Ventilator rationing is guided by rules that could worsen health inequities

Conditions
May 28, 2020

Imagine there are two individuals who have been admitted to a hospital due to COVID-19, and both desperately need ventilators. One is a 60-year-old with a heart condition, and another is a 63-year-old with chronic kidney disease. Because of resource constraints, you have to decide which patient will be able to receive a ventilator. Both patients’ families are looking to you to help their loved one through this illness. With …

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The truth about research: Lessons learned by an aspiring physician-researcher

Physician
May 27, 2020

Many people looking in on the world of research have perceptions of brilliant minds at work, rapidly putting forth groundbreaking ideas.  While they’re not entirely wrong, I discovered that this arena of fascinating new discoveries is not always so rapid and not glamorous at all.

As a clinical trials research associate, I learned that research is hard. I found that testing and implementing theories and postulations takes time and dedication.  I …

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5 reasons why your anesthesiologist is a medical ninja

Physician
May 27, 2020

1. Anesthesiologists are your protector

Think about this: An anesthesiologist’s job is to protect you from the harm your surgeon is causing.  Seriously. A surgeon’s job, at its very essence, is to damage your body. Now undeniably, it is with the intention of causing greater good and/or fixing something that is already broken.  But in order for a surgeon to help a patient, they take a knife, saw, drill, or hammer, …

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New York City provides residency training like no other

Physician
May 27, 2020

As a fourth-year anesthesiology resident, I opened up my email eagerly, awaiting the results of the pain fellowship match. It was official; I was heading to a major academic program in New York City. First came excitement and relief immediately followed by a rush of all-encompassing fear. I had grown up in Arizona my entire life, and the idea of living and training in New York City was daunting, to …

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Welcome to The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast
May 25, 2020
YouTube video

I’m excited to announce The Podcast by KevinMD.

There are many physician podcasts out there, and I was hesitant to throw my hat into the podcasting ring. After all, there are many physician-interviewers better at the craft than I am.

Then I thought back to the mission of KevinMD: To share the stories of the many who intersect with our health care system, …

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How working as a flight attendant made me a better physician

Physician
May 25, 2020

June 2020 will mark 15 years of my departure from flying the friendly skies. I have had the privilege of working as a flight attendant for JetBlue Airways from 2001 to 2005. Today, I am proudly grounded as a physician specializing in pediatric emergency medicine.

Gratitude is a positive mindset where you see your life and experiences as a gift. Practicing gratitude is a powerful way to reduce stress and build …

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A physician wedding in the age of COVID

Physician
May 23, 2020

April 2020 was to be a month of personal milestones. I would be traveling to Mexico with sixty closest friends and family to marry the woman of my dreams. Twelve days later, I would celebrate my thirtieth birthday. Suffice it to say, I was looking forward to April with the excited anticipation of a child on Christmas Eve.

But that was before COVID. Before all eyes were focused on the novel …

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Cause unknown: the burden of diagnosis

Conditions
May 22, 2020

Around three weeks ago, my 72-year-old patient, Mr. J., woke up feeling severely short of breath. He felt unusually tired, noticed a dry cough, and felt achy in his arms and legs. Suspicious of COVID-19, he and his wife called an ambulance and went to the nearest New York City emergency room.

At first, the doctors too thought it was COVID-19. However, a chest X-ray, CT scan, and a series of …

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Charting in uncharted territory: Scribing during COVID-19

Conditions
May 21, 2020

On Friday, March 27, 2020, California went on lockdown in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. It changed every Californian’s life, including my own. As the newly appointed chief scribe, the possibility that I would be jobless by the time Monday rolled around, was the last of my worries. What would happen to the patients who depended on our care? Or the physicians, nurses, and administrators that kept the center …

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Words of encouragement to physicians and trainees during the pandemic

Physician
May 21, 2020

As a fellow physician colleague, I felt compelled to address what medical personnel is experiencing in the COVID-19 pandemic. Needless to say, we’ve never been here before, and I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the gravity of the situation, its effects on trainees and attending physicians across the globe. While this is not a discussion about the virus, I urge you to please follow credible sources of information, …

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COVID is not a great equalizer

Policy
May 20, 2020

Some media outlets and public figures have heralded the ongoing pandemic as a great equalizer, referencing the pathogen’s indiscriminate spread and disregard for national borders and tax brackets.

The sobering mortality statistics, however, dispense any notion of an equal-opportunity crisis, revealing a familiar theme among public health challenges in America: significant racial disparities exist, and communities of color are disproportionately affected.

CDC data show that blacks account for 29% of confirmed infections …

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The medical education question that needs to be changed

Education
May 18, 2020

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

That is a common question you hear in the setting of medical education. I think I heard it for the first time on my first clinical rotation. A little background, I was a non-traditional medical student. I worked as a clinical pharmacist for ten years prior to starting medical school. When the resident asked me that question, I was initially a …

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What can patients do to lower the risk of errors in their electronic medical records?

Physician
May 17, 2020

In a perfect world, an electronic medical record would aggregate a patient’s medical information from all health care providers into a single, comprehensive record that could be easily accessed by any provider with the patient’s permission. This information could reduce the risk of medical errors, duplicate testing, and inappropriate treatment and the associated cost of these mistakes. It could also be lifesaving in the event of a medical emergency that …

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To the AAMC: Recommend an interview limit or else this year’s residency match may be a disaster

Education
May 16, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has turned medical education upside-down. There has been massive disruption from exclusively virtual pre-clerkship courses to delayed clerkships to canceled graduation proceedings. After weeks of speculation, we’ve learned how the pandemic will disrupt the 2020-2021 residency application cycle. The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) now recommends that all residency interviews be conducted virtually. While this is a wise recommendation, out of concern for public safety, I …

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Don’t drink the COVID conspiracy Kool-Aid

Conditions
May 16, 2020

Drinking the Kool-Aid

Across the USA recently, demonstrators wielding, “Stop the madness! It is just a cold virus!” and “Let me work” signs, chanting “Freedom now” and “Fire Fauci,” dangerously demanded an end to social distancing and stay-at-home orders.

In Italy, we would assume such demonstrations were fomented by the Mafia. In America, the provocateurs are right-wing extremists, Read more…

Bearing witness: the physician’s role in a time of crisis

Physician
May 15, 2020

Like many physicians not initially on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic, I watched with growing dread as stories from doctors and nurses started coming out from hot spots first in China then in Italy and then Seattle and New York. Seeing their faces and hearing their voices, I was struck by their exhaustion and fear but also by their sense of responsibility and duty. I wanted to help, …

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