Dawn Baker, MD
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Latest articles
Social media in medicine
We live in an always-on, information-overloaded, highlight-reel, echo-chamber world. Medical practices are increasingly relying on mobile applications and social media for communication, service promotion, and education. How can we balance social media and device use—arguably imperative activities for many of…
We live in an always-on, information-overloaded, highlight-reel, echo-chamber world. Medical practices are increasingly relying on mobile applications and social media for communication, service promotion, and education. How can we balance social media and device use—arguably imperative activities for many of us—with the other things in life that matter? And how can we, physicians using these programs both personally and professionally, serve as role models for our families and communities?
I recently …
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Social media: Striking a balance for physicians and parents
Physician voices
"I wish I had known how common this is. I would have started sooner." It is currently estimated that one in four women physicians has infertility (compared to one in eight in the general population). Why do I care? Because…
“I wish I had known how common this is. I would have started sooner.”
It is currently estimated that one in four women physicians has infertility (compared to one in eight in the general population). Why do I care? Because I’m one of them. But truly, we should all care. These women are our partners, colleagues, trainees, and friends. Their experiences shape the landscape of physician wellness for all of us.
To …
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The voices of women physicians with infertility
Physician voices
Spring 2020 has brought a disproportionate amount of grief for many of us. The losses include mortal ones, such as the death of a loved one, a colleague, or a patient. We’ve lost productivity, opportunities, and income. We’ve also lost…
Spring 2020 has brought a disproportionate amount of grief for many of us. The losses include mortal ones, such as the death of a loved one, a colleague, or a patient. We’ve lost productivity, opportunities, and income. We’ve also lost freedoms, from the personal liberty to go where we please to our ability to spend time alone (due to quarantine in close quarters with family members). And as an anesthesiologist, …
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An unintended consequence of COVID universal masking
Physician voices
I walk by the closed double doors and frosty windows of the ICU. You’re lying in there, intubated. It feels weird to go to work now. I can’t see you or talk to you, don’t know the drips, don’t know…
I walk by the closed double doors and frosty windows of the ICU. You’re lying in there, intubated. It feels weird to go to work now. I can’t see you or talk to you, don’t know the drips, don’t know the plan … and it’s killing me. I, along with many others, desperately want to express my love. So many feelings are swirling inside:
Guilt. For having a chill workday that …
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A beloved mentor falls
Physician voices
One of the things I most enjoy about being an anesthesiologist is the wide variety of patients that I see. You never know who you're going to have the privilege to care for on a given day. Although my group…
One of the things I most enjoy about being an anesthesiologist is the wide variety of patients that I see. You never know who you’re going to have the privilege to care for on a given day. Although my group is large, I will occasionally be assigned to a patient that I personally know. And occasionally, someone I know will request me as their anesthesiologist.
Last month I took care of …
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When patients personally know their anesthesiologist
Physician voices
I opened my obligatory late-afternoon email to find my work schedule for the next morning: three general anesthetics for MRIs. My heart sank. A week before, I had been assigned to the new neurosciences MRI suite for a 6-hour interventional…
I opened my obligatory late-afternoon email to find my work schedule for the next morning: three general anesthetics for MRIs. My heart sank. A week before, I had been assigned to the new neurosciences MRI suite for a 6-hour interventional radiology procedure, followed by another intervention in the CT scanner. My first thought: Who is trying to punish me?
It’s well known in the anesthesiology field that these types of cases …
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Anesthesia outside the operating room: A growing trend
Medical education
The patient had arrived for a urology procedure with a blood glucose in the 400's. He suffered from a recent stomach bug and had gotten off schedule with administration of his meds. While his GI symptoms had subsided, he was…
The patient had arrived for a urology procedure with a blood glucose in the 400’s. He suffered from a recent stomach bug and had gotten off schedule with administration of his meds. While his GI symptoms had subsided, he was feeling crappy overall. I decided to cancel his case and went about initiating treatment to get his blood sugar under control. When I informed the urologist of my findings and …
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The transition from resident to attending physician
Physician voices
What does it mean to be a professional? And how do we maintain our professionalism at a time when things such as stress, burnout, and caregiver fatigue threaten our motivation? As an anesthesiologist, the ability to remain professional in many…
What does it mean to be a professional? And how do we maintain our professionalism at a time when things such as stress, burnout, and caregiver fatigue threaten our motivation? As an anesthesiologist, the ability to remain professional in many scenarios is something I constantly strive for. Aside from how it affects my relationships with the interdisciplinary OR team, professionalism is an important attribute given that my job requires patients …
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Remember the Professionalism APGAR during times of stress
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