Advance directives amidst COVID: a critical look
Are advance directives any better than they were four years ago when COVID was surging? Are patients still comfortable with being placed on ventilators? Do physicians better understand how to treat COVID as a serious illness?
Physicians provide emergency measures unless there’s an advance directive to the contrary. Only one-third of Americans have advance directives when “down for the count” with serious illness.
Most people prefer to die at …
Pageantry: an unconventional education for aspiring psychiatrists
With the elegant gowns, stylized hair, carefully applied makeup, and moments in the spotlight, beauty pageants have attracted longstanding criticism for being allegedly superficial competitions that foster narcissism. But beneath the surface lies a wealth of opportunities for personal growth and skill development. Most modern pageants have moved away from being modeling competitions that assess superficial beauty. Instead, they have been reframed as personality competitions, evaluating qualities such as communication …
Talk to your patients about money
A non-compliant patient arrives at the ER for evaluation of high blood pressure. Why isn’t she taking her medication? It costs $300 per month, and she can’t afford it. Has she talked to her doctor about a less expensive alternative? No.
Unfortunately, this type of interaction occurs far too frequently. The doctor would be happy to prescribe a cheaper alternative if requested, and the patient would love a cheaper option but …
Polypharmacy and prescribing cascades [PODCAST]
Medicine is not apolitical: Your vote dictates your ability to practice medicine
It’s Wednesday, March 6th, 2024. The day after Super Tuesday. I am sitting in the library, taking a break from writing a final paper for my health economics class, when I see a Politico article: “San Francisco’s Proposition F passed.”
3,000 miles away from my hometown and my medical school, all I can think about are the patients I served in the hospital who were barely …
Gene therapy’s impact on incurable illnesses
Gene therapy has been used recently to cure previously incurable diseases, including sickle cell anemia. It is a horrible disease that I have seen so many times in the ER that it haunts me at night, especially one patient. He was a sweet man with a loving and patient demeanor who tolerated the agony he suffered on a weekly basis with saintly patience. My daughter was helping out in the …
Rethinking teen medical consent: Navigating complex health needs
Is it time to reconsider the age of medical consent for teens? This is a question I have been asking myself as my children are approaching 18. For many years, I’ve dreaded the thought of my medically challenging child turning 18 and suddenly being thrust into the not-so-warm and fuzzy adult world. I have nightmares about her navigating insurance. I cannot visualize my very passive and indecisive child on the …
Navigating crucial conversations in health care [PODCAST]
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We sit down with Kim Downey, a physical therapist, and Frances Mei Hardin, an otolaryngologist, to dive into the nuances of navigating difficult discussions in the medical field. From delivering challenging diagnoses to …
From perfunctory to profound: 4 self-evaluation questions that blew my mind
The McLaughlin 360 Evaluation: preparation (part one)
Have you ever heard the expression, “The truth will set you free”? Well, it might. But before it sets you free, it’s probably going to piss you off.
If you are seriously interested in self-improvement, you have to ask hard questions. And then listen!
About a year ago, I embarked on a personal exercise to learn how to be a better leader and person. I began …
What’s love got to do with it? The emotional toll of the practice of medicine
In medicine, we are taught to be professional and, at all times, to keep our emotions at bay. While this approach may work for some professionals, it is particularly challenging in medicine, especially in primary care. As a family physician, I have witnessed the journey of my patients over the years—sometimes spanning generations within a single family. I have seen my teenage patients grow into responsible adults and parents. I …
EMRs and insurance: a pediatrician’s success story
I am a pediatrician who trained in a residency program that taught us insurance companies were evil entities intent on profits over patient care. As ICD codes and CPT codes expanded, my colleagues complained that these were ways insurers could deny care and keep them from making a living. When electronic medical records (EMR) entered the scene, many doctors complained again about the tyranny of spending all their time typing …
Suspicions of medical child abuse delayed my child’s cancer diagnosis
It was November 2014. I was leaving the parking structure of my local children’s hospital when I realized, “They don’t believe us.”
