Pediatrics

Ethical considerations in medicine: unity and open discourse

Physician

September 15, 2023

Navigating the complexities of medical ethics in our modern world can present significant challenges. It’s worth considering a deeper examination of this issue. In the year 2023, the global landscape is rapidly evolving across various spheres. As a former pediatric resident physician in New York City, I had the opportunity to witness an extraordinary range of social diversity. The city is truly a melting pot, embodying a diverse tapestry of …

Insurance struggles in pediatric headache care

Victoria Karian, CPNP

Conditions

September 11, 2023

Most of the time, I enjoy my job as a pediatric nurse practitioner working with chronic headache and pain patients. I enjoy the relationships with the families, figuring out what can help manage the headaches and life issues best to allow optimal functioning. I enjoy performing certain procedures, like Botox for chronic migraines or injection procedures for my patients, which very often improve their headache profile. I can even find …

Pediatric mental health care access [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

September 1, 2023

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Join J. Wesley Boyd, a psychiatrist, to dive into the critical issue of child and adolescent mental health care accessibility. Drawing insights from a recent study, we’ll explore how the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated challenges in obtaining …

Navigating patient requests: Balancing care and communication

Jennifer Shaer, MD

Physician

August 25, 2023

If you are a practicing physician, then you have definitely come across patients who want something that you feel is unnecessary. Sometimes those conversations escalate and become contentious, and sometimes you reluctantly give the patient what they request even though you know it’s not “best practice.” These demands and interactions can weigh on us and leave us emotionally drained.

In the pediatrics office, that can look like this:

A parent wants …
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Navigating patient requests: Balancing care and communication

The government should establish a Youth Behavioral Health Advisory Council

Mitchell Berger, MPH

Policy

August 19, 2023

Even as the declared public health emergency for COVID-19 ended on May 11, two other public health emergencies continued. The first such emergency, the opioid crisis, was initially declared in October 2017, more than two years before COVID-19. A second emergency was declared for youth mental health in October 2021 by three major national associations, including the American …

A pediatrician embraces direct primary care [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

August 18, 2023

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Join Andrea Wadley, a pediatrician who navigated career burnout to embrace the direct primary care (DPC) model. Discover how DPC transformed her practice, offering personalized care, shorter wait times, and improved doctor-patient relationships. Andrea’s journey sheds light …

Trauma-informed care in pediatrics [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

August 14, 2023

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Join Wendy L. Hunter, a pediatrician, as she shares a powerful story about a teenage girl found alone, having a seizure outside her clinic’s front door. This incident prompted Wendy to explore trauma-informed care in her practice. …

Understanding migraine symptoms in children

Christopher Medrano, MD

Conditions

August 14, 2023

If you’ve experienced a migraine headache before, the sensation is often very distinct: throbbing pain, sensitivity to light and loud noise, and sometimes nausea and vomiting. Migraine symptoms can be uncomfortable and distressing.

Equally concerning is when a migraine sufferer recognizes these symptoms in their child. Migraines typically emerge during early adolescence, particularly when females reach menarche (their first menstrual period). However, as many as half of the children can experience …

How junk food marketers exploit children’s impact on family food choices

Monique Potvin Kent, PhD

Policy

August 5, 2023

Would you let a clown influence what brand of car you buy? How about choosing your household appliances based on the advice of a cartoon bird or tiger?

Probably not. But young people in your family will likely let cartoons and mascots influence where your family eats out or what cereal you buy – indeed, many of your food purchases. Those choices and many others like them will, in turn, affect …

Juggling medicine and motherhood: a doctor’s journey

Eleanor Menzin, MD

Physician

August 3, 2023

When my children were in preschool, parents often commented at school events that they did not know I worked or was a physician. I never knew how to handle that double-edged sword. Ostensibly a compliment, their surprise at a working parent’s presence at school felt like an insult; their shock over my medical life cast doubt on my professionalism. I smiled benignly and changed the subject.

