Bernard Leo Remakus is an internal medicine physician.

The controversy over Maintenance of Certification for grandfathered physicians

Physician
March 21, 2026

I received a lifetime certification from the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) in 1983. Since then, I have not participated in any of the Board’s “Maintenance of Certification” (MOC) programs.

I have taken the continuation of my medical education seriously, and have performed more than the number of hours required for my state licensure, professional liability insurability, and AMA continuing education recognition awards. Additionally, I have taught medical students and …

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The controversy over Maintenance of Certification for grandfathered physicians

A message from a physician treating COVID patients

Conditions
November 18, 2021

Most of the people who debate COVID-19 vaccination are not physicians. Of those who are, not all have treated COVID-19 patients. I have.

As soon as COVID-19 vaccines became available, my entire practice was vaccinated. One elderly patient was not because he was hospitalized in another state. He acquired COVID-19 there and died.

With the availability of testing and treatment, I have routinely tested patients who were symptomatic or exposed to the …

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A message from a physician treating COVID patients

Why teachers aren’t going back to school: a physician’s take

Policy
February 13, 2021

All across the United States, elementary and secondary school teachers are refusing to go back to school. Before you join the growing lynch mob that’s going after these teachers, you may want to consider why they’re staying home.

For starters, many school boards make their decisions based not on what is best for students, teachers, or the community they’re supposed to serve, but on the vested interests of the …

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Why teachers aren’t going back to school: a physician’s take

The COVID-19 vaccine: We got it. Let’s get it.

Conditions
January 13, 2021

A few weeks ago, a small rural hospital in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, received its first shipment of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and quickly began vaccinating the hospital’s health care workers and skilled nursing facility staff and residents. After the Barnes-Kasson County Hospital immunized all the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) Class 1A workers and residents who requested the vaccine, it moved to the next level of eligibility and started immunizing …

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The COVID-19 vaccine: We got it. Let’s get it.

Back to school in the pandemic era

Conditions
May 22, 2020

As of May 17, 2020, there are approximately 1.5 million documented cases of COVID-19 in the United States. Of those infected, 90,000 have died.

The current population of the United States is estimated to be 331 million. This means COVID-19 infections have only been confirmed in less than one-half of 1 percent of Americans.

This number does not include those who have acquired the virus but not had their infection verified by …

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Back to school in the pandemic era

Treating COVID-19 patients in their homes

Conditions
April 13, 2020

Anecdotal though it may be, a team of Italian doctors and nurses, led by Dr. Luigi Cavanna, has reported apparent success treating COVID-19 patients in their homes. Realizing too many near-death patients were traveling long distances to the hospital emergency room in Piacenza, Italy from their rural villages, Cavanna reasoned many of these patients might be saved if they were diagnosed and treated earlier. He also reasoned his overcrowded hospital …

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Treating COVID-19 patients in their homes

The spirit of Santa Claus in medicine

Physician
November 16, 2018

For longer than anyone could remember, he was the rural community’s pharmacist.  A skilled compounder of prescriptions, he was conversant in chocolates, greeting cards, and how to obviate a trip to the doctor’s office by using an over-the-counter remedy.

A devoted family man, he was involved in many civic and church activities. Most have forgotten all the roles he once played in the community, but no one will ever forget that …

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The spirit of Santa Claus in medicine