While it appears we are on the downhill slope of COVID-19’s integration into everyday life, burnout rates are rising, and organizational trust is taking a nose-dive. Aren’t we supposed to be in the post-disaster recovery phase? What is the …
Category: Infectious disease
COVID-19 is still a global health issue but we can responsibly live with it
The World Health Organization (WHO) first declared the COVID-19 outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on January 30, 2020, when, outside of China, there were fewer than 100 cases, and there were no deaths. This formal decl…
The vaccination dilemma: Protecting patient rights or caregiver freedom?
Recently, I heard a news report regarding several state attorneys general suing the federal government to eliminate the requirement that health care providers be immunized against COVID. They argued that as fully immunized individuals still contract CO…
Breaking the stigma: Making HIV and COVID screening routine in primary care [PODCAST]
Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes! In this episode, we welcome clinical research assistant professor, Maranda C. Ward, to discuss the importance of routine screening for both HIV and COVID-19 in primary care. During the COVI…
Mostly miserables: a physician-mother’s struggle during COVID-19
It was the year 2020 — the month of March. The world shifted on its axis in ways we could not imagine. The job of a physician-mother is one of never-ending tightrope walking while juggling batons on fire and crystal figurines, all while herding cats. Y…
Golden years, golden risk: the startling increase of STDs in seniors
An excerpt from Never Too Late: Your Guide to Safer Sex after 60. The sexual revolution that began in the 1960s challenged social norms and traditional concepts, promoted acceptance, and liberated individuals from sexual repression. It effectively tran…
Navigating the new norm: a physician’s perspective on caring for sick patients in the age of COVID
I have three adult daughters, all college graduates. All are in long-term relationships with men, children, dogs, and careers. I am “Dad” and will always be Dad. I additionally happen to be a physician who cares for adult patients. If they …
The rise of at-home STI testing: a solution to America’s growing problem or a risky gamble?
In 2021, I spent the year before starting medical school calling and counseling the patients of a busy urban emergency department on the results of their sexually transmitted infection (STI) tests. “What exactly is gonorrhea?” some would as…
A physician’s journey with COVID-19: reflections on mental coping mechanisms and seeking care [PODCAST]
Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes! In this episode, we hear from Alen Voskanian, a palliative care physician, who shares his personal experience with COVID-19. Dr. Voskanian reflects on the mental coping mechanisms he used t…
The isolation of the COVID ICU: the need for patient advocates
The COVID ICU is abuzz with monitors beeping and doctors and nurses rushing from bed to bed to care for critically ill patients, most on ventilators. The machines – dialysis, vents, pumps – sound off their rhythmic repetitions; breaths are pushed in an…
