How turning 50 and empty nesting sparked my academic surge
I can hear my husband chuckling from the cavern of journal piles and stacks of free conference tote bags he refers to as his home office. “I am looking at a graph of your publications,” he calls out to me as I putter around the house. An inauspicious start.
As I look over his shoulder at the laptop screen, he shows the tiny dot representing my singular publication—work I did as …
Rewriting the rules: Achieving a million-dollar income in family medicine
According to the 2024 Doximity survey, the average annual compensation for a family physician is around $300,813. For 90 percent of family doctors, this is their reality—stuck in the matrix of traditional employment. They feel unloved, undervalued, and used by the system to feed the corporate cash register. I know because that is what I did for the first 15 years of my career. However, I discovered a better …
Real-time cancer detection and the future of oncology
An excerpt from Race for a Remedy: The Science and Scientists Behind the Next Life-Saving Cancer Medicine.
I like to compare diabetes and cancer. Both are chronic illnesses with a trend of increasing new cases globally over the past decades, and both are expected to be among the leading diagnoses in the world with an estimated one-half billion people living with either diabetes or cancer by 2040.
The similarities don’t end …
From marathons to moderation: Rethinking endurance exercise
When it comes to exercise, it is possible to get too much of a good thing. Regular participation in appropriate mild to moderate exercise is one of the most important habits for optimal health. The kind of detrimental excess endurance exercise I’m going to implicate includes marathon distance running, 100-mile bike rides, Iron Man/Half Iron Man triathlons, and other flat-out, pedal-to-the-metal exertions for more than an hour. Regrettably, I confess: …
Health information censorship in prisons [PODCAST]
How a negligent dentist almost killed my wife
An excerpt from Judas Dentistry: How Dentists Scorn Science, Break the Hippocratic Oath, and Wreck Their Patients’ Minds and Bodies.
Our kindly dentist almost killed my wife, Judy. During her late teens, she had a single front tooth destroyed in an auto accident. So this dentist carved the teeth on either side to support a bridge. When these died, he drilled and mummified them into “root canals.” As the years …
Administrative harm is destroying the practice of medicine
“Rules and regulations, who needs them? Throw them out the door.”
— Graham Nash (lyrics), from “Chicago,” sung by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Business entrepreneur and billionaire Michael B. Kim recently was quoted as saying: “Leadership without ethics is a body without a soul.” Kim donated $25 million to his alma mater, Haverford College in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to start a new Institute for Ethical Inquiry and Leadership. His goal is …
What would you save if your house was on fire?
The obvious answer is just that, of course. I would save my wife and myself. Everything else is replaceable—well, almost everything. Read on.
Twenty years ago, before the launch of the iPhone and before social media ruled the world, two of the most important things in any traditional American family’s house were the family Bible and the family’s pictures. I will leave the Bible and commentary on it for another question …
Cinnamon versus brain cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and insomnia
I’ve always adored cinnamon. Its aroma warms the cockles of my heart, and its flavor makes me feel as if I’m wrapped up in an old fairy tale. However, I was floored when I reviewed some of the latest research regarding the effects of cinnamon on brain health.
Cinnamon is a type of laurel plant (believe it or not, there are almost three thousand members of the Lauraceae family). Cinnamon happens …
Overcoming diabetes and chasing dreams [PODCAST]
Timeless wisdom for our aching hearts
An excerpt from Just One Heart: A Cardiologist’s Guide to Healing, Health, and Happiness.
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched – they must be felt with the heart.”
— Helen Keller
In my journey of the heart, two atlases, seemingly worlds apart, converged to illuminate the interconnected dimensions of the heart. They helped me …
Concierge medicine: exclusive access or equity dilemma?
