Primary Care

Depression is a notification that the old patterns are not working

Mary Braun, MD

Conditions

January 5, 2022

My energy level was plummeting as Mrs. Jones explained how much her shoulder, her knees, her back, her belly, her head, hurt. She was worn out.

“And I don’t ever think I’ll feel better. I’ve felt like this for so long and I think I’ll always feel like this. I’m so sore. And so tired. And my family doesn’t do anything to help. In the evening after I’ve finished making dinner, …

How to convert medical knowledge into digital assets that work for you

David Grew, MD, MPH

Physician

January 4, 2022

Over 12 months, I rebuilt my practice workflow to solve the problem of inefficient knowledge transfer between me and my patients. Now with a new system incorporating a library of leveraged digital assets I’m saving time and improving patient experience. Here’s how it happened:

“Hey, Picasso! That patient wants to keep your drawing to show her family!”

My secretary shouted down the hall to my office. An elderly patient asked to keep …

Hasan Minhaj’s joke at the expense of DOs

Patrick Wu, DO

Physician

January 3, 2022

In September 2021, Hasan Minhaj appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and touted a purported “a war … between MDs and DOs.” In it, he compared osteopathic physicians, DOs, to RC Cola as opposed to the Coca-Cola of MDs, claiming that DOs are “off-brand doctor[s]” (and notably placing MDs above DOs with a slight, almost imperceptible motion of his hand). The bit occurred while Minhaj …

My colleagues didn’t take good care of me

Richard E. Waltman, MD

Physician

January 3, 2022

I was recently, on two occasions, the recipient of poor care. Care provided by my colleagues. Care that was not good. Care that made me feel sad. Care that did not help me or my patients.

First, I was yelled at by an angry son, who said I had not taken good care of his 89-year-old mother and had “almost killed her.” He told me that information came from the hospitalist, …

How physicians can transform through play

Kristin Yates, DO

Physician

January 2, 2022

I went ziplining with a group of fellow doctors this summer. It was an activity that was part of my Adventure Retreat for Women Physicians, which was a CME-awarding retreat that focused on having fun. This may sound extraneous, but making time for fun is one of the most impactful things you can do to bring more meaning and satisfaction into your life.

Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor is a neuroscientist who …

7 causes of low back pain

Madhu Singh, MD

Conditions

January 1, 2022

The New Year is a typical time for resolutions, and one of the most common ones is to get healthier. For many of us, a common stumbling block is dealing with low back pain. As a rehabilitation medicine physician, my focus is nonoperative spine care within one of the top orthopedic practices in the country. Let’s talk about the causes of low-back pain and what we can do about it.

1. …

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7 causes of low back pain

Beware of errors in your medical record

Miles J. Varn, MD

Physician

December 31, 2021

Anyone can make a mistake — even your health care provider. And sometimes, those mistakes end up in your medical records. That can cause a variety of issues, including misdiagnosis, medication interactions, missed follow-up testing and care, duplicate testing and billing errors. Fortunately, HIPAA gives you the right to request a copy of your medical records from any health care provider who has treated you so that you can review …

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Beware of errors in your medical record

CPT coding changes: 5 proven methods of how to do more with less

James Maskell

Policy

December 31, 2021

It’s well known that coding changes drive provider behavior, and billing behavior drives provider decisions.

For the last 30 years, little has changed in health insurance billing, which is why the standard of care within the payer system has remained, well, standard.

Then the pandemic hit, and suddenly everything was turned on its head. Patient demands increased sharply, office visits became impossible or prohibited across most of the country, and with telemedicine, …

How writing fiction can free physicians [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

December 29, 2021

“Physicians can find — or start — writing workshops at medical conferences, or just about anywhere else, at any time. These workshops can become part of wellness or burnout-prevention events. To interact with other writers, all you need is a champion―someone to organize a time and space for you …

Leaving academic medicine was a matter of self-respect

Monique Tello, MD

Physician

December 25, 2021

“Mom, every time I look in the mirror, I see something different. Sometimes it’s good, and I feel good about myself. But, sometimes it’s not.”

It was well after dinner, and my nine-year-old daughter was perched on the kitchen counter, nibbling on apple slices while I made tea. Her eyes were fixed on her reflection in the mirror across the room, her expression critical.

