The old saying that says “practice makes perfect” is a basic rule taught to every resident starting their training. The follow-up questions that pose themselves: Is it true? How much time does it need to become perfect? What type of practice? Time was …
After entering Gate D at Fenway Park, John had his temperature taken and verified that he was symptom-free. As he rounded the corner, his friend heard him whisper through his mask, “I think this is real.” He was referring to the calming sounds of a str…
In March, thousands of medical students received their residency match results. For most specialties, match rates for graduating U.S. MD seniors have typically remained above 90 percent. This almost certain job security is what allows most medical stud…
Never have I ever had to rely on my communication skills as much as I have as a physician in the pandemic of 2020. My eyes, however, were not taught those skills. There are pillars in medicine, communication guidelines, and lessons in empathy — a…
“At the start of the pandemic when hospitals were overrun, testing and PPE were scarce, and unknowns about COVID-19 transmission abound, such restrictions were reasonable, perhaps even essential. But we have made progress since then; most hospita…
My whole life has been leaping from one goal to the next. As far back as I can remember, I always had goals. Later in life, after practicing for a while, academic and career goals shifted to financial goals. But goals nonetheless. I never gave mysel…
One of the best feelings medical students must have is the day they match into a residency training program. This day will end an era and starts another. During those few months before July 1st, all medical students go through this phase of mental tran…
I do not usually write on this subject. I avoid talking about it also. Not because I do not have what to say but rather because of numerous disturbing memories and experiences since childhood that I intentionally avoid remembering. Events of the last w…
In 2002, two Stanford dermatologists published a study in which they sent a questionnaire to a week’s worth of patients, asking them their preferences for how medical providers dress. The study covered relatively new ground. Two of the four references …
She began telling me the same “sob story,” but this time, I looked at her and coldly said, “Mrs. _____, you are going home. I don’t care what you have to say; you are leaving today. I need the bed for someone else.” She began crying. I walked out witho…
