The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced several measures guiding the care of patients during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Another important action that will immensely help the health care workers at the forefront is to reduce the d…
Category: Conditions
Breaking bad news to patients when they are alone
Today, we got called on a patient in the ICU who recently had a new brain mass removed surgically. The specimen came back positive for an aggressive brain tumor known as glioblastoma multiforme. We discussed his diagnosis and prognosis with him at beds…
In the midst of COVID-19, triage is a four-letter word
In my career as an outpatient family physician, triage is not something that I commonly do. But now, with the COVID-19 pandemic in full swing, it seems the large percentage of my day is spent in triaging patients. And I have to say, I don’t really care…
An infectious disease physician says: Stay the F@$k at home
In honor of one of the great classic novels, Go the F**k to Sleep, I would like to present to you my literary work: Stay the F@$k at Home. To the healthy 20 year old who asks, “Why should I stay the F@$k at home, COVID-19 is not going to kill me?…
COVID-19 is rattling the nerves of preemie parents everywhere
As I write this, hand sanitizers, disinfecting wipes, gloves, and masks are sold out everywhere in the panic over COVID-19. People are writing about increased anxiety, and mental health professionals cite a massive surge in requests for help. Go anywh…
Potty training during a pandemic
The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11th. Shortly thereafter, the governor of Massachusetts declared a state of emergency and recommended social distancing. Schools and daycares across the state closed. My hospital respo…
A message from an emergency physicians to those in business
I’m a medical doctor. Day to day, I focus on the practice of emergency medicine. I’ve never considered myself an alarmist. Actually, I’ve been trained to be calm in the face of tragedy. Many of my friends in business are concerned tha…
A message to administrators from physicians: Lead, follow, or get out of the way
We represent the front lines in this ongoing crisis, and we are disheartened by not only the lack of support but overwhelming greed from just about all of you. We have kept our mouths shut and practiced medicine, providing excellent patient care, while…
What’s going to happen? What’s going on? I wish someone could tell me.
The waiting room is empty, and I take signout on five patients. The patients that typically line the hallways waiting for beds, for stress tests, for MRIs all stayed home. The familiar drunks still get their blister-packed turkey sandwiches. There’s a …
Help our health care heroes take care of you
The goal of “flattening the curve” regarding the novel coronavirus pandemic is to slow transmission such that we avoid seeing a large unmanageable peak of infections at once. It doesn’t necessarily mean that fewer people will be infected from start to …
