Category: Hospital-Based Medicine

Doctors: Never pass judgment on the human being in front of you needing help

Oh, how we all learn and change with our experiences. It’s one of the greatest things in life that most of us (hopefully) are not the same person now that we were a few years ago. Looking back to when I first become a physician at the age of 22 (yes, t…

Physicians of America, unite! You don’t have to work for hospitals.

A recent report by Merritt Hawkins, the physician recruiting firm, includes two key revelations about the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on physicians: Merritt Hawkins’ searches on behalf of prospective employers have dropped by 30 percent since March 3…

When it becomes time to embrace fear and loss and let the chaos lead to growth

A man outfitted in a lovely blue suit falls through the air, losing his shoe and hurriedly scribbling notes, seemingly ignorant to the gravitational chaos around him. While this picture is featured on the cover of the novel Less by Andrew Sean Greer, I…

When it becomes time to embrace fear and loss and let the chaos lead to growth

A man outfitted in a lovely blue suit falls through the air, losing his shoe and hurriedly scribbling notes, seemingly ignorant to the gravitational chaos around him. While this picture is featured on the cover of the novel Less by Andrew Sean Greer, I…

It is not OK for physicians’ anxieties to harm their patients [PODCAST]

“It is OK to be scared, but it is not OK to let our own anxieties harm our patients. As we tackle the numerous crises created by the COVID-19 pandemic, let’s acknowledge our fear and draw on the logic and clinical reasoning that we have spent yea…

Doctors shouldn’t feel ashamed for wanting to protect themselves or their family [PODCAST]

“Although I personally hope to continue to be at or near the frontlines, I understand those that are in a compromised position, and they shouldn’t feel ashamed for wanting to protect themselves or their family. There is no portion of the Hippocra…

A code in the time of COVID-19

The first time I had ever been present when a patient was in cardiac arrest, I was a medical student, spending a night in the emergency department of a small local hospital. An old woman was rushed in from home after she had fallen over at the dinner t…

Something’s rotten in America’s health care

My friend, the hospitalist, was livid as he came from meeting the administration. “They said doctors cost too much!” he sputtered. “We’re an expense. An expense the hospital can no longer support. We are an expense!” He turned purple. Nice color. Like …

Wife swap: a physician’s toxic work environment

“It’s not my fault that you chose to have children.” Years after leaving my job, I still hear my boss’s words in my head.  He did not want to get married and or have children. He made that clear during my interview. He was also …

Our patients matter, but at what cost to our families? 

oIs it possible to have it all?  Can you have a job that you love, helping people and using your brain and hands all at the same time; plus, a family, with a spouse and children, that you are always there for?  Is it possible to have a balance between …