Building the future of African plastic surgery: Igniting passion in medical students
Recently, I completed a rotation at the plastic surgery department of Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Ghana. Reflecting on this experience, I realized a few things. My perception of plastic surgery practice was naive and uninformed. This experience has been an eye-opener as it has challenged preconceived notions and revealed the multifaceted nature of this wonderful specialty. However, I recognize that most African students do not have the same opportunity. Only a …
The doctor’s struggle: How prescription opioids can lead to addiction
In the heart of America, the opioid epidemic continues to surge, claiming lives and livelihoods with an unrelenting grip. While many believe that addiction stems from illicit drug use, a significant portion of opioid addictions actually begin with a prescription from a doctor. This troubling reality is exemplified by the experiences of Dr. Jeffrey Fraser, a family practice physician from Lincoln, Nebraska, who found himself ensnared in the very crisis …
The tiniest ray of hope for reasonable physician compensation?
When you have been reviewing physician employment agreements for nearly four decades, you tend to get a little jaded about the possibility of ever seeing reasonable compensation for physicians. Although I am continually preaching to the choir about the need for reasonable physician compensation, I rarely see something that gives me encouragement that physicians may someday be paid appropriately for everything they do.
However, recently I have reviewed several agreements titled …
Women in medicine: Balancing career and family [PODCAST]
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We welcome Christine J. Ko, a dermatopathologist, to discuss the evolving landscape of women in medicine. Inspired by America Ferrera’s powerful monologue in Barbie and Jennifer Lycette’s insightful essay on the challenges faced …
A consulting firm under fire: Examining a new criminal probe in opioid crisis
Roughly a month ago, a prestigious consulting firm found itself, once again, in hot water for its involvement in allegedly contributing to the opioid crisis. We saw many of the same headlines competing for the top spot in our inbox.
“Justice Department is investing in an elite consulting firm.”
“Top management firm under criminal investigation.”
Beneath that, we saw a second layer of headlines, with a more scandalous tinge of corporate gossip.
“Former partner …
Why resilience training alone won’t fix physician burnout
In my work with thousands of overstressed physicians and over 175 health care organizations, I have repeatedly learned one lesson: resilience training alone is not sufficient to rein in the epidemic of physician burnout.
If you believe, as I do, that physicians are the canary in the coal mine of medicine, then it is clear the epidemic of physician burnout is an indictment of the conditions of the mine, not the …
The secret to clear EMR notes
Are you tired of spending hours deciphering your colleagues’ EMR notes or struggling to understand your own? Excessive details in documentation can lead to confusion and decreased productivity. Leonardo da Vinci once said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” It’s time to declutter your documentation and unlock the benefits of clear, structured clinical notes.
Why you should write clearer notes
Bloated notes clutter up space on your screen and in your thought process, …
How oncologists and patients build lifelong connections
Oncology is a kind of specialty in medicine that involves seeing the same patients for many years. This can be beneficial when your patient is cured in cases of limited-stage disease or if the disease is stable on treatment for a long period of time in cases of advanced disease. In both scenarios, you follow the patient closely regularly and form a strong bond with them, even if you don’t …
What every mom needs to know about post-delivery pelvic floor injuries [PODCAST]
Lewy body dementia: a journey through hallucinations and imagination
An excerpt from The Sea Glass Epidemic.
… It was at this time the mouse asked Beth if he could bring over some friends. Naturally, Beth assumed the mouse was talking about other mice. Much to her surprise, the mouse ran into the kitchen, walked under the doorway into the laundry room, and disappeared behind the water heater.
“Be right back,” he called over his shoulder. A few minutes later, the …
My fear of pharmaceuticals stole a decade from me
I have a cat.
That’s my go-to answer when people ask me if I have children. It’s just easier than saying my refusal to take FDA-approved medications for severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) stole a decade of what could have been normal life from me.
