How collaboration saved my life from a rare disease doctors couldn’t diagnose

Conditions
May 11, 2025

So what exactly does collaborative health care mean? When we break this down into categories, there are three main approaches, each with a different benefit but ideally sharing the same end goal: to better improve patient outcomes. First, doctor to alternative practitioner. Secondly, patient to doctor. Lastly, patient to patient.

Years ago, I went through one of the biggest health battles of my life after being diagnosed with granulomatous mastitis (GM). …

Read more…

Mindful negotiation: practical strategies for physician self-advocacy [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 10, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Pediatrician and certified coach Jessie Mahoney discusses her article, “Why physicians find negotiating challenging—and what they can do to negotiate better.” She explores why negotiation often feels stressful for physicians, linking it …

Read more…

How one simple breakfast question can transform patient care

Physician
May 10, 2025

“What did you have for breakfast today?”

This phrase is a crucial part of my morning rounds.

While interacting with the patient, the greeting is very important. I believe doctors who approach the bedside without introducing themselves and who immediately ask about the patient’s active complaint tend to come across as less compassionate (whatever their actual intentions might be). This can hinder the development of the bond necessary for obtaining a complete …

Read more…

Why your emotions are your greatest compass in therapy and life

Conditions
May 10, 2025

In his book Ways of Attending, McGilchrist (2016) discusses a difference in attention—one that seeks organization and one that any attempt at organizing subverts. A bit like Schrödinger’s cat, just by looking, it is disturbed. In differing translations of Tranströmer’s poem Prelude from 17 Dikter (1954), about the moment upon wakening from a dream, he captures the infinite possibility that slides one fully awake into a new day, and which …

Read more…

Patients are not waiting: What MCDA twin parents teach us about shared decision-making

Conditions
May 10, 2025

Monochorionic diamniotic (MCDA) twin pregnancies come with more scans, more risk, and more decisions to make in very little time. Parents are expected to absorb complex medical information, navigate unfamiliar terminology, and act quickly, often under pressure. When care teams do not meet that need for clarity and support, parents do what any reasonable person would do.

They go looking for answers.

In 2024, we published a study in Midwifery that explored …

Read more…

How to change the world: Start by making your bed

Physician
May 10, 2025

Admiral William McRaven is a Navy SEAL and was the president of the University of Texas. In 2014, he gave a commencement speech that has been viewed over 10 million times. It is considered one of the greatest contemporary graduation speeches of all time.* Although the speech was directed at 8,000 graduates at the University of Texas, his message certainly applies to the health care profession.

So, here …

Read more…

Understanding therapy beyond crisis management [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 9, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Anesthesiologist and psychotherapist Maire Daugharty discusses her article, “Why real therapy isn’t just about crisis.” She challenges the common misconception that therapy is only necessary or effective during acute crises (“crisis-hopping”), explaining …

Read more…

Health workers deserve care too: How to protect their mental health

Conditions
May 9, 2025

Kim Downey:

A friend shared with me how she told someone their mutual physician was on medical leave. She heard it was serious. That person’s immediate response was concern over how it would affect their upcoming appointment. My friend said she thought of my advocacy work, initiating a conversation fostering empathy for the struggling physician.

I read a post by a surgeon, with fellow doctors commenting …

Read more…

A world without antidepressants: What could possibly go wrong?

Meds
May 9, 2025

Imagine waking up one morning to a bold headline screaming: “New Global Law: All Antidepressants Abolished!” Just like that, no more Prozac, no more Zoloft—no more of those little pills that have helped millions keep their balance while navigating life’s emotional tightrope. Pharmacy shelves are wiped clean overnight, and suddenly, one of the pillars of modern mental health care is gone.

Before you clutch your chest and start breathing into a …

Read more…

The truth about GLP-1 medications for weight loss: What every patient should know

Meds
May 9, 2025

For years, weight loss has been sold as a simple math problem: eat less, move more, and the pounds will melt away. But if that were true, we wouldn’t have an obesity epidemic affecting over 40 percent of adults in the U.S.

