Missing prescription: long-term parental leave for fathers in medicine

Physician
February 3, 2025

Fatherhood is a life-changing experience filled with immense joy and responsibility. For men with a career in medicine, this milestone presents unique challenges due to the demanding nature of their profession. Parental leave for fathers, especially in medicine, is critical for the well-being of the family nucleus and for fostering an equitable work environment. Unfortunately, societal and systemic barriers often prevent fathers in medicine from fully embracing this opportunity.

Statistics paint …

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How doctors lost their freedom and what it means for health care today

Physician
February 3, 2025

It is presently fair to ask the question, do doctors participate in our society as individuals being free? If this is no longer the case, why and what are the consequences? If a doctor is employed, he answers to an employer. If there is participation with Medicaid and Medicare, the rules must be followed. These are rules, mandates, and regulations created by the administrative state, politicians, and faceless bureaucrats. If …

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Reversing the rise in antipsychotic prescriptions in long-term care [PODCAST]

Podcast
February 2, 2025
YouTube video

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In this episode, we speak with family and long-term care physician Sid Feldman about the KevinMD article “Antipsychotic use has been rising in long-term care homes, but we can do something about …

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The untold truth behind our reliance on prescription medications

Meds
February 2, 2025

Recently, while contemplating the AAPA-AMA scope creep debate, I encountered a quote about GLP1-RAs for obesity: “We need to just really think about it as a chronic disease … to make sure that we try to keep that patient in [ongoing] treatment.” Another obesity medicine specialist reinforced this view: “These drugs are indicated by the FDA so that you could be on it for the rest of your life.”

This …

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The future of cardiac monitoring: AI-powered wearables in practice

Tech
February 2, 2025

Introduction

AI-powered wearables are revolutionizing health care, particularly in cardiac health. These devices continuously monitor heart function, enabling early detection of abnormalities and personalized care. Digital medicine’s integration with AI promises to significantly improve patient outcomes. While AI wearables offer vast potential, challenges persist, including concerns about data accuracy, privacy, and regulatory approval, as well as the need for clear ethical guidelines.

Opportunities of AI-powered wearables

AI wearables provide numerous opportunities for …

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Debt and despair: Navigating medical training challenges [PODCAST]

Podcast
February 1, 2025
YouTube video

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A medical student, Janet Constance Coleman-Belin, discusses her KevinMD article “The hidden cost of medical training: debt, depression, and despair.” Janet explores the challenges of medical education, including exorbitant debt, mental health …

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Long COVID’s hidden struggles: precision psychiatry and hope for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)

Conditions
February 1, 2025

Introduction

Long COVID has emerged as a silent health crisis, lingering long after the acute phase of the pandemic has faded. For countless lives, the battle with COVID-19 did not end with recovery from the virus. Instead, it transformed into an enduring struggle with debilitating symptoms, including depression, anxiety, sleep disorder, PTSD, cognitive dysfunction, and post-COVID fatigue. This psychiatric landscape demands more than incremental solutions; it calls for bold, transformative approaches …

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Why doctors must talk about death: the truth about CPR and end-of-life care

Conditions
February 1, 2025

When I was a general surgery intern, I was doing my very early morning pre-rounds on a frail female patient in her late 70s with significant cardio- and peripheral vascular disease. She’d been in the hospital for weeks and wasted away to no more than 85-90 pounds. She was not able to get out of bed unassisted. I don’t even remember why she was in the hospital, but what I …

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How empathy transformed a psychiatrist-patient encounter [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 31, 2025
YouTube video

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In this episode, psychiatrist Chika Oriuwa discusses her KevinMD article, “How a psychiatrist rebuilt trust with a patient in crisis.” She also reflects on her book Unlike the Rest: A Doctor’s Story, …

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Antipsychotic use has been rising in long-term care homes, but we can do something about it

Meds
January 31, 2025

As health care providers working in long-term care (LTC), we’ve seen firsthand how antipsychotic medications are prescribed to residents, and why. Antipsychotics are often used to help manage behaviors such as agitation and aggression in older adults living with dementia. They may be helpful for some patients, but antipsychotics can do more harm than good for many, especially when used long-term.

Now a new report has highlighted this as a …

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Improving type 1 diabetes screening awareness among women is critical. Here’s why.

Conditions
January 31, 2025

As a board-certified pediatric endocrinologist, the field medical director for type 1 diabetes immunology (T1D) at Sanofi, and someone who was diagnosed with T1D as a child, it’s fair to say that much of my life has revolved around the disease.

I could recite the risk factors for T1D in my sleep; I’ve seen first-hand the perils of an unexpected T1D diagnosis—including diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA); I’m keenly aware that those with …

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Chadwick Boseman’s cancer battle reveals urgent need for personalized screenings [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 30, 2025
YouTube video

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Arnold Eiser, an internal medicine physician and author, discusses his KevinMD article, “What Chadwick Boseman’s death reveals about cancer prevention and risk factors,” examining how environmental toxins and systemic health inequities shaped …

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When it comes to medical malpractice lawsuits, forewarned is forearmed

Physician
January 30, 2025

Medical malpractice is a subject about which I am passionate. I am an obstetrician-gynecologist; I have been sued five times (one case ends in a mistrial, two in settlements of convenience, and two are dismissed with prejudice); I paid over $1 million in medical malpractice premiums over a career, and I abandoned my specialty because of threats of medical malpractice. These are reasons enough to be passionate.

There are 85,000 medical …

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Why creativity in medicine can inspire the next generation of doctors

Physician
January 30, 2025

It was like being struck by lightning during the chorus, the recognition that Paul Simon was singing directly to me. “Medicine is magical, and magical is art,” he sang, and I turned up the radio, convinced that I was supposed to hear these lyrics—a tender moment in which I was vulnerable to possibility. The hair on my neck stood up and warmth washed over me, the telltale signs that this …

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Pain management for IUD procedures is not a one size fits all: A patient-centered conversation about women’s pain doesn’t have to be painful

Conditions
January 30, 2025

On August 8, 2024, the CDC updated its selected practice recommendations for contraception for the first time since 2016. This revision emphasized the importance of discussing pain management options with patients undergoing intrauterine device (IUD) placement. Although the steps involved in IUD insertion are widely recognized as painful, this update marked the first time the CDC recommended tailoring pain management strategies based on open conversations with patients.

Despite the well-known discomfort …

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Telepsychiatry’s role in a post-pandemic world: challenges and triumphs [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 29, 2025
YouTube video

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Muhamad Aly Rifai shares his journey as an early advocate for telepsychiatry, highlighting its role in addressing the U.S. mental health crisis and providing access to care in underserved areas. He delves into …

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Here’s what the NFL could learn from ancient Rome and the gladiators

Physician
January 29, 2025

It seems unlikely that Paramount Studios released Gladiator Part 2 immediately after the presidential election to diffuse political rancor. They didn’t intend to provide a cathartic release for the nation’s pent-up frustrations. The goal wasn’t to help remove the hissing American tea kettle from such a divisive political flame.

Hollywood made the film to entertain us and make some money in the process. The studio probably released it during the holiday …

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The criminal enforcement of HIPAA

Physician
January 29, 2025

Congress passed the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in 1996. This federal regulation was aimed at maintaining the privacy of medical records while ensuring the smooth flow of medical information pertinent to patient care. Penalties assessed for violations of the HIPAA Act mostly involve financial penalties (between $25,000 per violation up to $100,000 per violation). Congress also included criminal penalties for violations of HIPAA rules enacted under 42 …

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