I didn’t know it at the time, but it would take seven more months to find the cause of my eight-year-old daughter’s unremitting abdominal pain. An ultrasound ultimately revealed a malignant mass on the adrenal gland. Ultrasound is a rudimentary imaging technique, so why did it take …
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Cadaver heads, Botox, and an ophthalmologist turned comedian [PODCAST]
The overlooked impact of childbirth: hidden pelvic floor damage
Most women, about 60 percent of us, have a biological child. And while the birth of a child is often eagerly anticipated at the end of pregnancy, there are common concerns about the impact and process of delivery. Women worry about all kinds of things. We worry about poor pain control, long labor, deviating from a carefully crafted birth plan, vaginal tearing, and pooping on the floor. Obstetricians have …
A specialist’s journey in health care advocacy
As an allergy, immunology, and autoimmune disease specialist, I frequently see patients whose stories are a harsh indictment of our medical system. They’ve been dismissed, misdiagnosed, and forced to navigate a maze designed for quick fixes, not the complexities they endure. These unseen patients fight multi-system illnesses that defy textbooks. Their journeys highlight just how broken our approach to chronic disease truly is.
Playing “medical hot potato,” they bounce between specialists …
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Bridging communication gaps in residency training
Older physicians often bemoan what’s perceived as a decline in professionalism during residency training. Caps on the number of inpatients assigned to an intern or resident. Duty hour limits. Wellness retreats. While these may be imperfect, they’re at least aligned with or heading in the direction of what is the right way to balance the rigors of a lifetime of training in and practicing medicine with the safety, quality, and …
Integrated coaching in physician residency training [PODCAST]
Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!
We sit down with psychiatrist Lind Grant-Oyeye to explore the transformative power of integrated coaching in physician residency training. We delve into the nuances of integrated coaching, its structured approach to continuous growth, …
The role of AI in medical education: Embrace it or fear it?
Artificial intelligence is upon us and likely will forever change the way we interact with learning and education. Despite this reality, educational institutions seem to fall into either of two camps. One camp seems loath to acknowledge that AI exists. A faculty member who helps with curriculum development at one medical school recently shared, “We don’t know what to do about AI. Do we act like it’s not there, or …
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Empowering patients: Navigating medical information with AI
An excerpt from ChatGPT, MD: How AI-Empowered Patients & Doctors Can Take Back Control of American Medicine.
Imagine a ship at sea, its engine idle. The boat drifts dangerously close to the shoals, a mere hundred yards from land. The captain, fearing the worst, radios for help. The lighthouse watchman responds, sending an experienced mechanic named Charlie to the rescue.
With a single precise hit of his hammer, Charlie gets the …
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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How smartphones are stealing your focus—and what you can do about it
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Learning to trust your body again: Healing the hidden wounds of medical training
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The hidden bias in how we treat chronic pain
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Why patients and doctors are ditching insurance for personalized care
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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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Doctors don’t need yoga, they need time to smoke
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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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Flatline: Our nation is dying, and we’re ignoring the signs
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How to build a culture where physicians feel valued [PODCAST]
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Recent Posts
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The geriatrician who prescribes matzah and meaning in Miami Beach
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Understanding the ADHD brain: support, empowerment, and managing challenges [PODCAST]
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Why it’s time for doctors to become performance coaches
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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?
-
How smartphones are stealing your focus—and what you can do about it
-
Learning to trust your body again: Healing the hidden wounds of medical training
-
The hidden bias in how we treat chronic pain
-
Why patients and doctors are ditching insurance for personalized care
-
Past 6 Months
-
How trade wars could destroy the U.S. health care system
-
Doctors don’t need yoga, they need time to smoke
-
What happened to real care in health care?
-
The silent crisis hurting pain patients and their doctors
-
Flatline: Our nation is dying, and we’re ignoring the signs
-
How to build a culture where physicians feel valued [PODCAST]
-
Recent Posts
-
The geriatrician who prescribes matzah and meaning in Miami Beach
-
Understanding the ADHD brain: support, empowerment, and managing challenges [PODCAST]
-
Why it’s time for doctors to become performance coaches
-
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]
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