Category: Infectious disease

An anesthesiologist’s message to her community

I am an anesthesiologist who practices in Omaha, Nebraska at a large university. Our institution is preparing around the clock to care for our community in the midst of the COVID-19 virus. We are all coming together – doctors, scientists, nurses, techn…

My first question every time I see a new patient now is: Could this be COVID-19?

Inside, as usual, patient beds are near capacity, and the emergency department is filled with not only the usual mix of patients with trauma, stroke, chest pain, and other concerns, but also dozens of people worried they might have COVID-19. I am an em…

Health care workers are heroes

I spent the last week working in a large community hospital in a state with a soaring number of coronavirus cases. I previously had a few days off while this whole situation was escalating, and heard from colleagues that our hospital was taking huge me…

What if our response to coronavirus is not about social distancing?

As an emergency physician on the frontlines of the battle against coronavirus, I have stood sentinel to see the transformations that are occurring in and out of the hospital. There are terms that now roll off our tongues that we didn’t know a month ago…

Amid COVID-19, please USMLE Step 1 pass/fail now

COVID-19 continues to require unprecedented disruptions to medical education. On March 17, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and Liaison Committee on Medical Education recommended that medical schools release all students from clinica…

To my surgical colleagues: Please do the right thing

As an anesthesiologist, the odds are I might get to work thirty minutes or an hour before you to prepare for the case or cases which you will perform that day. No matter what the procedure is, I am prepared for the worst possible scenario. This include…

Life on the front lines and surviving the emergency department (with the help of social media)

In the midst of a global pandemic, COVID-19 has forced all involved with patient care to be innovative and adaptive. Deployed as an emergency department (ED) physician, on the front lines of medicine, my team and I work tirelessly to take care of and r…

It’s time for physicians to unite, not tear each other down

One of the many reasons I’m proud to be American is that we truly identify as being American. We aren’t Illinoisans or Californians. Our pride comes from being part of this nation. Why is it different in our careers? As I watch the coronavirus multiply…

Cocktails during COVID-19

During this time of social distancing, most of us are struggling to keep our social connections alive. I found that in this flurry of planning how to continue to care for my orthopaedic patients, making sure childcare is lined up, and setting up “decon…

Physician advocacy in the age of COVID-19

In “Why doctors should get political,” I focused on the need for doctors to voice their opinions in order to rally patients and inspire them to take control of their own health, but what about the responsibility we have to ourselves, our families, and …