When demand exceeds supply, a resource is limited. Allocating those resources “involves a tension between efficiency and equity.” The market has several ways to allot those limited resources, beginning with cost. For example, frequent flyer miles, a form of resource allocation, may not seem controversial, except to those getting on last, where there is no room for their carry-on. Health care is a limited resource for many reasons, and equity …
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Beyond traditional cancer treatment [PODCAST]
Why teaching medicine feels like being Santa Claus year-round
The yearly arrival of Santa Claus was a wonderful ritual of my early childhood years and later as I became a parent and a grandparent. It was exciting and fun, and the production provided mystery and joy. The fact that millions of people look forward to giving without getting accolades for doing so symbolizes the best in human nature. We willingly give credit to a myth for bestowing on those …
The role of locum tenens in bridging the physician shortage gap: Can retiring physicians save the day?
The aging baby boomer generation is creating a multitude of new challenges for our already stretched thin health care sector. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, by 2030, all baby boomers will be older than 65, with about one in every five residents being of retirement age and increasing demand for health care services. Simultaneously, many of our clinicians are nearing retirement or choosing to retire early. The …
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From punitive measures to radical compassion for late charting
A few years into my faculty career, my division chief met with me to discuss late charts. “Britt, charts,” she said. “You just have to make it happen.” I don’t remember much about the specifics of what was said in that meeting, but I know exactly how I felt: a flood of shame overlying simmering anger. This someone that I respected, someone who had carved a way for the department …
Avoid these common mistakes in your first doctor employment contract [PODCAST]
Why my 5-year-old is helping with my PhD thesis
My five-year-old daughter is helping me with my PhD thesis. I wish she didn’t have to.
No, she’s not a prodigy (even if she is very clever!), and I’m not that desperate for assistance. She just happens to be a subject matter expert.
My thesis in human nutrition is on food marketing to kids and every time we go to a grocery store together, I see that marketing at work. She is …
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Surviving medical residency: the untold story of resilience and hope
Working as a resident in medicine can be tiring. You are expected to study, pass exams, take care of your patients without making any mistakes, keep your seniors happy, have friendly ties with your co-workers, work extremely long hours, and avoid conflict at all times. No one will ever think of your well-being or happiness. You’ll be blamed and criticized even when your work is exceptional. You have to deal …
Past Week
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Internal Medicine 2025: inspiration at the annual meeting
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Are quotas a solution to physician shortages?
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Learning to trust your body again: Healing the hidden wounds of medical training
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Why patients and doctors are ditching insurance for personalized care
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The hidden bias in how we treat chronic pain
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How smartphones are stealing your focus—and what you can do about it
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Past 6 Months
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How trade wars could destroy the U.S. health care system
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What happened to real care in health care?
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The silent crisis hurting pain patients and their doctors
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Doctors don’t need yoga, they need time to smoke
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Flatline: Our nation is dying, and we’re ignoring the signs
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Finding your medical specialty: Embracing uncertainty in clinical rotations
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Recent Posts
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You have nothing to prove: a bold message for every overwhelmed doctor
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The hidden impact of denials on health care systems
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Acknowledging the silent grief of vanishing twin syndrome [PODCAST]
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Past Week
-
Internal Medicine 2025: inspiration at the annual meeting
-
Are quotas a solution to physician shortages?
-
Learning to trust your body again: Healing the hidden wounds of medical training
-
Why patients and doctors are ditching insurance for personalized care
-
The hidden bias in how we treat chronic pain
-
How smartphones are stealing your focus—and what you can do about it
-
Past 6 Months
-
How trade wars could destroy the U.S. health care system
-
What happened to real care in health care?
-
The silent crisis hurting pain patients and their doctors
-
Doctors don’t need yoga, they need time to smoke
-
Flatline: Our nation is dying, and we’re ignoring the signs
-
Finding your medical specialty: Embracing uncertainty in clinical rotations
-
Recent Posts
-
You have nothing to prove: a bold message for every overwhelmed doctor
-
The hidden impact of denials on health care systems
-
Acknowledging the silent grief of vanishing twin syndrome [PODCAST]
-
A doctor’s emotional struggle with a young leukemia patient
-
DSM-5 doesn’t name it, but moral distress is everywhere in medicine
-
How a restaurant principle can transform your patient care
-
