How does a physician become a thriller author? Where do his stories come from? How long does it take to go from idea to finished product? How did his experience as a physician influence his books? is a retired orthopedic surgeon. He shares his...
"Feedback in the assessment stage is always useful for improving the design of a device — especially as it relates to improving long-term aspects, such as patient outcomes or cost-effectiveness. This kind of feedback can only come after a device has...
"As I approach this last stretch of residency, still entrenched in the rigors of training and the intensity of raising three young children under five years old, I am in a unique position of being able to reflect on the years and look ahead at what I...
"While the COVID-19 pandemic exposed and normalized the need for increased mental and behavioral health services over the last year and a half, addressing mental health issues as a regular form of their wellness will persist beyond the pandemic....
"I’m smart enough to be a physician. As if being the smartest person in the room makes you the best physician in the room. Hint, it doesn’t. Being a good physician is a culmination of knowledge, skills, and strengths that you, as an individual...
"In times of uncertainty, human behavior often makes people resort to less-than-stellar behaviors; unhealthy personal environments can become manifest as well. Often, these coincide with health care being used more frequently and the safe haven of...
"I implore you — even if it’s difficult — if you don’t like your doctor, take the time and find a new one! How do you do that? Check your insurance for who they cover, and then ask your friends who they see and like. Google the physician....
"We focus on ensuring our solution works equally well for English speakers with any accent. We regularly hear from doctors how much of a difference this makes in their ability to deliver high-quality patient care. It’s our hope that more health tech...
"I bring this to your attention because, in 1971, I took an oath to impart precept, oral instruction, and all other instruction to all indentured pupils who have taken the Healer’s Oath. Having done so, if it strikes you that, during the...
"The first step to hospital recovery is the collection and analysis of data. Organizations that effectively leverage data to optimize surgery can see rapid, quantifiable, and sustained improvements in metrics that directly link to operational...
"The dramatic uptick in mental distress, trauma, and substance use since last year has driven a corresponding rise in the use of virtual mental health therapy and psychiatric care, helping us, as a society, more effectively grapple with the fallout...
"When I teach medical students who rotate with me at my clinic, I ask them to write about the single most negative and single most positive emotional experiences they have had in their 3 to 4 years of training thus far. Commonly, I see fear as a...
"Just as Simone Biles has her detractors, there will always be physicians unable to empathize with their mentally ill colleagues, believing psychological struggles are a constant state of being human. But if taking care of oneself means temporarily...
"According to AAMC, the median debt for medical students in 2019 was $200,000. Unfortunately, fundraising for scholarships was difficult for many organizations due to the pandemic despite more students seeking out scholarships. Luckily, more anonymous...
"Our country is facing a voting crisis with multiple layers: chronically low overall voter participation, even lower voter participation among physicians and — to add insult to injury — an increasing number of laws that make voting more difficult,...
"Currently working in a COVID ICU in a tertiary center in Kathmandu, I have experienced how difficult it is for the health system to manage the patient load. A month ago, ICU beds were fully occupied, ventilator alarms would set off time and again,...
"Until recently, voice changes from menopause and aging have been almost unmentionable. If a woman talked about her challenges, especially if she was a professional singer, it could have meant decreased opportunities and even the end of her career....
"A rough career transition in 2019 followed by the pandemic highlighted how I was still financially tethered to my job — after 10 years of practicing as a subspecialty trained radiologist, saving, maxing out my retirement accounts, and investing in...
"With this single word, mom had now completely altered her willingness to see the deep suffering of her child. This single word watered all of this child’s five years of depression, crippling anxiety, history full of ACEs, and very significant...
"While we still lack a complete cause and effect model of Alzheimer’s disease, there is no doubt that the etiology is multifaceted and nonlinear. This accounts for the fact that it takes an incredibly long time for Alzheimer’s disease to develop....
"Dehumanizing patients can lead to indifference in physicians. It is a privilege to be trusted to take care of every patient we encounter, yet we can lose sight of this and begin to see our patients as a burden, or as units of work, rather than as...
"Toward the end of my clinical career, I didn’t feel like I had control over much at all. The patient safety issues loomed large. We used ridiculous workarounds for broken processes. The constant vigilance to provide excellent care in a suboptimal...
"Physicians have had a rough century, so far. In addition to battling COVID-19, doctors have spent the past two decades fighting the health care industry’s fiercest players and losing, badly. Power in the industry now belongs to health insurance...
"Maybe it’s a testament to a hardy relationship that there was no resulting argument. Without thinking, I blurted out, 'You are so sexist!' I could immediately tell by my husband’s face, his upper eyelids and eyebrows lifted a bit, his mouth...