As a fourth-year medical student applying to neurosurgery residency, my rotation in neurosurgery has been one of the most intense and rewarding experiences of my medical education. The days are long, the cases complex, and the learning curve steep, but every day reaffirms my passion for the specialty. Here is a glimpse into a typical day on my neurosurgery rotation—a day that starts before the sun rises and is filled …
I want to express my frustration with the state of health care in the United States, particularly in the context of my own experiences within the system. Over the past 12 years, I have submitted articles to KevinMD advocating for quality patient care and fair working conditions for health care professionals. I have urged hospital administrators to reevaluate their operations to improve patient and staff satisfaction and the overall efficiency …
As a U.S. health care writer and patient advocate for almost 30 years, I read a lot. Recently, some of that reading is in court transcripts of doctors being persecuted out of medicine or into jail by various prosecutors and their hired “experts.” I use the term “persecuted” intentionally. I believe that “medical experts” in many court or Medical Board proceedings are simply “hired guns” – clinical predators hired for …
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In this episode, we sit down with Jonathan Fisher, a cardiologist, mindfulness teacher, and expert in holistic heart health. Drawing from his personal journey through anxiety and burnout, Jonathan shares insights from his …
As endocrinologists, we spend our days balancing hormones and fine-tuning metabolism, but when it comes to our own continuing medical education (CME) conferences, it seems our ability to maintain equilibrium goes out the window. We advocate for healthy living, yet our CME events are a hormonal disaster, like a cortisol spike right after a sugar crash.
Picture the scene: you roll out of bed before the sun, which is already a …
When I was a teenager, I worked summer nights at the Funtown Amusement Park on the south side of Atlanta, Georgia. After work, as I drove home to the north side of Atlanta, I had to pass through “Cabbagetown.” In the early 1960s, during the days of segregation in the South, Cabbagetown was a shantytown neighborhood inhabited by tough, white folks who worked at the nearby Fulton Cotton Mills. On …
As a retired physician, I notice many seniors become skinny and weak due to muscle loss yet have big bellies as fat accumulates. They are less strong, less vibrant, and prone to falls and chronic illnesses like heart disease, diabetes, and cognitive decline. This does not need to happen, but many older people do not appreciate the health and wellness impacts of muscle loss …
Once again, I found myself balled up on the kitchen floor, head between my knees, sobbing. My shoulders shook, and my chest heaved as I gasped for air, but air wouldn’t be enough. What I was truly gasping for was hope, something that had eluded me during this perpetually challenging season of my “neurodivergent” parenting career.
I’m not sure what made that moment any different from the countless dysregulated nights that …
War metaphors in oncology are controversial, to say the least. For some patients with cancer, the idea that they are “cancer warriors” in a “battle” with their disease is inspiring. Using such language gives them a sense of agency in a situation where very little is in their control. Many others loathe such language …
The field of sports medicine is steadily growing, highlighting the imperative for a more inclusive workforce. There has been a notable rise in female athletes at all levels of sports. The success of U.S. female athletes at this summer’s Paris Olympics was dominant. The prominence of U.S. women in sports is evident by their winning of twenty-six of the forty gold medals awarded. Despite the clear rise in competitive women …
When planning for retirement, most of us focus on building a nest egg that will support us in our golden years. We diligently contribute to our 401(k)s, IRAs, and other retirement accounts, hoping to maximize our savings and minimize our tax burden. However, the passage of the SECURE Act and SECURE Act 2.0 have introduced new rules that could significantly affect how your retirement savings are passed on to your …
About midway through my pediatric residency program at a well-known children’s hospital on the East Coast in the mid-1990s, I found out what was wrong with me.
I told the chief of the pediatric emergency department, a Jewish woman, that I had finally learned the name of a device after I had patients use it many times. I knew what it was for, but I hadn’t learned its name. It was …
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An excerpt from Nephilim.
“Those eggs really hit the spot, right?”
“I’d love some more,” he answered.
“Sure,” Zdenek responded. “One or two?”
“How many do we have?”
Before long, James had wolfed down nine eggs.
“I wonder if it’s the choline,” Zdenek mused as James shoveled. “Eggs have a boatload of choline. Maybe she’s craving it. Orange that is.” James hadn’t touched his toast. “Choline, you know? It might help my baby merge with …
For an introduction to SPR, read this overview. Additionally, you can explore the history of SPR.
When summoned for a peer review, how can you tell if it’s a sham? The biggest clue is whether the peer review process seems intended to help or harm you. If you feel sincerely supported by colleagues and the peer review proceedings are uniformly applied throughout your practice, you have less cause for …
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In today’s health care ecosystem, patient retention has become a $3 billion dollar issue for health systems, with patient leakage (also known as patient keepage) at its core. Despite efforts to keep patients within their networks, a significant portion continue to seek care elsewhere, leading to financial losses. Interestingly enough, physical therapy proves to be key in improving patient retention, as recent data shows that rehab-related leakage is the number …
An excerpt from Story Treasures: Medical Essays and Insights in the Narrative Tradition.
The Gish gallop – named after American creationist Duane Gish, who challenged the science of evolution – is a rhetorical technique often used by a debater to throw out a fast string of lies, non-sequiturs, and specious arguments, so many that it is impossible to fact-check or rebut them in the amount of time it took to …
Can you remain steady in the midst of chaos—whether in the emergency room, on the unit, or in the clinic? There are times in medicine when chaos ensues. Maybe it’s a trauma rushing into the ER. Or a refractory asthmatic coming into the office who rapidly deteriorates, requiring immediate intervention. Maybe it’s a newborn who is floppy and cyanotic after birth.
Regardless of the clinical setting, there are times when the …
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There are 85,000 medical malpractice lawsuits filed annually. Among them, 52,190 are summarily dropped for reasons unknown; 26,860 are settled; 1,190 result in plaintiff verdicts, and 4,760 in defense verdicts. Only 33.3% of these lawsuits are likely to have merit, while 66.7% do not. To make matters worse, only one out of every 37.5 claims reviewed by attorneys is represented, meaning that 3,102,500 other claims are abandoned for reasons known …
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