Now, a new class of medications—GLP-1 receptor agonists like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound)—are changing the game. People who have struggled with their weight for …

Read more…

A faster path to becoming a doctor is possible—here’s how

Education
May 9, 2025

Medical education is a long and arduous route and can take from twelve to sixteen years of education which includes three to four years of undergraduate degree, one to two gap years before medical school, four years of medical school and three to seven years of residency training.

To address this shortage, we have come up with solutions for creating three-year medical schools, starting tracks for physician assistants/associates and nurse practitioners. …

Read more…

Misconceptions about food allergy safety in the skies [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 8, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Physical therapist and food allergy advocate Lianne Mandelbaum discusses her article, “Flying with food allergies: Combating misconceptions and advocating for safety.” Sharing harrowing personal experiences with dismissive airline staff that ignited her …

Read more…

ADVERTISEMENT

From rejection to resilience: my journey through emergency medicine residency

Physician
May 8, 2025

When I first entered Aga Khan University Hospital as an emergency medicine (EM) resident, it felt like stepping into a whirlwind. The controlled chaos of the emergency department, the endless maze of technology, the pressure to make decisions in seconds—it all felt like too much. To make things harder, this opportunity came only after facing rejection last year—a moment that could have easily shaken my confidence. Some early on even …

Read more…

Conflicts of interest are eroding trust in U.S. health agencies

Policy
May 8, 2025

Why has faith in government health agencies never been lower? Because conflicts of interest (COIs) have never been higher.

At the FDA, concerns about drugmakers “buying” drug approvals go back to passage of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) in 1992. Since then, the many doctors with research and speaker grants, drug stocks, and past employment with drugmakers heighten concerns. Worse, many major drug trials that claim to show …

Read more…

Why the words doctors use matter more than they think

Conditions
May 8, 2025

I recently attended a medical conference for the Huntington’s disease (HD) community. Hundreds of people were gathered to collaborate, share knowledge, and learn how to better address the needs of their patients. During the first session, I found it challenging to listen to the presentation and the conversations taking place around me. The detached manner in which people were speaking was troubling to me, so I stepped out for a …

Read more…

What my first Match Day as a program director taught me about hope

Physician
May 8, 2025

Today was my first Match Day as a program director and, while most of my emotions are unprocessed, I already have many thoughts.

I can’t forget the concurrent drop in my stomach, pause in my cardiac systole, and the involuntary intake of breath which occurred when the email arrived—2 minutes early!—from the NRMP. I stacked an extra gasp even before I exhaled the first while I fumbled to open the email. …

Read more…

Navigating the path from physician burnout to career balance [PODCAST]

Podcast
May 7, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Internal medicine physician Kara Pepper discusses her article, “From burnout to balance: 5 stages of career transformation.” Drawing from her own journey away from burnout and her experience coaching hundreds of physicians, …

Read more…

Stop absorbing the chaos: How doctors can reclaim their well-being

Physician
May 7, 2025

Are you absorbing the system’s dysfunction?

Do you find yourself absorbing the collective frustration of health care dysfunction? Taking on the role of savior? Overextending to compensate for broken processes? Feeling personally responsible for guiding patients, family, or friends through the labyrinth of health care?

You’re not alone.

The power of choice in medicine

It’s rare that a practicing physician …

Read more…

How social media and telemedicine are transforming patient care

Social media
May 7, 2025

In today’s digital world, health care is no longer confined to hospital walls. Social media platforms are influencing health behaviors, while telemedicine technologies are redefining patient-doctor interactions. But are these innovations improving health care, and what are the risks, if any? This article explores how digital platforms, namely social media and telemedicine technologies, are reshaping patient care and bridging gaps in education, access, and engagement.

For many, social …

Read more…

618
pages