly for this …

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How psychiatrists became lesser physicians

Physician
February 28, 2018

Recently, a form showed up on my desk to sign, approval for something or other. Not uncommon, given my role at the time as a chief psychiatrist, I signed dozens of such letters, memos, or forms, drafted by an administrative assistant.  I signed so many; I never looked at the last line — at how my name had been typed out.  Just once my eyes wandered to the end and …

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The unjust prosecution of physicians is not unique

Policy
February 28, 2018

Dr. Pramela Ganji had just finished her lunch when she was told that the appellate court had reversed and vacated her conviction.  At first, she didn’t believe it.   

After all, this whole experience had been surreal.  Dr. Ganji, a 68-year-old well-respected medical doctor and married mother of 3 children, had practiced medicine for 40 years without incident.  Her patients loved her, and she had dedicated her life to helping others. …

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Physicians don’t know everything, and that’s OK

Education
February 27, 2018

Physicians face a host of challenges in practice, but the one that looms largest is often this — they don’t know everything.

It would be tempting to think that they do. As patients, we want them to. We want our doctors to tell us that they know what’s wrong and how to fix it. Medical mysteries are fun on television, but in our real lives, they’re profoundly unsettling and can have …

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We are all aging every day. But mostly we ignore, do not recognize, or deny it.

Conditions
February 26, 2018

Part of a series.

We are all aging every day, but mostly we ignore, do not recognize or deny it. Then all of a sudden, we look in the mirror and realize that older age has found us. Even then each person deals with aging differently. There is Dr. Seuss’ “Cat in the Hat” who sees nothing but adversity in aging. There are others who accept aging but …

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Radical realism: A hospice doctor prepares for death

Physician
February 26, 2018

Bruce Wilson, MD, is a hospice doctor and former cardiologist who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in February of 2017. In the months that followed, he publicly discussed events as they unfolded on a CaringBridge blog. The irony of the situation was profound: a hospice doctor being handed what some consider a death sentence. A physician who dedicated his career to changing the conversation about end of life care now …

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There’s more to the story of the fired patient

Physician
February 26, 2018

She could have been my charming tiny kindergarten teacher, sitting there nonchalantly in her wheelchair with neatly folded arms in her lap. The delicate, airy cloud of silvery blonde hair on her head resembled Queen Elizabeth’s style. I named her Ms. Elizabeth. A few moments ago, though, she looked like a young child who could not comprehend the meaning of her condition. Whenever she was spoken to, her mind seemed …

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Are diploma mills hurting the nursing profession?

Policy
February 26, 2018

I have worked with some great nurse practitioners (NPs) who I consider to be friends. They play a vital role in team-based practice. This is not about NP bashing. Nor is it a turf war; now that I’m retired, I have no turf to protect. I am a member of Physicians for Patient Protection out of real concern for the future of medicine in this country.

I want there to be …

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Fixation error can be deadly in medicine

Conditions
February 26, 2018

John Grover is a nice guy. He’s fifty-five, short, a little chubby, and he has a neatly trimmed red beard. He’s the kind of guy whose eyes light up the moment you walk into the room; The kind of guy who remembers your kids’ names, their ages, and their interests. I’d met him a few times before. He’d come in once to refill his blood pressure medication because he couldn’t …

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Rappers: Stop glamorizing prescription drug use

Physician
February 25, 2018

During his 2004 stand up “Never Scared,” Chris Rock said, “I love rap music, but I am tired of defending it.” That statement, for me, holds true more today than ever before. Mumbling about nonsense is already hard to defend and only gets worse when the first line to every song these days has a reference to drugs.

Drugs, sex, and money have always been an important part of music, and …

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10 tips that make me a happy doctor

Physician
February 24, 2018

Burnout is defined as emotional exhaustion, feelings of cynicism and detachment, and a sense of ineffectiveness at work. The inverse of burnout is engagement — a persistent, upbeat sense of fulfillment characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption. I haven’t seen that doctor in the hospital lounge in a long time.

I am a neurologist practicing for 25 years in both academic and community hospital settings. I have a busy outpatient practice, …

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When a patient dies, do you cry?

Physician
February 24, 2018

Apparently, I wanted to become a doctor since I was four. My mother tells the story of me getting ready for bed and simply saying: “Mommy, when I grow up I want to be a doctor so I can make people better.”

This notion stuck with me, and, luckily, I took a liking to biology, anatomy and all the sciences throughout school making my little four-year-old dreams come true. And now, …

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5 lessons every woman doctor must learn

Physician
February 24, 2018

Recently, I wanted to find some inspirational articles for female doctors. This letter to the young female physician by Dr. Suzanne Koven was one of the first things I came across. I wish someone had written me a letter when I was young and dumb and entering internship. Maybe it would have been a good warning. I mean, I was clueless about what lay ahead. I …

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