Author's posts
Care is no longer personal. Care is political. [PODCAST]
“To care for dependents, the carer must be cared for, both for the sake of her charge and for her own sake. Without such basic infrastructure, we have anxiety, confusion, and chaos. Contagion knows no independent individuals. Its boundaries are …
A medical student’s 100 days of COVID [PODCAST]
“The first 100 days of COVID made me confront and reflect on a lot of aspects of myself and life, as philosophical as that sounds. Often times, I’m exhausted talking about COVID every single day and frustrated because we should be in a much bette…
Why flu vaccines are more important than ever in this pandemic [PODCAST]
“The flu vaccine can strengthen your immune system, prevent the disease spread among those closest to you, protect your children, and reduce the health care system’s burden. Protecting ourselves and others as we traverse a pandemic is paramount i…
Climate change, cardiac arrest, and the price of inaction [PODCAST]
“We have to start understanding these as the real costs of climate change. We are paying these costs now. In my state of Oregon, people are going to start getting sick and dying in the next few days of the wildfire smoke choking the air. When the…
COVID-19 vaccines: Channeling the 7 habits to get from vaccines to vaccinations [PODCAST]
“As we get excited about vaccine news and results, we need to evaluate our messaging and how we can get to high enough COVID-19 vaccination rates to achieve herd immunity. This requires broad and frequent education on the safety and efficacy of t…
Bottles and pacifiers: advice from a Latinx pediatrician [PODCAST]
“Growing up in Puerto Rico, ‘babas’ (bottles: biberón/botellas) and ‘bobos’ (pacifiers: chupetes/chupón) were very common among the families and children of the island. I still remember our Abuelita giving us milk in our…
Why COVID is so emotional for physicians [PODCAST]
“These encounters made my evening shift much more emotional than usual. I am still not sure what it was exactly that evoked such strong feelings of sadness. Was it having a patient who was a health care worker? Was it the rapidity in which all th…
Think you have an iodine allergy? You may want to reconsider. [PODCAST]
“Iodine-based contrast agents are widely used for CT and other X-ray studies. They light up blood vessels and enhance perfusing tissue. These agents are essential for diagnosing everything from clots, to tumor, to bleeding. Unfortunately, many pa…
Behind the scenes of a hospital’s COVID response [PODCAST]
“In the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic, getting a flu shot has never been more important. Many people are staying indoors, wearing a mask, and washing their hands frequently. In this environment, patients ask me, “With all this social distancing, d…
Food allergies are not funny [PODCAST]
“If we do not raise objections to this kind of comedy, we are teaching those around us that food allergies can be funny. It is no that surprise that data indicates kids and adults are anxious, embarrassed, and bullied due to food allergies. When …