I leaned forward. “Let me share something with …

A holiday greeting card from the land of primary care

Ryan McCormick, MD

Physician

December 24, 2021

I wish you and your family a safe, healthy, and happy holiday season. I hope your new year is bright and better. And in the campy spirit of the family newsletter some folks send out each year (which I love to read), here is one from me to you.

This year as a family doc was challenging. Again.

At times it was inspiring, frightening, and exhausting. I started the year with a …

Let’s not become a nation of physician-robots

Diana Londoño, MD

Physician

December 24, 2021

My 5-year-old proudly told me during lunch, “Did you know animals don’t cry?” When she told me this, I had to think about it and then immediately Google this. Having small kids teaches you many random facts, including that sharks don’t blink because they don’t have eyelids.

So, when she told me her new fact, I was intrigued.

Animals, unlike humans, do not have a prefrontal cortex.

This is an area of the …

Osler and the doctor-patient relationship

Leonard Wang

Education

December 22, 2021

I first heard about Sir William Osler (1849-1919) through my primary care physician. His biography stated: “I practice family medicine because every day I get to meet new people from all over the world. I get to hear their stories, meet their families, and help them heal. In some cases, I get to see them again and again, building trust and respect while forming meaningful relationships. To me, there is …

Could you solve this medical puzzle?

Janet Tamaren, MD

Physician

December 21, 2021

An excerpt from Yankee Doctor in the Bible Belt: A Memoir.

Doctors like to solve puzzles. These are ideally diagnostic puzzles. The following is a story about a patient whose illness was unsolvable: the pieces of the puzzle did not fit together. No matter how you tried to force a diagnosis out of the disparate pieces of data, it did not …

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Could you solve this medical puzzle?

What Dr. Seuss reminds us about Christmas

Osmund Agbo, MD

Physician

December 20, 2021

Once upon a time, in a magical land of Whoville, lived the Whos. They were a group of little humans who loved Christmas with passion. But not too far from their beloved town and in a place called Mount Crumpet, inhabited the Grinch, a grouchy creature that hated Christmas. During that time of the year, the Grinch would watch people of Whoville adorn their houses and buildings in bright colors …

CME budgets expire soon: Use it or lose it

Steve Burgess, MD

Physician

December 20, 2021

Most physicians receive a budget for CME expenses, and many of those expire on December 31. It’s important to take action now – if you have funds left, there’s a good chance they will be disappear when 2021 ends, and you will then be spending your 2022 CME allowance.

It’s unfortunate that CME budgets typically expire on December 31. This is an incredibly busy time of year, and most of us …

Are you willing to shed tears for your patients?

Andy Lamb, MD

Physician

December 19, 2021

During my 30 years in medicine, and especially as I began leading medical missions in 2005 to the poorest countries in the world, I have seen much need, tragedy, and heartbreak. It is overwhelming. Despite our best efforts medically to help, we fail. What do you do when all else fails? What do you do when someone has lost all hope and feels you have nothing else to offer?

In his …

Leaving clinical medicine without regrets

Monique Tello, MD

Physician

December 15, 2021

“You do not have to be good.”

I’ve long considered having these classic, profound opening words of Mary Oliver’s most famous poem tattooed on my body somewhere. Since I quit clinical medicine a month ago, I’m at that stage where I’m researching tattoo parlors.

It was just this morning, a late October Saturday morning, that I took my kids and the dog hiking in the woods in the rain. …

Change is critical to fulfilling our calling

Andy Lamb, MD

Physician

December 10, 2021

July 2, 1973, is a day etched forever in my mind. A day I remember as if it happened yesterday even though 47 years have passed. A day I thought would never come and then, when it did, would never end. It was the day I entered West Point as a 17-year-old kid with big dreams to “become an Airborne, Ranger, Infantryman and lead men in combat.” That was my …

A medical student shares a story about language [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

Podcast

December 7, 2021

“My mother screamed. It meant my father needed a doctor — now.

But why?

We just visited the hospital days before to refill his drugs. He would be better if he used the drugs. Magic drugs. That is what he called them. I stood up from the mat where I slept …

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