It started with diarrhea. Then fever before the patient sought care. The infiltrates were impressive. A dry cough with paroxysms that were sometimes uncontrollable. The rapid test came back negative, as did the send out PCR. The patient returned …
Category: Conditions
Life in the emergency department during COVID: a rural physician’s perspective
“Do you think we should prepare a will?” I vividly remember saying these words to my wife, also a physician, as we drastically saw COVID cases rise in early March 2020. Just months ago, we heard about the novel coronavirus now known as SARS-CoV-2 but d…
Choose respect over fear
My son is a cub scout, and I am a den leader. Recently our den met outside and practiced putting up tents and learned how to build a fire. With efforts to stay distanced, every scout made his own s’more, and we had such a fun time. One highlight of the…
Don’t let a negative COVID-19 test ruin your Thanksgiving
Mirroring the national surge of COVID-19 infections, this past week, I received a barrage of requests from patients seeking pre-travel COVID-19 tests. Despite urgent pleas from the CDC not to travel this holiday season, Americans seem hellbent on celeb…
Pandemic or not, we’re failing patients when it comes to behavioral health
Patients deserve better. They lack access to and engagement with quality care — especially behavioral health care. Behavioral health goes beyond diagnosable mental health — everyone struggles with days that feel depressing or times that induce anxiety …
Pay attention to science and medicine, or else you may be the next careless victim
I enter the hospital to work again. I must work as I have three small children and a husband presently out of work because of COVID. He is “non-essential.” A violinist is playing at the employee entrance. I know they do this to lift our spirits. But it…
Will anyone take the COVID-19 vaccine when it’s approved?
Finally, 2020 has offered some encouraging news, with Pfizer and Moderna publishing recent results that provide initial evidence of their vaccine’s ability to prevent COVID-19. With the recent promising results from both vaccine trials, it seems like o…
Physicians fight from the social media frontlines
As of November 2020, there are about 11.5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 2,50,000 deaths from COVID-19 disease in the USA. Conspiracy theories thrive in times of great uncertainty, and the COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be a petri dish for th…
The 5 “P’s” of a pandemic
Math was never my favorite subject. However, I was lucky to have good teachers who took the time to help me navigate through high school math and graduate with a final A grade. As I struggled with numbers and equations, calculus and fractions, I was to…
The ibuprofen COVID-19 paradox
With the surge of information surrounding COVID-19 released in the news this year, an interesting concern arose regarding ibuprofen’s use in patients with COVID-19. In March of 2020, French authorities were the first to investigate anecdotal repo…