Studies show it takes an average of 17 years for patients with OCD to receive adequate therapy. Thankfully, in the past ten years, this duration is starting …
From house calls to the OR: a surgeon’s journey and unexpected lessons
Clueless at the time, when I applied to medical school, I imagined myself one day making house calls, good ol’ Doc Schwab, paid in chickens and pies, smiles, and blackberry jam. There I’d be, delivering babies on kitchen tables, patching up Old Lady Jones’s leg on the sofa, shaking out thermometers, and feeling foreheads. One of my roommates in med school was the son of such a doctor, although instead …
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Why distracted detecting is the hidden threat to your health and safety
Just like distracted driving, there can be a term called distracted detecting; however, when one delves further, one realizes that distracted driving itself is one form of distracted detecting. Distracted detecting can be understood through the prey-predator analogy within the animal kingdom, with particular relevance during vulnerable adolescence. This concept is detailed in books co-authored by Barbara Natterson-Horowitz and Kathryn Bowers, titled Zoobiquity: The Astonishing Connection Between Human and …
Medical misinformation: How to find clarity in a sea of contradictory advice
I read an array of medical literature, both technical and public. But despite my education, experience, and reasonable intelligence, I find myself bewildered by the overwhelming deluge of information and recommendations: frequently contradictory, at times inaccurate, and often meaningless, that presently inundates individuals. If I can be befuddled, what about the average person with a high school diploma or a bachelor’s degree and little medical experience?
Perhaps there is so much …
GLP-1 medications for teens: Balancing weight loss and metabolic health [PODCAST]
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How neurologists can repair the home of broken promises
“I broke our only promise,” swelling with guilt, Sarah wept as she stumbled out of the front door. Two years ago, her father asked her to never leave him in a nursing home. They pinky promised.
But how could anyone have predicted what would follow in the upcoming years? His dementia progressively worsened, complicated by falls every three months. Despite balancing his growing needs while also providing for her family, there …
Opium wars to fentanyl crisis: a history of drug conflicts
Drug use has a complicated history in the Western World. Not quite two hundred years ago, starting in the Fall of 1839, Britain attacked the nation of China for having the audacity to ban an addictive substance, opium, that the British were selling to the Chinese people. Opiate addiction was rampant in China at the time, and the emperor had issued a prohibition on the drug. Britain destroyed much …
The growing abuse of ChatGPT in medical education
“Ms. Lupo is a 39-year-old female presenting to the ED with a chief complaint of unilateral dead arm.” So read a hypothetical patient scenario during my class one day. As a team of first-year medical students, our job was to review the patient’s case, including history of present illness, past medical history, family history, and symptoms, to diagnose and formulate a care plan to treat Ms. Lupo’s arm. Within seconds, …
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Navigating profit-driven metrics: Upholding core values in medicine
As physicians, many of us were drawn to the medical field by a profound desire to serve humanity and alleviate suffering. We hear buzzwords in corporate work about values-led teams, but in the house of medicine, we have always been led by a strong sense of values. This calling propelled us through the rigorous demands of medical training—endless hours of study, countless lectures, sleepless nights, and missed personal milestones. We …
Past Week
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Physician patriots: the forgotten founders who lit the torch of liberty
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The hidden cost of becoming a doctor: a South Asian perspective
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How medical culture hides burnout in plain sight
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Why fixing health care’s data quality is crucial for AI success [PODCAST]
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Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients
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How the 10th Apple Effect is stealing your joy in medicine
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Past 6 Months
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What’s driving medical students away from primary care?
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Make cognitive testing as routine as a blood pressure check
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How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care
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How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship
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A faster path to becoming a doctor is possible—here’s how
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The broken health care system doesn’t have to break you
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Recent Posts
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How the 10th Apple Effect is stealing your joy in medicine
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How medical culture hides burnout in plain sight
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How functional precision oncology is revolutionizing cancer treatment [PODCAST]
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Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients
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When a doctor becomes the narrator of a patient’s final chapter
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Why innovation in health care starts with bold thinking
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Past Week
-
Physician patriots: the forgotten founders who lit the torch of liberty
-
The hidden cost of becoming a doctor: a South Asian perspective
-
How medical culture hides burnout in plain sight
-
Why fixing health care’s data quality is crucial for AI success [PODCAST]
-
Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients
-
How the 10th Apple Effect is stealing your joy in medicine
-
Past 6 Months
-
What’s driving medical students away from primary care?
-
Make cognitive testing as routine as a blood pressure check
-
How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care
-
How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship
-
A faster path to becoming a doctor is possible—here’s how
-
The broken health care system doesn’t have to break you
-
Recent Posts
-
How the 10th Apple Effect is stealing your joy in medicine
-
How medical culture hides burnout in plain sight
-
How functional precision oncology is revolutionizing cancer treatment [PODCAST]
-
Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients
-
When a doctor becomes the narrator of a patient’s final chapter
-
Why innovation in health care starts with bold thinking
-
