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20 anecdotes that describe the world of female medical students and physicians

Jamie Katuna

Education

January 13, 2018

I recently collected anecdotes from women in medicine who have noticed the same thing I’ve noticed: We’re not as comfortable here as our male counterparts. Despite progress, medicine remains a patriarchy — an “old boy’s club” — and the women in this world are frequently reminded of this status quo. In collecting these anecdotes, I’ve noticed two main themes for the type of advice and comments women receive.

The first one speaks …

Health care and the airline industry have a lot in common

Abraham Morse, MD, MBA

Policy

January 10, 2018

There are many apt comparisons to be made between aviation and health care. As a (lapsed) instrument-rated pilot, I may have some insight about the system in which planes function on a daily basis in the United States. It is truly an impressive system which is (to paraphrase Don Berwick) well-designed to achieve the safety results that it does. However, the kind of statement that some health care safety leaders …

A physician lurked on Facebook mom groups. Here’s what she found.

Audrey Nath, MD, PhD

Physician

January 9, 2018

In my off time, as a mom and a physician, I spend a decent amount of time lurking in a rather strange environment, even for the internet. A place so filled with anxiety, stories of ill-chosen spouses and little glimpses of unbridled joy, that you’d think you were somehow inside a taping of the Real Housewives of This-crying-baby-makes-me-hope-that-I-end-up-having-a-dissociative-fugue. You know, *that* place.

Online mommy groups on Facebook.

And, there I am, lurking …

15 minutes aren’t enough for a primary care visit

DrizzleMD

Physician

January 9, 2018

Have you bought a new memory foam mattress recently? Many come vacuumed in shrink bags. Once air gets in the bag, the mattress expands to its normal size. It is fascinating to watch how they expand.

It is not so fascinating to watch a patient expand to their actual size, when they are forcefully squeezed into an enclosed time space like an office …

A physician’s love-hate relationship with dividends. And what he does about it.

Physician on FIRE, MD

Finance

January 9, 2018

When I described my drawdown strategy in early retirement, I stated we will “sell from the taxable account first.” I also plan to collect quarterly dividends from my index funds, but if Vanguard were Burger King and I could have it my way, I’d hold the dividends and take bites out of my account only as needed.

When I discuss the downsides of dividends, note that I …

Learn about Clostridium difficile infection with a Medcomic

Jorge Muniz, PA-C

Conditions

January 8, 2018

Clostridium difficile is a gram-positive anaerobic bacillus which secretes toxins (A and B) that cause diarrhea and pseudomembranous colitis. C. difficile is the most common infectious cause of nosocomial diarrhea. Transmission of C. difficile can occur from contact with contaminated humans and fomites. The organism contains endospores that can survive the acidity of the stomach and reach the large intestine.

C. difficile colonizes the intestinal tract after the normal …

The non-difference between MDs and DOs

Brandon Jacobi

Education

January 8, 2018

“What’s a DO?” is something virtually every osteopathic medical student and physician have been asked at some point in their training. There is this public misconception that professionals who carry MD after their names are the only qualified people to medically treat their ailments. Any other degree is categorized as “alternative medicine” in their mental schema. Truth be told, DOs, or doctors of osteopathic medicine are just as qualified as …

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The non-difference between MDs and DOs

Please change the culture of surgery

Anonymous

Education

January 8, 2018

It is December 2017. I have been on the road for the last five months, completing my five months of elective rotations. I am a fourth-year medical student aspiring to specialize in family medicine. I also want to learn procedures, so I did two months of surgery, three months of family practice electives. At the beginning of this process, I had wanted to be a general surgeon, but I ended …

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Please change the culture of surgery

Why published trading strategies rarely work

Wall Street Physician, MD

Finance

January 8, 2018

When you browse finance-related websites, it doesn’t take long for you to see ads that claim that they can help you make money, fast.

“I’VE BEEN ABLE TO WIN ON 90% OF MY TRADES WITH THIS PROVEN STRATEGY.” – TYPICAL AD #1

“LET ME SHOW YOU HOW TO EARN 25% RETURNS, GUARANTEED.” – TYPICAL AD #2

“SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER AND I’LL SHARE WITH YOU THREE STOCKS THAT ARE READY TO EXPLODE.” …

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Why published trading strategies rarely work

Lessons from the psychiatric ward

Kristin Puhl, MD

Education

January 7, 2018

The specter of the psych ward looms large in popular culture: video games, horror movies, novels — the concept of a locked inpatient psychiatric ward is shorthand for a variety of terrors. This perception is driven by a complex cocktail of factors. Psych ward patients have struggled with historical and current abuses, which are compounded by misunderstanding and ignorance around mental illness.

