“What did you see?” I asked her, as she sat across from me, wide-eyed and obviously unnerved even thinking back about the episode. “It was horrible,” she said, “just horrible. I was lying on my back, and I saw it in the do…
Category: Conditions
The surprising truth on how to avoid postpartum depression
The current popular notion is that postpartum depression (PPD) cannot be prevented. Rather, it can only be diagnosed with an Edinburgh test once the patient has PPD. Often PPD is considered to be both surprising and mysterious. In reality, it is neithe…
A people-first approach to cardiac rehabilitation
How do you change the paradigm in a rigid system? When the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in 2020, my team and I didn’t have a choice. We had built our hospital’s in-person cardiac rehabilitation program from the ground up, but this was a moment…
Treating inflammation provides hope in the fight against Parkinson’s
The acceleration of new Parkinson’s disease cases outpaces other age-related conditions, and as a result, the patient population is growing quickly. In 2022 there were about 90,000 new diagnoses in the U.S., versus the previous prevailing estimat…
NICU tragedy: How new nurses’ nail choices led to a newborn’s heartbreaking fate
A small, cliquish bevy of nurses was working their way through orientation in the NICU straight out of nursing school. They were happy and thrilled to be accepted into this specialized nursing unit: the NICU. Practicing good hygiene, washing hands up t…
The opioid addiction epidemic and its impact on health care costs
The opioid addiction crisis has escalated into a formidable challenge within the U.S. health care system, causing widespread devastation. The opioid epidemic has not only devastated communities and individual lives but has also inflicted a substantial …
A dementia patient’s poignant return to childhood
I recently watched an Indian movie called The Three of Us, which revolves around a woman named Shelujah. She is in her late 30s, very charming, traditional, and intelligent. She works as a marriage counselor, leading a happy married life with one son s…
Unlocking emotional healing: the power of EMDR therapy
The therapeutic modality developed by Francine Shapiro and referred to as eye movement desensitization reprocessing or EMDR, when embedded in the context of a wider lens, focuses on specific events and feelings with a view to overarching goals. We beco…
EMDR therapy: From walk to wonder, unmasking trauma’s secrets
In 1987, Francine Shapiro went for a walk and discovered eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) as a therapeutic technique for traumatic experiences with lasting impact. Some thirty years later, with a substantial body of research confirming …
Clinicians and management at odds in health care
In a survey conducted by a University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing team led by Linda Aiken, PhD, RN, of 21,050 physicians and nurses at 60 hospitals, it was found that more than 40 percent of clinicians were not confident that hospital management …
