I’ll admit it. I’m a medical-TV junkie, addicted to 21st-century doctor and hospital dramas (most of which are now streaming on Netflix and other services). Although some physicians are bothered by sensationalized depictions of their profession, I appr…
Recently, at medical schools across the country, first-year students officially donned the physician’s traditional white coat for the first time. The white coat ceremony is a powerful symbolic moment. It signifies that the students are moving bey…
“It should be in my chart.” I’m sure we have all heard this statement uttered with a subtle (or not so subtle) edge of frustration from our patients after asking a question such as “what medications do you take?” I find clinicians despise this comment…
In the current health care system, patient outcomes, and patient satisfaction are increasingly important. With the hospital value-based purchasing program, Medicare adjusts payments to hospitals based on the quality of patient care they provide. Hospit…
It’s difficult to imagine a world now without Google and the internet. It’s also strange to think that most people alive right now received the bulk of their education in the pre-internet era. I remember in the United Kingdom, where I went to medical s…
Physicians and nurses deal with the deepest issues of the human condition: life and death. Our profession brings new life into the world and does our best to bring comfort and peace at the journey’s end. It is a profound and emotional experience for me…
Just before I induced anesthesia, he said, “Doc, I want to apologize beforehand. I am incontinent due to a previous surgery so I might wet the sheets.” I told him not to worry and that we understood and that “these things do happen.” …
I am a middle-aged, full-time emergency physician, and part-time law student. Usually, I practice medicine during the day and attend law classes in the evening. Sometimes I have law classes in the afternoon or early evening then work in the emergency d…
As physicians, we are constantly faced with a daily barrage of meeting minimum RVUs, while keeping up with EMRs as part of the necessary components to successfully practice medicine. This has resulted in a decrease in personal interactions with patient…
A 69-year-old man with a medical history of hypertension, diabetes, and obesity with a body mass index of 33 was admitted with altered mental status. He and his wife were returning from a 14-day Alaskan cruise. On their return, the wife started noticin…
