Nurses are not getting the protection they need to care for COVID patients, and no one seems to care. Where is the outrage? Nurses are at the COVID patients’ bedside 24/7. We all know the medical staff is not wearing the proper gear at all. If su…
Category: Conditions
Telemedicine in COVID-19 is a unique challenge for homeless patients
COVID-19 cases in the United States are continuing to rise, with some regions of the country entering a stage of peak infection. Despite growing resources allocated to our public health response, a substantial gap exists in our approach to the care of …
Is there a doctor on board? Yes, but we might not be the right doctor.
My husband and I travel internationally at least three times a year to give courses with live surgical demonstrations of colorectal conditions in children. During the past 13 years making those trips, we had our share of hearing the famous announcement…
Ventilators are only part of the story: We need critical care trained practitioners
The media and policymakers have spent a lot of time focusing on the shortage of ventilators in the country. Elmhurst Hospital in Queens – one of the hardest-hit locations in the country, and where I work – received a donation of 40 desperat…
I am a physician, and I will heal when I can, but I will always provide hope
I don my PPE in the hallway, while the patient is watching the increased commotion outside of their room. They see me enter their room, introduce myself, and then position myself behind their bed. They are covered with a plastic wrap or an intubation b…
Physician burnout in the wake of COVID-19
A doctor who has a contagious disease is not only suffering in terms of their health but also about being incapacitated in performing their life-saving tasks. Doctors with COVID-19 likely increase the community’s disease burden, so the frontline staff …
From a clinician on the frontlines: I can’t stop mentally drafting my obituary
I can’t stop mentally drafting my obituary. A coworker snaps a picture of me in full protective gear, holding a respiratory swab, and I wonder how this photo will age. I wonder about the folly of our actions now, four health care workers seated togethe…
A scandalous prank, as told by a social worker
Everyone called her “Maggie,” which was short for Magnolia. She acquired that nickname because she was from the Deep South, which made her a standout in New York. Her name was really Linda. Maggie seemed to gravitate to the Irish in New Yor…
COVID-19: Nurses and the respiratory therapists are truly the brave
It is all about the nurses and the respiratory therapists. I watch countless brave actions every day in the ICU. These are people who, in “normal” times, spend nights, weekends, and holidays caring for the sickest of the sick. They are modestly paid…
We must not forget the caregivers during the pandemic
Last night, a cable news host raised an anguished alarm about the crisis of the pandemic in America’s nursing homes. It resonated. As a physician, I have worked in those places across the U.S. From the pastoral rural to the gritty inner city. Face…