For years, I worked in …

How early intervention can transform a child’s speech development

Stephanie Jeret

Conditions

August 1, 2023

The American Academy of Pediatrics’ recent decision to move away from the “wait and see” philosophy to a more proactive intervention when dealing with childhood obesity got me reflecting on how “wait and see” is still used in many other aspects of children’s development.

As a speech therapist and a mother of a child who was at risk for developmental delays, I had personal experience with this approach. My son …

Adolescent medicine at risk [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

July 30, 2023

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Join Meredithe McNamara, a pediatrician and adolescent medicine specialist, in discussing the challenges adolescent medicine physicians face due to the current political climate. We explore the impact of unfilled pediatrics residency spots and the importance of their …

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Adolescent medicine at risk [PODCAST]

How a teenager with seizures became the face of trauma-informed care

Wendy L. Hunter, MD

Conditions

July 29, 2023

A teenage girl was found alone, having a seizure on a bench outside our clinic’s front door. She had never been inside our clinic, but it was our fault she was seizing.

The office manager from the dentist’s office upstairs found the girl as she returned from lunch. Not knowing what to do, she opened our clinic door and called for help. Our front office staff summoned the doctors from our …

The surprising impact of medical students on patients

Nicole Cifra, MD, MPH

Education

July 25, 2023

There are a few clinical scenarios that stand out to me from my undergraduate medical education. I completed a combined MD/MPH program, and I remember coming back from the year of public health, inserted between years two and three of medical school, feeling rusty and often in the way. One conversation I’ll always remember is one I overheard between an attending on my family medicine rotation (my first rotation of …

Closing the empathy gap in health care [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

July 19, 2023

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Nicole Rochester is a pediatrician and advocate for improving the doctor-patient relationship. She shares her personal experiences and discusses the importance of intentional human connection in clinical encounters. We delve into the root causes of the empathy …

Gender-neutral registration for unresponsive individuals

Deepak Gupta, MD

Physician

July 19, 2023

When registering individuals who are unresponsive to stimuli, unconscious, unaware, or lacking alertness, it has been customary to assign them the names John Doe or Jane Doe, based on physical characteristics, while also assigning their sex accordingly. If their family members or legal guardians arrive or are contacted, their sex is determined based on their recollections until the individuals themselves awaken and become capable of expressing their gender preferences, affirming …

An elder mentor’s message to new medical students

Brett Linzer, MD

Physician

July 18, 2023

For 21 years, I have had the privilege and honor of coaching and mentoring medical students. Most of this mentoring takes place in my outpatient internal medicine-pediatrics practice, where each student spends two to three days with me every week for a month-long rotation. Additionally, I have been fortunate enough to work with students from all years as a facilitator in the REACH and 4C coaching programs. Throughout these experiences, …

5 tips for ending office visits on time

Jennifer Shaer, MD

Physician

July 17, 2023

The visit is winding down. You’re getting ready to go, hand on the doorknob, saying goodbye. And then you hear, “Doc, one more thing.” Or perhaps you’re more familiar with the patient who has a laundry list of issues all to be addressed in the fifteen-minute appointment slot.

These visits have in common that they are both certain to back you up. Have multiple in the day, and you are …

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5 tips for ending office visits on time

Can minors truly consent to reversible puberty blockers in gender-affirming health care?

Logan Vayder

Conditions

July 17, 2023

Gender-affirming health care (GAH) is a rapidly developing sector within the medical profession that can include indirect therapies such as counseling, direct therapies such as hormone treatments, puberty blockers, or gender-affirming surgeries. A main ethical concern with GAH resides in its use on adolescents, and this paper will primarily explore the use of puberty blockers, sometimes called GnRH analogues, on minors.

Considering that most children start puberty around the age of …

Navigating youth mental health [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

July 3, 2023

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Join us for an insightful podcast episode with guest Eliza Humphreys, a pediatrician and certified life coach, as we explore the challenges faced by young teens and their families in navigating mental health issues. Through a poignant …

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