During third year, I spent a six-week rotation in …

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Lessons from the psychiatric ward

Take a pill and stop aging. Really?

Stephen C. Schimpff, MD

Meds

January 6, 2018

Part of a series.

A pill to end aging.

Is there or could there be such a pill? Some researchers think so.

Many believe that rather than attack the causes and treatment of chronic illnesses one by one, it would be better to understand the biology of aging and from that learn how to slow the process and hence prevent or delay the onset of various …

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Take a pill and stop aging. Really?

Independent practice: Both nurse practitioners and physicians should be outraged

Rebekah Bernard, MD

Policy

January 5, 2018

The United States is facing a looming physician shortage, and some groups see this as an opportunity to promote an agenda of replacing physicians with nurses.

The nurse-as-doctor concept appeared in the Institute of Medicine Future of Nursing 2011 report, which called for a radical change to the nursing structure in the United States, including a goal of …

Do physicians make the best politicians?

Anonymous

Physician

January 4, 2018

Even though we have probably 20 years of work remaining as physicians, like a lot of you, I like to think about how we will spend our retirement years. After all, in twenty years we will still only be in our early fifties, hopefully with no dependents and a lot of financial security. Of course, my wife and I are interested in traveling, spending time with grandchildren (hopefully), gardening and …

Plastic surgeon quits and couldn’t get a job at Chick-fil-A

Pamela Wible, MD

Physician

January 4, 2018

I just got off the phone with Paul, a highly-sought-after plastic surgeon in New York.

“I don’t want to be a doctor anymore,” Paul says. “What else can I do? I have lots of restaurant experience. I’ve worked in 15 restaurants during my life. It’s not easy, but I could do it. I did research on chains and franchises, and I chose Chick-fil-A. …

Why the social history is important

Maria Yang, MD

Physician

January 3, 2018

From the notes I read, it seems that other medical specialties limit “social history” to whether or not someone uses tobacco, drinks alcohol, or uses drugs.

“Social history” is meant to get a sense of the context in which people live. Where do they live? Who do they live with? How did they come to live there? Where did they grow up? What sort of work do they do? How much …

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Why the social history is important

Why are so many doctors doing multi-level marketing?

Passive Income, MD

Finance

January 3, 2018

My goal with this post is to try to answer some of the more popular questions that we get asked about multi-level marketing (MLM). Why write about it? Besides the fact that my wife and I are involved in one, and it’s made a significant impact on our income, the number of physicians getting involved these days is huge.

My goal is not for everyone to go out and …

Surgeon suicide-homicide: What happened to Dr. Chris Dawson?

Pamela Wible, MD

Physician

January 1, 2018

Sometimes there are no words. Not even a eulogy.

Then one courageous family writes this obituary. (This obituary was written by Rachel Dawson, his wife, with the blessing of his parents.) In it, they share how their son lost his battle with severe depression. How he adored his children. How he sacrificed fun, free time, and relaxation to receive his medical …

Relative risk reduction is a troublesome way to convey the benefits of treatments

Peter Ubel, MD

Meds

January 1, 2018

How excited would you be about a medication that lowered your risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack or stroke by 1.5%? Excited enough to spend a few thousand dollars a year on the drug? I expect not.

What if, instead, the drug reduced those same terrible outcomes by 20%? That’s probably enough benefit to interest some in the drug.

Well, those statistics come from the same clinical trial, evaluating the same drug. …

What would you do if you won the lottery? Here’s one physician’s plan.

Dads Dollars Debts, MD

Finance

January 1, 2018

Yup, I won the lottery! $785 million dollars. Pinch me because I must be dreaming. I am a physician finance blogger; I would not recommend buying a lottery ticket. But I did. So screw all the people who said it was a waste of $2.

So here I am, the big time winner: What to do now? Well, that is what this post is about.

(In reality, I did not win the …

How to choose between a traditional and Roth 401(k)

Live Free MD

Finance

December 31, 2017

In my post, “Use it Or Lose It,” I talked about the awesome benefits of the Roth IRA. You do have to pay taxes on the money now, but it grows tax-free, and you can withdraw the money after age 59.5 without owing any taxes. It’s the only way to win the tax game. It is 100% your money, forever!

In comparison, money in a traditional IRA, traditional 401k, …